Ahead of the 20023 Book Festival of the MJCCA, we asked four of the local authors featured in this year’s program about their new books, inspirations, and more.
The festival runs Oct. 28 – Nov. 19 and you can see the full author line-up and buy tickets here.
Alison Rose Greenberg, author of ‘Maybe Once, Maybe Twice’
Alison Rose Greenberg is a screenwriter who lives in Atlanta but is quick to say she was born in New York City. While attending The University of Southern California, Alison took her first screenwriting class and fell head over heels.
A journey from screenwriting led to marketing jobs, before coming full circle back to her first love. Alison speaks fluent rom-com, lives for 90’s WB dramas, cries to Taylor Swift, and is a proud single mom to her two incredible kids and one poorly-trained dog.
Her new novel, “Maybe Once, Maybe Twice” introduces readers to Maggie Vine, a 35-year-old singe contemplating motherhood with a fellow musician, until she finds out he’s engaged to someone else. Then an old flame enters her life and sets up a triangle straight out of a beloved rom-com.
You’re originally from New York with a pitstop in California for college. How did you wind up in Atlanta and what’s your impression of the literary scene here?
Atlanta has always felt like home to me. I moved here when I was ten, and I graduated high school from Woodward Academy. After stints in New York and LA, I finally settled back in Atlanta permanently in 2012. The South is a boomerang: it tries to bring you back, and in this case, it succeeded. There’s a vibrant literary scene in Atlanta. There are some wonderful authors and folks on the book business side who live here, great independent bookstores, one of the best book festivals in the country, and I’ve met a nice group of local screenwriters during the WGA strike.
You’re an admitted rom-com junkie, so which shows or films are your favorite re-watches, and did any of them inspire your latest novel, “Maybe Once, Maybe Twice”?
I live for rom-coms. Some regular rom-com rewatches are “When Harry Met Sally,” “Clueless,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “Notting Hill,” “10 Things I Hate About You,” “Reality Bites,” “Jerry Maguire,” “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” and everything by Nancy Meyers. As far as rom-com TV: “The Mindy Project,” “Fleabag,” and “High Fidelity” are some favorites. There wasn’t a particular film or TV show that inspired “Maybe Once, Maybe Twice,” although I would argue that “My Best Friend’s Wedding” is the holy grail when it comes to the marriage pact trope.
As a fellow Taylor Swift fan, what’s your favorite album, and did you make it to “The Eras Tour”? How does music, in general, influence your writing?
Recently, a friend asked me to rank all of Taylor Swift’s albums, and that ranking was worse than “Sophie’s Choice.” Gun to my head, “Lover” might be my desert island album. But I could make the same argument for “Folklore,” “Red,” “Speak Now,” “Reputation,” “1989”... (I’m clearly horrible at picking favorites).
I was lucky enough to make it to The Eras Tour in a few cities, and if I could quit my life and follow Taylor Swift on tour, I would do just that. Music is such a significant part of my writing process. I often spend hours creating a specific playlist for the very thing I should be writing—I call it “necessary procrastination.” I always have music blasting through my headphones when I write. It’s usually my muse—Taylor Swift—or iconic 90s and early 2000’s tracks. I can only write to songs that I know like the back of my hand, and those songs give me a good dose of nostalgia and keep the flow going.
The main character in my novel is a singer-songwriter, so music was intertwined with writing this book. The corresponding “Maybe Once, Maybe Twice” Spotify playlist (which features an array of artists, from Dave Matthews Band to Paramore) is a wonderful companion to the book.
Your novel “Bad Luck Bridesmaid” is being turned into a feature film and you’re writing the script. What has that process been like turning the book into a screenplay?
I was a screenwriter before I began writing novels, so personally, the cherry on top of being an author is the ability to adapt my own IP. I wrote the book “Bad Luck Bridesmaid” around the same time I was writing the screenplay “Bad Luck Bridesmaid.” Writing a script is very different from writing prose—you don’t have to (and you shouldn’t) use all five senses to describe a scene. I had to turn off Screenwriter Mode and turn on Author Mode, and vice versa. Getting two different notes on the same characters (notes from a film producer and notes from my book editor) also caused some mental gymnastics. But that adaptation was so much fun.
Adam Lazarus, author of ‘The Wingmen’
Adam Lazarus has made his name as a writer of sports-themed non-fiction, taking deep dives into both teams and players. His latest, “The Wingmen,” tells the true story of the unique 50-year friendship between John Glenn, the unassailable pioneer of space exploration, and Ted Williams, indisputably the greatest hitter in baseball history.
Lazarus’ previous books include “Chasing Greatness,” “Super Bowl Monday,” “Best of Rivals, and “Hail to the Redskins: Gibbs, the Diesel, the Hogs, and the Glory Days of D.C.’s Football Dynasty.” His writing has also appeared in USA Today, ESPN the Magazine, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, among other publications.
Your books – including the latest, “The Wingmen” – tell sports stories that not every fan might have heard before. How do you choose your subjects and what drives you to bring their stories before a larger audience?
Like most fans, I am fascinated by compelling individuals in professional sports: not just the quote-unquote best and the most physically gifted or dominant, but those who have a flair for the dramatic. Just about all the central sports figures in my books fall under that category. Arnold Palmer, Joe Montana, and Ted Williams weren’t just the greatest players of their generation (or perhaps any generation) they always seemed to deliver in the biggest moments and they did so with style. Furthermore, during the course of such long careers, they each overcame plenty of personal or professional setbacks and disappointments. But most giants of their respective sports have been written about at length over the years and decades.
A driving force for my career has been finding a way to write about these types of legends but largely showcase the “forgotten” or at least the less well-known episodes in their illustrious careers. And that’s true for the portions of “The Wingmen” that center on John Glenn, who also had a flair for the dramatic: Take his Friendship 7 mission in which he re-entered the Earth’s orbit aboard a space capsule that the world believed had a faulty heat shield. Yet for all his international fame as a hero of World War II, a test pilot, an astronaut, and a senator, his service in the Korean War, and particularly his profound friendship with baseball’s Ted Williams, is not remembered nearly as well. So, while my books often focus on household names, they also focus on periods that shine new light on their stories.
On the surface, Ted Williams and John Glenn seem diametrically opposed but forged a friendship in wartime. What was the glue that held them together and was there anything you learned about their friendship that surprised you?
From the day they met Glenn and Williams developed a mutual respect for one another: Williams for Glenn’s calm yet daring demeanor in the cockpit; Glenn for Williams’s curiosity, courage, and sacrifice. That was the foundation of their friendship. But both men were obsessed with perfection and knew the only way to achieve that perfection was absolute dedication to embracing and mastering nuance and minutiae. Neither man could tolerate laziness or carelessness in others and certainly not themselves: that’s how they reached a level of greatness that few others in history achieved.
There was also a mutual understanding of their relationships to the general public and, for lack of a better word, their fans. As I say in the book, “From the moment John Glenn’s Friendship 7 space capsule safely fell from orbit, splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean, he and Ted Williams also shared the crushing weight and unceasing burden of celebrity.” For decades both Glenn and Williams were members of a fraternity of celebrity that few people could understand or appreciate. As much as their friends, their family, or even themselves, Glenn and Williams each belonged to the public at large. Although I can’t speak from experience, that may be a lonely existence. John Glenn’s and Ted Williams’s friendship probably eased some of that loneliness for one another.
Still, Glenn and Williams shared very little in common in terms of their worldviews: Williams’s personal life was fractured repeatedly by infidelity, his relationship with his children was strained at best, he didn’t practice any organized religion, and he was a diehard Republican. Glenn was married happily to the same woman for 73 years, adored his children, was a devoted Presbyterian, and a four-term Democratic senator. And it’s in that political split that I learned something interesting about their friendship.
For all the respect, admiration, and I’d even say love, that Ted Williams had for John Glenn, he would not publicly support Glenn’s run for the Democratic nomination in the 1984 Presidential Primary. Still, it’s a testament to their bond that this speed bump didn’t derail their friendship. And more importantly, Williams—stubborn and rarely capable of admitting fault—truly felt bad that he didn’t support Glenn. He even came close to offering Glenn an apology a few years later, something that would surprise anyone who knew him.
Although one should never assume, I am assuming that you’ve had a love of sports since childhood. Did you play or were you a fan?
I am a passionate fan of a few professional teams (especially the Pittsburgh Steelers) but playing sports is definitely a massive part of my identity. I began at a very young age and in some respects, I haven’t stopped. I started with baseball around the age of five, eventually advanced to Varsity baseball and football in high school, and was fortunate to continue playing Varsity football for four seasons at Kenyon College in Ohio.
After something of a hiatus during graduate school and the early years of marriage and parenting, I returned to playing somewhat competitive sports (emphasis on the “somewhat”), mostly modified fast-pitch softball at the Jewish Community Center in Atlanta. Personally, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I am now the exact same age (41) that Ted Williams was when a pinched nerve in his neck caused him to hit a career-low .254 during the 1959 Major League Baseball season. I’ll remain optimistic, however, given that Williams bounced back the next year to hit .316 with 29 home runs. Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of good days at the plate, but hopefully that fact about 42-year-old Ted Williams will motivate me in the coming years when I square off with some of the league’s better pitchers. And they know who they are.
Andy Lipman, author of ‘The CF Warrior Project Vol. 2′
Andy Lipman has cystic fibrosis, but cystic fibrosis (CF) will never have him. On his 38th birthday, Andy passed the current median life expectancy for people with CF. At 49, his life expectancy now exceeds the expected. He defied all odds to become a college graduate, Olympic torch bearer, runner, advocate, author, husband, and father. He is dedicated to finding a cure for this genetic disease.
The second book of this inspirational series of memoirs is about people who live with the life-changing diagnosis of CF and those who advocate for those who fight the disease. Stories include people from around the globe who once lived with a childhood disease and are now living into their 50s, 60s, and 70s.
You’re celebrating the release of “The CF Warrior Project Vol 2: Celebrating Our Cystic Fibrosis Community.” How did you decide whose stories to feature in both volumes of this inspiring series?
I certainly had a lot of decisions on my hands. There were a lot of incredibly inspiring entries. I chose candidates based on how I believed their stories might appeal to the reader. That’s not to say that some stories were better than others. I just mean that I tried not to tell stories that were similar to others so that each reader could learn the different aspects of having cystic fibrosis or advocating for those with the disease.
Tell us about the Wish for Wendy Foundation, the nonprofit that is receiving proceeds from the book.
The Wish for Wendy Foundation, which is a nonprofit foundation that was founded in 2006, donates to CF-related charities in order to not only find treatments and/or a cure for cystic fibrosis but also seeks to help those who are struggling with all aspects of the disease. We have raised approximately $5 million for CF-related causes.
Your first book “Alive at 25” chronicled your early years living with cystic fibrosis. What inspired you to pick up the pen then and what continues to inspire you?
I read an article when I was just a kid that stated “People with cystic fibrosis do not normally live to the age of 25.” I was distraught. I spent years dealing with anxiety just because of that statement. I woke up on my 25th birthday and decided that a book needed to be written to disprove that sentence. That’s what motivated me then. As far as now, I’m motivated by all the people living their best lives with cystic fibrosis. I feel like I will never run out of inspiring stories to tell.
Who has inspired you in your journey with CF and becoming a writer?
There are a lot of people who have inspired me along the way. My parents inspire me to live my dreams. My wife inspired me to fight for my life. My children inspire me to love every moment. As far as the CF world, I would have to say that double-lung transplant survivor and sexagenarian Jerry Cahill has long inspired me to make a difference. As far as writing goes, I don’t know that anyone has really inspired me to write but I believe my dad had the funniest reaction when I told him I was writing my first book. I didn’t read much growing up so when I told him, he said, “You’re writing a book? I didn’t even know you could read.” Still makes me laugh.
When you’re not writing your own books, who do you like to read for pleasure or information?
I might be one of the few writers who is not an avid reader. When I do read, I like to read books about those fighting cystic fibrosis. One of my favorites is “Breath from Salt” by Bijal P. Trivedi which details the story of how the CF Foundation came about and how the organization made a difference in the world of research for those fighting cystic fibrosis.
Scott Zucker, author of ‘Battle for Life’
After Scott Zucker’s father died in 2001, he happened upon a short piece of creative nonfiction his father had written. The story detailed his father’s World War II experience and his fears, faith, and how honored he was to serve his country. This moment shifted Zucker’s life trajectory—he knew one day he would have to share his father’s story.
Now, over twenty years later, Zucker, who you might spot with his wife, Melanie, on the Beltline walking their Labradoodles, is the author of three works of fiction: “Chain of Custody,” “Rally on Two,” and the recently released “Battle for Life.” He’s also the founding partner of the Atlanta law firm Weissmann Zucker Euster + Katz P.C. and has been practicing law since 1987.
You said your latest book, ‘Battle For Life,’ was challenging to write. I know it blended fiction with your true story, but can you discuss why this was difficult and your writing process?
All families have some dysfunction; be it challenges from raising children and managing elderly parents or sibling relationships. I wanted to center my novel on the stress families experience daily, and at the same time incorporate my father’s real-life experience during World War II. My difficulty was how best to merge these two stories. I hope I’ve captured the intensity of my father’s experience on that historically fateful day, May 11, 1945, blended with a fictional modern-day family’s life with the shared theme: Life can be a battle, but worth the fight.
How do art and creativity intersect your practices as an attorney and writer?
As a practicing lawyer of over thirty-five years, my writing is typically about factual events and, as a natural consequence, is not necessarily creative. I began writing stories to express myself differently, even though I use a similar structure in writing fiction as my legal briefs; linear and straightforward. I call my chapter structure “staccato writing,” short chapters designed to be a fun and quick read. I’m also inspired by other lawyers turned writers like John Grisham and Scott Turow.
What advice would you share as an artist and attorney with our readers?
As an ethical will advocate, I want families to capture and share their family stories to survive for generations. They can keep these collected experiences, and the lessons learned alive, even after those family members are gone. Today, with our technology, these stories can be captured in writing, audio, or video. They range from creating art to recording songs, even letters shared at significant times. We all have something to say and stories to share; we just have to be courageous enough to share them. I believe you should start now. There is no reason to wait.
