If you’d like to submit a question, please do so. Feel free to contact me.
Q: How do you find time to write? A: Actually, much of the writing process takes place before my fingers ever hit the keypad. Intense day dreaming (sometimes to my husband's annoyance) is an absolute requirement. It is the place where characters have free rein to “talk” to each other, and where “what-if’s” are explored. Even mundane tasks like walking to the mailbox or loading and unloading the dishwasher become opportunities to "write." Any activity that doesn’t require focus is subject to mental invasion by the work-in-progress. If you are one of my friends who have complained that you saw me driving and pulled up beside me, waved, or honked your horn, and I never acknowledged your presence, I hope you will understand now that I wasn't being uppity-- I was working.
Q: How do you start a novel? A: With the first word. Seriously, it has varied: The Old One of Thoralyn began with an image of a frightened young girl hiding behind a tree. Snow Dancers of Veld also began as a day dream image of a dancer surrounded by white after I read Sylvia Plath’s Snow on Snow. The short script, "Crux Point" was born when I had an imaginary conversation with God as I was driving home. The script, "Freedom Manor" came into being sort of like McBeth's witch's stew--a little of this and a little of that. The film "Six Blocks Wide" began when I was about fifteen with an image of a young girl digging in the dirt and some kind of trouble on its way. Later, as a police officer patrolling housing projects, I noticed there always seemed to be at least one apartment with a garden or other touches that spoke of hope and spirit despite a oppressive environment. Finally, the two images merged and became a story. The inpiration for Noah’s Wife came from a reading of Irene Latham's poem, "Noah's Wife." Irene mentioned that Noah's wife was barely mentioned in the Biblical account of the flood; she wasn't even named. Intigued, I began by taking two characters—Na’amah (the name given by Rabbinc scholars) and her grandmother and letting them just start talking to each other. I thought what they had to say was interesting and their characters were immediately apparent. I wrote a little more, then tried it in first person. Na’amah’s voice seemed to shine that way, so I stayed there. After the initial conversation, I had to stop and do enough research to be fairly confident of the culture and geography, although the research continued throughout the writing. Lots of books were involved, but without the miracles of the Internet, this novel would have taken many more years to research and write.
Q. I see that your story “Six Blocks Wide” is now a film script. Do you prefer writing movie scripts to novels? A. When I was young, I hated questions like, "What’s your favorite color?" because I was absolutely torn between blue and green and yellow (deep blue, like airplane landing lights, intense greens like traffic “go” lights and bold daffodil yellow). Film scripts are fun because they move so fast. Everything must be shown through dialogue and action. Some writers cringe at dialogue, but I love to write it because, when its working, the characters come alive, and I feel like I’m just taking dictation. I am also visually oriented, so I can often “see” a scene taking place, at least, in outline form. Novels, on the other hand, give greater freedom, but require a lot more from the writer in terms of craft and commitment. They must engage other senses and the reader’s imagination and keep them for engaged for the long ride. I guess my answer is—I don’t want to give up my green and yellow, just to be blue!
Q. What was it like to see your story SIX BLOCKS WIDE set to film? A. It was an amazing experience. Click here to read about it.
Q: The South is fascinating to me. How would you describe Birmingham, Alabama in terms of providing a conducive climate for aspiring writers? A: This is like asking a fish what it thinks about water. I was born in Montgomery, Alabama, schooled in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and lived most of my adult life in Birmingham, Alabama. I was born, bread and buttered in the south. I speak south and breathe it and couldn’t begin to say how it has influenced me, but it undoubtedly has in countless ways.
Q: How many of your books have been published, and where can I get copies? A: So glad you asked! You may obtain copies by adding your name and info through the link below (nothing is shared with anyone) so I can contact you when my Agent gallops up on his/her White Horse and we ride away together through the Marketing Maze, to slay the Dragon of Doubt and Difficulty who guards the Most Obscure Way to the Editor, and rescue the Princess from the Publishing House Tower.
You may obtain copies by adding your name and info through the link below (nothing is shared with anyone) so I can contact you when my Agent gallops up on his/her White Horse and we ride away together through the Marketing Maze, to slay the Dragon of Doubt and Difficulty who guards the Most Obscure Way to the Editor, and rescue the Princess from the Publishing House Tower.