http://audio.nowlive.com:443/stream/miniplayer/9636-070930-481191192533.mp3

Cheers, Felicia

My questions:

Clara and Sam have diametrically opposed childhoods. Were you thinking of them as a human extension of black and white? And is there room for shades of grey in child raising?

Clara and Robin seem to view their childhood and parents in terms of black and white - good and bad. Was it difficult to keep the shades of grey out of their characters?

What inspired you to write this book? Were you inspired by the work of one artist in particular? Or was it a metaphor for mother/daughter relationships in general?

It feels like Clara has a hard time coming to terms with her mother’s photographs of her partially because she was an ambivalent participant. What thought process did you use when creating their relationship? The push and pull between the feeling of wrongness and the love of attention is very powerful.

Thank you for this opportunity! I look forward to talking with you.

1.) What is the role of setting in Black & White? New York City is obviously a cultural and artistic center, so it makes perfect sense that this where Ruth Dunne would be located–did you at any point consider anywhere else? Likewise, what made you decide to use Mount Desert Island in Maine as the backdrop for Clara’s present day location? I have spent time there and feel that you did an excellent job of establishing the sense of place. Is this a geographic area you are familiar with or did you have to research this?

2.) Women writers have long explored the intersection of motherhood and creativity–and the tenuous balancing act of attempting to have both children and art. In Black & White, clearly, Ruth Dunne is a woman who has chosen art over her child, while Clara has insulated herself almost exclusively within the confines of motherhood and family. Does this tension in Black & White suggest that women cannot have both? Do you have any thoughts about this in particular or on motherhood and creativity in general?

3.) Hemingway said, “There’s no rule on how it is to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly. Sometimes it is like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges.” What was the “nuts-and-bolts” process like for you as you wrote Black & White? Was it a challenging book to create? How long did it take you to complete? Was the research process intensive or was it written more intuitively?

Thank you, once again for considering all of these questions! And thank you, Felicia, for the opportunity to be a participant.

Best wishes,
Delia

Questions:

1. Was it a conscious move to stay away from the relationship between Clara and her Husband for roughly the first half of the book? Did you want the reader to fully understand Clara’s relationship with Ruth and what she had been through as a child before delving into how it affected her future relationships?

2. There were very few male characters in the book and none of them was very present. While this may have just been a consequence of the story you were telling I wanted to ask if you have any trouble writing male characters?