A short interview wherein one of my favorite authors answers three questions about the writing life.
Question 1
If you have a writing ritual, can you share that here?
My biggest struggle isn’t writer’s block; it’s writer’s monsoon. I get more ideas for new poems and creative non-fiction pieces than I will ever be able to write. And my memory is terrible, so if I don’t capture the idea, the title, the phrasing—whatever small seed has breezed by in my mind—then it’s gone. So, I track them in a large Vera Bradley spiral notebook. I write on a laptop, but I like having these lists on paper. Somehow, it feels more immediate to just grab the notebook and flip pages than to search for a file on the computer. I also find there’s less pressure to be perfect on paper.
Question 2
In what genres have you written and which one of them gives you the most satisfaction?
Not counting my experience as an advertising copywriter (do state lottery radio commercials and carpet cleaning brochures count as genres?), I’ve written:
•Feature articles for national magazines back when print was a thing
•A book of prescriptive non-fiction inspired by my own experience with my two kids
•Two novels of women’s fiction that failed to attract an agent but succeeded in robbing me of my sanity
•Humor pieces and personal essays for online publications
•Poetry and creative-non-fiction for literary journals
I think the genre that has given me the most satisfaction is whichever one I’m currently working in. I enjoyed writing for magazines because I wrote about issues that I myself was experiencing. For example, when our two-year-old son was struggling to sleep, I interviewed experts in the field and wrote about it for Parents; in a way, I got paid to receive free advice.
Writing my book, The Parent’s Guide to Speech and Language Problems, was fulfilling because it allowed me to channel my frustrations and challenges with helping my kids into something that could help countless other parents.
Writing the novels provided the least satisfaction and the most aggravation as fiction proved to be the one genre that made me question my abilities. But I’m OK with stepping away from these projects (after nearly 20 years) because doing so has allowed me to pursue what has unexpectedly become my favorite genre: poetry and creative non-fiction.
With the exception of writing acrostics in the third grade and working on my high school’s literary magazine, I never ventured into poetry. It wasn’t until I lost my father that inspiration hit as hard as the grief did, and I surprised myself by everything that spilled out onto the page. After nearly 20 years working on novels, there was tremendous satisfaction in writing in a shorter form that allowed me to see my work published relatively quickly. I feel poetry has allowed me to be more vulnerable and share my most personal experiences—which has been a bit nerve-wracking at times, but mostly it’s been cathartic, validating, and rewarding.
Question 3
What one three piece(s) of advice can you offer to the more experienced writer who is having a bad day/week/year/decade?
•If you’ve received a rejection letter, give yourself permission to be in a crappy mood for a day. Then, submit your work to another publication.
•Chocolate always helps. (Or chips…or wine…or binge-watching The Office—whatever your emotional support habit may be.)
•Reframe the rejection process. It’s not that your work isn’t good enough; more likely, it’s just that your work hasn’t found the right home.
Take it from a mom who’s been there: if your child has been diagnosed with a speech or language disorder—or if you suspect there might be a problem—you want immediate, practical advice about what to do. From the importance of early intervention to simple day-to-day coping, The Parent’s Guide to Speech and Language Problems combines clinical research with real-world advice on making sense of your child’s diagnosis, finding the best resources and being your child’s best advocate. All told by a veteran mom of the waiting room whose two children are now non-stop talkers.
About the Author

Debbie Feit is an accidental mental health advocate, unrelenting Jewish mother and author of The Parent’s Guide to Speech and Language Problems (McGraw-Hill) in addition to texts to her kids that go unanswered. She has written prose and poetry for The New York Times, ONE ART: a journal of poetry, Abandon Journal, Five South, Passengers Journal, Big Wing Review and other literary journals; humor for Slackjaw, Points in Case and The Belladonna; as well as angry letters to her insurance company. She is a former advertising copywriter, non-profit marketing professional, and person who used to be able to sleep without pharmaceutical intervention. Read about her thoughts on mental health issues, her life as a writer and her husband’s inability to see crumbs on the kitchen counter on Instagram @debbiefeit or at debbiefeit.com.
Links
Instagram: @debbiefeit
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