Rebecca's Interview with Jenny Siler
author of
Iced

Rebecca :
Dear Jenny, when I got a copy of your Iced, my beloved Webmaster grabbed it first & from his comments as he read, I knew it was going to be good! One of the things writers are exhorted to do is write about what they know & part of the great attraction of Iced is your description of Montana in winter; you must live there?

Jenny :
I do live in Missoula. I grew up here, was gone for about thirteen years, and moved back a little over two years ago. I tend to be very attached to the geography of places where I live, and I think that makes my writing rather atmospheric. I couldn't imagine writing about a place I'd never been. I wouldn't know how to ground myself without an intimate knowledge of weather and the landscape and its inhabitants.

Rebecca :
Did you create Meg Gardner from whole cloth or did she come knocking at your mind demanding to be written?

Jenny :
I guess I'd have to say it was a little of both. Though I certainly wouldn't claim to have created her out of whole cloth, more like patchwork. Most of her, her job and her toughness, are an amalgamation of different people I've known. And part of her is the fantasy me, the super tough, take no prisoners me. But her sadness, and her family story, those things, as you say, came knocking. I guess in part because I wanted to talk about the way Westerners relate to Native Americans, and the strange, slightly incestuous, kind of poor relation dynamic that exists between the two. There's a side of Meg that's all about isolation and anger and patronizing and inescapable bigotry. That's the Westerner in her.

Rebecca :
Webmaster speaks of how your lean and hungry writing reminds him of Andrew Vachss' works. Is this due to remorseless editing or is this your natural skill and what turned you into a writer?

Jenny :
First of all, thanks for the flattering comparison. I'd be lying if I didn't give some credit to my editor, who kept my writing really tight. My books are not long to start with, and she certainly didn't ask me to add anything. But, plot wise, I tend to write in a really sparse style. It might be laziness, but I like to be efficient, to tell a story in the fewest words, while keeping enough imagery to really paint a picture for the reader. This does seem to be something that comes naturally to me, and you may be right in saying my efficiency with words has led me to become a writer. I would also guess that my love of and insatiable appetite for movies has contributed to the leanness of my writing. Scripts tend to be very lean indeed, and I think I've learned a lot about plotting from watching action movies. It's funny, because I've always thought of myself as somewhat self-indulgent and wordy. I love description and I often feel I go too far.

Rebecca :
Are there lots of Russian immigrants in Montana? Why there, perhaps the weather has something to do with it?

Jenny :
I'm not absolutely certain why, but I believe the reason so many Russians live in Missoula (and they're actually mostly Belorussians) is that a local church did some missionary work in the former Soviet Union. Much of the Russian community was sponsored by this church, and then, of course, others followed, many of them not so pious. Good guess about the weather. They do seem to have taken to Missoula like ducks to water. I cross country ski, and would say a large portion of the snow mobilers I see at the passes are Russians.

Rebecca :
Do you write alone or in a writers' group?

Jenny :
I write alone. Does that sound like a song?

Rebecca :
It does indeed! What gave you the idea for how the missing military plane disappeared?

Jenny :
If you mean its falling through the ice in the spring, I first got the idea from an article in the local paper. A couple of summers ago a famous salvager was here in Montana trying to find an old Russian World War Two era plane that had somehow crashed here in the mountains. I don't remember the exact story, but for some reason the plane had found its way to a nearby Air Force base during the war. The crash had happened during the winter, and the pilot, who'd survived, had a pretty good idea of where he'd crashed, yet there was no trace of the plane. Anyway, this salvager was speculating that it had sunk into a lake during the spring thaw. As far as I know, they still haven't located the plane.

Rebecca :
I really enjoyed Meg Gardner, repo woman and amateur detective with a dank and dark past. It seems you have left the door ajar for another adventure for her, is there a chance?

Jenny :
I don't think so, at least not right now. Because I'm so young, and have no formal training as a writer, and because I learn so much from each book I write, I'm not ready to do a series at this point in my career. That's not to say I don't appreciate a good series. I just think I need to give myself time to evolve as a writer before I commit to a prolonged stint with one character. And I'm not sure Meg is absolutely right for a series. As in my earlier book, Easy Money, the plot of Iced is so character specific, so dependent on Meg's past and her family and her personal demons, that I'm not sure a different story template would work on her. I guess I could have her falling into situations because of her job, but I have a feeling that might get old fast.

Rebecca :
I have to get a copy of Easy Money! Where on your path are you right now?

Jenny :
I'm definitely on the learning part of my path, though I'm not sure one ever leaves the learning part of the path. I'd certainly be upset if I did. I'm really enjoying writing full time and I'm settling into a life of my own making. I just turned thirty, and as I peer into the scary grown-up future, at the prospect of children, and family, and countless other adventures, I'm so excited at the idea of taking my characters along with me. I can't imagine Meg at a parent/teacher conference, but then again, I can't really imagine myself there either. I guess we'll all have to change. But that's all part of the fun. I hope that wasn't too sappy.

Rebecca, thank you so much for the thoughtful questions and the obviously careful reading of Iced. I'm so gratified that both of you enjoyed the book. I'm embarrassed to say I just made my first visit to your web site. But I predict it won't be the last. Thanks again, Jenny.

Rebecca :
Dear Jenny, thank you for being such an easy author to Interview & edit! I look forward to reading your future works!

Do check out my review of Iced - you will shiver!

(Published January 28, 2001)