An Inside Look with Anica Mrose Rissi
(Author of Wishing Season)
*Season #SIX (Summer 2019)
How did you come to know Lily?
I typed the first pieces of the idea for Wishing Season into my phone on a train home from NYC at 10:21pm on September 16, 2016 (the note said: “Girl with a dead sister or brother, mother obsessed with communicating with him through psychic mediums. Girl doesn’t tell mom that dead sib communicates with her regularly, is still around outside? Certain place where she goes outside where sib often/sometimes appears—but now is appearing less frequently? The dead sib’s world and our world only overlap in a limited space, which seems to be contracting?” and as the story became more real and complex, those elements remained), but I didn’t start drafting until four years later. In the meantime, I collected possible backstories, snippets of dialogue, pieces of scenes, and more sentences ending with question marks, while I figured out the many ways this story and its characters might grow.
Despite all the thinking and planning I do before drafting a novel, the story doesn’t really take shape for me until I’m in it—at which point I finally get to observe the characters in action, and get to know them through the ways they interact with one another and their world. Lily was no exception. I got to know the idea of her slowly, then the reality of her all at once.
Lily showed me from the start that she would be loyal, headstrong, and determined, and I came to deeply admire how much she stays that way in the face of all the hard, sad things she encounters. She loves with her whole heart, and lets that lead the way.
Is there anything you wish she would have changed or done differently in her story?
It’s always hard to watch a character I love (and I grow to love all my main characters) experiencing painful situations and emotions. Part of me wanted to protect and cushion Lily, and of course I wished some of the adults in her life could have helped her in bigger ways, sooner. But as I wrote in Chapter 29, “There was no solution to the problem of grief. There was only living it.” If I’d protected Lily from her heartache, that would have been a disservice to my readers, many of whom also must live through problems with no solution.
What do you think Lily can offer to other children that are experiencing similar situations to what she went through?
I hope that when readers see Lily go through hard, impossible things on the page—and not only survive, but find hope and joy despite and within her deep sorrow—they will feel less alone and more hopeful in their own struggles.
How did you research Lily and the circumstances she found herself in?
I googled everything from trajectories of grief, to stages of childhood cancers, to the calls and chirps of various songbirds at specific times of year in Lily’s area of downeast Maine. I read novels and memoirs about grief in its many forms. I visited the island where the novel is set, in all seasons, and observed with all of my senses. And I talked with friends and family, and listened.
Do you and Lily share any similarities?
Absolutely. There’s a Jungian theory that everyone you meet in your dreams represents some aspect of yourself, and I suspect that’s true of the characters in my books, including those that are far from autofiction. When I visit schools to talk with kids about reading and writing (one of my very favorite things to do!), students often want to know if my stories are “true.” I tell them the emotions are all true—that everything my characters feel, I have felt too. I’ve felt those things for different reasons and in different circumstances than the what the characters experience on the page, but I share an emotional landscape with Lily—and with Anders, Quinn, Lily’s mom, Ms. Turner, and all the other characters in this story, even Ms. Turner’s chickens. This book pulls from so much of who I am and have been—things I’ve been thinking, feeling, noticing, wondering, caring about—for decades.
What was the hardest scene to write about her?
The biggest challenge in drafting Wishing Season wasn’t one particular scene, moment, or character: It was the setting—in part because that setting, the island in Maine where I grew up, is so very personal and important to me. In Travels with Charley, John Steinbeck wrote, “All I knew about Deer Isle was that there was nothing you could say about it,” and, “I can’t describe Deer Isle. There is something about it that opens no doors to words.” Yet I tried my best to capture it in this book.
Wishing Season is a love letter to the place where I grew up—to the saltwater-spruce-granite air, the pets and wild animals, and the community of storytellers that shaped me. It is my fifteenth book, but it’s the first set on Deer Isle, and I was more nervous about getting the island “right” and trying to capture the spirit of this place that means so much to me than I’ve been about anything else I’ve written. In part those nerves stemmed from the fact although I was born in Maine and raised on the island, my parents and grandparents are “from away,” so I am not quite considered from there by many of the people I’ve known my entire life. I tried to capture the feeling of that in this book too.
Lily’s barn is my barn. Her tire swing was my tire swing. We skate on and catch frogs in the same pond, perch on the same granite rocks, dip our toes in the same cold ocean, love the same woods, field, and clam flats. She lives on my hill, in a house slightly different from but inspired by mine. We share a few neighbors. We pick blueberries from the same wild patch. We love the same place, for many similar reasons. I hope all who read Wishing Season will love Deer Isle too.
Who do you think was her biggest supporter and why?
In the first full draft of the book, there was no Quinn—the teenage neighbor who offers Lily a distraction and a path through her loneliness as they form an unusual friendship—and now I can’t imagine Lily’s story without her.
Why do you think some young people can show such resilience, strength, and courage during difficult life situations; sometimes even more than the adults in their lives?
I admire those qualities in Lily so much, and I hope the how and why of them shine through on the page. I write stories like this to explore exactly those questions, so the novel itself is my answer.
What do you think Lily is doing at the present time?
It’s autumn in Maine, so she’s raking enormous leaf piles to jump in with her dog, Nuisance; going to Quinn’s soccer games with her new friend Ashlynn; carving pumpkins and making a Halloween costume with her mom; finding her way through the ups and downs of sixth grade; and holding the memory of Anders close, always.
SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)
Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)
Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)
Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)
Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)
Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)
Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)
Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)
Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)
Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)
Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)
Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)
Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)
Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)
Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)
Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)
Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)
Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)
Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)
Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)
Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)
Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)
Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot)
Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)
Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave)
Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)
Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)
Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero)
Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)
Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)
Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas)
Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There)
Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)
Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)
Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)
Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)
Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)
Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)
Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)
Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)
Interview #177 with Holly Goldberg Sloan (Author of The Elephant in the Room)
Interview #178 with Jeff Zentner (Author of In the Wild Light)
SEASON #ELEVEN (Fall/Winter 2021)
Interview #179 with Katherine Applegate (Author of Willow)
Interview #180 with Padma Venkatraman (Author of Born Behind Bars)
Interview #181 with R.J. Palacio (Author of Pony)
Interview #182 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Too Bright to See)
Interview #183 with Barbara Dee (Author of Violets are Blue)
Interview #184 with Anne Ursu (Author of The Troubled Girls of Dragonmir Academy)
Interview #185 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of We Could Be Heroes)
Interview #186 with Jasmine Warga (Author of Shape of Thunder)
Interview #187 with Joseph Bruchac (Author of Rez Dogs)
Interview #188 with Kathryn Erskine (Author of Lily's Promise)
Interview #189 with Elly Swartz (Author of Dear Student)
Interview #190 with Heather Clark (Author of Lemon Drop Falls)
Interview #191 with Veera Hiranandani (Author of How to Find What You're Not Looking For)
Interview #192 with Elizabeth Eulberg (Author of The Best Worst Summer)
Interview #193 with Cathy Carr (Author of 365 Days to Alaska)
Interview #194 with Carol Cujec and Peyton Goddard (Authors of REAL)
Interview #195 with Gillian McDunn (Author of These Lucky Stars)
Interview #196 with Alyssa Colman (Author of The Gilded Girl)
Interview #197 with E.L. Chen (Author of The Comeback)
Interview #198 with J.M.M. Nuanez (Author of Birdie and Me)
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Interview #199 with Jamie Sumner (Author of One Kid's Trash)
Interview #200 with Chad Lucas (Author of Thanks a Lot, Universe)
Interview #201 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Where We Used to Roam)
Interview #202 with Rebecca Caprara (Author of Worst-Case Collin)
Interview #203 with Leslie Connor (Author of Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?)
Interview #204 with Caroline Gertler (Author of Many Points of Me)
Interview #205 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of Susie B. Won't Back Down)
Interview #206 with Shawn Peters (Author of The Unforgettable Logan Foster)
Interview #207 with Aisha Saeed (Author of Omar Rising)
Interview #208 with Adrianna Cuevas (Author of Cuba in my Pocket)
Interview #209 with Jennifer Swender (Author of Stuck)
Interview #210 with Brenda Woods (Author of When Winter Robeson Came)
Interview #211 with Danya Lorentz (Author of the Book Of a Feather)
Interview #212 with Saadia Faruqi (Author of Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero)
Interview #213 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of What About Will)
SEASON #THIRTEEN (Summer 2022)
Interview #214 with Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner (Authors of What About the Octopus)
Interview #215 with Lauren Wolk (Author of My Own Lightning)
Interview #216 with Rebekah Lowell (Author of the Road to After)
Interview #217 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Honestly Elliott)
Interview #218 with Dan Gemeinhart (Author of The Midnight Children)
Interview #219 with Melanie Conklin (Author of A Perfect Mistake)
Interview #220 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Different Kinds of Fruit)
Interview #221 with Tracy Edward Wymer (Author of The Great and Mighty Benjamin Teller)
Interview #222 with Louise Hawes (Author of Big Rig)
Interview #223 with Paul Acampora (Author of In Honor of Broken Things)
Interview #224 with Shannon Doleski (Author of Gabe in the After)
Interview #225 with Jennifer Ziegler (Author of Worser)
Interview #226 with Natalie Lloyd (Author of Hummingbird)
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Interview #227 with Celia C. Perez (Author of Tumble
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Interview #229 with Rob Buyea (Author of The Daredevils)
Interview #230 with Sashi Kaufman (Author of Sardines)
Interview #231 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of The Real Deal)
Interview #232 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of New Kids and Underdogs)
Interterview #233 with Amanda Rawson Hill (Author of The Hope of Elephants)
Interview #234 with Jasmine Warga (Author of A Rover's Story)
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Interview #235 with Varsha Bajaj (Author of Thirst)
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Interview #237 with C.C. Harrington (Author of Wildoak)
Interview #238 with Margi Preus (Author of Windswept)
Interview #239 with Dayna Lorentz (Author of Wayward Creatures)
Interview #240 with Katrina Nannestad (Author of We are Wolves)
Interview #241 with Anika Fajardo (Author of Meet Me Halfway)
Interview #250 with Sally J. Pla (Author of The Fire, The Water, and Maudie McGinn)
Interview #251 with Chris Baron (Author of The Gray)
Interview #252 with Dusti Bowling (Author of DUST)
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Interview #253 with Sarah Everett (Author of The Probability of Everything)
Interview #254 with Andrea Beatriz Arango (Author of Something Like Home)
Interview #255 with H.M. Bouwman (Author of Gossamer Summer)
Interview #256 with Kaija Langley (Author of The Order of Things)
Interview #257 with Elaine Vickers (Author of Half Moon Summer)
Interview #258 with John Gaspard (Author of The Curious Mysteries of Eli Marks)
Interview #259 with Dana Kramaroff (Author of The Do More Club)
Interview #260 with Jessica Vitalis (Author of Coyote Queen)
Interview #261 with Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko (Authors of Dog Town)
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Interview #262 with Chad Morris and Shelly Brown (Authors of The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry)
Interview #263 with Anne Ursu (Author of Not Quite a Ghost)
Interview #264 with Erin Soderberg Downing (Author of Just Keep Walking)
Interview #265 With Kate Albus (Author of Nothing Else But Miracles)
Interview #266 with Robin Gow (Author of Dear Mothman)
Interview #267 with Toni Buzzeo (Author of Light Comes to Shadow Mountain)
Interview #268 with John Schu (Author of Louder Than Hunger)
Interview #269 with Allie Millington (Author of Olivetti)
Interview #270 with Amanda Rawson Hill (Author of Once Upon a Family)
Interview #271 with Lynne Kelly (Author of The Secret Language of Birds)
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Interview #274 with Jasmine Warga (Author of A Strange Thing Happened in Cherry Hall)
Interview #275 with Lois Lowry (Author of Tree.Table.Book)
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Interview #278 with Kate O'Shaughnessy (Author of The Wrong Way Home)
Interview #279 with Shifa Saltagi Safadi (Author of Kareem Between)
Interview #280 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Deep Water)
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Interview #285 with Alison McGhee (Author of Telephone of the Tree)
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