Joi Maree Flowers:

The Beginning of a Great Writer

This week The Entertainers Hub had the pleasure of sitting with an amazing aspiring writer. This was one of the most encouraging and inspiring interviews we have conducted here on The E Hub. This young lady has a vision with passion and the ambition and faith to go after her dreams. We firmly believe that all who read this interview will gain something positive and beneficial for their betterment. Checkout the entire interview below.



The E Hub: Introduce yourself and tell us a little about who you are.

Joi Maree Flowers

Joi Maree Flowers: My name is Joi Maree Flowers. I am from Miami, FL. I am a Writer who enjoys listening to music, spending quality time with my family and friends, and of course writing. I first fell in love with words through music. I grew up on old school music, Marvin Gaye, Billie Holiday, Donny Hathaway, etc. In addition to enjoying the rhythm of the beat, I loved to hear the stories the artists were telling. I would sometimes make up my own little songs and write some too. As the years passed, I was introduced to the writings of Langston Hughes. When I first read his words, I became hooked and couldn’t stop reading. His words drew me close to his thoughts and filled me with all kinds of emotions as I felt every one of his words I read, something that at that point had never happened to me before. He was political, humorous, worldly, and real; and I treated his works like a never-ending story, I always wanted more. From there, I began writing everything that came to my mind, every inspiring thing I saw, and everything I learned from growth, and turning it into either a poetic piece or a short story.

The E Hub: Joi, you've told us that for you, writing is and always was a calling. How do you know when something is a calling?

Joi Maree Flowers: You know when something is your calling when no matter how hard you try to escape it, kick it, or replace it, it never goes away. I knew that writing was my calling, when not only it came easy to me to do, but when it began distracting me from completing other tasks such as schoolwork, job assignments, and other things that should have been and were at the time my priority.

The E Hub: Did you ever ask yourself, "Why am I doing this? Should I change course and maybe try to pursue a more traditional career?"

Joi Maree Flowers: Yes, I have in the past. I only considered it to be a hobby of mine and not a potential career. I had told myself that I would go to college to become a Physical Therapist and eventually open up my own practice. When I began taking my college courses, I realize that Science and Mathematics, which would be the main courses needed to achieve my degree, was my least favorite subjects during my grade school years. I would pay little to no attention while in class and would often find myself writing notes for poetry pieces and sometimes complete a few pieces. After fooling myself for a year, I left college so I could figure out what exactly it was that I wanted to do with the rest of my life. It took me 10 years, but I came to the conclusion that my life’s purpose was to be a Writer.

The E Hub: What does it mean to you to be a writer?

Joi Maree Flowers: Writing for me is a freedom. It’s my freedom to speak without barriers and my freedom to be me without questioning. My ability to connect with my readers and being able to share with them my thoughts and feelings and being able to touch them with my stories of love and life. The amazing thing about reading and writing is the connection I have with my audience. There may be someone that is going through something where they feel alone and then read one of my poems or stories and see themselves in those words and breathe a little easier knowing that they are not alone, that someone else can relate to them.

The E Hub: Who is your favorite writer?

Joi Maree Flowers: My favorite Writer is Langston Hughes. His writing style is so creative, so captivating, and so well understood by me. My favorite poem by Mr. Hughes is, “Dream,” whose lines, “Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird, that cannot fly,” are my motivational words that I live by.

The E Hub: What is it that motivates or inspires you to become a great writer like Langston Hughes?

Joi Maree Flowers: Like Mr. Hughes, I want to share my gift to the world, words of imaginative creativity and also those of non-fictional situations. I want to speak the words that sometimes cannot be spoken. I want to be an inspiration to those who just need to be inspired or confirmed about something that they may think that they’re the only one’s that are going through certain situations. I also want to provide humor to my audience. As human beings, we tend to be so caught up in this fast pace world of getting ahead that we tend to forget to laugh.

The E Hub: What kind of goals do you have as a writer; what is your actual mission?

Joi Maree Flowers: My goal as a Writer is to write many novels, short stories, poems, songs, stage plays, and screenplays. I want to touch as many sectors of what this field has to offer with the time I am given here on earth. I also want to become a positive role model for anyone who is considering becoming a Writer but is unsure if it is worth giving a try or either too late in life to become.

My mission is simple, to be one of the great voices of my generation and other generations that will come after.

The E Hub: You have a writers blog... Tell us about that endeavor and why it was birthed.

Joi Maree Flowers: Yes I have a Writers blog, www.herwordsspeak.com. My baby, as I call it, was born when my fear died. For a long time I have been writing; everything from, poetry, short stories, and journals, without anyone except my Mom and a few selected friends ever knowing about it. I was shy and private and didn’t want anyone to really know about my “hobby” for fear of judgment. When I left College and started working, I still was not happy and found that when I went home, the peace and happiness that I received from my rough days came from writing. I started introducing myself to more Writers and Poets, such as Ernest Hemingway, Zora Neale Hurston, Toni Morrison, and Jill Scott, who all have had success with their writings and thought to myself “Hey, I could do this, too.” But saying that I could do it was easier said than done. I feared rejection from my peers and procrastinated a lot. After having a little self pep talk, getting out of my own way, and receiving encouraging words from family and friends, I decided that it was time for the world to be introduced to my talent; for what good is a talent if no one knows that you possess it. So I decided to create a blog and titled it perfectly, Her Words Speak.

The E Hub: Are there any other goals that you would like to accomplish outside of Writing?

Joi Maree Flowers: Absolutely, I want to one day produce and direct my own movies and TV shows. I have a few ideas up my sleeve. In addition to that venture, I want to one-day start a non-profit foundation for girls where assistance and directions can be given to them on their path to becoming a strong, proud, and successful woman. Many girls, like myself, grew up without a Father, for which that absence can either be beneficial or damaging for a young girl growing seeking that assurance, want, and love of a man. I want to provide mentors, both male and female, to these girls so they can have someone, when they feel they have no one, to turn to.

The E Hub: What can we expect from Joi Maree Flowers in 2013?

Joi Maree Flowers: I am currently working on my first poetry book that I plan to release at the end of the year. I will also add another column to my Writers blog that will feature up and coming as well as established writers to have their works be seen and their words heard by my audience. I will be launching that feature this Summer. Also, I will have the pleasure of working with you guys at The E Hub in the coming weeks, so I’m super excited about that new venture.

The E Hub: Joi, it has truly been a pleasure to sit here with you and interview… We can really feel the passion that you have for writing and we firmly believe the vision you have for all of your endeavors will manifest and bare fruit that we all can enjoy. Do you have any final words that you would like to leave us with?

Joi Maree Flowers: Thank you all for the support; this is just the beginning the best is yet to come. I would also like to thank The E Hub for the love they have shown me.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter @herwordsspeak and @Joiflowers and be sure to like my Facebook Fan Page, Joi Maree Flowers. Check out my Writers blog, www.herwordsspeak.com for new entries every Monday and Friday; and please leave comments on those entries, as I love to hear from you. Be blessed, be encouraged, become who you dreamed yourself to be. xoxo

“As long as there is a road ahead, keep walking forward. Going backwards will only take you where you've already been, but going forward will take you where you are to go.” -Joi Maree Flowers-