Debbie Ann Eis lives in Connecticut with her husband, two sons, and an English Bulldog. Her work has appeared in 3:AM Magazine, flashquake, Word Riot, elimae, Salome, SmokeLong Quarterly, Opium, Quality Women’s Fiction, Pindeldyboz, Wild Strawberries, and Ghoti, among other places. Debbie also writes a column for Madhatter’s Review.

Give us the scoop on the novel you’re writing. How far along in the process are you? Is this your first?

My present novel, “Lament for the Coons,” is more tragic than funny. It involves a troubled mother with a past who now has to deal with tragedy involving her mentally ill child while trying to fit in and survive the conservative, wealthy suburbs of Connecticut. It observes this woman’s inner conflict with the wild working class culture that was her past, and the staid, removed culture that is a challenge to her present. It explores the repercussions of a flawed Connecticut mental health system as well as the tragic consequences of misunderstandings.

It is in the editing stage.

I have written one other–a light comedy. It was probably good enough to pass around my dog park. I think a few dogs would have loved to sniff it. It was a romantic comedy in the shape of a “U.” It had a great beginning, good ending, but the middle looked as if I needed to read a how–to-write-romantic comedy book. No one got to the ending. That’s the thing about the “U?” Once one falls down the “U”, they are gone for good. Good bye!

So you learn and move on. That’s all there is to it.

I rewrote it and then took the character, changed her job to one I understood, and it is now writing itself.

You and your brother published a collaborative book entitled MOON SHADOWS. Tell us about that.

My brother, a doctor by day, is a very talented low country artist. His paintings have actually done quite well in Savannah, Georgia. He had been bugging me for a few years to do a collaborative. He wanted me to write low country stories–narratives, anecdotes–that would reflect his prints, which were images of the low country of yesterday, the world we grew up in, which is now slowly being replaced by a more commercialized world. His pictures are a little like Ray Ellis but with people. He sent me a poster of all his prints and I arranged them, with his help, by theme, and wrote in a plural low country voice. It is on sale at independents and Barnes and Noble in Savannah.

What is the “low country” and a “low country voice”?

Low country refers to the coastal area that extends from Charleston, South Carolina down through Georgia. Beaufort, S. C. is well known for its low country flavor. Low country is characterized by thick, humid air, bugs, lacey moss, and oaks as thick as twelve men huddled together. Some oaks are so expansive a part of trunk branches off, makes a “u” turn, then heads back down to root into the ground again. Which makes them look like creatures incapable of escaping their roots.

I grew up on an island off the coast of Savannah, an area generally considered low country because of its mud, creek, marsh and flies.

Low country does have an accent, referred to as Gullah, but that is not exactly what I meant by low country voice. It’s southern, yes, and yet something else. It reflects an attachment to land that goes beyond love. A true low country child was part of nature. The porpoise, the crab, the snake, the occasional coon and otter, was not something one was in awe of. It existed. Part of our little world.

The voice reflects a way of being more than a way of talking. It is not sentimental. It is easy, slow, hot and satisfied. The world is seen in grand detail.

In the June 18th issue of Pindeldyboz, you have a story entitled “Cracks,” which is about a man who hears voices in his head. Do you often write stories about the mentally impaired? What other topics captivate you?

I like troubled characters who have odd takes on the world. I also like characters who have crazy humor. I am very interested in mental illness, not only because I have a mentally impaired person who is close to me (a few), but also because I think the mental health system is, like most of our health care systems, very flawed. I am a member of a consulting and advisory collaborative on mental health issues in Connecticut. I have been involved in juvenile justice advocacy as well. I am involved with a foundation for the disabled. It’s a passion.

Are your reading tastes similar, in terms of themes and the types of characters you enjoy?

I love Stephen Elliot for writing his truth in HAPPY BABY. Thank God for his voice.

I love Charles D’ Ambrosio for his courage. “Drummond and Son” is probably my favorite short story of all times. Who can write a story that ends in “I love you”? Who can do this? Only someone like D’Ambrosio can pull this off. He is such a brave writer.

But, no, I don’t just read about the world of the disturbed. I love any writing that’s brave and honest. So, of course I love Antonya Nelson. William Trevor. Ron Carlson. Alice Munro. Pia Ehrhardt. Jim Tomlinson. Roy Kesey and others.

I also like humor. Humor that shows compassion (that is so rare) attracts me like a magnet. I like writing that satirizes the whole, but does not condescend the individual. Bizarre, abstract, original writers intrigue me–Miranda July. Ron Currie. Avital Gad Cykman.

Tell us about your column at Madhatter’s Review. How often does it appear? What do you write about?

Carol Novack provided me space to write satire– whacky, irreverent stuff that is not really fiction, not really nonfiction, not really a story, not really essay. It is simply what it is. It appears quarterly. So far I have one series in the form of letters back to New York by one of its former bugs, named Katy Did. (“Dear New York”)

Another one may turn into a series. It has a plural POV and discusses the plight of blonds who are shipped by train to the Connecticut suburbs once impregnated and have no idea how to escape. (“We Have a Dream”)

Carol’s zine is terrifically original and fun. Everyone needs to read her whole issue. It truly has some talented writers. Carol is a very creative, energetic person. Her zine is getting a lot of attention, which is well deserved.

You’ve been to a few writers’ conferences and workshops. Which ones? What were they like? Do you plan to attend any more?

Oh I’ve been to a few off and on over the years. The best ones for me have been Pam Houston’s advanced writing workshop at the cape and Tin House, where I work shopped with Charles D’Ambrosio. Pam Houston’s group was all work, pretty demanding, and we became close by the end of the week. She is a great leader, very personable, readily available. She is the opposite of a snob. She loves to connect with people. She had dinner with us, spent a night drinking and chatting with us. A very funny, engaging woman. Charles D’Ambrosio was pretty tough, but very effective. I like his focus on honesty, his dislike of “bad guy” characters. We all tend to fall into the trap of “bad buy” characters when we write our anger and not our knowledge. And when I do it, I don’t know I’m doing it. He showed me how to find the places that don’t work, that are not true. Great stuff. Tin House was an overall very positive experience.

I am not going anywhere this summer since I am working on a final edit of my novel. But next summer I would love to go somewhere if time and money permits. I have my eye on Sewanee if they will have me.

You frequently write under pen names. What are the benefits to this? The downfalls? Are there tricky legal issues anyone who is considering a pen name should know about?

Well, I have been open about this, explained it in my Zoetrope workshop bio and in letters to editors. There are lots of reasons to have a pen on the internet, but the big one for me is protecting my child, who tends to google. I decided not to add my complexity to his already complex life.

The big problem with pen names is that, of course, no one knows a story is by me. Eis sounds like Ice …but still.

Pens can be controversial, and at first I decided to write and possibly publish under a name and not bother with all the explanations. But once published, I had to say who was behind it and why I had a pen, so. My husband came up with the idea of simply changing the spelling, so that I am not googlable and it would not look like I was hiding, but simply trying to avoid the google. He has this simple head that does not complicate life. I have this weird head that is always complicating my life.

So that is what I write under now. I wouldn’t die if my boy found anything. I am proud of my work, but for many reasons, it’s best to avoid that, at least until he is older.

I have no clue about legal stuff. I like lawyers. Some of my best friends are lawyers. I just don’t want to think about them too much.

What is it like being a mother and writer? Do you think it’s any different than being a mother with any other job? How do you balance motherhood and writing time?

I used to be a bond analyst and a mother. Then I quit. I am not sure how one quits writing. I guess you can tie your hands together? Stop yourself from listening to the world? I just don’t know.

A day job takes you away a given number of hours, and then releases your body and mind to the other world. A day job pays. Performance is generally quantifiable. You know when you do well. No one says, “before we determine whether you did well, can you once again tell us your educational background and how well you did in other jobs? What was the name of your last boss? Was it someone we know, someone important?”

Parenting is 24 hours a day. And if your kids have some issues, it is about 36 hours a day. You find those extra hours when you pull your hair out. Pulling hair out creates hours. Try it!

Writing a novel can be this 24 hour thing because you walk around thinking about this character. So writing and parenting kind of have the same hours.

There is no other way. What you do is hang your chilrin from the upstairs window. You say HANG THERE A WHILE AND SHUT THE HELL UP! YOUR MOTHER IS WRITING. Like that.

Once is a while you ship them to another country. Just put them on a plane and send them to Russia. BYE, YOUR MOTHER IS WRITING !

In all seriousness. Here is the deal. Writing teaches you to stop and listen, sensually, to the world, to yourself, to the past, to the present, then allows a character to lead you.

And that is what good parenting is all about. You listen, sensually, to a child’s world, then let him/her lead you.

I personally think writers who learn their craft are also learning how to parent.

What is your favorite thing to wear when you write?

Jeans, no shoes, a loose, sloppy shirt. Bulldog under the computer desk, asleep and snoring.

Tell us about your very special English bulldog.

I KNEW you wanted to interview me because of my bulldog!! LOL

Here is a story:

Dora was after this frog in my garden. Every night, the plump bulldog would ruin my garden trying to get this adorable frog. One night I caught the frog, sat down, showed it to Dora. “We are sweet to frogs. They are sweet peas like you.” I patted the frog on the head, let Dora sniff it. Then, I put the frog behind the small wire fence under a bush. Dora watched, panting.

A few nights later, I let Dora out and she stays a long time. I go out and find her sitting under the Japanese maple, moving something around her mouth. She is not chewing, but tossing around something. It looked like she had a big marble in her mouth. I say, “Dora! What is in your mouth? You spit it out right now!” She leans way over, ashamed of herself . She opens her mouth and the frog jumps out. It is fine. Terrified. But fine. I pick it up and put it behind the fence again. Dora is still ashamed. Her head now between two paws.

She just wanted to see what the frog felt like. It looked bad, you know, this big fat bulldog with a frog in her mouth. But she was just trying to understand.

I forgave her.

That’s Dora.

What’s your current ring tone on your cell phone? What does it say about you?

The same tune that was there when I bought it. I have no earthly idea how to change tunes. It sounds like this: BADABADA BUM BUM, DADA, BADABADA BUM BUM, DADA.

I hate it. I turn my cell to vibrate and place it in my jeans back pocket so when it goes off, I feel it.

This says I am not a gadget woman. I am a vibrating type woman.

Contact Debbie

Read:

“Cracks”
published by Pindeldyboz

“The Wedge In Between”
published by SmokeLong Quarterly

“Her First Song Lyrics”
published by Insolent Rudder

“Heat”
published by elimae

“A Certain Place”
published by Salome

“Moving to the Right Neighborhood”
published by 3:AM

“Compliance”
published by Word Riot

“We Have a Dream”
column piece for Madhatter’s Review


Filed Under: The Writer Profile Project |