Taut, twisty, and viciously entertaining, Who is Maud Dixon is a stylish psychological thriller about how far into the darkness you’re willing to go to claim the life you always wanted.
We had the pleasure of chatting with debut author Alexandra Andrews all about Who Is Maud Dixon?, book recommendations, writing, and more!
Hi, Alexandra! Tell us a bit about yourself!
I’m a lifelong New Yorker, and I just published my first book. I spent almost fifteen years wanting to be a writer while actually writing very little, which, it turns out, is not the best way to become a wildly successful novelist. (Who knew?) I finally set out to write this novel in my early thirties while pregnant with my first child, and all that pent-up frustration became the premise of my plot. Who Is Maud Dixon? is about a young outsider in the New York literary world who is convinced she’s destined to become a famous writer. When she lands a job as the assistant to the world-famous novelist Maud Dixon, she decides to take a shortcut and steal her life.
After the chaos that was 2020, have you set any goals for this year? If so, how are they going so far?
My goal is to loosen up a bit. I had my second child last March—at the very moment New York shut down actually—and I spent much of 2020 in a state of panic. Being stressed out didn’t really help anything or anyone, and it almost certainly made me a worse parent. So I’m trying to chill. Does anyone know how you actually do that?
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
- The first book I remember reading: The Borrowers
- The one that made me want to become an author: Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion
- The one that I can’t stop thinking about: A Confession by Tolstoy
Your debut novel, Who Is Maud Dixon?, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Assistant steals famous author’s life.
What can readers expect?
Thwarted ambition, power struggles, and snappy dialogue. Plus an untimely death or two.
Can you tell us about any challenges you faced and how you were able to overcome them?
I was beset by self-doubt when I set out to become a writer. I would reread my drafts and be so disgusted by them I’d just give up. I was finally able to finish Who Is Maud Dixon? because I didn’t let myself look at anything I’d already written. I just kept moving forward. Then, at some point, I had finally accrued enough pages that I knew I wouldn’t throw them out. That’s when I went back and made edits. And on a more practical level, my computer was stolen from my apartment one night while I slept, and I lost my most recent draft. So having to rewrite it all was kind of a bummer.
What is your writing process like?
I procrastinate, procrastinate some more, finally write up a scene, decide to change my entire plot, do needless research, write another scene, switch back to the first plot, and spent the rest of the day napping.
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you have received?
I can’t remember receiving any specific writing advice, but I do have certain tenets I try to stick to: Be clear, be brief, don’t use too many metaphors, keep the action moving… the usual suspects.
What’s next for you?
I’m working on my next novel, which involves doing a lot of crossword puzzles while not writing a novel.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
Without even pretending to have an organizing principle: Every book by Peter Cameron; The Index of Self-Destructive Acts by Christopher Beha; Lost in Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an Intellectual Life by Zena Hitz; Muriel Spark’s short stories; Transit of Venus by Shirley Hazzard, Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener, Second Place by Rachel Cusk (not that she needs me to get her name out there…)
