The Work Room Interview: Isle McElroy on their Year-Long Novel Generator

Interview by Cheyenne Paterson

CP:  What have you learned while writing in the communal space that has most impacted you both stylistically and in your productivity?

IM: Communal spaces have taught me so much about how to balance writing for other people and writing for myself. Every person who enters the space will be bringing in work they have primarily written for themself, but the goal of a good workshop is to show a writer how best to communicate their work with other people. It taught me how to write in a unique style that is nonetheless capable of connecting to readers. As for productivity, communal spaces are vital for simply getting the work done. I think of myself as a fairly productive writer but I still procrastinate without the help of outside deadlines, and workshops like this one have always been a great way to ensure I meet my page count goals. 

CP: How were the craft lecture and reading selection authors chosen? Is there anything specific (commonalities, obstacles) about their literary journeys that you hope will inspire students?

IM: I’ve selected a range of authors across many generations, though I am sticking to first novels. From Marilynne Robinson’s Housekeeping to Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye to Justin Torres’s We The Animals, I aimed to create a syllabus that captures a writer’s early vision rather than their mature later work. Because so many people in the class will be writing their first novels, it will be interesting to look at how authors started, to see their early risks and failures, as a way to show how writers evolve over time. Specifically, I hope writers in the class will be able to see, as a former professor once told me, that “it’s more important that first novels are interesting rather than perfect.” I’m hoping writers will produce their most interesting work in this class. 

CP:  In the class description, you talk about the excitement a writer feels about sharing all the good parts of their novel. How do you deal with the poor reception of what you considered to be the best parts of a developing novel?

IM: Poor reception to a favorite new section can be crushing. I’ve been there. However, if this situation arises, I hope the class will be able to discuss why the author was so excited to share this section as a way to assess what might not be clear to readers. For instance, if an author shares a scene they find funny but the class does not, then that opens up an opportunity to discuss intention versus execution. The class can help the author brainstorm ways to better meet their intentions. Furthermore, these discussions are also chances for the author to learn where their vision might depart from that of the class. Though I don’t think the author is always correct, it is true that the author will normally get the final say on what they write, and conversations about intention and reception will help the author clarify, for themselves, what kind of work they eventually wish to produce. 

CP: Between a writer starting from scratch, one with the bones of a concept that needs development, and somebody with their first few chapters drafted, who will be best served by this class? 

IM: Don’t make me choose! I think the class will have a lot to offer writers in any one of these positions–even writers who already have full manuscripts. However, the class will offer different things to them all. I do think that a writer would benefit greatly from already having an idea and some characters in mind before entering the class. Most of this course will focus on producing pages, and knowing what you want to write will help you get started faster. Writers with some or even all of a manuscript completed will benefit from generative craft assignments, either to finish additional chapters or to revise those already written. Because this course will focus on the production of new work and the honing of themes and concepts, it should offer a great deal no matter where the author is in their process.