Katharine
asked
Janet Fitch:
I just read White Oleander and was moved by it as I haven't been moved by a work of fiction for a very long time. Who were some of your inspirations for the character of Ingrid? I'm a huge fan of Edna St. Vincent Millay and Ingrid reminded me of her in some ways: her magnetism, selfishness, etc. I also enjoyed your poetic style of writing! Have you published any poetry?
Janet Fitch
Thanks Katharine! So glad you liked it! I have to say, my inspirations for Ingrid were many--they came from different directions. A couple of important women in my personal life certainly contributed.
The ancient Japanese writer Sei Shonagon (11th Century--a rival at court of Murasaki, who wrote the first novel, Tale of Gengi) was certainly an inspiration. She wrote the Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon, at a time when women wrote prose a nd men wrote poetry. So the Heian Empire gave us both these amazing prose writers. The Pillow Book laid out the high aesthetic of the Heian Court, just a breathtakingly refined way of seeing the world.
I had long wondered what if she had lived in our time, and instead of being an aristocrat, had a crummy job and a crummy apartment, yet still treasured that high aesthetic. In other words, what happens to people like her, kind of aesthetic aristocrats who don't have the money or the leisure that the original producers of that aesthetic had. What would happen to a person like that? Answer: they get pretty pissed off. (I must say I had more than a scoop of this when I was a young person.)
Also, Ingrid is in many ways the artist in me, who just wants to be left alone to pursue my art all the way to the end, without having to be interrupted with other people's needs. Not to have to take care of anybody. I think all artists have this in them, but it's more noted with women because we're expected to take care of people--especially when we have children. We do, because there is more in life than the making of art, but when we insist on our own primacy, it seems more selfish than it does when we think of male artists. How dare she not take care of us!
So just a few thoughts... Thanks, so glad you like my writing! I have not published any poetry, except my characters' work. Thanks for the question!
The ancient Japanese writer Sei Shonagon (11th Century--a rival at court of Murasaki, who wrote the first novel, Tale of Gengi) was certainly an inspiration. She wrote the Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon, at a time when women wrote prose a nd men wrote poetry. So the Heian Empire gave us both these amazing prose writers. The Pillow Book laid out the high aesthetic of the Heian Court, just a breathtakingly refined way of seeing the world.
I had long wondered what if she had lived in our time, and instead of being an aristocrat, had a crummy job and a crummy apartment, yet still treasured that high aesthetic. In other words, what happens to people like her, kind of aesthetic aristocrats who don't have the money or the leisure that the original producers of that aesthetic had. What would happen to a person like that? Answer: they get pretty pissed off. (I must say I had more than a scoop of this when I was a young person.)
Also, Ingrid is in many ways the artist in me, who just wants to be left alone to pursue my art all the way to the end, without having to be interrupted with other people's needs. Not to have to take care of anybody. I think all artists have this in them, but it's more noted with women because we're expected to take care of people--especially when we have children. We do, because there is more in life than the making of art, but when we insist on our own primacy, it seems more selfish than it does when we think of male artists. How dare she not take care of us!
So just a few thoughts... Thanks, so glad you like my writing! I have not published any poetry, except my characters' work. Thanks for the question!
More Answered Questions
Kat
asked
Janet Fitch:
Hi Janet! I've read "White Oleander" 10+ times now; it seems I need to read it yearly. It's truly my favorite novel, and one of my favorite parts is when Astrid is considering Claire's pearls and wishes her life could be knotted like a pearl necklace so even if something broke, the whole thing wouldn't come apart. Do you recall a particular line or passage from a book you've read that resonated strongly with you?
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