Tell us a bit about yourself – something that we will not find in the official author’s bio?
I was born in Brooklyn, an only child, and spent a lot of time on my fire-escape as a kid day-dreaming about becoming a famous actress (actor is the word used these days.) i pictured myself returning from Hollywood to the tenement where I lived in a chauffeur-driven limousine and the neighbors saying to each other, “Remember her?”
Do you remember what was your first story (article, essay, or poem) about and when did you write it?
My first essay was published in The Christian Science Monitor. It was about a summer camp I attended. It was a Commie camp. I only discovered that years later. My father said it was a Socialist camp, but when I went to a camp reunion years later with my husband, a history major, he pointed out to me that there was a statue of Lenin in the middle of the camp. I was too young as a camper to know who Lenin was.
What is the title of your latest book and what inspired it?
“ONE WILL: THREE WIVES.” I wanted to write a mystery and decided that the death of a hedge fund manager on Wall Street would be fun. I also wanted to have a female detective.
How long did it take you to write your latest work and how fast do you write (how many words daily)?
It varies. I don’t count the number of words I write in a day. I wrote and revised “ONE WILL: THREE WIVES” for several years until I was told by a few professionals that I needed to stay in one person’s head. I had too many points of view, so I chose the female detective and we see everything through her point of view.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
No, except I am sometimes obsessive and keep writing even when I am tired.
Is writing the only form of artistic expression that you utilize, or is there more to your creativity than just writing?
I enjoy photography, especially when I’m traveling. When I lived in Park Slope, Brooklyn as a young adult, I studied painting at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. A few years ago, I studied pottery. I loved working with clay, then painting the finished product.
Authors and books that have influenced your writings?
I love Virginia Woolf, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Hemingway. I also love Russian authors such as Dostoevsky and Chekhov. A playwright favorite was/is Tennessee Williams.
What are you working on right now? Anything new cooking in the wordsmith’s kitchen?
I’m working on a memoir titled BEYOND BROOKLYN.
Did you ever think about the profile of your readers? What do you think – who reads and who should read your books?
Anybody who likes being challenged and enjoys a “who done-it.” Also, readers with a sense of humor.
Do you have any advice for new writers/authors?
Keep your butt on the chair and persevere.
What is the best advice (about writing) you have ever heard?
Read a lot and never give up.
How many books you read annually and what are you reading now? What is your favorite literary genre?
I read fiction and non-fiction. I read a wonderful book this year about the Arrow People, a hidden tribe in the Amazon. Right now I’m reading non-fiction again–“In My Own Words,” about Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
What do you deem the most relevant about your writing? What is the most important to be remembered by readers?
That I write from my heart and wrote with passion. Also, I revised and revised until I felt satisfied.
What is your opinion about the publishing industry today and about the ways authors can best fit into the new trends?
I think writers should write about what they know and what interests them, not think about trends.