Describe your latest book/project/work.Men and Dogs is a novel about a broken family in South Carolina. One day Buzz, the father, goes fishing and never comes back. Everyone other than Hannah, his daughter, believes he's dead, but she holds fast to her belief that he is still alive and waiting to return. What follows is a story about faith, love, and family.
Offer a favorite sentence or passage from another writer.
"So the story creeps to an end."
—Grace Paley
How do you relax?
I fill up the tub with hot water, pick up a good book, then soak and read until my fingers are pruney.
How did the last good book you read end up in your hands and why did you read it?
After Leaving Mr. MacKenzie by Jean Rhys. I saw the title on a friend's bookshelf and stole it. 
Who could resist a story with a title like that? Good Morning, Midnight... Wide Sargasso Sea. She was a titles genius.
Have you ever made a literary pilgrimage?
I visited Nabokov's boyhood home in St. Petersburg. It was creepy, dusty, and filled with ghosts.
What makes your favorite pair of shoes better than the rest?
They are comfortable and make me two precious inches taller.
Describe the best breakfast of your life.
In my early 20s, I lived in Prague with a wonderful boyfriend. After a holiday at home, I flew back to Europe from the States. Though I arrived at six in the morning, it was nine p.m. where I'd been for the last two weeks. Instead of breakfast food, he'd prepared my favorite dinner — spaghetti, meatballs, a great bottle of red wine. It was the most thoughtful thing anyone's ever done for me. We broke up and are barely in touch now, but he will always be one of my favorite people because of that pasta and wine at six a.m.
What is your idea of absolute happiness?
Lying in bed with the paper, a couple of books, my daughter, my partner, and my dog.
Why do you write?
Because I'm not very good at anything else.
Recommend five or more books on a single subject of personal interest or expertise.
Five Great Reads About Good Characters Making Bad Choices
August Is A Wicked Month by Edna O'Brien
After Leaving Mr. MacKenzie by Jean Rhys
Emma by Jane Austen
What Happened to Anna K. by Irina Reyn
Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert