“Writing New People I was thinking a lot about the era that I came of age - the 90's. Brooklyn, in particular, this moment when I lived there. The sense of possibility. I was also trying to find a way to write about Jonestown. I had read about it a lot and I had the sense that the story could really start to drive one over the edge.” PeopleThinkingWritingTryingMomentsAgePossibilityOver The Edge Author:Danzy Senna
“I wrote the first draft of the New People quickly but it had been percolating a lot longer. It's a hard question to answer because I'd been working on another novel for years and when I gave up on that, this one came very easily. But I think the work had been going on a lot longer than the actual writing.” PeopleThinkingWritingNovelGave Up Author:Danzy Senna
“I had been really obsessed with Jonestown for a long time - many years - and had read everything there was to read about it, seen all the footage and the documentaries. I found it really chilling in a personal way - the question of people submitting all their personal power and agency and independent thought it the name of a group or ideology. I could not find a way to write about it directly that didn't feel too heavy.” PeopleWritingLongIndependentIdeologyObsessedChillIndependent Thought Author:Danzy Senna
“I definitely feel like when I write a book it's not my job to police or guide the readers. The book and the characters don't belong to me anymore. If that makes sense.” WritingBookCharacterPoliceMake Sense Author:Danzy Senna
“I find myself speaking through the other characters, putting ideas in their voices and heads. Writing almost becomes a splitting of myself into multiple personalities. But I don't write to make an argument on behalf of any of the characters, or to prove anything about a character. I think that's important that I be serving the story first and not my own point of view.” ThinkingWritingImportantCharacterPersonalityProveArgumentPoint Of ViewMultipleMultiple Personalities Author:Danzy Senna
“I'm felt I was writing about love and desire and community and belonging and grief and a whole host of other issues. But race is never far from the surface.” WritingDesireCommunityGriefBelongingHost Author:Danzy Senna
