1. She writes in longhand, then types her words out, then records her words, listens to them, and then adds to and edits the words on a computer.
2. She likes to keep the windows open to hear ordinary life outside. She enjoys observing strangers, especially workmen.
Anne Tyler's name stood out to me out of the sixty-five authors who were on the author list because her name sounded familiar, concise, and warm. I decided to study Anne Tyler because of her genre, which is literary realism. And after a semester, I am very glad that I chose to study Anne Tyler. When I was reading her novels, I can easily immerse myself into the fictional world with her characters. I often felt like I was standing right beside the characters, or even inside them, as the story continues. As a senior who is struggling to write my personal statements for college applications, I am inspired by her writing style. I learned to "show", instead of "tell", my audience by describing the minor details and inner feelings, even with easy vocabularies. Also, reading her interviews was a fun process as I discovered more about her. Similar to her characters, she is a bit "eccentric". I really enjoyed learning about her attitudes toward publicity, the ways she creates her characters, how her experience as a child affected her writing, etc. mostly because her responses were all so unpredicted. If I have the chance to visit Baltimore, I really hope that I can encounter Anne Tyler. Maybe in a grocery store, Roland Park, or on the street...
Anne Phyllis Tyler
Born: October 25, 1941, in Hennepin Country, Minnesota, United States
Occupation: novelist, short story writer, literary critic
Genre: Literary realism
Notable Works: Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, The Accidental Tourist, Breathing Lessons, A Spool of Blue Thread