Tell us about yourself.:
I'm from Virginia but I've lived in Berlin for many years now. Other than writing fiction, I also translate from German.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in Northern Virginia, which back then felt like all suburbs and chains to me, so I probably had to become weirder to make things interesting.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Leaving messy handwritten notes on scraps of paper all over the place. Although maybe that isn't unusual?

Do you have any advice for new authors?
It's a long haul. If the first thing you finish is ready to be published, you're a very lucky exception. Sometimes you need to come back to something later to see what's wrong with it.

What is the best advice you have ever been given?
So many helpful things over the years! One of my old professors used to always warn us not to be glib, and I think that's important at least for my style: that there's a certain emotional depth behind the words.

What are you reading now?
The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier. I love all of her books, and this is a very tense one.

What’s your biggest weakness?
Setting myself up for lots of editing by writing messy first drafts.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I don't have just one, but Laughter in the Dark is one I've read a few times.

When you’re not writing, how do you like to spend your time?
I like horror movies, board games, wandering around the city, traveling, and of course plenty of coffee and reading.

Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
No but I used to hear the story of Tailypo a lot when I was little and didn't realize how scary it was until much later. Maybe that's why I like horror movies… or why I'm a vegetarian.

What has inspired you and your writing style?
My own emotional experiences and those people have shared with me, as well as all the books I've enjoyed over the years. Even though I also like some books in complex styles with sentences that go on half a page, over time you notice what works for you in your own writing, which in my case is almost always a close-third perspective that's really in the protagonist's head.

What are you working on now?
A new novel and several unfinished short stories, but also a lot of promoting my novel What I Know About July that came out recently.

What is your favorite method for promoting your work?
I try to do a lot of different things because you never know what will reach the right readers. While I don't generally love speaking in front of people, author events can feel more gratifying because your readers are right there in front of you, and you can see that your work means something to them.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I'm doing a reading from What I Know About July in Virginia at Winchester Book Gallery later this month and then in February I'm back in Germany reading at Munich Readery.

How well do you work under pressure?
It depends what kind of pressure and what kind of work.

How do you decide what tone to use with a particular piece of writing?
I generally rely on the protagonist's own emotional state and try to make that accessible to readers.

If you could share one thing with your fans, what would that be?
Authors love posts and reviews by people who connected with their books!

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