Meet Joel Cool

We recently connected with Joel Cool and have shared our conversation below.

Joel , thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

Raise your hand if your parents called you ungrateful. My Mexican immigrant dad never let his boys forget how lucky we were to have a roof over our heads and clothes on our backs. He would share stories of what he went through as a child making sure that we knew how good we had it. As I aged into a teenager, negative energy was never permitted. Any ugly expression was quickly questioned, and an attitude adjustment was strongly encouraged. I learned quickly that I was indeed blessed and to look at things more optimistically, or else.

My dad also loved to have fun and experience new adventures. It was hard to see the negative in things when we were playing video games in London’s Piccadilly Circus, or carving through fresh powdered snow in Park City, Utah. It doesn’t mean they weren’t there, but the focus was shifted.

“You boys are spoiled,” he’d say to an 11-year-old me as I hopped on the quad headed for the Mexican dunes. I’d think to myself, if I just keep smiling then he will keep loving me which by default means more good times.

“And it’s all your fault. You’ve created a monster, Dad!” I’d yell back blowing dirt in his face as I sped off.

As I aged into adulthood, I continued to focus on the fun, exciting elements of life over those that brought people heartache. Some say I am fun-obsessed. And to that I respond, “You can thank my dad.”

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Pleasure to meet you, new friends, I am Joel Camarena, pen name Joel Cool. I spend my days in an amazing 9-6 job helping people navigate their dream careers. Yes, my secret identity is a Human Resources professional for an entertainment company. I love what I do, and it allows me to spend my personal time creating unique and fun stories for people. By day, I am interviewing people and by night I am world-building. People need to have their creative outlets and if someone isn’t going to pay you to do it then figure it out on your own. In my day job, I am always asked, “How do I get experience if no one will give me a chance?” And I always respond with, “You make your chance.” Explore your passions and do them until someone pays you. Artists work tirelessly for free hoping someone will see the value in their work. So… that is what I am doing. Putting my creativity out there until someone notices.

My art is writing. My first book, The Ghost Guard, was published in February and is live on Amazon for purchase. I have been doing my own social media marketing and pushing my book out to the world in whatever new creative ways hit me. Which also landed me an amazing publicist!

This book took me four years to write partly because I didn’t know what I was doing. It was a fun new adventure for me, so I enlisted a lot of friends and family along for the ride. My rough draft copy was sent to twenty people for their insight and critiques. I wanted to be sure that the story was compelling and that someone could connect with the characters. After multiple rewrites and two editors, I released The Ghost Guard. It has been doing really well and I am now writing Part 2!

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?

The idea for the Ghost Guard hit me hard in October 2020. I felt I needed to write this story even if I was busy with my day job or social life. It was still hard to know where to start! Three areas gave me the most pause during the writing of my first book.

Education

I attended San Jose State and majored in International Business. There was no fancy writing program for me or a studious professor ripping my short story to threads in hopes of me learning the insignificance of adverbs at the end of a dialogue.

English was not my favorite subject growing up. I actually missed a big chunk of the fifth grade because my dad’s job took us to Europe. I spent my days climbing trees and riding bikes through tulips over completing school. What this resulted in was a lot of imagination but a lack of correct grammar and punctuation usage. I am also horrible at measurements and fractions! I share this because it’s important to understand your weaknesses and build that muscle. I had an editor guide me toward a few books on how to write correctly which helped. My writing unfortunately still sounds like it’s from an 8th grader but hey that’s my market! The Ghost Guard is for all ages but is geared towards young adults.
I wasn’t going to let my lack of education stop me from pursuing my book. It just took some extra time for me to build up that muscle.

Resilience

I had no idea what I was doing the entire time I was writing The Ghost Guard. My brother Jake would tell me, “Joel, most people are faking it. They are their own cheerleaders.” So, when imposter syndrome or self-doubt hit me, I did what Jake said and faked it. That’s what I am doing now! But I actually kind of believe in me now. Yay for self-love! My family and friends were my big support system and they loved joining in on the making of the story. The Ghost Guard was fully financed and self-published by me. It is my proudest accomplishment.

Grace

You really have to give yourself permission to fail. Permission to work so hard and possibly decide this isn’t the path for you. I did that with acting. It ultimately wasn’t the path I wanted to go down given my success in Human Resources. I then focused my free time on writing and getting the book completed. It hurt when the first editor I enlisted to read my book said I needed to learn how to write. The red lines and constructive criticism comments doubled in front of my eyes as I scrolled down every page of my manuscript. But I looked at it practically and took his advice. I bought multiple books on how to improve my sentence structure, decrease adverb usage after dialogues, and place commas where they really should be. You might see some errors in my book even now but at least I did it. That’s grace baby.

Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

The most challenging thing at the moment is marketing my book. I am a first-time writer with no family ties to publishers, celebrities, or people in power within the industry. This means that if I am not pushing the book forward then no one will see it. I have to be my own spokesperson. That can be tough for any artist. It reminds me of Eminem in the movie 8 Mile or Nikki Minaj in her early songs discussing the grind that it takes to make it. That is my current challenge and honestly, I am enjoying it. Hey, people are asking me to write articles! I must be doing something right. Feel free to check out The Ghost Guard if you want to help out! I’d love to hear how you like it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://theghostguard.com
• Instagram: joelbcool
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joelcamarena/
• Other: Tiktok: JoelBeCool

Image Credits

Summer Krueger