Books
Pe n's place
Strangers come up to TAMA JANOWITZ and complain about her books. But the ‘punk Jane Austen’ reckons that’s the highest compliment she can get. Words: Kelly Apter
he‘s been called ‘the literate woman's Jackie (‘ollins‘.
An author who appeals to our baser needs for sex. drugs
and designer clothes. but with natty sentence structure and the kind of dry one-liners Joan‘s sis could only dream of. For over 20 years. Tama Janowitl. has been capturing the zeitgeist of her adopted city. New York. pouring a kaleidoscope of disparate characters into novels such as :l ('unm'bul in .llunlmtlun and The Male ('mss'-I)re.v.ver Support Group. But. it's her IQXo collection of short stories. Slum of'New iork for which Janowit/ is most well known. Later made into a rather less successful film. the book catapulted her into New York's literaiy ‘brat pack'.
It also caused one American critic to call her ‘a punk Jane Austen' — which must make that Jackie (‘ollins reference something of a come-down. ‘I‘d be thrilled to be Jackie (‘ollins if I could earn that kind of income.‘ says Janowitz in a deadpan voice strangely reminiscent of Marge Simpson. ‘But I'm just trying to write the best that I can. Other people may be more successful or more commercial. I can only hope to be me. And who knows what books last and how things are later placed or positioned."
As a chronicle of New York's social jet set. Janowitz's body of work could happily take its place in a time capsule for the future. Her fiction regularly leads her into trouble. with angry strangers accusing her of writing about them. something .lanowitz claims is ‘always complimentary".
Her lone venture into non-fiction. Area 212. named after the Manhattan dialling code. captures everyone from It (iirls to homeless ‘crazies‘. ‘I like to be able to write about the times that I‘m living in. in a way that's slightly outside them.‘ she says. ‘That. to me. has always been the best writing; not just an interesting story. but one which tells about the behaviours of the time.‘
Despite her success. .lanowitz. is compulsively. and amusingly. self-deprecating. Hearing her own voice during our trans-Atlantic telephone conversation. she complains that ‘everything I say has an echo. and I can hear this idiot talking back at me.‘ Sitting down to write each novel brings its own
TAM ‘
‘I GO THROUGH THE USUAL FIGHT WITH MYSELF, THAT I'LL NEVER WRITE ANOTHER BOOK, THAT I'M A STUPID IDIOT '
‘Who wouldn't like to scratch a mosquito bite and inflict some pain on themselves?‘
traumas: ‘I go through the usual light with myself. I‘celing that I can‘t write. that I’ll never write another book. that I'm a stupid idiot.‘
With such self-loathing. who needs critics'.’ l'nfonunatcly. she‘s got those too. I‘ot' all her adoring fans. .lanowit/s reviews are often scathing. But in true masochist style. she still reads them. ‘Who wouldn‘t like to scratch a mosquito bite and inflict some pain on themselves‘.’ Of course it hurts. but I‘ve been lucky. becatise my strong point is to keep on.‘
Another strong point is her ability to wrap up readers inside the hopes and heartbreaks of someone who. although invariably unlikeablc. is nonetheless compelling. Her latest heroine. Peyton Amberg. is one such character. Born into a world where girls wear vinyl mini skirts and gold earrings. she tries to elevate herself with a loveless marriage. (‘opious one-night stands follow as Peyton searches for the holy grail of happiness. and we're with her eveiy step of the way. ‘lt‘s the highest compliment when somebody says they couldn't put the book down because I feel that even if they didn't like it. that‘s major power over somebody] says Janowitx.
These are changed times for Janow'itl. Swapping the bustle of Manhattan for the suburbs of Brooklyn. where she lives with her husband and daughter. seems to have made her even more scathing. It's like her love affair with New York is over. ‘When I first moved here there were things that made it diverse and interesting and gritty. Now there's a Starbucks on every corner. It‘s a city for the young and the rich. and people who go to restaurants where you can‘t see what you're eating and can't hear what the other person's sayingf
During New York's artistic heyday in the early 80s. Janowitz used to hang out at Danceteria. the club infamous for giving Madonna at toe-hold to stardom. Why not follow in her footsteps? ‘New York has so much to offer. l'm American. it's my voice. my language. I couldn't move to London and expect or hope to get it right.‘
Tama Janowitz, 13 Aug, 7pm, £8 (£6). Peyton Amberg is published by Bloomsbury on 1 Sep, £9.99.
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