Melodie Bowsher, author of "My Lost and Found Life," is a gifted writer and undeniable talent (see my previous post about her work). Her novel, which is the perfect holiday gift, is insightful, moving, powerfully wrought and a treasure for people who value the fine art of storytelling. I recently had the pleasure of corresponding with Melodie, and her answers to my questions (see below) are incredibly informative. To repeat: Buy her book! It's an investment that will yield returns and great memories for years.
1) What inspired you to write this novel?
The subject of my book wasn't "ripped from the headlines" but it was inspired by the real-life case of a teenager who was abandoned by an embezzling parent. The predicament of that boy (a friend of my son's) was the jumping off point for my plot. But I altered the real story to fit other ideas I had. Those ideas had to do with my own struggle to raise two teenagers in an affluent San Francisco suburb and to meet the expectations of my children on a limited income. Like many parents today, I thought it was my job to make my children happy. Now I know that's not a parent's job. Our job is to prepare them for adulthood and teach them how to survive on their own -- that's the idea I want readers to take away from my book.
Another important change I made to the plot is that the main character is an 18-year-old girl. I thought it made an inherently more dramatic storyline if a girl without skills or resources has to go through the problems and perils of being on her own.
2) How do you think your main character evolves during the course of the story?
At the beginning of the book Ashley is very spoiled and self-centered. She is only concerned with the material things she thinks she "needs" and blithely assumes her mother's job is to buy them for her. She thinks of her mother as someone who is always there and always will be there, like a useful piece of furniture or a walking-talking ATM machine. (Many parents will identify with that description!) I've had people tell me that Ashley is unlikable in the beginning, though I don't agree. Sure, she's a smart-aleck but she has a kind heart and a sense of humor. Her problem is that her over-indulgent mother has given her everything and not made her earn anything. This is a mistake a lot of parents make – they sacrifice and give "stuff" to their children and think they'll feel grateful. But why should they feel grateful? They don't know what it's like to do without. Do you think Paris Hilton feels grateful for everything she has? I think Paris, like Ashley in my book, feels entitled.
Then her mother disappears and Ashley finds herself in free-fall. By the end of the book, she's a different person. Her experiences reshape her into someone who understands that not everyone has her materialistic values and that there are more important things than a designer handbag. She realizes (too late, like so many of us) how much she loves and needs her mother. She grows through adversity. Some people face challenges and deal with them while others give up – turn to drugs, crime, or become bitter and disillusioned. It's a matter of character. Ashley has character -- she grows and becomes a better person.
3) Why did you choose to set the novel in San Francisco
Because I live in San Francisco and know it well. It's also the most beautiful city in the U.S. and provides the perfect backdrop for the plot of my book. Ashley leaves the suburbs to lose herself in San Francisco. It wouldn't have been the same story if she hadn't done so. In a small town everyone knows everyone (like the town in Kansas where I grew up). There's more privacy in a city like San Francisco. I don't know or rarely see my neighbors – I wouldn't recognize them if I bumped into them in the supermarket. That anonymity is what allows Ashley both to hide her secrets and reinvent herself.
4) How do you approach the job of writing?
Writing is work. Someone famous once said that writing is easy – you just sit at a typewriter (i.e. computer) until little drops of blood form on your forehead. I have days like that. Maybe there are some writers who turn out beautiful prose without breaking a sweat, but I'm not one of them. Producing good writing means writing and rewriting and rewriting again. You have to get your first draft down on paper, no matter how awful it seems. Once you hammer out a bad first draft, then you shape it, work it, knead it, pummel it, pound it, and otherwise revise it until you get something good or at least better. So the process involves putting your bottom in a chair and putting the time in. I also like to work without interruptions – I don't want to answer the phone or make dinner or have a conversation when I'm totally involved in the writing. That's why I worked in borrowed cabins and rented motel rooms at times during the writing of my book. I need to be alone when I'm writing.
5) How long did it take you to write the novel?
I worked on the book on and off for a year. I revised it many, many times. I asked friends to read it, listened to their advice and sometimes followed it. I also belong to a writing group and I find that very useful to the process.
6) What do you believe is the novel's universal theme?
The universal theme to me is the never-ending dance between teenage daughters and mothers. I love you. I hate you. You don't listen. You don't understand. Those words could come from either one. Daughters struggle to be "different " from their mothers, they fight to be independent. Mothers want to teach and guide their daughters, sometimes they make big mistakes in the process. It's such a complicated relationship. As in all things, we often don't appreciate someone until that person isn't there anymore. Many readers have emailed me or written me to say that my book motivated them to hug their mothers and tell them how much they loved them.
7) What's the novel's relevancy at this moment in history?
At a time when the stock market and economy seems to be imploding, it's difficult to discuss expectations. But right now Ashley and her friends are certainly symbolic of what many have called the entitlement generation. I refer to young people who want it all – ski trips, expensive cars, IPods, computers, designer clothes, $800 handbags, etc. – and expect these things to arrive on their doorsteps without having to work or earn these luxuries. They live to go to parties and have fun. Their parents are not giving their children the tools and skills they need to cope and survive in a difficult world. An increasingly difficult world.
8) What advice do you have for young writers?
- Read -- read good books and study what makes the plot move and the writing good.
- When you read a bad or mediocre book, analyze what didn't work.
- Keep a journal – write down interesting things that happen or colorful people you meet, etc. Capture the details. Good writing requires you to capture revealing details.
- Read books about writing, especially by published writers. Stephen King wrote a good one.
- Write. And then rewrite. Keep at it. Don't wait for inspiration. The old saying is that writing is 90% perspiration and 10% inspiration – I believe that.
- Write in scenes. Imagine a scene and write it without any preamble. Go straight to the heart of the action without adding pointless musings and meaningless conversation. Writers have to compete with television these days so they have to hook the reader right away.
- Join a writers group. (If it turn out not to be the right group for you, join a different one.)
9) What other novels do you plan to write?
Several people have asked me to write a sequel, but I'm working on a book about Tattie, a secondary character in MY LOST AND FOUND LIFE. Tattie is a "bad girl" a self-admitted slut who's had a difficult life, some of it because of her dreadful parents and some of it her own doing. I'm enjoying writing about her adventure and exploring her choices.
10) Describe your writing style.
I'm a former journalist so I write in a very simple, journalistic style. I don't like to read complicated sentences with odd word choices and flowery phrases, and I don't write like that. I write good dialogue (or so I've been told) because I allow the characters to reveal what they're thinking and feeling through their dialogue instead of narration. When I find a book boring, I always skip down to the dialogue or the action scenes and I write so that my reader doesn't have to do that. I don't think you should waste the reader's time showing them how clever or original you are. Tell the story without endless adjectives and over-wrought metaphors. That's what I try to do.
