Erin Carlson reminds me of character Carrie Bradshaw. Stylish, beautiful, clever, the only difference is Erin does not write about relationships, she writes about great women of our time. Her first book on writer-director Nora Ephron titled “I’ll have what she is having” released in 2017 and her second book titled “Queen Meryl: The Iconic Roles, Heroic Deeds, and Legendary Life of Meryl Streep” released in 2019 and highlights the legendary Meryl Streep. We sat down with Erin to talk about her career as a journalist, writer and Queen Meryl of course.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What were you like as a child? Who are you today?
Erin: As a little girl I was curious, funny and stubborn. I loved to paint, draw and write stories — anything that flexed my creative muscles. Today, I'm the editor of a regional society magazine in the Bay Area called The Nob Hill Gazette, and the author of two nonfiction books about Meryl Streep ("Queen Meryl") and writer-director Nora Ephron ("I'll Have What She's Having.") In a way, I'm still doing what I loved as a child! How does that saying go? "The creative adult is the child who survived." I've always identified with that statement.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What life experiences have led you to write a book.
Erin: Formerly, I was an arts and entertainment reporter at The Associated Press in New York City, then I covered the entertainment industry for the trade publication The Hollywood Reporter. So I had accumulated the journalistic experience necessary to report two biographies about two powerful women in Hollywood, which required me to spend hours (and hours) reaching out to celebrities, filmmakers and the like to talk to me about what it was like to work with the great Meryl Streep and Nora Ephron. The reporting and interviewing process was tricky to navigate, and I'm most proud of writing these books without getting any complaints of inaccuracies! It sounds glamorous, but it is very stressful. (I can't believe I still have my hair.)
Giulia Juliet Belkin: I know she is fabulous, but why Meryl?!
Erin: Because she is, hands down, the greatest actor of our time. "That's all," as Miranda Priestly would say.
Erin for October 2010 issue of Cosmopolitan for a feature on women in the media.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: Is this your first book?
Erin: My second! And fingers crossed, there will be a third if I can finish my novel.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: How long does it take you to write a book?
Erin: Per my contracts with my publisher, I had a year to write and report both I'll Have What She's Having and Queen Meryl. For each book, I spent about nine months reporting and three months writing (literally, locking myself in my office for days on end, in 14-hour stretches. Eek!).
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Erin: I would say nursing the same cup of coffee throughout the day, and reheating it in the microwave no less than 20 times a day to keep it warm.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What is the key theme and/or message in the book?
Erin: With Queen Meryl, the message I would like readers to absorb is that you should never let anyone define who you are! You get to define you, and write the story of your own life. Meryl never listened when her critics complained she was too technical an actress, or not sexy enough to play a certain role. She went after those roles anyway, and played them as no other actor could. Her greatest strength is her self-confidence, which was instilled in her as a young girl by her mother, Mary, an artist and larger than life character herself.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What was the process for coming up with the cover?
Erin: My publisher, Hachette Books, wanted to go in a more joyous, optimistic direction for the cover of Queen Meryl. They chose a gorgeous picture of her, which she liked, in addition to a vibrant color palette (pink, black, gold and white) that captures a certain joie de vivre for which Meryl is not given enough credit. She's seen as very serious, which she is, but she's also very playful, too. Her close friends know her as funny, spontaneous and lively.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What has been your biggest curveball? Your biggest surprise?
Erin: Going back to my previous answer, I didn't realize Meryl was so much fun. That is, until I started reporting the book and discovered she had an impish sense of humor on the set of her films (she once mooned the director of The River Wild) and she's been known to bum a cigarette off a co-star. She has cooked and baked for her co-stars too. She is the mother of four children, and so her maternal energy is strong. She loves to laugh and joke around.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: Who are your biggest influencers?
Erin: Nora Ephron, Tom Hanks, Greta Gerwig, Jia Tolentino, Louisa May Alcott.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: What do you like to do when you are not writing?
Erin: I read a lot (mostly nonfiction!) and listen to news podcasts and love to catch the latest film at the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: If you had to describe yourself in three words what would they be?
Erin: Ambitious, clever, empathetic.
Giulia Juliet Belkin: Are you working on anything at the present you would like to share?
Erin: I'm writing a novel — wish me luck!
Nature and Individual