Danya Kukafka

How did you become a writer?

Reading. I spent most of my childhood with my nose stuck in a book, and began writing in elementary school. I think I’ve always wanted to engage with books in a deeper way. 

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

I’ve been consistently in awe of writers who play with genre in interesting ways—particularly crime fiction. In this sense, my influences have largely been writers like Megan Abbott, Celeste Ng, and Tana French. Lately I’ve been digging into stories that push beyond crime as well, into more speculative or structurally experimental realms, like Emily St. John Mandel, Akwaeke Emezi, Han Kang, and Carmen Maria Machado. I just read a novel that completely broke me open—Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin. I can already tell that book will be a touchstone for me for many years to come. 

When and where do you write?

I write at my desk at home— I try to take an hour of writing for myself every weekday morning. I have a full-time job as a literary agent, but thankfully my schedule is usually flexible, so I’ll triage my inbox quickly before turning everything off and diving into my own novel-in-progress. Sometimes I’ll work in the early evenings with a glass of wine. A few months ago, I spent a weekend alone in a treehouse, completely absorbed in the book, and those 48 hours were the most creatively productive I’ve had in many years. 

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a new novel! I can’t say much about it yet, but at this moment the concept is very outside the realm of my previous work, which I find so exciting.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block?

For me, writer’s block tends to mean that I need to unlock some aspect of a story, or change a part of the concept. I never throw out novel ideas—I just change them until they work, and writer’s block often comes for me as I’m making those changes. But if I sit with the page long enough, something will always come out. 

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

The process is the point. I found this quote from Jia Tolentino, years ago, which I return to often: “The only thing you can guarantee yourself pleasure and challenge from is inside your own writing process. Do whatever you need to do in your life and your writing to open that space for yourself. If you can work in such a way that the process will be pleasurable, even if nothing comes of it—the work is an end in and of itself—then you’ll be okay.” 

What’s your advice to new writers?

Just keep going. I know it sounds so simple, but it’s really not: write anyway when you don’t feel like it, and when you’re unsure of yourself. Write anyway when it feels like you have nothing to say. The most important thing is that you carve out that time—if you do it often enough, the words will always, always follow.

Michael Hingston

How did you become a writer?

When I was 18, in my first semester at university, I was looking around for some kind of community to be part of. One week I happened to walk into an open meeting at the university newspaper and realized it was run by a group of the funniest and smartest people I'd ever met. I spent most of the next four years in that office. Then, after graduating, it only made sense for me to try my hand at freelancing—and, on my lunch breaks, writing a novel that took place in that same ridiculous world of student journalism.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

I find it very difficult to figure out who and what has actually influenced the way I write. But the book that I probably find most inspiring generally—not to mention the book I've read the most number of times—is Nicholson Baker's U and I, which is so fresh and funny and intelligent and humane. If I ever manage to write something half that good I will be a very happy man.

When and where do you write?

I'm lucky enough to be self-employed—50% writing, 50% running a small independent press with my friend Natalie Olsen—so I get to make use of regular business hours, for the most part. My desk, however, is comically small for someone who is surrounded by piles of books. Most of the time I make it work, but occasionally I'll also migrate to my roomier kitchen table, as I am right now, at least until the battery on my laptop runs out.

What are you working on now?

My new book is called Try Not to Be Strange: The Curious History of the Kingdom of Redonda, and it's the fantastic true story of an empty island in the Caribbean—as well as the group of writers who, over the past 150 years, have claimed to be its king. It's part literary history, part quixotic quest narrative, and it was just published by Biblioasis. I'm really excited about it.

Have you ever suffered from writer's block?

Not really. I have enough irons in the fire that if I get stumped, for whatever reason, I can switch over to something else. But I would also make a distinction between true writer's block (exceedingly rare, in my opinion) and writing that simply isn't going well. I've talked to plenty of new writers who get discouraged at this latter experience, assume they aren't cut out for it, and want to quit. In reality, that's what writing is. The pain and anguish are all just part of the process. This means you have high standards, which you should. If anything, I would be suspicious of writing that comes too easily—that's a pretty good indicator that the writing in question stinks.

What's the best writing advice you've ever received?

One of my professors in university, Michael Everton, once said to me: "All writing is seduction." I like that advice because (a) it's true, and (b) it's short enough that I can remember it.

What's your advice to new writers?

The usual stuff, really: read as much as you can, try out as much as you can on the page, don't be afraid to revise, and don't be afraid to throw away what doesn't work and try again. I would also recommend in the strongest possible terms to read books that are old and, ideally, out of print. There's no better perspective than the past, and you'll find a wealth of authors, stories, and ideas there that 99% of people these days have never heard of. (That's what we call a competitive advantage.) Plus this kind of reading can remind you that all writers are part of larger traditions, and help you figure out what lane, exactly, you want to occupy in your own work.

Michael Hingston is a writer and publisher in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He is the author of the books Let's Go Exploring and The Dilettantes, and the co-author of Harnarayan Singh's memoir One Game at a Time. Hingston's writing has appeared in Wired, National Geographic, The Atlantic, and the Washington Post. He is also the co-founder of Hingston & Olsen Publishing, makers of the Short Story Advent Calendar and other literary experiments. Hingston's new book is Try Not to Be Strange: The Curious History of the Kingdom of Redonda.

Rhys Bowen

How did you become a writer?

I have created stories all my life, from playing pretend games as a small child to writing with teenage angst. My first success came early—working in the BBC drama department I wrote a play which the head of drama liked and then produced. So I have been a professional author ever since.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

Early influence was Tolkien. I admired his ability to build a whole world and take me on a journey. When I discovered Tony Hillerman I was blown away. Here was a writer who not only crafted a good mystery but took me somewhere, gave me insights into a different culture. I decided that was what I wanted to do. My first mystery series featured a police constable in Wales (home of my mother’s family). I have since become known for my creation of time and place.

 When and where do you write?

Since I write two and a half books a year I write pretty much every day. I go down to my office, sit my behind on a chair and write until I’ve done about 1500 words. The next day I edit what I’ve written the day before, but knowing I have to complete about five pages a day means that I have to keep going through the bad days and that I’ll have a first draft in about three months. My office has a huge shelf of reference books.

 What are you working on now? 

I now write my Molly Murphy series with my daughter Clare Broyles. We are currently coming to the end of a first draft of our third book together called In Sunshine or in Shadow. It’s set in the Catskill Mountains and is about an early bungalow colony.  I recently finished my next big stand-alone called Island of Lost Boys, that takes place in pre-war Paris, in Paris and London during WWII and also in Australia.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? 

Never. I’ve had bad days when I have to extract every word from a reluctant brain but the ideas have always come easily and I find that if a scene is not working well it is because a character is digging his heels in and doesn’t want to do what I’m trying to make him do.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

Don't ever write something because you think it’s popular and will sell. You have to love what you are writing, walk in the shoes of your characters, enjoy going to work every morning. And if you write something you think is popular by the time it is released that fad will be over.

What’s your advice to new writers?

Know what you are writing and what is already out there. If you write mysteries read the best mystery writers. Learn from the masters.

Rhys Bowen is the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of three mystery series as well as several internationally best selling stand alone historical novels. Her Constable Evans series is set in Wales and currently under TV option. The Molly Murphy mysteries are set in early 1900s New York and feature an Irish immigrant. Rhys is now continuing the series with her daughter and they are on book twenty. The Royal Spyness books are lighter satire on the British class system and have a large following. Her stand-alone historical novels have sold over two million copies in over thirty languages. Rhys has won twenty major awards including five Agatha awards, and three Edgar nominations. She was born and educated in Britain but now divides her time between California and Arizona.