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| Kate Jacobs is a Canadian writer and first came to our attention when people started to mention The Friday night Knitting Club. We eventually got around to picking it up and were pleasantly surprised by its unputdownable storyline. Kate was raised near Vancouver, Bristish Columbia, and went into in magazine publishing, working on such titles as Working Woman and Family Life magazine. She now lives in South California and is still a firm knitting fan. Her latest book is called Comfort Food and her website is www.katejacobs.com. With two novels under her belt, we thought it was high time we asked Kate some questions... 1. Comfort Food is your second book. Is it true what they say about second novels being notoriously hard to write? Ummm...I think yes. Some days it definitely was a challenge. What's funnier is that I didn't realize that's what people said about second novels, until someone told me when I was several chapters into Comfort Food and then my fingers were frozen -- didn't type a letter -- for several weeks! But finally I just got down to it and hammered it out. Cooking and tasting along with the characters whenever I could, of course. I would read recipes before bed. 2. Friday Night Knitting Club had so many separate strands of stories in it - how did you manage to keep it all smooth and organised? Did you have a system of sorts? I did a lot of juggling and rewriting! I also had an outline that I continually revised because the characters kept changing things up. A lot happens during the actual writing of any story that reveals the characters' true personalities and the plot can move in ways you don't expect. So a system is good to have but I'm not sure it really keeps things under control. Where did you get your ideas for each of your books? We all have tons of ideas; they're a dime a dozen. And they only turn into books when we write them down. The writing is where the action occurs, the plot takes shape, and the characters allow themselves to be discovered. I do have a list of story ideas I keep on my computer, for example, and some half-sketched out novels I have yet to write, including one that I conceived before I wrote The Friday Night Knitting Club but is next on my writing schedule. And sometimes I brainstorm with friends, sometimes an event in my life will provide a spark -- as happened with some of the story elements of Comfort Food -- and sometimes I'll dream things. Yes, I do dream about my characters. When I am in the midst of a book and get stuck, I typically take the dog out to throw tennis balls. I throw, he fetches. For some reason, I find that always clears my head. How did you go about finding an agent/publisher? Do you know that my UK publisher was the very first publisher to buy The Friday Night Knitting Club? They got things rolling. In the US, I think about 10 or 12 publishers passed before my current publisher picked it up. And now we've done Comfort Food together and my next book as well. All it takes is the right person to believe in you. I'm lucky that my agent -- her name is Dorian Karchmar and she's at William Morris -- is both a lovely person and very smart. Do you have a set writing routine or any rituals you must do before you start? Although I can and have written in street clothes, I tend to wear pajamas. Not my sleeping ones; I have special writing pajamas. Though if I suddenly want to have a nap, I have been known to just lie down and snooze in them. I often write early in the morning and I just got in the habit of tumbling out of bed and walking the few steps to the computer. So I must be comfortable when I write. Also, where could I go, looking like I've just gotten up? Clearly my only option is to stay and get my work done. I always imagine other writers, for some reason, looking very elegant as they work, ready to host cocktail parties on a moment's notice. Finally, do you have any advice on going for the long haul and completing a novel when it feels like it's never going to end? Excellent question. That's right where I am at the moment, in fact, with my third book. So that feeling never goes away. It may even be part of the process, perhaps? My advice is going to be boring: Set yourself a deadline. Write as often as possible -- try late at night or early morning when the house is still asleep -- and just keep at it. One day it will be done. Really. And then you'll find yourself itching to do it all again.   click here to buy the Friday Night Knitting ClubGeorgia owns a knitting shop that's so much more than a shop - it's the heart of a community of women in New York. The Friday Night Knitting club follows their lives with a great story that packs every emotion going. It's a great holiday read and one that you'll want to pass on.  Click here to buy Comfort Food |
| Posted: 06/07/2008 12:45:31 Last Updated: 25/07/2008 11:32:20 |
Chick Lit > Chick Lit Authors :: Kate Jacobs