Knitting takes debut novelist to Hollywood

NEW YORK, Jan 16 (Reuters Life!) - With knitting captivating a new generation of women, writer Kate Jacobs based her debut novel around a yarn shop in New York -- winning actress Julia Roberts' attention.

Roberts, a self-confessed knitter, was passed a copy of the novel, "The Friday Night Knitting Club," in which she briefly appeared and enjoyed it so much that she is making it into a film.

Jacobs, a former magazine editor, said she was delighted to find that her novel, which is being released this month, had hit a chord with fellow knitters.

She spoke to Reuters about her book and knitting:

Q: Is knitting really that popular now?

A: "Knitting is out there. My friends knit, I knit. There is this nostalgia about it. With the way the world is people are looking at the good old days and things that make you feel warm and fuzzy. My grandmother knitted and so does my sister. I came to knitting as an adult."

Q: Why were you so late to take it up?

A: "I think I thought if I learned any practical skills, including cooking, that it would interfere with my career goals. Does it conflict with feminism? No, it is fun and a way of reclaiming women's traditions. There is a way of doing it for the modern woman."

Q: What are teens and younger women knitting?

A: "They are knitting cell phone socks, iPods socks, purses and hats. Often knitters start a project and get distracted, maybe by a different yarn. But there are no deadlines so you can start something then put it aside and finish it later.

You can get deluxe yarns. Back in the olden days, when my grandmother was knitting, she was not knitting cashmere socks but practical socks for her husband or children. Now it about making the free time to do something luxurious. It is kind of an indulgence and there are fantastic yarns."

Q: What is your prized piece of knitting?

A: "I made a scarf for my husband. I rarely cook dinner and if I do it is a basic meal, so when I took the time to make him a scarf he loved it and showed it to everyone. It can be why you knit and who you knit for."

Q: Why did you combine knitting and writing?

A: "My knitting and my writing got better and developed together. When I think about the book I think about it in terms of connections and friendships. Each section in the book is about different steps in knitting. Knitting is a kind of flexible craft in that it allows you to go back and start again and to make mistakes. Yarn is stretchy and flexible and pliable. When you are talking about life and life's lessons it fits really well. It really is a story of friendship. It is about finding a common ground."

Q: What is happening with the movie?