What drew you to submit your work to RED SKIES?
Because this has been such a unique period in recent history, I was heartened to learn that Splintered Disorder Press wanted to capture writings from this time in their Red Skies anthology. It’s important to document for posterity what has taken place during this challenging year. I commend editors Amanda Edwards and Rachel Small for their vision with this publication.
What writers have inspired you?
Margaret Atwood has been my hero from the beginning of her career, with Edible Woman and Surfacing. She continues to be prolific and versatile with everything she writes, from The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments, to her new poetry collection Dearly and her advocacy for the environment.
What projects are you currently engaged with?
I have just finished Claudette on the Keys, a historical fiction novel about a female pianist who follows fortune but instead finds fascism on the rise in this tale of intrigue in pre-war times. Inspired by true events experienced by my grandparents, it tells the story of Ida Fernley, whose stage name is Claudette, and her husband Harry, a Toronto-based duo-piano team who are struggling to find employment in 1936 after being laid off from their radio show. Following a solo performance at Shea’s Theatre, Ida is invited by British agent Jack Hylton to work in England, where they encounter unexpected situations. I am in the process of finding an agent and/or publisher for the work. The first chapter is posted on the Inkshares website, where I invite comments and follows: https://www.inkshares.com/books/claudette-on-the-keys#discussion
How have you spent the year 2020?
When my magazine writing was reduced and there was less content for my events column in the Peterborough Examiner, I shifted to finishing my novel and writing personal essays in response to the pandemic. I was grateful for the time to explore more deeply ideas that had been bubbling beneath the surface for a while.
You recently released your book Love in the Air: Second World War Letters, based on the letters your parents sent to each other during their time apart. What inspired you to create a book from the letters? There is so much unique, personal history within a great event like the Second World War. How did you fill in the blanks between their letters to create a narrative?
After my father died, I discovered an old Eaton’s box holding over 600 letters that he and my mother exchanged while he was overseas. I realized that it was quite rare for both sides of a correspondence from that time to survive. As I read through them, I discovered not only declarations of undying love, but also detailed descriptions of what was happening on both sides of the Atlantic, with my mother working in a job that would have been done by a man before the war, and my father, a musician, entertaining troops and celebrities while dodging bombs. In the book, I blended excerpts from the letters with a narrative inspired by the correspondence along with historical background and photographs to bring to life this unique story of enduring love amidst global turmoil.
You have written a great deal of articles, but you also produce documentaries. What brings these different interests and mediums together?
I have found that each creative medium inspires the other. In film, words tend to be sparser while the visual aspect is rich, as opposed to text, where one has to fill out the visual dimension with description and other imagery to convey the story.
What is your personal creative process?
I like to write first thing in the morning when I’m fresh. Sometimes an idea will come to me during the night and I try to get it down before it disappears. If I’m stuck on how to move forward with a work in progress, I’ll go for a walk in a forest nearby, and usually when I return, my subconscious has figured out how to proceed.
Is community important to your work? Are there any magazines or small presses that you feel particularly fond of?
I am deeply indebted to the writing group that I’ve been a part of for over nine years. Having a bi-weekly deadline has kept me on track and I’m stimulated by the creativity of the others in the group. I’m inspired by small presses that have published books by authors that have gone on to become bestsellers and win awards such as Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann, published by Biblioasis, and Not Cancelled: Canadian Kindness in the Face of COVID-19 by Heather Down and Catherine Kenwell, published by Wintertickle Press.
Find more of Joanne Culley at:
“Parallels between the pandemic and the Second World War,” Toronto Star, November 10, 2020: https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2020/11/10/parallels-between-the-pandemic-and-the-second-world-war.html
“Service and Devotion,” Legion magazine, Nov./Dec. 2020: https://legionmagazine.com/en/2020/11/service-devotion/
“Beloved silver maple turns to gold,” Peterborough Examiner, Nov. 2, 2020: https://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/opinion/contributors/2020/11/01/otonabee-ward-a-beloved-peterborough-silver-maple-tree-turns-to-gold.html
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