Ortonville- Jaime Johnesee’s walk on the wild side started as a zookeeper caring for a variety of real-life animals.Now she writes about fictional creatures including werejaguars.
The Groveland Township resident, 38, has self-published several novellas, a short story collection, and most recently signed a 3-book deal with Devil Dog Press to co-author a ‘Revelations? horror series. She will have a book signing from 1-4 p.m., Dec. 5, at Thompson’s Hardware, 30 South St. during Christmas in the Village.
‘I never thought it was possible to have a career as an author,? said Johnesee. ‘It’s a one in a million type thing.?
The mom of Declan, 7, and Keegan, 4, and wife of Chris has been writing since she was 8-years-old, but focused her energy on becoming a zookeeper, which she did for 14 years, including stints at the Indianapolis Zoo, and the Birmingham and Mobile zoos in Alabama. Her zookeeper career ended at the Detroit Zoo several years ago when she was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder after experiencing extreme fatigue and unexplained weight loss. She fell into a deep depression that lasted until she decided to start writing. In 2006, she gave her husband her first novel, a detective story about tracking a serial killer.
‘It was really bad? I’ve written four novels that will never see the light of day,? she said. ‘I waited to publish until I was ready to share with the world and I’m grateful because I see friends scrambling to take books off the market. It’s interesting to see how much you grow and learn.?
She looks now at the first edition of her published short story collection, ‘Oh, the Horror,? and is horrified at the editing, but she hired a professional editor to ‘clean it up? and rereleased it. After the short story collection, she wrote ‘Shifters,? featuring the main character, Samantha Reece, as a werejaguar and FBI agent. She has also written several stories about ‘Bob the Zombie,? which have more of a humorous bent.
‘I like the horror genre and have elements of the supernatural in all my books except ‘Oh the Horror,? which is psychological horror,? said Johnesee. ‘My goal with the book is to have a really great detective story where you can take the supernatural elements away and it still reads well. All my worlds tie together.?
In her latest books, her world ties together with that of two other authors? Christine Sutton and Lisa Lane. Johnesee, who met a Devil Dog Press representative at World Horror Con in Oregon in 2014, was asked if she would be interested in working on a project where she wrote a section of novel, with other authors writing sections as well, connecting them all as a continuous story.
‘A lot of people have tried this and not many are successful,? said Johnesee. ‘I got to pick the people I worked with, they are my best friends and even though we have polar opposite styles, I am smack in the middle, so it works. I am very proud of the series.?
The ‘Revelations? series has three books, ‘Cast in Blood,? ‘Cast in Fire,? and ‘Cast in Shadow? and are about a demon named Polly who is trying to stop the apocalypse from destroying the mortal realm.
‘With three authors, I have now put out three full novels in one year,? said Johnesee, who began writing the books with her friends a year ago and has now half-way completed the final book in the series and signed for a spin-off series.
The project has been a unique experience for her, with Skype meetings and plot outlines and all three authors ripping each other’s work apart without offense.
‘It’s the most fun I’ve had writing,? she said. ‘We have a veto process. If I suggest something they don’t like, they can vote it down. So far, it’s worked out pretty well. I like it because it prompts me more with creativity and inspires you more to give it your best. These are fun books, they really immerse you into the world, with action, suspense, a little bit of everything.?
Johnesee enjoys getting lost in the world of her stories, putting in about 12 hours a day with rewrites, editing, marketing and promotion. When she is writing, she forgets reality until, she said, her kids call, ‘Mom??!!?
‘My husband jokes I’m like the nutty professor, I have no concept of time, I just get lost in it.?
She hopes to make a living as a writer someday with some time and effort.
‘I do miss zookeeping, but the best thing about writing is I can fit it in around my schedule,? Johnesee said. ‘I don’t care about money, I just want to entertain people. If I can make people smile or gasp, I did my job. If I can take them out of the bad day they are having even for a little while, I feel successful.?
The ‘Revelations: Cast in? series is available on Amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. Visit www.jaimejohnesee.com and stop by Thompson’s to get signed copies of Johnesee’s books Dec. 5.