Featured Interview With Gin Getz
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Gin Getz (born Virginia Tone in New Jersey) is a writer and photographer based out of the high mountains in southwestern Colorado. She works from her remote, off-grid guest ranch far and away from town, telephone and traffic where she lives with her husband, son, and a bunch of four legged and feathered critters.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’m one of those who always had to write–poetry, journals, old fashioned letters, short stories. Most of them I burned; the rest hold little value to anyone but me. Through these I solidified my commitment and attachment to writing. It wasn’t until I started sharing my writing through blogging and magazine articles that my voice began to emerge. By that I mean my style of writing, the way I write, the way I “talk” to my readers. Writing became a conversation, if you will. I live remotely yet believe strongly in reaching other people and in the responsibility we all have of doing what we can for others. Sharing my world through my writing is the best way I can reach others.
The Color of the Wild is my first full length manuscript. It took me many years of waking before my family and day job to complete. Blogging helped. Regular posting was my discipline, and the people I met – some just online, others who came here to meet me and have over time become dear friends – they were my motivation.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’m inspired by the wild world around me. And the wild places within us all. The magnificent beauty around me, and the deep, dark stuff inside. Writing allows me to share this and still be alone in the wild.
Seems I never have enough time to read these days, but I’ve got a few books open and I try to find the time. I always heard the more you read, the better you write. And I think most writers just like books. In breaks, for inspiration, I turn to anything written by Wendell Berry and Mary Oliver. I’m re-reading Aldo Leopold now. And Natalie Goldberg, a writers writer, I love to read, not only for what she says, but how she says it. When I read her work, I feel like I’m sitting down in a coffee shop with her in Santa Fe talking about our writing.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Color of the Wild is an intimate view of life in an untamed land, an unconventional memoir of person and place. It’s a personal account of one year, one woman, her family, and the wild mountain they call home told in a lyrical and lilting, powerful and passionate voice.
An original, inspiring work of literary non-fiction; an unconventional memoir of woman and land. The Color of the Wild is the beautifully told story of one woman’s life, love, family, resolve and determination. More than a memoir, with stunning stories interspersed and intertwined with powerful poetry, prose, and stunning photographs, Gin’s captivating tone and intimate view bring to life the drama and trauma of one year on her family’s ranch, scenic and secluded, surrounded by and a part of the wild world around them.
Set high in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, along the Headwaters of the Rio Grande, Gin opens her world to the reader with stunning honesty, and compassionate grace, sharing this captivating, personal tale of home, belonging, commitment to land and family. Their life is living testament to the power and clarity of love, life and the natural world.
My next book, The Last of the Living Blue, is scheduled for release on June 30, 2014.
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