Fame & Fortune: Judith Levine Author's year of 'no spending' yields startling results
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Bankrate: Do you have money fears?

Levine: I've always had money fears. I don't have a paycheck; I've never had a job, which is not to say I don't work, all the time. But nobody supports me. That's a choice of course that I've made -- to work for myself -- but it means I have a very uneven cash flow, and since I'm a writer, I don't make that much money. I've always spent a lot of time worrying about money and spend a lot of time writing down what's coming in and going out and figuring out how many months I have. But one of the surprising and wonderful things about this experience is it really put many of my fears to rest. I saw how happy I could be without spending very much money. And it also allowed me to save money and to be less fearful about saving money.

Bankrate: What was the hardest adjustment to make?

Levine: By far the hardest adjustment, as a person who not only stakes her identity but also her professional life on knowing what's going on in the culture, was I felt very isolated to not be able to engage in going to movies, eating at new restaurants, even going to see an exhibition at a museum that costs more than just the price of admission. So I felt stupid and lonely, that I couldn't just go out and have a beer with a friend or go to the movies and then have dinner, or even sit in a cafe by myself and be private in public and watch the street.

Bankrate: Not spending cut you off from more than just the private enjoyment of buying.

Levine: Yes, it's not just for private enjoyment; it's for interaction, social life and cultural life. Since the beginning of time, you would arrive at the forum and sit down and buy a cup of tea and talk to your friends. Trade is a way for civilizations to intermingle and get to know each other. It's not just about money; it's about cultures.

Bankrate: Did you go through gratification withdrawal?

Levine: I never thought of myself as a big shopper. I'm not a person who spends Saturday afternoon at the mall and never have been. I think what I missed more than the gratification of getting things is the whole process of the hunt (laughs), to have a mission and a goal and go out and find the perfect thing, or that wondrous serendipitous moment when that perfect something just arrives in your view and then you can have it. All of those things are gratifying in themselves.

Bankrate: You didn't set the rules to cause hardship for a year.