Q. What is some of the best writing advice you ever got?
A. “Think of the story you want to tell, not the story you want to sell.”
Q. Is there any advice you took that you wish you hadn’t?
A. “Join a writing group.” Some people find it helpful to share rough drafts. I don’t. To me, it feels like walking out in one’s underwear and asking, “I’m getting ready to go out. What do you think of my outfit so far?”
Q. Tell us about your writing habits or how you work?
A. I wake up as early as I can—when I wrote Gardening by Heart, my day started at 4:30 or 5:00 in the morning. My mind was less critical then and at the time it was the only way I could ensure that I prioritized writing. Today I wake later, but I still write before I do anything else.
Q. What fills the well of your writing life: other interests, music, nature, politics?
A. For a few years, I lived in the People’s Republic of Portland, Oregon and was very active in politics. We’d volunteer 40 hours a week during the 2004 Presidential election. These days, my interests are studying Turkish language and history, going to theatre, lectures, concerts, and classes, and traveling as often as I can possibly manage it. My dad was a pilot and I feel most at home when I’m at an airport or learning my way around an unfamiliar city.