TBR [to be
read] is a semi-regular, invitation-only interview series with authors of newly
released/forthcoming, interesting books who will tell us about their new work
as well as offer tips on writing, stories about the publishing biz, and from
time to time, a recipe!
Give us your elevator
pitch: what’s your book about in 2-3 sentences?
Miracelle Loving, Tarot card reader and grifter and the
daughter of a fortune teller, has been living on the road for years when she
first hears the voice of the ghost of her long-dead mother, Ruby. Wanting Radiance is Miracelle’s
journey toward finding the truth about her past—who shot her mother, who her
father is, and why her heart has long been closed to love.
Which character did you most enjoy writing?
As I wrote Wanting Radiance, I found myself surprised
to identify most with Della Wallen, who is the owner of a diner called The
Black Cat, in Smyte, Kentucky. Miracelle
Loving ends up working for Della during a long, cold winter. In early drafts of the novel, Della was a
more minor character—as someone for Miracelle to talk with, try to get
information from as she dives deeper into understanding who Russell Wallen as
the father she never knew. I grew to
love Della, her strength laced with bitterness and her complex relationship
with love itself. Della was based on a
great-aunt of mine who owned a restaurant and filling station. As I came to know Della, I also came to know
more about the woman I’m from—and my own inheritance of strength and
perseverance.
Which character gave you the most trouble?
Ruby Loving, Miracelle Loving’s mother, was in many ways the
most difficult character for me to pin down.
The character was originally inspired by a fortune teller I met in
Weaverville, NC. I had been going
through a hard time in my life, with the end of a long-term relationship and much
confusion about who I was and what I wanted next in my life. I went to have my fortune told by this woman
who lived in a trailer on the outskirts of Weaverville. When you went into the trailer, you had to go
back into the bedroom where the fortune teller—an enormous woman—lay in a big
bed with a velvet headboard. She read
the shadows in photographs. Originally,
that woman was Ruby Loving. As Ruby
evolved, she for awhile was a strange teller of futures who’d been born with
fingers long as teaspoons. Later, she
became more lovelorn, sort of like a woman spurned in an old-time ballad. Finally, parts of the novel were written in
her voice, and she became herself.
What are some of the highs and lows of your book’s road
to publication?
Well, early on, parts of the book appeared in anthologies,
one of which was Red Holler, from Sarabande Books and edited by Wayne
Thomas and John Branscum. That felt
wonderful, seeing the story evolving and already finding wings. Later, as drafts of the book evolved, I sent
it several times to an agent for whom I have great admiration. She loved it, but felt hesitant about the how
she’d sell the work. It was literary,
language and character based. That
experience meant more drafts and, eventually, some hard work with a free-lance
book editor. In the end, the hard work
was the real high of this novel. I
learned so much about structure, about narrative arc, about writing characters
who are convincing, both in how they speak and how they more, how they think
and what they want. I am pleased with
the final form the novel took, and the home it found in that form.
What’s your favorite piece of writing advice?
In one of my favorite documentaries, fiction writer Larry
Brown is talking about being disciplined.
“Even if you can’t get words down on the page that day,” he says, show
up. “Sit there for three or four hours a
day.” My writing is a discipline and I
show up for it in many ways—emotionally, spiritually, physically.
My favorite advice is “write until something surprises
you.” What surprised you in the writing
of this book?
I won’t give away the plot, but just let me say that the
night of Ruby Loving’s shooting held me surprises that I discovered as I wrote.
How did you find the title of your book?
The title for my
novel came to me on my long drives to Kentucky over these many years. I pass road signs with names for all the
little coal towns I remembered from my childhood—Neon, Jenkins, Betsy Lane—and
I imagined a town called Radiance.
Inquiring foodies and hungry book clubs want to know: Any
food/s associated with your book? (Any recipes I might share?)
Make a pot of coffee
early in the morning. Use fresh ground
coffee. Buy something rich enough to
whet your coffee appetite when you open the can or the bag, a scent that sets
you mouth water, but not something fancy.
Pour the first cup in a big, heavy mug and sit down with the morning
paper to get your day started. Keep the
pot going all day long.
READ MORE ABOUT THIS
AUTHOR: https://www.karensalyermcelmurray.com/
READ MORE ABOUT THIS
PUBLISHER: https://www.kentuckypress.com/9781949669145/wanting-radiance/
ORDER THIS BOOK FOR
YOUR OWN TBR STACK: https://www.amazon.com/Wanting-Radiance-Novel-South-Limestone/dp/1949669149/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1576507586&refinements=p_27%3AKaren+Salyer+McElmurray&s=books&sr=1-1&text=Karen+Salyer+McElmurray
