1--What is the title of your latest release?
MONSTERS WE HAVE MADE
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
Suspenseful and thoughtful, Monsters We Have Made explores the aftermath of a terrible, mysterious crime, examines the way that dreams and fictions shape our lives, and affirms the enduring power of even the most complicated familial bonds. Come for the monsters, stay for the love story!
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
Both North Carolina and Minnesota are places that I’ve spent a lot of time, so I know them well. I knew that I wanted the monster of my novel to reside in the North Woods, since those woods are rich and beautiful and full of legends. A native of the Upper Midwest, the Great Lakes have always loomed large in my life and my imagination—so that’s why Superior is so present, as well.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
With Sylvia? Yes. But she’s pretty serious. I think my goal, if we spent time together, would be to make her laugh.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Haunted, driven, imaginative.
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
There’s a phantom island off the coast of northern Minnesota called Isle Phillipeaux. It first appeared on maps in the 18th century, but later explorers and cartographers were unable to locate it, and so it doesn’t appear on contemporary maps. I made Isle Phillipeaux the home of my monster, the Kingman, since it exists—as he does—somewhere between fiction and reality.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
It took me seven years and many, many drafts to write this novel, so I did a little of both. I made small changes as I went along, and sometimes when I’d finish a draft, I’d immediately go back to the beginning and rewrite the whole thing.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
I can’t resist breakfast pastries. Doughnuts, cinnamon rolls, scones—any kind! There’s at least one scene in the novel where characters are enjoying Danishes. Oh, and I also really love broccoli.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I drafted much of this novel in the early morning, in an oversized chair in the front entryway of my house in Minneapolis. I would get up around 6:30, while my husband and dog were still sleeping, and make a latte, and carry it to that chair and sit and write for an hour as the world woke up.
10--Who is an author you admire?
There are so many. Of writers working today, I love Lauren Groff’s lush descriptions and Emma Cline’s sharp verbs. I’ve learned a lot from studying how Celeste Ng makes her stories move. I also think Elif Batuman’s campus novels are brilliant and hilarious.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
When I was a teenager, I read Eloise Jarvis McGraw’s Greensleeves, a beautiful coming-of-age novel that’s part mystery and part love story. In the end, the protagonist decides to become a writer. That seemed like a pretty great idea to me. (Also, it helped that Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables, whom I also admired very much, also decided to become a writer!)
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
Many different versions of the novel had been sent out to editors, and it had always been rejected. But one of those editors wrote in her note that the novel was a “near miss” for her and she was willing to read a revised version. I was in Minneapolis when I got an email telling me that she loved the revision. My husband was in Egypt, and it was the middle of the night for him, but I didn’t care! I called him to wake him up because I was so delighted.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
Literary fiction—novels that have a compelling storyline, but are also doing interesting things with language or style or structure.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
It depends on my mood—and it’s often the most recent one I’ve watched. I like to look at beautiful scenes and settings in movies such as Carol or After Yang. But in general, I’ve got a weak spot for rom coms and classics.
15--What is your favorite season?
Fall. It’s cozy and meditative.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
With lots of presents!
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I know everyone is saying this, but I loved the show The Bear on Hulu. For podcasts, I like listening to The Slow Down (different seasons have been hosted by poets Tracy K. Smith, Ada Limon, and Major Jackson) which offers five minutes of poetry every day.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Anything vegetarian.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
Go for a run with my dog, Cedar; take a class in something I know nothing about; meet a friend for coffee. I’m not very good at sitting still.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
I’m excited about some of the short stories I’ve published recently, as well as ones that are forthcoming. So, maybe keep an eye out for a collection! I’m also getting ready to start a new novel inspired by some of my recent long sojourns in Egypt.
A poignant and evocative novel that explores the bounds of familial love, the high stakes of parenthood, and the tenuous divide between fiction and reality.
Thirteen years ago, Sylvia Gray's young daughter, Faye, attacked her babysitter in order to impress the Kingman, a monster she and her best friend had encountered on the Internet. When the now twenty-three-year-old Faye goes missing, leaving her toddler behind, Sylvia launches a search that propels her back into the past and back into the Kingman's orbit. With the help of her estranged husband and a sister she hasn't spoken to in years, Sylvia draws dangerously closer not only to Faye, but also to the truth about the monster that once inspired her. Will Sylvia be able to reach her daughter before history repeats itself? Or will it be Sylvia, this time, who loses her grip on reality and succumbs to the dark powers of this monstrous fiction?
Both literary and suspenseful, Monsters We Have Made confronts the terrors of parenthood and examines the boundaries of love. Most importantly, it reminds us of the power of stories to shape our lives.
Suspense [Vintage, On Sale: March 26, 2024, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780593471032 / ]
Lindsay Starck was born in Wisconsin and raised in the Milwaukee Public Library. She went on to earn her B.A. in literature from Yale and her M.F.A. from Notre Dame. She currently writes and teaches in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where she lives with her husband and their dog. Noah's Wife is her first novel.
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