NY Yankees win big with Jane Heller as a She-Fan

Photo courtesy of Jane Heller

Jane Heller is the best writer on the planet when it comes to the romantic-comedy genre, but now the savvy author has added another notch to her belt with her hilarious version of baseball as seen through a female fan's eyes in Confessions of a She Fan: The Course of True Love with the New York Yankees. Heller uses her magic ability to bring baseball breathing out of the pages of the book, detailing the famous men in pinstripes. She writes about Mariano Rivera, A-Rod, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, and the rest of the magnificent team and their endeavors on the field in America's most beloved sport. The description of the agony of watching her heroes lose and the pure joy in their wins, delivers sadness and laughter to the readers' heart in this sentimental journey. The spontaneous Yankees fans' disconsolate moping as well as their exuberant hysteria when winning is observed by Heller as she joins in on their tears and laughter. 

This book should be a mandatory read for every baseball fan in the world. Only a woman who truly loves the game could have energized herself into the strenuous traveling which ensues as she follows the team from game to game. The New York Yankees should name Jane Heller an "honorary NY Yankee" for claiming so many fans back to the ecstasy of the game. Never has baseball been so graphically described to fans. What brought about the whole situation of writing Confessions of a She-Fan: The Course of True Love with the New York Yankees was the result of the thousands of fans all over the country who responded with outrage to her article about divorcing the NY Yankees, her favorite team, for not playing up to par two years ago. The letters woke her up to the fact that baseball loyalty is high up there in fans' minds.

Confessions of a She-Fan: The Course of True Love with the New York Yankees should be made into a film because if one article brought about so much attention: imagine what the silver screen could do for baseball.

Jane Heller has written novels that endure with the passage of time due to their capturing the readers' pulse. Her novels Lucky Stars, The Secret Ingredient and An Ex to Grind, make you literally laugh-out-loud as you follow the travails of the seemingly familiar heroine. Heller was a was a publicist for book publishers, eventually becoming a VP of advertising, promotion and publicity who decided to become a writer. She slid easily into this position by creating bestseller after bestseller. Like accountants crunch up numbers, Jane crunches up her arms throwing curveball after curveball, that in writing, few authors can hit that hard. She is consistent in her writing style. A reader can recognize a Jane Heller novel right away. It is this distinctive touch which sets her apart from the rest in Writer’s Land.  

RS: Jane, you are a world famous writer. I have personally read and enjoyed all your books immensely. Tell us something about your background. What was your upbringing like?

JH: My father died of cancer when I was six years old. My mother re-married my step-father when I was nine. Suddenly, my older sister and I had four step-siblings. We weren’t exactly “The Brady Bunch,” and it was difficult blending the two families. I discovered that humor was a wonderful way to break the tension, particularly at the dinner table. I would do imitations of the dry cleaner, the butcher, our doctor, you name it, and everybody would laugh instead of argue. Humor was important to me then, and it’s important to me in my writing now. I love making people smile and lightening their load.

I also escaped into sports – especially baseball and the Yankees. I had posters of Mickey Mantle all over my bedroom and I used to go to the Bronx to watch the games (and flirt with the players). I was on the tennis team in high school and college, but I wasn’t much of an athlete myself. I just enjoyed being a spectator. I figured I’d be a sportswriter when I graduated from college, and after attending a year of a master’s program at the U. of PA’s Annenberg School of Communications, I pounded the pavement in NY. Nobody was hiring women to cover sports back then, so I ended up working as an assistant in the publicity department of a NY publishing house. I never dreamed I’d write books some day, but I always loved telling stories – particularly those that made people laugh. “Our comedian,” my mother always called me

I’m the only writer among my sisters and brother. The glue that holds us all together is my mother, who’s 92 and lives in New York. She leads a book group, does five miles a day on her treadmill and is my role model. If I’m half as sharp as she is when I’m her age, I’ll be very happy.

RS: You have 5 brothers and sisters. Was it easy or hard growing up in a big family?

JH: It was hard growing up in a step-family. I always felt different from my friends, who had “regular” families. But we had fun too – like squeezing into the station wagon and going to drive-in movies. My parents were very good at making sure we all had attention and love.

RS:  You have a successful marriage, profession, and lifestyle.  What “secret ingredient” do you attribute this to?

JH: “The secret ingredient” for me is perseverance. I’ve been married three times, but the third time was the charm. My husband Michael and I have been together nearly 20 years and I can’t imagine a more supportive partner. Perseverance has figured into my career too; you can’t write 13 novels in 13 years without discipline and determination. Writing is a tough business. Rejections are part of the process. You have to dust yourself off, figure out how to make it better and try again.

RS:  Who would you say really brought out your potential as a writer?

JH: My agent, Ellen Levine, has been so important in my career. She’s very well known in publishing and has a reputation for being a “prestigious agent,” so I was quite intimidated when I sent her my work and asked if she’d represent me. But she loved my “voice” and responded to my humor. She’s been right there with me since I wrote my fourth book, “Princess Charming,” in 1996. I trust her completely and value her professionalism as well as her friendship. I’m a very lucky author.

RS:  Who is your favorite Yankee player or players?

JH: My favorite Yankees player (current) is Mariano Rivera. (Mickey Mantle was my childhood/teenaged hero.) He’s a Hall of Fame pitcher and I love watching him on the mound. But I also appreciate his quiet dignity. He doesn’t pump his fist or jump up and down, calling attention to himself. He just does his job – and does it well.

RS: Did you ever play softball?

JH: No, I never played softball. Only tennis and volleyball.

RS: What are you passionate about?

JH: I’m passionate about the Yankees. I also love movies. My husband and I belong to the Cinema Society here in Santa Barbara, which is part of the Film Festival here, and we get to see screenings of all the best films and attend Q&A sessions with the actors and directors. And I’m passionate about writing. I co-teach a writer’s workshop here in Santa Barbara with my friend Melodie Johnson Howe, an Edgar nominated mystery writer. We call ourselves “The Muse Madams,” and our workshops are very lively and, hopefully, helpful to the participants. You can read more about it here: http://www.themusemadams.com.

RS:  How did you develop the technique to transfer your humor so easily unto the written page?

JH: I learned by reading. Susan Isaacs was one of my favorite authors when I started writing. She was a revelation to me – a smart, funny, female writer who combined elements of romance and suspense and, above all, humor in her novels. I said to myself, “I want to do THAT.” I also pay very close attention to the way people talk. I love to write dialog and it’s important to make it realistic. So I do a lot of eavesdropping!

RS:  Your characters have that "special magic" which endears them to your readers. Do you do a lot of rewrites till you achieve perfection or do you usually arrive on first base easily?

JH: People say writing is re-writing, and that’s certainly the case with me. I don’t move on from a chapter unless I’m 100% satisfied with it. My friend Melodie likes to get everything down, then go back and re-write. I guess I’m too compulsive for that technique. I go over and over a chapter until it works for me, editing myself along the way. When I turned in my first manuscript, “Cha Cha Cha,” in 1993, my editor said, “If you cut it in half, the Literary Guild will take it as a featured alternate.” The Literary Guild was so important at the time, and I was a brand new writer. So I said, “Sure, I’ll cut it in half,” having no clue how to do that. But I learned. I sat with the manuscript and edited and edited. It was such a great experience. The process comes naturally to me now.

RS:  Helen Reiser, the "Mother" in Lucky Stars is a five feet two inch dynamo.  How did you come up with her?

JH: I came up with Helen Reiser after seeing the “Where’s the beef” lady in the Wendy’s commercials. She was so bossy and funny! I thought, Oh, boy. She’s somebody’s mother and I bet she’s a handful.”

RS:  Stacey Reiser in Lucky Stars has a pushy meddlesome mother who wants the best for her, her way. Do you know many Helens and Staceys?

JH: I came up with the story of Stacey and Helen after reading an article about a young writer who’d been trying to get published for years. She discovers that her 60 something mother has written a first novel and not only gotten it published but sold it to Hollywood. The article was about how the daughter was jealous of her mother’s success and proud of it too. I moved that conflict into the world of show business. I haven’t known many Staceys and Helens. My mother isn’t overbearing like Helen. She’s big on “Make sure you drive carefully” and “Don’t forget your umbrella,” but she doesn’t interfere in my life.

RS:  Amy Sherman, in your novel, Best Enemies, feels like she has regressed to her past when confronted with Tara Messer in her life once more. This was different from your other books. What influenced you to use this format?

JH: “Best Enemies” is the story of two childhood friends who become enemies. I started to write it in the voice of Amy, the friend who’d been wronged. But about halfway through the book, I decided I wanted to hear from Tara, the “bad girl.” It was such fun to write from two points of view. The idea just came to me to try the two voices and I loved the execution of it. I hope readers do too.

RS:  In your novel, An Ex To Grind (Melanie Banks, Manhattan financial planner, and husband Dan Swain, a pro football player whose career comes to a screeching halt. She is supporting him and sharing custody of Buster, their adorable dog. She has to support him unless she can dump him on someone else. What is your personal opinion on women having to support their ex-husbands? 

JH: The idea for “An Ex to Grind” was triggered by a close friend, who was forced to pay her ex-husband alimony and really resented it. She was furious that her ex wasn’t even trying to get a job. She felt it was unfair that she had to support him even though they were no longer married and he was fully capable of supporting himself. This is such a hot-button issue these days, as more and more women are earning more than their husbands now. My personal feeling is that if men have to pay their exes alimony, women should have to do the same. No discrimination. That said, the partner receiving the payments has to earn it in some way – like taking care of the kids. It’s complicated and I wouldn’t want to be a judge in family court right now.

RS: How did you feel after the tremendous response you received to your saying you were divorcing the Yankees after all those losses?

JH: I was excited that so many people read that New York Times article I wrote about divorcing the Yanks. But I was shocked that so many of them accused me of being a bandwagon fan – a traitor! I wrote the piece in a humorous vein, and I was surprised when it was taken so literally. But it forced me to look inward and ask myself, “What sort of a fan are you? Really?” And, of course, that question led to “Confessions of a She-Fan.”

RS: If you were the Yankees team owner, what would you do differently?

JH: I wouldn’t change anything about the team itself. The Yankees are in first place and having a great season. But the prices for tickets at the new stadium are over the top – in any economy. Baseball should be for everyone, not just the wealthy.

RS:  How much time do you spend writing?

JH: When I’m working on a book, I put in a full writing day. I get up at 7am, eat breakfast and read the paper, then write all morning. I take a quick break for lunch and write again until 5 or 6 pm. If I’m in the home stretch of a book, I might work into the night too; there’s a manic feeling of wanting to get to the end and seeing how it all comes out!

RS:  You studied classics in the University of Rochester. Do you like to read the classics? Which ones are your favorites?

JH: I wish I could tell you I read the classics. I don’t. I loved studying Greek and Latin in college, but I don’t have time to sit down and read “The Iliad” these days.

RS:  You are so successful, yet make yourself available to your millions of readers. Why do you do this?

JH: I don’t understand authors who don’t make themselves available to their readers. That confounds me. If someone takes the time to read something I’ve written, not to mention spent their hard-earned money to buy it, the very least I can do is respond to an email or Facebook message or Tweet. I love doing book signings too. There’s nothing more satisfying than meeting readers face to face. When someone says, “Your book made me laugh out loud,” I’m in heaven. It’s the best feeling ever. That’s why my Yankees blog has been so much fun. It takes a lot of work to write a new post every day, but the feedback is tremendous. I just celebrated my one year anniversary of the blog, and people left such lovely comments, thanking me for doing it. I’m the one who’s grateful.

RS:  Who would you say represents Jane Heller among all your characters?

JH: I think I relate most to Ann, the heroine of “Some Nerve,” because she’s a hospital volunteer and so am I. In fact, that novel is the reason I became a hospital volunteer. I was researching Ann’s work by spending time at my local hospital and I got hooked. I’m a “patient visitor,” which means I put on my volunteer uniform every Monday, go to the hospital for my noon-4 pm shift, and talk to patients on every floor – from the cancer ward to maternity. It’s so rewarding. Patients need a shoulder sometimes, and I’m pleased to be that for them.

RS:  Does your husband participate in your writing?

JH: I read my books aloud to my husband and he critiques them. He’ll say, “That scene isn’t funny enough.” Or maybe he’ll have a question about the plot. He’s not a writer, but he reads a lot and has a very good ear. I rely on him greatly and respect his opinion.

RS:  Do you seek his advice upon the male characters?

JH: I seek his opinion on male and female characters. He’s not shy about saying, “This person doesn’t ring true.”

RS:  What are your hobbies?

JH: Hobbies are watching the Yankees, going to movies, taking walks on the beach.

RS:  What project are you working on now?

JH: I’ve just done a proposal for another nonfiction, baseball-related book (with illustrations this time), but I have no idea if publishers will be interested. And I’ve started another novel. It’s very early in the process, but I’m excited about the story.

RS: What is your website?

JH: My web site is: http://www.janeheller.com.