Origins: Alec and Claire are based on my upstairs neighbors from my first apartment in New York; they are the protagonists in a series of short fiction. Both were interesting people from different walks of life; they tried hard to keep their relationship working, eventually realizing they were just too incompatible. When I reached out to both of them about this book and showed them the story, I was touched by how fondly they spoke of each other, nearly twenty years on.
Number of Drafts: 2, then line edits and tweaks.
Music: Green Carnation, “Writings on the Wall”
Agalloch, “You Were But A Ghost In My Arms”
Bauhaus, “Spirit”
R. Renee Branca 