SAFE WITHIN by Jean Reynolds Page
SAFE WITHIN
Tell us the story behind the story. How did SAFE WITHIN come to be?
The characters of Elaine and Carson were inspired by my parents. While their story has no resemblance to my parents’ marriage, my mother was widowed at 52 after my father died from cancer of the esophagus. I was nineteen at the time. In this book I wanted to explore the challenges that surround losing someone like Carson. There is the grief, but there are also many practical adjustments that have to be made. In Elaine’s case — Greta. The two women have such a strong dislike for one another but an equally strong love for Carson. They begin to need each other in order to move beyond their loss. It became an interesting dynamic for me to navigate.
The setting of the tree house came from my own experiences in a cabin on a lake in North Carolina. My folks built the place when I was eleven. It wasn’t literally in the trees, but it sat on a steep hill that overlooked the lake and had the feel of existing among the high branches. When driving from Seattle to Madison for the move, I saw a real tree house – a huge one – that overlooked a campground. I don’t even know what state we were in at the time, but I remember having the thought that I wanted to combine my childhood cabin with that full-sized house up in the trees.
What was the most challenging aspect of writing SAFE WITHIN?
The greatest challenge was the move from Seattle to Wisconsin. It became difficult for me to create a place for my characters and to move through their struggles when my own physical world was in such upheaval. I couldn’t “inhabit” their world because I wasn’t at ease in my own. I had to learn to exist in new unfamiliar surroundings which didn’t leave me with the safety and comfort of a place to create without anxiety. It took time for me to settle both my home and my mental space. I haven’t thought about it before, but I literally needed to feel safe within my new home before I could write.
What is the message you want readers to take away from your book?
I began writing a version of this story when I was in my thirties. At the time, I identified only with Elaine and Mick. The story didn’t become fully realized as a novel at that time and I put it aside. When I picked it up again two decades later, I found that, having moved to a different time in my own life, I had much more sympathy for Greta than I’d had before. Greta became a fully realized person to me and not just an added difficulty for Elaine. The two women made assumptions about each other that were drawn from their own internal biases. I’d love for readers to take away from the book some of the things I began to examine in writing it. That we sometimes falsely attribute the intentions of others based on our own baggage. If we are able to pull away from that, connections can be made that benefit everyone.
Describe your writing schedule. Do you outline? Any habits?
My agent has a very kind way of describing my writing process. She calls it “organic”. That puts a pleasant spin on the fact that I couldn’t outline a book if my entire existence depended on it. I take the characters through a lot of scenes and to many dead ends before I find the path that will turn into their story. Usually, I have a very broad theme and I have a picture of the setting. Beyond that, it is up to the characters to begin informing me of their journey.
I do keep to a fairly regular schedule. I will try to write for several hours in the morning and then take a break. The deeper I get into the writing of a book, the less removed I am from the process when I take a “break”. I walk the dog or putter with laundry, but my thoughts are working through the story – usually through dialogue. These are my most schizophrenic times when I almost hear the characters talking with each other and I feel as if I’m eavesdropping. (My husband, a doctor, once told me, “You know we have medication for that sort of thing.” I think he was joking.) Then I return to writing in the afternoon. If it is going well, I move forward, and if not, I work on revising what I’ve already done.
What books are on your nightstand? What are you currently reading?
I have so many books beside my bed that the books have become a nightstand. But the one I’m reading at the moment is John Irving’s new book IN ONE PERSON . I love Irving’s ability to peel off the outer skin of places that would be considered normal – small towns that thrive on the lumber or the granite industries. He exposes the absurdity that exists just under the surface, and he does it with humanity and humor. He gives his characters dignity while exposing their most embarrassing inner lives. I love A PRAYER FOR OWN MEANY and this book has a similar tone – so far.
When I finish IN ONE PERSON, I plan to return to one of Doris Betts’ novels. She taught at Chapel Hill when I was in school and, while I never had one of her classes, I bonded with her writing. She recently passed away and just knowing that she is gone has made me homesick for her writing.
Which do you prefer e-books or traditionally printed? Do you write in books when you read? Highlight passages?
I rarely highlight or make any sort of notation on books that I’m reading. I like to allow the stories to flow without stopping. Later, I will go over what I’ve read in my own thoughts and make connections. Sometimes I go back and find something that has stayed with me and I try to sort out my thoughts.
My physical books get pretty beaten up because I drag them everywhere. I genuinely love to read books in both physical and e-book forms. I have always composed at the computer, so I don’t have a problem with narratives coming alive on a screen. Once I’m into a story, it begins to exist in my head regardless of the format. I would hate to see an end to paper books. Sometimes it feels comforting to hold one or to see it on a shelf.
Which authors inspire you?
I’m inspired by different authors for different reasons. David Benioff, who wrote CITY OF THIEVES, has an amazing ability to bring intimate stories to life in the context of a large historical setting. In CITY OF THIEVES, he follows two young guys, a teenager and a soldier, during the siege of Leningrad. You care deeply about these two while getting a tremendous sense of what Russia was like during that time. My characters are large inside of much smaller spaces, so I admire someone like Benioff who can do something I would find difficult, if not impossible.
For comfort and inspiration I go to my Southern favorites. If I need to hear Southern voices I go to Reynolds Price, Lee Smith and especially Elizabeth Spencer. Reading any of those authors is like going home.
What have you learned from this experience?
SAFE WITHIN is written from three primary perspectives. Greta’s point of view is one of these and this is the first time I’ve written from inside the mind of a woman in her seventies. As I said, many years ago when I began this book, I didn’t have chapters written from Greta’s perspective – or Mattie’s. I found that when I picked up the narrative again at the age of fifty-one, I could “feel” Greta. I could feel the frustrations of a proud woman who can no longer be entirely in control of her own life
Also, in writing from her point of view, I learned a little about what is to come for me, I think, in the next decade or so. My children aren’t married yet, but I hope they will find partners with whom to make a life. When this happens, there will be huge adjustments for me — when those other individuals are brought into our family. It was good to explore these challenges in the context of fiction. Sort of a dry run. I got along very well with my mother-in-law, but I’m only beginning to realize what a gracious woman she was to welcome me so completely into her world.
What is your advice for aspiring writers?
Workshops. Even writers who are not in an academic setting can find some kind of structured program that allows access to both objective readers and deadlines. Before I was published, I always found classes at colleges or universities in the towns where we lived. Knowing that other people were going to read what I’d written made the writing a necessity and not an indulgence. I tended to feel guilty for taking the time to write when so many other things needed to be done with young children. The workshops validated that time for me. I found people I trusted in my workshops at SMU in Dallas and several of us pulled out and formed our own writers group. This sort of interaction was crucial for me to grow as a writer.
What are you working on now?
I’m writing the vignettes, scenes and random moments of dialogue that will (I hope) turn into the next novel. It’s the least efficient method I can imagine to develop a narrative, but I’ve given up on trying to change at this point. I like to think that if I put myself into the thoughts of characters and let them wander around a bit; they will find the story for me. I heard an interview once with Paul Simon. He’d finished a new album and the person talking with him suggested that he must feel very proud when he finished work on a record. Simon replied, “Mostly, I’m just grateful that it came.” That’s the way I feel with each book. In spite of my inefficient, disorganized process, the books have come, and for that I feel grateful.
SAFE WITHIN publishes on June 12, 2012. Stay tuned for a review next week!
