Searching for Pilar – Author Interview

Where did your love of books come from?

I grew up in a small town in the Southern New Jersey Pine Barrens. It was a great place to grow up, but not much happened. I always wanted to know more about the greater world. So, I read every fiction book in the public library by the time I left there in 1965 to attend college. When I was in high school, I was reading Atlas Shrugged and War and Peace. I never stopped loving Tolstoy’s writing. Years later, I wrote my Ph.D. dissertation on Leo Tolstoy’s Theory of Nonviolent Social and Political Revolution and His Relationship with Mahatma Gandhi.

How long have you been writing?

A long time. I started writing stories while I was a teenager. I went to the University of Missouri to major in journalism but fell in love with European history. I earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in Russian and South Asian History, doing research and writing many papers along the way. During the 30 years I practiced public finance law, I wrote securities prospectuses, research papers, etc. I also published legal articles and book chapters. In retirement, I took creative writing workshops at Inprint. Publishing Searching for Pilar is the realization of my childhood dream to be an author. I guess it is never too late!

What kind of writing do you do?

I loved writing a fiction novel. But I also write essays, several of which Texas Lawyer, the premier Texas law journal, has published in the past six months. I also write memoir about my experience as one of the generations of women who broke the glass ceiling in big law firms in the 1980s.

What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

I took satisfaction in knowing I was doing something to bring attention to the brutal crime of sex trafficking of young girls and women. I enjoyed figuring out what came next in each of Pilar’s and Diego’s parallel journeys to find freedom and redemption. Finally, I loved describing the many socioeconomic layers of the population of Houston, a diverse, vibrant, sometimes dangerous, but mostly empathetic city.

Which character from your book is most like you?

Mary. She is smart, analytical, compassionate and not afraid to do things she had never done before in order to bring justice to Pilar and the other unfortunate girls in her situation.

What was most useful in learning to write for publication?

Tolstoy, the many writing courses I took at Inprint and my excellent developmental editor at Greenleaf Book Group, April Murphy.

How important are names to you? How did you choose names?

They are important. I tried to use names that were symbolic or useful in constructing the story of Mary and John’s heritage, for example. Pilar, Conception. Consuelo and Jesus had a double meaning. It was challenging working with Mexican names. I had to keep calling my Mexican friends and asking them, “Where does the mother’s name go in the litany?” or “If a woman is married, does she go by her mother’s name or her husband’s?”

What book do you wish you had written?

A Gentleman in Moscow or The Nightingale.

What would be your favorite writing location?

Sitting on a porch in a beach house near the Caribbean Sea or the Mediterranean Sea. That would be heaven for me. Last summer I rented a casita in Old Town in Santa Fe, N.M. to finish the revisions to my novel. It was peaceful, and the air was fragrant with pinon. When I got tired, I would go for a walk to the Plaza or stop to eat at the Shed. The food and the arts in Santa Fe are wonderful. It was very inspirational.

How has Texas influenced your writing?

I wasn’t born in Texas, but I was meant to be here. I love the friendliness, openness, “can do attitude” and the weather in every month except July, August and September. There are so many different cultures in Texas that there is a lot of material for a writer to work with.

If you had a superpower, what would it be?

The power to fly, like Wonder Woman, but with warm clothes. And money in my pocket. Then I could go all over the world whenever I wanted to go. I have travelled a lot –in the U.S., Europe, Russia, Tahiti Turkey, Egypt, India, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, Costa Rica etc. But I haven’t been to South America, Asia or New Zealand, places I’d like to visit.

What’s your worst flaw?

I am a slob. My mind is organized but I don’t care if my bed is made or the floor is spotless. I tell people that I am a big picture person.

What do you want your tombstone to say?

She had a world of curiosity and the courage to explore every opportunity that came her way.