Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/335336
18 BRAVA MAGAZINE | JULY 2014 *STILLLOVED/EW:ORKBUTˬSYEˬRS PˬSSED * FOUND MYSELF ENVIOUS OF MY .ˬDISONFRIENDSŀ EYLIVEDCLOSEENOUGH to one another to socialize easily and of- TENWHEREˬSMYFRIENDSˬND*WERESPREˬD OUTˬLLOVER+ERSEY$ITY2UEENS#ROOK LYNˬND8ESTCHESTER"MEREHˬPPYHOUR DRINKTOOKSEVERˬLWEEKSOFHIGHLEVEL NEGOTIˬTIONS*NCONTRˬST.ˬDISONFELT CˬLMERQUIETERGREENERˬNDGENTLER#Y NOW*mDGOTTENMY.'"*mDPUBLISHED MYNOVELˬND*WˬSREˬLIZINGTHˬT*NO LONGERSˬWMYSELFLIVINGˬCERTˬINLIFEˬS ˬWRITERIN/EW:ORK*WˬNTEDTOLIVEˬS ˬWRITERIN.ˬDISONŀ ENOVELIST$UR TIS4ITTENFELDWHOLIVESIN4T-OUISHˬS written that although the Midwest gets ˬBˬDRˬPITISˬWONDERFULPLˬCETOBEˬ WRITERˬND*WHOLEHEˬRTEDLYˬGREE"NY writer will tell you that we work in order TOBUYTIMETOWRITEˬNDTHˬTMONEYGOES ˬLOTFˬRTHERINTHE.IDWEST8HENYOU DONmTHˬVETOSTRIVESOHˬRDFOREˬCHˬND EVERYTHINGYOUDOEˬCHDˬYˬNDWHEN YOUDONmTSPENDEVERYEVENINGENGˬGED INCOMPETITIVEˬNˬLYSISOFYOURFRIENDSm BOOKˬDVˬNCESYOUHˬVEENERGYFORˬC TUˬLCREˬTIVITY 0R*DOˬNYWˬY*KNOW TONSOFPEOPLEWHOTHRIVEONEVERYTHING *JUSTLISTEDˬSˬDETRˬCTIONˬNDUNSUR PRISINGLYTHEYˬRESTILLIN/EW:ORK "ND *REˬLIZEDTHˬT*COULDMOREEˬSILYDOˬLL THETHINGSTHˬTINSPIREMECREˬTIVELYˬND WORKTHEIRWˬYINTOMYWRITINGWHETHER it's learning to break down a side of pork ORWˬNDERINGˬROUND-ˬKE.ONONˬ *NMˬNYWˬYSTHEPˬSTFEWYEˬRSBˬCK IN.ˬDISONHˬVEBEENMYMOSTPRODUC TIVE*WILLGRUDGINGLYCONCEDETHˬTMY attempt to make my own cheese was only ˬMIDDLINGSUCCESSBUTTHEESSˬYˬBOUTIT WˬSPRETTYGOOD*ˬLSOHˬVEFOUNDTIMETO maintain my obsession with the farmers' MˬRKETTHOUGH*LIMITMYSELFTONOMORE THˬNTWOˬWEEKˬND*TRYMIGHTILYTO TEˬRMYSELFˬWˬYFROMEˬCHBOOTHBEFORE* ˬNNOYTHEFˬRMERS *DOUBT*WILLEVERSETˬNOVELIN.ˬN HˬTTˬN OR #ROOKLYN * HˬVE HOWEVER SETTWOBOOKSIN.ˬDISONˬNDUNTILRE CENTLY*WˬSPRETTYSURE*mDDRˬINEDTHˬT WELL#UTNOWTHˬT*mMPLˬNNINGˬNOTHER NOVEL*HˬVETOCONFESS*FEELˬǠCTIONˬL .IDWESTERNCOLLEGETOWNCOMINGONˬND *THINK*STILLHˬVEPLENTYTOSˬY Meet Wildgen Aug. 7 at BRAVA Salon— BRAVA's newest event focused on books, culture and conversation. Join us as we discuss Wildgen's "Bread & Butter" with her. Bring your book club! For details and to register visit BRAVAmagazine.com. MORSELS ABOUT AUTHOR MICHELLE WILDGEN Michelle Wildgen is author of this summer's most delicious read, "Bread & Butter," the inside story of three brothers who open competing restaurants in the same town. A foodie's feast, it off ers a back-of-the-house restaurant view served with a full, sating plate of food snobbery, and family humor and drama. A UW literature and creative writing graduate, Wildgen has published three books, including "You're Not You," (recently made into a movie starring Hilary Swank and awaiting release), and "But Not for Long," and her essays, fi ction and food writing have been published in various national and literary publications. With fellow local author Susanna Daniel she runs a writers' workshop (madisonwriters.com) and lives—and feasts—in Madison with her husband, Steve, and daughter, Holly (who's aptly named after one of Wildgen's favorite book characters). How does it feel to have your second book, "You're Not You," made into a movie? I never thought it would go all the way through—I mean a lot of things get optioned and it's an amazing chess piece to actually fi lm a movie. It becomes somebody else's—it's a diff erent form, a diff erent media and it'll be very interesting to see what I recognize and what feels diff erent to me. What's your favorite local restaurant? Describe your fondness for it. Osteria Papavero. The things that they have that stay on the menu I always have a hard time walking away from because I love them. They have the most amazing butterscotch pudding—have you ever had it? It's incredible. It feels like a place I want to be, and in the winter it feels cozy and lovely. I remember being there with my husband many years ago and noticed a couple with their 7-year-old, just having dessert at the bar. It was one of the fi rst times I thought, 'Maybe I do want to have a kid because then I can take them out for a lovely meal or dessert and it doesn't have to be at some crappy restaurant.' I still remember sitting there thinking, 'Oh. We could be that way, too.' Setting is a main ingredient in your stories—but what's your favorite pantry ingredient? Probably olive oil, because it makes everything I make better. I just love— and I insist on—a certain Sicilian olive oil that I get from a shop in the Bronx. It's really full flavored, one of those peppery Sicilian olive oils that's big and delicious. How do you like to interact with food? To me it's the daily touchstone, something that you look forward to that you're going to love. I think you have to have good food—even if it's simple and inexpensive. It doesn't have to be caviar and foie gras, but it's a source of pleasure and beauty in life that's really democratic if you can have it in your life in whatever small way that is. A book can be as sating as a good meal. What are your favorite reads and inspiring authors? 'Happy All the Time,' by Laurie Colwin is defi nitely one of them [as is its character, Holly], and anything by M.F.K. Fisher, Alice Munro and Lorrie Moore, and Ann Beattie's short stories. When did you fi rst know that you were a writer? I went to a summer writing camp that was really a writer's workshop but for teenagers—you know, just without the booze. I can still remember my parents asking, 'So how was the week?' It was the best week of my life, because there was just something about it where you're in your element and everything people say is exciting to you—I felt the same way when I went to work at L'Etoile. I felt alive.