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Do you have a favorite children’s book? No, but I’ll tell you one I particularly love: Katie Morag Delivers the Mail by Mary Hedderwick. A new book I especially love is Extra Yarn. What is your writing process? I begin each morning with journal writing and after that my practice, unless I have an ongoing manuscript, is to get as quiet inside as I can and ask if anyone wants to speak. If someone shows up, I write down what they say, no questions asked. That’s how Holding On to Zoe began. As usual, I had no idea where it was going. I had to listen and imagine my way forward. What do you feel best prepared you for being an author? I grew up in a house full of books with parents who loved music and stories. I
also grew up in a culture where people made stories out of their lives every day. At the same time, there were stories in my family that were not told, emotions and experiences that were not acceptable to express, and this paradoxical combination, plus my inborn love of the melody of words, prepared me to be a writer. What do you love about being an author? I love the joy that writing gives me. It’s always new, not only in the things it requires me to learn for a new book, but in the ever-unfolding possibilities of language. When writing is going well, it’s a magical feeling. Besides being with family, friends, and trees, writing is where I feel most alive. Once the book is in the world, I have the added pleasure and affirmation cre-
Interview with George Ella Lyon
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