2017 GANYC Apple Awards Nominee: Melanie Benjamin

Each year, GANYC proudly honors organizations and individuals that encourage and promote New York City tourism, culture and preservation, while supporting the work and contributions of professional New York City tour guides. The 2017 GANYC Apple Awards is coming up, on Monday, March 6, 2017. This year there are 44 nominees. Below, is an interview with one of them.

Nomination: The Swans of Fifth Avenue, Melanie Benjamin, Outstanding Achievement in Fiction Book Writing (published October 1, 2015 - September 30, 2016)

Melanie Benjamin (pen name for Melanie Hauser - her pen name incorporates her first name and the name of one of her sons) specializes in historical fiction. Growing up as a theater buff, she began to pursue a career in writing, starting out with a parenting column in a local publication and moving on to short stories. She is now a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. Though not a New York-native, she loves our great city and the symbiotic relationship with her agent!

What was the main source of inspiration for The Swans of Fifth Avenue?

I was in my office one day, looking at my bookshelves for inspiration for my next book. I’ve done this before; it was after re-reading an old biography of Charles Lindbergh that I decided to write The Aviator’s Wife. So I picked up the only copy of a book written by Truman Capote that I owned; it was the posthumously published Answered Prayers. And I remembered, vaguely, that there was some sort of a scandal involved in this; I went and looked it up and was instantly inspired. I love New York (I’m a Midwesterner who always longed to live there), and that era – the beauty, the sadness, the gossip – and these great characters all seemed to me like a great novel.

Please describe, briefly, what your process is like for writing the novel?

I research first. In this case, that consisted of a lot of reading of biographies, memoirs, old issues of Vanity Fair. And then I treated myself to a trip to Manhattan! I’ve been several times but never really spent time at The Plaza, or the St. Regis – the natural habitat of the Swans. Then after the research – which takes a few weeks – I have the story planned out in my mind; where to begin, where to end, what events I want to highlight along the way. Only after it’s fairly planned out – not outlined; nothing that specific but more of a general map – I sit down to write. When I write, I write 2,000 words a day. The first draft may only take me three months to write, but then there is a lot of revising – which what I love best.

What’s been a highlight of writing in general or a particular event or happenstance that has kept you motivated to continue writing?

Success? I think that’s what motivates every writer! We love the words and the stories but if our books aren’t embraced, it’s very hard to keep going. I’ve been very lucky in that way. Just to get emails from readers, still, about books I wrote years ago is a privilege; they inspire me.

For our professional GANYC tour guide members, what things about you or your work might we share with the thousands of visitors to NYC we meet every year?

I don’t know – it’s whatever you want to share! The author’s note in the back of The Swans gives a very detailed explanation of my long fascination with Manhattan, and why I wrote this book. I think I was always a big city girl trapped in a small town reality; I desperately wanted to go to NYC when I was a young woman to study acting, my first passion. My parents would not let me; they held the financial strings. It’s one of the biggest regrets of my life that I didn’t go anyway. I now live in Chicago, which is a wonderful big city, too; I wouldn’t live anywhere else. But I think it was that dream of skyscrapers and subways that made me claim Chicago as my home. I still love New York, but I love it as a frequent visitor.

Favorite tour you've taken in NYC, or if you haven't taken a tour, where in NYC would you next like to have a tour (preferably led by one of our GANYC members)?

I’m such a huge reader of history that I’ve not taken an organized tour; I know what I want to see and why I want to see it. Years ago, we did do the double decker bus tour with our sons. But when I’m in NYC alone, I simply love to wander! I leave my hotel first thing in the morning and walk, walk, walk.

What is your favorite place in NYC and why?

It’s hard to pick just one! So I’ll pick three. I love the Boathouse in Central Park – I know it’s touristy, but I always have to have a drink there. And I also love The Frick. Then, one of my favorite places that’s not well known is the Paley Center. It’s a treasure trove of old television clips and interviews. There is some amazing Truman Capote footage there!

If you could be any one of the five NYC boroughs or a particular store/restaurant in NYC, what would you be and why?

Oh, The Modern at MoMA – that’s my favorite restaurant in Manhattan! I ask my agent to take me there for dinner every single time I’m in the city.

Anything else you'd like to share?

Um, that I love NYC? It’s such a special place; there’s so much to see and learn that I know I’ll never absorb it all – which is a wonderful reason to keep coming back!