Last night, Judy Blume and her son Lawrence Blume appeared in New York City at a special promotional event for the film Tiger Eyes. Attendees watched the film and joined a Q&A session with both Blumes.

One audience member asked Judy how she dealt with the controversy and library challenges that followed her work.
Judy replied with some important writing advice: “You cannot write with a censor on your shoulder … I was a fearful kid and for some crazy reason, a pretty fearless writer.”


Lawrence said his goal was to be as faithful to the novel as possible. When asked about the screenwriting process, Judy revealed that she worked primarily on dialogue while Lawrence concentrated on story structure.
Judy said she loved the film, but added: “a book is a book. A movie is a movie. It just has to be emotionally true to the characters and the story.” She also thinks that the finished film is “a movie for my nostalgia readers.”

Both mother and son talked about their future projects. Judy plans to pick up where she left off on an unfinished manuscript she started in 2009. Lawrence hopes to one day adapt Judy’s 1998 novel, Summer Sisters, into a movie.
The duo will tour the country for more Tiger Eyes screenings. Fans can catch the film in theaters, through Video On Demand, and on iTunes starting June 7th.