Gwen Tuinman is descended from Irish tenant farmers and English Quakers. Her storytelling influences include soul searching, an interest in bygone days, and the complexities of living a life. Fascinated by the landscape of human tenacity, she writes about women navigating the social restrictions of their era. Gwen lives with her husband on a small rural homestead in Ontario’s Kawartha Lakes region.
1 - How did your first book change your life? How does your most recent work compare to your previous? How does it feel different?
My first book, The Last Hoffman, affirmed that writing is my true calling. I’d begun writing through a set of fluke circumstances and it took time before I was comfortable introducing myself to others as a writer. Through the years of producing that manuscript, I honed my craft and established a creative process. My second novel, Unrest, is a 19th-century feminist adventure involving a deeper exploration of female rage, motherhood and class-divide. It’s set in 1836 versus 1950 through to the early eighties when the first novel takes place. Unrest required more extensive research, but I loved it. For me, writing about a more distant past feels like coming home.
2 - How did you come to fiction first, as opposed to, say, non-fiction or poetry?
When I was an educator, I attended a professional development workshop at a gallery to learn about using artworks as story writing prompts for children. During a writing exercise that day, one painting inspired a scene which I wrote it down. Later, I was compelled to continue the story and it blossomed into a full novel. That’s how I was drawn to longform fiction. I have dabbled in writing poetry, short stories and essays, but those shorter forms cannot pull me away from the lengthy embrace of the novel.
3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious notes?
I research casually for my future novel while still writing my current work in progress. Once finished the WIP, I’ll research for about six months, recording character and plot ideas in a notebook as I go. When I can clearly envision the world the characters will inhabit, I start writing the draft in chronological order. I’m a slow and methodical writer. The first draft is but a shadow of the final version. I edit and revise heavily as I better my understanding of the characters, their motivations and the repercussions of their actions. So yes, the manuscript evolves from deep historical research and the layering in of details from my ever-expanding notebook.
4 - Where does a work of prose usually begin for you? Are you an author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you working on a "book" from the very beginning?
Story inspirations come to me in the form of a historical scenario. I’ll wonder what it might have been like for working class and less privileged people to live through that experience. A full-length novel is always the goal. I write the book from start to finish, as if I were watching the story unfold in a movie.
5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?
As a new writer, I did public readings of my works-in-progress. Now, I prefer to keep the unfinished work under wraps while it’s evolving. It is a pleasure to do public readings from a completed novel. What a privilege to witness how the writing is received by an audience of readers or fellow writers.
6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns [GT1] behind your writing? What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What do you even think the current questions are?
I don’t pre-identify themes to explore through the work. My focus remains on the thrill of spinning an engaging story. I’m propelled by a fascination with how women of the past navigated the social restrictions of their era in order to survive, and hopefully, attain some level of fulfilment. As I write, themes reveal themselves. I may be nearly finished the book before I fully recognize what I’ve written about.
7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger culture? Do they even have one? What do you think the role of the writer should be?
I think the role of writers is to hold a mirror up to society. We are capturing the zeitgeist through story telling. Our art challenges what people believe about themselves and humankind. It’s important that we also offer hope and possibility. For me, writing about contemporary issues against the backdrop of a historical setting, can make some revelations more palatable for readers.
8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult or essential (or both)?
Unrest was published by Random House Canada (RHC). My experience of working with RHC editors is a phenomenally creative adventure. A quality edit is a part of my publication journey that I relish because closely examining every page and line of a 130,000-word manuscript, through the eyes of a second reader, allows me to see the story in a fresh way. This perspective is helpful during the revision phase.
9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given to you directly)?
“Don’t think it up, get it down.” I adopt the mindset that the story has already happened and I’m recounting it. The pressure is removed when I think of myself as a conduit for the story versus being its inventor.
10 - How easy has it been for you to move between genres (non-fiction to the novel)? What do you see as the appeal?
When I do write an essay, I can only focus on that singular project. Until I finish, the novel remains dormant and my nerves buzz until I return home to my characters. Inside the novel is where I live. I love reimagining the past and exploring characters interior lives.
11 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?
My writing routine varies according to the seasonal demands of our one-acre homestead. Ideally, I work on the manuscript for one or two hours before breakfast. Afterward I do chores, meditate and exercise, then continue writing for two to three hours. I’ll often wake in the night thinking of the novel. There’s no cure for it, so I embrace the opportunity to get up and write. Some of my best ideas have come to me at such times.
12 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?
Writers block isn’t something I experience. I say this with relief, not arrogance. If I’m unsure of a story event or a character’s next move, I list all the possibilities, no matter how outrageous, on a paper. Then I whittle down the list until I decide on the most plausible option for the circumstances. As writers, we have to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. We may not have the answer right now, but we trust that it’ll come to us. A plot problem is not really a “problem”. It’s an opportunity to interject the story with an unexpected solution that’s superior to our original plan. The work is always elevated as a result.
13 - What fragrance reminds you of home?
Smells I associate with home include: fresh bread baked by my husband, wafts of woodstove smoke, rich soil after a rain, and cattle from a neighbouring farm.
14 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature, music, science or visual art?
I sometimes listen to instrumental music that captures a dramatic mood present in a scene I’m writing. Also, once I develop the characters in my story, I’ll search for paintings or vintage photographs of people who embody their energy. Because I’m drawn to write about rural or small-town settings in past eras, walking our rural sideroads or hiking trails helps me visualize aspects of my stories. I’ve amassed a collection of antique books that help me see into the past as well.
15 - What other writers or writings are important for your work, or simply your life outside of your work?
There are so many marvelous writers whose books I enjoy. These are authors whose work nourishes my writing life: Lauren Groff, Louise Erdrich, Alissa York, Maggie O’Farrell, Michael Crummey, Elif Shafak, Alix Hawley, Ann-Marie MacDonald, Margaret Atwood, Heather O’Neill, and Zadie Smith.
16 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?
Writing my next book will always be the answer to that question. The opportunity to inhabit another era and lives of new characters will open my mind further to the experiences of women before me. I can’t wait to get started.
17 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you not been a writer?
I’m so married to writing that it pains me to think of doing something else. But if pressed, I’d have continued as an educator.
18 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?
I came to writing in my 40s, so I did other things first like fulltime parenting, clerical work and teaching. Once my children were in school every day, I returned to university where I studied psychology and became a teacher. Through it all, I loved the transporting possibilities of reading. It was through an experience in my teaching days, as mentioned earlier, that I came to writing. So, in a strange way, the writing life chose me. Regardless, there’s no other professional pursuit I’d prefer.
19 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great film?
I’d have to choose the novel There are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak and the film Women Talking which was based on Miriam Toews novel of the same name and directed by Sarah Polley.
20 - What are you currently working on?
I’m currently writing a new historical novel set against the backdrop of Canada’s past.
12 or 20 (second series) questions;
[GT1]Scratched lines: The honest answer is, I say this with a smile, that I don’t know what a “theoretical concern behind my writing” is. I’m happy about that. I’d rather not paralyse my creativity by thinking about what it might be.
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