The video features an engaging interview with renowned author Isabel Allende, delving into various facets of her life, career, and inspirations. The conversation touches on her experiences as a late-blooming writer, her process of researching and writing novels, and connecting her life experiences to her works. Allende reflects on her intriguing family background, her commitment to feminism, and her view of identity, particularly as it relates to her ties with Chile.

Allende discusses the themes of her latest novel, her unique process of starting a book, the influence of her family on her characters, and the challenges of writing historical fiction rooted in Chilean history. She draws parallels between past and present Chilean political climates and emphasizes the importance of understanding history to make sense of today's world. The conversation also explores the portrayal of strong female protagonists who often draw inspiration from real-life women around her.

Main takeaways from the video:

Please remember to turn on the CC button to view the subtitles.

Key Vocabularies and Common Phrases:

1. extraterrestrial [ˌɛkstrətəˈrɛstriəl] - (adj.) - Originating, located, or occurring outside Earth or its atmosphere. - Synonyms: (alien, otherworldly, unearthly)

And that is women. Young girls, usually girls who find an extraterrestrial or some creature that looks like an iguana and they have dish, romance and in great sex.

2. fierce [fɪrs] - (adj.) - Showing a heartfelt and powerful intensity. - Synonyms: (intense, passionate, powerful)

In your signature style, there are many facets to the story. I'm sure you're all going to get the book. So war, love, family, self-discovery, and of course, a fierce and independent heroine at the center.

3. protagonists [prəˈtæɡənɪsts] - (n.) - The main figures or leading characters in a story, play, or other work. - Synonyms: (characters, heroes, lead actors)

Emilia is like so many of my female characters, my protagonists, strong women who take risks, who fall, fail, and get back on their feet, and I don't make them up.

4. superstition [ˌsuːpərˈstɪʃən] - (n.) - A belief or way of behaving based on fear of the unknown or faith in magic or luck. - Synonyms: (myth, folklore, fallacy)

Well, at the beginning, it was superstition, because I had written my first book on January 8th of 1981 because my grandfather was dying in Chile, and I got a phone call, and so I started writing a letter for him that he gained the book.

5. correspondent [ˌkɒrəˈspɒndənt] - (n.) - A person employed to report for a newspaper, radio, or television network. - Synonyms: (journalist, reporter, newsman)

So the parallels are so striking that of course, it was just so tempting to write about. But because the narrator is a million Emilia comes as a war correspondent, she cannot know what will happen 80 years later.

6. pseudonym [ˈsuːdənɪm] - (n.) - A fictitious name used by an author instead of their real name. - Synonyms: (alias, pen name, nom de plume)

Amelia's career as a female journalist in the late 19th century would have been really considered a taboo. And for years she was required to write under a male pseudonym.

7. discreetly [dɪˈskriːtli] - (adv.) - In a careful and prudent manner, especially in order to avoid attracting attention. - Synonyms: (cautiously, subtly, secretly)

And I was very young, and my mother said, you know what? You can do whatever you want in life. But discreetly, don't make a fuss.

8. taboo [təˈbuː] - (n.) - A social or religious custom prohibiting or forbidding discussion or practice of a particular person, place, or thing. - Synonyms: (prohibition, ban, restriction)

Amelia's career as a female journalist in the late 19th century would have been really considered a taboo.

9. regress [rɪˈɡrɛs] - (v.) - To return to a former or less developed state. - Synonyms: (recede, revert, backslide)

I've always been overworked, and now that I look back, I regress that I. That I worked so hard and I have. I could have had more fun.

10. plebiscite [ˈplɛbɪˌsaɪt] - (n.) - A direct vote by eligible voters on an important public question, such as a change in the constitution. - Synonyms: (referendum, vote, ballot)

And there was a plebiscite 17 years later, and the plebiscite was yet to keep Pinochet in power. No, to replace him.

FULL EVENT - Former First Lady Dr. Jill Biden And Isabel Allende Hold Conversation In Washington, DC

Well, how lucky are we to have Isabel here tonight? You know, I was really upset because she wears very high heels. I have not been told about that, so. Well, it was funny when, you know, when I got the invitation to, you know, to come interview Isabel, like, I was. I mean, I was thrilled. I'm an English teacher. I mean, I think I have just a bookshelf of all your books in my home. And so I said, my gosh, why? Why did they ask me? And they said, well, probably because you started a lot of things later in life. You know, Isabel started writing at 39, and I did a marathon. And then I got my doctorate at age 55. So I guess I figured you is younger than me. I have no idea what it is to be 82. Well, I'll find out, hopefully.

But I have to say, you know, I met Isabel in the 90s. I was a senate spouse, and I was invited to the White House. And we were at the same luncheon table and we talked together, you know, and I was, like, in awe, as I still am. And we talked books and literature and her books. And then after that, she had just written the book Paula, about her daughter, and we talked about that experience. And then, like a week later, maybe two, a book arrived, a signed book from Isabel. It was put. She had signed the book to me. So, you know, stuff like that, you know, these acts of kindness you never forget.

And then, of course, I saw you when you got the Medal of Freedom, which was so amazing, which is such an extraordinary experience. You know, I always have the feeling that I'm a visitor in this planet, that I'm almost a foreigner. And on that occasion, when I got the Medal of Freedom and I could have the Obama Salon, I felt that I belonged for the first time. And it was very moving. Very moving. I have it hanging on my altar practically. Well, it's so well deserved.

You know what? I see that everybody is female here. My God. I mean, where are the men? You know? You know, guys, what is the most popular genre in literature today? Romantasy. And that is women. Young girls, usually girls who find an extraterrestrial or some creature that looks like an iguana and they have dish, romance and in great sex. Now, what does that say about human? Male. Strange. All right, let me answer the question.

Okay, so in your signature style, there are many facets to the story. I'm sure you're all going to get the book. So war, love, family, self discovery, and of course, a fierce and independent heroine at the center. So what can you tell us about your book. About the book? About. Yeah, they were wild. Because I want you to read it. But Emilia is like so many of my female characters, my protagonists, strong women who take risks, who fall, fail, and get back on their feet, and I don't make them up. Jill. I am surrounded by women like that, mostly through my foundation, that I get to meet women. Many of them are refugees and others are not refugees, but have very hard lives, and they are not victims.

They somehow get hold of their lives and they have a life destiny, and they take care of other people. And those generous, brave women are the models for my books. If I don't make them up, I don't need to make them up. And the rest of the characters, the lunatics in the book, they are all my relatives. I think it comes along my preview book as well.

Okay. So what did you enjoy most about writing this novel? You know, I love the research that is previous to the novel, to the writing. I started writing on January 8th. So before January 8th, I have the research, and I love it because the research gives me what I was not expecting at the foundation where I remove my fictional characters. But then the joy is the problem.

I heard Elizabeth Gilbert say once, don't get to some people in the audience who asked, what advice would you give to a new writer? And she said, don't expect writing to give you fame or money. Write because you love the process. And that is what I love, the process. It's like you have pieces of a puzzle and you have to put them together and make sense. I love that part. And I'm surprised because I don't know. I don't have an outline. I don't have a plan. I don't know what's going to happen. I'm just a surprise of the reader. So do you want to tell them why you do this on January 8, what the significance is?

Well, at the beginning, it was superstition, because I had written my first book on January 8th of 1981 because my grandfather was dying in Chile, and I got a phone call, and so I started writing a letter for him that he gained the book. But then it was such a lucky book, which never happens with the first novel, that I thought, yeah, for luck, I will start the second book on the same day, and then the third. And then if I change, it would be a block. So I can't change it now. It's too late. 29 books later, I can't.

But it's also discipline. You know, I could be procrastinating. Forever because I don't have a boss. And the fact that I have a schedule, I have to show up and start a book that gives me structure in my life and also keeps people away. By January 8th, I'm alone. And that's wonderful. So this January 8th, did you start another one? Of course. Wow. Because this is finished. So I started another one. And I'm writing a memoir. And it's a memoir about the last few years of my life.

We were talking about this. I was married for 28 years, and when I was 74, I divorced my husband. And I was telling Jill that marriage should not last more than 20 years. I wish I could tell my husband that. How long have you been married? 48. Frankly, I don't find that that has any merit. By now, she could have at least two husbands and a half. Or you can marry her. Well, at least you could renew the vows every 12 years. Get up with the same guy if you want. I think that if I have a chance to change the guy, I do that.

So, unfortunately, my current husband, Roger, is 82, like my. And I don't think I will have the 20 years that I'm adulthood. So probably he's the last one. We never know. You never know. My stepfather used to be 103, so maybe I still have a chance. So Amelia is a member of one of the families featured in House of Spirits. So why did you decide to connect your characters? And what was it like revisiting this family?

I have that family in several books. Seven. Okay. I have it in Daughter of Fortune, Portrait in Sevia, Violeta, and now Here, and of course, the House of the Spirits. They are all inspired by my grandmother's family. Many of those characters are my relatives. I told you, I got relatives like mine. So they keep coming back, sometimes on purpose and sometimes I already written 60 pages and I recognize this person that was in another book that just somehow got in here with another name in disguise. And so. Okay, if it's the right here, let's keep it.

Okay, so you haven't read the book because it came out yesterday. Right. So it takes place in the late 1800s. So what fascinates you about this time in history and specifically this time in Chile? Well, the book is about the civil war that happened in Chile in 1891. There was a progressive president, President Jose Manuel Balbacera, who wanted to make important changes in the society and the country and face fierce opposition of the conservatives.

The Congress split. The armed forces split as well. And we had a horrible civil war. Eighty years later, in 1973, we had a progressive president who wanted to make big changes in Chile and faced horrible opposition. By the way, in both instances, the United States intervened and we had a military coup because of armed forces did not split. All of them were against the government. And we had military coup and 17 years of dictatorship. And in both instances, the president committed suicide.

So the parallels are so striking that of course, it was just so tempting to write about. But because the narrator is a million Emilia comes as a war correspondent, she cannot know what will happen 80 years later. So it's in the hands of the reader to make the connection or not. It's not in the book.

Okay, so when you mentioned Amelia, so your main character, and in what ways do you see yourself in her? Many people who have read the book think that she's my alter ego for some reason. First of all, she's tall, I'm young, so she's not. And I promise that I wasn't even thinking that there might be parallels. But what happens is that I think that any author can say this. We draw from our own experience, from memory, from the people we know for the things we care for.

So no wonder that the author is always between the lines. And you can almost find the author. Oh, I found you. Yes. Yes. It would be very hard for me to write a psychological novel about a suburban wife who has problems with her husband and goes to therapy. I can't connect, but I can connect with the. I don't know, with Amelia, who goes to war and finds herself in the middle of the battle in the blood and the death of the suffering. That I can relate.

So Amelia's career as a female journalist in the late 19th century would have been really considered a taboo. And for years she was required to write under a male synonym. So she says in her book, and I quote this being a woman is a serious inconvenience to success in general, and particularly in a profession dominated by men. You also worked in journalism and even founded the first feminist magazine in Chile. What was your experience like as a woman in this field?

You know, now that I look back, I realize that it was a hard road to travel with a lot of aggression and a lot of opposition. But it was so much fun. So much fun. And at the time, I enjoyed every minute of it. And my mother was always scared that when I started with this thing about being a feminist, the word was not used in Chile.

And I was very young, and my mother said, you know what? You can do whatever you want in life. But discreetly, don't make a fuss. But how can you do a revolution without a fuss? And later in life, when we talked about my life as a feminist, my mother said to me, I realized that your life was much better than mine. And I said, mom, for every blow I received, I could deliver to. So I am very glad for all the struggle and everything that happened. And it was fun.

Struggle is always fun. Remember that. Remember that. This is the time to remember that there's nothing sadder than fear. We have to be brave, take risks and fun. When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? And did you always know that you wanted to write? No, I wanted to support myself. I was six years old. And people would say, what do you want to be when you grow up? Support myself. That's all I wanted.

So I wanted to work and be like my grandfather, have money, be independent, have a car, have the keys of the house. My mother was really a charity case. She was abandoned by her husband when. I mean, she had not given birth to my brother yet. She was pregnant. And I was almost three years old. And I never saw my father again. At a time when there was no divorce in Chile. And my mother belonged to a social class and a family where women didn't work. And so she was not educated or skilled for any kind of job. And she had three babies in diapers. So she ended up living in my grandfather's house.

She had a hoof over her head and she had. I mean, the kids went to good schools and we were not begging in the streets. But my mom didn't have anything. She couldn't buy ice cream for us. She never had any pocket money. So she depended, first from her father, then my stepfather, and eventually me. So what plan? She was old. She would tell me, I have been very lazy in my life and I have paid a very high price for that. And I always remember that. Because you belong. All people here are young.

I don't see any white hair. You know, you're raising your hand, you're having white hair. White, pretty people. You know, I live in Marine county, where everybody has white or gray hair. So I feel among very young people. What was I talking about? You know, this happens with age. Okay, so the title of the novel, given that Amelia had to write under a pseudonym, a male pseudonym, and she goes on this epic journey of self-discovery.

The title is simple, yet effective. So was this the title from the beginning or how did you come to it? I am terrible with titles. I've Always been. So other people find the titles. I think this one was Johanna. Did you get this title? That's my agent sitting over there, the one with red lipstick. And she came up with the title, and we fight a lot about titles. And I'm not the jacket, because if it was her choice, all the jackets would be pink. So she manages to introduce some pink in every jacket.

And actually, your son's here, too. Nico. Nico's here, right? Yeah, my son is here. And your granddaughter. Yeah, One of the three men in the. In the audience. My son. My son is very tall. He was not adopted. He was changed in the hospital. Somewhere there is a woman with a little dwarf. What happened? Don't believe her.

So you have famously said, quote, write what should not be forgotten. So how have you lived this out in your own life? In many ways, I have been. I started writing to my mother every single day when I was 16 years old, because she was living in Turkey and I was back in Chile with my grandfather. And we kept that tradition. We wrote to each other every single day for decades. And since 1987, I started collecting the letters. Her letters are my copy of mine, and they are classified in boxes by year in perfect chronological order.

I have around 24,000 letters. Wow. They are digitalized now, so it's an incredible treasure that I have there. If somebody asks, what would you say if there was a fire in your house? The best are the letters. I let my husband get out somehow. So I've been writing always. And you don't you. If I have to write a letter every day in the evening, usually, I pay attention to what's going on during the day. What am I going to write tonight? That's right.

So every day is present. It's rich, abandoned. And now that my mom died and I don't do this, the days blend into each other and it seems that nothing happens. And if I don't write, I forget. Don't you find that since your mother is gone, you try harder to find, to be much more aware of the joy that you find in life? No, I have John and I. Actually, I made fun of this, but I have a very romantic and very good marriage because it's a very new one. What's that saying about me, then? What is your experience? What is your experience?

Why should I be exposing my marriage and money? You notice I'm not saying a word. She's not fair. Not fair. So did your sentiment to write what should not be forgotten inspire Amelia's resolve? Remember how she kept all those Journals? Yeah. She starts very young, writing diagnostics. She loves to print. Most of you have never heard of Dyke novels, but Dyke novels was the literature of the time when people were almost illiterate and men would buy them, not women. And these were little novels, not more than 90 pages, that were sold in kiosks and everywhere. And they were always about cowboys and bandits and things like that.

Very many stuff. Very basic. Yeah, very basic. And so she starts writing that. And then she wants to be a journalist, but she can't with her own. As a woman, she wouldn't do it, so she has a pseudonym. And finally she is able to go to Chile to cover the work. Now, let me tell you how, when I try to explain how I put together a book, it's always with questions.

I have a war, and I don't want to take sides in the war. I want a neutral voice, a neutral narrator. So I will bring the narrator from somewhere else. I say, from where? From the United States. Which part of the United States? California. Because I know California, and I don't know anything, anything about the red states. And then the question is, okay, who is this person? And one question after the other.

Why would a woman be sent to cover a war in the end of the world? Well, she needs to speak Spanish, so I need to give her a stepfather that is Mexican. And then I say, well, what else? She needs to have roots there of some kind, some connection to the country. Okay, so she's a legitimate child of a Chilean aristocrat that impregnates a nun. No, I know. Why can't you read it? Why the nun? I thought it was fun.

So that's the kind of stuff that just happens when you're writing a book. You don't plan it. The narrative just popped up. I'm sure they'd be happy you're that in Rome now. So I hope this next question makes sense, because you haven't read the book. But though there are many heavy moments throughout the novel, Amelia's cleverness and witness lend themselves to humorous moments, too.

For example, when she's traveling from California to Chile, she's on an American battleship that she sneaks on and she's the only woman aboard, and she passes the time playing cards with the officers. So what was it like writing scenes such as this one, where Amelia is so clearly underestimated and ends up proving others wrong? It's very easy because that affect my life, to be underestimated because I'm a woman and because I'm short. So, yeah, I'm sure people clapping.

But you know what? My stepfather instilled in me the idea that everybody was more afraid than me and that I was the most intelligent person in the room. And she said, no, you go ahead and do it. And I think that's what the media does. That's what the stepfather tells her. There's nothing that you cannot do.

Okay. As the highest selling Spanish language author in the world. Okay, so this sort of follows on. So you, with 80 million copies of your books in print, you've probably proven a few people wrong too. When have you felt underestimated? Well, you sort of just answered that all the time, right? Look, when I sent my manuscript to an agent in Spain, the first manuscript, the House of the Spirits, this Catalan woman who was the biggest agent in the industry at the time, told me, I'd like your book. We will have it published. That doesn't make you a writer. A writer is proven with the second book and the ones that follow.

And I'm going to tell you that being a woman means that you will have to do double or three times the effort of any man to get half the recognition and respect. And it has been professed. This is exactly what has happened, especially in Chile, I have to say, which is the last country that accepted the fact that I was a writer. They would call me narrator or whatever. So the disrespect because I sell books and that pisses people off, my colleagues mostly, and because I'm a woman.

So I came out of the Household Spinners was published in 1982 at the end of the boom of Latin American literature. All men, as you know. Yes. Not one female name there. And so they said, well, she's the only woman in the boom that. That lasted a week. Then they said, no, no, no, she's not from the boom. She's a woman. So I am born being forced. Anything is not fun. So many people know you as a devoted and outspoken feminist, as well as a writer who often incorporates romantic storylines in her novels.

Some would argue that these two things can't coexist. Why? Okay, so do you think writing about romance and experiencing it in your own life experience, as you talked about, can be acts of feminism in themselves? Of course, being a feminist means that you struggle to end the patriarchy, which is a terrible system, but that doesn't mean that you're not a woman. I'm proud and happy to be a woman. The alternative is terrible.

What would I do, really? What would I do with a penis? I wouldn't know what to no. Maybe that's why there are men in the audience. So I have fun being a woman. I love makeup, I like clothes, I like all that. But I'm also fierce when it comes to defend the rights of women and try to defend women from exploitation, from all the abuse that we have suffered for millennia. You not only write about heavy topics like war, you have also lived through exiles, war and dictatorships in times that are especially challenging or divisive. What gives you hope that everything changes?

Nothing is forever. And the fact that for every evil creature, there is a lot of anonymous, silent people who do good. And I see this every single day in my life. Foundation people who are quietly doing good. You know that in this country there are like 40,000. There were, maybe not anymore in the last hundred days, but there were 40,000 lawyers working pro bono to defend and represent kids in court. Because you can have a toddler that is two years old, that doesn't even speak Spanish, doesn't speak anything in front of a judge answering questions.

And the judge can ask, would you accept voluntary deportation to a two year old toddler Unless he's represented, he's deported. So these 40,000 people who work, there's no glory and no money. 99% are women. Yes. Because when I see people who are working at the border, so many women that silently are trying to kill is wonderful. And I believe that most at bathroom do good. Most of us want to have a strong, beautiful democracy here. Most of us. And we will receive, we will defend it.

So, Isabel, you mentioned your foundation. So. And it's after. Named after your daughter who's deceased. Can you tell us more about him? You know, after my daughter died, and I know that you have gone through that. We belong to this very sad club of mothers who have lost their children. And you can say the same thing, that we never get over it. Never. We just live with a pain that is like under the skin always.

When Paola died, I thought that I would live the years that she couldn't live and I would try to live them as she would have. And I wrote that book violent. And I didn't want to. To touch any money that came from any income from that book because it belonged to her. And I thought, what would she do? She would give it away, of course, and she would give it away in the cause that she always defended, that she always cared for women and girls. And so that's how the foundation came to be.

But I didn't know anything about foundations. Like nothing. I just write checks and send them around. And then. I'm sorry, but I have to repeat this, that I already told some other people yesterday, but it was in another city, so maybe it's okay. At that time, my son divorced. Well, it's more complicated. His wife fell in love with my stepson's fiance. So try to imagine the two women were together. And I have to say they have been together for 30 years. So it was a true love. And my son was left single with three kids, little kids, very little kids.

So after a year or so, I realized I wasn't dating anyway. And so I looked for a bride. That's what you would do. So there would be a line, for example, for signing. And I take a look, see if somebody in the line was the kind of person that Nico might like. And I got the phone number. It wasn't a very effective method. So Miko said, mom, don't do this anymore. I'm spending a fortune in restaurants and this is not going anywhere.

So. But I was very lucky. And I. Because I was looking for someone that would be a good stepmother to my children. Are there a good wife? Nico and somebody there run the foundation. So I needed these three conditions. And I finally found one person. And I just needed to test her to see if she was the right one. So I took her to the Amazon. We went on a trip to the Amazon, because I thought if Lori survives the Amazon, she would survive my grandma understand? And so she runs the foundation.

And immediately she did what was the logical thing to do. Find help. People who would counsel her, coach her, and teach her how to do it. And she gave a mission to the foundation, which is very clear. We try to help women in the areas of education so that they can have a skill or an education that allows them to be financially independent, to work for a living. We work on health care, mostly reproductive rights, because a woman who cannot control her fertility cannot control anything to free them from exploitation and violence. That women are subject to exploitation constantly, everywhere.

So that's the mission of the foundation. And I think Paula would be happy. I think this is what she would have done. So what are some of the most important things you've learned either about the world or about yourself from writing historical fiction? You know, it's very interesting to study the past because then you understand the present and you don't get caught in what is circumstantial. You can see the big picture.

We feel that we are stuck in bad moments. And I have lived this. I lived it during the time of the dictatorship in Chile. The Military coup. I mean, the military controlled everything. There was no regress. All institutions were cancelled. There was no congress, There was no abias purpose, which is the due process. That means that anybody can be arrested and disappear because there's no accountability.

In a democracy that works, a person is arrested and in a limited time there has to be a hearing, has to be charged, and there has to be a reason why that person remains arrested. When that disappears, the society crumbles. Because then they have the power to do whatever they want for as long as they want. So I saw this and I think that it could never end. Because they had all the power of everything. All political parties were forbidden in Chile.

However, people organized under the surface. And there was a plebiscite 17 years later, and the plebiscite was yet to keep Pinochet in power. No, to replace him. For a democracy. All the propaganda, all the publicity, everything was in the hands of the government. The opposition only had 15 minutes on television at 11 o' clock at night. And people stayed awake until 11 o' clock to see those 15 minutes. And the campaign of the opposition was a happy one, was not about the negative. It was all about the positive that we have to look forward to.

And they won. And Pinochet had to step out. You have witnessed that and many other things that I have witnessed in my 82 years. I see that everything passes, everything can be challenged. Everything. But the arc of history, the arc of humanity is toward progress. We evolve. We are not in the Middle Ages. So don't get stuck in the present. There is future.

How do you feel that you've changed as a writer in the last 40 years? Not much. I don't make. I don't repeat the mistakes, but I make new ones. So I'm always very uncertain. Every book has a way of being told. Every book has its own prerequisites. And I have to start from scratch every time. That's the challenge. And I love it.

I love it. But I don't feel that I am. I have more self confidence. No. And I don't need the self confidence. I just want the fun. Right? You know, it's like having a lover. Yeah. I feel that way. That every move is like the new lover. That we have to start transcribe everything again.

There is no manual for making love. You. You improvise. I don't know you, but I do. What do you hope that your readers take away from your new novel? I don't know. I never think about that. I know. I feel that a book is an offering, you offer it and every person reads it or not, and they can find something that connects to their own lives. I don't know. So it depends on the reader. It's not in my power. I don't control that.

So what one thing brings you joy and what one thing are you looking forward to? Repeat the question. What one thing brings you joy right now and one thing that you're looking forward to? Okay. Love brings me joy. And it's the love of my wonderful husband, who is really wonderful. The love of my dog, of my son, my daughter in law, and the love that I feel for these people and for my readers and for causes. I think that the most important love is the love we give, not the one that we receive. And the fact that I feel so passionate about, about the causes that I have been defending all my life. I don't feel exhausted at all, or tired about anything, or disillusioned. No, I feel full of energy.

And I find that really comforting at my age. Because Being passionate at 40 is easy. Being passionate with an 82 year husband is fine. That's all my husband is. I don't know you, but it's hard. You have to make real effort. You need a lot of imagination. So I think a lot about Antonio Banderas. One more of my questions before I go to the audience's questions.

So in your book the Soul of a Woman, which I just read, great book, you said mothers are the trees with firm roots. And I feel, you know, that so resonated with me because my own mother was really the source of. Of strength in my life growing up. And Mother's Day is this Sunday. And for some it's a day to celebrate. For others it puts a spotlight on the ever present loss that we feel. And as Isabel said, you know, we have a lot in common in that we have both lost our mothers and we both lost a child.

So it's kind of bittersweet, at least for me. So I wanted to ask you, Isabel, how do you mark Mother's Day, if you mark it at all? I don't know. You know, I'm always expecting that somebody will mark it for me, but they forget. Well, that's not true, right? I want waiting for some flowers that never come. But you know, I carry my mother with me. I have the photographs of Babola and my mother on the sink where I brush my teeth twice a day, sometimes a few. And I can talk to them. I see them. They are so present in my life.

I would. I always felt that Paola is inside me, and I'm living her life. And I feel that my mother is also, like part of the chain. You know, we are all linked. We are all together, especially, I think, mothers and daughters, because in a way, we carry something that is like a common soul that is very important. But being a mother is not pleasant. This idea that motherhood is sacred, I think that motherhood is a lot of work. A lot of work and very few rewards. Sorry, Nico. All right. So not better to have dogs.

So there were a lot of questions from the audience. So these are all from you. So, you know, I read these. I thought, my God, they're like an essay question. They have part A, part B, part C. So, you know, don't kill the messenger. I'm just reading their questions. Okay. Okay. So, Andrea, there's probably a couple of them in there in the audience, so I don't know which one asks, how has your Latin American identity evolved throughout your life as you navigate between cultures with living outside of Latin America while continuing to write about its history and spirit?

You know, I am often asked by young people who are immigrants, not only Latin American immigrants from other places, how do I manage to live in India, in another place, and try to adapt? What I always say is we can have the best of everything. We don't have to leave behind our food, our music, our language, nothing. We can have it all. And I think that being bicultural is wonderful. It makes us richer in every way. I love it.

So Marcella asks if you could write a letter to the woman you were when you first published House of Spirits, what would you say to her? Be patient. Don't give up. Keep going. And don't hurry up. Because I've always been overworked, and now that I look back, I regress that I. That I worked so hard and I have. I could have had more fun.

Okay, so Katie wants to know, as a feminist and activist yourself, how would you advise women today to support each other and fight against the loss of human rights and freedoms? Okay. Women can lose everything that their mothers and their grandmothers have acquired with great struggle if they are not vigilant. The first thing that happens when there is a crisis of any kind, war, occupation, dictatorship, fundamentalism, you name it, women lose their rights. So we have to be really informed, connected and vigilant. Otherwise, undirected and probably. Jill, that goes for everything.

Not only for women's rights, but for every right. We have to be alert so that we can defend and protect what we have. Okay, this is a question I actually get asked a lot. Paula, your characters often face loss, yet they learn from tragedy. What do you think makes some people more resilient and able to move on after loss? I don't know. I can't answer that. But I know what has helped me. I think that after Paola died, what helped me was the love of a few people that were around me. I didn't feel alone.

Often when a child hits a real important loss, we sort of go inside, we become, like, isolated, and that's the worst thing that we can do. I think that if we can share belief, it's much more bearable. Okay, sharing it, opening up. Everybody has. And everybody can understand when you have a loss. And the other thing I would say is that when a friend or someone that you love or that is close to you has a loss like that, we don't know what to do. We feel that we don't want to. How do we approach. Just show up. Because showing up is enough.

You don't have to do or say anything. Just show up. You often write strong, complex female characters. Do they come to you fully formed, or did they evolve as you write? Usually they are modeled after some people that I know through the foundation especially. I wrote, for example, a book called about the Wind. I don't remember the Time. What's the time? Well, whatever the wind, that's what I have to look forward to.

And that's the story that I got through. The foundation is the story of a little blind girl that was separated from her mother at the border and what happened to her. And so sometimes the character just is there. And I have lots of stories that I can tell because of the foundation, but often two or three people are the models for one character. And I pick up from here and from there and from there, and the character sort of comes to life. And sometimes, like Emilia and like Salite, in one book that I wrote about slavery, and a few others just appear. You know, it's like they were. They exist in another dimension. And when I start writing, they just knock at the door and say, hey.

Every wave in be told. Yeah, they come fully formed. Okay. So following on that, Amy wants to know who was your favorite female character to write about and who, if anyone, inspired that character? Clara del Valle in the House of the Spirits. Because she was my grandmother, I didn't have to invent her. My grandmother was great and wonderful. She spent her short life experimenting with the paranormal. So she would have seances every Thursday and around a big Spanish table that I have in my house right now, Very heavy table.

And she would invoke the souls of the dead, which came at Barian Cleese. I never saw this, but this is what the legend tells. For example, on one occasion, a conquistador appeared and told her that there was some gold doubloons under the stairs in her house. So she demolished the stairs and the coins did not appear. So she had another seance. And the conquistador said, well, I'm sorry, that was 500 years ago. Things have changed. It wasn't exactly, exactly under the stairs.

It was in the dining room. So another hole in the dining room and so forth. So with a grandmother like that, it's fantastic. She gives me all the magic realism I will ever need. Okay, I think we probably have time for maybe one more. Or is there anything you want to spoil? So let's see. Oh, I know. Here's a what authors do you enjoy reading? This is from Michael that you think people would be surprised to hear. Just read me. Thank you. And if you can all please stay standing while our guests make their way back. Thank you so much and thank you all for joining us for this extra special evening. Just a few notes. Jennifer Santo is the winner of our social media giveaway. So 50 times a day and you can exit using the main lobby and both corner lobbies. And both of our guests tonight are for sale in the main lobby. Thank you so much.

ISABEL ALLENDE, WRITING, HISTORICAL FICTION, INSPIRATION, EDUCATION, CULTURE, FORBES BREAKING NEWS