The Memoir Land Author Questionnaire #38: Charles Jensen
"At the end of the day, if you feel called to write, you absolutely should. So many people could be moved, helped, or entertained by your book. Don’t deny them that opportunity."
Since 2010, in various publications, I’ve interviewed authors—mostly memoirists—about aspects of writing and publishing. Initially I did this for my own edification, as someone who was struggling to find the courage and support to write and publish my memoir. I’m still curious about other authors’ experiences, and I know many of you are, too. So, inspired by the popularity of The Oldster Magazine Questionnaire, I’ve launched The Memoir Land Author Questionnaire.
Here’s the thirty-eighth installment, featuring Charles Jensen, author of Splice of Life: A Memoir in 13 Film Genres. -Sari Botton
Charles Jensen (he/him) wrote Splice of Life: A Memoir in 13 Film Genres, published in May 2024 by Santa Fe Writer’s Project. His most recent collection of poetry is Instructions between Takeoff and Landing. His previous books include two collections of poetry and seven chapbooks of cross-genre work. The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs designated him a 2019-2020 Cultural Trailblazer, and he is the recipient of the 2020 Outwrite Nonfiction Chapbook Award, 2018 Zócalo Poetry Prize, a Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Prize, the 2007 Frank O’Hara Chapbook Award, and an Artist’s Project Grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts. His work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, American Poetry Review, Crab Orchard Review, The Journal, New England Review, and Prairie Schooner, Exposition Review, The Florida Review, and Passages North. He founded the online poetry magazine LOCUSPOINT, which explored creative work on a city-by-city basis. He hosts The Write Process, a podcast in which one writer tells the story of crafting one work from concept to completion. He lives in Long Beach and directs the Writers’ Program at UCLA Extension.
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How old are you, and for how long have you been writing?
I’m 47, and I’ve been writing since childhood, though “professionally” since 2003.
What’s the title of your latest book, and when was it published?
Splice of Life: A Memoir in 13 Film Genres was published May 1, 2024.
What number book is this for you?
This is my fourth book, but first book of prose. I previously published three collections of poetry and seven chapbooks of cross-genre work.
How do you categorize your book—as a memoir, memoir-in-essays, essay collection, creative nonfiction, graphic memoir, autofiction—and why?
This is an unconventional memoir-in-essays that braids together in each chapter an episode from my lived experience with discussion of a single film that resonates with my life through plot, symbols, imagery, or other connections. It has thematic and emotional arcs, but does not follow a traditional narrative arc like most memoirs do.
What is the “elevator pitch” for your book?
Movies and memory intersect in this compelling and unconventional memoir from queer writer, film aficionado, and Jeopardy! contestant Charles Jensen. Splice of Life follows Jensen from his upbringing and struggles with sexual awareness in rural Wisconsin to his sexual liberation in college and, finally, to the complex relationships and bizarre coincidences of adulthood. Exploring what it means to be male and queer, each essay splices together Jensen' s lived experiences with his analysis of a single film. Deftly woven, Splice of Life shows us how personal and cultural memory intertwine, as well as how the stories we watch can help us understand the stories we all tell about ourselves.
This is an unconventional memoir-in-essays that braids together in each chapter an episode from my lived experience with discussion of a single film that resonates with my life through plot, symbols, imagery, or other connections. It has thematic and emotional arcs, but does not follow a traditional narrative arc like most memoirs do.
What’s the back story of this book including your origin story as a writer? How did you become a writer, and how did this book come to be?
I’ve been writing since childhood. In high school, I had a teacher pull me aside and suggest I focus on writing, and then she worked with me all four years on my poetry. I won two prizes from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater high school creative writing competition, and then kept studying film and writing at the University of Minnesota. I received an MFA in poetry from Arizona State University, and then dedicated myself to writing poetry for about 10 years.
I became curious about writing prose, and spent the next ten years bringing that into my writing practice. Splice of Life is the first project to emerge from that shift, and it was inspired by an anthology call for submissions about queer folks and their relationship to horror films. I enjoyed the process of bringing my film studies background into my writing so much, I just kept at it, hoping I was onto something that would resonate with readers and film lovers.
What were the hardest aspects of writing this book and getting it published?
I think the hybrid nature of it was the biggest challenge on both counts. I received feedback in my drafting phase that people loved the memoir portions, but found the movie sections distracting or boring. I felt that combination was critical to this book, so I stuck with it and tried to find ways to make the connections more clear to the reader. In some ways, I think this book is a “textbook” example of my other undergrad major, comparative literature. Instead of comparing two works, I’m using film and lived experience to unpack deeper meanings in the films and also in what it means to turn life into narrative.
These storytelling impulses are related, and I think they inform each other. When I went searching for a publisher, a helpful agent advised me that a university press or indie publisher would most likely appreciate this book, so I looked for opportunities to pursue that route. Andrew Gifford at Santa Fe Writers’ Project told me this book is the best hybrid memoir he’s ever read in 25 years of publishing.
How did you handle writing about real people in your life? Did you use real or changed names and identifying details? Did you run passages or the whole book by people who appear in the narrative? Did you make changes they requested?
I changed all the names, except in a few rare occasions where the person was deceased. There were a few people I felt protective of, in large part because I felt they might be contacted by readers, so I changed a lot of details or cloaked them for privacy reasons. One person I sought explicit permission to write about our shared experience. Another person I pointedly do not name because I want no further contact with them. I think in most chapters of this book, I am the villain (?) or at least the person rendered with the most complexity. I mean, this is a book largely about me more than it is about what other people said or did, so I tried to focus on my reactions, my thoughts, my fears, and so on, more than trying to indict others for their choices.
I received an MFA in poetry from Arizona State University, and then dedicated myself to writing poetry for about 10 years…I became curious about writing prose, and spent the next ten years bringing that into my writing practice. Splice of Life is the first project to emerge from that shift, and it was inspired by an anthology call for submissions about queer folks and their relationship to horror films.
Who is another writer you took inspiration from in producing this book? Was it a specific book, or their whole body of work? (Can be more than one writer or book.)
There were a lot of amazing memoirists whose work guided me. I always point to Claudia Rankine’s Don’t Let Me Be Lonely as a book that changed what I thought writing can and should do. Wendy C. Ortiz’s book Bruja, a memoir-in-dream-journal, was also instructive in how fearless and direct she writes about the people in her life. And Carmen Maria Machado’s In the Dream House showed me just how powerful hybrid memoirs can be, and why we should employ that form.
What advice would you give to aspiring writers looking to publish a book like yours, who are maybe afraid, or intimidated by the process?
Time spent writing is never time wasted. I think it’s important to chase down ideas and experiment. Each attempt teaches us the kind of writer we can be, and we learn more about craft in the process. Good writing advice is to write the book you want to read, and I’ve always kept that top of mind. When I finish, I know at least one person will be satisfied! For me, the writing process is so joyful and engaging, but all the work after—submitting to publishers and doing the promotion—are the most challenging. I even loved working with my editor! At the end of the day, if you feel called to write, you absolutely should. So many people could be moved, helped, or entertained by your book. Don’t deny them that opportunity.
What do you love about writing?
The act of writing is deeply fulfilling for me. I write across genres, so I find joy in crafting poems with surprising turns of phrase, or crafting worlds in fiction, or seeking understanding about lived experiences in memoir. While I don’t consider writing to be therapy, I feel strongly that for me it has therapeutic effects. I am happier, more confident, and gentler to the world around me when I write. In that way, I feel like it helps me engage fully with this life and the world around me, and to do all of that as my best self.
What frustrates you about writing?
Promotion is the hardest part! I get why some people find it exciting or fun, but for me asking for help—which is how the promotional part often feels to me—is so hard, and I’d rather do everything myself! But I also recognize that I just don’t have strong skills in this area, and I do need help. A lot of it.
What about writing surprises you?
I think the most consistent surprise I’ve gotten is feeling how much my work is reinvogorated for me by readers. After spending years on a project, it can start to feel old or boring to me, especially because I’ve always moved on to something new or exciting that I’m writing. My energy and enthusiasm tends to sit with the newer work. But every time I’ve showed up to read from my published works, they feel changed to me. The audience changes them. The audience makes those words more alive, even for me. And every time that happens, I feel surprised. And grateful.
Does your writing practice involve any kind of routine or writing at specific times?
I write in the mornings, almost always, before I go to my day job. This practice was inspired by the fact that I am a morning person and have the most energy when I wake up. But it was also cemented by the realization that I work at a job eight hours a day, but I’m a writer twenty-four hours a day. That means writing is one of the most important things I do, and it deserves to get done first.
A couple years ago, I started documenting my progress by capturing word counts for each writing session, and honestly there is something so fulfilling to see those numbers add up, even when I have a horrible writing day with 50 words or an incredible writing day with 4,000 words. I give myself an hour each weekday. Showing up with regularity has made progress move faster, and I find that I always look forward to that part of my day.
I think in most chapters of this book, I am the villain (?) or at least the person rendered with the most complexity. I mean, this is a book largely about me more than it is about what other people said or did, so I tried to focus on my reactions, my thoughts, my fears, and so on, more than trying to indict others for their choices.
Do you engage in any other creative pursuits, professionally or for fun? Are there non-writing activities do you consider to be “writing” or supportive of your process?
I’m a horrible amateur musician and karaoke singer. I like teaching myself to play new instruments, starting with guitar about 20 years ago. I’ve added ukulele as well, and my partner just gifted me a harmonica. Playing guitar has helped get my brain “unstuck” more times than I can count—something about the process of focusing my conscious attention on a manual task frees up my subconscious mind to innovate, so I trust that process. Karaoke has been humbling but also joyful. Getting up in front of an audience of strangers to sing something has helped me perform better when I show up to read my work. Nothing is scarier than a bar of drunk people demanding to hear “Sweet Caroline” again.
What’s next for you? Do you have another book planned, or in the works?
I have a novel coming out in 2025. Musical Theater in Hell follows a new arrival to a prestigious MFA acting program, which then puts on Jesus Christ Superstar in Civil War dress with Abraham Lincoln standing in for Jesus—much to the chagrin of the campus and the women of the acting program, who must battle to get the show’s only female role. In 2026, I’ll have a second memoir called Hot Mic: What I Sang at Karaoke and the Men Who Drove Me to Do It, which will give the Splice of Life treatment to songs by documenting what I sang at karaoke, what was going on in my life at the time, and how they’re related.
Charlie’s the best! Love that you interviewed him
This sounds amazing, thanks for putting it on my radar!