Building Doorways Out of Words

An Interview with Julia Caroline Knowlton

Readers of this substack, you are in for SUCH a treat today! This is the first of an ongoing series of interviews with people who have made the transition to living in France full or part-time. Our inaugural interviewee, Julia Caroline Knowlton, is writer, teacher and artist I deeply admire.

I met Julia several years ago when we both attended the C.D. Wright Women Writer’s Conference sponsored my Creative Writing Program at the University of Central Arkansas. We became friends on social media and I have followed her work—her teaching, her writing, her painting, her travels throughout Europe—with great interest ever since. Indeed, I think it’s safe to say Julia leads her whole life as a work of art. But when she announced she and her partner were moving into more permanent digs in a Haussmann apartment in Paris, I knew I had to approach her for an interview. I am so glad she agreed.

Julia teaches French and Creative Writing at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, where she is the Adeline A. Loridans Professor of French. Recognition for her poetry includes an Academy of American Poets College Prize and two Georgia Author of the Year Awards (2018 and 2023). She is the author of five books, including a memoir. Kelsay Books published her first book of children’s poetry, A to Z Poems for the Very Young, in 2024.

Without further adieu:

What first drew you to France?

I studied in Paris as an undergraduate in 1987. I had begun learning French as a child in a public school system in Cleveland, Ohio and majored in French at Duke. My study abroad semester was the first time I had ever traveled to France and I had to persuade my parents to "allow" me to go. Back then, it was not so automatic for one's children to jet off to foreign countries.

How did you decide where you wanted to live in France?

I fell in love with Paris at age 21, due to the incredible beauty and history of the city. Like any big city, Paris is not always an easy place to live. However, I am still enthralled when I take my coveted long walks in Paris with no particular destination: this is the experience of the flâneuse. La flânerie is the action of walking in Paris as an end unto itself. It originated with male poets such as Baudelaire in the 19th century. During just one walk, I can pass by the place where Marie-Antoinette was beheaded (!), then stroll the same boulevards immortalized by Proust, and then have a coffee or meal in a café previously frequented by luminaries such as Simone de Beauvoir and Chopin. The spirit of art seems to permeate the air in Paris almost tangibly.

What do you most enjoy about living in France?

I most enjoy the inexhaustible history and the beauty of the architecture, art and culture. France is like an open, living history book. I also enjoy the slower pace of life, especially outside of Paris. The French place a high value on not working all of the time. It is a marked contrast with the typical American approach. The French rightly understand that leisurely meals in sunlit cafés and having time for leisure are requirements for a balanced life.

How does your life in France fit with your live as a visual artist and poet?

In a word, inspiration. When I spend time in France, my creativity begins to spark like embers.

Looking back, what is something you wish you had known before moving to France or deciding to spend more time there?

It is difficult to answer this question because I've been spending time in France for decades now. However, I can cite the crucial importance of how la politesse is encoded into language in French culture. Also, I always have to remember that French bureaucracy is often extremely slow compared to the US. I remember wanting to take a yoga class in Rennes years ago. There was an online form to fill out, a hard-to-find special code to enter at the door, etc. etc. Then when I finally got into the yoga studio, I was turned away because I am not French and I didn't have my passport with me! That day, I went back to my lodging in Rennes and just did a yoga video on YouTube!

Do you have a favorite French cultural tradition?

This is a broad reply, but as a poet and author, my favorite tradition is the deep respect and reverence that many, many French people have toward their complex and beautiful language.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering living in France full or part-time?

Learn French! You will get SO much more out of your experience by learning as much of the language as you possibly can. Don't be intimidated; just build your own doorway out of words. It is so rewarding. My third language is Italian and while I am not perfectly fluent, my ability to understand and speak Italian enriches my travels in Italy.

Is there anything I didn’t ask that you’d like to share?

Yes. It is said that French people take a little longer to befriend, and I think that's true. Many people mistake this characteristic for coldness or aloofness That is an understandable misconception. When traveling in France, enjoy all the "good stuff" and don't take things too personally. Also, speaking even a little French goes a long way.