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9 Quick Questions for Anna Quindlen

Pulitzer Prize–winning author writes ‘After Annie,’ a novel about the aftermath of a woman’s unexpected death


spinner image anna quindlen against purple ombre background
Photo Collage: MOA Staff; (Source: Maria Krovatin)

Former New York Times columnist and best-selling author Anna Quindlen’s latest novel, After Annie, explores how a woman’s sudden death alters the lives of her husband, best friend and four young children. Quindlen, 71, shares the novel’s unexpected origin story, how she loves to spend time with her grandkids and why she feels aging is a privilege.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How did you get the story idea for After Annie?

spinner image book cover that says after annie, a novel, anna quindlen
Quindlen’s latest novel, “After Annie,” explores how a woman’s sudden death alters the lives of her family and friends.
Courtesy: Penguin Random House

Usually, the idea for a novel develops gradually over time. I think of characters, situations, themes. This book was completely different. I was walking along the Hudson [River in New York City] one morning, and suddenly I had this mental picture of a young mother in her kitchen putting dinner on the table, getting a terrible pain in her head and falling to the floor. And so the beginning of After Annie came to me almost fully realized in an instant, in a way that has never happened to me before. … I can’t explain why I suddenly had this mental picture, but it was very vivid, and I went with it. This is my 10th novel, so it was a little unexpected.

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

I always got positive reinforcement from teachers for my writing. And then, in eighth grade, my teacher, Mother Mary Ephrem, looked at me over the rim of her reading glasses and said, “Miss Quindlen, you are a writer.” That was a really powerful moment. I never looked back.

What’s your favorite genre to read?

Oh, my gosh. Reading is my favorite thing in the world to do, except for hanging out with my kids and grandkids. I’m a prolific reader. I will read anything. When I’m revising — in between first draft and final draft — I read almost entirely mystery novels, because when I read literary fiction, I tend to pick up other people’s tics. Having said that, I don’t ever want that to sound as though mystery novels are a lesser genre, because I feel like this is a golden age of mysteries. … I just finished a book called The Wharton Plot by Mariah Fredericks in which the main character is Edith Wharton, who’s one of my favorite novelists. And I’m looking forward to J. Courtney Sullivan’s new book, which is called The Cliffs.

How are you inspiring your grandkids to read?

I have a 7-year-old [Arthur], a 5-year-old [Ivy] and a 3-year-old [Jacob], and they’re all readers. I started giving them picture books when they were babies. Right now, my 7-year-old and I are reading the Betsy-Tacy books [by Maud Hart Lovelace], which were favorites of mine when I was a little girl. They start when Betsy and Tacy are only 5 years old, so they’re perfect for Arthur now.

What do you like to do with your grandkids besides read?

Just hang out with them and let them take the lead — go to the swings, walk around the pond, throw stones, hit the ground with sticks, hike, talk. Talk — that’s what I like to do the most with my grandkids. Just talk to them and listen to them talk about the things that they’re interested in and care about.

How are you approaching your 70s?

I always think of a quote from the actress Laura Linney, who talked about the privilege of aging in light of the premature death of one of her close friends, the actress Natasha Richardson. Because my mother died so young [at age 41, when Quindlen was 19], I am keenly aware of the privilege of aging, and of all the things I have gotten to do, and will get to do, that she never got to do. So, no, I didn’t have any issue with turning 70 at all.

What do you do to keep yourself physically and mentally sharp?

I work out pretty hard, which is kind of astonishing to 30-year-old me. I work out with heavy weights three times a week. I walk 4 miles every morning. I eat pretty well. I sleep pretty well. And I do The New York Times crossword puzzle every single morning and always finish it. Can’t leave until I finish it. And then, of course, I think reading keeps you pretty sharp — living in those other worlds, walking in those other shoes.

If you could host a dinner party and invite three people, living or dead, who would you choose?

Well, there’s two discreet ways of answering that. The literary Anna would say Jane Austen, Edith Wharton and George Eliot. But she’d say that with trepidation, because frequently writers are not as interesting as their work. And sometimes they’re not as pleasant as their work. It would be devastating to discover that, for example, Jane Austen is a horrible person. The human Anna, the everyday Anna, would say my mother and my three children all together.

What advice do you give to aspiring writers?

It’s not an easy road to hoe, and it has to be an essential within you to pursue it, because it requires so much self-discipline. And so the thing I always say to people: “Butt in chair.” People talk all the time about thinking about writing something. You’ve got to put your butt in the chair, and you’ve got to reconcile yourself to the idea that there are some days when you’re going to write poorly. But the days where you don’t write at all lead to nothing, whereas writing poorly occasionally leads to writing better. And that’s why we do it.

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