Rhinebeck’s Bill Clegg Reacts to First Novel’s Success

Bookworms have undoubtedly heard of Bill Clegg’s first novel, Did You Ever Have a Family, which was released by Gallery/Scout Press in September. The story of a woman who embarks on a cross-country trip after a losing her whole family has received stellar reviews from major publications like the New York Times and the UK’s Daily Telegraph. The novel was also longlisted for the 2015 National Book Award, the 2015 Man Booker Prize and the 2016 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Fiction.

Clegg, 45, currently owns a weekend and summer residence near Rhinebeck. Below, he shares insights about the book and his favorite parts of Hudson Valley living.

Has literature has always been close to your heart?

Yes, absolutely, literature has mattered a great deal to me since I read Dr. Suess.

When and how did you first know that you wanted to shape your career around the written word?

The day I first began working as an assistant in a small literary agency in NYC. Before then it was unimaginable.

You've also written memoirs about your personal sobriety struggles. How does writing those differ from writing fiction?

Writing the memoirs was a meaningful and often somber experience. The novel was much more joyful. I approached each session with anticipation and curiosity.

What made you want to craft a novel around such a delicate subject as a tragedy?

That still remains somewhat of a mystery. It began with the character of June fleeing town. As I wrote I found out why.

When you first sat down to really write the novel, did you ever expect — or at least daydream — that it would be so successful?

Never! I'm still surprised to see it published around the world.

What’s your favorite fan reaction to the book?

My father's. He read it a few months before he died.

Did growing up in Connecticut and spending time in Dutchess County help shape the novel in any way?

The small town where I grew up is the initial inspiration for the novel. Its close-knit community was one that I remember being very supportive of, and often times critical of. I have experienced a similar comfort and toughness in other small groups of people — even my community of recovery in sobriety — which has led me to believe this is how people are. We tear each other apart sometimes, yes, but we also can save each other.

What made you decide to put roots near Rhinebeck?

I visited friends there over a decade ago and stayed. [It’s] close enough to where I grew up to have a feeling of familiarity, but far away enough, too.

What is your favorite part of the Hudson Valley?

The end of day light behind our house and above the fields. Also the water and faraway Catskills.

Will you be doing anymore appearances in the Valley for the paperback release on May 17?

No one has asked!

Will your next novel have elements of the Hudson Valley in it?

Yes.

Can we get a teaser of what the next book is about?

I'm currently exploring ideas of friendship — long sustained and also short lived. Friends have become so central in my adult life, but there are times I see [that] I took them for granted. I’m fascinated by how envy, competition, and power can play out between friends, and how over many years those roles can change.