Kristy Woodson Harvey is the author of the new novel Summer State of Mind. Her other books include Under the Southern Sky. She lives in North Carolina.
Q: What inspired you to write Summer State of Mind, and what do you see as the relationship between this novel and your novel Under the Southern Sky?
A: I read an article years ago about a NICU nurse who adopted an abandoned baby, and couldn’t stop thinking about it. I had several conversations with friends in that field who told me similar stories along the way, and I loved the idea, but it was several years before the premise for the novel began to come together.
Plucky-but-burnt-out nurse Daisy was the first character that came to me. Somehow, when I started writing Daisy, Mason Thaysden from Under the Southern Sky simply was the man I saw for her. There was no way around it! So I decided to revisit him because I adored him and wanted a happy ending for him.
And then there were so many echoes between Daisy’s story and Aunt Tilley’s from that same book. I have gotten perhaps the most emails ever from people wanting more of her, so it seemed like a fun idea. She has always been a favorite of mine, so getting to hear from her not just about her was fantastic! And I got to revisit dreamy Cape Carolina, the setting of Under the Southern Sky.
I do want to say, though, that it absolutely is not a sequel. You can pick Summer State of Mind right up with no backstory from Under the Southern Sky at all!
Q: How would you describe the Thaysden family?
A: The Thaysden family has the kind of loving chaos that I just adore in a family. Their family is big and loud and secretive and dramatic, but, at the end of the day, they would sooner die than let something happen to each other. They are wildly fun to write–especially when they are all around the dining table at their family home, Dogwood!
Q: The writer Marie Bostwick said of the book, “Summer State of Mind is a celebration of family, community, and the kind of magical, messy, complicated love that makes life real and worth living.” What do you think of that description?
A: I just couldn’t love this description any more! And I think (hope!) it’s so spot on.
My books almost always surround characters who have an ethical dilemma before them. Because, so often, while we like to believe there’s the “right” answer and the “wrong” answer, I have found in my own life that, in any choice, in any situation, there are generally about a million shades of gray.
Each of these characters comes to a moment—or have to relive a moment from the past—where he or she reached a fork in the road. And there is no perfect answer, no “right for everyone.” What then? How do you decide when your back is up against the wall?
To me, there is magic in that messiness. And sometimes heartbreak, too. But, if you’ve read my books before, you know that I like nothing more than to tie it up by the end, deliver a happy ending, or at least a satisfying one.
Q: Did you need to do any research to write the novel, and if so, did you learn anything that especially surprised you?
A: I did some further research on delusional disorder as it pertained to Aunt Tilley, but, really, more on how grief can manifest in these sort of undefinable mental illnesses that are hard to put in a box.
I also got to visit some sweet hospital nurseries like the small-town one where Daisy is now working and chat with the nurses there and found some really interesting books of essays by nurses that I loved.
And, weirdly, baseball is one of the few sports that I don’t know a whole lot about, so, of course, that’s what this one is about! Fortunately, I had a friend whose son was going through the recruiting process while I was writing, so that was so, so helpful.
But Daisy’s and Mason’s careers don’t take up nearly as much space on the page as I imagined they would. And there are times when I have to fudge some facts a little for the sake of story. But I always love learning new things when I write!
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I am SO excited because I have a fifth book in my Peachtree Bluff Series, Falling for Peachtree Bluff, releasing on September 15. And I have an Amazon Exclusive short story, “Leave It Up to Love,” out now exclusively on Kindle and audio.
I am working on edits of my next project, and I absolutely adore it. I’ve been thinking about it for years and can’t wait to share more!
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: I have a lot of fun adaptations in the works. A film adaptation of A Happier Life with MGM/Amazon and a series adaptation of The Summer of Songbirds with Hulu are the farthest along. But I am having so much fun reimagining so many of my stories in a new way. I can’t wait to share with my readers!
Thank you so, so much for hosting me here and using your platform to shine a light on my work. I’m so grateful!
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
No comments:
Post a Comment