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. Get yourself a copy of our Work and Labor Issue to read "Surge Pricing" from Jack Whaler.
What was the inspiration for the piece published in the issue?
On December 5, 2024, there was a magnitude 7.0 earthquake off the coast of Humboldt County, CA, and the National Weather Service issued a tsunami warning to the San Francisco Bay Area. I was working from home at the time, and all these notifications started coming in: the government’s message, my employer warning me to move to higher ground, and then the fire alarm in my apartment building went off (possibly a coincidence—the building was prone to false alarms).
While all this was happening, I noticed how differently people were responding. Some of us fled. Others kept working. A few were making calculations about where they might get the best footage. The whole thing got me thinking about the different incentives people have during an emergency. This story grew out of playing with that idea.
What is your #1 advice for other writers?
Many people have said it before, but: 'keep writing.' I believe some version of the Law of Large Numbers applies to writing: each of us has a base rate for producing something great or good or interesting, and every story is a shot on goal at that base rate. The catch, and a place where I find hope, is that I don’t think our base rate is fixed. Practice raises it. Reflection raises it. And all of this points toward the same advice: ‘keep writing.’
What do you do in the rest of your life and how does that connect and/or conflict with your creative life?
I work as an applied statistician in industry (‘Data Science’ in the current lingo). I ask a lot of questions, do some math, and interpret what comes back.
The stories I tell at work share some familiar structures. Often a report begins with a baseline of where things were, a change that was made (an inciting incident, perhaps), and the throughline to the implications of that change. (Of course, there are a few numbers in between.)
The two don’t feel entirely in conflict, although both compete for the same resource: time. I wish I had more of it to spend creating.
Give us a recipe and tell us why you chose it--what's special about that dish?
Walnut-Stuffed Date
1. Cut the pit out of a medjool date.
2. Put a walnut or two where the pit was. It’s okay if they protrude from the date.
3. Sprinkle a little salt in there.
This is just a delightful thing to eat. My mom got me hooked on the medjool date + walnut combo years ago, and I added in the salt. It is a small thing and a major major comfort.