Member Snapshot: Allie Gerlach

Where do you get your news?

Real news I get from salon.com, Excite Headline News, and the always illuminating fark.com. When I go into a news spiral, I also check cnn.com, msnbc.com, news.bbc.co.uk, the seattletimes.com and the newyorktimes.com. Entertainment, or pretend news, I get from zap2it.com, eonline.com and Entertainment Weekly.

What's your order in a coffee shop?

When it’s really hot outside, I can’t resist the mocha Frappuccino, but typically I get a grande, no-whip mocha. I’m a latecomer to coffee. I’ve only been drinking it for two years or so, and as far as I’m concerned, the sweeter the better! I don’t really have a regular coffee place but am very fond of the Uptown in Queen Anne.

If you knew you could not fail, what would you do?

If I couldn’t fail, I’d do everything! I’d open a ranch for wayward and abused animals. I’d sail around the world. I’d give a really awesome Oscar acceptance speech. I’d design beautiful clothes for plus-size women. I’d start a magazine - part Bust, part New Yorker, part Dwell and part Mother Jones. Who wouldn’t read that? I’d also open this really cool, all-night emporium that was part restaurant, part laundromat, part playground, and part wellness center. It would (among other things) make great sandwiches and pie. It would have a trampoline and a shampoo artist and comfy chairs and plenty of meeting space and huge washing machines and lots of local art on the walls. It’s really just what Seattle needs. If I couldn’t fail, I’d also kick George Bush and John Ashcroft’s asses. And I’d fall in love.

Where do you get ideas for your writing?

Most of my truly solid ideas come from real events, either in the news or in my own life. Sometimes something just hits me out of the blue, and I really love that, but you can’t count on it. So I strive to remain open to the stories that fly around everyone all the time. I’ve also developed this habit of telling myself long, involved stories in order to fall asleep at night. It started when I was a kid. I had just seen a movie about a spider that turned its victims into giant spiders with its bite. I think I was eight years old. I went to bed stressed out about the impending bad dreams I was certain I was going to have. In an effort to dodge the sure-to-be-horrifying nightmares, I ended up telling myself a long, complex, detailed story about Disneyland (I had never been. Still haven’t). It worked great - no giant spider nightmares! What started out as an anxious diversionary tactic has become one of my favorite personal traditions. Sad and dark is the night I can’t come up with a chapter of a story to lull myself to sleep with. I seldom if ever write these stories down, but I think they keep me mentally limber and they sometimes give me great ideas.

How did you learn about Writergrrls?

I was an early member of Seattle Webgrrls and was there when Seattle Writergrrls was spun off. I joined immediately and have been a (mostly) lurking presence ever since.

Describe your writing routine.

If only I had one! I’m always trying to establish a new, viable, productive routine that I can really commit to. The truth is I generally write when I feel like it. This sometimes means writing every day for several hours and sometimes means not writing at all for several weeks at a stretch. Typically, I try to write for at least half an hour every other day. Which isn’t much, I know. When the inspiration is not there, that half hour is often better spent zoned out in front of the TV. I tell myself I need to have a modicum of discipline if I want to do anything worthwhile. And, so far, this is the most discipline I can consistently muster. While I was deep in the unemployment black hole, I found myself writing most nights between 1:00am and 5:00am, and then going to bed. It was actually a pretty productive, albeit ultimately unsustainable, period for me.

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading a lot of magazines. I’m in the middle of writing a story with a very specific voice and I’m afraid if I read anything too immersive that I might lose my grip on that voice. So I stick to shallow things like magazines and shampoo bottles. But next on my list is either the newest Harry Potter or My Year of Meats.

What's your favorite book this week?

Off the top of my head, my favorite book is A Trip to the Stars by Nicholas Christopher. I love, love, love books that whisk me away to another place, and this book does that excellently. It’s full of magic and arcana, mystery and emotion, idiosyncrasies and truth. It is a very satisfying read from start to finish. I wish I could have the pleasure of reading it for the first time again. My other favorite (because who can have just one anyway?) is the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman. Simply marvelous.

What's your best quality?

I am generous, bordering on indulgent; with most people but especially with those I love. I’m also pretty darn funny.

What would you change about yourself?

I wish I was more disciplined. I often lack personal follow-through and it drives me crazy. I know what I need to do, but I just won’t do it. I get bored with my own stuff faster than I can complete it. If someone else is depending on me, I wouldn’t dream of letting them down. But I let myself down a lot. I also wish I was much more coordinated and graceful. I fall down too much.

Allie sometimes works as a Web developer/producer. Other times she doesn't work at all. Working is less stressful than not working, but all this not working does makes her feel more like a writer and less like a cog in a machine. She can be contacted at agerlach@excite.com.