When Jeanette Horn started her degree at UT, she wanted to major in English. Encouraged by her family to pursue a business career, with writing on the side, she studied at the McCombs School of Business. After nearly three years, she finally told her parents, “Either I’m switching to English, or I’m going to drop out of school.”
After graduating with an English degree, she attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa, where she received a master’s degree. After more than a decade of work, she released her debut novel, “Play, With Knives,” on March 4, which follows a group of actors touring the Midwest on a train-turned-dream-space, where elements of the playwright’s script come to life. The Daily Texan sat down with Horn to discuss her book and journey from writing poetry to fiction.
The Daily Texan: How are you feeling now that the book is out?
Jeanette Horn: I wanted to have that accomplishment at the end of my life. If I (were) on my deathbed and knew I had never published a book, I would feel tons of regret. I didn’t want to feel that. That’s what kept me motivated throughout the writing of it over the years.
DT: You’re back in Austin now. How did that happen?
JH: I grew up in Austin. … (I eventually came back) to Austin to crash back with my parents and get back on my feet. … (I realized) I did not appreciate Austin enough, having grown up here. I took it for granted. … This is one of the greatest cities in the U.S., and I’m going to try to stay here. I got a job here really quickly, started working, slowly started dating and got married to my now-husband and have been here ever since.
DT: Can you tell me about the inspiration for the story?
JH: When I first graduated from Iowa, I was trying to pull back from experimental poetry. I’d started a book of poems, and (I wanted) to mix items from every culture and time period. … The way I decided to do that was to have a magician serving as a guide and leading you through this book of poems. I didn’t make it far with that book. … When it was time to start the novel, I still had that in the back of my head. … (In the book), I could achieve the same thing through actors because actors can become anyone. They can travel throughout time. … It ended up being perfect for the themes I wanted to write about: the subjective nature of truth and reality.
As I was writing, the magic popped in, and it’s dreamlike; if you’re (dreaming) and a penguin walks in, you just accept it. I wanted that feeling in the book — that magic of coincidence. … Someone sings a note, and a blue cloud floats out of their mouth. If you can do it, why not? I think it’s gorgeous.
