Amber Brock's new novel is Lady Be Good.From her Q&A with Deborah Kalb:
Q: How did you come up with the idea for Lady Be Good and for your character Kitty?--Marshal Zeringue
A: I often have ideas or characters come to me as I’m driving to work and listening to music. In Kitty’s case, I was listening to “Symphony in C” by Cake and “Walking on Broken Glass” by Annie Lennox when the image of a girl popped into my mind. She had platinum blond hair, bright red lipstick, and a wicked smile.
I immediately wanted to know what that girl was up to. I drew inspiration from the machinations in Dangerous Liaisons and Emma, and the story and characters started to take shape in my mind from there.
Q: What type of research did you need to do to recreate New York, Miami, and Havana in the 1950s?
A: I always do an enormous amount of research before and during the writing process. It’s probably my favorite part! For this novel, I read some fantastic non-fiction books (including...[read on]