courtney maum – Benjamin Woodard

Thinking about talking to writers

I just returned from the first Barrelhouse/Hobart Writer Camp, and after spending a few days talking with other writers about writing in the Pennsylvania wilderness, I’ve been inspired to revisit all of the author interviews I’ve conducted over the years.

In case any of you want to check these out, too, I’ve made a convenient list below. Just click on the author’s name to find the interview:

Plus there’s this piece, which contains small responses from some of the above, but also Charles Baxter, Vanessa Blakeslee, Jennine Capó Crucet, Julia Elliott, Roxane Gay, Amelia Gray, Lindsay Hunter, Bret Anthony Johnston, Stephen Graham Jones, Maya Lang, Rebecca Makkai, Jess Row, Ted Thompson, Laura van den Berg, and Kevin Wilson.

I Am Having So Much Fun Here Talking With Courtney Maum

A month or two ago, I talked with Courtney Maum for PW. Maum’s debut novel, I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You, is pretty amazing. Make it one of your summer reads.

Our phone conversation lasted a good half hour, so the finished piece is only a fraction of what we talked about. Really great stuff got chopped, but what remains provides some insight as to Maum’s inspiration and sensibilities.

Read all about it here.

Bonus! Here’s a question that got cut from the final draft:

Do you think the characters of Anne, Richard’s wife, and Lisa, Richard’s lover, share similar outlooks on happiness?

Anne is French, so they can never share the same idea of happiness (laughs). It’s a very American thing, this idea of happiness as achievable and tangible. I think their answers to this question would be completely different. Lisa would see happiness as a state of mind that can be accessed by doing certain things, whereas Anne would be more pragmatic. She would scoff at the idea of “happiness” as something you could check off on a list.