SmokeLong Quarterly

Your story “Tea and Biscuits” captures the inner dialogue of your character so well. Does that come easy for you?

Sometimes, if the character has a story s/he wants to tell. If I can’t get into the mind of the character and stay there for the duration then the story ends up on the unfinished pile. I have a very big unfinished pile.

Details are woven in with ease throughout your piece. Would you like to share a little of your writing process? For example, do those details show up right away, or do you add them as you revise?

My stories are character driven and usually emerge complete with far too much detail. It’s all about knowing when to shut up, but most of my characters don’t have that skill.

Who are some of your favorite characters you’ve come to know through other authors’ work as well as your own?

I fell in love with Heathcliff a long time ago.

We all have days when it’s difficult to maintain our identity as a writer. How do you carve out enough space and time to write?

Harry, our genius pet hamster, came up with an exceptionally good writing schedule for me. If I don’t produce, he starts eating my fingers. It works. Have you ever tried to type with two thumbs?