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Vogue:First off, how does it feel to see your book out in the world?
Photo: Courtesy of Marissa Higgins
Marissa Higgins:Honestly, I never imagined it would happen.
Im not really a visualizer, but seeing pictures of the book now in bookstores in Ohio or Texas….
It still doesnt even feel real.
Im so interested in the concept of a poly or three-person relationship as a narrative unit.
Can you talk a little about writing the relationship between Helen, Katrina, and Catherine?
Early in the draft, the Catherine and Katrina characters felt like a unit and less like individual characters.
One thing my agent helped pull out of me was whether I wanted to lean into that.
Or did I want to make them and their relationships more distinct?
How do you balance those two dynamics in fiction?
For me, the chapters with the most tenderness are the scenes between Helen and her grandmother.
What was the biggest thing you learned in writing this book?
I learned how to plot a book.
When I started querying agents, things happened but there was not really a plot.
Are there other books that you feel helped pave the way for yours?
When I was writing, I was totally all in forLusterby Raven Leilani.
That was a book that definitely made me feel less crazy about the one I was working on.
This conversation has been edited and condensed.
A Good Happy Girl
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