Beth Kirschner

Beth Kirschner grew up in upstate New York, and thought she knew everything there was to know about winter snows until she moved to Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula for college. There she discovered an average snowfall between 200 and 300 inches, and a record winter snowfall of 390 inches. In addition to the harsh winters, she found a place rich with history, personality, and the world’s only known source of pure, native copper. The Keweenaw Peninsula is the setting for her debut novel, Copper Divide.

Her writing has moved from poetry to travel journals, short stories, and novels. When not writing, she works as a software engineer, flies single engine airplanes, and enjoys exploring Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She has two grown children, two large cats, and a room of her own for imagining her next story.

Are there particular films that have influenced your writing?

I took a college course in movie appreciation many years ago. It was a senior year elective, but I did learn more than I expected. Some cinematic scenes are filmed to bring a perspective that is bigger than what any particular character will see, and on occasion, I like to that omniscient viewpoint in my writing, to give a similar gravity and depth.

Is there a genre of music that influences your writing/thinking? Do you listen to music while you write?

I never listen to music when I write, but many times I’ve had an idea that was triggered by music. Lou Reed or Violent Femmes will push me to challenge social norms in my writing. Bob Dylan or U2 might push me to introduce social justice themes. My computer is almost always close by and I’ll open up my notes file and jot down some quick ideas to be expanded later.

Is your go to comfort food sweet or savory? Is it something you make yourself? Does food inspire your writing?

Ice cream, especially mint chocolate chip, is a comfort food tradition in my family. I’ve always enjoyed the food traditions that families hand down from generation to generation, or the food traditions that spring up in a single generation. I love adding food vignettes to stories, to help the reader get to know the characters better. It’s a basic need that resonates with everyone.

Vacation druthers… City or Rural destination? Why?

Definitely both. Cities are rich petri dishes of character studies. I usually keep a travel journal and like to add written sketches of interesting people I meet or see. Sometimes these people make their way into stories, sometimes not. Wilderness is where I go to escape into nature for a summer hike or winter ski. I like to put nature in my stories too, but it’s not usually something I’m thinking about when on vacation.

Do you speak a second language? Do you think differently in that language? Does it influence your writing?

I’ve been studying Spanish on and off for several years, and I can hold a basic conversation as long as everyone speaks slowly. Learning a second language really helps me understand the mechanics of language: grammar and verb tenses and prepositional phrases. I think it’s important to understand all these rules, so I can be very intentional when breaking them for a good reason in my writing.