Suzanne Munson is a lover of history and author of two books about America’s Founding Fathers. The first, Jefferson’s Godfather, rated five stars on Amazon, is a biography about Founding Father George Wythe, signer of the Declaration of Independence and mentor to Thomas Jefferson.
Her most recent book, The Metaphysical Thomas Jefferson, provides fascinating commentaries that Jefferson would make about America’s current government and other institutions, if he were accessed today from his place in spirit. It premiered as the Number One New Release in Political Commentary on Amazon just after its release last year.
Suzanne has
lectured on the Wythe-Jefferson legacy at University of Virginia, William &
Mary, Virginia Tech, and University of Richmond continuing education
affiliates, at the Chautauqua Institution in New York, and at Road Scholar
programs and is a frequent guest speaker for groups interested in American
history.
She holds an undergraduate degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Maryland and a master’s degree in education from Virginia Commonwealth University. She also attended The Executive Program at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.
Following a career in corporate communications, she served as statewide Executive Director of Historic Garden Week in Virginia, an annual house and garden tour program benefitting historic preservation. After retirement, she turned her attention to writing and teaching.
Early encouragement from my mother and a 6th grade teacher were most helpful. From them and from my natural inclinations, I developed the idea that I wanted to be a writer.
I discovered an old diary from my mid-teens recently and recalled that I had won a regional essay contest. I wrote: “This will help me with my future writing career.” I was surprised that I had this conviction at such an early age.
I majored in English in college, an invaluable degree for writers. The Expository Writing class was especially useful, with Strunk and White’s “The Elements of Style,” for guidance.
I worked in the public information field for many years, always writing for others—news releases, annual reports, speeches, websites, letters, memos, etc.
When
I retired, I realized gratefully that I finally had time to write my own works,
focusing on history and also on poetry.
2. Who is your favourite writer and why?
I enjoy historic fiction and historic
biography. For historic fiction, Ken Follett’s four books in the Knightsbridge
series are winners. For biography, I like David McCullough’s works.
When
I want a complete change of pace, I go to Lee Smith, one of the all-time great
Southern women writers, with a wonderfully quirky sense of humor about the
riveting adventures of feisty females.
3. Where does your inspiration lie?
My three current books, two published
and one in progress, detail the contributions to the early success of America
by Thomas Jefferson and his mentor George Wythe. I am inspired by their selfless devotion to
public service, acting for the good of the public, not for personal gain. I am making ethical public service the
cornerstone of each of these three books.
I am a student of government.
I was also inspired by finding that it is possible to access those who have died through a respected, experienced medium. After numerous successful sessions with my late husband, parents, and departed friends, I had this idea: “If we can communicate with ‘regular’ people, why not someone famous? Why not Thomas Jefferson?” This led to production of my latest book, “The Metaphysical Thomas Jefferson.”
With my own questions and those from
historians, this theme was employed: “If you could talk with Thomas Jefferson,
from his current place in spirit, what questions would you ask?” The book premiered last summer on Amazon as
the Number One New Release in Political Commentary. I am giving well-received lectures from the
book and am appearing as a guest on numerous podcasts.
For
poetry, I never sit down with the idea of writing a poem. I will get flashes of inspiration, usually
from nature, that fit certain themes. I
ask myself whether the thought is worthy of a poem; if so, I immediately begin
to write the words, then go back numerous times to craft and improve the work.
My early poems followed the death of my
husband, an event that was a major catalyst for the creative years following
retirement from the working world. The
first reflections dealt with grief and loss.
Then I began to live more mindfully and wrote about the five
senses. Then, I miraculously found a new
soulmate and wrote about matters of the heart. All of these are contained in my
journal, “Of Loss and Love,” as yet unpublished.
4. What does your typical day look like?
When I need to concentrate, I do not
work at home. I find a writing or
spiritual retreat in the country and stay there for several days, focusing
entirely on the work.
When
I am doing something short, like an opinion piece for the paper, magazine
article, or lecture, I find time to do these at home. But I have no schedule, as I am busy with
many other projects and activities, in addition to writing. Writing is my avocation, not my job.
5. What piece of advice would you like to give to future aspiring writers?
Don’t just take creative writing classes. Take basic writing courses. Carefully study Strunk and White’s “The Elements of Style.”
A more entertaining version is “The Elements of Fucking Style,” where the examples are a bit more current. Learn the economy of words and sentences, about how to make your point and exit.
Aspire to have your book picked up by a major publisher, but don’t be disappointed if that doesn’t happen. Get someone to edit your work, then upload it to Amazon and do your own marketing.
Learn how to market. The book is not going to sell itself.
6. Which is your favourite book and why?
I would have to say “The Source,” by James Michener. I read this just after returning from a trip to Israel and the Middle East when I was sixteen.
I knew none of the history of this region or
of Europe. Stories of the crusades and
other huge events were eye-opening.
After that, I began to be a serious student of world history.
Interviewed by - Deepshikha
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