Long reluctant to discuss her private life, the 67-year-old Streisand said she has been working on chapters, in longhand, for a separate book. But she hasn't made up her mind whether she will complete the memoir and publish it.
"I go back and forth," said Streisand, who has received numerous show-business honors, including Academy Awards, Grammys, and Emmys. "Do I really want to write about my life? Do I really want to relive my life? I'm not sure."
But she is deeply committed to her current project, calling it the culmination of a lifelong passion for American architecture and design. She spoke of visiting landmarks around the country, from the Monticello estate of Thomas Jefferson in Virginia to Edith Wharton's house in Lenox - The Mount, which Streisand explored with camera and tape measure.
She sees the book as answering questions she has often asked herself: Why is she so fascinated by furniture, gardens, and how homes are constructed? Why was she buying antique clothing as a teenager? Why, in the basement of her new house, did she reproduce a city street? Why did she even write a script about her home?
"As a filmmaker, even, I got very involved in set production and design and colors," said Streisand, a known perfectionist whose directing credits include "Yentl" and "The Prince of Tides."
The deal with Viking was negotiated by Robert Barnett, better known as the literary representative for political leaders, including President Obama and former President George W. Bush. Barnett says he met Streisand through mutual friends and Barnett clients - former President Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Viking President Clare Ferraro, who declined to say how much the publisher paid Streisand, said she visited the star at her home in April, a planned two-hour stop that lasted 4.5 hours and didn't begin to cover all that Streisand had done.
