Brighton native Ilie Ruby is returning to the Rochester area this weekend as part of a book tour for her second novel.
“The Salt God's Daughter” was released Sept. 4.
Ruby — who spent much of her time writing stories and plays while growing up in Brighton — said she always enjoyed expressing her creativity, but writing wasn’t her first outlet as a career. In addition to being an assistant producer for a PBS archeology series in Central America, she has also worked as a teacher.
“I’ve always liked art and writing,” she said. “I wasn’t sure what direction I’d go in. I decided that I always wanted to be a teacher, and I loved being a teacher. I love teaching creativity mostly, art and writing.”
While teaching fifth grade in California, she said she was drawn to pursue her writing further.
“Writing was a calling to me,” she said. “I felt very driven to really see what I could do with it. It was a passion of mine that I’ve always sort of nurtured.”
And so she entered the University of Southern California’s Professional Writing Program.
“At the time, there were so many stories I wanted to get down on paper,” she said. “I was 26 years old. I wasn’t married. I had no ties, no responsibility. ... I recognized that it was my window of opportunity and the time to work. I knew I would probably not have that type of freedom again.”
Her first novel, “The Language of Trees,” was published in 2010. The book, set in Canandaigua, was the culmination of 10 years of work.
“It was just a great joy, an absolute joy, especially to come back to Canandaigua, the place that inspired the book,” Ruby said. “I always end up writing about place. Place is such an important influence on who you are.”
Her second novel, which Ruby said is “woven with magical realism and Jewish folklore,” examines the issue of bullying, a topic Ruby said she was interested in as a mother of three, including two daughters.
She started doing research and learned more and more about the stories of girls who were bullied.
“All their stories were so similar in their endings,” she said. “I was so taken with their stories and the struggles that are still going on with girls today.”
The novel, Ruby said, “is very much about the gritty truth of female rites of passage.”
Brighton native Ilie Ruby is returning to the Rochester area this weekend as part of a book tour for her second novel.
“The Salt God's Daughter” was released Sept. 4.
Ruby — who spent much of her time writing stories and plays while growing up in Brighton — said she always enjoyed expressing her creativity, but writing wasn’t her first outlet as a career. In addition to being an assistant producer for a PBS archeology series in Central America, she has also worked as a teacher.
“I’ve always liked art and writing,” she said. “I wasn’t sure what direction I’d go in. I decided that I always wanted to be a teacher, and I loved being a teacher. I love teaching creativity mostly, art and writing.”
While teaching fifth grade in California, she said she was drawn to pursue her writing further.
“Writing was a calling to me,” she said. “I felt very driven to really see what I could do with it. It was a passion of mine that I’ve always sort of nurtured.”
And so she entered the University of Southern California’s Professional Writing Program.
“At the time, there were so many stories I wanted to get down on paper,” she said. “I was 26 years old. I wasn’t married. I had no ties, no responsibility. ... I recognized that it was my window of opportunity and the time to work. I knew I would probably not have that type of freedom again.”
Her first novel, “The Language of Trees,” was published in 2010. The book, set in Canandaigua, was the culmination of 10 years of work.
“It was just a great joy, an absolute joy, especially to come back to Canandaigua, the place that inspired the book,” Ruby said. “I always end up writing about place. Place is such an important influence on who you are.”
Her second novel, which Ruby said is “woven with magical realism and Jewish folklore,” examines the issue of bullying, a topic Ruby said she was interested in as a mother of three, including two daughters.
She started doing research and learned more and more about the stories of girls who were bullied.
“All their stories were so similar in their endings,” she said. “I was so taken with their stories and the struggles that are still going on with girls today.”
The novel, Ruby said, “is very much about the gritty truth of female rites of passage.”
“I didn’t only want to show the shadows, but I wanted to illuminate what is most lovely about the female experience,” she said. “This book is the story of three generations of women, and the purpose is to bring awareness to issues that are not only being faced by girls today, but that were faced by our mothers and grandmothers. I think the message of the book, if I have to choose, is how important it is to love all girls, even the ones who are hard to love.”
Ruby said she is looking forward to returning home to share her new work with the public.
“I always love coming home to Rochester,” she said. “It’s my home, my community. My family has deep roots here. ... I hope people love the book.”
