CHARACTER INTERVIEW: Joy from the Parable series by Yours Truly

Tell me a little about yourself (where you live, who you are, what you look like, what you hope to achieve, etc.)

My name is Joy and I live with my mother. We live anywhere we can find, and sometimes I am able to spend a few nights at a homeless shelter for teens. My father is no longer in the picture, and that's fine with me, though at least with him, we had a place to live. My greatest hope is to find a better life for myself and my mother - even though she has given up all hope and I'm carrying the burden for both of us.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

My spare time is plentiful. Mother and I walk the streets and make infrequent visits to see Virginia and Richard at Just Desserts. I wish for a job, for a way out, but so far, all we really have is each other.

What is your favorite color and why?

I love pink. Actually, I love any color besides black.

What is your favorite food? Why is it your favorite?

That's easy. Cupcakes. They make them at Just Desserts and once I've saved up, my mother takes me over there for a special treat. Each cupcake is always served with a glittering ring on top - but the first ring was my favorite. I can't tell you why, you'll just have to read the series. It starts with Conquering Your Goliaths: A Parable of the Five Stones, next you'll want to read The Feast: A Parable of the Ring, and finally, you'll want to get your hands on, The Gift: A Parable of the Key.

What would you say is your biggest quirk?

I keep thinking that my mom's going to change, but I'm not sure if this is a quirk. Perhaps liking cupcakes so much is a quirk, but I think there's something else to liking them that I just haven't figured out yet.

What is it about your antagonist that irks you the most, and why? Share a line in the book where this irk is manifested.

My antagonist is the whole world and not anyone in particular, though my mother comes at a quick second, and my father definitely would if he was still around. Let's see, if it wasn't for my mother being addicted to drugs maybe she'd be able to get a job and then we could rent a place. I'm old enough to work but it's hard to get a job when you're homeless. I have high hopes that one day Virginia or Richard will ask me. I know I can work hard, I just worry what will happen to mother if I go to work. Will she be able to work with me?

Joy peered behind her mother like a small child. But she wasn't a small child. What was the woman doing to her only daughter? Whatever it was, she wouldn't stand for it.

"We have a right to our privacy!" the woman screamed, taking her daughter by the hair and pulling her in front of her.

"I'm so..." Joy began.

"Don't you go apologizing!"

"We're... in... their...house," Joy stammered.

Grace glared at Virginia. "It doesn't matter," she wheezed, letting go of her daughter's hair and taking her daughter by the hand. "I suppose you want us to leave."

Virginia was dumb struck. What could she possibly say to this woman? Do? And then the words came:

"We will not allow drugs in this house! I don't care if it's booze or needles!"

Joy blinked her large green eyes. "I told you, I told you they'd find out!"

Grace scowled. "I told you to be quiet."

Joy laughed. But it was a sickly laugh, almost as if she couldn't believe what her mother had told her to do.

What or who means the most to you in your life? What, if anything, would you do to keep him/her/it in your life?

God means the most to me. Perhaps you don't believe me, but my grandmother always told me to remember who I was, and I know that I'm more than a homeless girl trying to take care of her mother. I have a spirit and I know God is my father. I also love Virginia and Richard. They continue to help me and I'm happy they are in my life.

What one thing would you like readers to know about you that may not be spelled out in the book in which you inhabit?

I know that I can have a better life. Sure, it's hard now, but I have this feeling that God is leading me along somehow. How else would I have ever met Virginia and Richard?

If you could tell your writer (creator) anything about yourself that might turn the direction of the plot, what would it be?

Sometimes I get tired of waiting for my mother to be like she used to be. I get short tempered with her (at least in my mind). I'm tired of taking care of her. I have sometimes thought to just leave her and find my own way, but I just can't do that. If someone is sick do you just leave them at the side of the road because you don't like what they're doing? My mother was good once. Maybe she will be good again.

Ask me any question. I've always wanted to know what a character thinks about writers like myself. I'll answer the question at the end of this interview.

Why do characters have to go through so much bad stuff? Why couldn't you have made things just a little easier on me?

Great question, Joy. You know, life isn't always about what you want, and sometimes it's worse than you could ever imagine, but that's how life is. That's why the stones and what they represent are so important - Listening, Trust, Optimism, Tenacity and Constancy, aren't just fun words to memorize, they are new ways of living and remaining close to God.

This is one thing I know for sure because I created all of my endings; they are always hopeful. You will get through this hard time. You will. And you will just love the ending (and the new beginning) I have given you.

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Thanks, Joy!

Learn more about Joy and the author,

yours truly,

Kathryn Elizabeth Jones

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