Q: Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?
Always. My father used to read to me every night when he came home from work, and it made me fall in love with books and writing. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to write myself.
Q: Do you have a certain writing routine?
I’m actually pretty disciplined. I go to the same coffee shop every weekday morning, put on my headphones, and write for 4-5 hours. Then I take a lunch break. When work is going well, I will sometimes have a night session also. The quirkiest part of my writing routine is that I always listen to music while I’m working–and usually the same song on repeat. The song changes with each book. For The First Husband, I listened to The National quite a bit.
Q: What is the hardest part for you during the writing process?
Starting a new project is always the hardest part. I will often write and re-write the first 60 pages of a novel for months and months. Then something will click and I can finish the book in less time than those first 60 pages took to figure out. That is the exciting part for me: When I finally know where I want to go with a story, I really start to enjoy myself.
Q: Where does the inspiration for your stories come from?
It always comes form a question I can’t stop thinking about often deriving from events in my life, and the life of my friends. With my first novel, London Is The Best City In America, the question was: how do we choose a life? With The Divorce Party, The question was: how do we forgive? And with The First Husband it is: how do we find the place we belong?
Q: How did you find your agent?
I met my agent at an amazing writer’s conference in Tennessee called The Sewanee Writers’ Conference. I highly recommend writers conferences as a place to personally connect with agents, editors, and other writers. They can be invaluable
Q: If you hadn’t been a writer, what career would you be doing?
I love music, so I’d like to say a soundtrack producer on a television show or for the movies. That’s an alternate fantasy of mine.
Q: Can you describe your latest novel, The First Husband, in twenty words or less?
When a woman’s longterm boyfriend leaves her, she marries a new man three months later in reaction. Heartbreak (and happiness!) ensue.
Q: How important do you think social media is these days for authors?
I think it can be very important. It allows you to be in conversation with your readers which is priceless. And, for me, very enjoyable. I love hearing my readers’ stories and thoughts, and hearing what they thought about mine. Social media provides a platform (like we’ve never had before) for all of that.
Q: My favorite magazine, Cosmopolitan, named you a “Fun and Fearless Phenom of the Year” in 2008. What does an achievement like that mean to you?
It means so much to me! To be honored among such inspiring women still feels like a dream come true. And I adore Kate White, Cosmopolitan’s Editor in Chief. So getting to spend time with her was special for me.
Q: What is your best advice for aspiring writers?
Commit to your writing. This could mean going to a writing program, or it could mean giving yourself two hours before work of uninterrupted writing time. The key is honoring the commitment. The same way you brush your teeth, or exercise, you should decide it is something that you just do. No excuses. And, once you are used to doing it, give yourself a word count to reach. It can be 500 words a session, it can be 250. But nothing makes you feel more like a writer than actually seeing your progress.
Q: Where would be your dream vacation?
My fiance and I took a trip to Italy last year that I could do every year happily, forever. I fell madly in love with Italy’s Amalfi Coast, and can’t wait to go back.
May 14, 2011
