We love learning more about our contributors, and an interview seemed like a fun way to hear more about the writers and artists we publish, so we gave them a choice of questions to answer. We hope you also enjoy hearing more about the artists and their works. Read on and check out issue 28 for "If You Have Seen the Scioto" from Kristina Garvin.


What was the inspiration for the piece published in the issue?
I’ve always been fascinated by how the past influences our present—and, simultaneously, how we attempt to conceal our nation’s past. Colonel William Crawford has long been of interest to Ohio authors and historians. A close friend of George Washington, he led the failed Crawford expedition, a 1782 campaign to quell an uprising in Ohio Country that was a direct result of the Gnadenhutten Massacre, where American Revolutionaries murdered a group of Lenape pacifists they believed were spies for the British. In retribution for this crime, members of the Delaware Nation captured and murdered Crawford.

In many retellings, Crawford is depicted as a martyr who tried his best to stop hostilities but met a tragic end. But while writing my dissertation, I discovered that Crawford had earlier massacred Indigenous women and children at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers—what would later become Columbus, my hometown. I wanted to write a piece that grappled with this genocidal legacy and what it means for those of us who call Columbus home.


What is your #1 advice for other writers?
If the workshop setup doesn’t work for you, that’s okay, Instead, try to find one or two readers you trust to offer feedback. I haven’t had great experiences with traditional workshops—I often get too much conflicting advice. Finding a couple of really great, generous readers has been life-changing.


What do you do in the rest of your life and how does that connect and/or conflict with your creative life?
I work for local government. I wish the Deep State actually existed. If it did, I’d happily enlist.


We think of "after happy hour" as the time you can really let loose and be yourself. What is your after happy hour?
I love singing karaoke with my partner. I’ve always loved music, but I was never brave enough to sing in public before I met him. I’ve found that karaoke is a great way to just get over yourself and sing. Who cares if you’re not great at it? That’s the point.