This week we welcome author Debra Ginsberg. Her newest book The Neighbors are Watching was just released this week from Crown Publishers. We first became a fan of Debra’s work by reading her book Waiting about her experiences waiting tables, one of the most universal jobs out there. Visit Debra at her website where you can see the really cool trailer for The Neighbors are Watching. Thanks for joining us this week, Debra.
When did you know that you first wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always wanted to be a writer. In fact, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t. I must have started thinking about how I could get published when I was still in the womb.
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What book or writer/artist do you feel influenced you the most? 
That is really a tough question because there are so many. My earliest influences of the joy of storytelling were definitely the Brothers Grimm and Lewis Carroll. Those were the first books I read and they delight influence me still.
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What book or books are you currently reading or have recently read that you’d recommend to others?
Rock ‘n roll biographies are my main guilty pleasure, reading-wise, so I was very excited to read Life, the new Keith Richards memoir. I just finished reading it and it was terrific – truly a cut above the rest. I highly recommend it!
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If you could offer one piece of advice to aspiring writers, what would it be?
Don’t do it for the money! On a related note; don’t quit your day job. But ultimately, if you must write; meaning, if it truly calls you, then there’s nothing for it – you must do it. And if you must do it, then READ – as much as you can.
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Can you share with us your next project or any information about the next book you’re working on?
I am currently at work on another novel – again in the area of psychological suspense – but there are other ideas brewing too.
