Interview with Author Pamela Terry

65, a lifelong southerner, Author Pamela Terry learned the power of storytelling at a very early age. She lives in Smyrna, Georgia, with her songwriter husband, Pat, and their three dogs, Apple, Andrew and George.

DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST RECORD YOU BOUGHT WITH YOUR OWN MONEY, THE FIRST RECORD, CASSETTE, OR CD? DO YOU STILL HAVE IT?

I have a clear memory of buying The Beatles, Let It Be, and James Taylor’s, Sweet Baby James, on the same day, and I’m sure I still have them, though they’ve probably migrated out to my husband’s studio with all the rest of the LPs. He can’t believe that my first Beatles record was their last one, but there you go. When I was little we had a set of “Classics From Around the World” that served as the bulk of my musical education, everything from Mozart to polkas. I could sing you “Three Little Maids From School” from Gilbert and Sullivan but had no idea who Eleanor Rigby was.

WHAT ARE YOUR GO-TO SONGS WHEN YOU GET IN THE CAR AND YOU'RE BY YOURSELF? ANY NEW SONGS YOU'RE LOVIN'?

If I'm in the car, I’ll always turn up “Copperhead Road” by Steve Earle, “How I Got Over, by Aretha Franklin, “Ship to Wreck” by Florence and the Machine, anything by Petula Clark, even “The Wellerman”, a Scottish sea shanty by The Longest Johns. I’m crazy about Imogen Heap, Kate Rusby, and Maura O’Connell, and I recently discovered Allison Russell, who’s amazing. I especially love her song, “The Runner".

FIRST FAV FOOD YOU DISCOVERED AS A KID THAT WASN’T SERVED AT YOUR HOUSE.

I learned about snacks from my friends. I was an only child, and my mother successfully convinced me that carrots and cucumbers were actually a fabulous after school snack. So whenever I went home with friends after school and saw them eating microwave french fries or Doritos, I was stunned.

DESCRIBE YOUR PERFECT NIGHT AT HOME. WHAT DO YOU EAT, DO, ETC. ON YOUR “WEEKEND” TYPE NIGHT, EVEN IF IT’S NOT OFFICIALLY A FRIDAY/SATURDAY DUE TO WORK.

When I’m in the middle of writing a new book, which I am at the moment, I just want simplicity. My favorite dinner would be really good grilled salmon and really fresh green vegetables, followed by watching something witty on tv, like The Detectorists, or the Queen’s Gambit. Maybe a bit of knitting, some dancing in the kitchen, or reading through the latest British Country Living magazine, although that always makes me want to buy some sheep or a pig.

DESCRIBE A TIME YOU FELT WELCOMED IN SOMEONE’S HOME IN AN EXPECTED WAY OR HOW A FAMILY MEMBER (GRANDMOTHER/AUNT,E TC.) MADE YOU FEEL SPECIAL WHEN YOU CAME TO THEIR HOME.

My great-aunt Susie lived in a tiny town in Georgia. She always wore dresses and pearls, had an entire garden devoted to blue hyacinths, and there was always a pound cake on a glass pedestal on her kitchen counter, baked every week for any visitor who happened to stop by, which is a testament both to her hospitality and popularity. Of course, I always thought she baked it just for me.

AS KID/YOUNG WOMAN, WHAT DID YOU ASPIRE TO BE OTHER THAN WHAT YOU ARE KNOWN FOR?

I wanted to be a spy or an equestrian, and if I could have found a way to combine the two, that would have been ideal. Pamela’s recent novel, “The Sweet Taste of Muscadines”, was recently featured on Good Morning America, and has been described by reviewers as being “like a mashup of Fried Green Tomatoes and You Can't Go Home Again with a sprinkling of William Faulkner”.

The Sweet Taste of Muscadines

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