12.SR: What is the best writing advice you've ever received?
JL: "This writing business. Pencils and what not. Overrated if you ask me." I've always liked Eeyore and his floppy ears. Actually, since I don't take writing courses, read the craft books, or participate in a critique group, the best advice I get is what I give myself. For example, there's a Spanish proverb, "Hay que romper el huevo antes de hacer la tortilla." Literally, it's that you have to crack an egg before you make a tortilla. I don't set deadlines or artificial goals for myself. Nothing burns within me to be rich or famous; I don't need to hear applause to feel validated. There are people who can only buy a dress with the approval of a shopping posse; I'll wear red in a sea of black.
"No eches tanta crema en los tacos" is another one I like - don't throw so much sauce on your tacos - I take it to mean, "chill" - I loosen my belt, kick off my shoes, enjoy whatever I cook up. "Finite to fail, but infinite to venture." It worked for Emily Dickinson..
13. SR: Can you describe any current projects or upcoming projects?
JL: Darth Vader says, "Impressive. Most impressive. But you are not a Jedi yet." Writers always have new projects. They never run out of ideas. The best thing about being a writer, besides working in my pajamas, is that I get to be the boss. Bridget Bardot said "It's sad to grow old, but nice to ripen." Time passes, life gets spicier, words sweeter. Even when I do become a Jedi, they'll be another sequel....
Specifically, though, I'm working on a mid-grade novel and I'm looking for a publisher for my collection of YA and adult short stories.
14.SR: Please complete this sentence: Writing for me is....
JL: Writing for me is filling balloons of paint and dropping them from tall buildings. Dribs and drabs, blotches and swatches. Connect the dots - or not. Anything can happen.
Satchell Paige said he never threw an illegal pitch. "The trouble is, once in awhile I toss one that just ain't never been seen by this generation."
When Alice in Wonderland complains that "there's no use trying. One can't believe impossible things," the Queen answers with this: "I dare say you haven't had much practice. When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day; why sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."
