Press Kit

I don’t have a process, but I need solid blocks of uninterrupted time to get in the right head space to really be creative, and those are difficult to find. When I’m in it, I can roll for hours, and I’m not happy if I’m interrupted. 

There were coordinated terrorist attacks across Paris in November of 2015. I was in a master’s program at the time, tasked with writing a short scene or story, and I was so disturbed by the events that I ended up using it for the piece I was working on, and continued to dwell on it until it became a story.

Yes. Especially having watched people I cared deeply about suffer through extreme health challenges. I wrote the book over the course of about nine years, and as my life evolved so did my perspective on the medical world and treatment. Much of that falls into a more philosophical discussion than a Q & A allows, however.

Bill Crane (Rachel’s and Isabel’s father) and Ted from the gym are modeled after my own father. Like my father, both men are incredibly strong and kind. Helen Crane is far too rigid to be a replica of my own mother—my mom had a wicked sense of humor—but the devoted love, care, and worry she showered on her family inspired Helen’s care for Isabel. Like Helen, my mother had impeccable style and comportment, so they’re alike in that way as well. Hailey’s appearance is modeled after my daughter, Emma, who is strikingly beautiful, and Charlie reminds me of my son, Burke, in his appearance and kind manner.

They just evolve over time. I don’t outline or develop a plot in advance. I usually start with a scene and then wait and see what grows from that.

Yes! I was born and raised in Chicago, as were my parents and grandparents. I have a very large, extended, Irish-Catholic family and most of us still live in Chicago or the close suburbs. Our roots are very strong. 

The importance of human connection; everyone in the world is struggling with something on some level, and leading with kindness and empathy can make all the difference. I also explored, on a smaller level, the stoic’s philosophy of amor fati, which translates to “love of what happens,” or accepting one’s fate. I’m intrigued by the idea that we’re all presented with certain challenges in our lives—perhaps that’s even our purpose in living this human experience. Though we have no control over the twists and turns of life, what we can control is how we respond to and learn from these challenges.

I’m continually wowed by new writers, thank God, but works that have stayed the course with me are the classics: Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, etc. I’ve reread Tartt and Franzen a number of times because their writing is so compelling and I learn from it. Love Amor Towles. Again, there are so many wonderful works published all the time it’s difficult to keep up. I CRINGE to think of the stunning works of genius that will never see the light of day simply because they haven’t found a home. 

When I get stuck in a sentence or a scene and can’t figure out what I want to say or what direction I should go, I’ll go take a shower or a bath or sit and look out at water (if I can) and the fog clears.