(Another!) Interview with Author Karen Walker

We're always excited to publish another work from an author we've selected in the past, and because we read blind, it makes it extra fun to find out when this happens (we usually have no idea until we're sending an acceptance letter). Karen Walker's experimental style and strong, unique voice will cement her work in your mind, and we're thrilled to have chosen another piece by her ("But the things ...") for the previous issue. We caught up with the author in a new interview below.

What makes you keep writing, even when it's hard?  

Because writing is fun.   

Advice on creating that you’ve learned by trial and error.

Just write. Don't let anyone or anything discourage you.  

What's your favorite obscure novel or short story (a work you never hear anyone else talking about)? 

“How Monday was Made,” a flash piece by Guy Biederman in FlashBack Fiction. Brilliant and so funny.  

What are your long-term writing goals? 

To continue having fun. 

If you were a cryptid, what would your name be and what strange habits would people whisper about? 

I'd be The Giant Beaver of Manitoba and be named Luke. Though scarcely could they be heard over it, people would whisper about my loud gnawing.   

What is your writing strategy? Do you write every day, as the mood hits you, or do you have a rigid schedule?  

I write every day for at least an hour.  

If you could travel anywhere in the universe, where would it be? 

Newfoundland. 

Have you ever had a supernatural encounter?  

I'd like to apologize to the supernatural if I've encountered it and either not noticed or been rude. 

Did you have a favorite game of make-believe as a kid? How about now?  

I used to pretend I was a collie. 

Tell us a secret. 

I don't like hockey.  

If you could purchase one item from David Lynch’s personal collection, currently on auction, what would it be?  

The auction catalogue. 

What is your favorite museum or gallery? 

Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto. 

Unpopular opinion, go: 

Guacamole is gross. 

Do you have a favorite weirdo? (Could be famous, obscure, fictional, or a personal connection.) 

A couple in town who once dug up their backyard for fear that the previous owners had buried bones. Can't decide who I like more—the people who dug or the ones who might've buried. 

Is there a book or film that significantly altered your perception of reality?  

David Lynch's The Elephant Man (1980). Its light and dark goes well beyond being shot in black and white. 

What do you hope readers gain from reading your work? 

A  little break from reality. 

Karen Walker draws and writes strangely in a low basement in Ontario, Canada. She has a tall dog. Her words are/will be in Stanchion, The Imagist Literary Magazine, and Certain Age. Her art is/will be in coalitionworks and Underbelly Press.