My hearts, I cannot wait for you to meet my new friend Nikki Elizabeth.

She interviewed me for her blog and we had such a great time, I asked her if I could return the favor.

Since 2007, Nikki’s work has been featured in publications across North America. At her day jobs (yes, that’s plural — like me, our friend wears many hats!), Nikki works as a travel writer and a copywriter serving corporations in the home improvement sector. In January 2024, she expanded her professional presence as a writer by publishing her debut novella, Industrialized, Poor Vinnie’s Valor.

She and I found each other on Bookstagram just as she prepared to launch her debut novel Industrialized, Part One: Experiment in April.

JEN: Welcome, Nikki! I need to start us off by saying you may find these questions very familiar. In fact, I blatantly stole several of your questions as I prepped for this interview (both laugh). I just want to be as thorough as you were!

NIKKI: (laughs) I love and actually greatly appreciate that! I’m so excited to share my story with you now that you’ve opened up to me.

JEN: I love to hear it. So, let’s talk writing. What genre do you typically write in?

NIKKI: Before I can answer this question, I think it’s worth explaining my background as a writer. I was a journalist from 2007 until 2016, and then I wrote for lifestyle magazines and travel websites. Having majored in public relations, I had a proclivity toward brand-building and storytelling, so I naturally fell into providing PR and content marketing services to clients. From there, I entered the corporate world, where I continue writing everything from ad copy to longform ghostwritten leadership materials, press releases, and landing pages. My niche is, more or less, writing anything and everything as long as I’m passionate about it. Mix in some brand building and marketing know-how and you’ve got a gal who believes words have power, no matter what—it’s just a matter of finding the right audience.

JEN: Yes! I’m trying desperately to find my own “right audience”. The readers of this blog and my newsletter are such a lovely, loyal start. How about reading? Do you have a favorite genre to read?

NIKKI: I genre-hop as both a writer and reader. I tend to enjoy reading darker stories that will haunt my thoughts for years to come, but I also love lighthearted stories. You could find me reading anything from the classics to YA fiction I enjoyed as an angsty teen. I guess I’m a mood reader. 

JEN: Same. Do you have a favorite book?

NIKKI: I have so many favorites, but I always say my all-time fave is The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. I first picked it up in third grade, I believe, and I devoured it in a day. Then, I read it again. And again. I pick it up once a year nowadays. I can’t quite pinpoint what about the story charms me, but it just feels like a warm hug. Reading it is like catching up with old friends. And every year, when the seasons change again, I find myself reflecting on Speare’s descriptions of the magic in each season. Now, we’re back in the locust and blackbird season, and I’m finding myself transported to the edge of Blackbird Pond whenever I spot the scarlet flash of wings.

JEN: Stop. You’re going to make me cry. This is how I feel about A Wrinkle in Time. I rarely say it’s my favorite book, but I revisit it the way you just described Blackbird Pond. Does that make Speare your favorite author?

NIKKI: You know, it's complicated. I was reading Dracula to my partner while he gamed last week, and at the end of a chapter, he suddenly said, “Do you have a favorite author?” I went, “What do you think?” He began listing off writers that might qualify—Bram Stoker, naturally. Shakespeare. (The Cher of the literary world!) Lemony Snicket. Anne Rice. Edgar Allan Poe. Elizabeth George Speare. Mark Twain. Rachel Caine. Shel Silverstein. Then he hesitated. “Oh. Oh, I see. You don’t.”

Truthfully, I don’t have a favorite author. I don’t even have a preferred writing style. If I find beauty in a story, I’m likely to love it. I definitely have authors I love and return to time and time again—as his list showed, I definitely have preferences—but there isn’t one writer I love over all others. 

JEN: There are so many things to unpack in this, I can hardly contain my excitement. First of all, #relationshipgoals! But also, yes! My favorite author is the one I’m currently reading. Maybe it all goes back to the mood reader-mood writer thing. Is this who you’ve been, how you’ve been all your life? What did you think you’d be when you were little?

NIKKI: I wanted to be a mortuary archaeologist with a writing career on the side. I started school for archaeology, actually! Around that time, however, my career in journalism was in full swing, so writing gigs just kept rolling in. I started reflecting on how much I'd make as an archaeologist, and I realized it simply wasn't a sustainable career path for me. I switched my major to Communications with emphasis in Public Relations and never looked back. However, I still dream of working in archaeology. When I retire (which I plan to do at a young and very wealthy age… easier said than done), I'd like to go back to school and finish my degree in archaeology. If my credits are still valid, I could probably complete my Bachelor's in a year and a half or so. If I decide against that path, you bet your britches I’ll be volunteering for field work and rolling around in the historic and recently unearthed dirt.

JEN: Amazing. As a journalism educator (one of my day jobs!), I’m curious about your jouranalism career. In what ways does your journalism background inform your fiction writing? 

NIKKI: This is a really interesting question. For a long time, I would have said that my background really did not influence my fiction work. Nowadays, I’ve matured enough to see that it has. For one, it disciplined me to write all day, every day. I can multitask like a pro—sitting on the phone, writing down every word your interviewee is saying while you’re thinking through your next question, and then polishing the article while talking over the cubicle wall to another reporter really ingrains a certain level of focus in you.

JEN: This is so real. Keep going.

NIKKI: On the other side of the spectrum, I think it hearkens back to my comment about walking the line of wickedness and goodness.

(NOTE FROM JEN: Nikki’s comment about wickedness versus goodness refers to Part 2 of our interview. Tune in tomorrow.)

NIKKI: I covered some horrific situations, and I had to maintain a calm demeanor and ask questions I really did not want to ask. I had to reflect on what sort of person I was to walk up to these haunting crime scenes, snap a few pictures, and then talk to authorities about what happened while it was realistically just another Tuesday for me. I remember the story that ultimately made me decide to step back from breaking news, too—it involved a dead child, and rather than getting help, the parents decided to attempt to cover up the smell of decomposition. They did not succeed. I was not even the lead reporter on that one, just a second line of defense while our crime beat guy went in and got the really gritty insights, but man. That one stuck with me. Seeing the very best and very worst of humanity on any given day was an experience like no other, and I do believe that has influenced my fiction writings. 

I’ll also add that working in the public eye has given me a thick skin. People have a tendency to vilify the press, and I definitely received threats for telling both sides of every story. To this day, my travel writing makes people angry when I reveal their secret spots. No matter what you do, no matter what you write, you won't please everyone. That’s okay. In a way, I think that means you’re doing everything right.

JEN: You’re the second former crime beat reporter to say this to me this week. Heartbreaking. Speaking of not pleasing all the people… In our interview, you said, “don’t get me started on the nuances of killing off characters! Industrialized, Part Two was almost a very different story. But I won’t go into that.” Now is the time to go into that! Tell me anything you want to share about killing off characters.

(NOTE FROM JEN: The following answer from our friend contains a multitude of spoilers! Skip to the character art question below if you want to read Part Two: Execution spoiler-free!)

NIKKI: Oh boy, you’ve got me. Ha! Okay, well… In the original draft of Part Two: Execution, I killed off one of the very wicked main characters. I was so relieved to have them gone because, hey, karma’s a bitch. My beta readers were very upset by that development, though, and nobody even finished the story. So I brought them back to life and instead killed off a very kind character near the end. The beta readers loved that version, and several people called me bawling when they finished it. I absolutely bawled when I wrote it. It was so much more resonant, and it united the cast in their shared grief. 

It was beautiful, really, the way that change impacted the story and readers’ perception of it. We cheer when bad guys get taken down, but when good guys meet an untimely demise? We’re forced to reflect on how the situation could have been better and what the world will look like with a little less goodness. The story’s cast definitely reflected on how they could pick up the slack and improve as human beings. After all, even in the midst of absolute horror and warfare, it’s not the bad people and bad things you reflect on. It’s the good, strength-filled people who united others and helped them pull through. Or, at least, that’s what we should be reflecting on.

As a writer, it’s our responsibility to reflect on the implications of every miniscule detail and determine if killing off a character actually lends something to the story. Because, realistically, those situations are going to send your readers on an emotional rollercoaster. It should always be done with intention and a lot of reflection. We writers carry a heavy social responsibility.

JEN: I love that. I agree. We carry that on our shoulders. I have one more question before we move on to questions from your fans and our friends. Will you please tell us a little about your character art? This piece absolutely killed me dead in the ground. I love it so so much! Have you always drawn? Did you surprise yourself? You play it pretty cool in the comments. I’m just stupidly impressed. 

NIKKI: Oh my gosh, you are just the sweetest! I’m a creative type at the core —I play violin and guitar, I used to sing in heavy metal bands, I belly dance. I draw. I paint. I tattoo.

JEN: Tattoo, even? Amazing.

NIKKI: I’m a dabbler in many arts and a master of very few. So, yes, I’ve always drawn. Originally, I wrote the story with a drawing at the beginning of every chapter. My thought process was, hey, if the narrator is sitting down and writing, she’d probably be doodling too, right? But I ultimately decided to cut the doodles from the final version that’s now published, and I just didn’t want the pictures to go to waste. So I made them move and turned them into a series of little promos!

If I’m being honest, I don’t love those drawings. They’re hasty, cartoony, and anything but polished. But they capture a bit of the story vision and intent, so I think there’s still a magic there that’s worth sharing. 

JEN: I couldn’t agree more.

NOTE FROM JEN: My hearts, there was too much good stuff in this interview. Please check back tomorrow to read Nikki’s answers to questions submitted by friends on Instagram.

Are you a human author? A human who narrates audiobooks? A human who designs book covers? Or a human who does PR and promotion for other authors? I'd love to interview you, too. Let me know when you’re ready!