Interview with Paula Margulies

     Today, I have the opportunity to interview Paula Margulies. She has recently wrote a novel about Pocahontas called Favorite Daughter, Part One, which won an Editor’s Choice Award at the 24th Annual San Diego State University Writer’s Conference. The story creates a different perspective to the American heroine. It is told in first person narrative, and it is how Pocahontas at a young age embarks through the many changes of her life. By doing so she transforms into a strong, courageous, wise woman. I am very pleased that she took the time to grant me this interview and to generously donate a copy of her novel to the giveaway. I look forward to reading her books in the future, and check back for my review of Favorite Daughter’s Part One soon. This interview is to give readers insight about her and her novel. Thank you, Mrs. Margulies.

1. Where and when do you write?

 In my home office mostly, although I try to sneak away to artist residencies whenever my teaching and client work schedule will allow. I usually write on Sundays, but that all depends on how much life intrudes (and it does that often, believe me!).

2. Why did you write your book? 

 I’ve always been fascinated with the story of Pocahontas, and since so much of her history has been told to us by English explorers like John Smith, I decided that retelling her story, from her perspective, might make for an interesting read. 

3. There have been many books written about Pocahontas. How is this book different? 

There are a number of differing versions of the history of that time, and much of what we know about Pocahontas comes from the writing of John Smith and the other colonists, who reported on what they found in the new land when they returned to England. Favorite Daughter, Part One is based on my research on works about her by Native Americans, many of whom tell a darker tale than the English history. Also, there aren’t many fictional works about that time from a Native American perspective, and the majority of those that do exist are written for young adults. Favorite Daughter, Part One is written for adults and focuses on Pocahontas’s coming of age into womanhood and becoming a wife and mother, in addition to her work as a representative of her tribe and, eventually, as a celebrity in England (that part of her story will be covered in Part Two). 

4. Are you of Native American heritage? 

No, both of my parents are of Italian descent. But my father, Douglas Roccaforte, loved Native American history and was a collector of American Indian artifacts, so I grew up with a deep appreciation of Native American culture and history. 

5. Whose work inspires you? 

So many authors inspire me that it’s hard to choose! I’ve always been a huge fan of the Southern gothic – William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor are my all-time favorite writers. As a graduate student in English Literature, I studied Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Bellow, Doctorow, Didion, Heller, and Pynchon. Recent authors whose stories have haunted me, stunned me, or made me weep: Sherman Alexie, Ha Jin, Vikram Seth, David Mitchell, Barbara Kingsolver, Louise Erdrich, Jane Smiley, Jane Hamilton, Sena Jeter Naslund, Anna Quindlen, and Elizabeth Berg.

6. What do you like to do in your spare time? 

When I’m not working on my publicity business or teaching classes, I enjoy yoga, meditation, reading, and writing. In the summer, I try to go to as many local Native American pow wows as I can (there are quite a few here in the San Diego area), and I’ve been known to enjoy an Indian taco (or two) on occasion. 

7. What are the words you live by?

Less is more (except when we’re talking about Indian tacos). ☺

     Paula Margulies is the owner of Paula Margulies Communications, a public relations firm for authors and artists. She has received numerous awards for her essays and works of fiction, including her historical novel, Favorite Daughter, Part One, her first novel, Coyote Heart, and her short story collection, Face Value: Collected Stories. She has been awarded artist residencies at Caldera, Red Cinder Artist Colony, the Vermont Studio Center, and Centrum. Margulies resides in San Diego, California. For more information, please visit www.paulamargulies.com.


Check out my review of Paula Marguiles's novel:

Favorite's Daughter, Part One