SmokeLong Quarterly

This story, in part, is about running away, the extent at which someone will stay away. Can we ever move away from problems like the one this dad ran away from? (Apparently not, I guess?) 

They say to never run from your problems, but in reality, sometimes that’s all you can do. Sometimes, distance saves your life. In this story, I think the physical distance, along with distance of time, allows our dad to take that pause, that breath at the end. I like to believe running from his trauma and cutting his family out of his life ends the cycle of abuse.

Ten sandbags per family! That doesn’t seem … sufficient. Have you been in a hurricane? Something similar?

Oh, ten sandbags do not cover much! Hurricanes are a Florida way of life, so sadly, yes, I’ve been through my share. It’s a very weird dynamic, observing people stock up on sandbags and lumber, right alongside liquor and chips. Hurricane parties are huge in Florida. I have another story called “Shooting at Hurricanes,” which is also a very real Florida thing, unfortunately, so yeah, hurricane time is very interesting.

The story is written in third person, but it’s a close third person, right over the shoulder, getting us right inside that protagonist’s head. Was there any willful decision to make this third instead of first, or is that just how the story came out?

I am obsessed with narrative voice and choices like this. I wrote this story in one morning, and it came to me almost fully formed, so it was third from the beginning. I think the distance the dad keeps from his childhood trauma, both physically and mentally, is better reflected by third. Third allows us to get into his head but also pull back with him, which works with the almost clinical way he speaks about his abuse. All his choices, like you pointed out, are running away. Of creating distance. I like that we are able to reflect that distance with third.

Do you think that sons are fated to repeat the sins of their fathers in general, or is that more of a literary device?

As I get older, I believe it is almost unavoidable for sons to become like their fathers. If you are self-aware, and I think as writers most of us are, we can obsess over avoiding the mistakes our fathers made. However, I also fully believe with the bad comes the good, so we also get the best part of our fathers. So, that’s nice.

In that vein, do you think Luke would have been a loyal apprentice to the Emperor, or would he have flat-out murdered that dude at first opportunity? 

Original-trilogy Luke was a good old farm boy, and I think he would have thrown himself down a reactor (again!) before serving the Emperor or committing murder. New-trilogy Luke? That dude was jaded. He would straight up betray and murder the Emperor on sight.