The Language of Trees by Ilie Ruby

1.      Tell us the story behind the story. How did The Language of Trees come to be?

I wrote the book over a period of several years. I was inspired by the gorgeous landscape of Canandaigua, where my family spent childhood summers. The area is teeming with Native American folklore and ghost stories. It is also an extremely evocative place. Every rented cabin that we stayed in had a ghost story attached to it. In the cabin next to ours lived a woman with 13 cats, she was the secret keeper of the place and we were enthralled with her stories and folklore.

2.      What was the most challenging aspect of writing your debut novel?

I actually started with the character of Luke, a blithe spirit. I felt his character very strongly but knew that if I wrote the story from his perspective I would have to create a spirit world and maintain that for 350+ pages. I realized that I wasn’t so much interested in creating a spirit world but more a world that was spiritual.

I also found it hard to know when to stop creating new versions. One of the hard things about writing something over a long period of time is that your tastes change, and your wisdom about writing changes. Then you have to reconcile your own phases and styles.

3.      What is the message you want readers to take away from your book?

That although you may go through hard times, there are such things as second chances—you can fall in love after tragedy. You can start anew.

4.      Describe your background.

My mom was an artist. I grew up writing and painting every day. I actually thought everyone did these things every day. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized that this was not a way of life for most people.

5.      Describe your writing schedule. Do you outline? Any habits?

I don’t outline novels. I outline short stories. I am a night owl so writing late at night is the best for me. I usually write in long stints—10 to 12 hours per writing “session.”  I can’t do that anymore now that I have 3 little kids, so I am having to alter my writing schedule.

6. What books are on your nightstand? What are you currently reading?

I am reading a lot of humor writing at the moment: things that make me laugh—David Sedaris, old Woody Allen, Ayelet Waldman, among others. Also some books on “mommy-ing,” and adoption.

7. Which authors inspire you?

Alice Hoffman, Alice Seybold, Anita Shreve, and a bevy of poets: Jack Gilbert, Jorie Graham, Mary Oliver, etc.

As a child, my favorites were Judy Blume, Norma Fox Mazer, C.S. Lewis

8.      What have you learned from this experience?

To be cautious about where galleys are sent and make sure they end up in the right hands.

9.      What is your advice for aspiring writers?

Stick with it no matter how long it takes. Learn to respect your own individual timeline.  Respect your first drafts.

10.  What are you working on now?

I am actually going to outline a second novel and a children’s book, Eden’s Garden, about a girl who came from Ethiopia. I promised my daughter I’d write a book for her so this is it.

I recently interviewed Chris Bohjalian, author of the enormously popular MIDWIVES as well as many other thought-provoking and captivating novels. His upcoming release, SECRETS OF EDEN just received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.

Do you feel the subject matter of your books are ever rooted in a current event, a hot news story or a popular debate?

I don’t always relate a novel to a current event. “Skeletons at the Feast” is a love triangle set in Poland and Germany in the last six months of World War II. “The Buffalo Soldier” was about parental grief and loss and recovery. “The Double Bind” harkens back to “The Great Gatsby” and the literary canon. And even “Midwives” wasn’t about an issue that was out there in the news: No one was talking about midwifery in 1997. There was no national debate about home vs. hospital birth.

Still, I do have novelist friends who are preternaturally gifted at tapping into the cultural zeitgeist – and they sell boatloads more books than I do. So, clearly they’re on to something.

In any case, the last thing I would tell a novelist is that the key to great art is a great hook. Sometimes great art has a great hook…but I wouldn’t recommend beginning there.

Now, I think that if you are determined to pull something off the newspapers or news web sites and craft it into a novel, be sure there is some moral ambiguity or conflict to the story. Drama still needs conflict, even if your source is the news.

How do you decide what makes a good story?

Some writing professors will tell you to write about what you know; others will tell you to write about what you don’t know, but learn all you can. My sense is that it really doesn’t matter if you are writing about a subject you know all about or one that is completely foreign. The key is to explore a subject you care about so passionately that you want to get up at five a.m. to dive in. That has always been the barometer for me.

I should also note that for every novel I finish, I must go down two dead ends, some of which are hundreds of pages long.

SECRETS OF EDEN will release in February.

James Frey is finally getting back at Oprah for ambushing him in an interview in 2006, for lying in his memoir A Million Little Pieces.

In the paperback edition of Bright Shiny Morning, Frey adds a talk show scene, where the host berates the character.

“He went on the show. It wasn’t what he was told it was going to be. He got berated, yelled at, booed, scolded, lectured, humiliated.”

The narrator becomes paranoid because of this and loses his mind,  I wonder what Oprah will say about that.

(via Daily Beast)

Before Stephen King, New England had another master of horror: Edgar Allan Poe

Poe was born in Boston in 1809 but had a mixed relationship with his birth city often lying about where he was born born and decried Boston’s literary elite. But Mayor Tom Menino and poet laureate Sam Cornish are dedicating a square near Boston Common and walking distance of Poe’s birthplace.

Poe mysteriously died in Baltimore in 1849 , but he wanted to buried in Boston despite his wars with Thoreau and Longfellow.

The Dedication will take place on Monday and later this year there will be an exhibit dedicated to The Raven author at the Boston Public Library.

Brenda Janowitz, author of Scot on the Rocks and Jack with a Twist

BRENDA JANOWITZ

Author of Scot on the Rocks and Jack with a Twist

Red Dress Ink

Describe your path to becoming a published author.

I’ve always been a writer. In fact, that’s the reason why I became a lawyer in the first place—trying to find a career where I could write full time. But I’ve always had a real love for fiction, and I’d find myself practicing law and thinking about these fictional stories that I wanted to write. I practiced at a large law firm and also did a federal clerkship, but couldn’t find the perfect niche for myself in law. So, I decided to pursue my dream of being a fiction writer.

When I was invited to my ex-boyfriend’s wedding, my life slowly but surely began to resemble some of my favorite chick lit novels, and I said to myself, ‘I’ve just gotta start writing this stuff down….’

I began working on my manuscript while I was still working full time as a lawyer—it took me around 9 months to complete. Since I had the basic idea for the story in my head, it flowed well for me. I knew the way I wanted the scenes to play out, the character arcs, and then from there, I just let things grow on their own. Basically, I wrote whenever I could. Instead of renting a movie on a rainy night, I would just sit down and write. After 3 more months of editing, it took another 3 or 4 months to find an agent. There was a lot of rejection at first, but then I met Mollie Glick. It was an instant connection and I immediately knew that I wanted her to represent me. Mollie then took it from there and found the perfect home for my book with Selina McLemore at Red Dress Ink, who offered us a two book deal.

How did being a lawyer prepare you for your life as a writer?

I’d say it’s the discipline. As a lawyer, you learn to work hard—really punishing hours—to get what you want. You learn the value of organization and how to be professional. Also, you have the ability to sit in front of a computer for hours on end, which is a good thing when you’re trying to write a three hundred page novel!

Why do you think so many lawyers become writers? What is it about the legal field that lends itself well to being a writer?

It’s true—so many lawyers become writers! In large part, this is probably because many lawyers love to write. I also think it’s the skill set that we’ve developed as lawyers that enables us to transition so easily to the writing life.

You have stated that you write a lot from real life, your real life inspires your literary world. Does that pose any problems? Where else do you find inspiration?

It is true, I do write a lot from life. I get inspiration from everywhere I go, everyone I meet, anything I see.

I’m often asked about how much of SCOT is taken from my experience of going to an ex’s wedding. 1% is straight fact, the rest is fiction. It is true that there was a Scottish guy, and that I did go to my ex-boyfriend’s wedding, but the rest of the story is fiction. Like I tell my students in my Mediabistro classes, real life is just real life. Fiction should have a structure to it. In fiction, you can mine from your real life for your novel, but you then fictionalize it to give it structure and make it more interesting.

I talked about whether or not I get in trouble over my real life inspirations at my NYC Barnes and Noble reading. You can check out a clip here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywcLBh2RxNw

What are your feelings about the term “chick lit?” Why is it looked down upon when so many women can relate and identify with it?

For me, chick lit is just smart, funny fiction that reflects our lives today. If publishers want to use chick lit as a marketing term and help women to find the sorts of books that they want to read, then I really have no problem with it.

Chick lit as a genre is almost always under attack. It’s relatable and fun, and it’s the sort of thing that my friends and I love to read. It very much reflects our lives today in an accessible way. So many women are working these big time jobs and when they get home after a long, long, LONG day, I think it’s fun to read a book that is a great escape from life, but one that also reflects your life in some way.

As for books like THIS IS NOT CHICK LIT and other attacks on our genre, like the piece Maureen Dowd wrote for the New York Times, I find it disheartening that female authors feel the need to disparage other female authors. You don’t see Michael Chabon saying nasty things about Carl Hiassen and Nick Hornsby.

Describe a typical day in your life.

There is no typical day—every day is different for me! Most days, I try to get some writing done, and there are days when I can get pages upon pages written, and there are days when I don’t even write a word.

I teach one night a week, and during the week, I always have my students’s writing to review. In addition, as a writer, I think it’s also very important to read a lot, so I read a different book every week.

I just try to stay organized and stay on top of everything I need to do. I also love to cook, and as a newlywed, it’s important to carve out time for my husband, so at the end of most days, I find myself at 11 p.m. just wondering where my day went!

Describe your writing process. Do you outline?

I really just go with whatever works for the project. It’s been different each time.

When I wrote SCOT ON THE ROCKS, I had a general idea of where it was going, but by no means a real outline. I just let the story take me where it wanted and I did a lot of editing and re-writing to keep it tight and make it work the way I thought it should.

For JACK WITH A TWIST, I created an outline first to show to my editor so that she’d have a sense of the type of story I wanted to tell. I found it fun to work off of an outline since it gives you the opportunity to layer on the things like themes and symbols that I added to second and third drafts of SCOT ON THE ROCKS. I feel that it made for a much richer first draft.

What are you currently reading?

I read so many different things, it’s hard to keep track! I like to read broadly across genres. Right now, I find myself reading a lot of women’s fiction, since that’s where I feel the natural progression of my writing is going. Right at this minute, I’m reading THE MYTH OF YOU AND ME by Leah Stewart.

I recently finished THE LACE READER by Brunonia Barry, FINISHING TOUCHES by Deanna Kizis, THIS CHARMING MAN by the fabulous Marian Keyes (who gave me a fantastic blurb for JACK WITH A TWIST!), THE ICE QUEEN by Alice Hoffman, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS by Sara Gruen, SUMMER SISTERS by Judy Blume, THE DIVORCE PARTY by Laura Dave, ANY PLACE I HANG MY HAT by Susan Isaacs, TWILIGHT by Stephenie Meyer, JINX by Meg Cabot, THE NEW YORK TRILOGY by Paul Auster.

What is the advice you give to your students?

The most important bit of advice that I can give to any writer is to keep writing! It’s so easy to get discouraged or feel like you don’t have the time to write. But like anything else that is important in life, you have to work at it and make the time for it.

Edit! Editing your work is almost as important as the writing itself. Sure, you’re telling your story, but it’s also important to consider the way that you tell it. You want your writing to be tight, elegant and polished. It can only get to be that way through careful and thorough editing.

Develop a very thick skin. You’re putting yourself out there when you write and not everyone is going to love what you do. But that’s okay! You’re not writing to please everyone out there. You’re writing because you have a story that you want to tell. So start getting used to criticism and then see tip #1—keep writing!

Will we see Brooke again?

I have no immediate plans for a third book featuring Brooke Miller. I do have a free online short story running on Red Dress Ink’s website, though:

http://www.eharlequin.com/article.html?articleId=1362

It’s for anyone who ever wondered whether or not Brooke would be inviting Trip to her own wedding….

In SCOT ON THE ROCKS, your main character attended the wedding of an ex-boyfriend. What are your feelings on relationships with exes?

This is a tricky one! I think that there are some exes you can stay friends with and some you’d rather never see again in your life.

It’s nice if you can stay friendly with an ex. After all, this is someone who was a major part of your life for a while. But there are some break-ups that make it simply impossible for a couple to transition to just friends.

Check out Brenda’s site at www.brendajanowitz.com.

Thanks, Brenda! Keep us posted on your next novel and we hope you stop by BookFinds again!

Great column in The Guardian titled, WHY I WRITE. Their most recent interview was with Jodi Picoult. Here is a look at the interview.

What was your favourite book as a child?

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, because it made me want to be a writer and create a world out of words.

When you were growing up did you have books in your home?

Yes – we went to the library every few days, and in fact, my first job was as an assistant in the local library. Self fulfilling prophecy?

Was there someone who got you interested in reading or writing?

My mother, who encouraged me to write, and my 11th grade English teacher, Ed Ehmann, who encouraged me to study creative writing in college.

What made you want to write when you were starting out?

I honestly can’t remember NOT writing.

What makes you want to write now?

The fact that there are so many questions I don’t have answers for – the act of writing a book for me is a way to explore those.

What preparation do you do before writing?

None – I have three kids, so I grab whatever time I’ve got!

Do you have a daily routine when you are writing?

I get up at 5:30, go for a three mile walk with a friend, then come home, shower, get the kids off to school, and sit down at my computer. I keep working until 3:30, when I magically become a mom again.

How do you survive being alone in your work so much of the time?

Ah, but I’m not! My book tours last three months, and believe me, I’m RARELY alone during that time. It all evens out!

What was the best piece of advice given to you?

Yes, you can.

What advice would you give to new writers?

Carve out a bit of time every day to write, and make sure you do it – and nothing but that – even when you don’t feel very motivated. Read a ton. Take a workshop course so you learn to give and get criticism. When you’re stuck, and sure you’ve written absolutely garbage, force yourself to finish and THEN decide to fix or scrap it – or you will never know if you can.

Is there a secret to writing?

Yes – everyone has a book inside of them – but it doesn’t do any good until you pry it out.

What are you working on now?

My 2010 book, which is about a teenager with Asperger’s Syndrome.

The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker

This much-anticipated debut novel by Tiffany Baker just received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. The author’s biography is one of the best bios I’ve read in awhile.

Tiffany Baker’s Recipe For A Writing Life

A handful of islands: Belvedere, Aquidneck, Balboa, Manhattan, Corsica, Maui, the UK

Three small children: Two girls and a boy, plump in the cheeks and knees. Strong-willed but sweet when kissed.

One husband

Indecent amounts of chocolate and coffee

A view of a grassy ridge and an old gum tree

Start with the islands. Move from one to another up through your twenties. Add a graduate degree in creative writing from UC Irvine and then a PhD in Victorian literature for extra flavor, plus a smattering of tragic relationships. Move to New York to teach humanities, drink expensive cocktails, and give up on men.

Go hiking on Corsica with your mother. Meet your future husband. Move to England to be with him.

Add the first child to the mix and marinate. Return to the US, to the town where you began. Wonder what you’re doing home again. Gradually, fold in one, additional child until life is thick and hard to stir.

Decide to write a novel. Get pregnant again in the meantime, but refuse to give up writing. Finish the novel and get rejected. Repeat as necessary until the mixture becomes glue-like and unappetizing.

Finally, find the world’s most perfect agent who performs a miracle and sells your novel to the world’s best editor. Revise the novel many times, until it congeals. Do a victory dance.

Begin Book 2, having forgotten how hard writing a book is. Eat obsessive amounts of chocolate and decide what you’re doing isn’t half-bad. Gain an undisclosed amount of weight and take up jogging.

Every day, take a long walk on the grassy ridge. Stop at the gum tree, breathing deeply. Stare across the hill at your house where your children and husband are. Hope your cypress tree isn’t really dying. Hope for enough rain in the coming season. Hope for world peace. Finally, really, really hope people enjoy your book. Hope they like the second one even more.

Bon Vivant!

Great Washington Post piece on the beauty of the physical book. Sorry Kindle.