A Conversation With Bestselling Author Alyson Richman

By Kim

In my last post, a review of Alyson Richman’s latest novel, The Garden of Letters, I mentioned that I had the privilege of meeting her when she recently came to Dallas. She graciously allowed me to record the interview part of our conversation. Below is a transcription of what she said, with minor adjustments made to remove the inevitable tangents in the discussion.

Alyson had no prior knowledge of what my questions would be, and her answers are completely and refreshingly candid.

This interview took place at the Hilton at Lincoln Center in Dallas on October 14^th, 2014. Thank you again, Alyson!

KB: You have set a couple of your novels during WWII. What draws you to this era?

AR: I think one of the reasons why I love writing about WWII is because when you undertake the research for that period you can still find people who were living at the time and obtain their oral histories. Being able to use them as a resource for the fine details for the story-line is really a gift and so I love that. I love being able to travel to the different countries and interview people. With The Lost Wife I interviewed several holocaust survivors who were at Terezin. In The Garden of Letters I was able to interview 90- year-old partisans who lived in the mountains storing ammunition, fighting against the Germans. I was able to meet 85-year-old female messengers who worked for the Italian resistance, who hid grenades in their fruit baskets as they walked to market every day, and musicians and composers who were alive during that time period. So, all of those people gave me another layer of research and that’s transferred into the writing of the story.

Photo by Deborah Downes

KB: Your characters often have some sort of artistic passion. There was Van Gogh, of course, in The Last Van Gogh and in The Garden of Letters we have Elodie, a musical prodigy. What amazed me in both books was how clearly and passionately you describe the artistic process. Do you paint or play a musical instrument? If not, how do you get so clearly into the mindset of an artist?

AR: Well, I always aspired to be a painter. My mother is an abstract painter and from very early on in my life my mother taught me to see the world through an artistic lens. She was the person who took my painting and turned it upside down and said, “How does it change when I move the direction of your composition?” She was the one who taught me about negative and positive space, how everything that you look at has its own palette, has its own color and texture. When you grow up with a mother like that, you see the world from a unique perspective than your peers. I think that’s transferred in the way I write, the way I craft my sentences. I always tell people that I imagine my sentences are like brush strokes that move you through a canvas, but they move you in this case through a story. Every chapter I imagine as a composition, so even if I’m writing about a painter or if I’m writing about a musician, I’m using my artistic background to make the scene as vivid as possible. 

Having a character who is rooted in the arts is especially thrilling for me. I love describing the character involved in their own artistic process.  That said, The Garden of Letters was my first book that actually involved a musician. I played the piano for ten years, but I had very little talent.  Luckily, my husband is a violinist, so he was a great resource when I was writing the novel.  At first, I was nervous about accurately capturing the mindset of a musician, but I was relieved when I started interviewing musicians and composers and they described how they heard music in similar ways that a painter sees color. For them, notes have color and texture, as well as light and shadow.  And a musical score has positive and negative space, just like a painted canvas. When I knew that they spoke the same language and it was just something with music rather than with paint, I felt I was able to undertake the story. 

 

Photo by Deborah Downes

KB: You do not shy away from the gritty realities of war in your novels. How difficult is it for you to write those scenes?

 AR: No one’s ever asked me that before. Great question! It’s very, very difficult. I think that at some point in every book I have to stop and say, “not everything can be as beautiful as you want it to be.” I get very wrapped up in describing the beauty of nature, or the emotions that are more attractive than the ones that are going to make a reader uncomfortable. In order to write realistic fiction, especially with a historical backdrop, you have to be show the tragedy in life, how there are conflicts where people have inner turmoil and have to make choices and sacrifices, when terrible things happen to good people. I definitely did this in The Lost Wife, where I felt like it’s not all about love and protecting the people that you love, or creating artwork from stolen supplies, but showing how brutal war is. In The Garden of Letters, there’s a scene that really encapsulates how tragic and difficult things got for people who undertook dangerous missions for the Resistance.  I created that particular scene from a diary that I found about someone, a messenger whom this happened to, a woman who had particularly beautiful eyes and how her most beautiful feature was destroyed when she was discovered to be working for the Resistance. It had to be in the book because otherwise it doesn’t seem like a very realistic portrayal of what was happening at that time period.

KB: Your love stories are achingly beautiful and often doomed. Is this an intentional theme, or just something that falls into place as you flesh out your novels?

AR: I don’t think that it’s intentional, but in order to create a story that has emotional resonance you have to show contrast. It’s like a painting. I’m consciously always thinking about how to show beauty and sadness, how to show redemption after a great loss, how to show the resilience of the human spirit after great tragedy. Those two dialectics—I’m always playing one against the other, so there’s typically one love story which is going to be tragic, but then there’s a second love story which isn't maybe as pure and naïve as the first love story, but it reflects what happens to us in the arc of a life. We build from those early experiences, and we are more layered when we come to love a second time than we were with our first love. I’m kind of fascinated with that. To me it seems very naïve to believe there is only one great love in a lifetime. In The Lost Wife what I really wanted to explore was the different shades of love, how we love our parent, our children, the fraternal love between siblings, the second love after a great loss. All those things that really make up a full life. With The Garden of Letters, again, there is the story of Elodie’s first beautiful love in the beginning of the war, but she experiences another form of love later on in the novel. I wanted to explore how many things in life- often events outside of our control- bring us together with the most unlikely people and that there can be beauty and healing even after great loss.

Photo by Deborah Downes

KB: Writing historical fiction involves a lot of research. What is your favorite part of this process?

AR: My favorite part is travelling to the countries I write about. I make more than one trip. For me, the first trip is always about seeing the country, seeing what the landscape looks like, so I have a very strong visual of what I’m going to be describing. I look at the bone structure of the people from that particular place to see if there’s a particular symmetry to their faces, is there a certain look to the eyes or their coloring or how do they interact with each other. What food do they eat? How do they display affection? In the second I really try to locate people who were alive during the time period who might be able to provide me with first-account details. 

KB: Do you have a least favorite part?

AR: (Laughing) My least favorite is the first draft because I always go through this sense of wondering if I can pull this off. I always feel I come up with a great idea and then midway through I think there’s no way I’m going to be able to do this. I get panicked that I’m going to fail. I have a great fear of failure, which I think propels me to work harder. It’s probably something you see in a lot of people who end up achieving what they want to do. I never rest on my laurels thinking that I’ve achieved success. I always think that no one is going to read my book, so I’m always quietly relieved when I meet someone who says they love reading my novels. This doesn't ever get easier. I always feel that I’m writing my last book.

KB: To me your stories read as though you write in layers almost as a painter paints. Do you power through your first draft and then go back and edit, or edit as you go?

Photo by Deborah Downes

AR: I don’t ever power write. I wish I could do that. I will write the detail over and over before I can move on to the next paragraph. I re-write what I wrote the day before. I'm constantly re-editing. I won’t move forward until I think it’s as good as it can be. At the end I will go through a read of it and think, is this working? Should something be taken out?  I imagine it’s like the way Van Gogh took from his impasto and carved out light in a particular place. I write densely and then look in the final phase for ways to bring space into the story. I also don’t work with an outline which I think is very unusual with most writers.

KB: I don’t either.

AR: That’s interesting. I know we're one of the few who work this way and possibly because we both come from a background in the arts. For me, writing is very much an organic process of adding and subtracting. What happened in The Garden of Letters when the room full of letters is created – I didn’t plan that! I was writing it and I was like “what is she going to do with Angelo's letters?” and then something beautiful came to mind, something I hadn't expected.  For me, that spontaneity is part of the magic of the process.  

KB: How long does it generally take you to write a novel?

AR: Typically it took me three years. Now I’m under contract for two years, but my children are older and so I feel like I’m going to be able to do that. Ideally, it would still be three years.

KB: When you start a new novel, what is fleshed out first for you – the characters or the plot?

AR: The characters – 100%. To be quite honest, the plot isn't so interesting to me. It’s the development of the characters and what happens with them against the historic backdrop.  I can see their faces. I can see where they live and imagine their childhoods. I can see those details quite vividly and when I start writing them it is almost like I’m giving them life. They become the seeds for the novel, and from them the story begins to grow.

In addition to The Garden of Letters, Alyson Richman is the author of The Mask Carver’s Son, The Rhythm of Memory, The Last Van Gogh and The Lost Wife. 

Guest and Giveaway: Renee Swindle on Shake Down the Stars

By Julie

I was first charmed by Renee Swindle's smile in a photo with Jacqueline Luckett, a wonderful writer I interviewed for What Women Write last year. Renee is part of Jackie's critique group, The Finish Party. Recently, her name came up again in a conversation with author Amy Sue Nathan, another author I interviewed for What Women Write. Are you starting to see some interesting connections here? Amy told me she'd read an advance reader's edition of Shake Down the Stars and loved it. I made a mental note of the book, not even remembering the connection to Jackie Luckett. 

Well, about two weeks ago, the night before Renee's book release, I got an email from her out of the blue saying she'd enjoyed Calling Me Home and wondered if she could interview me for her website. That was an easy answer! It seemed written in the stars ... appropriate, don't you think? I was so happy to be reminded about her book again, I downloaded it immediately. And Amy was right. This delightfully poignant and funny story sucked me right in. I loved it!

I asked Renee if we could do something fun--post interviews with each other on the same day. And I knew right away I'd enjoy doing what I did with Amy and Sere Prince Halverson before that. I made a list of things and themes that stood out for me when I read Shake Down the Stars and asked Renee to riff on them. I hope you'll enjoy her thoughts. I did!

But first, about Shake Down the Stars 

Piper Nelson is stuck. She can’t quite stay away from the husband she divorced. She isn’t always attentive to the high school students she teaches. And even she admits that she’s been drinking too much and seeking out unsuitable men. Piper’s mother, married to a celebrity evangelist, and her sister, immersed in plans to wed a professional football player and star in a reality TV show, are both too self-absorbed to sympathize with Piper’s angst. They tell her to get a grip. But how can Piper ever really recover from the blow she suffered five years ago, when a car accident took the life of her young daughter?

When Piper’s ex-husband announces his new girlfriend is pregnant, Piper is forced to take stock. Realizing that it’s time for a change is one step, but actually making it happen is quite another. And despite what she thinks, Piper can’t do it alone. Lucky for her, a couple of crazy, funny new friends are ready to step in when she needs them most…and show her how to live and laugh again.

And now, Renee, take us into your world and the world of Shake Down the Stars!

credit: airefresco's flickr photostream

Outsider

I love that you picked up on outsider as a theme!  I felt like an outsider growing up and tended to hang out with other outsiders in school and college. I’m also an only child, and it wasn’t until I grew older and started hearing more stories about sibling rivalry that I learned siblings could feel distant from each other or sometimes not get along at all well into adulthood. It seems silly now—of course you can feel like an outsider in your own family! But for the longest time, I assumed families with more than one kid were like the Brady Bunch.  At any rate, Piper, the narrator of my novel, is a classic family outsider.  Her mom and sister get along fabulously but she can’t seem to relate to either of them.  

credit: Will Montague's flickr photostream

Sisters

I never grew up wishing I had a sister or brother, so I’m not sure what happened once I started writing novels, but it’s like I’m suddenly obsessed with family dynamics, especially between siblings. Piper and her half-sister Margot couldn’t be more different. I was interested in the idea that everyone in the novel would gravitate toward Margot because of her beauty, and basically treat Piper as though she were lesser than. What's it like to pick up on subtle cues that people treat you differently from your sister? What happens if you have no one to tell you you’re just as special? These questions play a big part in Piper’s journey.  

Night Sky
I absolutely love staring up at the night sky. I don’t own a telescope (yet!), but I’ve always been curious about astronomy, and I thought it would be interesting to turn Piper into an amateur astronomer. Piper’s knowledge about the stars gave me the excuse to buy books on astronomy and study some of the basics. While I’m not nearly as knowledgeable as most, I do share the feeling of amazement when I stare up at the sky or when I see images of space that the Hubble sends back. It’s mindboggling that we’re on this teeny tiny planet, floating in a huge galaxy that’s part of this astoundingly vast universe. Whoa. 
 

The Andromeda Galaxy (M31), not ours, but you can see it from here!
I'm an astronomy fan, too, and loved all of the references in Renee's book.
credit: Adam Evan's flickr photostream

credit: Cletus Awreetus' flickr photostream

Motherhood
Piper’s mother didn’t have many scenes in the initial draft of Shake Down The Stars.  Over time, though, her mother became more and more integral to the story. Once I began working on Piper’s sobriety, for instance, I knew her drinking was about the longing she had for her mother’s love as much as the loss she experienced.  Piper’s mother can be selfish and wasn’t very attentive when Piper was growing up. Piper watches her sister Margot replicate this same relationship with her twin daughters.  It’s hard for Piper to see the pattern continue with her nieces, but unless we have some kind of ah-ha moment, I think we often repeat the patterns we know.  Piper does hope to break the cycle at least.

credit: Mike Shaffner's flickr photostream

Grief

The theme of grief runs throughout the novel.  We all do grieve at a certain point in life, or will, and we all do it in our own particular way. Piper lost her child five years before the start of the novel, but survives her loss with the help of several friends who truly become like family.  When I started the book, I had no idea how she’d become happy again--or if she’d become happy again--but the more I wrote, the more I fell in love with certain characters and how they helped each other.  I think it’s like this in life, too.  Life can be tough and difficult, but it’s also filled with joy and laughter.  As a writer, I’ve also learned I do funny well, so I made sure to offer zany, fun characters and funny situations.  My goal was to write a moving story that wasn’t a downer. I also wanted to surprise the reader (and myself) and keep the story at a nice, brisk pace.  Hopefully I succeeded.

credit: michaeljzealot's flickr photostream

Addiction

It’s true: Piper tries to overcome her loss in all the wrong ways!  What’s funny is that I didn’t realize she was an alcoholic until an early reader pointed it out.  She said rather gently, I think you should have Piper go to AA.  I reacted like an alcoholic might and tried to defend Piper: She’s not an alcoholic! What are you talking about?  But when I thought about it, it hit me that Piper did drink a lot.  And this meant making sure she owned up to her drinking and writing a draft where she grapples with her drinking. I’m actually happy I was able to explore the issue of addiction.  I haven’t read about it much in women’s fiction and thought her drinking added an important layer to her journey. 
 

credit: DeGust's flickr photostream

Solitude
A thoughtful reader (ahem—Julie Kibler!) pointed out that the novel begins and ends with Piper standing by herself. I never realized this! D’uh! Big D’uh! But this theme helps me share what I’d always hoped to do with Shake Down The Stars. I started the novel with a question: How will Piper ever find happiness? That was the through-line that kept me going. And while she’s alone at the beginning and at the end, there’s a huge difference between being alone and lonely and being able to stand on your own in contented solitude.


About Renee Swindle 

Renee Swindle is the author of Shake Down The Stars (NAL/Penguin), available now.

Her first novel, Please Please Please, was published by the Dial Press/Dell. Please Please Please was also published in Germany as Mehr Mehr Mehr and published in Japan. Please Please Please was an Essence Magazine bestseller.

Renee Swindle earned her BA from UC Irvine and MFA in creative writing from San Diego State University. She lives in Oakland, California with her two dogs and three cats–meow!

Comment on the post to be entered in a chance to win a copy of Shake Down the Stars. Winner will be chosen at random and notified on or about Wednesday, September 4! Domestic U.S. addresses only, please!

UPDATE 9/5/13: The winner of the giveaway for a copy of Renee's book is Michelle James! Michelle, we'll get in touch with you! Thanks to everyone who commented!

Then follow this link to read Renee's interview with Julie and win a copy of Calling Me Home!

Interview: Jacqueline Luckett, part le second!

By Julie

Photo by Ashley Summer

Readers, I hope you were able to read "part le first" of our interview with Jacqueline Luckett on Friday. Click here if you'd like to jump over there and catch up. (Nod your head "yes" and click here!) Jackie told us about her inspiration for her most recent novel, Passing Love, about getting started in publishing a little later in life, and about the writing themes she returns to again and again.

Unintentionally or ironically (Big Timing?), several of my questions and Jackie's answers centered around what so many writers experience, whether they're fledgling writers just getting started on the manuscript they've put off for years, under contract with a publisher for their debut novel (pick me!!!!), or working on their second, third, fourth, fifth … and so on, novels! We seem to have a little tiny struggle with FEAR and SELF-DOUBT. Agh, it's a cranky animal. Then, as I was reading a transcript of the Twitter Black Lit Chat (#blacklitchat) from February 26, where Jackie was the guest author, I did a double take when I saw the first question and Jackie's answer.

Question (from Bernadette Davis): @Jackieluckett, would you start by giving us a six-word bio for Nicole, the protagonist in Passing Love? #blacklitchat  

Answer (from Jackie): Seeking a life free of fear. #blacklitchat

Seriously? I'm choosing to believe something bigger than I am worked this out. Let's move on with the rest of the interview, and you'll see what I mean.

Julie: 
Something I deal with as a debut author—more than I probably even care to admit—is fear and self-doubt. You can worry about so many things as a writer: how your books will sell; how they will be accepted by the media, by readers, by … ; whether everyone will wonder what the heck you were thinking when you decided to write the book. Have you experienced this, too? How did you deal with these emotions? Any advice for newly minted authors you wish someone had given you?

Jackie:

I wore (wear) fear and self-doubt on my sleeves for both novels—while I was writing them, as well as after my publisher accepted them. The questions you pose are the same ones that nagged and me then and now. I’m certain that many authors fret in the same way. Maybe it’s the equivalent of stage fright, except that it lasts for a longer time and recurs with every page that we write.

It’s easier to say, “just let go” than it is to do it—let go of all of the anxiety, all of the expectations and frustrations. I have friends who’ve told me that The Universe has already decided the outcome for my novels, so there’s nothing more for me to do. I’m not sure if I buy that explanation, but if the Universe has big things in mind for me, I’m all for it.

I try to be positive and confident. Admittedly, I’m not always successful. It helps to talk to other writers with positive spirits and outlooks (no gripe sessions!). Mostly, I think worry is a part of the writing process. The key is to shed the worry and the questions quickly.

I think everyone has days when they have to “talk themselves down from the roof.” When I was working on my first novel, I wish that someone had told me (and maybe friends did, but I ignored them) to focus on the writing not the fear, the self-doubt, or hoped-for success (in whatever way that meant). 

Some years ago, I watched a famous composer being interviewed about his success. He said that every time he sat at his piano he told himself to write the best song that he could. He repeated the thought every day, something like, “Today I’m going to write the best song I know how.”

I’ve adopted the gist of that mantra. Now when I sit down to write I tell myself, “Today, I’m going to write the best pages I know how.” I don’t expand from pages to chapters or an entire book. I keep it simple: Write the best page I can. Really, that’s all that I can control—the quality (on all levels) of my work. It keeps me focused.

Also, I offer this: Make good contacts, ask questions, network, know the publishing business, don’t expect your publisher to devote all their marketing dollars, time and efforts to your project, be willing to work beyond what the publisher does (blog, social media, contact book clubs, perhaps an outside publicist) and keep writing.

I recently read this letter from Ernest Hemingway to F. Scott Fitzgerald. Seems that F. Scott was having some trepidations. My point? It happens to the best.


Julie:

That's really good, Jackie. Thank you. Readers, we have a challenge for you at the end of the post regarding your own fear and self-doubt. Now, let's go a different direction for a minute. As I mentioned in "part le first," Carleen Brice recently introduced me to your books. She'd read my manuscript and thought I'd enjoy Passing Love due to its similar structure and some similar themes. I did, if that isn't obvious. Carleen, who lives in my hometown (Denver) and writes lovely books herself, has a huge heart for connecting diverse audiences of readers and writers. She started a blog nearly four years ago, White Readers Meet Black Authors, where she posts interviews, reviews, and guest posts about books written by African-American authors. I've been introduced to several authors there I might have missed otherwise. Often, books by African-American authors are arranged in a separate section of the bookstore, similar to how books by Christian authors are shelved separately. My own debut novel features one white point-of-view and one black point-of-view, yet I'll be shelved in general fiction, not African-American fiction. There are plenty of debates about whether that's "right" or "wrong," with a full spectrum of answers. (Personally, I'd love to just go to the "fiction" section and find what I want filed alphabetically by author, regardless of "category!") I would love to hear your thoughts on reaching diverse audiences as an author.

Jackie:

I don’t recall who said or wrote that there are only about 40 plots and that every book is a reiteration of one of those plots. I don’t know if that’s true, but what I do know is that there are different ways to approach a story. How many stories are there with plots like this: Boy meets girl, they fall in love, they fall out of love, part, reunite and live happily ever after? Oh, maybe there’s war or disaster or cultural clashes and family feuds, but the stories are the same. Place and character change stories. They’re influenced by the author’s expertise and experience.

The broader question is what it will take for the publishing world to accept and promote good writing universally—regardless of the writer’s ethnicity?

It’s up to each of us to effect a change. Buy and read books written by African-American authors without basing the decision on the writer’s ethnicity. Afraid to buy? Libraries exist so that we can read fearlessly and without a large financial commitment. If readers, and I include myself, truly love reading, we have to be open and not discriminate because of an author’s gender, race or even sexual preference. Those who love reading should read widely and take risks with books that challenge and offer different viewpoints and perspectives. That’s the joy of reading a story that’s different from our own lives. Or, the joy of reading a story with characters different from ourselves, but with feelings, dilemmas, obstacles, and joys we can relate to. 

Readers should expand their personal libraries. Look first for an appealing story, not the race of the person who wrote the book. When that happens, publishers won't put books into categories that limit exposure. By sticking to basic selection criteria—well-written book, holds our interest, takes us to another world or experience—then the author’s ethnicity shouldn’t matter. I challenge readers to buy books that allow them to take new journeys, meet new people and explore a variety of approaches to life and all the problems it can present. Look for stories that capture your attention and allow you to explore traditions, family values, the role of women, love, whatever.

Julie:

Passing Love is the kind of story, both in tone and style, I so frequently love to read. I highly recommend it to our readers here at What Women Write as many of our readers enjoy this type of novel, too. Can you recommend any additional African-American authors you consider to write in a similar vein, along with any specific titles? 

Jackie: 

Well, of course, my first suggestion is Searching for Tina Turner. :) 

(Note from Julie: info at the bottom of this post!) 

Here are a few others:

A Gathering of Waters by Bernice McFadden

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi Durrow

32 Candles by Ernessa Carter

Tumbling by Diane McKinney Whetstone

Taste of Salt by Martha Southgate

Wading Home by Rosalyn Story

Caucasia, Where Did You Sleep Last Night? by Danzy Senna

Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by ZZ Packer

The Street by Ann Petry

Valerie Wesley Wilson—A series of detective novels with a woman protagonist

Kiss the Sky by Farai Chideya

Uptown byVirginia DeBerry and Donna Grant

Children of the Waters by Carleen Brice

I find that I don’t have the chance to read as much as I used to. I fear hearing another author’s voice in my head. Some other authors whose works I’ve read over the past year include Edwidge Dandicat, Julia Alvarez, Junot Diaz, Walter Mosley, Isabel Allende, and Toni Morrison.


Julie:

This is a great list. I already read and loved The Taste of Salt and Children of the Waters and loved both, and The Girl Who Fell from the Sky and Silver Sparrow have been on my reading wish list for some time, just waiting for my finger to click "purchase" on my Nook! Thank you for all the great recommendations. We'll end this fun and informative two-part interview with "question le last." What are you working on now? Is there anything exciting going on that you’re just dying to tell someone about? Tell us, please!

Jackie:

I’m doing a lot of thinking about the novel I want to write next. I’ve always said that I want my protagonists to be women in their 50s, because I want those women to be valued, revered and still considered to be at the top of their game. But, there’s a male character whose story is nagging me, and I’m a bit perplexed as to whether or not I should follow him.

I wrote a one-act play in 2011. It still needs work. I have an idea for another play and I’ll probably start work on that later this year.

My mother turns 90 this fall and I’m looking forward to planning a splashy celebration for her. That’s about the most exciting tidbit I can offer. 

Julie:

Oh, please tell your mother Happy Birthday from What Women Write! That's exciting! 

Jackie, thank you so much for taking the time to visit with us on the blog. We wish you lots of great success with your novels, already published and future! 

And now, readers, we have a challenge for you from Jackie.

Please post a six-word comment about how YOU are overcoming fear and self-doubt!

(Feel free to post any other comments, too! We always welcome your comments on the blog!)

Here's a little more about Jackie's novels. 

Passing Love
Nicole-Marie Handy has loved all things French since she was a child. After the death of her best friend, determined to get out of her rut, she goes to Paris, leaving behind a marriage proposal. While there, Nicole chances upon an old photo of her father-lovingly inscribed, in his hand, to a woman Nicole has never heard of. What starts as a vacation quickly becomes an investigation into his relationship to this mystery woman. Moving back and forth in time between the sparkling Paris of today and the jazz-fueled city filled with expatriates in the 1950s, Passing Love is the story of two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal...and how the City of Light may hold all of the answers.

Searching for Tina Turner
Lena Harrison Spencer is in her mid-fifties, and the time has come for her to face the hard truths of what it means to have it all and still find oneself unfulfilled. When Lena determines that what she needs is the strength to change directions, Tina Turner becomes the icon from whose story she derives strength, even as everyone else tells her she's crazy for giving up her cashmere cocoon.  

"The reader will wish she were the best friend who joins Lena in search of Tina Turner!"— Ellen Sussman, author of French Lessons

For more information, and to read Jackie's blog, please visit www.jacquelineluckett.com.

Interview: Jacqueline Luckett, part le first!

By Julie

Recently, I was introduced to the work of Jacqueline Luckett by my friend Carleen Brice, who thought I'd enjoy Jackie's novels. Carleen was so right. I polished off Passing Love quickly and knew I'd want to have Jackie as our guest here at What Women Write as soon as possible. She graciously agreed and is with us today and next week in an in-depth, two-part interview. You will soon understand why this is subtitled "part le first!" (Hint … there will be talk of France!)

About Jackie:

Searching for Tina Turner (2010, Grand Central Publishing) was Luckett's first novel. Her second novel, Passing Love, released in January 2012, also from Grand Central Publishing. 

She is an avid reader and lover of books, an excellent cook, aspiring photographer, and world traveler. She lives in Northern California and, though she loves all of the friends there, she takes frequent breaks to fly off to foreign destinations. For more information, and to read her blog, you can visit www.jacquelineluckett.com.

About Passing Love, from the publisher:

Nicole-Marie Handy has loved all things French since she was a child. After the death of her best friend, determined to get out of her rut, she goes to Paris, leaving behind a marriage proposal. While there, Nicole chances upon an old photo of her father-lovingly inscribed, in his hand, to a woman Nicole has never heard of. What starts as a vacation quickly becomes an investigation into his relationship to this mystery woman. Moving back and forth in time between the sparkling Paris of today and the jazz-fueled city filled with expatriates in the 1950s, Passing Love is the story of two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal...and how the City of Light may hold all of the answers.

Publisher's Weekly said Passing Love is "a dreamy and lyrical paean to all things French…"

Julie: 

Thank you so much for visiting us here at What Women Write, Jackie. First, tell us about your love affair with Paris, music, and the other things that inspired Passing Love. Why these things?

Jackie: 

Paris is the most visited city in the world. Although I’ve met a few people who weren’t impressed with or excited about Paris (and I can’t believe it), most who’ve had the chance to visit know what a special place it is. Just ask if someone’s ever been to Paris and watch the glaze come over their eyes.

Much like my character, Nicole, in Passing Love, I love Paris. I admit to being in love with it long before I ever visited. Thinking back to high school, studying French probably started my fascination. I’m not sure if it was Paris that preoccupied my thinking, but it was certainly the thought, the dream of speaking French in France. Whatever, I knew that I would visit there one day.

My first trip was short and sweet. I bounced from hotel to hotel and made the mistake of trying to see and do too much. My recollections from that first visit are more like impressions than memories. I learned that Paris should be taken in small doses or slowly in much the same way one does a good book that tells a complicated story. There’s so much to see: from the street fashions to traditional tourist sights. The smallest detour or wrong turn can often result in the most wonderful discovery—that’s what I wanted Nicole to experience and part of the reason why she ends up in a thrift shop filled with collectibles. Since my first trip, I’ve made it a point to visit for longer periods of time whenever I can. Longer trips give me opportunity to meander and linger. I can forget schedules and must-see memorials, museums (though I do love the Musée D’Orsay), and shops and just enjoy the city.

There were three elements I wanted to write about in Passing Love: characters who lived ordinary lives, characters who challenged the ordinary and a place where they could all come together. I wanted my characters, those in the present story and the story that takes place in the past, to be in a city for the first time and to be in awe of its wonders.

Paris was perfect because of the tradition and history, beauty and whimsy available to its visitors and expats. There’s the centuries old history, the undeniable aura of romance, the ability to be safely anonymous, and the music. There were many Americans—Josephine Baker, Bricktop, Langston Hughes, to name a few—who came to Paris between the two World Wars. Many African American artists and musicians returned after World War II. They found cultural, literary, and racial freedom on many levels. Most times, that freedom was new. I wanted Ruby and Arnett to experience what it was like, as two Southerners, to be in Paris.

Julie: 

What themes do you find yourself returning to again and again in your writing, whether through your novels or other genres? Why do you think these themes resonate so much with you?

Jackie: 

Searching for Tina Turner, my first novel, is the story of a woman who goes on a journey, literally and figuratively. What comes through for the main character, Lena, is the inspiration and lesson of Tina Turner’s personal story: that everything we need to move forward in our lives is already within us. Reinvention, self-awareness, and self-fulfillment are themes that run through this novel, as well as Passing Love. I also address fear and what can be done to conquer it. We can all afford to be fearful, but no one can afford to let fear keep us from doing what we want or need to do.

I want to encourage my readers to avoid deferring their dreams. Too often life and responsibilities get in the way or provide convenient excuses. The reasons are legitimate. Money, work schedules, family, and personal obligations don’t always allow the majority of people (often many of those are women) to explore or experience new places or situations. Then there are instances when moving forward is stifled by fear. Call fear by any other name—responsibility or denial of desires, but it works in the same way and we stay stuck.

The main characters in Passing Love have different approaches to life. Nicole deferred her dream of going to Paris out of fear. While, on the other hand, Ruby doesn’t hesitate to do what it takes to get her where she wants to be (some readers have told me that she should’ve been afraid). I wrote these characters in the hope that readers would understand allow fiction to inspire real life. Here’s the lesson I want us all to learn: It’s not as important how long it takes to get to the dream, as it is to fulfill the dream. I’m hoping that both Nicole and Ruby inspire my readers to act. 

Julie:

You came to writing later in life. I can relate. Some days, I wish I had started writing “seriously” fresh out of college or earlier, but I’m not sure it would have worked. What inspired you to begin writing (or begin writing again)? How has the experience of being a late bloomer, for lack of a better description, figured into your writing?

Jackie:

For as far back as I can remember, my parents, uncles, aunts, and cousins gathered together on Friday nights. As the oldest of the cousins, once I became a teenager, I was chief babysitter. We made tents, had talent shows, and watched TV, but as the night went on I kept my cousins from misbehaving with my stories. I also wrote stories and poems for the children’s page in a local newspaper.

The love of writing has always been a part of me, but I never pursued it in high school or college. To this day, I am unsure why, but coming from a family where I was the first to attend college, writing didn't seem to be a career option. Instead, I became an avid reader.

I triple-dared myself around 1999 to, as my father used to say, “put up or shut up.” Either start writing or forget the idea. I took a writing class and released the stories that had been simmering inside of me for so long. I’d written business letters and proposals during my corporate career, but I was looking for the chance to use my imagination and my love of language. I enrolled in a creative writing class and the challenge I gave myself opened up a whole new world. Sharing my work with fellow writers was difficult and, to some extent, impersonal. They all seemed to be younger, wiser and cutting-edge. I felt vulnerable whenever they offered their feedback, both because of my maturity (alright, my age) and my lack of experience.

It took courage (and conquering that fear I spoke of in my answer to second question) for me to continue. Not the courage to break away from corporate America, but to explore my passion and to share my work. Eventually, I realized that my experience (yes, age) gave me a kind of edge over my younger colleagues—simply because I’d had more of them. My life experiences allowed me to compare past and present, as well as the long-term effects of our actions. I love writing about characters who’ve been around for a while and the effects of their choices. If it’s true that writers should write what we know, I know about life from both sides of fifty. That wisdom influences my writing and my characters—oh, they still have doubts, but they have the ability to call on a variety of circumstances to try to work through them.

I would’ve loved to start writing earlier in my life, but at this point, I’m thankful for having discovered my passion, for living my dream and knowing that readers are enjoying my work.

Julie:

I'm thankful you did, too, as I very much enjoyed Passing Love and look forward to reading more from you. I've been exploring your blog in preparation for this interview. Last year, I noticed, you wrote that after not journaling for years, you thought you'd try it again for one year. I used to journal all the time as a young girl, especially as a teenager, and have found it more difficult the older I grow, for reasons I haven’t quite fingered. Were you able to follow through? What can you share about that experience that either enriched or changed your process or productivity as a writer?

Jackie: 

I might have blogged that I kept diaries when I was younger. But, even then, I didn't make daily entries. When I think back on that time, I believed I didn't have anything to say. I was focused on what happened—what I did or ate or watched on TV—instead of what I dreamed or wished or feIt. In a few of those entries I tried to write about being skinny or not having a boyfriend or being a bit lonely in the world. I managed to journal but, for the most part, I kept those feelings in my head. Even now, when I look at my diaries (yes, I still have them) I can recall exactly what had happened to spur an entry.

A couple of weeks ago (so much for daily entries once again), I looked at my journal on, it turned out, the same date that I’d started over a year ago.  My intention was to see if my commitment would be different from my teenage years.

I stuck to the commitment to write in my journal, but only occasionally—I’d say (generously) once a week. There’s always the possibility I’d do better if I put myself on a schedule, and that might work. The good news is that I worked a lot on PASSING LOVE during that time and perhaps that’s where I used some of the emotional energy that might have gone into a journal—and that’s a “good thing” because it gave my characters the authenticity that makes them real.

Julie:

And yes, I can verify that your characters absolutely felt authentic. I won't give any spoilers here, but I will say that one scene in particular in Passing Love nearly brought me to my knees, I was so emotionally connected to the characters and the event. (Ask me later, Jackie, and I'll tell you which one — though maybe you can guess.)

Jackie, thanks so much for being our guest here at What Women Write! Readers, thanks for dropping by. We will pick up next week with our interview with Jackie, part le second! We'll hear more from her about fear — specifically, the fear and self-doubt that seems almost universal to writers. Also, we'll talk about a subject dear to the heart of Carleen Brice, who introduced me to Jackie, and who not only writes fabulous books herself, but runs a blog called White Readers Meet Black Authors. We'll also learn what's up next for Jacqueline Luckett. 

Until next week! 


(UPDATE: TO READ PART LE SECOND, click HERE!)