CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLIGHT:
Interview with Joel Streicker

Rappahannock Review Fiction Editors: What was the inspiration for the setting and did this influence the narrative, or was it the other way around?

Joel Streicker: I wanted to write something about immigration and its opponents. The news at the time (late 2017-early 2018) was full of stories about armed vigilantes trying to stop unauthorized immigrants along the Southwestern border. I’m also interested in domestic dramas, so it seemed natural to ground that larger concern in the dynamic between the protagonist and her husband.

RR: Your exploration of relationship dynamics—especially under such extraordinary circumstances—was very interesting. From where did you pull your inspiration?

JS: There was no particular inspiration other than an awareness that people in long-term relationships often run into some rough patches. (For the record, the fact that I’ve been married for a long time has absolutely nothing to do with this!) I’ve also seen that people are often attracted to the forbidden and sometimes hate themselves and/or the object of their attraction, which can lead to much grief. 

RR: Everyone has their own writing tactics. When it comes to prose or dialogue, do you have any ‘rules of thumb’ that you follow when it comes to structure and content?

JS: Not really. I find that lately I’ve been writing more dialogue-heavy stories, which is fine, but I think I’m due for a course correction. The choices often impose themselves during the writing—something seems to flow in a direction that I might not have contemplated at the beginning and I try to ride it. It doesn’t always work out, but that’s life and writing.

RR: “Common Pursuit” oscillates between its action/suspense and romance dynamic with interesting regularity. How was it, juggling these two genres during drafting and revision?

JS: Thanks for pointing that out! Honestly, I never thought of it in those terms—I set out to write a story about a right-wing couple undergoing strain in their marriage, set in a dystopian, not-too-distant future. What you identify as the story’s two strands makes sense to me in hindsight, but I didn’t think of myself as writing in two genres.

RR: If you could (or had to) spend the day with either Wayne or the protagonist, who would you pick? What would you want to do with them?

JS: Yikes! I have to choose? I’d go to the bar with the protagonist and her girl friends after their shift at the Red Rooster. I’d also go to a Vigilance Committee meeting with Wayne and his buddies. (Sorry–I couldn’t choose.) I’d be curious to see each of them when they’re away from the other and among people they trust.