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Back to Featured Interviews >> MEET RANDI BARROW (9/2011)
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| Randi Barrow |
It’s usually a combination of things that brings inspiration. Typically, I’ll be studying or learning about something factual. After a while I’ll notice how things I hear about all day seem to relate to what I’m learning about. i.e. someone’s family history, bits of conversation, references in the news. A story idea or a character evolves from that. Then I start writing and see where it goes!
Do you focus on fiction or non-fiction? Which do you prefer? Do you find one easier than the other?
My first book was non-fiction, but I think I’ll be writing fiction from now on. Neither one is necessarily harder or easier than the other – all writing takes an incredible amount of time, focus, and energy. Each one requires that you know your material inside and out, and that you are able to fit the pieces of the puzzle together in a way that makes sense, and satisfies the reader.
Do you enjoy researching or do you prefer working totally from your imagination?
I love the research! Maybe it’s the eternal student in me, but I’m excited by learning about historical events and characters, and ways of living I knew nothing about. But the research is a springboard for the imagination. After you’ve learned all you can you have to create a world and the people who exist in that world, and understand the types of conflicts and adventures that are believable in that context.
Do you write every day and do you have set hours that you work?
I write five-six days a week, for about three-four hours a day. I start as early as I can, and work around my husband’s and my schedule until I can’t write another word!
Do you work on more than one book at a time?
I prefer to work on one book at a time. There’s a momentum that makes me want to get back to the manuscript and find out what happens next. If you are forced to stop for some reason there’s a lot of time wasted unearthing all the ideas, themes, details, and excitement that was flowing when you stopped. That being said, it’s sometimes necessary to suspend work on your current project to do revisions on a project that’s on its way to publication. Interestingly, I’ve noticed that the excitement of publication doesn’t seem to interfere too much with the momentum, and I’m able to do both!
Has anyone ever written you a fan letter you’d like to share?
One of the first, and one of the most touching, fan letters I’ve ever received came in the form of two emails: one from a ten-year-old boy, and one from his mother. (I’ll summarize our exchange to protect their privacy) In his email the boy told me how SAVING ZASHA was the first chapter book he’d ever read. His letter was filled with enthusiasm, and exclamation marks, and very, very sweet. The note from his mother made it all that much better. She explained that her son was dyslexic, and had struggled with reading for years. Somehow, SAVING ZASHA inspired him to read on his own for the first time, and to “turn a corner” with reading. She thanked me for being part of her son’s reading journey. Even now I get choked up thinking about it. What an honor and a privilege. It doesn’t get any better than that.
What other jobs did you have before you became a writer/illustrator?
Before I was a writer I was an adoption attorney. It was an inspiring, heartbreaking, difficult, and rewarding job. Among the many things it taught me was how to listen hard, and on several levels simultaneously. It helped me understand people and their motivations better, and to look at the circumstances and history of a person’s life more analytically. Every single person I met in my adoption career taught me something about human nature, all of which helps me enormously as a writer.