7 Questions For: Author M.P. Kozlowsky

M.P. Kozlowsky was a high school English teacher before becoming a writer. Juniper Berry is his first book. He lives in New York with his wife and daughter.

Click here to read my review of Juniper Berry. M.P. Kozlowsky is represented by Elana Roth.

And now M.P. Kozlowsky faces the 7 Questions:


Question Seven: What are your top three favorite books?

Narrowing down my favorites of anything -- songs, movies, foods, etc. -- is a daunting task, but especially so with books.  The best I can do for you now is to pick three of my favorites at random and list them in no particular order.  Great Expectations by Charles Dickens; Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell; To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Question Six: How much time do you spend each week writing? Reading?

Because I am a new father, my writing and reading time has greatly and woefully diminished.  I write close to three hours a day and unfortunately read for only one, unless you count newspapers, magazines, and research articles, which fills whatever spare time I manage to accumulate.  I anxiously await the days when I can once again write from morning through the late afternoon, interspersed with many hours of reading.


Question Five: What was the path that led you to publication?

I was dissatisfied with where I was in life and realized that, in order to be happy, I had to be nurturing my passions -- this, of course, meant writing.


Question Four: Do you believe writers are born, taught or both? Which was true for you?

I believe writers are born, at least with the potential to create.  However, they must be taught the necessary skills to mature their talents, to reach the absolute peek of their abilities.  Sadly, some never put in the time or effort, some never believe in their potential, some never want to take the chance or risk to see it come to fruition.  Trust me, it is all worth it.  And it never ends;  we can always try to improve.


Question Three: What is your favorite thing about writing? What is your least favorite thing?

It has been said that writers do not enjoy writing, they only enjoy having written.  This is a statement that I can relate to very much.  Writing, as a profession, is very daunting and frustrating work at times.  To create the best books or stories or poems possible requires tremendous time and effort with many hours spent agonizing over a single paragraph or line.  But the end result, typically, is so very worth it.


Question Two: What one bit of wisdom would you impart to an aspiring writer? (feel free to include as many other bits of wisdom as you like)

I would tell all aspiring writers to be true to themselves, to write what they enjoy, whatever moves them most.  Do not write for a particular audience; write a great story and the readers will follow.


Question One: If you could have lunch with any writer, living or dead, who would it be? Why?

Again, so many terrific choices, and tough to narrow them down.  Off the top of my head, I would love to sit down with F. Scott Fitzgerald; no, Carl Jung; no, Thomas Pynchon; no, Cormac McCarthy; no, Mark Twain; no ....

www.mpkozlowsky.com