Jean-Yves Goar
Whether she sets her story in Brittany or in Charles de Gaulle airport, whether she names her characters a poetic “Marie-Soleil” or a mischievous “Etienne Marcel”, Isabelle Artus writes primarily for her readers and transports them into a bubble of happiness.
Writing gives us the power to speed up or slow down the aging process, allows us to give life (or death), or change a character’s appearance. These are many prerogatives that anti-aging doctors would love to have.
Jean-Yves Goar: How do you decide the age of your characters and how do you work out how their behaviour evolves?
Isabelle Artus: Their age is easy, but their psyche is built slowly, whether it is a fifty-year-old psychiatrist from Guadeloupe, a twenty-year-old suburban girl dreaming of Japan, or an eighty-year-old who disappears in an airport.
JY.G.: How do you step into the character of a hundred-year-old Armenian lady?
I.A.: I gather a lot of information. I read and watch documentaries to learn all about geography and history of the era concerned. I also research my character’s job. Once I have done all my research, it’s easy to slip into their character, and it’s only then that I think about the adventures they might have.
JY.G.: According to what criteria do you give your characters virtues of beauty or seduction?
I.A.: Above all, I try to make my characters likeable and memorable. In “Donnez-moi de mes nouvelles”, the protagonist’s two friends have a physique that matches their personality. Olympe has a ballerina’s figure, sophisticated elegance, and Alma-Marie is a 6-foot, 15-stone natural beauty, and both are beautiful in their own way.
JY.G.: Writing enables you to control time. Is it a way for you to serenely accept the passing years?
I.A.: I don’t know if writing allows me to control time, especially when I’ve got a manuscript to hand in! However, writing allows me to travel in time, go back in time, stretch the present, rub shoulders with real and fictitious characters.
JY.G.: Your character Odette, who has become somewhat of an idol for your readers, is a woman of a certain age. Do you imagine she has a specific skincare “routine”?
I.A.: Odette likes to look good and believes that taking care of yourself is simply good manners. Her skincare routine is straightforward but sophisticated. Every morning and evening, she applies Nivea face cream to her forehead, chin, nose and cheeks. She has her hair done by a mobile hairdresser and does her own nails like a professional. Add a quick spritz of Eau de Rochas and she’s ready to face the day!
JY.G.: Where would you like to grow old?
I.A.: There are two places that are close to my heart. The first is Paris: I was born here and I live here, like many of my characters. The second is Roussillon in the Lubéron, which is well-known for its ochre quarries. I’d like to grow old there. n
Isabelle Artus
Former editor-in-chief of Psychologies Magazine, Isabelle Artus is now a novelist. “La Petite Boutique Japonaise” (Flammarion), her first novel, was successful in France and abroad, having been translated into five languages. She published “Odette et le taxi jaune” and “Donnez-moi de mes nouvelles” with Charleston editions.
Jean-Yves Goar
Communication consultant Jean-Yves Goar believes in the virtues of image and words, the impact of our appearance and the words it conjures up. A specialist in beauty and medical aesthetics, he pays attention to aging well and keeping the mind and body healthy.
