In this special episode, we are joined by the talented writer Ella Voss. We delve into the emotional journey of writing, character development, and the magic of storytelling. Ella shares invaluable tips for aspiring authors, her experience with publishing, and the excitement of being part of a writing group. We also learn about her unique blend of contemporary themes and magical realism. Join us as we explore the world of literature and creativity with Ella Voss. Don’t miss out – listen to the full episode now! And remember to like, share, and subscribe for more inspiring content.

About Ella Voss:

Ella Voss is a Munich-based author writing in English. She grew up in Germany and has lived in Switzerland, the UK, and India. Her short stories about love and life are inspired by themes revolving around women’s agency and human empathy. The contemporary settings in her texts often merge into the magical, at the outset they are funny, and then slowly creep under your skin.

Ella Voss is an IP lawyer by day and an author by night. Pursuing her passion with all her heart, she invests her free time in writing conferences and workshops. She is a regular attendant of AWP conferences in the US and is a Hedgebrook (Seattle) Alumni. As a literary community builder, she is the co-founder of the creative writing group ‘Munich Writers’ and hosts writing workshops – she loves helping others bring a great story to life.

You can buy her first book, Like a Fox to a Swallow, Here:

https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Ella-Voss/dp/1800460775 

and her most recent book, Almost Happy, here:

https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Ella-Voss/dp/1805141058 

 Find out more at: https://ella-voss.com/ 

Transcript

Stefka Spiegel:

Hello, and welcome to the CreativesQuest podcast. My name is Stefka.

Christina Howell:

And I’m Christina. And today, we’re going to be interviewing Ella Voss. Ella is a Munich-based author writing in English. She grew up in Germany and has lived in Switzerland, UK, and India Her short stories about love and life are inspired by themes revolving around women’s agency and human empathy. The contemporary settings in her text often merge into the magical. On the outset they are funny and then they slowly creep under your skin. I just finished reading her 1st novel, Like a Fox to Swallow, and I loved it, and it was just what I needed.

Stefka Spiegel:

And I shamefully still have to do that. So sorry.

Christina Howell:

It’s got such a beautiful cover. It’s been sitting on my shelf for a long time, but I find that I read ebooks Better than I read actual books. And so I finally downloaded the ebook version and that’s what I needed to get me back into the Flow of reading this. It kept me awake and comforted me during my sickness recently. Aw. I would read it in the middle of the night.

Stefka Spiegel:

All of that. I did see the beautiful cover, and I still need to order it. So, Ella, what I do, and I’ve told, Christina, this before, a lot of times in this podcast and also out of it, I have, like, a whole pile of to be read books. And I try not to let it get more than 20 books. And right now, I’m right at the threshold of 20 books, and I’m trying to knock a few off before I buy new ones. And that’s why I haven’t started yet, but

Ella Voss:

I’ll be there. So We all have that pile, I think.

Christina Howell:

Yes. Everyone does.

Ella Voss:

Yes. Well, covers are very important to me. I put a lot of effort in my book covers. But, yeah, the ebook trend is, yeah, it’s a bit against Cover design, maybe.

Christina Howell:

Well, you can still see the cover when you purchase the book. And True. True. That’s true. And it’s there when you look in your library on.

Stefka Spiegel:

And there’s nothing more beautiful than walking through a bookshop and just browsing covers and touching them. Especially, like and, like, when they were, like, I I don’t even know. Like, is this embossed or what what is it called when it’s like free like, a haptical feeling when you’re, like, touching it and it’s like, Oh. Oh, there’s a special one. I have, like, a few that are soft. Oh my god. I’m almost I’m, like, I’m petting my books, like, dying from Happiness.

Ella Voss:

Mine. You can’t mine, but I also think it’s part of the whole artwork. Like, yeah, for me, it belongs to to the book. Sort of.

Stefka Spiegel:

Oh, so lovely.

Christina Howell:

I had a little bit more to say about, I’m sorry. Her bio. It’s okay. Good, good, it wasn’t exactly a side quest. Ella is also she’s an IP lawyer by day and an author by night. Pursuing her passion with all of her heart. She invests in her free time in writing conferences and workshops, and she is a regular attendant of AWP conferences in the US. She is a Hedgebrook alumni.

Christina Howell:

As a literary community builder, she is the cofounder of the creative writing group Munich Writers, which I didn’t realize.

Stefka Spiegel:

I also didn’t realize that.

Christina Howell:

Which is a shame because Munich writers is where creative questers don’t. But, yeah, she loves to host writing workshops. She loves helping others bring a great story to life.

Stefka Spiegel:

There’s just a lot of background information about Ella, we actually wanna hear you talk a bit more and not us so much. So let’s hop into our very first question, which To me, it’s always one of the most important ones. What did inspire you to become a writer? And was there, like, any books or any authors that influenced you specifically?

Ella Voss:

I think I’ve always ever since since I’m a child, basically, developed stories, in my head. And it took me quite a while to figure out that I need to do something about that and And get them on paper to to sort out my mind a bit more. Mhmm. But literature has already in school been my my favorite, subject. Mostly stories about about outsiders making it in the world. You know, it started with German literature because I’m German. From English literature, could be books like How to Kill a Mockingbird, for example. It’s maybe a classic people know.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. All those of short stories, I I could think of a few, like John Updike, for example, Alice Munro, I like a lot, and some Japanese authors. Oh. This combination of contemporary writing and merging into the Slightly surreal, having spiritual extensions to characters. That is something that has inspired me a lot. Like Banana Yoshimoto, for example Mhmm. Is one of my All time favorites.

Christina Howell:

Very cool. So that makes me think of the point that I know in in your 1st novel Yeah. You have sometimes you’ve crossed this borderline between normally you write literary fiction, but you have a little edge of magical realism. And I wonder if it was this kind of influence that led you to have this magical aspect to your writing.

Ella Voss:

Generally, I I write contemporary stories. I I write about, like, real life Problems, you know, breakups, loss, love, marriage, you know, all sorts of very real life, issues. But I think it’s Always in life important to have a bit of a a magical perspective sort of to always look for the magical and the ordinary. Mhmm. Because it may it just makes life a lot better. And I think often, it is it is more true than the real life, You know, because often things happen that are actually unbelievable or, that make you think, wow, there is a lot of wonder actually in the world. So So I think if you want to capture real emotions, sometimes you have to go a bit step a bit outside that Mhmm. That world and and use those elements To to make real life emotions more tangible for the reader? Absolutely.

Ella Voss:

It’s really it’s really just a stylistic device. It’s not to say There is fairies out there Right. Or or things like that. And, yeah, I think that’s very common also in Japanese literature, for example. I Ella Vas.

Stefka Spiegel:

I love that. The combination of, like, everyday magic and, like, all these special moments. And I feel like You’re quite right with that that life kind of writes the craziest stories, and sometimes things happen in real life where I’m like, that can’t be true. Like, especially when Christina tells me about another one of her dating stories, and I’m like, there’s no way that happened, Christina. I was like, yes. Yes. No way.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. Dating stories Can can be a good example. I would often things come together in the most unbelievable way, or or you just put in a moment that is so beautiful. I often use nature elements also in my writing because, yeah, I I think that often, goes in that direction a bit. That can all feel Yeah. Surreal or unbelievably beautiful or things like that. Yeah.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yeah. And that’s very cool. And Christina also, said it already that You’re, an IP law lawyer by day and writer by night. So, basically, you’re a vampire and don’t sleep. That’s what I get out of this.

Ella Voss:

But bitch. I really wish. No. It’s I mean, the struggle is real for sure. It’s The hard thing about writing is to find time for it. If you’re not JK Rowling and, get rich from writing, I mean, Very few of us do. So it’s it’s really always a fight for time. You write a bit in the morning.

Ella Voss:

You write a bit in the evening. You arrange your holidays in a way that you can squeeze in family time, but a bit of writing time as well. Yeah. And it’s yeah. And I’m definitely not not a vampire. I need sleep. I need I need rest, and it it can be very exhausting. Like, Lately, somebody told me, oh, you write books.

Ella Voss:

I wish I had all this time you have. I don’t have that. And I got a bit offended because, you know, I’m just Pushing it all the time. It’s exhausting. You know? I don’t have more time than anybody else. Yeah. Just make it happen. So yeah.

Ella Voss:

But at the same time, of course, I think you have to be a bit honest with what you want in life. You know? Of course Sure.

Christina Howell:

There are

Ella Voss:

people at my age who have a much more stellar legal career, which I cannot have, because I put that extra mile, into writing and not into the law firm. So there there’s no magic there. It’s

Stefka Spiegel:

It’s just hard work and priorities.

Christina Howell:

Yeah. The

Ella Voss:

magic is not there. It’s only in the story. Yeah. Yeah. Prioritization.

Christina Howell:

As part of that, A lot of us, Shefka and myself included, really struggle with finishing things.

Ella Voss:

Yes. There’s

Stefka Spiegel:

a whole podcast episode just about this.

Christina Howell:

You finished 2 novels now. Do you have any advice for How to finish things? How to over overcome these hurdles that we face as writers?

Ella Voss:

Well, good good question. Well, I think first of all, the the lawyer background does help a bit Because what you really learn is you get a deadline and you gotta finish. And it’s gotta be good, not just finish with something. It’s gotta be good. So you learned that skill a little bit. On a practical level, make time. I needed to step down from work for a bit to finish the novel, for example. Short story is a bit easier to handle.

Ella Voss:

But then I think my major advice is because I find there is a big emotional level to not finishing a piece. Mhmm. I think I fiddled around a little too long maybe with a short story collection because I have nothing else on my desk. And that’s a little scary. So I think you have to watch out for emotional traps. Sometimes you like yourself saying to people, I’m writing a novel.

Christina Howell:

Oh, yes.

Ella Voss:

Because at that point, you know who you are. You know what you’re doing. Can be it can be quite hard, you know, to have written a novel And then what? You know? So, yeah, I I I think I had to push myself a bit to Finish this short story collection because now at the moment, I’m figuring out my next project. And Mhmm. Who am I when I don’t write? Am I still a writer?

Stefka Spiegel:

Oh, no. Let’s not go there. Oh god.

Ella Voss:

No. No. We’re not going there. What I’m saying is, like Like, take a bit stock of your emotions there, why you are not finishing. Because, yeah, maybe you have a specific issue with the writing that needs fixing, but Sometimes one is sabotaging a little bit. I can’t that’s what that’s my own experience, at least. Yeah.

Christina Howell:

Wonderful observations. I had that realization myself recently.

Stefka Spiegel:

I have that realization, like, every time I remember that I’m supposed to be writing a ghost Sorry. Like, I finished about 8 chapters of 30, and I’m stuck there. I know exactly where I wanted to go. I just need to sit down. And, Ella, that’s why I admire you for being able to finish stuff and, like, putting stuff out there so much because I’m stuck in this early state. I want to do this, but then I get into the loops of, oh, hooray. This is a lot of fun. Oh, no.

Stefka Spiegel:

I don’t know where what I’m doing. Am I a real writer? I cannot do it. I’m such a fraud. Oh, this is great. And, like, you know, like, the ups and downs, and it’s like,

Ella Voss:

Oh, that’s different maybe. You know? If if if there is this kind of if there is you’re stuck with something and there is an insecurity, That’s that’s also there. You know? Like, when I wrote the novel, it took me a total of 5 years, I think. And there was a middle Middle part, Webb really wasn’t sure if I’m gonna finish because there were kind of 2 parts of it. They were not of equal quality. They didn’t seem to to link in. The the 2 parallel stories didn’t seem to link so well. So Then that just needs work, you know, and not just sitting there with it with the text yourself, but exercises, workshops, You know, like, using yeah.

Ella Voss:

Really using craft to to try to fix a text. I that’s something I needed to learn. I I couldn’t just sit on my desk with it and make it go on my own.

Christina Howell:

But you did it.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yeah. And you did it. And you you finished it. So That’s so fun. Yay.

Ella Voss:

It’s big Fun to connect to your finished book. I recommend I strongly recommend it.

Christina Howell:

I haven’t really mentioned your 2nd book that was just released on October 28. Congratulations. Thank you. I haven’t read this one yet, but I’m looking forward to it almost happy. This book is quite different from your 1st novel because it’s a collection of short stories. I was wondering how long you’d been compiling those stories And if it had always been your goal to put those stories into 1 book together, or did that happen organically?

Ella Voss:

Not from the start. It it was more like sometimes I had ideas, and they they just wouldn’t become a part of the novel. They had nothing to do with the novel. And I I would write those mostly longer short stories. Like, my favorite length is, like, something like 8,000, 7000 words. Somehow it always ends up there. But I soon noticed they have a bit of a theme and a a common vibe. It is always this nameless 2 protagonists sort of struggling to find a place in in the world as a single woman in her late twenties, thirties, And doing, I think, what a lot of women do.

Ella Voss:

You know? She’s traveling. She’s encountering all sort of love affair, love dating mishaps, whatsoever. Mhmm. She at some point revisits her family history, her past, looking for clues. You know? I think that’s I think that is, sort of a a part in life many women can can relate to. A friend of mine said to me, almost happy is almost the Describes the mood, of of our generation. And I hadn’t really thought of that, but I think it’s true because we have so many options, What we can do with our lives and so many ambitions and ideas, that is really hard to tap into a a vibe of being Actually, deeply at peace with yourself and with your life.

Christina Howell:

Mhmm.

Ella Voss:

Even define happy, You know, it’s not even easy. You know? And often you can only define it in hindsight. You know? You can say, well, now I know. Back then, I was actually happy. Or I think that’s because it’s in in modern life, it’s it’s not determined by religion or by you will have to figure that out on your own terms, your happiness. That’s exactly what that book is about.

Christina Howell:

I can’t wait to read it.

Stefka Spiegel:

Nice. Yeah. These go up on my list right now. I might have, in the background, put them onto my Goodreads, to to read list.

Ella Voss:

Sneak it a bit in on top.

Christina Howell:

Yes. Yeah. Especially with the short stories.

Stefka Spiegel:

Oh, oh, that that actually might work, but, you know, I’m the kind of reader. I’m reading, like, 3 books parallel At this so yeah. Always at the same time. And I just need to get rid of, like, 1 of the 3, and then we can talk about new books that I’m reading.

Ella Voss:

I mean, certainly, I’m I’m advertising my book here, but I really do think it it’s quite an entertaining easy easy read. It’s short story. It’s also It’s personal. It’s fictional, of course, but it has a lot more Elavas in it, and it’s a lot more direct and a bit more, I would say a bit more spicy than the novel. The novel is very lyrical. It’s it you know, it comes at very silent feed to you. It’s a very comforting read, Christina said

Christina Howell:

Yes.

Ella Voss:

And I think the almost happy stories, they they stir you up a bit, I would say. I think that’s more more their mood.

Christina Howell:

You know?

Stefka Spiegel:

Spicy. Oh, okay. You’re happy. Oh, wow.

Ella Voss:

I think so. I think so. By by my standards. Right? It’s dangerous to say that, but by my standards, yes.

Stefka Spiegel:

Okay. Okay. You’ve got me. I just bought the Kimberly book in the background. Yay. It’s okay. Yay. A real successful interview, I would say.

Stefka Spiegel:

I think so. Yeah. But, actually, There’s one other thing that I find particularly interesting because I’m German too, and I also write in English, but I’m always get curious, like, how you get to the point that well, How you decide to write in English even though you’re German because I know there’s, like, a lot of elements that go into it. And you will always even if you’re, like, really Prolific. Not prolific, but even if you’re, like, really verbose in English, there’s always that little extra level that you probably have in your native language. So how did you choose English?

Ella Voss:

Yeah. Yeah. For me, I mean, I’m very much at home with the language. I’ve, I’ve studied there. I’ve I’ve lived in an English environment. I have a lot of None of my private life happens in English. So Mhmm. I don’t come from a family that’s necessarily very artistic or, promotes self expression so strongly.

Ella Voss:

I’ve studied law in German. So I think for me, whenever I had an expressive self determined Phase of my life, it would always happen in English. So I think for me, that’s really the language for that. I always say my creative soul speaks English, and I think That might change at some point. Maybe the 2 personalities merge at some point. But at the moment, I don’t translate in my head. I don’t switch or anything. You know? This is the only language in my head in which this happens.

Ella Voss:

I’m I’m not trying to, you know, to come across as very cosmo Qualitative are are very, interesting or something. It it does make things difficult. It does make the marketing difficult. You know, a lot of people don’t don’t take you serious because they absolutely don’t understand this non native language Concept. You know, if people don’t speak a foreign language, they just think you’re weird. You know, they cannot relate to this. So it’s it’s not helpful at all, but it’s, Yeah. It’s it’s my of expression and yeah.

Christina Howell:

But doesn’t it also open up the market because there are more English speakers in the world than

Ella Voss:

Yeah. Definitely. But it’s more difficult for me to access because I have to contact agents from here. So and I’ve tried that for a while with the first book. I can’t really tell if it would be so much easier if if I was living in the UK, but I felt, you know yeah. I felt it’s a bit of an obstacle for them to work with someone abroad.

Christina Howell:

Okay. So your 1st and your 2nd book were both published with Hybrid Publishers. Was it the same publisher?

Ella Voss:

Yes, it was the same. Yeah.

Christina Howell:

Did you seek to go to a traditional publisher first or consider self publishing. What did your publishing journey look like?

Ella Voss:

I mean, with Like A Fox TO A Swallow, I tried. Maybe out of lack of experience, I tried a bit too early. I think it might have been a bit too unfinished when I pitched it to, agents or traditional publishers. I didn’t think back then it was unfinished. I only know now. Okay. But, yeah, after a while, I noticed it’s gonna be a lengthy, lengthy process. If even if I get an agent, it would take a long time to really close a book deal.

Ella Voss:

I heard negative stories from friends who got book deals with traditional publishers. And it became so personal to me, this project, that it was really important for me to stay in control. Mhmm. And for me, the hybrid publishing allowed the control and yet a a really good quality because there is support. You know? Is editing. There is a certain distribution marketing service they provide.

Christina Howell:

Mhmm.

Ella Voss:

So yeah. I mean, I think for me, it it really has been the best Solution for the 2nd book, I didn’t even I I went straight back to them. So because it’s the same. It it’s very personal. It it had to be it had to be exactly like that. The cover had to be exactly like that. So, maybe maybe with other projects, I’d be more open minded to to work with someone on it. Yeah.

Stefka Spiegel:

That’s great. Actually, especially if you found such a good home for both of these books where you could still have the creative control that you wanted to have and Yeah. Get them published the way you wanted them to, and I feel like that is one of the most important things in publishing. Yeah.

Ella Voss:

I mean, not because you wanna become Famous or rich or something, but, I mean, it is a communication. Right? So it it does matter to to me or to every author to get the stories out there. There’s more out there with traditional publishing. Yeah. But there is a time element to this as well. So for me, Even if you work with a hybrid publisher, it’ll take at least 6 to 8 months until the story is really out there. Mhmm. And, you know, you’re You’re kind of mentally moving on a bit.

Ella Voss:

You know? Mhmm. Yeah. You have processed in that book. You wanna present them in readings in a bit of a Proximity time wise and not 4 years down the line. Yeah. 4 years down the line is not unrealistic if if you, If you really pursue traditional publishing, you can get very lucky, of course. You know? I’m not saying, but I did not have the patience.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yeah. Oh, oh, I understand that completely. I’m an impatient person as Christina will tell you any day. Now Talking about getting your books out there and your stories out there, you are also very involved in, like, writing communities and with workshops and literary communities. And that is, of course, something that is amazingly important to us because we are

Christina Howell:

trying to our hearts. Yes.

Stefka Spiegel:

Very close to our hearts. We because we’re trying to to, like, keep this whole writing community going and to nourish creativity and, then shout on quests, sometimes more side quests than actually actual main quests because that’s how it goes. But what I’m trying to ask is, has that been part of your journey? And

Ella Voss:

No. That that has been very, very much part of my journey from the start, and I’m telling everyone, You know, no author is an island. You know? Mhmm. It’s a solitary, craft anyways, but get a tribe, basically. You know? Find your Find your community because you will face so many insecurities. You’ll have so many questions. It’ll be tremendously helpful to have a good writing group. I think like a fox to a swallow, I in large parts, at least the 1st draft I wrote together with my with my writing group sharing And maybe not each chapter, but and it was really important to have people that knew this project and were following it over the years.

Ella Voss:

That was tremendously valuable, You know, to see if I’m really communicating anything here. You know? Am I capturing people with this? You know? Mhmm. It was the best the best hint that I’m on the right Track here that there were people who were interested in this story Oh, yeah. Over a longer period of time were interested in following up on it Because that’s what you want your reader to do, you know, if you just get, eye rolling and, size So I saw it from your writing group. Oh god. Even if between the lines, you know, that then that’s probably not No. Not where you’re going. You know? I mean, we had this session on on feedback feedback groups using feedback.

Christina Howell:

Yeah. That was a great session. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

Ella Voss:

No. Yeah. My pleasure. Because That’s really a topic that means that means a lot to me because I see I see a lot of people who have great ideas, who have put work in their 1st draft, and then they get stuck Because they they do not know how to use this resource that is a community, a writing community, To to move this to the finishing line, and I think that’s what you need. There’s few people really can do this all alone on their desk. And I think famous authors also don’t do that. You know? If if you take master classes, if you go to writing conferences, They are all connected in in in groups and share their work. And it’s fun, you know.

Ella Voss:

Otherwise, it’s it’s a bit of a

Stefka Spiegel:

Right.

Ella Voss:

Dull thing to do to write, You know? So

Stefka Spiegel:

What do you mean fun? Writing is punishment now?

Christina Howell:

It’s both.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. It can be a poacher sometimes, you know, and and this this puts the fun back in it.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yeah. Absolutely.

Christina Howell:

Then you have others to share your pain.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. You’re in pain together, at least.

Christina Howell:

It makes it hurt less when you find other people

Ella Voss:

our

Christina Howell:

feelings of same Yeah. Things. Yes.

Ella Voss:

Yes. Exactly. No. I mean, that’s that’s a general thing in life. You know? You have to check. Is what I do Still, socially acceptable, or is it still Yeah. Am I still, am I still, like, normal as much as you wanna be normal, but you need a bit of a compass, you know, for what you’re doing. And it’s not wrong to to look at your peers for that.

Ella Voss:

No. I think we are increasingly emphasizing individualism, and I do whatever I want, and I don’t listen to anybody. I don’t recommend to not listen to anybody. Yeah. I think that’s a misunderstanding. You know? You can Still decide. I’m doing this. I’m doing that.

Ella Voss:

But first, listen to almost everybody. Yes. Almost. You still have your own head, of course, but being part of a group is is a bit how we work as humans, I think. Mhmm.

Christina Howell:

Yeah. Yeah. I definitely find it very, very helpful. Something I found really intriguing in Like a Fox to a Swallow you follow 2 characters that are quite different from each other but have their lives intertwined. 1 is a single mother and a lawyer in London, and another is an aging aristocrat in Italy. And somehow both experiences felt very real, though I know you’re not a mother and you’re not an aging aristocrat. So I was wondering I I suspect that at least some portion is based I thought maybe the lawyer part you could relate to and living in London you could relate to. But that Felt just as real to me as the experiences of this aging woman in this big palace that she not palace, but mansion that she was living in.

Christina Howell:

I’d love to hear your thoughts on how life influences art and how you go about writing something that you yourself have not experienced.

Ella Voss:

Yes. It’s a good question. I mean, the the Italian part did take a bit more work, because it is further from my own Life experiences, of course. And there is this saying, write what you know.

Christina Howell:

Mhmm.

Ella Voss:

I think it’s a very, important Statement, but it does not mean only talk about yourself. You know, that is that is very different. I think Ursula k Le Guin said that, and she said write what you know, but you might know dragons. That’s what she originally said. So I think writing is an empathy game. And it’s it’s a human quality that we can relate to almost all our peers, actually. Just sometimes, it may require a lot more effort than at other times. So if if you wanna write about an aging woman, and in the beginning, this character has all sorts of health struggles.

Ella Voss:

She’s emotionally, challenged and has all sorts of ailments, so to speak. Now that is not my life situation, but of course, I have been sick. So I may have moments Where I had back pain, then I really make it like an experiment if I struggle with that character or if I have a feeling I’m falling A bit flat here with the description of that character. You really make it a mind game. You know? You you really think about what if I had that pain day in, day out? You know? And it it was just not an option to wait till it’s over. You know? If whatever you have to do, you have to do it with that pain. And then you can observe people who are who you suspect, neighbors, whatever, are in that life situation, you know, and then you can test your hypothesis, you know, because you may think, If I did that, I’d be grumpy by the end of the day. So now check, are they grumpy by the end of the day? And if not, what is wrong with your hypothesis? You know? Like, what do they do? You know? Like, whatever.

Ella Voss:

It’s you can spend some time on that. You know? It’s I think that’s a bit what writing is about. You know? You You yeah. It’s about empathy. It’s about standing in other people’s shoes and help the reader to stand in their shoes. And

Christina Howell:

Yeah. Yeah.

Ella Voss:

So it makes me very happy if it’s, if it felt real and if it felt

Christina Howell:

It really did. Relate to me. I just listened to a podcast. It was the armchair expert. Dax Sheppard was interviewing the author of Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver, and something she said that was really interesting that you just reminded me of is one of the things That’s so fantastic about being an author is that we get to live any life we want through our characters Yes. Through what we write.

Ella Voss:

Yes. I agree. It’s it’s constantly about expanding your horizon. And For the novel, more than because the short stories are a bit closer to my own experiences. But for the novel and especially for that Italian part, I really had to do research

Christina Howell:

Mhmm.

Ella Voss:

About those aristocratic industrial families in Italy. I I found a PhD work on on these oligarchic structures in Italy. That’s cool. So I would just steal some of those quotes and and build conversations around them. Cool. And I needed a house in Italy at some point because I got feedback from readers saying, like, you were in the West Wing Suddenly, you’re back in the kitchen. I absolutely don’t understand how this house works, and I know Teleportation. Yeah.

Ella Voss:

And I Yeah.

Christina Howell:

She doesn’t write that kind of magic in her stories.

Ella Voss:

Aw. I noticed I don’t understand how this house works. Actually, I need a house. And I googled, and I found a house near Milan, which was rented for weddings. That’s why it was in all sorts of pictures. I actually drove there. Oh. And I said I’m getting married.

Ella Voss:

I wanna look at that. Nice. Lovely. Yeah. So I just walked through that house and then took all sorts of pictures. Yeah. As a storyteller, you can easily make up all the details.

Christina Howell:

Love that. I love that. I definitely could imagine this. I can see the house in my head right now. I wonder, could you share the link with me? I’d like to look at it and see if it matches my imagination.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. Also you also wanna go there pretend you’re getting married?

Christina Howell:

Yes. Shefka, we’re getting married.

Ella Voss:

Okay. None. None. But that helped me tremendously, you know, because Part of it happened on a cemetery. So I looked for a cemetery near that house to to really yeah. I needed really to map out, Yeah. All these all these locations.

Stefka Spiegel:

Ella Voss. I think that’s very cool. We’ve talked a lot about your novel now. And I, personally, I’m a short story fan. So In general, that is always the most interesting bit to me. People write short stories and publish short stories. And you’ve now created this whole book filled with Voss. Short stories, but what I’ve been doing throughout the whole year is actually submitting short stories to literary journals.

Stefka Spiegel:

So I was wondering, have you ever, tried to publish Your short stories through your literary journals, or is that has that never been an option for you?

Ella Voss:

Yeah. I mean, I was somehow very much absorbed by this novel idea or novel obsession for the years of the writer. Though until I I had finished the the novel, I didn’t bother so much with with literary journals, and I would love to have more of an outreach also on that level. It turns out the 7 1000, 8 1000 words are not so easy, for literary journals. I have an I have a nice publication coming up in Straylight Magazine. Oh. It’s called the the Germanic Nights. And it’s I think it’s very timely now as we have a re unfortunately, a refreshed debate about the German past and anti Semitism.

Ella Voss:

Mhmm. So, yeah, it’s it’s it’s a longer story about about my German roots and and my coming to terms with that anyway, and about writing, what writing has to do with it. And another another piece probably forthcoming in an anthology. So, yeah, there is, little things here and there. I’ve been a bit more focused on on finishing the books. Time is limited. So we just Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Ella Voss:

Absolutely. Right. That’s really where I struggle. You know? The the writing so I can squeeze it in. But the submitting stuff and the marketing myself stuff, that’s where, Yeah. That’s where I need some extra hours in the day.

Christina Howell:

Yeah. That’s not the fun part of writing.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. Yeah.

Christina Howell:

Something Something that you did, I understand, in your novel or your new book, Almost Happy, you preceded each short story with a little personal essay. I wondered how much of the stories were based on your own reality, and tell us a little bit about your choice to actually have a personal essay before each piece.

Ella Voss:

No. It’s it’s in the end. It’s it’s sort of a story note chapter.

Christina Howell:

I see. Okay.

Ella Voss:

I basically did that because when reading Like A Fox TO A Swallow, I figured that people are very interested always in what is real. You know? What what part of that story is you? Where where does this idea come from? They’re very interested in the creative process. And with these stories, they are fiction, but they are more closer to me and my life. So I figured Maybe it’s interesting to have that discussion already a bit in the book because I could I could sort of hear those questions when I wrote the the short story. And test readers often came back with them to me. So so I figured it might be interesting to just get a bit Started on that discussion.

Christina Howell:

Yeah. As a writer, of course, I definitely find that really interesting to see how other writers are Approaching the Craft.

Ella Voss:

It’s also very nice and liberating for me to write about it, you know, because there’s so many things, you know, you think about In terms of your process and your, approach, but that that never really comes out into the world. You know? Out comes the The end product story, was kinda nice to share a bit of that.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yeah. I think we touched upon so many important subjects, But there’s 1 more thing I wanna circle back to, which is again about the the topic of writing groups.

Ella Voss:

Mhmm.

Stefka Spiegel:

Do you have any Tips for newer members to the community, so people who just come in and they’re like, help. How do you, like, how do you get started?

Ella Voss:

How do you get started? Good question. I would just recommend join those, shut up and write meetings. Look out for for workshops that deal with topics you’re struggling with, talk to people, find people that are kind of at the same same stage You are that are going through the same part of the process you’re going through because that could be a good a good peer group, a good writing group for you. Yeah. And don’t worry too much. One tends to worry too much.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. Agree.

Ella Voss:

Enjoy it. Enjoy it. Yes.

Christina Howell:

Yes. I had no idea before I started writing how much of this is an emotional game.

Ella Voss:

Yes. Because it’s very personal. You know? It’s it’s very into any other job you do, it’s you know, I’ve done as a lawyer, I’ve done a lot of public speaking because I, You may have noticed I enjoy talking. We don’t see you.

Stefka Spiegel:

I trust us. Good. Good.

Ella Voss:

So I’ve been a lot in front of audiences, and I’ve done I’ve done basic training in theater, before at university. But when I went on stage to read my texts, I think the 1st 1st years or until the novel came out, I barely could do it. You know? It it really took me to pieces. The voice was almost gone. The body language was a disaster. You know? And I was knowing myself as a stage person, you know, as really functioning stage. There was none of that. I was as if naked on stage.

Ella Voss:

You know? And it it was like Knowing you will always be naked, and you have to get comfortable with that.

Christina Howell:

Try writing memoir.

Ella Voss:

You know? And that’s It’s really it’s really it’s emotional. It’s really it’s, I mean, unfiltered, if it’s good, you know, because people can tell if it’s not, if it’s just something you’ve pulled up from a workshop, but that has nothing to do with you. You know? You’re not gonna really Capture people with that. That’s at least my experience. Yeah. True.

Stefka Spiegel:

There is an author that I really enjoy reading. She has crafted a lot of young adult Mhmm. Serious. And I wanna remember I think her name is Maggie, Stiefvater, and I don’t know how she pronounces her last name because it’s a German word. She’s not German. She’s American, so she probably does something very different too. I’ve never heard her name said out loud. It sounded

Ella Voss:

like a navigation system. Voss.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. The way I said it now. Oh god. Like, she I remember she did an interview too, and, like, she was asked about which character was was, like, most important to her in a a certain book. And she talks about these characters, and she talks about, like, giving them something of hers. And she starts off with, Like, I gave her my love of tea, and then she goes to, like, her most important character. And then she’s like, and him, I like most because I gave him half my spine. And I love that way of putting it.

Stefka Spiegel:

That is my favorite character in the whole book because it’s like, if you give a character, even if they’re fictional characters, a lot of yourself, It just come to life.

Ella Voss:

The only way you can do it because, again, you don’t know anything but yourself. Yes. You know? That that is there is a limitation there. You know, you you always have to look for the 1 if you wanna write about a man, you have to look for the one Aspect where you can relate and you work from there. You know?

Christina Howell:

Yeah. Ella Vas.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. That’s that’s a challenge, really.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. Absolutely. What a beautiful concluding thought here. I think that was a lot of questions. Thank you for taking all this time talking through these questions with us and answering them for us. I learned a lot. Yeah.

Christina Howell:

It was a great conversation. Thank you.

Ella Voss:

My pleasure. Yeah. I really enjoyed it too.

Christina Howell:

And we both have to go and read your book now.

Stefka Spiegel:

Yes. Now everyone listening to this should also go and read your book. We’re gonna put all the all important information is gonna be in the show notes as always.

Christina Howell:

And maybe we’ll promote it on social media, but probably not because we’re really bad at that. We’ll try.

Ella Voss:

Yeah. The book is is available On on Amazon, not really recommending Amazon, of course. So you can also offer it in in in every local bookstore. If you Meet me at an event. You can also get it from me, of course. Very lovely.

Christina Howell:

Thank you so much for speaking with us. Maybe we’ll have another workshop or something. We also are Going to have a recording available of the feedback session that you shared with us, and we’ll share a link to that in the show notes as well. Thank you so much.

Ella Voss:

Perfect. Thank you.

Stefka Spiegel:

As always, thank you all for listening, and we hope you learned something new today.

Christina Howell:

Please like us and share on whatever platform you’re listening on. If you have any suggestions of anything you’d like to hear or comments on this episode please send us an email. Until we speak again Happy questing!