Author Insides - Jessica Young

Jessica Young teaches at the University of Michigan, where she held a Zell Fellowship for poetry and completed her MFA.  Her undergraduate work was at MIT.  Her Pushcart-nominated poetry has appeared most recently in Bellingham Review, Copper Nickel, and Versal.

Her poetry appears in the Autumn 2011 issue of The Battered Suitcase.


Jessica, when did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? 


I don’t believe I had a moment when I thought, “This is it… this is what I want to do.”  I’ve just always written, always enjoyed it, and always found writing to be a world well worth exploring. With that said, I’ll admit that even now, as an active and published writer, I’m not entirely convinced.  Meaning, I’m not sure I want to be a writer!  I struggle with writing’s impracticality.  At the same time, my life is better and fuller because of literature, so perhaps contributing to that is a life well spent.

Why do you write?

I write poetry, specifically, because I have to.  Because an image or idea strikes me as so beautiful/fascinating/potent, that I feel a non-ignorable urgency to record it.  Probably an urgency to connect—to find someone else who is taken so wonderful aback by the light coming through the trees.  I get the feeling that poems derived some other way—a non-urgent way—are less likely to be successful.

Is being a poet anything like you imagined it would be?

Yes!  It is living life with open eyes.  Eyes that investigate and appreciate.  It’s a lot of sitting and thinking, reading and thinking, practicing and thinking.  Good exercise for the brain.

What do you think makes a good story? 

I like to feel connected to a work, and invested in it.  I mean, who doesn’t?  But I want to live in the novels and poetry collections that I read… and I want those worlds to be different enough from mine that I’m tricked into thinking that I’m momentarily escaping my life… but of course close enough to mine that I’m just reflecting on my own experience, and expanding my understanding of what it means to be human.

What's your favorite genre to read? 

Probably magic realism. Aimee Bender is my hero.

Who is your favorite author or poet? 

As if there’s just one!  For poetry, these days, I so believe in Campbell McGrath, Matthea Harvey, Ken Chen, Tung-Hui Hu, and Theodore Roethke.

What books or stories have most influenced you the most as a writer?

I’ve read Lois Lowry’s “The Giver” maybe a dozen times.  I love how simple and accessible the text is on the surface, but how complicated it is deep down.  This has served as a model for me, for my own writing—that my poem’s language should welcome the reader in, and provide no barriers… and that the ideas underneath that easy, inviting language… those should be woven and heavy.  I find that style of writing to be very haunting.

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person? 

Reading Alan Lightman (“Einstein’s Dreams,” specifically, but then I read everything he ever wrote) opened doors for me, just because he crossed the bridge from science to writing.  I discovered him just as I was doing the same, myself.  To see his success at it—to see how deftly he wove physics into poetic writing—inspired me to do the same.

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?

I require outside stimuli, which can come from anywhere, at any time.

What does your family think of your writing? 

They’re incredibly supportive.  My parents read everything I publish, my extended family asks how my work is going and reads the occasional piece.  They let me know that I always have readers at home.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing? 

I’ve never been able to keep a writing schedule.  These people who wake up every morning at 6am, eat one cup of cottage cheese with peaces, and write 7 chapters—I can’t do that.  Some days I write for hours, some weeks I don’t write at all.  When it happens, it happens, and I’m seemingly not in control of that.  This has always worked for me (I’ve always been able to “produce” when I need to, for example in my MFA program), so I haven’t pushed myself to spend every waking hour trying to write more.  There is so much else I want to be doing, anyway—teaching, cooking, trying to nail the crow position in yoga (I still think it’s impossible!), etc.

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals? 

I read everything—everything!—aloud.  If I send a one-sentence email to a student, a one-page email to a friend, a 30-page story… it all gets read out loud, word by word, to make sure it sounds smooth.  I’ve even read these interview answers out loud.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

Brevity.

What are your current projects?

A book of astronomy-poems, and trying to figure out my next project (because I sense that the astronomy poems might not be a full book, at least not at this point in my life).

What are you planning for future projects?

Nothing concrete, just whatever brings me joy.

Do you have any advice for other writers?

Write if it makes you happy, and write whatever makes you happy.  The publishing world is absolutely insane (just as every industry is, once you’re inside it, I imagine).  So in some sense you should only enter it if you “have” to… if it feels urgent.  But in another sense, if you like writing, then write.  There are readers out there for you.  There are people who love your style more than anything else, and are happier, fuller people because your work exists.  The trick is to find them.  And that’s a lifelong trick.

Where can we find your work? 

Bateau Press published my chapbook, Only as a Body, and did a truly beautiful job with it.  I also have poems in handfuls of journals, as noted on my website: https://sites.google.com/site/jessicayoungpoetry/

Thank you for being a reader!

Author Spotlight - CS DeWildt

CS DeWildt lives in Tucson Arizona with his wife and sons. His short stories can be found online at Bartleby Snopes, Word Riot, The Bicycle Review, Foundling Review, and the unfortunately defunct Writers Bloc. He is currently working on a new novel and a collection of short stories.

His novella Candy and Cigarettes was published by Vagabondage Press in July 2011 to great reviews. You can read an excerpt at our website.

Chris, when did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

When I was in second grade. Our class published our own short books as part of a regional “young authors” program and I was selected to represent my class for my story, The Traveling Seed. I remember the sheer joy I felt while writing my story and I guess it just stuck. Today, writing takes me through an array of emotions and on the best days I feel just like I did at seven years old.

Why do you write?

I write because of an innate urge, a nagging muse that compels me to put words on paper, to tell stories. I write because I want people to read my work. I’m an entertainer and I think writing is the freest form of expression an artist can have. The words make music, paint pictures, dance. They do all the things I wish I could.

Is being a writer anything like you imagined it would be?

Is anything they way we imagined it would be? I guess the biggest reality check for me is that I used to think that there was this dichotomy among writers, which is either you’re on the bestsellers list or you’re struggling. And while reality might be a little closer to the latter I’ve discovered that there is room for those of us who just want to write and make an honest living at it. That’s my dream, not to be hugely successful (though that would be nice), but to pay the bills with my words.

What do you think makes a good story?

A compelling character goes a long way. If you’re interesting I’ll follow your lead longer than I will a total bore.

What's your favorite genre to read?

I like anything with a dark edge, from something as prosy as Cormac McCarthy, to Big Jim Thomson, to Stephen King. Literary fiction is often presented as a genre all its own, but I think of it more as a subgenre present within all other genres, think a typical Danielle Steele romance versus Lolita. Talk of genre often pigeon-holes a stories unnecessarily. They’re just stories, a character wants/wants to avoid something and is met with conflict while trying to get/avoid it. Some work for you as a reader, some don’t. Genre conventions are just set dressing in my opinion.

Who is your favorite author or poet?

The answer to this question would depend on the day you ask so I’ll list a few I consider masters of both story and language: Paul Theroux, Cormac McCarthy, Vladimir Nabokov, Irvine Welsh, Sylvia Plath. Again, ask me tomorrow and I’ll give you a new list.

What books or stories have most influenced you the most as a writer?

The Mosquito Coast, beyond being a compelling read, has great take-away lessons in character development, use of symbols, themes, and structure. It’s your classic man vs. man vs. society vs. nature vs. machine vs. self. And repellent or not, Allie Fox is my favorite literary character hands down.

The Old man and the Sea would be another. Regarding critical analysis, Hemingway said of it, and I’ m paraphrasing: “The old man is a man, the fish is a fish.” I think any writer or critic knows that was a damn lie, whether it was an honest lie, only Ernie knows. Regardless, considering the state of his career when he wrote it and how the story so closely parallels facets of his writing life, even the unpredictable post-publication response to it, it just shows how important honesty is when writing a truly magnificent story. To me, the work was a vivisection of the author. And ideally, that’s what a good story is.

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person?

I wish I could say that reading Hemingway toughened me up, the hero code thing, but I’m still pretty soft. However, his lessons in stoicism keep me from crying myself to sleep post rejection slip.

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?

It hits when it hits and I just try to maintain within a piece until it hits again. Usually, a story will come from a random event that just strikes me the right way, be it a comment, a conversation, or an observation. Some of these things will explode in my consciousness like a cherry bomb, and I think, that might be an interesting story. Another piece of inspiration is definitely my own memory, I’ll let my thoughts drift and then in a similar explosion I’ll recognize something that I feel is worth developing.

What does your family think of your writing?

My wife is my biggest supporter. She believes when I doubt and that’s a pretty special secret weapon to have.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

I’ve always been an early riser so most of my writing gets done in the dark wee hours while everyone else is asleep. I try to do this every day, and I mean every day. I’ll sit down other times too, if I have the opportunity, but until I can quit my day job, the writing has to be worked out around the man’s schedule.

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals?

Not really. I used to smoke cigarettes constantly while I wrote. I’ve since traded them in for nicotine patches. So I guess, sure, I always make sure I have my nicotine. Caffeine too.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

If I slow down, or get pulled away from a piece I tend to lose interest. Sometimes the challenge is just believing that what I’m writing will work itself out in the end. I don’t do a lot of plotting, a couple sign posts in my mind and then I take the scenic route.

What are your current projects?

I have three incomplete novels I’m letting stew until they’re ready to finish. I’m working on another story I hope to develop into a novella, that’s what I’m working on right now. For fun I like to write a flash piece or two a week, just to keep things interesting and to help my other projects from feeling stale.

What are you planning for future projects?

I’ve got several things in mind, but you’ll have to read them to find out.

Do you have any advice for other writers?

Keep at it. Deal with rejection and move on.

You can’t be a writer without writing. A lot of people talk about writing something, but don’t put the time in. Put in the time.

Don’t be above taking criticism, but don’t bow to it either.
If it isn’t giving you pleasure, you shouldn’t be doing it

Where else can we find your work?

Online at Bartleby Snopes, a great journal by the wonderful writer Nate Tower, also on Word Riot, The Foundling Review, The Bicycle Review, and the now unfortunately defunct Writer’s Bloc

Author Insides - Meg Johnson

Meg Johnson's poems have appeared in Slipstream Magazine, Word Riot, WTF PWM, Blood Lotus, Camroc Press Review, and others. Her poem "Free Samples" was nominated for Best of the Net. She is currently a poetry student in the NEOMFA Program, a teaching assistant at the University of Akron, and the poetry editor for Rubbertop Review. Prior to this, Meg worked for many years as a dancer, choreographer, dance teacher, and actress. She blogs at: http://megjohnsonmegjohnson.blogspot.com

Meg's poetry appeared in the Winter 2010 issue of The Battered Suitcase.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

My mom told me recently that she was looking at something I wrote in first grade about how I wanted to be a dance teacher and a writer when I grew up. I wrote poetry every year for my high school literary magazine and would secretly write in my early twenties, but I didn’t have any serious awareness about wanting to write until I was twenty-five.

Why do you write?

I feel like I have to write. I fought against that feeling for awhile, but at a certain point I couldn’t anymore.

Is being a writer/poet anything like you imagined it would be?

Yes and no. Before I ever submitted any writing to publications, I had worked as a dancer, choreographer, dance teacher, actress, and model. I had dealt with people who thought I could do no wrong and people who thought I couldn’t do anything right. Both extremes are, of course, crazy. So acceptance and rejection were not new concepts to me. I try to keep my experiences in the performing arts in mind to help understand possible highs and lows as a writer.

I started submitting poems to publications about a year and a half ago and I was surprised when I started getting some acceptances shortly after starting to send out submissions. I really appreciate the time editors have taken to read and consider my work whether they have accepted or rejected it. I’ve been really surprised by editors who were able to respond to submissions within one or two days. I had a poem published by Word Riot this year and I have poems forthcoming in Camroc Press Review and it was exciting to get those acceptances within 24 to 48 hours after submitting those poems.

I appreciate how publications promote their writers in unexpected ways. I was definitely surprised when the editors of Blood Lotus nominated my poem “Free Samples” for Best of the Net this fall. It’s really cool how The Battered Suitcase makes an effort to get to know their authors through these interviews. I organized a poetry and fiction reading this fall and Zozie Beatrice and I were two of the five readers. We had both published poetry in WTF PWM and the WTF PWM editors were generous enough to share information about the reading on their site.

What do you think makes a good story?

When it’s a piece that feels honest, regardless of whether or not it’s true.

What's your favorite genre to read?

I love reading poetry and non-fiction. I enjoy reading fiction but I don’t read it quite as much.

Who is your favorite author or poet?

Some poets that have really influenced me include Chelsey Minnis, Frank O’Hara, Anne Sexton, Denise Duhamel, Matthew Guenette, and Robbie Q. Telfer. Of course there are many more, but those are a few that I automatically think of.

What books or stories have influenced you the most as a writer?

I started reading books by Augusten Burroughs when I was twenty-one and his writing really influenced me, especially the books Magical Thinking and Possible Side Effects.

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person?

My mom read to me every day when I was a kid and I’ve been thinking about how those books, like A Little Princess, have stayed with me and how they creep into my thoughts as an adult.

There are books I read in my early twenties that I had strong emotional reactions to like The Age of Innocence and Debra Marquart’s The Horizontal World: Growing Up Wild in the Middle of Nowhere. I remember being twenty-three and being obsessed with both of those books. I’m twenty-seven and a half now so I guess that wasn’t that long ago, but it feels that way.

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?

Some of it I find in my own life. Some of it I find from my imagination. I try to feed off the energy I feel when I read writers I really love.

What does your family think of your writing?

My dad and my brother Alec probably read whatever my mom points out to them. My mom has read about half of the work I’ve published and is very supportive. I’ve published some poems with some very adult subject matter and I’ve been relieved when she has seemed unfazed by them. She reads a lot and is supportive of the arts, but when it’s your mom you still worry.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

It’s always changing.

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals?

Yes. I wish I could be one of those people who can write in public places like coffee shops. I do jot down lines in public sometimes, but when it comes to writing a poem I need to be in a room by myself where no one can stare at me. It’s much easier for me to write behind a closed door. Sometimes I pace around. Sometimes I eat candy and drink Diet Mountain Dew.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

It depends on the particular piece I’m working on.

What are your current projects?

I don’t know what city or town I’ll be living in or what I’ll be doing next year (fall 2011), so figuring that out is obviously something I’m focused on.

What are you planning for future projects?

I have some forthcoming poems. I’m working on some new poems. I know that for at least the rest of the year I’ll be teaching dance classes. I might organize another reading this spring or summer.

Do you have any advice for other writers?

I’m not sure I’ve been a writer long enough to be giving advice.

Where else can we find your work?

I’ve published writing in various print and online magazines. I post updates about where you can read my work on my blog. http://megjohnsonmegjohnson.blogspot.com/

New Release: Coming of Age Novel from Geoff Hyatt

Birch Hills at World's End

Geoff Hyatt

Birch Hills at World’s End begins between Detroit and nowhere, in 1999, when high school senior Josh Reilly senses an apocalypse approaching. Josh's unease increases as his privileged but disturbed friend Erik schemes in a journal he calls "The Doomsday Book," where he plots revenge against the suburbia he's learned to despise. When Lindsay, a sixteen-year-old famed for dramatic self-mutilation and questionable poetry, becomes Josh's girlfriend, Erik finds companionship in a circle of bikers and small-time meth traffickers. Josh, suspecting his friend Erik has become a competitor for Lindsay's affections, peeks into the Doomsday Book and is shocked by what he learns. A web of domestic strife, romantic rivalry, and millennial anxiety challenges two boys to stand together as their youth comes apart.

Columbine... Y2K... can friendships survive the end of the world?

Read an excerpt here.

Author Insides - Andrea Judy

Andrea Judy's work appeared in the Spring 2011 issue of The Battered Suitcase. You can read it online here.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
In the third grade. We were going over colors and my teacher talked about ‘Storms as dark as ebony.’ It was like an entire new world of creation was created inside of me as soon she uttered that word. From that day forward I was fascinated with words, and how they fit together and naturally fell into writing.

Why do you write?
I write because people and what we do to each other and ourselves fascinate me. I write because words need to be strung together and hung out for the world to see. These fascinating images and ideas pop into my head and they have to escape by any means necessary. Honestly, I don’t know if I can put a rational reason behind it. It’s just like breathing for me, even if I’m not writing actively I’m still thinking of ideas and things to write.

Is being a writer/poet anything like you imagined it would be?
It’s nothing like I imagined! I always imagined that it would involve going out with exciting people, being paid ridiculous amounts of money for my ideas and that it would always be easy to write. It’s hard work! No muse magically floats to my shoulder and whispers all the right words. I sometimes have to pin the muse down and pull the words out one by one. Sometimes, nothing comes at all and I stare at a blank screen on my laptop. One of my favorite quotes about writing is from Gene Fowler, "Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead." That describes the writing process perfectly for me! Every so often an idea will spring out, fully formed and ready to go but those are rare and even those ‘fully-formed ideas’ need editing and work. It takes dedication, it’s just like being dedicated to going to gym and putting in an hour of hard work everyday. You have to do it to get any results.

What do you think makes a good story?
For me it’s all about the characters, the words and the images. If I can recall a sentence or a character from a story years later it’s a great story to me. It has to give me something I know in a way that I’ve never seen before. I want to read something that will make me think and want more.

What's your favorite genre to read?
I don’t read as much as I should, but I do enjoy a wide variety of genres. I really like speculative fiction and works of magical realism but I also love fantasy, sci-fi, horror, ‘literary’, non-fiction and poetry. I read a little bit of a lot and have a bookshelf filled with interesting books of indiscriminate genres.

Who is your favorite author or poet?
Oh, I hate this question. it’s so hard to pick one favorite out of the millions of writers out there. Neil Gaiman is among my favorites but I also love Matt Bell, Claudia Rankine (her collection of poetry Don’t Let me Be Lonely is probably the most invigorating collection of work I have ever read and I highly recommend it), Margaret Atwood and Christina Rossetti. Oh dear, that’s more than one, isn’t it?

What books or stories have most influenced you the most as a writer?
Matt Bell’s chapbook, The Collectors, has been one of the most influential books on my writing ever. It’s absolutely breath-taking and gorgeous in its tragedy. If you haven’t read it you should go to Cake Train right now and view it online for free. It’s short and a super quick read—you won’t want to put it down. The variety of narrative voices and the tragedy of the character’s lives leave a lasting impression, I probably go to re-read it at least once a month, or whenever I am feeling low on inspiration just a few chapters and am reignited with a desire to write.

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person?
As a person, Peter Singer’s The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty. It’s an incredibly interesting discussion of what can be done across the globe to help out and nowhere near as dull as it sounds. It’s inspired me to start donating part of my income to a charity every month and to try to actively volunteer and be aware of what I really need. It isn’t at all my usual type of book, and I was forced to read it for a class but it really changed my perception of the world and what I can do.

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?
I find the most inspiration by listening to what is going on around me and taking constant notes. I find inspiration everywhere, TV shows, video games, movies, news articles, other writer’s work, e-mails, phone calls, a stranger walking by or even a dream. I have notebooks filled with inspiration and ideas just waiting for me to write. Always write it down when an idea strikes you because you don’t know if you’ll remember it in another few hours.

What does your family think of your writing?
My family supported me while I got my BA in Creative Writing so I would have to say they’re very supportive. However, I don’t actually share a lot of my writing with my family or friends too much. I have a small group of people I trust to help me workshop and I go to occasional writing conferences but otherwise I am a solitary creature.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
That’s a challenge right now. I just graduated from college where my ‘job’ was to be a student by reading and writing. Now I have a full-time job that keeps me very busy and I come home exhausted. I’m even more impressed by all the writers out there working 9-5 jobs and still coming home to write. I recently purchased a copy of ‘The Nighttime Novelist’ and it is helping keep me focused on my writing. I’m trying to devote an hour to writing everyday but I’ll be honest, that doesn’t always happen!

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals?
I keep a pocket-sized notebook with me at all times and jot down words, ideas, things that strike me. I think every writer should have a notebook on them at all times. I have to have music of some kind playing (most of my characters, or poems, have a ‘theme song’ that I will listen to over and over while writing) and I try to just lock myself in my room from the moment I get home from work to when I have dinner. I usually warm up by posting on a blog, or twitter or something just to get my writing muscles twitching. Another fun thing to combat the ‘dreaded white page’ stare is to actually make the background of my document something funky. Writing a dark poem? Why not a blood-spatter background to set the mood?

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I always struggle with knowing when, where and how to end a piece—whether it’s a poem or a short story. The ending is always something I have a really hard time with and I will go through dozens of endings before I will just leave it alone. I will rewrite endings countless times and never really know when I’m done or where the story should stop. It’s something I have continuously struggled with and that I usually only resolve through workshops.

What are your current projects?
My notebook right now has: Thanos, pregnant by murky waters, and obsidian written in it at the moment, as well as a link to an article about a man who beheaded his wife. I’m working on a novel at the moment (though I think every writer is working on a novel at all times) but I enjoy delving into short stories and poetry still. I do participate in National Novel Writing Month every November so that’s something that is always on my mind. I think every writer should give it a shot. It’s a great way to test yourself as a writer by writing 50,000 words in 30 days.

What are you planning for future projects?
I would love to get a chapbook of poetry together in the near future for publication. I’m really interested in poetry inspired by current events, and horrors that are happening everyday. I also am working on a few fairy tale re-tellings that I hope to get into an upcoming anthology.

Do you have any advice for other writers?
One of my dear friends gave me the best advice I’ve ever received and I’ll share it. “You can’t be a writer, if you don’t write.” I think that is sometimes the hardest part, is to get it all written down and worked out. Don’t give up when, if you get your rejection letters, take them with a grain of salt and move on. If you are writing solely to get published and get famous, there are easier ways to find fame.

Where can we find your work?
I work on a blog: http://judyblackcloud.blogspot.com/ where I talk about my writing. And at the moment I have a portfolio available at: http://www.behance.net/ajudy13 where I post my published work. And you can always follow me on twitter: http://www.twitter.com/judyblackcloud

Author Insides - Nick Padron

Composer and writer Nick Padron lives in Madrid and Miami. To date, he has published more than one hundred musical compositions, including a rock opera based on Carlos Castaneda's Don Juan series (diablero.com). His short stories have appeared in numerous publications and collections in the United States, Canada, Spain and Japan. His novella, It Tolls For Thee, rated number one at Zoetrope All-Story, October 2002. His first novel, Gabriel Hemingway's The Cuban Scar, is available on Amazon. His second novel, The Good Terrorist, is an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award finalist. You can find his work online at http://www.gabrielhemingway.webs.com/ and http://www.diablero.com/

Nick's short story, "Ghost Raft," appeared in the Autumn 2010 issue of The Battered Suitcase.

Nick, when did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

It was not a realization as much as part of an unexplainable desire to make up stories based on personal experiences, be them direct or indirect, and of creating artistic works similar to the ones that inspired me.

Why do you write?
Out of love of artistic creation, the work that goes into overcoming all the resistance one encounters in its completion, an act of loving rebellion.

Is being a writer/poet anything like you imagined it would be?
Yes and no. I’ve never imagined becoming a writer or a composer. I just did it.

What do you think makes a good story?
It’s got to have heart. The kind of heart that comes from the mysteries of the human experience.

What's your favorite genre to read?
Literary

Who is your favorite author or poet?
Gabriel Garcia Marquez

What books or stories have most influenced you the most as a writer?
All the works of Garcia Marquez, Ernest Hemingway, Don De Lillo, Oscar Hijuelos, Carlos Castaneda, Vargas LLosa

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person?
One Hundred Years of Solitude, For Whom The Bells Toll, War and Peace

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?
Out of personal experience

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
Unpredictable

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals?
I must be alone in a room

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Getting it published

What are your current projects?
A try at a science fiction story and a novel with explicit eroticism.

What are you planning for future projects?
If possible, to come up with a novel that would be acceptable to today’s publishers.

Do you have any advice for other writers?
Keep writing. Luck in the book world, as with the Muses, comes while you’re hard at work.

Where can we find your work?
My first novel, Gabriel Hemingway’s THE CUBAN SCAR is available at www.amazon.com and elsewhere in the Internet

Author Insides - Mihaela Tudor

Mihaela Tudor is an English Lecturer at the University of Hail, Saudi Arabia, teaching a course on technical report writing. Her goal is to motivate students use their skills in the scientific area, helping them to develop the taste for research. She has also been interested in exploring cross-cultural environments through direct interaction within the educational area, experimenting new ways of life and trying to identify what can bring union in terms of ideas, beliefs, customs and traditions between different cultures.

Mihaela Tudor's piece appeared in the Spring 2010 issue of The Battered Suitcase.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

It happened when I arrived in Saudi Arabia. Experiencing a sudden cultural change, but not in a negative or aggressive way, I realized this was the right time and the right place to put in writing all my ideas and the reflection on daily events upon my inner feelings. Although I was writing to enjoy the fact of being part of a new culture, gradually everything turned into a project- I knew I wanted to write. The short stories though are of a recent date, as a result, maybe, of a deep spiritual change I m undergoing.

Why do you write?
I write to connect with others, to open my world in front of them, hoping they can use my writing to find themselves deep down in their hearts. I write to revive hopes and dreams, to bring confidence, to remove boundaries that many times keep us so far for reaching what we want. My writing is always other-oriented.

Is being a writer/poet anything like you imagined it would be?
When I started to write I never dared to think of myself as a writer, but more as a messenger between my world and those around me. But yes, being a writer is exactly what I imagined! Nothing compares to the joy of reading a comment of someone who reads you, saying that you have managed to touch his heart. This has always given me the power to continue and develop my writing.

What do you think makes a good story?
Anything you believe in!

What's your favorite genre to read?
Fiction, fantasy, ancient writings, anything dealing with life experience.

Who is your favorite author or poet?
Khalil Jibran is my favorite author together with Sadeq Hedayat and Rumi, but so many other writers are on my preferences list.

What books or stories have most influenced you the most as a writer?
I cannot say that there is one particular source that has contributed to my way of writing.

What books or stories have most influenced you as a person?
The Prophet by Khalil Jibran, The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann, Rumi with his Mathnawi and Love Poems. My personality resounds best though when reading Persian literature.

Where/how do you find the most inspiration?
In my joys, sorrows, in a dream, a flower, on the mountain behind my house that I climb every day in my thoughts or in somebody s presence. Inspiration can be anything!

What does your family think of your writing?
When I read in translation my stories to my family they find the writings peaceful and creating images right in front of their eyes, maybe because when I write I first see the inside world of a story.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
I don’t usually follow a schedule; an idea occurs and I start writing. If I manage to visualize everything right from the beginning, the words just flow. I don’t plan in advance my plots, or the symbols to be used. It also depends on the artistic mood and the way the inspiration reveals itself.

Do you have any writing quirks or rituals?
Not really, but I do prefer writing at night.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
The symbolic interpretation.

What are your current projects?
To keep writing, mostly short-stories, trying to create more fantasy-like stories.

What are you planning for future projects?
I m planning to finish a book about my experience in a culturally different country and this is going to take a while.

Do you have any advice for other writers?
Write if everything you want to say comes from within.

Where can we find your work?
I usually post short stories on my Facebook page.