Standard advice to a writer is often: “Write what you know.” How then did you, with your roots in the American Midwest, so successfully create a character in “Watching Oksana” like Aleksei Andreiovitch Smirnov, including details from his life in Odessa, his experiences as a seaman, and nuances about bars in Superior, Wisconsin?
—Marion Lang, Menomonie, Wisconsin
This question reminds me of one of the best compliments I’ve ever received as a writer. Read more…