Contributor Spotlight: Amy Krohn
Amy Krohn’s story “Breaking Through the Fence” appears in Midwestern Gothic Issue 10, out now.
How long have you been writing?
I wrote many stories as a child, kept it up during school, and I even won some awards in undergrad and graduate school. Then I got married, had three kids, and during that time I couldn’t write a thing. After a long, discouraging dry spell of about seven years, I finally started writing again. I found out I could still do it, plus I had more to write about.
What’s your connection to the Midwest?
I was born and raised on a Wisconsin dairy farm. I married my neighbor, and now we raise our kids on a Wisconsin dairy farm. It’s pretty convenient to have both sets of grandparents nearby. We’re not the traveling sort.
How has the Midwest influenced your writing?
My stories take place in the Midwest. Even if I tried writing some sort of magical fairy tale with princesses and elves, they’d probably live next to a cornfield, grill brats on the weekends, and wave to each other on Sunday morning as they drive home from church.
Why do you believe there has never really been a regionalist push for Midwestern writing in the past like there has with the South or even the West Coast?
I don’t know. I’m not so sure I would like to be considered a regionalist writer, anyway. One of my favorite authors, Sarah Orne Jewett, fell into the “Female New England Writer” category, and it took a long time for people to realize that her stories, based in New England, had a universal appeal.
How do you feel about social media to promote your writing, and do you use it?
I’m not a very social person. I like to retain some privacy. I try not to use social media.
Favorite book?
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, A Portrait of a Lady by Henry James, and The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton.
Favorite food?
Chocolate milkshake, pumpkin pie, creamed turkey on a toasted bun.
If you could have coffee (or tea or a beer) with any literary figure, alive or dead, who would it be?
Maybe James Herriot, the vet from England. I could get him started on farm animal stories and settle down for a delightful listen.
Where can we find more information about you?
My first book of short stories, A Flower in the Heart of the Painting, will be published soon by Wiseblood Books. Look me up on Amazon.com or visit http://www.wisebloodbooks.com/.
