Posts Tagged ‘ Emeralds Included ’

This morning I found the original outline (55 pages worth) of Emeralds Included. My first concept was unrecognizable from the finished book—different characters, different subplots, different everything. There was stuff about an accident in a roller-skating competition and about a retired judge suffering from memory problems. All pretty groan-inducing. My editor, Marjorie Braman, had entered comments. On page 15, she said, “So far, you don’t have a lot of plot.” And later, “Not sure if this is going …Read More

My Christmas dinner centerpiece was pretty simple: a parrot figurine pulling a sled with some bonbons on it. Somehow the parrot got separated from the bonbons and started wandering among the place settings. Which reminded me of Mr. Ganguly, Jana’s pet parrot. I wrote dozens of scenes that didn’t make it into the Jana Bibi series. Here’s one (trimmed) about Jana acting as fortune-teller in her parlor. A Scientist comes into the Salon The sign identifying “Jana Bibi’s …Read More

The motto of the class of 1899 at Mt. Holyoke College was: “Leave all resultings: Doe ye nexte thynge.” These lines came from a religious poem of the era; it was widely reprinted in anthologies. “Doe ye nexte thynge” became a cliché, and a “Doe Ye Nexte Thynge” charitable society was formed in New York City. I generally see the poem identified as anonymous, although a Mrs. George A.Paull gets the credit in at least one book. I …Read More

Saturday night, I was honored and delighted to be the visiting author at Elizabeth Berg’s “Writing Matters” series, held at the Hemingway Museum in Oak Park, IL. 150 people came–the museum folks had to scurry around for extra chairs! Photo credit Debby Preiser Elizabeth (below, right) kicked off, and then Caroline Swain (center) gave a lovely statement of why reading was important to her. Caroline’s mom, Rashmi, (right) comes from Mussoorie, which provided the model for my fictional …Read More

“What a curious human quirk,” say gemologists Fred and Charlotte Ward, “to credit tiny jewels born deep in the earth with supernatural powers.” Especially when it comes to emeralds. Perhaps, say the Wards, we are bewitched by emeralds because green is the “most restful color on the visual spectrum, the hue most available to the human eye.” In theaters and tv and radio studios, there’s often a “green room” where performers calm their nerves before making an appearance. …Read More

I want to take a course in draftsmanship. While writing the Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes books, I made a lot of scribbly drawings, such as this early attempt to picture the Jolly Grant House–Jana’s “Indo-Scottish Nostalgic” style dwelling. I took more pains with the ground floor and the upstairs (i.e. I got out a ruler.) Sally Brady, a writing teacher of mine, used to explain why she needed to write: “How can I know what I think until …Read More

Oh, the joys of composition. While I was writing the third Jana Bibi book, Emeralds Included, I threw out more than I kept. It always happens that way for me. Subplots, characters–they rise and fall, appear and disappear. The last draft resembles the first very little. In the story, Jana’s son, Jack, is an engineer. At one point, I had him researching earthquakes in the Himalayas, and I threw an earthquake into the plot, too, for good measure.  …Read More

Jana Bibi book three–Emeralds Included–is officially out today. It feels like my birthday! You know that feeling? You wake up–and you look the same but somehow things are different. (Yeah, I know, I’m an over-grown seven-year-old.) Joanna Levine, formerly at my publisher Henry Holt & Co,. steered me through the editorial and production stages of the books, and always sent me one of her cartoons with copy-edited drafts or page proofs. The drawings featured Mr. Ganguly, the super-intelligent …Read More

Next week is a big week for me. On Tuesday, July 8, the third Jana Bibi book, Emeralds Included, comes out. Then, over the weekend, I go to the Friends of Woodstock School reunion, this year in Baltimore. I’m looking forward to participating in a panel discussion about literature. Moderator and fellow alum Jessie Lacy has asked three of us to comment on how the Woodstock experience influenced or informed our writing. Piece of cake. Have you got …Read More

There’s a jeweler in my new book, Emeralds Included. His name is Mr. Shah. Jana’s son, Jack, doesn’t trust him, but Jana finds herself hypnotized by Mr. Shah’s poetic and knowledgeable musings on gems. When I was growing up in India in the 1950s and 1960s, my family got acquainted with a jeweler who was both an artist and an excellent businessman. Mr. Nanda Lal Varma was then just starting on his career. He had no storefront; carrying …Read More