Ayelet Waldman is an accclaimed novelist, mother of four, and a popular tweeter (@ayeletw) along with being the wife of author Michael Chabon. The author of Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities and Occasional Moments of Grace and seven books in her Mommy-Track Mysteries series, Waldman has made an art out of balancing the writing life with family life. Will the children of two best-selling authors pick up the pen themselves? What books do these authors share with their kids?
In a discussion with Laura Glass, Waldman shares the answers to these and more burning questions.
Waldman will be reading from her highly praised adult novel Red Hook Road on Friday, June 3rd at 7 p.m. at Elliott Bay Books on Capitol Hill.
Being a two-writer family – are your kids drawn to the world of writing?
Waldman: Rosie, our younger daughter (age 10), loves to write and often wakes up early in the morning to write stories or poems. She's the only one drawn to creative writing. And what's interesting is that she is dyslexic. Go figure.
What are you currently reading to (any) of your kids?
Waldman: We're in the thick of Philip Pulman's His Dark Materials. It's beautifully written and so rich. I just love this book. We recently listened to Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea trilogy on audio. Also marvelous.
What's the most common misperception people have about you?
Waldman: That I'm a raging, hormonal bitch who has scarred her children for life. Oh wait, you asked for the MISconception?
Can you tell us a little bit about your development deal with HBO? Are the rumor mills true, will it have any degree of an Inglorious Basterds tone, story line?
Waldman: Not unless you think Quentin Tarantino owns World War II. It's about a team of stage magicians, conmen and escape artists who spy for the British during the war.
I hope it has very little of the tone of Inglorious Basterds, which though I appreciated, I found disturbingly juvenile. We hope to have a story that has all of the magic and fun of a caper, while never once forgetting what was really at stake in that war.
What is the most difficult thing about writing for you?
Waldman: Getting my ass in the chair.
Do your kids ever suggest topics and if so have you ever pursued them?
Waldman: Sometimes over dinner they suggest solutions to intractable problems. It's a family business, so everyone has an opinion. Once Abe (age 8) did point out a serious flaw in a script I was writing. I fixed it according to his instructions. It didn't get picked up. So I blame him for that.
Could you see Bad Mother, the movie? If so, who would play you if it were your choice?
Waldman: Funny! Haven't thought of that before but I kind of love the idea. Hmm. Well, how about Rachel Weisz? She's gorgeous…and Jewish!
Of all of your work which piece are you most proud of? Which do you dread seeing on the shelf?
Waldman: Red Hook Road for sure. It was the hardest book to write, it has the best writing in it. Part of me dreads seeing the Mommy Track mysteries because they are so light and fluffy, but you know what? Many, many people love those books, so I refuse to let myself be embarrassed by them. I think they're a good example of the genre, and they're super fun!
Since the infamous Oprah appearance I've always wanted to ask you if you felt "set up" to fall hard with your comments re: your husband and children?
Waldman: I wasn't set up, because, hey, I had the big mouth to begin with. But I certainly didn't expect the "Living Room Format" with all those angry women. But I should have, because it made for the best TV. Were I producing it, I would do the same thing!
Whose writing are your inspired by, eager to read?
Waldman: Some of my current favorites are Ian McEwan (whose name I NEVER spell right), Jane Gardam, A.B. Yehoshua, David Mitchell, and as ever Jane Austen.
