Writers Who Read: Kristin Fields

Our Writers Who Read series continues this week with writer Kristin Fields.

Who are you?
I’m a freelance writer from Brooklyn, NY. I studied Creative Writing and Geology at Hofstra University, where I was mentored by novelists Martha McPhee and Julia Fierro. In 2007, I was awarded the Eugene Schneider Award for Short Fiction for my story, In a Teacup. I spent the next five years not writing and found myself running the education department at a historical farm museum, professionally belly dancing, teaching high school English, and teaching teenagers how to write and dance at the Great Neck Library. I read once that Monarch butterflies continue the journey their ancestors began long before, and enjoy exploring that theme with the characters in my debut novel, Secrets Kept on Firefly Wings (forthcoming).

What are three beloved books you first read before the age of 12?
There are so many, but the three that come to mind are Madame Bovary (yes, I know that’s a strange one for someone under twelve), Tuck Everlasting, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Looking back, the three are strangely connected. When I read Tuck Everlasting, I was thrilled to find a strong female character who didn’t sacrifice her life for love and found happiness in the life she was given.

Madame Bovary was my first experience with a desperate character who would never be happy. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe showed me characters who found their sense of self in an unexpected place. I sometimes think that if Emma Bovary had had a wardrobe to escape through and a new place to grow, things might have been very different for her.

What is one book you are always recommending to friends and family (and maybe the local barista) as an adult?
I absolutely adore the Outlander series. If I find a way to jump through standing stones, I’ll definitely let you know. I did find a very unique rock pile in Prospect Park, but it didn’t hum and buzz like they did for Claire. The search continues.

What is your book kryptonite–those unique elements in a book, beyond just great writing and three-dimensional characters, that make you unable to resist reading?
My all-time weakness is when writers transform ordinary places into extraordinary settings and even the most mundane things suddenly have deep-rooted significance. A perfect example is Alice Hoffman’s Here on Earth. The story is set in a sleepy, ordinary town, but the turbulent, ill-fated love story between two of the characters transforms even the simplest things (a house, a street) into something meaningful.

Here’s a perfect example:
“The sky is already purple; the first few stars have appeared, suddenly, as if someone had thrown a handful of silver across the edge of the world.” ― Alice Hoffman, Here on Earth

In so many words, Alice Hoffman transformed an ordinary place into one the reader feels privileged to enter and offered us a glimpse of real, living life. It’s my kryptonite because it makes me want to find all the extraordinary things around me.

What is your ideal time and place to read?
I love reading while traveling. It fills the in-between time of getting from place to place with another world.

Which books have had the biggest influence on your writing?
When I first “came of age” as a reader and graduated from young adult to adult fiction, I was drawn to Alice Hoffman and Elinor Lipman. Both authors are exceptional storytellers and weave unique stories through ordinary landscapes. With Alice Hoffman, her whimsical writing and use of magical realism was a wonderful transition into the adult reading section, but what I was most drawn to with both writers is how ordinary the events/characters of their stories are. People fall in love. People die. Both writers capture relatable moments in the lives of women, and as their characters grow and change, the stories become extraordinary.

Alice Hoffman also loves to play with the past. I read once that Monarch butterflies continue the migration journey their ancestors began years before, and it’s a theme I enjoy exploring in my writing. Like Alice and Elinor, I like to capture small moments in the lives of my characters, the ones we’re likely to overlook in our busy lives. Sometimes those are the moments when our past and present merge and become very clear to us. I like to think of them as transformative moments.

Both writers convinced me that women’s fiction holds a vital and essential place in the literary world, and that there’s plenty of room for new women’s voices in both characters and authors.

How do you balance reading and writing in your life?
I’m still learning to do this, but I think the key is to give in to what feels natural. There are weeks when reading feels more fulfilling than writing and vice versa. I try to remember that spending more time with one doesn’t mean I’m neglecting the other; if anything, it’s a symbiotic relationship and one benefits the other.

Someone once told me that great writers were often great readers first, and I believe it’s true. If a writer truly wants to perfect his/her craft, it needs to be studied.

Choose your penned poison: ebook, physical book, or audio book?
When I tried to carry the third Outlander book to jury duty (which is roughly the size of a small dictionary), I had an epiphany: if I had an e-reader, I could carry all my books with me in one tiny device. I happily made the switch to ebooks, although I do enjoy borrowing a good physical every once in a while.

Do you consciously plan your future reading–i.e., set book goals, keep a TBR list, participate in book challenges or book clubs? Why or why not?
Thanks to Goodreads.com, I have a very healthy list of TBR books and some very excellent book clubs to participate in. I love exploring books through book clubs because it introduces me to titles I might not have heard of otherwise, and hearing so many different takes on the same passages inspires me as a reader, writer, and a life student. It also helps with creating a reading schedule, which isn’t something I’m particularly inclined to do otherwise.

What are you reading now?
Too many! Right now I’m reading The Same Sky, a travel memoir written by my friend Debbie Yee Lan Wong, and I’ve got the first Game of Thrones book on audio. I’m also working my way through Kimberly Brock’s The River Witch and Julia Fierro’s Cutting Teeth. My book club is reading I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and I’m finishing up Alice Hoffman’s The Museum of Extraordinary Things. It’s been a busy summer for reading.

You can find out more about Kristin on her website, Twitter, or Pinterest.