Meghan Perry
Author Interview - Meghan Perry
Author of Water Finds a Way
Blake Alvares has survived the unthinkable more than once: a childhood marked by vicious abuse, a terrifying teenage pregnancy, a twenty-year prison term. Following her release, she capitalizes on her single inheritance, a derelict farmhouse by the sea left to her by her deceased grandparents. Life in small-town northern Maine is harsh and unforgiving; her hard-laboring new neighbors struggle to stave off poverty, to stay off drugs, to stay in business. But this little community is also the only place Blake can ever recall feeling safe or loved. Seeking something she cannot yet identify, Blake heads home.
While Blake was behind bars, local lobsterman Leland Savard was trying not to go all the way broke. In his desperation to support himself and nine-year-old Quinnie, Leland hires Blake to work on his boat despite his skepticism of the gruff, impossibly tall, and utterly mysterious new figure. Mutual suspicion gives way, however, to mutual dependence. Soon Blake and Leland have found anchors in their chaotic lives, perhaps for the very first time. But neither Blake nor Leland, each haunted by their history, has quite figured out how to outrun their demons. Danger soon beckons.
WATER FINDS A WAY probes timeless questions around renewal and belonging, spotlighting everyday people who find themselves left behind in a rapidly changing world, and unearthing the rich complexity of their inner lives and the oft-overlooked regions from which they hail.
Author Interview - Meghan Perry
Author I draw inspiration from:
Annie Proulx: I read her collection of short stories, Open Range, as a teenager, and it was the first time I fell in love with the language of a book as much as I did the plot. Proulx renders gritty characters and settings in gorgeous prose. She delivers a profound sense of place in each of her works--something I so admire as a writer who draws inspiration from natural settings.
Author Interview - Meghan Perry | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book:
I enjoy reading on the beach in Maine. I'm not a huge beach person--the water up there is usually too cold to entice me. The draw of the beach for me is the chance to just sit and read! I will admit, however, that I'm probably the most productive reader on airplanes. Forget those screens on the back of the seat! I immediately turn mine off and crack open a book.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with:
One of my all-time favorite books--both to read and to teach--was Cormac McCarthy's The Road. I think it would be fascinating to be stuck in an elevator with "the boy" from that novel. I would love to hear his thoughts about the state of our current world given the world he survived in that book. I'd have so many questions for him about his experiences following the conclusion of the novel! As the mother of two sons and as an educator at all-boys school, I would be particularly interested in his perspective on "carrying the fire" and how he managed to do so despite the tremendous obstacles and trauma he encountered very young.
Author Interview - Meghan Perry | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author:
As soon as I learned to write sentences, I was creating stories. In elementary school, I wrote a story about a horse for my little sister, and it actually entertained her! (She was a tough audience.) I knew right then that I wanted to create books. But I think the idea really settled in when I entered middle school and the big weekend treat was visiting Borders Books. I would walk past those shelves of fresh, beautiful novels, my arms loaded with titles, and feel not only excitement to read, but envy of the authors whose books stared out at me from the shelves.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook:
Hardbacks have the most aesthetic appeal, but I find them too heavy for my taste. I am a one-handed reader. However, if I have a favorite book, I will sometimes seek out the hardback after reading the paperback because hardbacks feel more permanent. Paperbacks appeal to me most because of their portability--and I can cram more of them onto my already exploding shelves. I am not a fan of ebooks because I already spend too much time on screens, and I love having a tangible artifact of what I read. Audiobooks...well, confession: I have never listened to one. I must have my eyes on the words in order to be fully immersed in a story. I do, however, very much look forward to listening to the audiobook of Water Finds a Way (Penguin Random House audio) because the narrator, Elsa Lepecki Bean, has this fabulous, lyrical, alto voice, and I can't wait to hear how she brings the novel to life.
The last book I read:
I recently finished Ariel Lawhon's The Frozen River. It had been a while since I'd read historical fiction, but I was instantly drawn in! Midwife Martha Ballard is an unforgettable character. As someone who stumbles often into research rabbit holes, I very much admire authors of historical fiction for their ability to pull themselves out of those holes and seamlessly integrate their research into fiction.
Author Interview - Meghan Perry | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer:
At the earliest stages of brainstorming, I find that I revert to pen and paper. Something about the physicality of that just helps my ideas flow more freely. I do not create formal outlines because I end up trapping myself. For Water Finds a Way, I jotted loose ideas for scenes/events in a notebook and scratched them off as I completed them. When it comes to actual composing, I have to do it on the computer. I just make too many edits as I go!
Book character I think I’d be best friends with:
Marian Graves, the pioneering female aviator from Maggie Shipstead's Great Circle. Though I have no experience flying airplanes (in fact, I do not enjoy flying!), I deeply empathized with Marian's passion to chase the horizon, as well as her frustration with societal restrictions and people's frequent failure to understand the motivations that drove her. I deeply admired her courage and conviction in herself, and though, by nature of her career, I think our friendship would have been "the long distance" variety, I believe we could have shared a rich correspondence--at least, up until the time of her disappearance.
Author Interview - Meghan Perry | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a:
Honestly, I love the second job I already have: director of a high school writing center. I enjoy working with teenagers--even those who dread composing. Writing is really such a deeply personal thing, and discussing it 1:1 opens the doors to some truly amazing conversations and revelations. There are few things as rewarding as seeing the light come on in a student's eyes when they have found the words to convey a difficult idea, or when they figure out that, yes, they are a writer!
My dream career would probably be owning a rescue ranch for wild mustangs. I say "dream" because I would have to learn more about horses and their care to pull this off--not to mention purchase a property with significant acreage. But my interest in wild horses dates back to a unique encounter I had as a teenager in Wyoming's Red Desert. Suffice it to say, I think I found my spirit animal, and I would love to be able to contribute to the current effort to save these beautiful creatures.
Favorite decade in fashion history:
1920s! Give me sequins, fringe, headbands and red lipstick!
Place I’d most like to travel:
I mention Antarctica in another answer, so here I will say the full ring road of Iceland (including a ferryboat ride up to the arctic circle). I visited the southern region of Iceland briefly before Covid and have always wanted to return and see the rest of the country! First, the scenery is other-worldly, and the hiking is fantastic. But I find the history and culture equally compelling. I doubt I'll ever have a handle on the Icelandic language (dear god, all the consonants!!), but it was quite a treat to hear it spoken.
My signature drink:
Smoking Loon pinot noir -- cheap but great!
Favorite artist:
I really enjoy the music of Lana Del Rey. I've been listening to her for over a decade, and I've enjoyed how her sound has evolved. There is something deeply haunting about many of her songs. They just resonate with me.
Number one on my bucket list:
I finally saw the northern lights last night, which was one of the items on my list. Next up: visiting Antarctica! The world's most remote reaches call my name!
Anything else you'd like to add:
Water Finds a Way is my first novel, and I went through a period of semi-mourning when I finished writing it because I did not want to leave my characters. That was how I knew I'd created something meaningful. I hope readers find connection with these characters and enjoy inhabiting, for a little while, the rugged little world of Raker Harbor.
Find more from the author:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/megeperry/
https://www.instagram.com/meghaneperry/
https://meghanperry.com/
About Meghan Perry:
Author Interview - Meghan Perry
Meghan Perry grew up in New England and graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover. She went on to earn a BA and MAEd from the College of William and Mary, and an MFA from Emerson College. She began her career in education teaching high school English in New Jersey, during which time she published short stories in Sycamore Review, Cold Mountain Review, Passages North, Prism Review, Permafrost, and The Fourth River.
After relocating to Massachusetts, she received the opportunity to design and direct a writing center at an independent secondary school on the North Shore of Boston, where she continues to engage and encourage student writers. Meghan is married to her college sweetheart, Chris Perry, with whom she is raising two young sons. Outside of writing and teaching, Meghan enjoys running, hiking, and exploring wild and remote places with her family.
