Q: Where do you think your passion for writing comes from? I think it is something one is just born with, or maybe it’s afflicted with!…I’ve thought of myself as a writer since about the age of 9, but it took me a lot longer to actually complete a novel and then let anyone see it. I simply have to write, and I like to do it every day, although I don’t. I get a bit cranky when I go too long without writing.
Q: How did you get the idea for Lulu Meets God and Doubts Him? I’d always been interested in female characters who wrestle with their creative ambitions. The novel really came together when I placed Mia, this wry aspiring artist behind the desk in a gallery, commenting on what she witnessed.
Q: Your second novel, The Summer We Read Gatsby comes out in May. Where was the inspiration for these characters? Like Cassie, the narrator, I’m American but I grew up in Brazil and Switzerland, always a foreigner, both there and here. I had this idea that she would study novels like Gatsby almost as textbooks, to better understand the country she loved from afar. I was inspired by the legacy of artists and writers in the Hamptons and I imagined my characters would be too.
Q: How were you able to break into the writing industry? I was very lucky to meet my agent, whom I absolutely adore, through a mutual friend. I had been reluctant to show many people my work but once she had the manuscript for Lulu it all happened very quickly and Viking bought it in a pre-empt deal. But I’d been working on that novel for quite some time so it was pretty evolved once I showed it to anyone.
Q: Have you ever had an idea for a novel/character at an odd time or place? I’m always finding little bits of ideas or characters or situations, it’s putting them together to create a novel that doesn’t seem to deliver itself as a whole.
Q: You’ve lived in New York City for many years. I have visited there once and was completely overwhelmed by all there is to do. What are your top 3 picks for a tourist to do/see when visiting NYC? That’s a hard question, because, as you said, there is so much and the most fun thing to do in New York is just walk the streets and take it all in, the people, the smells, the buildings! But also I think a visit to Central Park is key, just to walk around. Definitely a museum or two, the Met, the Guggenheim (even just to see the building) and for galleries, 24th street in Chelsea. And there is so much great food, I would recommend checking Zagat’s for the top choices in the category you might be interested in.
Q: What would you say is your biggest personal success? I probably shouldn’t say this because I don’t want to jinx anything but my husband and my children. And I’m very happy to be able to keep writing and finding an audience.
Q: What are some of your bad habits? I have many. I’m a terrible procrastinator.
Q: What is your advice for aspiring writers? I know this gets said a lot but it really is the best advice: just write. People say they want to write but don’t have the time — you make time for what you need to do in life. Writing is re-writing. Novels don’t just happen, they have to be crafted over many many drafts, so you have to put in the time. And that’s often the hardest part, time management.
Q: I read that you have traveled to places such as Brazil and Switzerland. Is there more places you would like to travel too? Yes, I want to go everywhere! I’ve never been to Asia and am dying to go. I hope to get to India very soon as well.
May 15, 2010
