Ask the Author: Jennifer Egan
Answered Questions (27)
Jennifer Egan
Thank you so much, Cordula!!! LOOK AT ME is my "favorite child," so this praise is especially meaningful. I think there was a certain prescience in that book, though in a way it's not surprising--I'm responding imaginatively to the same forces that end up shaping real-world events, be they technological or political, so there sometimes ends up being a kind of parity between what I imagine and what actually happens. I wrote LAM in the late nineties; in fact I had never been online at all when I began it. It came out in 2001, the same week as 9/11. So...some eerie symmetries, but in retrospect those are hard even to detect, as it all ends up feeling like one moment. Bottom line: I'm so grateful for your readership!! Sending good wishes, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Pete! Yes, I went to University for one year before transferring to Lowell, from which I graduated. Thanks and all best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Annalina, this answer is coming two years late--so sorry! I stopped looking at Goodreads for a period, and hope you are still on here! Interestingly, I'm not really a "music person," in that I don't know much about the industry and am not myself a musician. I listen to all music, whether classical or indie rock, with an ear toward structure, and an openness to how I might use a particular music structure in fiction. My new novel, THE CANDY HOUSE, employs very different musical structures than GOON SQUAD, and is not explicitly *about* music in the way that GOON SQUAD is. But thoughts about musical structure were equally important in the creation of the new book, which takes place in the same world as GOON SQUAD and involves many of the same characters. Huge thanks for reading and so sorry for the ridiculous lag-time! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Taeler, thanks for the question. I worked very much on one at a time--in fact when I was working in one point of view, I would almost forget that the others existed. Only in the last phase of the process did I put all of it together and concentrate hard on the flow of the larger story the chapters were telling. The one way in which I needed to ground myself was in characters' birthdates and ages. But other than that, I really just let the process work organically. I cut about fifty percent of what I originally wrote, which speaks to the fact that there are a lot of "wrong" moves when I work in this way, but hopefully enough good ones to make a book. Thanks so much for reading, and all best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Sam and massive thanks for the kind words. The answer is: no whiteboards! I write very improvisationally, and follow the clues that come up in that unconscious outpouring into the results that feel most interesting. I do MANY drafts; it's a very organic process of evolution. I find that what I come up with in this rather inefficient way is more interesting, and draws less on group-think, than what I can come up with sitting in a chair. If you take a look at my website, Jenniferegan.com, I've tried to expose some of this process by letting you see the published first page of each chapter and then what came before it, right down to the handwritten dated first draft. Huge thanks for reading, and all best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Huge thanks, Judy. I'm so grateful for the kind words!! Take a look at my website, jenniferegan.com, where you'll find lots of fun stuff--including a visual archeology of my progress from first handwritten draft to final published chapter, for every chapter of THE CANDY HOUSE. In many cases there were failed prior attempts, and I've exposed those too! Once you've taken a look at all that, you will learn the dirty secret of how I did it: trial and error!! Massive thanks for reading, and for your enthusiasm. All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Ah Maria, thank you for the lovely and generous words. There is no character map, but readers have drawn some pretty amazing ones that I'm thinking of posting on my website. The reason I haven't created one myself is that I don't want readers to feel obliged to keep track of anything--it's not necessary and can feel like a burden (sort of like keeping track of the relationships in someone ELSE's extended family!). On my website, jenniferegan.com, I do highlight connections between the chapters within CANDY HOUSE (in pink) and also to GOON SQUAD (in orange). It's not systematic, but can be fun. Thank you so much for reading!!! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Geert! This approach came about by accident when I was working on A VISIT FROM THE GOON SQUAD, which unfolds in the same fictional world as THE CANDY HOUSE. I began by writing three individual short stories--which naturally involved different protagonists and were written in ways different from each other. Once I realized I wanted them to be part of one book, the defining aspect of that book was already clear: that each point of view would feel like part of a different book, and would stand entirely on its own--yet they all would hopefully fuse into a larger story whose power would transcend the individual pieces. That approach felt rich enough, and freeing enough, that I employed it again in THE CANDY HOUSE. Huge thanks for reading!! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
OMG Ivan, I am just seeing this question!! I guess I checked out of Goodreads for a while...but I will answer now: at the beginning I had NO intention of venturing into the future; in fact I resisted it. I was thrust there by the wish to write about Alex (a character we know is very young in chapter 1, which takes place in 2006), well into his adulthood. What to do? So I imagined forward and found, to my surprise, that it was a lot of fun. In a way that freed me to lean even farther into the future in my new novel, THE CANDY HOUSE, which takes place in the same world as GOON SQUAD. So I'm grateful for that initial necessity. Thank you for reading!!
Jennifer Egan
Hi Terry, not only are you right, but you're clairvoyant!! UNDERWORLD--and DeLillo's work in general--has been a huge influence on me, and the balloons/desert artwork are absolutely an allusion to that book. I was in the process of creating annotations for THE CANDY HOUSE when I first saw your message, and I had already written one about Sasha's artwork, saying exactly that! Thanks for reading so attentively--indeed, for reading at all! All the best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Aww Joe, thank you!! I added that note because I was getting feedback that readers felt confused and stressed about "keeping track." I guess we are all students at heart. Anyway, so glad you enjoyed. Massive thanks for reading!! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Thanks so much for the kind words, Web--and for reading at all! I knew almost nothing about the period when I began, and the research I did was extensive: first, I spent about 5 years interviewing elderly people with good memories while I also worked on other books: from about 2005-2009. Then, when I began to actually writing MB in 2012, and knew more clearly WHAT I needed to know, I researched both systematically and serendipitously; for example, the Raleigh coupons came from a small physical brochure I was able to buy on eBay that listed the various possible coupon purchases. It was a deep immersion, and tremendously nourishing in that it woke up the past for me and made me feel more deeply connected to the history that has shaped my own life. Next I'm thinking of tackling the 19th Century!! Thank you again...and all best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Well, I don't think of it so much as MY naming the baby as imagining what Anna would have done. And the reason her decision felt right to me is that "Leon" is a kind of code-reference to her secret sexual life--not condoned by the culture at large--which she is not ashamed of, and which in some sense led to this child. Hope that helps, and thanks so much for reading!
Jennifer Egan
Hi Wendy and thanks for reading! Actually your timing is excellent, as S&S has chosen Manhattan Beach as its August book club pick and has various resources for book clubs here: https://bit.ly/2KF6Rdz. I will also be doing a Facebook Live Book Club discussion on 8/23 at 5:30pm ET. If you or someone from your book club can ask questions then, I will be happy to answer! Hope that helps and please thank your book club for choosing MB!! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hi Angela, Hmmm, that is a tough question. I find character the hardest thing to explain. I guess the first question I would want to ask your reader/s is: where does the character feel most alive? What are the moments when s/he seems to snap into focus? Those moments can become a kind of blueprint for how to improve the rest. Three things I try to think about when developing characters: 1. What are the person's habits of mind--the particular ways they organize reality as they live it. We all do this differently, and finding the particular tricks your character employs mentally to respond to the world around him or her are important. 2. What are the person's contradictions? What are the things that DON'T add up. "Consistent characters" often read as flat and dull, because we are inherently contradictory creatures. 3. What is the character's history? Ideally you should have to lay out very little backstory; our stories seep into our thoughts, impressions, and speech. Make sure those elements of your character are doing your work for you, so you can explain and describe the person as little as possible. Hope that helps and good luck! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Hah...very good question; Mr. Weir has had the rights for years, now, and continues to re-option the book for a project he plans to write and direct. I've seen nothing, but as you say, he is amazing and I hope to be surprised any day. My first novel, THE INVISIBLE CIRCUS, was made into a film (with Cameron Diaz in it!) and that was a fascinating and rich experience, and I'm generally open to film interpretations of my work, though of course I imagine it all in my own way, so even the most inspired actors--ie Cameron Diaz--don't ever replace my imagined versions of the characters. I do think visually, but the visuals have a somewhat atmospheric tinge; it's the *feel* of a place, a moment, a situation, that I'm most avidly trying to capture--and smell, sound, touch, all play into that. Thanks so much for reading!! All best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
Well I feel like a liar answering this question, because my schedule is way out of whack right now. When I'm writing original material, which I do by hand, I try to write 5-7 pages a day--ideally early in the day, so that I can move on to other things, like research for what I'm working on, or journalism, whatever. On a good day, that 5-7 pages can be accomplished in about an hour and a half. Once I'm in the editing phase, meaning I've finished a first draft and typed it up--I can work for very long stretches, and, again because I edit mostly by hand, I can do it pretty much anywhere. I have edited in elevators and on escalators, no kidding. I can also edit pretty well at night, but writing original material is really hard for me by evening--too much other stuff crowding my mind. Thank you so much for reading, Beso, and all best, Jenny
Jennifer Egan
THE KEEP began with a visit to a ruined castle in Bouillon Belgium, where I experienced a certain kind of excitement I've learned to pay attention to--it means that the atmosphere around me is going to play a part in my fiction. I wondered whether I wanted to write a novel set in Medieval times, but on reflection that didn't feel right; it was more the faux-medievalism of the Gothic that interested me. For several years I immersed myself in Gothic fiction: everything from Anne Radcliffe to Stephen King. I did a lot of reading, too, on castle architecture, prison architecture and prison life. I also spent a long and interesting day at a prison in Marion, Ohio, which helped to animate my prison research. Thank you so much for reading, Lorri!!!
Jennifer Egan
Hi Ingrid, good to hear from you! I will be in Germany on a book tour in September--will certainly be in Berlin! As to names, I find that they either come to me instantaneously or else are slow to arrive. Usually it is the former, and that was true with Dexter Styles--the name came to me and felt indelible. The fact that the name sounds fake became a curious factor to incorporate into the plot as it evolved. One funny thing about names in MANHATTAN BEACH: Anna's younger sister was named Elsa when I began this book. When the movie FROZEN came out and immortalized that combination of sister names, I realized that I would have to change Elsa's name. It was incredibly difficult to do so, and I went through many names before I arrived at Lydia, which finally--phew--began to feel like her real name. Thanks **so much** to you and your book club for reading!!!
Jennifer Egan
Good question. I interviewed a WWII diver who encountered a Russian woman diving in Cherbourg during the war, helping to clear the detritus the Germans exploded there to hinder the allies. Women did not dive for the US Navy until the 1970's, and for the Army until the 1980's (!). So it is quite unlikely that any women became civilian divers at the BNY or elsewhere in NY (there was a very robust civilian diving program in Manhattan, as well, helping to salvage the Normandie, a French liner that sank after catching fire on a Manhattan pier). However, it is certainly not impossible that women became civilian divers, and because the civilian diving program was not closely documented, we don't really know much about who did it, when, and for how long. That was my window of opportunity! Thank you so much for reading and all best, Jenny
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more