We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful C.K. Sorens. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with C.K. below.
Hi C.K., you’ve got such an interesting story, but before we jump into that, let’s first talk about a topic near and dear to us – generosity. We think success, happiness and wellbeing depends on authentic generosity and empathy and so we’d love to hear about how you become such a generous person – where do you think your generosity comes from?
My generosity stems from struggling early on. I grew up in a rural area before things like AP classes and college course offerings were available to us. I was lucky to have some amazing teachers and friends who were supportive of my writing and willing to give me time and feedback based on their knowledge, yet I was missing out on the ability to go out and find a mentor who could challenge my skills and teach me about the writing industry.
As an early millennial, I grew up right along with the home computer and the internet. As more and more opportunities opened up online, it didn’t matter as much what my geography or connections were. I was able to utilize the generosity of others – authors who wrote non-fiction books or blogs, YouTubers, social media connections – to craft my own education and learn from many mentors, even if I could correspond with them face to face, or directly.
Once I started to learn things, it was natural for me to reach out when I saw someone else struggling. It is rewarding to be able to help someone over a hurdle that took me longer. I’m able to remember conversations in a way that, if I come across a resource, I know exactly who to send it to because I know it will help. Basically, I do my best to pay forward what I had gotten.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m currently midway through my Trimarked Series, a speculative fiction meets urban fantasy novel. It’s a complicated world with Fae, Witches, humans, and hybrids, and each having their own magic or technology system.
Ember Lee was born a hybrid of human, Witch, and Fae magic. She’s a ticking time-bomb of unknown power, and to stop her from maturing into it, the Fae bound her against magic. However, her abilities are not the ones that can be locked away. As her powers increase, she discovers she’s not as friendless as she imagined, and that she does have the ability to fix the broken magic – or break the world trying.
I’m really excited to be back into this series, having taken a break to write a Urban Fantasy Romance, Eighteen Wishes. That one has genies in Las Vegas and follows Isra and Jacoa as they struggle with what curses to break, and which to use.
This enemies to lovers was so fun to write, yet I’m really happy to be back with my Trimarked characters. I’m working on the third book in the six book series, and it will hopefully be out in 2025.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
When I look back at how I learned and grew, I would say the quality that best served me was my curiosity and willingness to learn. I never really thought I was being singled out or ignored in the writing world as I tried to get published, but recognized there was more I needed to learn. When I struggled to find that face-to-face help, I didn’t give up. Instead, I looked to other sources and found other avenues to learn what I needed to know. I connected with a few authors in the same boat and we worked with each other, providing feedback without ego.
That there is also very important, the feedback without ego. Being able to accept that they’re trying to help, and you being able to see they’re trying their best and need kind encouragement. I stopped counting the number of writers groups I left because of cliques and ego, so when I found the few good friends along the way, I was sure to keep them with me.
To boil that down into a form of advice: Always be a student. The best one to learn from is someone who’s one or two steps ahead of you because they remember the struggle and the lessons you need best. And find your support group, no matter if it’s one or ten or more people. Find the ones who aren’t afraid to help you grow, and who you want to help grow as well. Always keep compassion in mind, and ego in check.
These are the qualities we look for and work on in the writer’s group I joined as a writer, and have loved so much that now I’m a coach with them. Quill & Cup was founded for exactly these reasons, and to find other women who felt the same need for support, education, and friendship. It’s a space I get to teach, but I also learn her every single time I log in from writers at all points along the journey.
Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
The person who has helped me the most is hands down my husband. He and I both share a growth mindset – we don’t like to be stagnant. But we are also mindful of keeping track of our limitations and help each other avoid the type of burnout that comes along with always wanting more.
He’s been my sounding board when I’m not sure if I want to go down a particular path or not. He helps me edit when I get very excited about an idea or concept that doesn’t match my values or over-arching goal. He works in people management and shares what he learns from his business books with me whenever its relevant, and I do the same with him.
When I was nervous about going to my first writer’s conference, he bought a ticket and came with me, and then we split the event up so when there were two courses I wanted to take at the same time, he sat in one taking notes while I could be in the other. He’s truly my best partner.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cksorens.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/ck_sorens
- Other: www.quillandcup.com
