Gin Phillips
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
Author of Fierce Kingdom and Family Law
Set in the early ’80s, Family Law follows a young Alabama lawyer, Lucia, who is making a name for herself at a time when a woman in a courtroom is still a rarity. She’s received threats for her work extricating women and children from troubled relationships, but her own happy marriage has always felt far removed from her work.That work brings her into the life of teenaged Rachel, who chafes at the rules her mother lays down as the bounds of acceptable feminine behavior. In Lucia, Rachel sees the potential for a new path. But their friendship takes them both to a crossroads. When a moment of violence—a threat made good—puts Rachel in danger, Lucia has to decide how much her work means to her and what she’s willing to sacrifice to keep moving forward. Addressing mother-daughter relationships and what roles we play in the lives of women who aren’t our family, the novel examines how we shape each other and how we make a difference.
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
Author I draw inspiration from: I go back to Elizabeth Strout and Penelope Lively again and again to absorb the power of a pure, perfect sentence.
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
Favorite place to read a book: Somewhere in the open air--my back porch swing or, even better, tucked in a hammock with the sound of lapping water in the background.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with: Who wouldn't love being stuck with Alexander Rostov from Amor Towles' A Gentleman in Moscow? It would be the most charming elevator experience imaginable, and he might even bring wine. For a pricklier choice, I'd love to spend time with Olive Kitteridge, even though she'd probably yell at me. She wouldn't waste time on small talk, though, so we could get to the good stuff.
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author: I think of sitting next to my grandfather in his recliner as he read Poe's "The Raven" and "Annabel Lee" and Noyes' "The Highwayman" outloud. That surely taught me that words can cast spells. But, too, my grandfather and I would sit in that same recliner and watch the old television show Gunsmoke with its cowboys and saloon girls. When an episode was over, he would act it out with me--him as the cowboy and me as the saloon girl--only in our version I would carry the gun, and he would be the one who got kidnapped and needed to be rescued. So maybe that's the real seed--he showed me stories are malleable things. If you don't like one, rewrite it. Tell your own version.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook: Hardback. Paperback is a close second. I want the texture of a book under my fingertips and the smell of the paper. I like to underline and make notes, too, so I need real pages.
The last book I read: Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
Pen & paper or computer: Computer. I love the delete button, and I'm pretty fond of cut and paste.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with: I have a tie. Jill in Susan Conley's Landslide and Nedda in Erika Swyler's Light From Other Stars. Both women love the people in their lives deeply and find a real satisfaction in their work. They are fundamentally content. Happiness is sort of an unusual trait in a literary character, but it's a very nice thing in a best friend.
Author Interview - Gin Phillips
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a: In a fantasy world where my own skill set is irrelevant? An archaeologist or a marine biologist. In the real world? A teacher. Or I'd like to try my hand at a combination donut store/bookstore.
Favorite decade in fashion history: 1940s--hourglass silhouettes and flouncy skirts and lots of great hats.
Place I’d most like to travel: I'd like to go pretty much anywhere I haven't been. I'd put the Galapagos Islands and Morocco at the top of the list at the moment.
My signature drink: Old-fashioned.
Favorite artist: That's highly changeable. I'm in a Bruce Springsteen phase at the moment. The week before it was Big Mama Thornton.
Number one on my bucket list: A camel trek through the Sahara.
Find more from the author:
Instagram: @ginphillips
Twitter: @GinPhillips17
Author Bio: Gin Phillips is the author of six novels, ranging from historical fiction to literary thriller to middle grade. Her work has been sold in 29 countries.
Gin’s debut novel, The Well and the Mine, won the 2009 Barnes & Noble Discover Award. Her recent novel, Fierce Kingdom, was named one of the best books of 2017 by Publishers Weekly, NPR, Amazon, and Kirkus Reviews. Her novels have been named as selections for Indie Next, Book of the Month, and the Junior Library Guild.
Born in Montgomery, Al., Gin graduated from Birmingham-Southern College with a degree in political journalism. She lives with her family in Birmingham, Al.
