SmokeLong Quarterly

I’m hearing a poetic voice and seeing a poetic vision and feelin’ that poetic imagery all throughout this piece. Is “poetry” something you purposely infuse into your flashes?

It’s not purposeful, it’s just what happens. I like it, though.

Can it be said that “water” is the central character of this flash? Or is that just crazy talk?

I don’t know if it’s a character, but it’s a common medium that ties these stories together, just like in real life water is a medium common to all forms of life.

The counter-pointed stories of this flash demand that the reader engage with the stories and find the connecting threads. So how can you be sure the reader gets it? Or am I way off base for even asking?

I don’t mind if the reader gets anything or not, I didn’t consciously set out to make that happen. I’m just happy if they like what they read. That, I can never be sure of.

Love the “phase changes” structure. How’d that idea get formed?

I had the idea to try to write a story in list format, and I settled on developing something around the three phases of water. I wasn’t sure of it at first, but I think it worked out quite nicely.

The word is you never ever write in bed. Need to hear much more about that.

Actually, I do write in bed, sometimes on paper, but I never, ever write at the kitchen table. That’s just rude.