Q&A with Heather Cumiskey

  

 

 

Heather Cumiskey is the author of the new novel The Sooner I Go. Her other books include the young adult novel I Like You Like This. She lives outside Baltimore, Maryland. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write The Sooner I Go, and how did you create your characters Brynn, Micah, and Dahlia?

 

A: It began with wanting to explore a contentious meeting between two strangers in an elevator. Sparks fly, attitudes get heated. They think they’ll never see the other again until they meet up afterward, sitting across from each other in an interview.

 

When I learned more about who they were, Brynn and Micah’s story took on many layers. Especially Micah’s, who was inspired by my grandmother. She was institutionalized and her mental health was greatly misunderstood by her family.

 

Originally, Dahlia played a much smaller role in the book. Early readers of the manuscript went to bat for her character, wanting to know more. And I’m glad they did. Though flawed, I really like her character and that the novel turned into a love triangle.

 

Q: The Kirkus Review of the book says, “Part grief narrative, part workplace drama, and part love story, the novel compellingly examines how loss, ambition, and mental health intersect and questions how one can move on in love when a traumatic past is still being reckoned with.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: At first, the grief narrative stopped me. I thought, did I write a grief story? However, I couldn’t deny the reviewer’s takeaway. My mom passed away before I wrote the book. Without realizing it, I was processing my own grief through all three characters.

 

I think it’s interesting that we go about our days as if everything is the same, almost in denial that this major event even happened, like the loss of a parent. But it all comes out in different ways whether we want it to or not, where we’re forever changed.

 

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

 

A: It shifted for me midway. Believe it or not, original drafts contained Brynn performing at the Flaming Flamingo in the final scene, not Dahlia. Brynn’s arc change rewrote the book and Micah’s and Dahlia’s fate.

 

I kind of love when that happens. When an idea emerges that piques my interest so, that I run with it. It made for a far more interesting writing journey and I hope readers feel the same.

 

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

 

A: Overall, I think readers will enjoy the ride. I hope the plight of the novel’s characters sparks compassion and conversation around the issues of mental health challenges and about families in denial of those challenges. Also, how we view individuals living with limited mobility and recognizing ableist microaggressions and biases in ourselves.

 

And lastly, I hope the novel brings to light one’s self-awareness when it comes to being an ally versus a savior. How a supportive ally quietly raises up marginalized individuals through empowerment and equity. And a savior will act out of pity or a desire for recognition, inserting themselves and marginalizing them further.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: It’s a YA novel, One of Us Is Lying meets The Usual Suspects. Four students expelled from different high schools are sent to finish the year at the same school. Within their first week, a student is discovered dead in the school bathroom and the four become suspects.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: If I can leave you with anything, I’d like to pay it forward to any aspiring writer who is grappling with self-doubt like I did for years. Give yourself some grace. We can be brutal with the stories we tell ourselves.

 

As Micah says in the novel, “I’d convinced myself that they didn’t want me, but the story I’d fabricated in my head was nothing but bullshit. All this time, my mom’s family was out there, waiting. Loving me from afar.”

 

Don’t believe what you’re telling yourself, especially if it’s unkind and holding you back. The story in you can’t reach readers until you sit your butt in the chair and start. It may be one ugly first draft and so what. Just keep swimming.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb