Past Instructors
Dalia Rosenfeld is teaching a young adult fiction workshop on Tuesday evenings. Check out all of our classes here.
Is there a particular book, essay, or poem that made you want to write?It was my father's green Olivetti typewriter that, at the age of three, made me want to write, and I've had the image of it in my mind (though not the typewriter itself) ever since. I also am a firm believer that the mere presence of books in a house will lead a person to try their hand at one, and that writing can only come with reading — like a delicious meal made even more delicious by the side dishes accompanying it.
What's the number one thing that distracts you when you're trying to write?
If the conditions are right and I am completely alone in the house (i.e., without the presence of three little boys opening and closing my bedroom door in quick succession, for hours on end), the biggest distraction becomes the project itself — at least initially, before it has found itself and can write itself to completion. I often find the beginning of every writing attempt excruciating, but also exciting. After a single good sentence, there is often no turning back.
If you could write from any location, where would it be?
In all my years of writing, I have found only one location that works: My bedroom. I like to write in bed, stretch out my legs, and take naps between pages. I consider every page worthy of a reward, and sleeping contains fewer calories than chocolate.
