lindatagliaferro

Linda: I've always enjoyed visiting the lesser known places, like the Merchant's House museum, Chelsea Piers, the 72nd Street Boat Basin Café. I barely remember Brooklyn because I was a child when my family moved, but I recall riding the Staten Island ferry and thinking about all of my grandparents landing on Ellis Island (which the ferry passes) from Italy.

Serena: After receiving you Bachelor's Degree, you traveled quite extensively. What moved you to go to the places you did and how were you treated?

Linda: I've been to so many destinations that I'd have to write a small book to explain why I went to each. Briefly, I went to Rome and Florence, Italy to study art, to Denmark for love, to Indonesia for adventure. When I lived in Europe, it was easy enough to go from one country to another, and very often, I visited friends who I had met. I've crossed the Norwegian fjords in a boat, seen flamenco performances in Spain, and eaten strawberries fresh from the ground in Belgium.

You asked how I was treated. The only place where people were obnoxious to me was in Paris. I had studied French for five years, but the Parisians I encountered acted as if I didn't make any sense when I tried to speak to them.

The Italians, on the other hand, were warm and welcoming. The day that I arrived, I asked some people on the street for directions. My Italian was halting at best, but the two women I asked walked me to my destination. This scenario happened many times. I made some friends and when I'd visit, there was always a table filled with delicious food.

The Danes treated me especially well because men there do prefer dark-skinned brunettes. I had lots of friends and the people I worked with were outgoing and loved to party.

Serena: What was your favorite place to visit and why?

Linda: Let's say I have favorite places to visit. It'd be hard to pin it down to just one place. I loved Machu Picchu, the lost city of the Incas in Peru, with its dizzying height in the Andes mountains. I enjoyed living in Java, where I made many friends and tasted exotic meals and studied Balinese dancing. The foreign country that I lived in longest was Denmark, where I learned their tongue-twisting language, and went to more parties than I can count. The Danes are such fun-loving people and they open up to foreigners.

Serena: Do you have a favorite medium that you use in your drawing and painting?

Linda: I enjoy drawing with colored pencils as well as regular number 2 pencils. My favorite media for paintings are oils and acrylics.

Serena: I saw that you are an award-winning cake decorator. What made you choose to use fondant as your canvas? And why put The Masters on cakes?

Linda: To steal a quote from Bill Clinton, because I could.

Serena: Are you writing exclusively or do you have a 'day job' ?

Linda: Writing is my full time job.

Serena: On your website you mention having your illustrations in your book, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Decoding Your Genes. Do you have plans to illustrate any others?

Linda: Doing some illustrations for my Complete Idiot's Guide was a serendipitous event for me. Down the road, it would be great to illustrate some of my future books, but there's nothing like that in the works now.

Serena: You have an amazing range of topics that you've written about. Do you choose your topics, or do they choose you?

Linda: A little of each. My first book, Genetic Engineering - Progress or Peril? was my idea. I was always fascinated…and frightened…. by the idea of genetic manipulation. That book led to my 400-page Complete Idiot's Guide on genetic engineering and cloning.

After I traveled to the Galapagos Islands, I approached an editor who I had worked with before. I told her that I just had to do a book on the islands. She was enthusiastic about my subsequent proposal, and she helped get the OK from other people at her company.

Many of the books that followed were on topics suggested by editors I had worked with. Of course, I had the option of saying no, and when things were too busy, I had to decline to write some books. But fortunately, I've written about many topics that fascinate me.

The wonderful thing is that I've had the opportunity of writing about topics that I might not have thought of myself. I was asked to write a biography of Bruce Lee. I proceeded to watch every movie the kung fu legend had made, and I read over 20 books about his life. I interviewed people like his widow, the best man at his wedding, and his closest students. I visited his gravesite in Washington State. I felt that I had a precious, rare opportunity to get a glimpse into the man behind the legend.

Serena: I did a little research on your titles and found only non-fiction. Have you thought about writing fiction? If so, what genre would you like to explore?

Linda: You're right. I only write non-fiction. I've never considered writing fiction. I joke and tell people that ….as an artist….I'm always thinking up strange and imaginative things, so I'd better stick to non-fiction to balance out my wild, creative mind.

I find non-fiction absolutely fascinating. We're living in an incredible world. There are so many wonderful topics out there in the real world, so I don't need to make things up. If I ever wanted to write a novel, I wouldn't have to create characters out of my imagination. I'd just have to change the names of the strange and wonderful people I've met through the years.

Serena: Do you have anything else in the works? Can you give us a synopsis for any works-in-progress?

Linda: I'm finishing up three kids' books that I was asked to write. They're on three different types of forests. I've done a lot of research, and now, when I walk down the block, I look at the trees in a totally different way. It's amazing how much a writer's life gets enriched by his or her work.

Serena: Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy day to answer our questions. If you would like to find out more about Ms. Tagliaferro, you can visit her website.