I can’t imagine What’s Left, my new novel, without her aunt Pia – short for Olympia. She’s one of the characters created especially for this book, unlike the ones we inherited from the end of my first published novel, and she emerges as a parallel to Cassia’s father. At key points, they work together as a sharp creative team in the transformation of the family restaurant and its holdings.

If anyone could pose a romantic rival to Cassia’s mother-to-be, wouldn’t it be Pia?

She’s the flower child, the hippie chick, and then the earth mother – the height of femininity, from one of his perspectives. She also reintroduces Cassia’s family to its ethnic culture, especially the concept of kefi, or living with gusto (and much more). She’s the one the children naturally turn to for comfort or playful. And she has style to spare.

Continue reading “A BIG WELCOME FOR OLYMPIA” →

When her uncle Dimitri turns to an astrological chart as support for his sales pitch to her father-to-be, this passage was included in an early version of my new novel, What’s Left.

Come on now, Dimitri! You don’t expect me to believe any of that mumbo jumbo!

I seem to recall you said the same thing about meditation, back when your lover wanted you to sample it, Nita says, entering the kitchen.

Suppose I was trying to tell you about the subways for the first time, right now? If you hadn’t already tried it, you wouldn’t believe a word I told you.

~*~

I eliminated it from the final version for several reasons. One, I felt that by now her future father was far enough along in his spiritual practice to be ready to listen to arcane thought systems, even if he might challenge their validity. Also, I felt this relied too much on a backstory that was no longer relevant to the work at hand.

But Cassia’s family, from her great-grandmothers on down in the New World, likely felt otherwise.

Have you studied or practiced astrology? Palmistry? Tarot? The coins of I Ching? Some other arcane pathway, like the tea leaves or coffee grounds Cassia’s great-grandmothers might have consulted? Or do you know someone who undertakes any of these? What’s your perspective? Any personal insights?

~*~

Cassia’s roots included inspiration like this.

A crucial moment in my new novel, What’s Left, occurs when her uncle Dimitri tries to convince her father-to-be to quit his career and move in with them, without actually offering him an income or much else.

As I noted in an earlier draft:
Manoula remembers all of this clearly. Says her brother’s chuckle perplexed Baba. Here’s her ensemble extending some kind of ambiguous invitation, on the one hand, and simultaneously affronting his professional portfolio, on the other.

~*~

Unlike Cassia’s Baba, I’ve tended to make big moves like this more deliberately. Even so, some of my moves, in retrospect, still amaze me. Relocating with all of our goods in a U-Haul without an apartment awaiting us halfway across the continent was one of them.

But throw the promise of hot love into the mix? Now it gets interesting!

Tell us some decision you’ve made that might seem irrational to those around you. How did it turn out? Would you do it again, given the chance?

~*~

In the family, Cassia may have had food like this.

 

In my new novel, What’s Left, her aunt Nita embodies a rare quality I’ve come to appreciate. She’s someone who seems to know everyone. She takes an interest in their lives and families. Remembers details. Asks questions. Suggests social connections, job opportunities, resources.

She’s also someone people trust. You can confide in her, find consolation, comfort, compassion.

In the bigger picture, she’s a kind of person who makes community function. I can make a list of people I’ve known who do that.

Continue reading “BETTER THAN ANY SOCIAL MEDIA” →

In my new novel, What’s Left, her parents’ generation recognizes their family business will need to make big changes for survival. For her uncle Dimitri, that includes corporate planning and big investment, once the dust settles.

But first, he has to see exactly what they’ve inherited.

~*~

No matter how much I like the details that shape the events, some just had to be cut from the final story:

Continue reading “BRACING FOR WILD CHANGE” →

The big break with the status quo that occurs in my new novel, What’s Left, still demands a respect for all that’s led up to the transformation.

As she perceives, from a customer’s point of view:

They miss the reliable owners’ familiar faces behind the stools and salt and pepper shakers, along with their comforting banter. Could we ever fill their sturdy shoes? Can we live up to their dependable standards or their reasonable prices? Can we even serve a decent cup of coffee or will we lose our shirts and have to quit the place?

The challenge and opportunity go way beyond that.

It’s a sharp break to a new generation, in more ways than one.

Cassia never has to consider this with her own brothers:

From everything I see, there’s an uncommon bond between the brothers, despite their sexual differences. Yes, they’ve both been promiscuous – and then settled in.

Or does she?

~*~

In writing a novel that’s told by a single character like Cassia, I have to remember that she knows far more about her family than I ever will. Maybe I can’t answer everything, but suppose you had an opportunity?

What would you ask Cassia over dinner? Or somebody in your own family, one on one? (Present or past?)

~*~

In the family, Cassia may have had food like this.