Tammar Stein

"Stories are what take us away from traffic jams and ketchup stains
and allergies and all the other mundane or unpleasant life events that we go
through. Stories inspire us to be better."–Tammar Stein

Tammar Stein has lived in Israel, Europe, and the United States. Light Years is her first novel.

I’ve always loved stories. Fairy tales, adventures, tragedies, heroes and
villains, stories are what take us away from traffic jams and ketchup stains
and allergies and all the other mundane or unpleasant life events that we go
through. Stories inspire us to be better. They lift us away from our
problems. And if they’re really good, they help us see the world through
someone else’s eyes. That’s the best part for me. Because I always wonder
about other people, about their life, about their feelings. What’s it like
to grow up in Pakistan? What’s it like to be an orphan, or a prisoner of
war, or an insane genius? Reading a good book lets you inside the head of
this stranger that you have nothing in common with. You live together and
get to know each other. You laugh with them or maybe cry for them and it can
open your eyes to things you never noticed before.

Reading is one my favorite things to do. Unfortunately, it’s kind of tough
to make a career just from reading. Being a writer is the next best thing.
I get to stay in my pajamas until noon and I get to play with imaginary
friends all day long and even talk about them with other people–all without
being considered certifiably insane. That’s a pretty sweet deal. But writing
isn’t easy. There are days when my imaginary friends don’t come. Then I’m
stuck there, alone in front of a blank screen with the curser just blinking,
waiting for me to write something down. But on the days when they do decide
to visit, and the writing flows, it all comes together. I’m transported away
from sitting in a chair, in an office, in a house, to a place that exists
only in my imagination. And if I’m lucky, when I’m done, other people who
read my book could go there too.