Author of Real Teens, Real Stories, Real Life
https://tsuzanneeller.com/
by Trisha Bleau Smith
T4J: I loved reading Real Teens, Real Stories, Real Life and thought it was beautifully written. It is very much needed in today’s society. Where did the idea for the book come from?
SE: From sitting in the altar with teens who were broken. I wanted to write a book that was not afraid to discuss tough issues, but in the light of our amazing Savior. I wanted it to have a definite teen voice, not an adult talking to teens, but teens talking to teens. My hopes were that this book could be placed in the hands of any teen–churched or unchurched–and that they would be able to see that God is relevant in today’s society and that he cares about what they are going through. I wanted teens to see that they are marked by God and that they have purpose.
T4J: How much editing was involved? Did you edit alone or did you send it to people to edit?
SE: I edited it myself. For some of the stories, very little was changed. I have met some amazing teen writers through this. Some of them continue to write for my newsletter: Real Teens, Real Faith (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RealTeens_RealFaith). For others, I had to cut 22 pages of their life story to three pages. This wasn’t easy because I didn’t want to lose the heart of their story or their voice. I worked very closely with the teens to make sure that didn’t happen.
T4J: What was the response from the various publishers? How many publishers did you send your book to before it was picked up? Was it rejected by any publishers?
SE: The response was instantaneous. In this business that’s almost a miracle. : ) My agent sent it to one publisher. I was away on a missions trip to Brazil (the exact place where the current episodes of the show “Survivor” was filmed). Right before I left for Brazil, my agent submitted the proposal. When I returned I had an offer for a contract. I danced in delight around my living room. This was a project that only two years before wouldn’t have seen the light of day in the CBA (Christian Booksellers Association) because of the topics discussed, but this publisher saw the need and ran with it.
T4J: How has this book been received by the general public? Has there been positive feedback? Any negative feedback? What has been the response from youth, being that the topic is one that is so influential in their lives?
SE: The response has been huge! In the past two months I have been deluged with invitations to talk about the book on radio and television. The invitations continue to come in and that is humbling. Yet it is the e-mails I receive from teens that I love the best. I hear from teens who say that the book opened their eyes to the fact that God still cares about this generation, and about them. I received an e-mail from a young girl named Ashley that said that it was an answer to prayer. She was drinking and ashamed and unsure if God still loved her. After reading Chad Lawson’s story, she realized that if God could reach out to Chad, then he was reaching out to her as well. She gave her life back to Christ. Those e-mails are priceless.
Another awesome thing has been to see the response. Teens are busy and they have so much stress that reading is sometimes hard to fit in. However, I’ve watched teens pick up the book for the first time and I am thrilled when I see them get drawn in immediately. I love that! It means that my hopes that the book would be written just for them worked and I’m thankful.
T4J: What are your next plans for writing? Do you plan to do any more books along the same lines as this book? Will you move on to new writing?
SE: I am under contract for my next book for parents of teens titled, “Did I Say I Hate You? I Meant I Need You – Straight Talk from Teens to Parents”. I am right now in the process of interviewing another one thousand teens. : ) In fact, if any of your readers want to help me in that process, they can e-mail me at ts*****@da***********.org and I’ll send them a survey. The interviews and surveys I have had so far in this new book have impacted me in ministry and as a mom as I read the answers from teens across the nation.
I am praying that this book will be different from any other parenting book on the market. Instead of adults talking to adults about teens, this will be a book from teens to parents, sharing the things that adults can do to impact their teen’s faith and the things they do that push them away. It will also talk about current issues so that parents can understand what a teen faces every single day in this society and culture.
Also, I have a publisher looking at a contemporary fiction book. Though teens are my passion in ministry, fiction is my first love in writing. I can’t wait until I can do both!
T4J: Have you written any other books? Do you write for anything else – such as magazine articles or newspapers?
SE: I’ve written about 350 articles for magazines such as Passageway.org, Today’s Christian Woman, Pray!, Guidepost, Woman’s World, and many others. I’m a family columnist for cbn.org. I have several stories in anthologies such as Chicken Soup for the Couple’s Soul, Stories for the Teen’s Heart, Chicken Soup for the Christian Woman’s Soul, and many others. I write a newspaper column for two years on contemporary issues in the light of faith. I continue to freelance along with writing books.
T4J: What training do you have in writing? Did you take any writing courses in college to obtain the skills you have currently?
SE: I have loved writing since I was a teen. I knew that I had talent, but wasn’t sure what to do with it. Later, I used my writing in my work, but it was writing about things like the merits of wastewater treatment plants (I worked for a civil engineering firm). Eleven years ago I found out that I had cancer and was given less than a 40% chance of surviving five years. When the five years came, I decided that I would not waste a second chance. I quit my job and came home to write full time. It was a step of faith and I have never regretted it!
I was not officially trained in writing, yet I continue to learn about the craft and business of writing. I was attending night classes in college to obtain a degree in English when I found out I had cancer. I had to stop to go through chemotherapy. I’ve never been back, but I’m unofficially in the classroom through reading books and magazines about writing, through teaching and attending professional conferences, and through leading and participating in online writers’ groups.
T4J: On your site there are many wonderful reviews from various authors. What is it like to see such well known members of society responding in such wonderful and positive ways?
SE: Amazing and extremely humbling. I’m just a mom from Oklahoma who believes in teens. Who knew that people like Kalel from Pillar and Dave from Sonicflood would step up and say they loved the book? That was only the beginning. People who I admired in the speaking and writing world also shared their thoughts. I’m still a little bit unsure of how that all happened because these people are so busy, yet they took time to write extraordinary endorsements.
T4J: What advice would you give to someone who wants to pursue a career in writing?
SE: Write, write, write. Keep a journal. Get with other writers, whether online or in a community writers’ group. After you have written for awhile, attend a writers’ conference and learn the business of writing. Buy a writers’ market guide (Sally Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide is awesome). Read books on writing and marketing your writing. When you are comfortable with all of this, then begin to submit your work to editors. When you get rejected, realize that it’s part of the business and keep sending them out. I could wallpaper my bedroom with my rejections!
T4J: What advice would you give to someone interested in publishing their works?
SE: One excellent resource for teens who want to write is
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