February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Published works:
Newest book out is “Little Chapel on the River: A Pub, A Town and the Search for What Matters Most,” published this month by William Morrow. Write a weekly column called “Enterprise” on Tuesdays for The Wall Street Journal about small business. It’s not boring, I promise… well at least not usually. One of my last front page stories was about the world’s most comfortable thong… and by that, I do mean underwear. In 1998, wrote a book called “Birds on the Couch” –about a bird shrink in Maryland who teaches parrot psychology classes. My favorite section is Chapter 5: “The Woody and Tweetie Complex: A Kama Sutra for Birds.”
Personal: Web site: www.gwendolynbounds.com
I used to box, but got tired of my headaches, so I stopped. Recently I started fencing — foil and epee. It’s also an intense one-on-one sport, but it’s less painful because you’ve got a big steel wire mask on.
What is your latest book about?
It’s a love story about a place, and the place is this extraordinary little Irish pub and country store in Garrison, N.Y. called Guinan’s. Many of your readers probably know it well. It’s owned by Jim Guinan, a 79-year-old Irishman from Birr in County Offaly. He brought his wife, Peg, and four children over to the United States on the Queen Mary in 1957 and they opened the pub and store two years later. Today it’s still up and going with the help of two of Jim’s children, John and Margaret, as well as his grandchildren, Kelly and Casey.
The place is magic; dogs are welcome, kids get free pretzels, and the monthly Irish Night music sessions are the best entertainment around. I stumbled upon Guinan’s after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, temporarily closed my downtown Manhattan apartment due to damages. I walked in to Guinan’s wanting just one beer … and instead spent the afternoon listening to Jim tell tales. Eleven days later, Kathryn and I moved to Garrison.
The book’s plot is two-fold: it traces the struggle of Jim and his family to keep Guinan’s alive against the odds, and chronicles the escapades of an eclectic cast of characters who call this proverbial “chapel” home.
Woven within the narrative is my own evolution from fast-paced, harried urban outsider to a small town insider who finds her own refuge and peace at Guinan’s.
What is your writing routine? Are there ideal conditions?
I write most coherently in the morning from 7 a.m. to around 1 p.m. When I’m stuck, I take a shower. I always think better in or around water, probably because I spent so much time on the river growing up. Guess that’s why I ended up here along the Hudson.
One drink can help loosen the words. More than one just creates cringe-worthy material.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Five hundred words a day. No matter what they are. No matter if you hate them. Get down 500 words a day. It gives you something to start with and eliminates the daunting prospect of a blank page.
And let others read your work, even while it’s in progress. This is really hard — and I didn’t do it for a long time. But unless you just want to write journals that sit in a closet until you are dead, it’s better to get a reality check sooner rather than later.
Name three books that are memorable in terms of your reading pleasure?
“The Feast of Love” by Charles Baxter; “Absolutely American” by David Lipsky;
“A Separate Peace” by John Knowles
What book are you currently reading?
“The Old Man and the Boy,” Robert Ruark; Wolf Brother” by Michelle Paver; “A Song for Mary” by Dennis Smith
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Is there a book you wish you had written?
“Winter’s Tale” by Mark Helprin
Name a book that you were pleasantly surprised by?
“The Book of Joe” by Jonathan Tropper
If you could meet one author, living or dead, who would it be?
J.R.R. Tolkien
What book changed your life?
“Little Chapel on the River” — only because writing it helped me find home.
What is your favorite spot in Ireland?
Alas, I’ve never been, so I’ll say Birr since that’s where the Guinans are from.
You’re Irish if . . .
I’m only half-Irish, so I asked my best source, Jim Guinan, who’s a thoroughbred. He said, or rather he sung this to me: “You’re Irish if you come into the parlor and you make yourself at home