美国国家公共电台 NPR As She Turns 90, Suspense Still Thrills Author Mary Higgins Clark

As She Turns 90, Suspense¹ Still Thrills Author Mary Higgins Clark

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Mary Higgins Clark has made a good living off murder. She creates characters that readers can identify with and then puts them in scary situations in her novels. Readers love her work enough to have bought 100 million copies of her stories in the United States alone. Some readers can identify with her own remarkable² story. Mary Higgins Clark did not get a book published until she was a widow in her 40s - never too late. She still turns out two books a year.

NPR's Lynn Neary profiles a writer whose birthday comes on Christmas Eve.

LYNN NEARY, BYLINE³: Mary Higgins Clark is celebrating her 90th birthday in style. At a pre-birthday party hosted by her publishing company, Simon & Schuster, Higgins Clark slowly made her way through the crowd.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: Happy birthday.

MARY HIGGINS CLARK: Oh, thank you so much.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: Happy early birthday.

NEARY: Elegantly dressed with perfectly⁴ coiffed hair and beautifully manicured nails, she supported herself with a cane⁵ that looked like it was made of crystal.

MICHAEL KORDA: I always refer to this as Mary's magic wand.

(LAUGHTER)

NEARY: Michael Korda is Higgins Clark's longtime editor. The two have an easy rapport⁶, which was obvious as they sat down to talk in a quiet corner of the room.

How long have you two worked together?

HIGGINS CLARK: Since 1974.

KORDA: Mary's been counting. I haven't. But that sounds right.

(LAUGHTER)

NEARY: As the two banter⁷ back and forth⁸, Higgins Clark reveals her self-deprecating sense of humor with a story about a run-in with a would-be fan.

HIGGINS CLARK: We go to Palm Beach for a couple of weeks in February. And I was walking down Worth Avenue, and a woman came. I can't believe I'm seeing you. I can't believe I'm in your presence. I'm awed⁹ to think that I am standing¹⁰ next to Danielle Steele.

(LAUGHTER)

NEARY: Korda says Higgins Clark usually finishes one novel around this time of year. And that's when the two begin plotting her next one.

KORDA: I start phoning up Mary and saying, how about...

HIGGINS CLARK: How about (laughter).

KORDA: ...How about this, how about that? And she - Mary's wonderful 'cause she says if that were it, I could do this and this would happen and that would happen. And she begins to fill it in. Or she says - which is very often the case - no, that's not going to work for me.

HIGGINS CLARK: My one virtue¹¹ was to be an Irish storyteller.

KORDA: (Laughter).

NEARY: Both agree that Higgins Clark's popularity is rooted in her ability to keep her readers turning pages compulsively.

KORDA: The critical factor is that each chapter should bring you to the point where, whatever time of the night it is, you want to turn the next chapter. And - yeah.

HIGGINS CLARK: That is the greatest compliment I can get, when someone will say to me - I read your darn book till 4 in the morning (laughter).

KORDA: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. And...

HIGGINS CLARK: I say, then you got your money's worth.

KORDA: Yeah, absolutely. And any novel that doesn't deliver that is lacking in something. And Mary has that. She has that instinct to a degree which is very, very rare.

NEARY: Storytelling may be instinctive¹² for Mary Higgins Clark, but she's also famous for her work ethic¹³, which she honed as a young girl growing up in the Bronx. Her father died suddenly, leaving her mother to raise three children on very little money. Higgins Clark was 15 when she started going into Manhattan to work as a telephone operator.

HIGGINS CLARK: Hotel Shelton - good afternoon. You know those old switchboards? So I was doing that three afternoons a week after school.

NEARY: When her own husband died suddenly, Higgins Clark had five children to support. She took a job writing short radio programs and got up at 5 o'clock every morning to work on her own writing.

HIGGINS CLARK: And I could work without interruption till quarter of 7 and then get the kids breakfast. And I was picked up by my carpool at quarter of 8. And the guys said it was indecent to look in the backseat of the car (laughter). I was still half-dressed, in curlers and dragging stockings on.

NEARY: She sold some short stories and a book about George Washington. But it was her first suspense novel, "Where Are The Children?" that really took off. Simon & Schuster, which had given her a $3,000 advance on the first book, offered her a great deal more for the next one. Clark remembers the day her agent called her with the news.

HIGGINS CLARK: She says, Mary, are you sitting? And I said yes. She said Simon & Schuster has offered $1 million for the hardcover. And Dell is offering $500,000 for the paperback¹⁴. And she said, think about it. I said - think about it? God's sake, call them back (laughter).

NEARY: Some 50 books later, Higgins Clark is still with Simon & Schuster. At her 90th birthday party, company president Carolyn Reidy, noting that all her books have been best-sellers, toasted Higgins Clark as the first lady of Simon & Schuster.

CAROLYN REIDY: We could not be happier than to be here tonight, Mary, to celebrate your birthday. And I ask you all to raise a toast with me to Mary.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #2: Hear, hear.

UNIDENTIFIED PEOPLE: Hear, hear. Cheers.

(SOUNDBITE OF GLASSES CLINKING)

HIGGINS CLARK: Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

NEARY: Among the guest paying homage¹⁵ to Higgins Clark was Alafair Burke, who co-authors one of the two books Higgins Clark publishes each year. Their latest is "Every Breath You Take." Burke has been reading Higgins Clark since high school and can't believe she's actually working with her now.

ALAFAIR BURKE: There's no diva in her whatsoever¹⁶. It's equal work. We sit there. And she listens to me. I listen to her. She treats me as a peer. It's really incredible.

NEARY: Bob Barnett, the Washington, D.C., lawyer who brokers¹⁷ some of the biggest deals in the book business, represents Higgins Clark. He says she is publishing royalty¹⁸. And he sees no end in sight for her writing career.

BOB BARNETT: And when you're 90 and you sign a new two-book deal, that's pretty remarkable. And I see no possibility that we won't do five, six, seven more two-book deals.

UNIDENTIFIED PEOPLE: (Singing) Happy birthday, dear Mary. Happy birthday to you.

HIGGINS CLARK: Oh, my goodness.

(APPLAUSE)

NEARY: Somehow, Higgins Clark says, 90 seems a lot older than 89. And she's not at all sure she wants to make it to 100. But she does know one thing. No matter how many years she has left, she plans to spend them writing. After all, she says, it's the only thing she's good at.

HIGGINS CLARK: I say if the fairy godmothers come to the cradle, the one who might have left me a singing voice was out of town. I can't sew anything. Well, I've fed five kids, but I'm no gourmet¹⁹ cook.

NEARY: So you can't imagine a time, I would think, where you're not actually writing a novel or writing...

HIGGINS CLARK: Honestly not - just turned in the April one, so I don't have to write at the moment. And I'm thinking, what'll I do?

NEARY: Pretty soon, no doubt - once the celebrations die down - she and Michael Korda will be throwing around some ideas for her next book.

Lynn Neary, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLOCKHEAD'S "UNSTUCK - INSTRUMENTAL")

1 suspense   

n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑

参考例句：

• The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
• The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。

2 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

5 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

6 rapport   

n.和睦，意见一致

参考例句：

• She has an excellent rapport with her staff.她跟她职员的关系非常融洽。
• We developed a high degree of trust and a considerable personal rapport.我们发展了高度的互相信任和不错的私人融洽关系。

7 banter   

n.嘲弄，戏谑；v.取笑，逗弄，开玩笑

参考例句：

• The actress exchanged banter with reporters.女演员与记者相互开玩笑。
• She engages in friendly banter with her customers.她常和顾客逗乐。

8 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

9 awed   

adj.充满敬畏的，表示敬畏的v.使敬畏，使惊惧( awe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The audience was awed into silence by her stunning performance. 观众席上鸦雀无声，人们对他出色的表演感到惊叹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I was awed by the huge gorilla. 那只大猩猩使我惊惧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

12 instinctive   

adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的

参考例句：

• He tried to conceal his instinctive revulsion at the idea.他试图饰盖自己对这一想法本能的厌恶。
• Animals have an instinctive fear of fire.动物本能地怕火。

13 ethic   

n.道德标准，行为准则

参考例句：

• They instilled the work ethic into their children.他们在孩子们的心中注入了职业道德的理念。
• The connotation of education ethic is rooted in human nature's mobility.教育伦理的内涵根源于人本性的变动性。

14 paperback   

n.平装本，简装本

参考例句：

• A paperback edition is now available at bookshops.平装本现在在书店可以买到。
• Many books that are out of print are reissued in paperback form.许多绝版的书籍又以平装本形式重新出现。

15 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

16 whatsoever   

adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么

参考例句：

• There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
• All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样，你就怎样对人。

17 brokers   

n.（股票、外币等）经纪人( broker的名词复数 )；中间人；代理商；（订合同的）中人v.做掮客（或中人等）( broker的第三人称单数 )；作为权力经纪人进行谈判；以中间人等身份安排…

参考例句：

• The firm in question was Alsbery & Co., whiskey brokers. 那家公司叫阿尔斯伯里公司，经销威士忌。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• From time to time a telephone would ring in the brokers' offices. 那两排经纪人房间里不时响着叮令的电话。 来自子夜部分

18 royalty   

n.皇家，皇族

参考例句：

• She claims to be descended from royalty.她声称她是皇室后裔。
• I waited on tables，and even catered to royalty at the Royal Albert Hall.我做过服务生， 甚至在皇家阿伯特大厅侍奉过皇室的人。

19 gourmet   

n.食物品尝家；adj.出于美食家之手的

参考例句：

• What does a gourmet writer do? 美食评论家做什么？
• A gourmet like him always eats in expensive restaurants.像他这样的美食家总是到豪华的餐馆用餐。