Hello Beautiful People,
Our next Mover & Shaker is, well, our guardian angel. She’s a literary prowess. She’s a teacher. She’s a mother. She’s a wife. She’s a budding screenwriter. She’s our confident, our first author to participate in the Summer Author Interview Series, and someone our founder is proud to call a friend.
Ladies and Gents, we’re pleased to introduce you to….
TWT: First things first, did you always have dreams of being a novelist?
CL: Yep. From the time I could hold a pen. I was a sickly little girl, bullied for a.having asthma, b. being smart and c. looking different. So I lost myself in books and soon realized that I didn’t want to just read stories–I wanted to write them. I had a whole lot of “no’s” along the way, but I decided early on that I was never, ever going to give up, and that’s been my mantra ever since.
TWT: Can you describe to our readers what your writing process is like?
CL: I start with an idea that is haunting and obsessing me. Every novel is always some question I’m trying to figure out. How do we forgive the unforgivable? How can an outsider belong in a community? I’m very big on story structure, and like my hero John Irving, I map out the novel before I even start, which usually takes me about 6 months. Of course the map changes as I write, but the basic character trajectory stays pretty much the same.
TWT: You were a finalist in the Sundance Screenwriting Lab competition for your script of Is This Tomorrow. Can you describe to our readers what went through your mind when you first were notified of this honor?
CL: Semi-finalist! I’m still waiting to hear if I made the finals! It’s astonishing. Everyone told me not to bother to apply, that they just wanted young, hip screenwriters–and I’m not young or hip! I entered two scripts, and showed one to a screenwriting friend of mine, who shook her head and sighed, “Caroline, it’s bad.” I was grateful for the truth and she told me why it didn’t work and I came to the conclusion that oh well, I was a novelist and not a screenwriter, and then two days later, I got a congratulations letter from Sundance! It’s an incredible honor. They are so difficult to get into–and they take only 12 for the finals, and half of those are people they are already working with, so I feel my ultimate chances are hilariously low. But you never know, and just making the semis is getting me some attention from film people, so I’m thrilled and honored about that.
TWT: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received, in regards to your career?
CL: Do not write to the market. Write for yourself. If you start writing with a reader in mind, you will kill your art. Instead, if you write for yourself, you will discover what is unique, and that will actually make your work universal.
TWT: What advice would you give to students in high school and in college who wish to pursue a career in writing, screenwriting, and teaching?
CL: NEVER EVER GIVE UP. I was told so many times that I would never make it, that I should give up, but I didn’t listen. I had four publishers ignore me and refuse to take my calls or emails, and Pictures of You was rejected by my publisher who said it “wasn’t special.” I thought my career was over because after 9 novels, I hadn’t made a name for myself or any money–but Algonquin bought the book and turned it into a NYT bestseller. So NEVER GIVE UP. I’m the poster girl for that!
TWT: Here at The Write Teacher, many of us work with “at-risk” youth. These students are recovering drug addicts, struggling drug addicts, teenage parents, and almost all of them come from broken homes. The struggles, demons, and anger that our students face is often a hindrance to their progress in school and life in general. Do you have any words of wisdom to offer these students?
CL: A lot of what I said in question 5 applies to this. These students have a huge, huge burden already put on them, but I would tell them” believe in yourself. Believe that miracles can happen, that mentors can come out of the woodwork and help you, that you CAN do it. Just because others have failed or tell you you can’t–doesn’t make it true. Never give up. Follow your dreams and ask for help. Really. ASK FOR HELP and accept that help, and then pay it forward.
TWT: In today’s economy, arts programs in schools are being cut. What reasons would you give a politician for preserving the arts?
CL: What a great question! The arts are what makes us human. We are hard wired to need stories and music and movement and to cut that off is like cutting off one of our limbs. Studies have shown that kids exposed to the arts do better in school and in life. Reading, theater, dance–all of these are transcendent experiences that allow us to change ourselves and understand others in a deeper, richer way.
TWT: Here at The Write Teacher, we believe that art drives life, and theatre transforms lives. Would you agree or disagree with those statements? Why?
CL: Absolutely and totally agree. See previous answer.
TWT: Just for fun, what’s your favorite movie and play?
CL: I just saw Al Pacino in Glengarry Glen Ross on Broadway and was electrified. There was a moment when his whole body transformed on stage–he literally seemed to grow smaller. I’m a movieholic so it changes all the time, but I love the bleak, existential Director’s Cut of Blade Runner.
TWT: Who is/was your greatest teacher?
CL: My son. I tried to give him the childhood I desperately wanted, and I watch how he navigates his life. He’s astonishing.
Caroline, we love you, we thank you, we are grateful for your friendship.
Live, Love, Learn,
The Write Teacher(s)