Last month I read the book, The Life (and Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly. I loved it. I loved so many things about it. The book takes place in the Midwest, is written by a Wisconsin author, honestly handles relevant topics and is a girl-power book to boot. When I reached out to the author via Instagram for an interview and she said yes, I fell in love a little bit more. Below is a conversation I had with author Jamie Pacton about this, her first book, her life prior to writing it and what lies ahead in her writing career.

Before we begin, take a second and aquaint yourself with Kit Sweetly.

Moxie meets A Knight's Tale as Kit Sweetly slays sexism, bad bosses, and bad luck to become a knight at a medieval-themed restaurant.

Working as a Wench--i.e. waitress--at a cheesy medieval-themed restaurant in the Chicago suburbs, Kit Sweetly dreams of being a Knight like her brother. She has the moves, is capable on a horse, and desperately needs the raise that comes with knighthood, so she can help her mom pay the mortgage and hold a spot at her dream college.

Company policy allows only guys to be Knights. So when Kit takes her brother's place, clobbers the Green Knight, and reveals her identity at the end of the show, she rockets into internet fame and a whole lot of trouble with the management. But this Girl Knight won't go down without a fight. As other Wenches and cast members join her quest, a protest forms. In a joust before Castle executives, they'll prove that gender restrictions should stay medieval--if they don't get fired first. You cn grab your copy (and have 10% of your purchase support and indie bookstore) by clicking here.

Amanda Zieba: I think that often times we all just assume big time writers only live on the coasts and so I always get excited when I find another Wisconsin author.

Jamie Pacton: Ahh, I love Wisconsin. I moved here many years ago to go to Marquette, and then I moved away and came back two more times. As you might be able to tell from KIT (and you’ll see in my second book, LUCKY GIRL), the cities of Milwaukee and Madison are close to my heart. I also included other WI places I love in these stories, so Kit’s visit to the Joan of Arc chapel was drawn from my own visits there; the kite festival by Lake Michigan is something I have taken my children too; and, in LUCKY GIRL you’ll see the main character, Jane, go to The House on the Rock; an aquarium store, St. Vinny’s thrift store, and, the Farmer’s Market in Madison; and, then she heads to Milwaukee with her bfs for a visit to the (marvelous) art museum and Pfister Hotel.

I’m deeply inspired by my surroundings and I think stories are everywhere. It’s been my great joy to share some of my love of places in Wisconsin with readers. :-)

Amanda Zieba: Do you have any favorite Wisconsin writing organizations/haunts/experiences you could share with us?

Jamie Pacton: I don’t have any writing organizations beyond SCBWI (Wisconsin chapter) that I’m involved with, though I’ve had some great writing groups here in the past.

Amanda Zieba: Your book takes place at a Medieval Times Dinner Theater and also includes tons of historical renaissance detail. Why did you decide on this location and time period for your story?

Jamie Pacton: I was inspired to write KIT after a trip to Medieval Times in the suburbs of Chicago with my youngest son. The full story of that adventure is in a Twitter thread here. :-)

Amanda Zieba: Have you always had a passion for this niche area of interest, or is it a new passion? Was there a lot of research necessary, or were these facts a part of your brain space from a past academic/nerdy life?

Jamie Pacton: I didn’t have to do much research on all the medieval fun facts simply because I like to read history for fun and I studied the Middle Ages in both undergrad and grad school. Much of what’s in KIT were things I learned over the years and brought to the forefront here. With that said, I did end up researching things like home blacksmithing, how jousting actually works, and other smaller details in the book.

Amanda Zieba: Your book is exceptionally (and noticeably) inclusive. Why was this important to you? Did you have sensitivity readers help you?

Jamie Pacton: I think it’s so important that YA books truly be inclusive in order to show how beautifully diverse our world is and how accepting of this we all can be. I wanted Kit’s friends and co-workers to reflect my own BIPOC, NB, trans, and queer friends because this is a part of life and the more we normalize it, the more seen historically marginalized people will feel. I didn’t work with any sensitivity readers as such, but some of my friends who inspired the characters in KIT read the book and offered me insights.

Amanda Zieba: One of the reasons I love your book is because it has so many layers. One of the layers focuses on poverty. I think this is a huge problem in our country... the haves vs. the have nots. What were you hoping to accomplish by juxtaposing characters of vastly different lifestyles in the same space/story?

Jamie Pacton: I agree that poverty is a huge problem in our country and one that we don’t talk enough about, especially in YA. I wrote a long essay about this for School Library Journal, which really gets into my thoughts on the subject, but the short answer is: I wanted THE LIFE AND (MEDIEVAL) TIMES OF KIT SWEETLY to tackle poverty from a teen perspective because it reflects my own experiences and I think there’s a ridiculous stigma attached to being poor. It’s so important to push on that stigma, and I hope in some small way, KIT is helping start conversations about how we can change that.

Amanda Zieba: One thing I noticed about your writing is you hold on to tiny details... important details... and only drop them in when they mean the most and make the biggest splash. It's brilliant! I'd give examples, but want to avoid spoilers for people who haven't read the book. This prevented you from doing a lot of info dumping early on. Do you have a special technique or planning style that helps you do this? How did you learn this skill?

Jamie Pacton: Oh, good question. I’m a fastidious collector of fun facts and small details in the world often catch my eye and attention. I write these down in notebooks or leave myself notes on my phone so I remember the weird, wonderful, or just noteworthy things I’ve seen in my life. This comes up all the time in my writing, and I like to use details as objective correlatives often in stories. Also, you can learn so much about a character by thinking about what their favorite item is, why they like it/cherish it, how they got it, etc.

I am planner (which took me a long time to learn as a writer), though often some of the detail work in a story comes in later in my drafting/revision process. My editor will also sometimes prod me to dig into a scene or show something, and small, specific details are great ways to do exactly that.

As far as not info dumping, I think that when you’re thinking about pacing in a story, you also need to consider exposition/backstory pacing and how you can slowly parcel it out. I tend to ask myself: what do my characters know about the world and themselves in this story moment and what do my readers need to know? I also like to push myself and interrogate why I think a certain detail needs to go in a certain spot. Too much info dumping early can definitely slow a plot, and if you can plan out where exposition goes, then that can make revision much easier process.

Amanda Zieba: Is there anything else you'd like to share about you, your writing process, this book...

Jamie Pacton: Not that I can think of, but there are lots of fun KIT SWEETLY extras on my website. :-)

Amanda Zieba: What are you working on next?

Jamie Pacton: My next book is called LUCKY GIRL and it comes out from Page Street in Spring 2021. Like THE LIFE AND (MEDIEVAL) TIMES OF KIT SWEETLY, LUCKY GIRL is funny, heartfelt, and it examines hard questions (here about loss of a loved one; loss of love in a relationship; what it means to being enough for yourself; and, what are the consequences of having too much money). LUCKY GIRL is about 17-year-old Fortuna Jane Belleweather, an ordinary girl from a small town in Wisconsin who buys a lotto ticket and promptly wins 58 million dollars. You’d think this would be a good thing, but this much money soon turns into a HUGE problem for Jane as she has to keep her win a secret while navigating complex relationships with her hoarder mother, her ex-boyfriend, her best friend, and the people in her town, all who are anxious to find out who won the lotto money. You can see a full description of LUCKY GIRL here.

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