The Time Traveler’s Wife: Audrey Niffenegger Interview

As some of you know, I also blog about writing at Examiner.com. I get to cover a bit about the Chicago writing scene, but also include interviews with Chicago-based authors.

Last week, I posted two new interviews at Examiner.com – one with Thomas Pavel, an award-winning author and writing professor at the University of Chicago and Luis Alberto Urrea, a UIC professor and Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction.

The super exciting news is my recent interview with Audrey Niffenegger, author of bestselling novel The Time Traveler’s Wife. We discussed her career as a writer, as well as her advice to other writers looking to continue or launch their practice.

A Chicago resident, Niffenegger also is an artist whose work has been featured at The Art Institute of Chicago as well as Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art.

I thought I’d share it with you all as well.

For all you readers out there – from talking with you, I know many of you have read The Time Traveler’s Wife. I invite you to share your thoughts on the book – I’d love to hear your personal reviews and opinions. We can create our own collaborative book review.

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Laura Cococcia: You’ve had amazing success as an author, particularly with your best-selling book, The Time Traveler’s Wife. When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Audrey Niffenegger: I have been writing since I was a child, and never quit. In high school, when everyone was madly trying to figure out what to do when we all grew up, I kept insisting that I was going to be an artist, I was going to write. And some adults, including my mom, encouraged that, even though it must have seemed delusional at the time.

Laura Cococcia: What would you say is the most challenging part of the writing process? The most rewarding?

Audrey Niffenegger: I have a difficult time beginning the actual writing. I love to invent stuff, to lay out the rules of the book, to imagine the characters for the first time, but I get the jim-jams when it’s time to put it down on the page. On the other hand, once I have something, I can keep it going for years and have to be told sternly to finish the book already, damn it.

Laura Cococcia: You’re also a visual artist whose work has been featured at The Art Institute of Chicago and Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art. You also have an upcoming exhibition in July at Printworks Gallery in Chicago. Where do you get the inspiration for most of your artwork?

Audrey Niffenegger: My imagination is rather literary even when I am making art. Most of what I do is narrative. I think each artist trains themselves to receive certain kinds of ideas; we tend to get what we ask for. I try to ask for things I don’t already know about, just to surprise myself.

Laura Cococcia: What would be your advice to aspiring writers looking to start out on their writing journey?

Audrey Niffenegger:

1) Do not quit.
2) Talent is fun, but hard work is what gets you there in the end.
3) Remember to play, too.
4) If you are bored with your own mind, go learn something.
5) Be respectful to readers and critics, even if you don’t agree with their take on your work.
6) Read the best writers; read widely in all genres; read critically.
7) Writing should be about something beyond your own self. In order to write well, become a curious person.

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Many thanks to Audrey for sharing her thoughts and tips with those of us on the writer’s journey.

Tagged as: Book Reviews, Interviews, Laura Cococcia, Writing