Ines Rodrigues

What was your favorite book as a child?

My favorite book as a child was Glorinha (Isa Silveira Leal), the story of a smart Brazilian girl who was sort of a hero.

Do you remember the original reason or motivation why you started writing creatively?

I was a journalist before I started writing creatively, but I always wanted to invent my own stories. Sometimes, when a story comes to my mind, it's like a call: if I don't write it, if I don't give life to a certain character, it keeps following me. Writing is a vital experience, it makes me feel good.

What was the most adventurous or thrilling thing you ever did/experienced?

I moved to New York when I was six months pregnant, to live with my boyfriend at the time, who later became my husband. It was such a jump in the dark. I moved to New York with my cat in a travel cage and two suitcases. I'd lived in Europe before, but I had never thought about living in the United States. I left my job, my family, and my apartment in Brazil to become a mother and a wife in another country. But, here I am, writing fiction in English for a living. In some way it worked out.

Do you listen to music while reading or writing?

I rarely listen to music while I'm writing, unless it's part of the story and I need to get the rhythm. Otherwise, it distracts me.