Each week we will be connecting with our contributors showing where they have been, where they are now, and what’s up for the future.
Name: Maya Lowy
Title of Piece Published in Sweet: “Drunken Forest
Issue: 10.3
Find her:
Maya has been all over the world lately, but her sights are currently set on moving to England and finally setting up her dream library. Fingers crossed that that works out soon! Maya does not currently have a website.
What are some major accomplishments you have had since your Sweet publication?
I just got married! That feels huge; it sets off a new, cozier chapter of my life.
Can you tell us about a current/ongoing project that you’re excited about?
For the past year, I’ve been working on fiction (young adult) for the first time in a long time. It’s a very slow process for me, in contrast to the instant gratification feeling I can often get from poems, but I’m writing a story that I would want to read, and that’s been really fun.
Who is your favorite author?
Lately, I’ve been really impressed by Colson Whitehead, who I recently saw at a reading. I’ve now read three of his books, most recently The Intuitionist, and I have a lot to learn from his pacing and tone. I’m also currently enamored with Shirley Jackson. Again, pacing and tone– she’s so expertly subtle and funny and scary at the same time.
What is your favorite poem/essay/book?
It hurts to be asked this question… like being asked which child is your favorite. I can always return to One Hundred Years of Solitude, so I’m just going to settle there for now.
What inspires you to write?
Sometimes, it’s a spotlit moment that cries out to be captured. Sometimes, it’s a truth so wild and exciting I want to share it. Sometimes, I just want to read something that understands how I feel.
What is your favorite sweet?
My husband and I just got back from a road-trip honeymoon; some highlights for me were the cherry pie at Snoqualmie Lodge outside of Seattle, the banana pancake at Surrey’s in New Orleans (only get one!), tres leches cake at Matt’s El Rancho in Austin, and the cookies at Kanab Creek Bakery in Kanab, Utah. We’re going to try our hand at baking croissants this week, using a bread machine to help with the dough. (By the way, I’m a big fan of bread machines and encourage everyone to liberate one from your local thrift store.) Wish us luck!
Thank you, Maya, for taking the time to reconnect with us. We look forward to seeing more of your work in the future!
