In Buying a Gun, the narrator says, “I thought about the gun. It contained stories from the past. Before me, a stranger had held it, hidden it, used it. It contained stories to come because it had no memory, no trauma, no preference for the future or the past.” What is memory and past for you?
For me, in this story, the past is closely related to traumatic memories and their trigger points. Certain objects or actions come to represent the past and the narrator draws from them frequently in an effort to drown out their power. Other items, such as the gun, are used by the narrator like a salve on those wounds.
In your bio you speak about your connections to the environment and animals. What role do they play in your life?
I worked for years professionally in the environmental sector in Appalachia, water sampling and advocating for local policy and whatnot. There is no place as beautiful and secretive to me as Appalachia and protecting it seems important now as ever. I’m always surrounded by animals; I’m not quite happy without them, I grew up with big rangy mutts and rescue turtles and now I share my house with a snake and a lizard. They’re good company.
Your prose is rich with metaphor and sensory detail. How do you decide when to employ this descriptive style, and how do you ensure it doesn’t overshadow the narrative?
Appreciate it! I often find specific sensory moments punctuating my day, so in this way the description in the writing often mirrors my personal experience. I’m fascinated by precision in description and how it colors a reader’s experience. Teasing out the story so the narrative sits on the surface of the writing is the challenge for me and the part of the process I spend the most time working on.
The story addresses themes of trauma and coping through unconventional means. What message do you hope readers take away about these subjects?
Some elements of this story are rooted in truth, and as you say, express the process of healing through unconventional means. I think narrative is a beautiful way to build empathy, and would hope this story does something to that effect for some readers. People work through things in different ways and on different timelines.
What do you hope readers enjoy in the stories that you write? What would you hope they like in Buying a Gun?
I have lots of hopes for short stories! I hope readers enjoy the language. I hope they feel immersed in a small slice of another’s perspective and take a little bit with them. I hope it’s stimulating and I hope they find a connection in the characters, in the gorgeous way writing allows people to touch another’s conscience. Too much? I hope they had fun reading!
How do you write and what gives you an inspiration for writing?
I’m an evening writer. I get bit by the writing bug from sensory things—rolling something in my fingers, watching an animal move through plants, listening to the voices of my friends. Failing that, I take inspiration from my home, Appalachia. It always gets me excited to read the work of others, especially friends, too. I’m lucky enough to be spending quite a lot of time with other writers at the moment.
What authors do you learn from?
Carmen Maria Machado, Breece DJ Pancake, Flannery O’Connor
Who are you currently reading?
Amy Hempel!
What are you currently working on?
They keep us busy at the IWW, so I have a few things in the works. I’m turning the corner on a linked story collection about climate refugees (if an agent is reading this, you know what to do) and making some headway on a novel. Every so often, there’s a short story unrelated to these larger projects that takes me over for a spell…and that’s what happened with Buying a Gun!
