Interviews
On “getting creatively lost”: Robert J. Dau Prize Winner Mathapelo Mofokeng
Learn about Mathapelo Mofokeng’s short story “The Strong-Strong Winds,” which was selected for ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021.’
“The most innocent thing you can do is want to create”: Robert J. Dau Prize Winner Isaac Hughes Green
Learn about Isaac Hughes Green’s short story “The First Time I Said It,” which was selected for ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021.’
“It’s astonishing how similar everyone’s editorial problems are”: A Conversation with Allison K Williams
In this conversation with the author of ‘Seven Drafts,’ Andrea A. Firth chats with Allison K Williams about praise, feedback, editing concepts, and more.
“The writing process was a bit chaotic”: Robert J. Dau Prize Winner Amy Haejung
Learn about Amy Haejung’s short story “Maria,” which was selected for ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021.’
“The literary challenge of this moment is restoring voice and agency to non-humans”: A Conversation with Amitav Ghosh
“Both non-humans and human Others were represented as being fit to be ‘subdued’ (a word that recurs often in colonial texts).”
“I wanted to convey that conflict of balancing the expectations of two different cultures”: A Conversation with Mina Seçkin
“What would it look like for a person—one who is a disaffected millennial—to look for her soul in her body? That’s the question I wanted to write toward.”
“Write your reality”: A Conversation with Janice Lee
“That is, my nonfiction isn’t any more ‘real’ than my fiction.”
A Conversation with ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021’ Author Nishanth Injam
“We spend too much time thinking about how we are different and not enough time thinking about how we are similar.”
A Conversation with ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021 Author’ Heather Aruffo
“I think medical terminology can be incredibly beautiful and I love integrating it into my work.”
A Conversation with ‘Best Debut Short Stories 2021’ Author Lindsay Ferguson
“Writing at a slow pace—or along the contours of what life personally looks like for you—is still writing.”