INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR:
Which was the hardest character to write? The easiest?
Hardest character to write was Lily’s mother. To understand her, I had to place myself in the shoes of a talented, smart, isolated mother of two daughters in the 1950’s who longed to find meaning in her role.
Easiest was Uncle George, the blow-hard.
In your book you make a reference to the sinking of the Andrea Doria....how did you come up with this idea? What made you write a book about...?
The sinking of that brand new, sleek ocean liner has always fascinated me. And when I learned that the Ile de France turned around, 40 miles out to sea to come to the princess ship’s aid and saved countless lives, I saw a parallel between the young ocean liner (Lily) and the older, reliable Ile de France (the steady mother Lily longed to have.)
Where do you get inspiration for your stories?
My stories grow from my own fictionalized experience, those people or situations that nag at me. The “what-ifs”.
There are many books out there about complicated family dynamics...What makes yours different?
The difficulties Lily’s family grapple with are not only grounded in their own history, but are very much echoed in the landscape they inhabit. They are nourished by the bounty of the sea and salt air, but also threatened by storms and a changeable, often indifferent landscape.
What advice would you give budding writers?
Read! And write! It sounds foolishly obvious. But when we read what we love, we ingest those elements that make the writing work. And when we get something down on the page, it starts to tell us what comes next.
Your book is set in Cape Cod. Have you ever been there?
My family spent our summers on Cape Cod all through my childhood and adolescence, and I’ve felt spiritually bonded to that remarkable bit of land and sea all my life.
Do you have another profession besides writing?
I’m a cellist with a symphony orchestra. For me, that has been a perfect combination. In WATER MUSIC I kept thinking about the little motifs that recur in Wagner or Rachmaninoff, those little echoes that invisibly tie a work together.
How long have you been writing?
Forty-ish years. I loved reading to my daughter when she was little. In fact I began reading to her almost from the day she was born. (And kept it up until she cut me off!) I began to journal when she was born, and before I knew it, I was trying to write short stories.
What is your next project?
I’m working on a novel about a stolen cello. It’s part mystery, part love story, with an occasional dip into a parallel story in 1708.
What genre do you write and why?
I didn’t set out to fit into any specific genre. Maybe that’s a failing, but once I begin a book, I try to follow where it leads.
What is the last great book you’ve read?
Wow, I wish I were a faster reader because there are SO MANY out there! I loved A Gentleman in Moscow. A friend gave me Fresh Water for Flowers by Valerie Perrin, a wonderful, leisurely read.
What were the biggest rewards and challenges with writing your book?
Biggest challenge is having a full-time job. In some ways that can be a plus, letting the subconscious work while away from the writing. But it’s hard to keep an entire book in my head if I’m not spending time with it every day. So I would spend every spare moment writing for six months, and then take six months off to do laundry.
In one sentence, what was the road to publishing like?
Fraught with signs of hope, rejection, learning new skills, a huge time drain, and finally…euphoria.
Which authors inspired you to write?
The first book I ever remember falling in love with was BLUE WILLOW by Doris Gates. I was ecstatic when I discovered it’s still in print. It’s been called the GRAPES OF WRATH for children. Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poetry made a big impression on me in high school even though I knew I didn’t “get” it. Others who have stuck with me vividly: Don Marquis (Archie and Mehitabel), John Gardner, Arundhati Roy.
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On rituals:
Where do you write?
I’m lucky enough to have a small “writing room” that overlooks the backyard. It’s stocked with my trusty Strunk and White, strewn with various drafts and edits, and blotched with coffee stains.
Do you write every day?
Gosh, no. I’ll write every day for months, and then take a few months off to catch my breath and sort laundry.
What is your writing schedule?
I’m best in the morning. But having been a musician my whole life, I find I can sometimes “tune up” at about 8pm.
Is there a specific ritualistic thing you do during your writing time?
I try to empty my head. I meditate (with an app) for ten or twenty minutes before I begin to write.
In today’s tech savvy world, most writers use a computer or laptop. Have you ever written parts of your book on paper?
I absolutely believe in getting my shitty first drafts down on actual paper. There is something about the friction of the pen on paper, the motion of my hand, the time it takes for the words to form. But, wow. On the other hand, I’m always stunned at all the fabulous books that were written before their writers could revise on a laptop!
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Fun stuff:
If you were stuck on a deserted island, which 3 books would you want with you?
Hmmm… The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, and Archie and Mehitabel by Don Marquis
What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done?
Two things: Climb the Grand Teton and perform an unaccompanied Bach Suite
Any hobbies? or Name a quirky thing you like to do.
I consider myself a mycophile (mushroom hunter). But have gotten awfully rusty, so these days I confine myself to a couple of the choicest (and easiest to identify).
What TV series are you currently binge watching?
Paris Murders, Modern Love
What is your go-to breakfast item?
Egg Bites and decaf
What is the oldest item of clothing you own?
I have a skirt that my mother made for me a very long time ago.
Tell us about your longest friendship.
Still close to my best friend from kindergarten. In fact we still get together for a long weekend every other year with our eight other girlfriends from Belleville High School, even though we live all over the country.
What is the strangest way you've become friends with someone?
I met a boy on a train in Austria when I was 16. We became lifelong friends, visiting each other and our respective parents, spouses and children on two continents.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
PHOTO CREDIT: JOEL LARSON
Marcia Peck’swriting has received a variety of awards, including New Millenium Writings (First prize for “Memento Mori”) and Lake Superior Writers’ Conference (First Prize for “Pride and Humility”).
Her articles have appeared in Musical America, Strad Magazine, Strings Magazine, Senza Sordino, and the op-ed pages of the Minneapolis StarTribune.
Marcia’s fiction has appeared in Chautauqua Journal, New Millenium Writings, Gemini Magazine, and Glimmer Train, among others. Growing up in New Jersey with parents who were both musicians, Marcia set out to be the best cellist she could be.
She spent two years studying in Germany in the Master Class of the renowned Italian cellist, Antonio Janigro.
Since then she has spent her musical career with the Minnesota Orchestra, where she met and married the handsome fourth horn player.Marcia has always been a cat person.
But she has learned to love dogs—even the naughty ones, maybe especially the naughty ones.
Website: https://www.marciapeck.com/
Facebook: https://tinyurl.com/marciapeckFB
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GUEST POST - MARCIA PECK:
When I decided to set WATER MUSIC in the 50’s on Cape Cod, I hadn’t heard about the
1952 sea rescue of the Pendleton, a tanker split in two in a howling winter nor’easter ten miles
off the coast from Chatham, Mass. Four young coast guardsmen
—
in a wooden bo
at meant to
hold 16
—
were dispatched to rescue 32 sailors. Enroute, the windshield and compass of the
rescue motorboat itself were destroyed by a crashing wave. Navigating only by their wits and
instinct in freezing temperatures and high seas, they saved 31
of the 32 sailors. The Coast Guard
considers it the greatest rescue by a small boat in its history.
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