Interview with Author Joanne Heim

Co-author of the Mosaixstudy.com series
Check out Toben Heim’s Interview

by Trisha Bleau Smith

T4JYM: I loved reading through the two mosaix studies that I received. It was an idea that I loved, being a net junkie and a follower of Christ. Where did the idea for the book come from? How much time was involved in putting together the studies that you did?

JH: The format grew out of our other books–which are interactive in nature, although without the Internet component. Toben really came up with the whole mosaix idea–he’s very creative!

We spent tons of time putting these studies together. Not so much the content–that flowed pretty well. It was the formatting and organizing the elements to work well around the key ideas that took so much time. I think we all (us and the publishing company) had different ideas of what the finished product would look like and it took a while to all get on the same page.

T4JYM: Who have been your biggest influences in life? Who have been your biggest influences in your life as a writer?

JH: My mother is definitely my biggest influence. She’s a wonderful godly woman who has provided me with a great example of what it means to be a woman who loves Jesus. As a writer, I don’t have one influence. Books in general are my biggest influence. I love to read and always have. Typically I read almost a book a day…! I love to read!

T4JYM: Do you generally hear from your audiences? What do they say about the works you have published?

JH: We do hear from individuals about the books we’ve written. It doesn’t happen all the time, but when it does it’s great to hear how people have been influenced by what we’ve written. It’s always fun to hear what stories from our lives have helped others and to hear their stories in exchange.

T4JYM: What other books have you written? These studies were co-written with another author, so have you written books on your own? How have they been accepted by the general public?

JH: What’s Your Story? An Interactive Guide to Building Authentic Relationships (Pinon Press) Great Expectations: An Interactive Guide to the First Year of Marriage (NavPress) All of the books we’ve written have been done together. Toben and I are a great writing team. He’s especially good at seeing the big picture and generating fun ideas, while I’m more adept at the technical aspect of writing and editing. I have done some ghostwriting on my own, but that was more part of my job when I worked for NavPress.

T4JYM: What was it like writing with another person? How did you coordinate who did what and how did you organize it? Was it difficult to do? Please share a little about the process of co-authoring a book.

JH: I nag a lot! Because tobem works outside the home and I don’t, I tend to be the one who drives the book forward once the initial outline is done. I organize chapters and come up with writing assignments for both of us to do in order to complete the chapter. Then I take what we’ve both written and integrate them into a whole, adding transitions and additional material to make it flow.

Writing with Toben is the best! We have a lot of fun and because our strengths complement each other so well, it’s pretty easy–when we find the time between his job, my job as a stay-at-home mom, and parenting together!

You might also like this:

Interview with Author Rene Gutteridge Interview with Author Diana Wallis Interview with Author John Perry