Heather Kassner

Heather Kassner loves thunderstorms, hummingbirds, and books. She lives with her husband in Arizona, waiting (and waiting and waiting) for the rain, photographing hummingbirds, and reading and writing strange little stories.

•When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
My gram, a school librarian, always read me Grimm when I was little, and my love of reading and writing grew from those dark and magical stories.

•Was The Bone Garden the first book you ever wrote?
It was far from the first book I ever started. but it was the first one I ever finished!

•What sparked your imagination for The Bone Garden?
The very first line came before anything else. "She descended into the basement, tasked with collecting the bones." The story stretched from this sentence into its own little world—one in which I had to consider what kind of girl might be slipping into the darkness, and why she's be given such a task.

•What, the best advice you have ever received about writing?
Write down any and all ideas as soon as you can! My third book, The Plentiful Darkness (2021), came from a dream, and if I hadn't forced myself to grab paper and pen (when all I wanted was to roll back over and sleep) the idea probably would have slipped away.

•What are some things you love?
Cats & hummingbirds (but my cats love birds too, so good thing they stay indoors)
Sleeping and dreaming (but lots of dreaming Can be done while awake)
Eating, especially Mexican food (but not cooking)
Traveling (but home is my favorite place)
Family (no buts about it)

•Where and when do you write?
I have a little office upstairs where I always intend to curl up with a cup of tea and my cats, however I write on the couch or in bed just as often as my desk. I usually start writing in the morning, however, I write slow and with lots of breaks.