Sabrina Kleckner is the author of the new young adult novel The Complex Art of Being Maisie Clark. She also has written the middle grade novel The Art of Running Away, which features her character Maisie at a younger age. Kleckner is also a teacher.
Q: What inspired you to return to your character Maisie Clark, and how much do you think she’s changed from one book to the next?
A: When I finished my first book, The Art of Running Away, I never intended to write a continuation of the story. But I loved the characters, and I’ve always been someone who likes experimental writing.
I began to consider the prospect of creating another novel with the same protagonist as The Art of Running Away, but instead of in middle school, she would now be in college.
One of the challenges in aging Maisie up so much was making sure she still sounded like herself while also showing she had grown from who she was in the first book.
At her core, 18-year-old Maisie is the same as 12-year-old Maisie. She’s still chaotic and impulsive and immature, but she’s now also more aware of herself and her surroundings, and is thus capable of faster and more significant growth.
Q: The Kirkus Review of the book says, “Maisie is funny, awkward, and occasionally overbearing. Her inner voice captures the confused, unfiltered thoughts of a teenager—full of self-doubt, sarcasm, and bursts of confidence—in this thoughtful, character-driven story of growth.” What do you think of that description?
A: That description from Kirkus perfectly captures my intentions with Maisie! I think there’s a tendency in novels to assume 18-year-olds are mature and can/should act like the adults they newly are. While that absolutely can be the case for some, there are definitely others in their late teens who have no idea who they are or who they want to be.
In a lot of ways, age 18 reminds me of age 12, in that both middle school and the first steps into adulthood are transitional periods. While people have different problems at those different ages, a lot of the feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, and self-consciousness are the same.
Q: The novel is set in London--how important do you think setting is in your writing?
A: Setting can do so much to make a story feel alive, but it’s actually one of my least favorite things to write (I much prefer dialogue)!
One way I get myself more excited about setting is by writing about places I love. As a child, I desperately wanted to live in London, and I had the privilege of studying abroad there when I was 18. One of the reasons why I wrote The Art of Running Away is because I wanted an excuse to write about the city I loved so much.
While I do think my novels are ultimately more character-driven than setting-driven, I hope my fondness for London shines through!
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the book?
A: I hope readers take away from this book that there isn’t one age where you are supposed to have everything figured out. Maisie is 18 and makes a lot of questionable choices. Her brother Calum is 28 and also makes a lot of questionable choices.
There are so many reasons why someone might or might not have figured themselves out by a certain age, and that’s okay! Life is complicated and not always easy to navigate.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: There’s a book I’ve been trying to get right since 2018. I’m back to looking at it after a few years away and would really love for it to be my next novel, but we’ll see! I don’t want to say too much, but if I could describe it in one word, I would say “swimming.”
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: You can find me online @sabkleckner or on my website www.sabrinakleckner.com.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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