Interview with Jenice Mattek

Author of What Lies Beneath

 

Where are you from originally and where do you reside now?

I am originally from Neenah, Wisconsin and I currently reside in Chicago, Illinois.

If you currently reside somewhere besides where you were born, what’s the story that lead from there to here?

The old story of girl meets boy, falls in love, marries him, moves to big city with him, romance ends and girl finds path to true love, friends, career, happiness and so much more!

What made you decide to write and publish your first book?

The book I co-authored with Sara Fisher, was written to help create awareness about the under-realized and cumulative effects surgery has on the body. Sara and I spend most of our practice working with women (and men) who have surgeries like Cesareans, hysterectomies, hernia repair, appendectomies, mastectomies, digestive related surgeries and more who never received any type of therapeutic care post surgery. Since the time of their surgery up to 60 years later struggle with chronic tightness, pain and other symptoms that have never fully been addressed or related to their surgery.

How would you describe your books to first time readers?

The journey of life after surgery as told by real clients and their practitioners. The ups, downs, unknowns, what you didn’t likely know, what you were not told and what you can do to start taking back control of you body.

Who do you feel is most likely to connect with the topics you write about?

Women who have found that they have struggled after surgery.

What unexpected or surprising thing did you learn during the process of writing and publishing?

How important the message is that we have to share. Writing is just the first step. What do after the book is equally if not more important.
Our message became and continues to become more succinct.

If you could, what advice would you give to your past self before embarking on this journey?

Do more market research for the title of the book. Be more clear as to the steps you want people to take after reading the book.

How many people would you ideally like to reach with your books?

The statistics tell us that there are over 20 million surgeries annually in the areas of the chest, breast, abdomen and pelvis in just the US so, we would like to reach each one of them.

What has been the biggest challenge and frustration during the process to date?

Getting our book to reach the people it can help most….

What’s your biggest strengths when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

Working with a partner to bounce ideas. Have stories to make the information feel more real.

What’s your biggest weakness when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

Marketing is the biggest weakness due to time.

When do you think you will write your next book?

My newest book is overdue. 2020 has to be the year.

Are you self published or did you use a hybrid publisher, or a traditional publisher?

We are self-published.