Interview With Gabrielle Renoir-Large

Author Gabrielle Renoir-Large is an award winning screenwriter and poet, a novelist and short story writer. She lives with her family in the eastern US, though they are planning a move back to the south of France, on an at least part time basis, in the not-too-distant future.

What made you decide to be a fulltime writer?

Luck played a big role in my becoming a fulltime writer. I'm lucky enough to be able to stay home all day, so I have the time and energy to write fulltime. I was lucky enough to be mentored by the very best in writing - Syd Field with regard to screenwriting and Mark Spencer with regard to the novel and the short story. I love to read and write, so that's what I do. That's how I spend most of my day. Of course, one has to have balance in life, so I also play golf, go to films, go hiking, etc. I have many and varied interests, but my passion is, and always will be, literature.

You've written screenplays, stage plays, novels, short stories, and poems. Do you feel more at home in one form than in the other?

Although most of my work has been with the screenplay format, I feel most at home with the novel. A novel, contrary to what some beginning writers believe, is not as difficult to write as the short story or the poem. A novel gives the writer room to spread out, to develop intricate plots and subplots, to explore a changing character or characters, and to experiment with structure and voice. I like being able to do those things. On the other hand, my deepest connections in life are those with the natural world. I love working on poetry than celebrates the beauty and perfection of nature.

Is writing something that comes naturally to you, or do you have to struggle with it?

This question always amazes me. With the exception of a few prodigies like Mozart, the creation of art doesn't come easily to any one of us. The great Romantic poet, Keats, felt that his name would be forgotten shortly after his death in Rome. Both Tolstoy and Nabokov wanted to burn their manuscripts. The wonderful Nobel winner, Toni Morrison, who in my opinion, is one of the world's greatest living authors, has said she did not possess the sophistication to write her first novel, The Bluest Eye, properly. I disagree, but I understand her feelings. Writing is like any other art - painting, dance, music - we don't become expert writers the second we set pen to paper any more than we become expert dancers the moment we put on our first pair of ballet slippers. It takes years and years of hard work and dedication to become a good writer. There are aspects of writing, especially poetry that I struggle with daily, while other aspects have become a lot easier for me. Dialogue is one thing that never gave me much trouble, however, screenplay and novelistic structure did. Syd Field taught me structure, while Mark Spencer taught me how to bring a story to life in the most vivid way possible. Everything I write, however, remains a "work in progress," and I expect it will always be that way. I'm a perfectionist when it comes to my writing. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Who are some of the authors who've influenced your own work?

First and foremost, would have to be the great Irish author, William Trevor. He is truly a master, particularly of the short story. His work is so understated, so profound, so compassionate. Like Chekhov, Trevor refuses to judge his characters, and I hope I've learned not to judge mine, either. I've also been influenced by Thomas Hardy, who was, interestingly, a great influence on William Trevor. I love Hardy's exploration of the workings of fate on human beings. I love his tragedy. I love his bleakness. On a more modern note, I love the rather formal and lyrical writing of Hilary Mantel. For me, her writing definitely has the "Wow" factor. My favorite poet, by far and away, is the Pulitzer winner, Mary Oliver. Her poems are such joyous explorations of the natural world. I, myself, feel a great connection to the natural world, so her work resonates with me. I find both consolation and joy in it.

Are you a writer who writes with an outline or do you just begin writing and see where the characters take you?

I work with an outline, definitely. I belong to the school of thought that says you really can't get where you want to go unless you know how to get there. I usually spend more time thinking about and planning a book or a story or a poem than I do writing the first draft. And I love the planning stage. Now, this doesn't mean that I follow my outlines slavishly. I never do. But I need them as a guide, a road map, a way to get from A to B to C, without getting derailed. I have a definite penchant for intricate plotting in a long work and the development of several subplots. I think anyone who's going to undertake a novel with two or more subplots has to work from an outline, though I know many authors who disagree with me on that point. As far as I'm concerned, the characters don't take me any place at all. I created them. They didn't create me. Where we go is up to me, not to them, though I still run into some surprises now and then when I write and it's fun when I do.

How involved do you become with your characters when you're writing?

Very involved, though of course, they don't take over my life. While I certainly don't "become them," I do like to immerse myself in their world for the time I'm writing about them. I really want and need to get to know them. Unless I know them, through and through, how can I write a credible story that allows my readers to get to know them? I think the more an author knows his or her characters, the better the finished book will be.

What are some of the recurring themes in your work? What is it you like to explore?

Like my favorite authors, Thomas Hardy and William Trevor, I like to explore the workings of fate on a person. The chance encounter, the mistake of identity, the lost phone number. I'm not fond of characters that are too passive, and for me, some of Hardy's are just that, but I am fond of exploring what a character will do when presented with chance. How much will he or she "take" before fighting back and what form will this "fighting back" take? What does a person have to learn to come to an acceptance of life? Although I don't care for passive characters, I do prefer the quiet, understated ones. Scrappiness has never been a quality I admire, though endurance has.

Is there anything about your writing that would surprise us?

Maybe the meticulousness of it all. The way I agonize over every comma, ever word, every line break. For example, is something sky blue, cornflower blue, a pale, limpid blue, or azure? Believe it or not, there's a tremendous difference among the four and it really matters. At least to me. And it matters to the kind of readers I want to read my work, the kind of readers for whom I write.

How has your writing evolved over the years?

When I began writing, I was concerned primarily with story. While I'm still concerned with story and still addicted to intricate plotting and the creation of several subplots, at least in a long work, now I concentrate more on character development and tapping into the timeless and the universal rather than plot, and I'm much, much more meticulous with the words I choose. When I began to write, I would say my writing was very cinematic. Today, I would say I at least strive to make it very vivid, though not necessarily cinematic, if that makes any sense.

How do you feel about negative reviews of your work?

If you mean constructive criticism, I love it. I can't improve without it. Mark (Spencer) once criticized one of my early stories more lightly than I thought he should have. I guess, at that time, he didn't know how much I really desired criticism. I asked him to criticize it as harshly as possible, and he did, which really wasn't too bad at all. I learned a lot from that story and Mark's suggestions, and the next story I wrote was a vast, vast improvement. Now, if someone wants to childishly criticize my work on a review site, I don't really mind, but I don't put any stock in a review like that. To be taken seriously, a review has to back up its assertions, negative or positive, with facts. If I encounter one that doesn't, I just remember to forget it. I don't expect everyone to like my work. No author, not even the masters, is universally loved. I know people who don't care for Chekhov, Hemingway, Faulkner, Nabokov, Tolstoy, Conrad. Everyone has his or her fans and those who don't like his or her work. To expect it to be any other way would be foolish.

Do you have a favorite novel, short story, or poem?

Not really. Tolstoy's Anna Karenina vies with William Trevor's Two Lives as my favorite novel. I am dedicated to Realism, I will say that. My favorite short stories are William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily" and Katherine Mansfield's "Bliss." When it comes to poetry, I think all one has to do is open a volume of Robert Frost or Mary Oliver to encounter a timeless masterpiece.

What about non-fiction?

I don't really care for non-fiction and don't read much of it, though I certainly admire those who write it. I do occasionally read biographies and memoirs. Angela's Ashes is, I think, everything a memoir should be. I'm still totally amazed at the way Frank McCourt was about to draw such comedy out of such a bleak existence. I'm in awe of that book and always will be. As for writing non-fiction, I have no inclination to do so myself and doubt I ever will.

Are you working on anything new? What can we expect from you, and from you and Mark, next?

Yes, I am working on a new novel right now. As to what and when to expect something new from me, Mark, or from us together, just keep checking our Website. We'll keep you updated. And while you're at it, please check out our blog or leave us a comment. We welcome heartfelt criticism, whether that criticism is positive or negative.

And now, for the question I ask all authors: If you were a character in Fahrenheit 451 and had to memorize one book, a book other than one of your own, which book would you choose and why?

For me, it would be The Complete Stories of William Trevor. Each story is perfect. Each one is a little gem, polished to absolute perfection. Not one word is wrong or out of place. Each one is what all writers should aspire to, no matter in which genre they write.