Interview With Author Jorge Alejandro Paez
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a Venezuelan-American raised in New York and currently living in Florida. I’ve been writing short stories since I was 11, a lot of those I used as stuff I submitted for school assignments. I remember one in particular, wh was about 2 friends. I’m not sure why but those 2 showed up together a lot in my short stories, and maybe they’ll show up in a published work one day. I wrote one novel, all the way back in middle school that I tried to get published but that didn’t get anywhere. So basically I’ve been writing a lot for forever. In terms of the stuff I’ve written that has been published there is only the one story so far although there is a lot more in the works.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My debut work is called The Garden of Grace. It was born out of this thing I used to do to find closure when things happened in my life, whether it was losing a friend or a breakup. I’d write them a letter on my computer and delete it, it was my way of letting go. Sometimes though, I really wanted the other person to read it and pictured that conversation in my head. I think that’s where this book came from. The other part of it too has to do with the way people process grief. It’s one thing if you fight with someone and you each go your own way, but what if you part ways and you learn the person died only a few days later? It’s not just about the words you might have said but what you never said that you start regretting. I read this great story in Chicken Soup for the Soul about a son who refused to tell his dad he loved him one night because he was “too old for it”, and the next afternoon he came home from school to learn his dad had died. So it’s based on that too. What would you tell someone if you could find closure? What would you tel them if you had the chance that you never did before? What would you do differently? And then there’s the way people carry guilt. With someone who died, you never get to fix it, you never get to say I’m sorry. That’s why this story takes place in Heaven, because that would be the next time you meet.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m what George R. R. Martin would call a gardener. I cannot stand outlining. In fact I almost failed 10th and 11th grade English over this fact in high school. If you give me a topic for a paper or story, I will not outline. If I try to outline it kills my thinking process and I just can’t do it. Instead what I do is I sit down with the start of the idea in my head, or the thesis argument if it was non-fiction like in school papers, and I would start writing. I could write for hours that way. A few days I wrote close to 4000 words before the night was done. Then I go back and edit, take some stuff out, extend other stuff, like taking care of a garden.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Khaled Hosseini was a huge influence in my early days. The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns, and And The Mountains Echoed were absolutely inspiring. They were epic and thematic in a way I’ve rarely seen in fiction. Usually when we talk about epic story telling it’s something like Star Wars. I became a huge fan of the Star Wars movies and books for that reason, specially the expanded universe novels. Khaled Hosseini’s writing has the same quality except it’s raw and real. Instead of scifi where there are a bunch of characters that you know are made up, and futuristic technology, aliens and all that, Khaled Hosseini’s books take place right here, right now. His first 2 books that cover, in different ways, the impact of the Taliban on Afghanistan for example, the Soviet invasion, the social structure of a people and how it impacts each character humanizes everyone while not hesitating to point out issues. There are no bad guys in Khaled Hosseini’s works, everyone becomes a factor of something more, their society, their tribal affiliation, class, everything comes into play to make a wholistic picture of the individual. Another huge influence was Jodi Picoult even though I was only able to read 2 of their novels, House Rules and Nineteen Minutes. Jodi Picoult’s work, similar to Khaled Hosseini’s, shows how everyone is a product of the society at the time, how no one is a binary character, all good or all bad. Specially with the novel Nineteen Minutes, it shows you can’t judge a character by first impressions. These 2 authors brought such humanity to their work it not only inspired me to write but to write stories like the ones they did, stories that showed the flawed and multi-layer construction that is a human being.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on a novel that I hope to release in Spring of 2026. Everything as far as the story is still to be determined, but my goal is to have it written and complete by the end of the year at least.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Social media is my best tool. Reaching out to people I do, and people I don’t know. I honestly didn’t even realize marketing sites were a thing until I saw a video by Robert Dale talking about how he paid promoters on Fiver to talk about one of his books on Instagram and their websites.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. Write. Write and keep on writing. When I was younger I used to take Piano lessons and my Piano teacher told me there had been a study done which found that whoever did a thing for 10000 hours became a pro at that one thing. I didn’t believe it at the time but now I know. I hated practicing Piano but I loved writing, so I did it constantly, and that’s why I’m not just good but I’m confident I’m good, whereas with Piano I stopped playing it years ago but even when I did I was never quite confident in myself. Also, as a side note given that experience, if you can breathe eat and sleep writing, this is for you. If you love reading books and gaining knowledge that you then put into your written work somehow, this is for you. If everything you imagine involves writing, this is for you. (When I thought of going down the traditional route of going to college, I never thought of studying creative writing because I thought that wouldn’t be productive, even English was never on my mind except as a stepping stone to something else like law, etc. The point is no matter what career I thought of over the years, whether it was law, writing novels, journalism which I did for a while as a teen on a technology blog, or even preaching, it was all reading and writing heavy.)
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I don’t remember where I heard this but basically, editing is a stage not a part of drafting. Write your first draft, with absolutely everything, don’t leave everything out. So what if you end up writing 100 chapters, and end up spending pages upon pages on one single scene. Then, once you’re done with that, you go back and start editing. Instead of say, starting with a goal of writing 100000 words, write it all out and then cut it down to your goal or editorial requirements.
What are you reading now?
I started reading Seeking Rachel, a Regency romance, mainly because it was free on Kindle and I had a friend a few years ago who was obsessed with the Regency time period. Unfortunately though this is one I cannot finish, not because it isn’t objectively a good book but because I find it boring personally.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Right now I’m focusing on 2 things. Promoting my existing story, The Garden of Grace, and going through the start of the writing process with my next story, the novel which I mentioned earlier will be released in Spring of 2026.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Great question. First, the Bible in the KJV. The language is a little hard to read sometimes but there is just something about the KJV that seems to be impossible to find in any other translation. Usually at home I’m good using the Bible app and flipping between the KJV, ESV, and NIV, but since I’m only taking one it’d have to be KJV. The other books, it would be a toss up between the 3 Khaled Hosseini books I mentioned earlier, the Hunger Games trilogy, or the first 3 Harry Potter or maybe even the first 3 Game of Thrones books. The reason I mention Harry Potter, Hunger Games and Game of Thrones is because those 3 series are great reads that handle profound topics in good easy to read ways without making me cry like Jodi Picoult’s work did which is why I was only able to read 2 of their novels.
Author Websites and Profiles
Jorge Alejandro Paez’s Social Media Links
Author Interview Series
To discover a new author, check out our Featured Authors page. We have some of the best authors around. They are just waiting for you to discover them. If you enjoyed this writer’s interview feel free to share it using the buttons below. Sharing is caring!
If you are an author and want to be interviewed just fill out out Author Interview page. After submitting we will send it out in our newsletters and social media channels that are filled with readers looking to discover new books to read.
If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.