From: JDeaver886 at aol.com <JDeaver886>
Date: Mon, 23 Jun 1997 14:40:21 -0400 (EDT)

When I wrote my first novel (SAY GOODNIGHT, GRACIE), I sent it to Harper & Row because I had read articles about and interviews with Charlotte Zolotow. She seemed to have such insight into a writer's mind and such respect for the whole writing process. I never actually thought she would be my editor, I just thought that maybe one day, if I were lucky, I could be one of her writers! The manuscript was first read by a wonderful editor at Harper (Nancy Geller, who is also the author of some terrrific books) and she wrote to tell me she had sent my manuscript on "to a very fine editor".

The editor turned out to be Charlotte. The wonderful things I had read about her were true. What a talent she has--to be able to bring things out of a writer he/she didn't even know were there! Like a good movie director, she knows how to get the best performance out of her actors (uh, writers, I mean!). She was so encouraging to a first time novelist. She never imposed her ideas on me. She would ask questions: "Could you give us a sense of distance here?" or "Could you show (instead of tell) us what this character is feeling?" It was a great way to learn how to revise!

Charlotte is no longer my editor, but I try to remember the things I learned from her and apply them to my writing. I'll always be most grateful she was my first editor.

Julie Reece Deaver e-mail: jdeaver886 at aol.com
Received on Mon 23 Jun 1997 01:40:21 PM CDT