So, what inspired this story?

This story comes from a few different places. First, is the limited television anthology series, Tales From the Loop. That show had a really nice mix of technology and everyday life, with remnants of robotics, machines, and futuristic advances layered over a down home, simple existence—family, friends, work, life. It also owes a bit of inspiration to the Stephen King series, The Dark Tower. I always loved his mix of fantasy, science fiction, horror, western, and the weird. I know that I wanted this to be a story with time travel, but more about the relationship between two young boys and how in the blink of an eye you can lose everything you love. Has a bit of that “you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone” vibe as well. You know, absence makes the heart grow fonder, etc.

Derek goes into this time machine and travels to the same spot in various time periods. What is it about time travel that interests you?

Part of what drives this story for me is the lack of control, the chaos—he doesn’t know how it works, he screws up, the machine pushes forward (showing him such strange sights) and it pushes him backwards. In that grief and curiosity he loses a bit of his childhood innocence. He sees his parents in a different light, in the past, and also comes to understand that the universe is a mysterious, fascinating, dangerous place. That frames everything he currently has in his life, and changes him, profoundly.

When he returns to his normal time period, Derek has a much different perspective on the people in his life. When deciding when and where to send the character or how things have changed in different time periods, did you have any particular ideas in mind of where things would end up or challenges you faced when implementing this theme?

I did have a strong sense of wanting the ending to be different. I’ve been trying to get into Lightspeed for fifteen years now, and so of course I’ve read the magazine, as well as JJA’s anthology series, The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy. Coming out of my MFA in 2012, I had a new appreciation for all things literary—especially the darker corners of that world, the black sheep—everyone from Haruki Murakami and Margaret Atwood to Ted Chiang and Jeff VanderMeer. So where Derek goes, I knew I wanted it to be weird, to elevate and raise the stakes one trip at a time, knowing that the ending was going to be filled with introspection. I wanted the end to feel more literary—to explore his feelings towards his best friend, his father, and his mother. When this story was accepted, I guess that’s the first indication I had that this ending, and the literary aspirations I was seeking, worked. And that meant a lot to me. I hope the ending moves people, and that the technology and science fiction are great vessels for the human story within it.

What’s next for you? Do you have any new projects or stories you’re publishing that you’d like to mention?

Sure. Mostly I’m focused on my fourth novel, which is out on 9/10/24. Incarnate is an arctic horror, sin eater book and I’m really excited about it—I think it’s some of my best work to date. I’ve compared it to everything from The Thing and The Terror to The Only Good Indians (Stephen Graham Jones) and The Fisherman (John Langan), with a dash of Lois Lowry’s The Giver. It’s a mix of cosmic horror and rural folklore, weaving a strand of hopepunk throughout it. Much like my story for Lightspeed, part of my goal was to blend speculative and literary fiction. I try to write body, mind, and soul-entertaining stories that keep you turning the pages, added to a strong emotional reaction, and something that will stimulate you intellectually. Fingers crossed that my fascination with the arctic, the sixty days of night up in Alaska, the visceral meals and escalating creatures birthed by the sin eater, and what comes after absolution, when consequence may be more appropriate, works, and it’s a satisfying journey.