We love learning more about our contributors, and an interview seemed like a fun way to hear more about the writers and artists we publish, so we gave them a choice of questions to answer. We hope you also enjoy hearing more about the artists and their works. Read on and check out issue 21 for work from Kasey Butcher Santana.

Or you can let them read to you!


What was the inspiration for the piece published in the issue?
"I feel a pretty constant level of angst about raising a child when so much in the world feels precarious. When my daughter got sick during an especially chaotic news week, it felt like we were trapped in a bubble with Mister Rogers while all these bad things happened outside. I wanted to write about how overwhelmed I felt. How much I want to protect my child and how that makes me feel powerful and also very small. How tiring caregiving can be, and how much my heart could explode looking at her sweet face, even when I am touched out.


Who are some of your favorite writers or artists, and what do you like about them?
I admire how prolific and insightful Heather Cox Richardson and Rebecca Solnit are. I come back to their work constantly to understand current events and for glimmers of hope. David Sedaris almost always makes me laugh and got me into the habit of keeping a notebook. I love haunted house novels, so I have to mention Shirley Jackson, but so much of why I admire her has less to do with ghosts and more to do with the tension she picks at between domestic and creative pursuits.


What is your "white whale"?
This is probably too small to count as a white whale, but about ten years ago on The United States of Tara, I saw Brie Larson's character wear a white sweater with a polar bear's face on it and claws embroidered at the cuffs. I loved it, but no one sold it anymore, and for some reason, I could not let it go. I searched for six winters before I actually found the sweater (a size smaller than I hoped) on eBay. I feel so satisfied pulling it out each holiday season.


Why did you feel like After Happy Hour would be a good home for this piece?
I was drawn to the eclectic, inventive writing After Happy Hour publishes. I also appreciate that the journal is based in Pittsburgh. I have two dear friends who lived there, and when I visited, I loved touring the city and seeing the Mister Rogers' Neighborhood set at the Heinz History Center. I reference the Neighborhood in the piece, and Fred Rogers has been such a good companion as I parent in anxious times, so having "Sick Days" in a journal from his hometown felt right.


What is your favorite vice? What are you drinking at happy hour, in a literal or metaphoric sense?
I love a full-bodied red wine. At our house, we have also been enjoying Recess seltzers in the Black Cherry and Blackberry Chai flavors.