Q & A with Teen Ink and Jenzo DuQue

This week Teen Ink editors Cindy Spertner (Senior Editor) and Noelle Campbell (Managing Editor) were joined by fiction author Jenzo DuQue for a special writing & publishing event hosted by Under the Madness Magazine.

‍Jenzo started his publication career with Teen Ink, and his recent work has been featured in Best American Short Stories 2021 and is forthcoming in Best Microfiction 2022.

Many valuable questions were asked at the well-attended Q & A after Jenzo's reading.

One of the questions posed to Jenzo was what he wished he knew in retrospect about publishing. He responded with insight that was very helpful to the listening young writers: “It is not productive to look at your work with a sense of immediacy,” explaining that these things that we pour so much of our time and effort and processing into take a long time to elicit a connection with our audience.

Another attendee asked about his inspiration.The nature of the question was asking about how we draw from our experiences, and can we write something that isn’t necessarily from our life experiences. Jenzo laughed to himself, saying that he had expected this question. He then responded with a potent answer, “No matter what age we are, we’re all haunted by the experiences we’ve had, and we are all haunted by experiences we’ve imagined.” Writing can stem from our own lived experiences and emotion, but it can also come from a place no writer can ever quite pinpoint when we imagine. It is important to realize that it doesn’t have to be limited to what you think you know.

This question flowed into a subsequent question about the advice that young writers often receive to “write realistic characters." Jenzo explained that he doesn’t always think this is the best advice, that often he finds himself “commenting on the reality of the world through the lens of fiction” in a way that realistic characters don’t necessarily have the capacity for. The last thing he impressed on the young writers attending was that community is huge, and that no writing should exist in a vacuum. As artists, as hard as it is, it is our responsibility and our passion to share our work and give an opportunity for that human connection to happen. We shouldn’t fit the stereotype that writing is a lonely and isolating task.

Noelle Campbell and Cindy Spertner expressed their excitement to see a teen they published grow and become successful as a writer. Some of their tips on editing were that being a reader was important, and to pay attention to what catches your eye, because it caught your attention for a reason.

One of the questions asked was about any teen who is considering submitting, but hesitant or scared.Their response was an overwhelming "GO FOR IT!" So many reasons make it tough to begin submitting for publication as a teen. “You never know who you’ll affect,” Noelle said, and Cindy quickly followed up with encouragement, “Being rejected is not an accurate depiction of the worth of your writing.” The editors explained just how many factors go into rejecting or accepting a piece, most of which have nothing to do with how "good" it is.  

Another question posed to the editors was about personal genre preferences, or just reading preferences in general. Noelle said that while it can be difficult to cull out personal taste, you begin to recognize the “human connection within pieces," and that this can help you look past those to the meaning and emotions of a piece. Cindy also noted that this is where a team comes in handy, having several eyes on a piece can help gain a broader perspective from many different preferences. The editors were also asked about why someone should try to get their work published to a larger audience, rather than just sharing it within their circle, to which Noelle talked about the personal pride and confidence gained in something tangible and validated like a published piece.

Everyone’s final and advice was like a fireworks grand finale. Jenzo said to submit, and that the “worst thing that could happen is you end up with a piece of writing in your hand that you believe in that you’re trying to find a home for.” Noelle said to “write what is true to you,” and that “you have a very unique perspective,” and lastly Cindy suggested not to “throw it away,” to which Jenzo responded, “put things in the drawer and come back to them, even if it’s years later.”

Under the Madness would like to thank Teen Ink and Jenzo DuQue for spending the evening with us and answering our questions.

For more information about Teen Ink: https://www.teenink.com/

You can find Jenzo DuQue at https://jenzoduque.com//.

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