I've made no secret of the fact that
Beth Gilstrap is one of my favorite short fiction writers. I fell in love with her 2015 collection,
I am Barbarella, and didn't think the prose could get any better. And then I read
No Man's Wild Laura. With her most recent release from
Hyacinth Girl Press, Gilstrap proves yet again that she is a master of the short story form. The four stories of
No Man's Wild Laura are haunting. They ring out with the unmistakable Carolina voice Gilstrap is known for, but they also dig deep. Down to the bone deep. Marrow shattering deep. The women of her stories are difficult, complicated, raw and, above all, rendered with a striking honesty. I'm thrilled to bring you another interview with Beth Gilstrap and certainly hope you will check out her work. Enjoy!
SP: One
of the things that I loved about your latest collection is the slight dark turn
your work has taken. The four stories collected in No Man’s Wild Laura all resonate with themes I’ve come to expect
from you- loss, family, the search for identity, connections with the natural
world- but they all seem to carry a bit of a darker tone than the stories of
your previous collection, I am Barbarella.
“Regarding Suebelle,” in particular, is downright gothic. Was this change in
tone deliberate for this collection or does it reflect a new direction in your
writing?
BG: The tonal shift has been intentional to some degree—I’ve always loved southern
gothic fiction and most of what I read tends to be on the darker side—but the
stories also reflect a great deal of personal grief. My grandmother became ill
and passed away during the writing of these stories. This has been grief on a
level I still cannot fathom a year later. I figured I might as well work with
those heavy emotions since I was unable to put them aside. I’m willing to bet I
won’t be writing any lighthearted work in the near future. I write the stories
I have to in order to work through my many issues. I don’t know if it works or
produces anything of value, but I know my mental state is always better when I
use the work as a way to deconstruct my feelings. I break and am rebuilt in the
process.
SP: My
favorite story in the collection, and I’d have to say my new favorite story of
yours period, is “Go Off In the World Violet.” Without giving too much away,
it’s the ending, the final line, that packs a gut-wrenching punch. From a craft
perspective, how important is a story’s ending to its overall narrative? Do you
ever start with a final sentence or image in mind and use it to guide the
creation of the story?
BG: The endings are crucial for me, as I’m sure they are for most writers. I have
had final images in mind for some stories, but most of the time, I fail miserably
at the ending moments in early drafts so I spend a good deal of time
cultivating the final lines. My goal is to leave readers with an image and
feeling that resonates long after they’ve finished the story. And if I’ve
really done my job, the reader will want to revisit the whole narrative. The
whole reason I put “Earth to Gracie” last in the collection is so the reader
would be left with the image of those little girls and their Christmas tree.
SP: The
protagonists for all of the stories in No
Man’s Wild Laura are women and given the title of the collection, this
seems fitting. You and I have talked before about the idea of needing more
“wild women” in fiction. Why do you think there aren’t more characters like
this in the literary world? Why do we need them? And why do we need women
writers to be wild as well?
BG: I think the main
reason there aren’t more “wild” women in fiction is because women writers and
writers of color are not given the same publishing opportunities, so naturally
the varied voices are not represented as they should be, but I hope, with books
like “The Vegetarian” we are starting to see a shift. I spend an inordinate
amount of time thinking about this. Every year we are reminded by the Vida
Count, numerous essays about likability, invisibility, and voice, etc. It’s
exhausting to see the same battle for agency year after year, decade after
decade. I don’t know if I know how to improve the situation, if we will ever move
beyond interviewers asking women writers ridiculous questions about themselves
or their characters, but I strive to write women who explore their world, women
in poverty, women who make dreadful decisions, who have the audacity of
ambition, who encompass the whole spectrum of goodness, wildness, and anger and
yes, even women who are at midlife or beyond and have not had children. I think
we’re still at a place when we need to work hard to challenge the ridiculous
notion of being likable, sweet-natured, and nurturing as the ultimate goal of
womanhood. I don’t know. I’ve never been one to latch onto traditional gender
roles. The feminine or masculine ideal? Fuck that. Humanity with all it’s
ugliness and unexpected tenderness is what interests me. The bottom line is I
want to read characters who destroy things and the same characters capable of
healing them.

SP: While
there are certainly lyrical elements in your work, especially in your crafting
of voice, No Man’s Wild Laura is
clearly a collection of short fiction. How then, did you hook up with the
poetry-publishing Hyacinth Girl Press?
BG: I am a fan of their
poetry chapbooks. I love that they are a small, feminist press, which
consistently puts out provocative work. I also loved the design of the books
and the fact that they’re handmade. It seemed like a perfect fit for my little
collection, and when I saw they were accepting prose manuscripts, they were one
of three places I sent it. In the acceptance letter, they told me the prose was
gorgeous and I felt, coming from poets, that was the highest of compliments.
It’s pretty cool when someone else sees the effort I put into the music of the
language.
SP: In
addition to writing short fiction, you are also the fiction editor for LittleFiction. What does it take for a submission to really knock your socks off?
Have you ever found a short story in your inbox that absolutely took your
breath away?
BG:
For a submission to knock my socks off, the language, voice, and character must
be crisp and original. I look for music. I look for tension. I look for an
emotional connection. I look for atmosphere. I want to be unable to stop
reading. It’s extremely rare to find all of these things in one piece, but when
you do, it’s a glorious feeling. It snaps you out of your angst or ennui and
gets you excited about stories again. You forget all the difficulties of this
writing life and remember why we are all still fighting the good fight and trying
to make art. Of course I love all the stories we’ve published since I joined
the team, but there was one in particular last November that still floors me. I
think about “Dive” by Daniel Knowlton often. The attention to detail, right down
to the lexicon of the sea and of science, the extensive research he conducted,
the atmosphere he created, and the utter despair I felt at the end, these are
not things you see in your average story.
SP: I’ve
heard a few rumblings in the air that you might currently be working on a
novel. If so, what’s the biggest difference between writing short and long
forms? Is the process itself different? Does one or the other make you want to
tear out more or less hair while you're writing?
BG:
Well, since I’ve been working on the novel off and on for 4 ½ years, this
venture has definitely been more difficult for me than short stories. I can usually
puzzle out a short story much easier than this process has been for me. I’m not
a planner. I have to get a story out and then try to make sense of it and find
its best structure after the fact. When I start thinking too much, the thing
(whatever the thing is) is lost for me. So, I’m back at it now after months
away and am trying to trust my process, trying to put in the hours every day
with the faith that it will all turn out okay eventually. It’s also a much
different pace, a novel. You have to allow moments to linger. We’ll see what else
I have to say on this subject if I ever finish the damn thing.
SP: Finally,
because you have amazing taste, I’d love to know what you’re currently reading.
Any books on the horizon you’re waiting for as well?
BG: I
finished The Vegetarian by Han Kang yesterday and am now starting Home by
Marilynne Robinson, which after reading Gilead a few months ago, I am
ecstatic to get to. I’m going to take my time with it and try not to read
Lila as soon as I finish. I’m letting them linger, too.
Did I also mention how completely badass Beth Gilstrap is? Yeah... So, check out her work and keep her on your radar. Cheers and happy reading!
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