Lit Hub Asks: 5 Authors, 7 Questions, No Wrong Answers

The Lit Hub Author Questionnaire is a monthly interview featuring seven questions for five authors with new books. This month we talk to:

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Justin Haynes (Ibis)
Shane McCrae (New and Collected Hell: A Poem)
Haley Mlotek (No Fault: A Memoir of Romance and Divorce)
Maggie Su (Blob: A Love Story)
John Warner (More Than Words: How to Think About Writing in the Age of AI)

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Without summarizing it in any way, what would you say your book is about?

John Warner: Saving the human spirit from the threat of techno-capitalism.

Shane McCrae: A journey to Hell. But it’s also about human bodies and our relationships to them. But it’s also about self-realization and what that might mean for a non-human entity, particularly as that non-human entity’s self-realization is contrasted to human self-realization, which can often, in the west, be so thoughtless and to not actually be self-realization at all. But it’s also about a transforming robot bird that swears a lot.

Justin Haynes: Ibis is about contending with the past in the present and realizing that time present and time past, as Eliot tells us, are both perhaps present in time future.

 Haley Mlotek: Heartbreak…but like, in a cool, sexy way.

Maggie Su: Self-loathing, loneliness, and learning how to be a person.

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Without explaining why and without naming other authors or books, can you discuss the various influences on your book?

Maggie Su: My younger self. Speculative fiction by Asian American women. The American Midwest. Season 2, episode 1 of Fleabag. The Shining. The final scene of BoJack Horseman.

John Warner: Is it a copout to say life and living? The central argument of my book is rooted in my experiences, first as a kid who literally grew up in a bookstore, and then later as a writer and writing teacher. Reading and writing, being free to read and write about subjects of my own interest has been central to being a (largely) contented person. The students I’ve worked with in my career did not have the privilege of these experiences. Now, with ChatGPT and their ilk some believe we’ve moved beyond the need for humans to do these things. Madness!

 Shane McCrae: Trump. Does Trump count as an author? I’m going to say No. The current moment (hopefully only a moment) of American dystopia and the years leading up to it. Fear. Love. Music. A desire to write an epic poem/Worry about writing an epic poem.

Haley Mlotek: Big feelings in small sentences, or long sentences for small scenes; describing something familiar in a way that makes it seem new; the pleasure of using words to prompt a fantasy; the “to read” pile on the verge of falling over; the urgency of needing to tell one person one very important thing; writing a letter without knowing who it’s for; a diary entry you hope no one will ever find; an indecipherable dedication page; way too many epigraphs.

Justin Haynes: The ancestors, enslaved bodies, the constant struggle for in situ freedom and humanity, Caribbean folklore, Caribbean music, family lost and family found.

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Without using complete sentences, can you describe what was going on in your life as you wrote this book?

Justin Haynes: Chopping wood and carrying water before writing the novel and chopping wood and carrying water after writing the novel.

Shane McCrae: Time. Moving. Trying to be a parent. Love. Faith.

Maggie Su: A global pandemic. PhD qualifying exams. A broken lease. My first trip to a therapist. My first trip to the Cheesecake Factory.

Haley Mlotek: When I was writing my book, my life was such that all my thoughts followed some combination of the below: Oh no / What / Why / Well, / Now?? / How… / Oh, actually —

John Warner: (Re)learning the drums.

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What are some words you despise that have been used to describe your writing by readers and/or reviewers?

Haley Mlotek: “Elusive.” Actually, that’s a cool word. But I think they mean “avoidant,” and while that’s true, I’d rather not be reminded of it. (wrote the avoidant writer.)

John Warner: The anonymous Kirkus reviewer for my novel (The Funny Man) called the book “smug,” which still rankles, given that I worried the book was nauseatingly sincere.

Maggie Su: I’m usually thrilled when anyone uses any words to describe my writing. I would say my book being called “flimsy” was not my favorite though.

Justin Haynes: Oof. “Despise” is a weighty word. I’m willing to accept most words written in good faith by thoughtful readers. Except maybe “gritty.” A published friend told me you don’t want “gritty.” And maybe “despise.”

Shane McCrae: None. It’s an honor to be read and/or reviewed at all.

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If you could choose a career besides writing (irrespective of schooling requirements and/or talent) what would it be?

Shane McCrae: Priest.

Maggie Su: Photographer or filmmaker. I love the idea of telling stories through images but writing requires fewer social skills.

Justin Haynes: Be a member of the team who kept getting paid while missing the delivery deadline for the Large Hadron Collider and then kept the payment after delivering a product that kept breaking down. What was CERN going to do? Call if off and miss out on the G_d particle? 

Haley Mlotek: I’ve always wanted to be a beloved character actress who is quietly admired for her long devotion to her career, and everyone gets really excited when she does a surprise guest spot on a prestige television show.

John Warner: I’d be very happy to play drums in one of those kickass high-end wedding bands where you can make some decent coin, and then teach kids the drums during the downtimes.

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What craft elements do you think are your strong suit, and what would you like to be better at?

Justin Haynes: Having characters be wise-asses in my stead. Having characters be more emotionally forthcoming in their stead.

Haley Mlotek: I think I’m very good at finding odd, funny, or revealing details in my research, and having that ability leads to a good sense for pacing and tone: I can set up a paragraph for a punchline very well. I absolutely need to get better at being more direct, concise, and obvious in my writing. I’ll always choose the sentence that feels better than a more straightforward one, sacrificing clarity and grammar alike, and there’s just never a time when a gaudy sentence is better than a simple one.

John Warner: With topic/argument driven nonfiction like this book, I think I have an especially good handle on how to weave in personal narrative and also structuring the book so it reads like a cohesive effort where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. I want something that happened in the third chapter to pay off in the final chapter, not that much different from a good novel.

Shane McCrae: I think I’m reasonably okay at utilizing meter in my poems, and I would like to be better at rhyming. But I work at the latter, especially, as often as I can.

Maggie Su: I enjoy a sharp distilled description. Expansive explanations are not my strong suit.

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How do you contend with the hubris of thinking anyone has or should have any interest in what you have to say about anything?

Haley Mlotek: Now that you’ve mentioned it, no one should have any interest in what I’m saying… hubris loses this round… Mostly, I just hope that once I have someone’s attention my writing does everything it can to deserve it.

Justin Haynes: With this book it’s more of a tap on the shoulder to expand one’s gaze throughout the Americas. People are suffering beyond highlighted borders.

Maggie Su: Everyone has a story worth telling. It’s okay if folks lose interest in mine. I’ll keep writing even if the audience falls away.

Shane McCrae: I don’t think anyone has or should have any interest in what I have to say about anything, but I nonetheless must write. If anybody were interested in it—I mean, that would be an incomprehensible gift. Every day, I try to do my best at this thing to which I have dedicated my life.

John Warner: I contend with it poorly, particularly because I was raised in the Midwest by Midwesterners and the cliché “Don’t hide your light under a bushel” was inverted to “Make sure to hide your light under a bushel lest you make anyone think you’re special…because you’re not.” But I like my track record about being correct when it comes to issues in education, so I’m trying to project a bit more confidence this time around.