Interview with Leah Skay
Q: What’s your name and where are you from?
A: Leah Skay, and I’m from Delaware. That always gets one of three reactions: Oh cool, with that little nod that says they have absolutely no way to connect to that, Delaware County? if they’re from Philly, or Do you root for Philly or Baltimore? to which I become the person in reaction one.
Q: Talk about your journey as a writer. Was there any inspiration you can recall that started it all? When did you know writing was a passion for you?
A: I think people think that artists always have this a-ha moment where they just know they’re meant to do XYZ art thing, but when you grow up with a tattoo artist, an avid reader, and on the periphery of a bunch of English teachers, you don’t really have a discovery moment. At least I didn’t. I’ve just kind of always written my stories and drawn my pictures and never expected much to come from it, because only rich people and the lucky have the time/funds to fully commit themselves to an art. And now it’s just…the thing I do, all the time.
Q: Have you had any formal education in writing? If yes, what did you find most useful from the education? If no, how did you learn everything you currently know about writing?
A: I got a degree in Creative Writing from Ithaca College, mostly because the uses of a writing degree felt more widespread and marketable than a degree in straight-up English, but we’re all unemployable so what do I know? I thought it would teach me how to work the publication system and the secrets of making Capital-A “Art,” but truly, the most valuable thing I learned from that degree was how to make time for my writing in spite of everything and everyone. I have a lot of thoughts about the academic system and what it does/means for artists, especially when that artist is not of the same socio-economic class as their peers, but that’s another thing. I learned that connections help a lot, too. Knowing other writers, successful ones and the young and budding, are both vital to “getting somewhere” as a writer. The few who break the mold are just that: few. It’s sad but I’ve seen it time and time again. Ultimately, college taught me that my writing is mine. If I want to write what wins awards, then I can do that and not think twice, but if I want to make something true to me, then I have to be prepared to be ignored. If you write for art, you’ll rarely make money. If you write for money, you’ll rarely make art. If you make art and money, you’re probably dead.
Q: Do you have a writer’s group that you work with? What other resources have you found that help you out?
A: I got lucky. My boyfriend is also a fantastic editor, does so professionally. I don’t have to pay editor prices and get top-notch help. I’ll ask my mom or my best friends to read something once in a while if I need a morale boost or to think out loud. Other than that, it’s just me for the most part. Maybe that’s why my novel’s stuck, haha.
Q: What are some of your goals for your writing career?
A: I want my book, with my name on it and my words inside, on a table at a Barnes & Noble. One of those big compiled table of specials right in the front. I don’t need a dedicated advertisement or a book signing or a tour or an award, but I want to be able to walk into a B&N just once and pick up my own work like I did so many others throughout my life. We only had one B&N in Delaware growing up, so going to the book store was a huge, special occasion. I think I would cry on the spot.
Q: Talk about one of your favorite pieces you’ve written. Why is that one your favorite?
A: This one…this question hits me weird. There’s a ton of things I’ve written that I like, but I’ve been working on one story since my sophomore year of college that is turning into that novel I mentioned earlier. The story version is published with Windmill from Hofstra. It was the first like, “big girl” story I wrote in college, taking a chance on something that went against all the types of fiction we were reading in class. Since then, I’ve gotten way braver with the types of things I write.
Also, I have this unpublished poem that just sounds like a drunk girl rambling in a bar bathroom about how dumb poetry is and I just love it, mostly because I was also drunk and rambling about how often I hate poetry despite finally allowing myself to write it. It’s a whole thing.
Q: What does your writing process look like?
A: I love those people who are like, “I sit between 5 and 7AM with a cup of tea and a whole avocado and plot out pages 3-47 of my novel” because I wish I was a morsel as organized and disciplined. My discipline comes from pure spite and wild spurts of inspiration. I am usually doing something basic like my job or dishes or staring at the floor when I get this aggressive vision of an image, like a single frame in a movie. Instead of questioning why I’m having hallucinations, I write something short and terrible, promptly delete it, and then wish I didn’t a month later when I actually start thinking about it. I literally have a file “When I Want To Delete” to try and preserve myself the future heartbreak of having deleted something actually interesting.
Q: What do you do for work? What other hobbies or interests do you have besides writing?
A: I’m a content coordinator for a creative writing team at a huge (way bigger than I ever realized) photo and video company in NYC. It’s like being a professional calendar. I literally manage other people’s writing instead of managing my own, it’s lovely. Most of my hobbies are to get me out of my brain and into my hands like crocheting, painting, taking pictures of my cat, and playing video games. I’m also a Morbid podcast and documentary devourer.
Q: As we all know, most people make little to no money for their writing, yet it’s still an important part of any writer’s life. How do you make time to write? Is there a particular time of day you prefer to write?
A: I write during my downtime at work. I’m lucky with my desk job where I can find ten minutes here and there to write my stuff, but not everybody can do that. Ten minutes is better than none. The same goes for money, food, and time altogether. Any is better than none.
Q: What are you currently reading?
A: Penance by Eliza Clark, which is confronting and challenging everything about the true crime industry that I also have personal and ethical questions about which I LOVE. Also The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Tutton to satisfy that mystery fix.
Q: Are you currently working on any projects you want to talk about?
A: I’m always working on something. I’ve got a bunch of poems because I’m confronting why I hate poetry so much (and it’s mostly the same problems I have with academia! who knew?). I’ve got a new short story that might evolve into a novel depending on how far I can stretch it, but that’s still in the early works.
Q: What is one piece of advice you can offer to new writers?
A: Do it anyway. The world is burning, the government is collapsing on top of us, the ocean is trying to swallow what’s hers, and nobody cares. Do it anyway. Rejection is guaranteed and so is death. Do it anyway.
Q: Is there anything else you want to talk about?
A: Bees deserve more respect even when they’re scary looking. Go to a botanical garden sometime. Try a new fruit from your grocery store. Anticipate disappointment but hope for change.