Member Spotlight: Rosemary DiBattista

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? Like so many writers, I’ve always lived in my imagination. As a child, I told stories in my head–in third person, with myself as the main character! (My pen name, “Rosie Genova,” is a leftover from childhood. Make of that what you will.) These days, writing is my solace, my escape, and a craft I am still perfecting. We will always need stories and people to tell them.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? I get up from my desk and take a brisk walk. There’s something about moving in the fresh air that gets my thoughts flowing again. In fact, I’ve gotten some of my best plot ideas while out walking. And then I hurry home so I don’t forget them!

What is your favorite time to write? In the morning, after allowing myself about 20 minutes of social media. Then I work fairly steadily until late afternoon.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? For me, the best advice about writing is actually about fishing. In Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, the character of Santiago, after many days without a catch, muses about luck, but comes to this conclusion: “I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.” I interpret being “exact” as an exhortation to hone my craft, to always be ready for the luck. I took those words to heart in the long years between writing my first novel and signing a book contract!

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? As one who is both traditionally and independently published, I’m grateful to have experienced such different journeys as a writer. Since working independently, I’ve learned so much about the process of taking a book from inception to publication, stretching my mind in ways that go beyond my comfort zone of words.

Rosemary DiBattista’s Minestrone Mischief, written under her pen name Rosie Genova, is out now with Two Roses Books.