Q&A with Mary Keating

   

 

 

Mary Keating is the author of the memoir in verse Recalibrating Gravity. She is the poetry editor of ScribesMICRO, and is an attorney. She lives in Connecticut.

 

Q: What inspired you to write Recalibrating Gravity?

 

A: In 1973, when I was 15, I got into a teenager's Mustang convertible and never walked again. The moment the car crashed, I was transported to an alternate reality. One where I wasn’t “me” to the outside world. I was a trope.

 

I tried to find authentic books or stories about my new life. They didn’t exist. Disabled people were either tragic or inspirational, but not real people.

 

Except this one book my parents got me, called You Can Do It From A Wheelchair, with a cover that featured a middle-aged woman right out of the ‘50s. She was in a wheelchair mopping. Mopping! What an ambition to strive for.

 

I used to joke with my boyfriend about writing a book called You Can Do It In A Wheelchair and really shatter stereotypes. I think that’s when the idea to write my life story germinated.

 

It’d take me 50 years to compile it. And I never dreamt I’d write it in verse. But that makes perfect sense. The immediacy of poetry breaks the barriers that stereotypes create.

 

My memoir is the one I wanted to read when I was first injured—to know I could do it (life) in a wheelchair, go far beyond mopping, as long as I didn’t forget to laugh.

 

Q: The poet Ed Ahern said of the book, “These autobiographical free-verse poems are achingly honest and subversively creative.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: It’s a great feeling when another poet acknowledges the power of my work—it tells me the poems are doing what I hoped: shifting perspectives.

 

I chose verse so readers experience disability on a deeper level, with form always enhancing meaning. A long, narrow poem called “Hospital’s Care” might topple over at any moment, while “Still,” shaped like a wheelchair, reflects the glacial pace of progress in spinal cord injury care and cure compared to space travel.

 

Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: After my accident, I couldn't sit without support. None of my core muscles worked. In rehab, my physical therapist said that my paralysis changed my center of gravity. He told me I had to find a new one.

 

That concept stuck with me long after I learned to sit without falling over, because recalibrating gravity is a metaphor for learning to adapt to, and navigate in, an alien world.

 

When it came to choose a title, Recalibrating Gravity clicked. My memoir is far more than a disability memoir—just as my life is far more than being a paraplegic.

 

Life is learning to keep balanced no matter what happens—to keep centered. That's a learned skill honed by adversity. We are recalibrating life’s gravity all the time. The title captures the physical, psychological, and spiritual recalibration illustrated in my memoir.

 

Q: What impact did it have on you to write this book, and what do you hope readers take away from it?

 

A: It was and continues to be empowering. From reconnecting with old friends to making new ones at speaking engagements and author events, I’m delighted how my world continues to unfold in ways I never imagined.

 

A Facebook friend shared a poem about my accident with a young woman who subsequently stopped getting into her boyfriend’s car when he’d been drinking. Hopefully, she stopped him from driving while intoxicated as well.

 

I hope my poems help others to recalibrate the gravity of any hardship or difficult time they are going through. That they realize disability is human and love is really what this life is all about. Each of us can make this world a kinder place. We don't have to be heroic. Small acts accumulate over time. 

 

One in four people are disabled, over a billion people. Ideally, my readers start insisting places are accessible to everyone. That would be a dream come true.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I just finished a new poetry collection, My Brain is an Octopus Hiding Haiku, which is loosely structured on the feminine hero’s journey. The overall arc is enhanced by my scuba diving experience of how pressure shifts while navigating a fluid space. The octopus is a perfect metaphor for intelligence, adaptation, and survival.

 

There’s still a dearth of authentic disability stories, especially on the big screen. I’ve written a few short stories. I hope to finish the screenplay I mapped out which is about a high school athlete who becomes paralyzed in a diving accident and discovers how to reinvent her life. And finally, I’ve begun a novel where the protagonist is a woman who uses a wheelchair and outsmarts her kidnappers.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: Not so much what you should know, but things to remember: Take care of each other and the planet, hug a tree, and don’t park—even a millimeter—on the hatched-out lines next to accessible parking. You’ll block me from getting in and out of my ramp van. Then how will I, or others like me, be able to engage in this amazing world?

 

Readers can contact me through my website, www.MaryKeatingPoet.com.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb 

Q&A with Colette Lafia

  

 

 

 

Colette Lafia is the author of the new book Leaving the Shore: Experiencing Poetry as Prayer. Her other books include The Divine Heart. She is also a spiritual director and retreat facilitator. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write Leaving the Shore?

 

A: The impetus for this book began on a sleepless night, lying on my sofa, feeling frustrated that I was unable to sleep. Gradually, as the hours went by, I found my attention drawn inward. I could feel a gentle pulsing within me. It was soft and subtle, almost like something was being peeled open. It may sound crazy to say out loud, but I had the palpable sensation of God’s love surrounding and holding me.

 

I had recently begun attending an online poetry workshop, and during the next class, I started a poem that I hoped would capture the feelings and sensations I had felt as I had drifted away that night from my ego self and surrendered to the feeling of being wrapped in Divine Love. That poem became “Leaving the Shore.”

 

After that poem had taken shape, I began in earnest to pull together a collection of poetry that would center thematically on finding the holy in everyday moments. So, I wrote about my life, about my job as a school librarian, about my marriage, and about my spiritual life.

 

As in my other books, I also wanted a way to allow the reader to enter the material and engage with their own thoughts and spiritual yearnings, and so the idea arose of including short prayerful practices that could be explored after reading each poem. And that’s how the subtitle, Experiencing Poetry as Prayer, eventually took shape.

 

Q: How did you decide on the order in which the poems would appear in the collection?

 

A: That’s such an interesting question. One afternoon, with a print-out of the manuscript in hand, I cleared a large space in my living room and began placing each poem, one after the other, on the floor. Once they were all laid out, I started to order and re-order each piece.

 

I always knew I wanted the title poem, "Leaving the Shore," to be first, but from after that, I looked at other poems and thought about how they would flow together, thematically and in some sense, musically, too.

 

Q: How was the book’s title (also the title of one of the poems) chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: As mentioned, "Leaving the Shore" is the centerpiece of the collection because I think it does a nice job of describing something that is very hard to describe and expresses the ineffable. The other part of this is the subtitle, and the importance to me of offering a book that readers can engage with and return to.

 

I’ve had the gift of leading both in-person and online workshops that focus on the book and invite attendees to share their own responses and poetry. This has been one of the most gratifying aspects of having published the book.

Q: The writer Christine Valters Paintner said of the book, “This lovely book is full of quiet spaces and tender moments where your soul can rest for a while and be.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I’m very grateful for Christine’s mention and for her insight.

 

In some ways, I agree that it is a quiet book. It’s a book that reflects on so many moments of everyday life and reminds us to stop and slow down, to look inward a bit more; and for those so inclined, to deepen our spiritual connection to the Divine, no matter what tradition we may come from.

 

There are poems about coming to a table that my husband and I have sat at for decades, about a cracked mug that I drank my morning tea from, about a bowl of soup that catches a child’s attention at school, and many other intimate moments of daily life that are worth our attention and reverence.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Well, I am still very much engaged with giving readings and delivering workshops around poetry and prayer and supporting the launch of my book.

 

But I will confess, I am already working on a new project: another nonfiction book about the spiritual life, which is about as much as I can say right now without giving the title away!

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: I have always felt the purpose of my life is to love. My journey has been one of growing in love and connecting more deeply to the Source of Love. I've devoted my writing and my spiritual teaching to this journey.

 

My work as a spiritual director, a retreat leader, and a writer invites people into seeing themselves as a manifestation of Divine Love, and I invite anyone interested in learning more to visit my website.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb 

May 17

 

 

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
May 17, 1912: Archibald Cox born.

Q&A with Elizabeth Goodenough

  

 

James Munro Leaf

 

Elizabeth Goodenough's late son James Munro Leaf was the author of the new poetry and prose collection A Revolution of One. Leaf was a New York director, actor, and writer. The collection was edited by Goodenough and Brigit Young.

 

Q: Over how long a period did your son write the poems and essays in this collection?

 

A: My co-editor, Brigit Young, and I chose to include James’s work from ages 15-32 (2001-2017).

 

This allowed us to create a tapestry that depicted several stages of his young life - from a published poem he wrote in high school inspired by watching the twin towers fall to thoughts scribbled on a pamphlet at Notre Dame in his 20s to texts in which he debates the meaning of art with a friend stifled by grad school to thoughtful meditations on the experience of mania in his 30s.

 

We hope that at least a piece of James’s spirit can shine through in this mosaic of his words from all stages of his life.

Elizabeth Goodenough

 

Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: The title was found handwritten on a page in his notebook. It matches another mantra: Toujours L’Audace! We felt this phrase captured James’s spirit.

 

James yearned for revolution in art, in how we communicate with one another, and in the fight for the underdog and those invisible to larger society. His work consistently explores this theme.

 

He grapples with how inspiring the seeds of revolution can feel while also acknowledging the loneliness of carrying the weight of the world on one’s shoulders.

 

Q: The writer Jacob M. Appel called the book “an intense, mesmerizing collection that plumbs the depths of history and emotion in waves of literary force.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: It is perceptive and accurate! We are so thankful to Jacob for his support of this book. Jacob is a novelist, playwright, psychiatrist, Harvard Law School graduate, and even a licensed New York City tour guide. He’s done it all!

 

When he pinpointed exactly what makes this collection special, we couldn’t have been more honored. He is spot on in his assessment that James’s work scours history and great literature for clues and connections to our own lives, and the impact of that exploration brings the reader into a relationship with the great characters of history and literature.

 

Right alongside James, we grapple to find our place in humankind’s ongoing epic.

 

Q: What do you hope readers take away from the book?

 

A: We hope they come away from reading it with more of a spirit of rebellion against injustice. We are encouraged by the positive response we’ve received from those who live with bipolar disorder who have told us his work helped them feel less alone. It made them feel seen. That means the world to us.

 

If those readers, and readers of all kinds, can take on at least a sliver of James’s commitment to fighting for the humanity of all people, the collection will have been a success.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Liz is working on a picture book biography of James’s grandfather, Munro Leaf, who wrote Ferdinand the Bull. Brigit Young is in final edits of her fifth middle grade book, One More Time, which comes out in March 2027.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: Thank you so much for having us on your blog. It’s such a great platform for writers, and we so appreciate it!

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Elizabeth Goodenough. 

Q&A with Sharon Rose

   

 

Sharon Rose is the author of the new children's picture book Through the Garden Gate. She is a garden designer and environmental artist, and she's based in San Francisco.

 

Q: What inspired you to write Through the Garden Gate, and how did you create your character Miles?

 

A: As I do not have any children of my own, I wanted to leave a little legacy to teach children about plants, inspire exploration and adventure.

 

Q: What do you think Erin Brown’s illustrations add to the story?

 

A: Her illustrations are so vibrant and beautiful and are enjoyable for parents and children as they read together.

 

Q: You are also a garden designer--how did that background factor into the story?

 

A: There is a nod to my childhood neighbor, Mary McCreath in the story - the character Miss Mary. She taught me how to take care of a garden and greatly influenced and supported my education in gardening and design. 

 

Q: What do you hope kids take away from the book?

 

A: I hope this book inspires children to learn more about what plants are capable of that scientists are still researching.

 

I hope this book inspires the next generation of garden designers, land stewards, explorers, and scientists. 

 

Q: What are you working on now? 

 

A: Currently, I am working on several garden designs located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?  

 

A: Fun gardening story: As a child, I tried planting my mom's wedding ring in the backyard garden. My dad had just recently taught me how to sow seeds in the vegetable garden. I was probably 3 years old at that time. Thankfully, my dad found the ring soon after my mom noticed it went missing!

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb 

May 16

 

 

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
May 16, 1912: Studs Terkel born.

Q&A with JoAnn McCaig

  

 

JoAnn McCaig is the author of the new novel Beneficiary. Her other books include An Honest Woman. She taught for 20 years at the University of Calgary, and she owns the independent bookstore Shelf Life Books in Calgary, Alberta. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write Beneficiary, and how did you create your character Seren?

 

A: My inspiration for writing the novel is that this character and her life story just kept pestering me and refused to stay in the drawer.

 

I wrote the early drafts of the first two sections of the novel, "The Vigo Reaction" and "Family Fugue," in the 1990s when I was a beleaguered single mom in grad school. (Which is a good thing, because now that I’m a grandmother, I barely remember what it was like to be the mother of a bunch of little kids, but those two sections fortunately captured it.)

 

Over the ensuing years as I worked on the novel, the central character’s name changed many times. First it was Sarah, then it was Sally. It was even Ramona for a while. 

 

But then, during Covid, when I made the commitment to complete the novel, “Seren” floated up out of the ether, so fresh and unfamiliar that I thought I’d invented it. And I loved the resonant suggestion that her life’s journey is one that moves toward serenity. 

 

However, I later learned Seren is in fact a fairly common Welsh name, AND just last year (and this is weird) I also stumbled upon a very early version of the novel in which my central character was named, you guessed it, Seren! So I guess the name was just meant to be.

 

Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: The original title was The Venus Hum, which comes up in an early draft (since deleted) when Seren’s young son is diagnosed with a venous hum, but she immediately imagines the word as referring to the goddess of love and not a body part.

 

And to me, this mixup was indicative of how Seren’s ambivalence and confusion about romance was like a barely detectable hum or murmur in her heart.

 

However, in 2004, Calgary author Suzette Mayr published a novel called Venous Hum, and I realized that I needed to find a new title. Still, my early plan was to name each section after a misheard or misspelled medical condition, like Venus Hum for Venous Hum.

 

Hence "The Vigo Reaction," which is what Seren hears her doctor say in the delivery room when he’s actually saying vasovagal reaction. And also "Family Fugue" which suggests a fugue state as well as a game show.  

 

I settled on the current title very late in the game when I finally began to see how Seren is the beneficiary not only of her father’s estate but also of all of her life experiences: every up, every down, every crazy-making and impossible situation, they all push her toward becoming the woman she was always meant to be.

 

Q: Did you know how the novel would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?

 

A: I never know how a book is going to end when I start writing. I am a meanderer. I just kind of wander around in the material and see what happens. I’m also something of a magpie, gathering shiny beads and bits of string and bringing them all back to the nest to weave into some kind of cohesive whole. 

 

For me, writing is a process of discovery, not the working through of a pre-set plan or idea.

 

Q: The author Barbara Joan Scott said of the book, “The book is structurally brilliant, but it’s Seren who will captivate: witty, complex, flawed, shining in her uniqueness.” What do you think of that assessment?

 

A: It’s gratifying to hear such a generous statement.

 

Let me put it this way: I’ve loved fiction since I was a child. And though I adored the work of Charles Dickens, one thing that always bothered me was his utterly flat depictions of female characters: they were either impossibly saintly (Agnes, Little Nell) or implacably evil (Estella, Miss Havisham). 

 

I want to read about characters who are fully rounded and puzzling human beings. I would rather that Seren be seen as interesting than as likeable or “relatable.”

 

Q: What are you working on now? 

 

A: There’s no new fiction on the horizon at the moment. (Well maybe a story or two -- which, come to think of it, is actually how all three of my novels started out….) 

 

But I’ve published a few essays in anthologies lately, one in a collection about infertility called Barren, and another about my mom in a collection about family secrets. 

 

So my current plan is to gather together these nonfiction pieces, and add some new ones about various topics that interest and/or obsess me these days -- like the hideous decline in literacy (spelling errors in The Guardian! A punctuation error in The New Yorker! A misplaced modifier in a national newspaper!) and perhaps publish a collection of personal essays.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: I’m active in several areas of the book world.  For 20 years, I taught English at the University of Calgary. I co-founded and still own Shelf Life Books, an independent bookstore in my hometown of Calgary, Alberta. 

 

I was the co-founder of the literary press Freehand Books, and am currently the owner of a Saskatchewan based literary publishing company called Thistledown Press.

 

Thanks so much for your interest in my work, Deborah. I appreciate it.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb 

Q&A with Evelina Ruimy

  

 

 

Evelina Ruimy is the author of the new children's picture book The Kind Bunny. She lives in Los Angeles. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write The Kind Bunny, and how did you create your character Hop?

 

A: This story came to me during a very emotional time, when I felt an instinctive need to protect my children—not just physically, but emotionally. I think every parent understands that feeling. Words can stay with us, and I wanted to create something that could help children process those moments when something doesn’t feel right.

 

Hop came from that place. He isn’t perfect, and he doesn’t always know what to do—but he feels things deeply. That was important to me. I wanted him to reflect how children actually experience the world: quietly, internally, and often without the tools to fully understand what they’re feeling.

 

His growth is gentle, not dramatic. He doesn’t “win” or overpower anyone—he learns to return to himself. And from that place, he’s able to respond with kindness and empathy. To me, that’s real strength.

 

Q: How would you describe the dynamic between Hop and Ruff?

 

A: Hop and Ruff represent something very real. Ruff isn’t simply “the unkind character”—he’s a reflection of how hurt can sometimes show up in behavior. Their dynamic isn’t about good versus bad. It’s about misunderstanding, emotion, and the quiet choice of how to respond.

 

What matters most to me is that Hop doesn’t try to defeat Ruff. He recognizes that something deeper may be going on, and he chooses empathy without losing himself. That balance of staying kind while also staying grounded in who you are and is at the heart of their relationship.

 

Q: What do you think Siski Kalla’s illustrations add to the story?

 

A: Siski brought a softness to the story that words alone can’t fully capture.

 

The emotional tone, the quiet moments, the hesitation, the warmth—lives so beautifully in the illustrations. Children often feel things before they can articulate them, and her artwork helps bridge that gap.

 

Q: What do you hope kids take away from the book?

 

A: More than anything, I hope children walk away with the understanding that kindness starts within.

 

It’s not just about being kind to others. It’s about being kind to yourself in moments that feel confusing, hurtful, or uncertain.

 

I hope they see that they don’t have to react to unkindness with more unkindness. They can pause, understand, and choose a different response.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Right now, I’m continuing to explore stories that help children understand their inner world—emotions, identity, and the quieter moments that shape how they see themselves.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: I don’t approach stories as lessons to teach. I approach them as feelings to understand.

 

Everything I write comes from a very real place, often as a mother trying to give my children something I wish I had when I was younger.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. This Q&A was conducted in partnership with Evelina Ruimy. Readers who join us on this virtual book tour will have the chance to win a hardcover copy of Hop's Tales: The Kind Bunny by Evelina Ruimy.  

Q&A with Joan Schoettler

  

Photo by Dennis Krug

 

 

Joan Schoettler is the author of the new children's picture book A Doctor at Heart: The Story of Groundbreaking Scientist and Teacher Vivien Thomas. Her other books include Books Travel the World. She lives in Fresno, California. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write this picture book biography of scientist Vivien Thomas (1910-1985)?

 

A: The HBO drama Something the Lord Made became my inspiration for this picture book. A friend suggested that I watch it, and I’m so pleased she recommended the documentary. It was my initial introduction to Vivien Thomas.

 

Motivated by the beginning of his story, I began taking notes while watching the documentary. The next day. I watched it again. That was the beginning of researching for a story that would become A Doctor at Heart: The Story of Groundbreaking Scientist and Educator Vivien Thomas, a picture book for young readers.

 

Q: How did you research his life, and what did you learn that especially surprised you?

 

A: After viewing the HBO film, I turned to the internet, where I felt the admiration each writer had for Vivien. Vivien’s autobiography Partners of the Heart: Vivien Thomas and his Work with Dr. Alfred Blalock provided insights into his home life, his early years, and working with Dr. Blalock and future cardiologists.

 

Vivien’s determination to learn, create, teach, and encourage others to set their goals high, like the former elevator operator who became a physician assistant, demonstrates the amazing scientist and teacher he was.

 

How Vivien touched so many people’s lives astonished me. I’m so pleased to have spent time researching, writing, and now sharing his story with students of all ages.

 

Q: What do you think Steffi Walthall’s illustrations add to the book?

 

A: Steffi Walthall’s illustrations brought Vivien’s story to life in ways that surpassed my expectations. Her research into the time period of Vivien’s life, studying illustrations of the characters in the story and making their portraits so lifelike, creating pages of disputes, anger, healing, surprise, satisfaction, and joy brought this story to life.

 

Pages where patterns, wooden shapes, and tools showing Vivien’s imagination floated off the page, the tools in his father’s carpentry workshop, and the instruments he created for the intricate cardiac surgery for “blue baby syndrome” are just some of the illustrations moving the story into warm, heartfelt, and engaging pages.

 

When he comforts the baby in the hospital, I feel his love and warmth and compassion.

 

Q: The Booklist review of the book says, “This attractive picture-book biography encourages students to aim high, work hard, and keep moving toward their goals.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I haven’t thought of A Doctor at Heart that way, but reflecting on the Booklist review, it is an accurate description. Vivien’s determination to do his best, whether in school, working as a carpenter, learning in Dr. Blalock’s laboratory, solving complicated cardiac issues, or teaching future cardiologists, was reflected throughout his life.

 

Vivien grew up in a family where “[o]ur parents took time to let us know, in no uncertain terms, what was expected of us, and we in turn made every effort to live up to their expectations.” (Partners of the Heart: Vivien Thomas. 1985.) Vivien always kept working toward his goals.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: “Joan, your books traverse the world,” an agent once told me. I had never reflected about the setting of my work in that way, but as I look back on my books, my stories are set in Korea, Armenia, the United States. and, in the case of Books Travel the World (Bushel & Peck, July 2025), countries throughout the world. My current manuscripts are set in Japan, Italy, and Guatemala.

 

Art and nature play an important part in my life, so the stories I write hold themes centered around creativity and the natural world. 

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: Thank you for the opportunity to share information about A Doctor at Heart: The Story of Groundbreaking Scientist and Educator Vivien Thomas.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb