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Book Nook provides readers with insights into the world of books. Vick Mickunas takes you into the center of the publishing world with the latest book buzz, book reviews, and exclusive chats with authors..Home > Blogs > Book Nook > Archives > 2009 > June > 07 > Entry
Martha Moody’s cure for writer’s block…
Eight years ago I interviewed Martha Moody on WYSO Public Radio (91.3 FM). She had just published her first novel, “Best Friends.” I was pleased to have her on my program. It isn’t every day that a doctor from Dayton has a first novel published by a major publishing house.
I know how difficult it is to get published. I have heard the horror stories. Moody endured the rejection slips until she accomplished an extraordinary feat; she found just the right agent and sold her book to just the right publisher. Impressive.
I liked the book. Her publishers liked the book. We had no idea. Hundreds of thousands of readers liked it, too. Moody has become one of the most successful writers in the Miami Valley. And there’s more to come. I caught up with Martha Moody the other day. This is what she had to say:
Q Your first novel, “Best Friends,” has sold over 600,000 copies. Why did you write it?
A I have a best friend who was my college roommate. Over the years our friendship had many ups and downs, times when I didn’t really understand what she was doing and I’m sure times when she didn’t understand what I was doing. I thought it would be interesting to write about a long-term friendship.
Q “Best Friends” got the attention of a major retailer. Then sales really took off. How did that happen?
A I don’t know how it happened. I got a call from Target saying that they wanted to highlight my book in their “Bookmark” promotion. When I told my editor that Target had chosen the book, she sounded astonished. She seemed shocked. That was funny. At the time I didn’t realize what the “Bookmark” publicity would mean. It turned out to be very good news. The book is still selling.
Q Two years ago you published a second novel, “The Office of Desire.” What inspired that book?
A I wanted to write something really different from “Best Friends.” I was interested in how people interact in a closed setting. I wanted to write something more claustrophobic. This one is about five people in this little medical office in a city like Dayton.
Q You are a physician. Were there autobiographical elements?
A There’s nothing very autobiographical in there. What I realized after “Best Friends” is that I think I write better when I make up characters. If I’m basing a character on a real person in any way, it limits what that character can do. If I start out with sort of a vague idea and just let the characters come into shape then they can reveal themselves. They can do things that surprise me. That makes the characters more real.
Q Your third novel, “Sometimes Mine,” will be published in August. What’s it about?
A A very driven female cardiologist. She’s divorced, incredibly busy, overwhelmed by her patients and her work life. Her one little release is her weekly affair with a college basketball coach who is also quite busy in his own way. He gets sick. Things really change. She has to deal with his family and ultimately, with herself, her own family and what she’s doing with her life.
Q Did you ever imagine that you would achieve this success as a writer?
A No. I’ve written since I was a kid. During my medical residency I began writing fiction. I thought I’ll write, and maybe it will never get published. I’ll have it in the back of my closet. Maybe when I’m dead my kids will discover it and find it a little bit interesting.
Q How did you get published?
A I’d written what became “Best Friends.” It was actually called “The Pornographer’s Daughter” initially. I was still practicing medicine full time. I’d written another unpublished novel before that. As I was writing what became “Best Friends” I thought; this is better — I think I’ve gotten better. I sent out query letters. Nobody wanted to look at the whole manuscript. Through a friend I got a referral to an agent who took it right away and sold it to a publisher.
Q What are you doing now?
A I’m working on a new novel. I do a lot of volunteer stuff. I’m the medical director at Good Neighbor House, a clinic for the working poor. I’m down there four nights a month seeing patients. I love that.
I work with some freshman medical students at Wright State teaching physical diagnosis. I’ve gotten involved with a village in northern Israel, teaching English. It’s very gratifying.
My husband, Marty Jacob, is a nuclear medicine doc at Kettering. We have four sons, ages 20 to 13. They are the lights of my life. We live in Washington Twp.
Vick Mickunas
Permalink | Comments (1) | Post your comment | Categories: confessions of a galley slave
Comments
By Mike
June 8, 2009 8:02 AM | Link to this
Thanks, Vick. This is an interesting personal take from a local writer who has endured the difficulties encountered by anyone who has an interest in writing. I admire her passion and her persistence at achieving her goal. As one who has had an interest in writing since my college days, I always find success stories such as Moody’s motivational in that it shows the possibilities for anyone carrying around that dream of being published. Writing is often both a cathartic and maddening pursuit, all at the same time. But if one has ever been bitten by the bug, you know that it not easily dismissed or ignored. It is hard to explain the “need to write” to those who look on it as simply a waste of time. “What are the chances you could ever make a living as a writer?”, is a question often asked when the topic of writing is brought up. What they fail to understand is that the act of writing, in and of itself, is really the reward. Speaking for myself, writing often evokes the same sensations and sense of fulfillment as playing music. Sometimes it seems to come so easy that you just don’t want to stop. While other times, it feels like one has the proverbial “two left feet”. When it’s good, it can be real good. And when it’s bad, you just feel like throwing in the towel. But, of course, you would never dream of doing that. Because maybe, just maybe, this next time you’ll pen “THE ONE”. Hey, one thinks, it happened for Moody. Maybe it could happen for me. It seems like the dream will just never die.