INTERVIEW with MICHELLE STIMPSON, author of NO WEAPON FORMED

Michelle Stimpson is an author, speaker, and educator who has worked with elementary, middle, and high school students as well as adults. Check out her latest novel No Weapon Formed. Thanks to Michelle for joining us at The Book Pound today.

Do you think journaling helped you to develop as a writer? What do you like about writing in a journal? 

Journaling was probably the most important part of my development as a writer. Not the college classes, not the writing workshops—only writing makes one a writer.

You've mentioned that humor causes people to think about serious issues. Why do you think this is true? Is there any issue that is too serious for humor? 

Humor definitely takes the edge off of serious issues. It helps us step back so we don’t get lost in those serious emotions. There are, however, plenty of topics that I wouldn’t approach with humor, but there’s always room for a comic relief through a character in my novels.

What was your inspiration for writing No Weapon Formed?

When I finished the first book in this series, I thought I was finished with LaShondra and Stelson. But as more and more issues occurred in our society (the bi-racial family on the Cheerios commercial, the lack of urgency to find the missing girls in Nigeria) and realized that these were issues that the Brown family could face head-on, in faith.

Do you think your faith has influenced your career path? How so? 

Most definitely. As a believer, I’m called to live by faith, so there’s really no other way for me to approach life. This writing career has come as a result of His faithfulness to me. I look back now over these past 10 years and realize that there’s now way any of this could have happened without Him. In fact, it is all FOR His glory.

What advice would you give to young people who are interested in writing? 

Write—a lot!

Is there anything else you would like to say to Book Pound readers? 

Thanks for taking a moment to check me out! God bless!