My father was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1928. His was not the “typical” childhood: he spent the 1930s and ’40s performing on radio and in the Yiddish theater, where divas starred in ingenue roles even after their daughters were old enough to play their mothers, and the actual words of the script were…
The Public Nature of Private Journals
(A version of this post was originally published on Nov. 13, 2013 on the Late Last Night Books blog.) I write journals. Year after year, the stacks of filled notebooks on my closet shelf grow taller, leaning into each other until I’m forced to start another pile. This stash doesn’t even include my high school…
Victoria Woodhull as Muse
Hillary Clinton’s historic turn as first woman presidential nominee of a major U.S. political party has sparked renewed interest in Victoria Claflin Woodhull. Victoria who? Back in 1872, when Victoria Woodhull became the first woman to run for President of the United States, nobody would have asked that question. Considered a visionary by some, a…
The Real Liriodendron
I’ve enjoyed meeting readers through various interviews and book events these past two weeks. Having the opportunity to discuss NEWPORT is a real perk. Often, readers point out aspects of the novel that I’d never considered, and it’s fun to realize that they’re absolutely right. I’ve been asked one particular question several times now, and…
Hello and Goodbye
Happy Launch Day to me, Happy Launch Day to me … sung to the tune of … well, you can guess. Think cake. Think candles. Think best wishes for this next year, because as of today, Newport is officially out there in the world, figuratively “born.” But, wait. What’s that other piece of music I hear swelling…
Ooops!
Back in fourth grade, I was fascinated by the 19th century westward expansion of the United States. The stories I wrote reflected that. Research? Nah. I just wrote. This probably explains how I found myself writing a scene set in a one-room prairie schoolhouse where a bunch of students expressed their boredom by throwing paper…
