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. Check out Issue #27 for work from Garth Upshaw and more.


What was the inspiration for the piece published in the issue?
Last summer, I went on a camping trip with my two brothers in an area ravaged by the Lionsheads fires of 2020. I hadn’t spent much time with Gregg in the last decade and was struck by how he’s changed, and how the landscape seemed to reflect those changes.

What is your #1 advice for other writers or artists?
Read! Write! Read some more. And find other creative people to share work with. Oh, and go to classes! LOL, I don’t know. I love William Stafford’s advice about lowering your standards. I enjoyed both Margaret Atwood and Ursala LeGuin’s books on writing (Negotiating With the Dead, and Steering the Craft, respectively). And as Phil Sylvester said, “Do what you love – that way, you’ll spend enough time to get good.”

What is your creative process? Do you plan pieces out or let them happen as they come?
I obsess over various projects, and with a little bit of luck, a small percentage actually cross the finish line. I went through a spoon-carving phase a few years ago, even bringing the knives with me on family vacations, carved a few dozen spoons, and then stopped cold. I always mean to get more disciplined and set a regular time to do creative work, but somehow that never happens. I’ve written three novels, a memoir, and many many short stories and poems. Planning comes hard to me, but for larger projects, it’s a must.

What turns you off when you see it in a work? What are your creative pet peeves?
I hate implausibility – which is funny because I love SF/Fantasy. But implausibility (for me) isn’t so much about FTL or magic being impossible as, given some premise, does the story hold together? Do the characters feel like real people? Am I engaged? Do I believe? I think my biggest pet peeve is when an author’s unexamined assumptions bleed into the story (e.g. men are better fighters than women, people are "white" by default, capitalism is the best economic system)

What is your "white whale"?
Supporting myself and my family through my creative process.