Q and A with Barbara

DAILY WORK HABITS:
Work environment and writing habits 
Where do you work?
My office is the room above our garage. It has four skylights above and two windows each at the front and back of the house. I have a U-shaped desk that holds my computer, a writing space, a fax machine, and a myriad drawers and file cabinets. There is a chair on the other side of the writing space; my assistant sits here when she comes in with questions. Bookshelves, with additional file cabinets beneath, face the desk. On my left as I work, is a seating area consisting of a rattan love seat and chair. On my right, a window seat runs under the front windows. That's Chelsea's spot.
What hours do you keep?

When I'm working full-tilt on a book, I write from 7 am to 2 pm. Then I break for phone calls, web business, appointments outside the house. On a good day, I'll have another two or three hours in the afternoon to proof and edit what I wrote that morning, even write another page or two.
I happen to do some of my best creative thinking in the car. So if I need to work out a plot twist, I just drive around. I also keep a pad of paper by my bed. I'll often wake up in the middle of the night with an important thought relating to my plot. If I don't write it down, it's gone.
How many drafts do you work through?
Hundreds, I would guess. It's hard to say, what with the constant rewriting one does on a computer. I can say that I print out one complete copy of the book when I first hand it in to my editor, then another complete copy when I've finished revisions. But that doesn't take into consideration the many, many changes—some of them significant, involving plot changes, even cutting and pasting—that occur in the process of writing that first version.
Who helps you write?

My agent, Amy Berkower, negotiates my contracts and, as my liaison to both US and foreign publishers, handles the business end of my career. My assistant, Lucy Davis, handles the web site, takes care of paperwork for me, does marketing and promotional work, and frees me from the telephone. I bounce ideas off both of these people; they read proposals and give feedback.

For the actual book writing, though, I'm on my own. I've never been one for hands-on workshops, since I'm as private about my work as I am about my life. My editor sees part of the book as I'm writing it. I need her feedback and suggestions, and she needs to know the general plot for the sake of publishing plans, early art work, etc.