Friends in high places

Talking to God all of last year seems to have paid off for Amber Tamblyn. The 21-year-old star of “Joan of Arcadia” is nominated for best actress in a drama series Emmy tonight. (The show airs from 8 to 11 on KABC-TV Channel 7.) On Monday, during a visit to the set of her hit show, nominated for best drama, Tamblyn confided she’s looking forward to putting Emmy Sunday behind her.

Do you have any Emmy jitters?

It’s funny you ask, because I just threw up five minutes ago. Yeah, I’m feeling a little Emmy jitters. It’s just not fun. A lot of the magazines predict and stuff. You try not to pay attention, but it’s so weird, what ... are awards? They’re just so random. It’s so strange that you can sort of like nominate somebody and get down to what the singular greatest actor of the year was.

A lot of critics are saying you should win. Doesn’t that make you feel better?

No! Everybody thought I was going to win the Golden Globe and that didn’t happen. And it’s not so much the not winning. It’s that everyone around me expects it, and it’s hard for them, and you’re like, “Oh, man, it’s not that big a deal.” This is a bigger deal for my dad [Russ Tamblyn] than it is for me.

What are you wearing? Can you give us a clue?

I have somebody making me a dress, but I’m still not sure if that’s the dress to be worn. We’re still covering all our bases right now, and that’s making it a little more stressful. It’s a beautiful dress, but if for some reason it looks a little weird, I don’t know. I just want to see that dress, and I want to see a couple more dresses.

How do you size up the competition? Do you watch any of the shows?

I watched “The Sopranos” a little bit. Unfortunately, I don’t watch a lot of TV. I heard Jennifer Garner had a really great year. I’ve never seen her show, but I saw a little clip of it and it looked really amazing. Just to be next to these girls who worked just as hard as I did last year or even harder. Some of them, like Jennifer, had to do her own action sequences. I don’t even know how she has a life. It’s great to be in that category with those type of women.

Is there anything about the Emmy process that you are enjoying?

Probably just looking at the clothes, finding different stuff to wear to the parties. I’m going to be really excited to be hanging out with everybody. After it’s all said and done, you can relax and have a beer.

You were at the Democratic National Convention and are working with Rock the Vote. Are you becoming a political activist?

I feel there’s not really a spokesperson for my generation. We’re already in the market of image and selling yourself and who you are. That’s pretty much what I do. I figure I might as well use my voice for something that had a reason, that had purpose.

When “Joan of Arcadia” premiered last year, people were predicting the show wouldn’t survive against Alicia Silverstone and “Miss Match” on NBC. But you did more than survive. What is that like?

That was really horrible. We’re very lucky, and I can only hope it stays that way through next season. It’s hard now. There’s a bit of nervousness because it’s no longer Joanie baby. It’s Emmy-nominated Joan. I had to re-learn her. I was so happy the show was nominated. Everybody here works long, hard hours. It’s nice to know there’s payoff for it. Although a nice payoff would also be a couple of hours off each day. You know, work 12 hours instead of 16.

Do you have a hot date for the show?

Yes, my dad! I have a very cute dad. Actually, it was very important to have both my parents there, so we got my dad another ticket. It’s a big moment. My mom is having the most fun dressing up. She’s so excited. She never gets treated like that. She’s a schoolteacher. For her it’s a huge deal.

What is Joan like in the second season? Has she really lost her faith in God?

Joan is trying to deal with the fact that she’s been at crazy camp all summer and that God is not real, that’s what her therapist has told her. So when she comes back and God starts appearing, how she deals with God is different. She’s felt like she was crazy; now she’s trying to act normal. Which is not normal for her. Personal opinion: I would have liked it if they didn’t have God the first couple of episodes. I just think it would have been something different. But he’s there from the very beginning. I wasn’t thrilled with that.

So are you writing an Emmys speech?

Yeah, my speech goes: “Edie Falco.”