Part 40 (2/2)

Music, but without lyrics. I listen to particular soundtracks when I write. I like soundtracks with high drama, such as Braveheart, Blood Diamond Braveheart, Blood Diamond, and Dances with Wolves. Dances with Wolves. They make me feel very emotional, and that is reflected in what I'm writing. They make me feel very emotional, and that is reflected in what I'm writing.

Morning or night?

I'm a night owl, definitely.

Coffee or tea?

Coffee. Half caffeine, half decaf, with a little milk.

Your guilty reading pleasure?

Hmm...I don't think I have one. I really must work on that.

The first book you loved?

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. by E.B. White.

A DAY IN THE LIFE.

This depends on where I am in the writing process. If it's early on, you might find me lolling around the house with a faraway look in my eyes as the story begins to take shape in my imagination. If I'm outlining, you'll find me hunched over my dining-room table, surrounded by note cards, each one containing a scene from the book as I move them around to form a cohesive story. If I'm in the middle of the book, I'll often start my day at a local coffee shop, going over what I wrote the day before. Then I'll come home and get to work at the computer. If it's the last few months before deadline, you'll find me at the computer bright and early, then all day long, then late into the night. And I'll have a crazed, frantic look in my eyes!

TOP TEN BOOKS.

Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, which was not only a great read, but an eye-opener for me into the twentieth-century history of the Congo. by Barbara Kingsolver, which was not only a great read, but an eye-opener for me into the twentieth-century history of the Congo.

Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, because of its connection to the sea and beach and because of its exploration of a very real marriage. by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, because of its connection to the sea and beach and because of its exploration of a very real marriage.

White Horses by Alice Hoffman, because it was the first book of hers that I read, and it inspired my early writing. When I reread my first novel, by Alice Hoffman, because it was the first book of hers that I read, and it inspired my early writing. When I reread my first novel, Private Relations Private Relations, I can recognise the pa.s.sages that were written during my ”Alice Hoffman phase.”

Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy, because it's beautifully told and a fantastic, gripping story about a wildly dysfunctional family-my favourite kind. by Pat Conroy, because it's beautifully told and a fantastic, gripping story about a wildly dysfunctional family-my favourite kind.

The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, because it's so inventive and so very touching. by Audrey Niffenegger, because it's so inventive and so very touching.

The Colour Purple by Alice Walker, because I started sobbing on page one. by Alice Walker, because I started sobbing on page one.

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