The end of the year is always a perfect time to reflect and say thank you to the folks who help make this blog worthy of reading. I’m the only author who maintains Writing Under Pressure, but I’m certainly not the only one who adds content here.
About once a month, I host an author for an interview (and, often, a book giveaway). I’m always honored when authors take time out of very busy schedules to answer a few questions on their books, to share their wisdom and experience about writing or the publishing world, and to leave encouraging words for others hoping to follow in their footsteps. One way I can give back to them, and to you, is to highlight those Q&A’s one more time with hints of the goodness you’ll find within their posts.
November 2011: Megan Stielstra, Everyone Remain Calm (Part 1 & Part 2). “No more waiting for inspiration to strike. Sit down and make it happen.“
December 2011: Anna Solomon, The Little Bride. “[I]n the morning, when I’m writing, there will be no phone calls, no internet, no criticism or praise to ingest, just me, my characters, my story. For me, this is the only way….”
January: Siobhan Fallon, You Know When the Men are Gone. “[T]he stories in [this] collection are the ones that filled me up, had me awake at night thinking about the sound of a character’s voice or his choice of childhood friends, these were the stories that excited me as a writer, these were the characters whose stories I wanted most to know.”
February: Dave Thome, Fast Lane (now titled Palm Springs Heat). “[I]f you’ve had any reason to think your work can make it in the marketplace—script options, offers from agents, contest awards, good reviews on Amazon or Goodreads, success in other media, like short stories or journalism or advertising—there’s hope. Really sucky days are inevitable, but remembering that there’s evidence that your work is good enough will get you through it.”
April: Shann Ray, American Masculine. “I love the transport great lit gives us. A sense of something true touching our face and drawing us to look into the eyes of that immeasurable power of which we still know so very little, a power I see as love, kindness, and strength in the wake of human degradation. From that gaze we understand there is mystery involved at the deepest levels of our humanity and at the foundation of that mystery there is love.”
May: Erika Dreifus, Quiet Americans. “[W]hat is so alluring to me about fiction-writing: the opportunity to combine fragments of personal experience, research, what we learn from others, and what we imagine, and create something new and whole in its own right. Sometimes, it’s difficult for me to remember which elements of a story I’ve created entirely and which do, indeed, have roots in my own lived experience. Which is why those stories begin and remain as fiction.”
June: Andrew Cotto, Outerborough Blues. “In both [fiction and nonfiction] I’m trying to tell a story, and [common] themes tend to find their way into my narratives…. The biggest difference to me is…the scope of the story, and, of course, the component of imagination in fiction. In both cases, though, I’m always trying to create something insightful and descriptive and reflective of our times.”
August: Nichole Bernier, The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. “I sort of wish I had a writing room, some serene window-walled space with a massive antique desk. But even if I did, I probably wouldn’t write there. . . . I’ve become that cliché of the coffeeshop writer. I love the impersonal bustle that’s a bit like being part of an office, the juicy bits of conversation you overhear, and yes, the constant flow of coffee….”
September: Yuvi Zalkow, A Brilliant Novel in the Works. “[I]t takes a lot of courage/strength/risk/stupidity for a writer to take their work out in the world and say, ‘Yes, I want to see if I can make my words affect other people.’ Particularly if you’re doing something that doesn’t follow some well-known standard.”
October: Lydia Netzer, Shine Shine Shine. “Never give up and never quit. Find the story that’s most important in the world for you to tell, and then grab onto it and don’t give up on it ever. When it seems like telling it has gotten too hard, know that you’re doing it right.”
November: Sarah McCoy, The Baker’s Daughter. “[W]hat fuels my writing: giving voice to the voiceless and forgotten or unknown stories.”
I’d say, it’s been a pretty good year for writing, publishing, and some great reading. Happy 2013, and thank you again to the many authors who have graced this blog!
* Photo credit: woodleywonderworks on flickr.com
This time of year, hibernation sounds like a good idea. The leaves are turning. The sun sits lower on the horizon. The Farmer’s Almanac is touting “more shivery and shovelry” this winter. Man.
Cheryl and Eric Olsen host a wonderful blog series on their website (We Wanted to Be Writers) called Books by the Bed for the sole purpose of sharing good reads. They recently published Best of Books by the Bed #2:
