I’m so pleased to be able to bring you of my fellow Beyond the Veil authors, Jody Wallace.  A fellow cat-lover, Jody is creative, modest, and talented.  Please help me make her feel welcome at Knoontime Knitting.

KK: Tell me a little more about amigurumi. What is it? What do you like to make?

JW: Amigurumi is, according to Wiki, “the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals and anthropomorphic creatures.” (From Wikipedia.)  There’s more to it than that, but that’s the basic definition. I like to make scary little critters, people (I once made the characters of one of my romance novels) and other funky animals. I also like to make gifts for friends (zombie wedding cake topper!), family and industry professionals who visit our local RWA chapter. Note: I have my chapter’s approval to do this. I don’t just push the amigurumi on the editors and agents in a creepy fashion :).

KK: When did you learn to do it? Did you crochet for a while before you learned the art?

JW: My grandmother taught me some basic crocheting when I was a kid. I made a scarf. And half of a poncho. But the fact is, I’m lazy and a mini-project takes so much less time than a scarf or an afghan or a sweater. The first amigurumi I ever made was a tiny, evil gnome, also a character in one of my romance novels. I like to crochet hats, too, but today I’m talking amigurumi.

KK: Have you ever given a craft to a character? How did you go about it? What research did it require?

JW: Nothing extensive enough that required research, no. Since the plots of my books often involve the hero, heroine and other characters being jerked out of their ordinary lives to save the world and whatnot, the characters never have much time for knitting or woodworking.

KK: What effect does your writing have on your crafting and vice-versa? Does one fall off when the other is stronger, or do they synergize?

JW: I write more than I crochet, but sometimes I crochet writing-related items. In addition to the instances I mentioned above, I also make amigurumi for reader giveaways. Right now I’m working on a wee zombie horde that will function as basket toppers for a promo group organized by author TJ Michaels. The baskets will be given away at the Authors After Dark conference.

KK: What do you dream of making when you have the time or skills?

JW: Videos and comic strips featuring the amigurumi I created for my novel One Thousand Kisses. Alas, my time management skills, not to mention my graphics editing and videography skills, have not yet allowed me to complete this lofty goal.

KK: Where do you get ideas for your crafts?

JW: The garbage, usually. I also love the book Creepy Cute Crochet by Christen Haden.

Gallery

Amigurumeme

Beachgnome

Crochetchaun

Devohat (Note from Noony – I TOTALLY want one of these hats.  Adorable!!)

PVSN21

Zombies (Awesome!)

Biography

Jody Wallace grew up in the South in a very rural area. She went to school a long time and ended up with a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing. Her resume includes college English instructor, technical documents editor, market analyst, web designer, and general all around pain in the butt. She is a terrible packrat and likes to amass vintage clothing, books, Asian-inspired kitchenware, gnomes, and other items that threaten to force her family out of the house. She also likes cats. A lot.