The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-04-22
THE WRITING AND PUBLISHING WORLD

knowledge Of Persia. whicl, proved 10 be
lust the thing needed. so We set TO
work. and the faitllfulness Of coloring in
the Persian sceues of that novel. dealing
with conflicting English and Russian In
tcrests, Is due to his share of our joint
labors.
Blu my FIRST impulse to write came in
Paris. ] had gone there with my hus.
band, who as a musical critic wished to
attend the opera in the French capital
and study abroad. We were living In the
Latin Quarter. and the amazing spectacle
If that life about me and the extraordi-
rary persons W were among made me
wish to pu; rIe people and incidents on
paper. 7 got 50 that on Cur return home
at night ! would sit down and write
everything out.
~ had not intended TO he a writer az
all. am. or WAS. u violinist. Some ten
years Of hard work had gone into tho
study Of that instrument. But I decided
tina. I should never be a first class VIC
linist and | hal long felt the need ~ n
fuller expression than music could give
me. So those little sketches. jotted dowt
loosely at nigh; III Paris. were the turn
ing point At that period OF my life. Yet
| cannot recall having used the things ]
wrote down then in more than one or
two short stories.
JuSI a. 8lNFflN nv ~
.sted In the subtle but indubitable
change tina, has come over women every
wherein city and country village alike
i'm their attitude toward life. ] don't
want to say that | am Interested IN
femlrism that limits the field too
greatly. But this changed attitude OF
woman toward the world about her IL
the central fact on which I hope 10
build my next novel. The thing has not
prog "ssed any further Vet. While I am
doing various short stories g, shall try to
develop this idea. an incubation that may
take six months.
''The central ;dca comes first with Inc
IN the construction 81 a story. After that
the characters They must lie completely
seen and Understood. The setting fol-
lows. I, cannot be selected, at any rate.
before 7 have the principal characters
fully IN mind. To choose a setting and
then ~enyisage the characters seems to
me a mistake. for the people are too
likely to be puppets In certain selected
s~urroundings. The idea of taking peo-
rle and putting them through a series
Of experiences. the whole threaded 10.
gether and called a novel. IN the thing
I dislike most. ] want my people TO
have a share in their own destinies. 7
want them TO act on their own environ
m"nts. TO flower forth. and not TO be the
passive victims OF outer circumstances
\ fine example Of wGlat I mean 10y the
characters OF = story budding out and by
their own action exhibiting themselves
as flesh and blood creatures d found in
May Sinclair's story The Combined
Maze That hook seems to me d
splendid piece Of work.
Mrs. Mason said that she expects n
STAY about a year in New York. which
will be her longest soJourn in this city
= find New York delightful" She
smiled. because Of tho liyelinsss OF I;
ard the varied manifestation of life or
every hand. Here il is possible TO gel
ideas IN abundance. And I also And the
a~trosrher" "Nhilarating enough 10 en-.
able mo To work we'll. Perhaps the pres
sure r. a little 200 great at times. You