Ask the Author: Brenda Janowitz
Answered Questions (11)
Brenda Janowitz
I get ideas from everywhere I go and everything I touch.
When writing THE GRACE KELLY DRESS, THE LIZ TAYLOR RING, and the forthcoming THE AUDREY HEPBURN ESTATE, I was deeply inspired by the lives of my favorite stars of old Hollywood, as well as the heirlooms that we all hold dear in our families.
When writing THE GRACE KELLY DRESS, THE LIZ TAYLOR RING, and the forthcoming THE AUDREY HEPBURN ESTATE, I was deeply inspired by the lives of my favorite stars of old Hollywood, as well as the heirlooms that we all hold dear in our families.
Brenda Janowitz
Everything inspires me-- what I see, what I hear, places I go, people I meet. A better question would be: what doesn't inspire me? I find life endlessly fascinating and writing is my way of figuring it all out.
Brenda Janowitz
The best thing about being a writer is simple: you get to write! (Working in pajama pants is a close second place.)
Brenda Janowitz
I'd love to live in any fictional world where I could have magical powers!
Brenda Janowitz
I am a proud Jewish writer. THE DINNER PARTY is about a Passover Seder, but you don't have to be Jewish to read it. It's mostly about a family holiday (at one point, I considered making it about Thanksgiving instead). It takes place in the present, and is not historical fiction.
Brenda Janowitz
It's 6pm. My family asks: What's for dinner tonight?
Brenda Janowitz
I always have tons of books on my to-be-read list. A few that I'm looking forward to in the next few months:
SMALL WORLD by Laura Zigman
STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT by Heather Webb
THE FICTION WRITER by Jillian Cantor
SMALL WORLD by Laura Zigman
STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT by Heather Webb
THE FICTION WRITER by Jillian Cantor
Brenda Janowitz
I recently wrote an essay about a mystery in my life! It's here on Next Avenue:
https://www.nextavenue.org/a-price-ab...
https://www.nextavenue.org/a-price-ab...
Brenda Janowitz
Just write. Don’t overthink it. It sounds simple, but there are so many reasons not to write—work, kids, family, life in general. The main thing is to just get the words down. You can edit later.
Sometimes when the words really won’t come, I’ll just tap randomly on my keyboard. Eventually, that random tapping turns into actual writing!
Sometimes when the words really won’t come, I’ll just tap randomly on my keyboard. Eventually, that random tapping turns into actual writing!
Brenda Janowitz
I’ve loved writing about an heirloom item and the family that owns it, so I’m doing it again! I’ll be focusing on another family and another heirloom that has been passed down. The result is my seventh novel, THE LIZ TAYLOR RING. Heirlooms are so incredibly important to me-- I wear one of my Grandma Dorothy’s rings every day, and I love having a piece of her with me as I go through my day to day.
Brenda Janowitz
Writing is re-writing. From the first draft of my latest novel to the second, the book changed dramatically, and I think that the story is ultimately better for it. But when you’re a newer writer, it’s so hard to cut things, and it’s even harder to completely trash a part of the book and start from scratch. But really, editing the book is the thing that makes it better, and ultimately, makes you a better writer.
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