Bibliofreakblog

Lit Tripping with Heather Barbieri

If I didn’t have my blog, I would never have joined Galleysmith’s Literary Road Trip.  And if I didn’t join the Literary Road Trip, I probably would never have e-mailed Heather Barbieri to ask her all about Seattle, and the references she made to our Emerald City in her novel, The Lace Makers of Glenmara, and then you would not be reading this, dying to go to Seattle, where people apparently break out in dance all the time.

That’s right, this is an interview with Heather Barbieri, if you haven’t guessed.  :)

J.T.: Hi Heather, thanks for agreeing to do this.  They say to write about what you know.  Is that what made you decide to make your protagonist from Seattle?

Heather: Rather than writing what I know per se, I write as the story/characters require. Kate just felt like a Seattleite to me. Also, Seattle has an active fashion scene, despite occasionally being stereotyped as a metropolis filled with Gortex and Polar-plus wearers.

J.T.: In your book, the Lace Makers of Glenmara, Kate mentions that she once did an Irish jig at Kell’s on St. Patrick’s Day.  Have you ever done an Irish jig at Kells?  (BTW, I love Kells, but wouldn’t go there on St. Patrick’s Day because they charge a $20 cover).  That little bit spoke to me, because while I haven’t done it, I *have* done the polka at the Can-Can, a burlesque venue nearby. 

Heather: I haven’t done an Irish jig at Kells, though it’s a fun place to celebrate with friends. I know a basic jig, but I’m not an Irish dancer myself. (One of my daughters took hard-shoe lessons as a child.) Oddly enough, I can do some Russian dancing (the squatting/kicking out the legs variety), which is fun at parties, given the right company/attire.

J.T.: I also liked that you mentioned Vertical World.  Like Kate in the Lace Makers of Glenmara, I have only been there once.  Why did you decide to use a specific Seattle location, rather than say something like, “the climbing gym in Seattle”.

Heather: I mentioned the Vertical Club, because, again, it seemed like a place Kate’s friend, Ella, might frequent, and I wanted to have some specific details from her life in the States and it’s a spot that rockclimbing friends like.

J.T.: How do you think being from the Pacific Northwest shaped your characters?  Did it make any difference?

Heather: I’m not sure that it did, in any overt way, because much of the action takes place abroad and I drew extensively from my travels in Ireland and Irish-American heritage. (My dad grew up in Butte, Montana, a former mining town that boasted the largest Gaelic-speaking population outside of Ireland at the turn of the century.)

J.T.: Kate is a sort of failed fashion designer.  What do you think would be her favorite shops in Seattle?

Heather:  Because limited finances would be an issue for her, she’d most likely frequent reasonably-priced vintage stores, such as Private Screening in Fremont or Red Light on Broadway, both for inspiration and for pieces to rework. In terms of window shopping only, she’d probably enjoy shops like Baby & Company for its dramatic silhouettes and off-beat European sensibility and Isadora for its gorgeous, higher-end vintage clothing and jewelry.

J.T.: Can you tell us a little bit about the Seattle writing scene?

Heather: We have such a diverse community of writers here and excellent programs/sources of support through the University of Washington, Artist Trust, and Richard Hugo House, among other organizations. I’m also fortunate to belong to the Seattle7 Writers Collective, a group dedicated to raising literary awareness and fundraising for charitable causes, started by writer friends.

J.T.: What are you working on now?

Heather:  I’m at work on a third novel and am looking forward to immersing myself in the story once again when the kids return to school next week. I hope to have a first draft ready early next year, if not sooner.

J.T.: Thanks for talking with us!

Heather: Thanks for thinking of me!

To learn more about Heather and her books, visit her at her site. 

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