Q: Why do you love writing?
I don’t think there’s anything more rewarding than having the opportunity to create characters and the worlds they inhabit out of nothing but imagination. It’s even more incredible when these characters and their lives become real and important to others.
The letters and emails from readers telling you how much they’ve enjoyed something you’ve written or complaining that you kept them up all night reading, are best of all.
Q: You have worked in radio, television, and film. If you had to pick one to have a career in one, which would it be and why?
I have a soft spot for radio, probably because that’s where I started. I began at the college station, moved into voice over commercial work, and did a stint in Tampa as the host of a live radio show called ‘Desperate & Dateless’ during a time when I was both!
I’m also drawn to radio because, like writing, it requires a lot of imagination and is more about what’s inside you than what you look like or how others perceive you.
One of my favorite college classes was an exploration of early radio. We used to listen to the old shows; the ones families used to tune into each week before television existed. I was fascinated by the visual images that were created just by using voice and sound effects.
There was a really great comedy routine where you could actually picture Lake Michigan being emptied and then turned into a gigantic hot fudge sundae. It ended with a plane dropping the maraschino cherry on top!
Q: What do you hope readers take from your books?
I hope they enjoy themselves; that for however long it takes them to read one of my books, they can leave real life behind and escape into people and places that interest them and they can relate to.
Q: How do you find fresh ideas for your characters?
I don’t know exactly where they come from. I’m a pretty instinctual writer and the kernels of story ideas come out of the headlines or things that I observe around me.
I write women’s journeys—stories about women discovering who they are and what they’re made of. My characters are often an amalgamation of women, or at least the kinds of women, that I know or have met.
Q: Is there anything that really surprised you about being an author or the writing industry in general? Maybe any good secrets or inside tidbits you can share?
I was certainly surprised by how brutal the publishing industry can be. There’s writing and then there’s getting and staying published, which are very different things.
The Accidental Bestseller, which was recently reprinted in mass market paperback, is definitely an inside look at the publishing industry. I’ve joked that ‘the names have been changed to protect the innocent,’ but it’s as true a look at what it is to be a writer today as I was able to write without having to label it non-fiction.
It’s the story of four critique partners who’ve been friends for a decade and who discover just how far they’re willing to go to help each other survive the industry.
It’s up for a Rita Award, which is really interesting since the book actually begins with one of the characters sitting at a very similar awards ceremony waiting to see whether she’s won a prestigious writing award that she hopes will revitalize her career. Of course, now I wish I’d written her winning!!
Q: What type of research do you conduct for your books?
Research comes in all different forms and in any given book there can be lots of different things you need to know and understand. In Leave It to Cleavage, I had to learn about the bra industry, beauty pageants, small town policing and some really interesting forensics issues.
I’ve also researched talk radio, advertising, divorce, construction, financial theft, politics and ballroom dance, just to name a few. It’s pretty much impossible to write a novel without needing to learn about things you don’t know, and I think it’s really important to understand what you’re writing about and get your facts straight. The more you know, the more realistic your scenes will be and the more authentic your characters feel.
Q: What was the best part about growing up in Florida?
The beach! I grew up on St. Pete Beach, which is that comma shaped barrier island on the west central coast of Florida that curves into the Gulf of Mexico. It’s still my favorite beach in the world and walking barefoot with the white sand squinched between my toes is the most relaxing thing ever. My current work in progress is actually set there, which is a lot of fun.
Q: When you were growing up, what did you think your career would be one day?
I’ve always loved to perform, and when I was little I just wanted to be famous—whatever that means!
Later I wanted to be a famous journalist or a famous stand up comedian. I’m not as worried about the famous part anymore—it is, after all, a pretty relative term. I feel really fortunate to get to make things up for a living.
Q: What is your advice for aspiring writers?
In The Accidental Bestseller each chapter begins with a quote about writing. I was originally looking for one to begin the book and found so many that resonated with me, that I used as many as I could.
As I mentioned earlier and wrote about in The Accidental Bestseller, it’s not an easy business. In addition to talent, the most important thing is probably persistence. Frankly, you have to really, really want it in order to hang in through all the ups and downs a writing career typically entails.
Chapter one begins with John Steinbeck’s quote, “The profession of book writing makes horse racing seem like a solid, stable business.” John was right!
Another that sums things up is from James Baldwin who said, “Beyond talent lie all the usual words: discipline, love, luck—but most of all, endurance.”
Q: Where would be your dream vacation?
On a white sandy beach, with the sound of the waves washing gently onto shore, reading—for as long as I wanted to without any interruptions. I’ve joked that I could read a book a day if my family would leave me alone long enough, and I’d like to put this theory to the test!
Because I love the beach so much and to celebrate the release of The Accidental Bestseller in mass market paperback, I’m running a contest for those lucky enough to get to one. Just take a picture of yourself reading a copy of The Accidental Bestseller on the beach—any beach— submit to my website www.authorwendywax.com I’ll post it on my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/authorwendywax ,
and enter you to win a beach bag full of my favorite books!
