In honor of my first post in an embarrassingly long time, let me present a wonderful emerging talent in the world of women’s fiction and a lovely person, Japan aficionado Wendy Tokunaga!!!!
Wendy is the author of the well-received, MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT, two children’s novels, and many short stories published in various literary journals. Not only is she a rockin’ novelist, but in her spare time, Wendy is Wendy sings bossa nova, cool pop, jazz standards and Japanese songs accompanied by her surfer dude husband Manabu on electronic keyboards. Her latest is LOVE IN TRANSLATION a November 2009 release from St. Martin’s.
A teaser…..
After receiving a puzzling phone call and a box full of mysterious family heirlooms, 33-year-old fledgling singer Celeste Duncan is off to Japan to search for a long, lost relative who could hold the key to the identity of the father she never knew. Once there she stumbles head first into a weird, wonderful world where nothing is quite as it seems—a land with an inexplicable fascination with foreigners, karaoke boxes, and unbearably perky TV stars.
What inspired Love in Translation?
Many things. LOVE IN TRANSLATION is my cockeyed valentine to Japan, which is a place I’ve both loved and loathed, a place that has fueled both fascination and frustration. And it is also a place that has had a huge impact on my life and writing. I also wanted to explore what it means to be a gaijin (foreigner) in Japanand the benefits and downsides of that status and what happens when a gaijin sings in Japanese. I also am fascinated by the concept of the homestay, (something I never experienced), and how that would impact someone as an adult who grew up in foster homes and who never experienced a real family.
How do you go about choosing a setting for your novel? Does it, like New York in Sex and the City, almost play the part of another character in the book?
Love in Translation takes place mainly in Tokyo and because of the circumstances of the story, that’s really the only place it can be. Yes, I think Tokyo does become a character in the book. The novel is sort of my cockeyed valentine to Japan, a place I’ve found both fascinating and frustrating at different times in my life and one that has had a major impact on my life and writing.
Who’s your favorite literary villain? Why?
Actually, I like it when the hero or heroine can also be seen as kind of a villain. And one of my favorite literary characters of this variety is probably Emma Bovary in Madame Bovary. She can be construed as both an oppressed woman and a selfish jerk, a victim of her time and circumstances and a conniving manipulator. When I first read it in high school, I found her deeply sympathetic. When I revisited the book again more recently, a lot of my reaction was along the lines of, “What a bitch!” (Sorry…must interceed…Nadine here. I LOVED Madame Bovary. I had the opposite reaction. Wasn’t too sypathetic towards her as a still-in-the-bloom-of-youth teenager, but as I got older, I totally got her.)
Where do you write?
I’m lucky enough to have my own office at home where I do most of my writing. In the last place we lived I used to share an office with my husband and that was much too distracting and cramped. But after I’ve done some writing I like to print out what I’ve written and go to a coffee house or somewhere to read it and make notes. And I also do writing in my mind as I lie awake in bed, trying to fall asleep! (Isnt that the most inspiring time of the day?? Maybe it’s all that reflecting on the hours that just passed…)
Which craft books have inspired or helped you throughout your writing career?
There are many and some are not technically “craft” books such as “The Resilient Writer: Tales of Rejection and Triumph from 23 Top Authors” by Catherine Wald. Others include “bird by bird” by Anne Lamott, “The First Five Pages” by Noah Lukeman and “The Art & Craft of Novel Writing” by Oakley Hall.
What comes most naturally for you to write, dialogue? plot? character? What’s the hardest?
Easiest for me is plot and that’s what I try to spend time sorting that out on the first draft. I also like to “talk out” my plot to friends and keep refining it that way. The most difficult is slowing down and spending time on description. I don’t care for long passages of description, but you must have some. So I try and strike a happy medium, but it isn’t easy for me.
What has brought the greatest joy since you were published? The greatest angst?
I’d say the greatest joy is having readers who appreciate your writing. And the greatest angst is in working hard to keep those readers and gain more.
What do you love about being an author?
There’s so much that I enjoy. First, it’s great to be paid for something you love to do. But I also find it inspiring to help other writers. I enjoy telling my story of woe on my road to publication and let others know that they don’t need any special connections to the publishing world in order to get published. I like to promote the message that you should never give up. And if you work hard, keep at it and be flexible, your publishing dream may come true. I also like helping other writers make their work the best it can be.
What’s one piece of writing advice you’ve found valuable on your journey to publication?
That often you won’t discover the real story you’re trying to tell until the revision process. (Amen, sista)
What’s next for you?
I’m working on a novel that is a different departure for me: it has very little to do with Japan!
Find more information at Wendy’s website (www.WendyTokunaga.com). And look for her on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Wendy-Nelson-Tokunaga/52795977320) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/Wendy_Tokunaga)
