I Heart SapphFic “All About The Book”

When I started reading lesbian novels, I could name only The Well of Loneliness, Annie on My Mind, Patience and Sarah, and Rubyfruit Jungle. Two lesbians run “I Heart SapphFic” with a database of nearly 10,000 titles. Not all the books would be about lesbians, and some are written by men, but you can filter to find what you want by genre, plot type, characters, and ethnicity. They make it easy for authors to find their books’ audience. I had fun with their “All About the Book” questionnaire.

Why this book and why now?

Even though this story takes place forty years ago, the drama of the story has relevance for lesbians (and everyone) now. The cultural references are entertaining; you don’t have to recognize them to enjoy the story.

I’ve been wondering about an immortal lesbian for a long time. I thought her story would be how I could tell stories of women’s history, and also how someone with those experiences and perspectives would challenge the women around her. When I figured out that she would be rich, I then wanted to explore how that would have changed our idealistic feminist dreams of women’s land, which always felt apart because we were poor.

What is a significant way your book has changed since either the first draft or the way you thought it would turn out when you first had the inspiration?

A Circle Outside is only the first third of the novel’s first draft. It’s about the obsessions of young women, or goddesses in their “maiden” aspect. The stakes of the story might seem minor, but friendships and lovers and how to live a meaningful life are not small stakes to women in their twenties.

Is there anything you wish readers knew before diving into this book?

A Circle Outside is about lesbian witches, but not the fantasy kind. These women have learned how to change their state of consciousness at will, how to use their bodies and breath to find the answers to personal mysteries, and how to have fun playing with costumes and fancy language. It’s the kind of magic women in the real world make together.

Were there any scenes or characters that surprised you as you wrote?

The scene between Wren and her mother at the Saturn Cafe just got worse and worse as I imagined it, as I realized what was depicted in the painting.

Which character was the most fun to write, and which was the hardest?

Kelsey has conversations with a ghost, who was the most fun to write. The hardest characters were Lupe, Hazel, Ginny, and Nikki. I kept asking them, “Come on, do you really need to be in this book?” And they all said, “Yes, absolutely.” “Even though it is ridiculous to have eight characters in the first scene?” “You need all four of us, or none of us.”

Did any of your characters surprise you by developing in unexpected ways?

Gloria, who annoys everyone, became more sympathetic to me as I got to understand how she came to be who she is.

Publishing a book is a huge accomplishment and it’s time to party! Choose a celebratory beverage for one of your main characters to toast the release of your new book.

The characters would toast me with homemade mead, made from their own honey. I hope they would have perfected the process so it didn’t taste like dirty socks like so many of my own batches.

If your book had a scent, what would it smell like?

Like the redwoods on a rainy morning. Damp redwood duff, maybe a hint of mushrooms. Woodsmoke.

Do you outline your books in detail, or do you prefer to discover the story as you write?

I use the “Inside Outline” (Blueprint for a Book) approach of Jenni Nash after doing a lot of character exploring as Lisa Cron instructs us in Story Genius.

Do you have any writing rituals or habits?

I resist sitting down to write and will avoid it. But I get high from “having written,” so I need to write. A paramedic friend told me, “You can stand anything for fifteen minutes.” If she could do that, I could write for twenty minutes. So I set a timer, and force myself to write for twenty minutes. Most of the time, that gets the writing started. If not, I can quit and play minecraft or do whatever I want.

Who are your biggest literary influences?

When I was learning how to write novels, I studied the three books of His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman; tearing the stories apart and really examining the inner workings of plot, character, theme, and especially the narrator’s voice.

What are you currently reading?

I’m re-reading and taking notes on No Modernism without Lesbians by Diana Souami, The Amazons by Adrienne Mayor and Women of the Golden Dawn by Mary Greer. I’m re-reading all the Murderbot stories by Martha Wells. I just finished The Hunt by by Kelly J. Ford for my lesbian book club. Next up is The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue, which takes place in Ireland, where I live now.