Literary Spotlight: Debra Ginsberg

Author Debra Ginsberg writes memoirs and novels. Her novel, The Grift (Shaye Areheart Books, 2008) is a New York Times Notable Book for 2008.

Q: You waited tables for twenty years to support your “writing habit.” How did it all change? Which came first: a publisher or a literary agent?

A: By the time I sold my first book, I'd already written two novels and a proposal for a memoir (about my son) that I'd been unable to sell, so I was really starting to lose hope. All the while (and along with some other jobs) I was waiting tables to keep myself and my son solvent. A friend of mine (with whom I'd worked at a literary agency) had recently become an editor at HarperCollins and asked me what I was working on (since she knew all about the two novels, the proposal, etc.). I told her I'd been thinking about making my waitressing tales into a memoir and she loved that idea. I did have an agent at that time (another ex-colleague, in fact) and she liked the idea as well. I put together a proposal and sample chapters for what would become Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress and four weeks later, it was sold. So there it was -- after twenty years, overnight success!

Q: Your first novel, Blind Submission, is an insider’s behind-the-scene look at a literary agency. What was your motivation in writing this book that exposes some of the industry’s flaws and excesses?

A: Blind Submission is actually a kind of love letter (albeit a sardonic one) to the publishing business. I'm a book geek and always have been. Up to - and including - the time my first book was published, I thought the publishing business was elegant and glamorous. You can't imagine how badly I wanted to be published, how I wanted an editor, and to visit one of those hallowed halls of literature and say, "That is my publisher!" As I said, geek. Literary agencies too held a similar appeal. That was where deals were forged and dreams came true! I'm not exaggerating here, honestly. The book business literally made me giddy. By the same token, the more I learned about it, the more I realized that there are some truly ridiculous things going on behind the scenes. Flaws and excesses don't even begin to cover some of the nonsense. Yet, ultimately, people in the business are in it because they love it. That love - of writing; of reading; of the sheer joy of cracking a new spine and discovering the world within - is at the root of Blind Submission. Plus, I do have to say, everyone (read: publishing folk) told me that nobody wanted to read a novel set in the publishing world and that the conventional wisdom was that those kinds of books don't sell. They were wrong.

Q: What suggestions do you have for new writers in developing point of view and character development?

A: The best suggestion I have is for writers to research their characters. What I mean by this is not to pick real people and write about them (although characters are de facto based on real people in some sense), but to really know your own characters. Who are these people? What were they doing before this novel began? What do they look like? How do they feel about themselves, their lives, their families? A character will evolve over the course of a novel, but there must be a firm starting point - a set of characteristics if you will - that will dictate how the character changes. A writer must know who the characters are before the action begins in order to understand how they will react to what happens. Point of view, by extension, is part of that character development. One must understand the character in order to write effectively from that character's point of view.

Q: How important are the skills of observation and intuition for a writer?

A: I think these skills are critical. For me, writing is all about observing and then translating those observations for the reader. But without intuition, there is no way of telling which observations are important or interesting or even relevant. Without intuition there can be no translation.

Q: How do you define the art of storytelling? Do you enjoy doing readings of your books and if so, why?

A: I know some great storytellers who don't write. And I don't know any good writers who aren't good storytellers. And yet... not all good writers are good readers of their own writing. Perhaps what this all comes down to is that one must know one's audience. What is there in your story that is appealing or interesting to your audience? How can they relate to your story? I was raised in a large, smart, and competitive family. When any one of us demanded the floor, we had to have a good reason - and the story had better be a good one or else it was derided in short order. My biggest fear - to this day - is that I will bore my audience. Therefore, while I am comfortable reading from my books, I prefer telling stories and answering questions when I am physically in front of an audience. This way (much as it still is with my family), I can better judge their mood and tailor my stories accordingly.