By Bacopa Literary Review Fiction Editor Alec Kissoondyal
Lisa Isaac's short story "In the Red" brought me along for a character-driven ride filled with humor and heartbreak. Isaac's story follows the protagonist's day of misadventure with her strange new employer, Leslie, weaving together lighthearted moments, day-to-day anxieties, and existential melancholy to create a rich tapestry of the human condition. In the following interview with Isaac, we discuss the inspiration behind her character, Leslie, her writing process, and her upcoming projects.
Leslie is such a complex and captivatingly strange character. How did you come up with him?
Once upon a time, I met someone like Leslie. Because I didn’t understand him, I made up a backstory complete with past failed relationships to try to solve the problem: why would someone act this way?
An element of the story that captured me was how, despite only getting glimpses into both characters’ lives, there is a perfect amount of detail to make them feel real. Did you have a process for deciding what details to include and what to omit?
Mostly, writing is editing for me. Like a whittler with a wooden block, the more details I cut away from an original draft, the clearer I see the faces in a story. Character details only make it to the last draft if they propel the story forward.
Are there any projects you are currently working on/forthcoming publications that you want to mention?
I have many pots boiling on the stove, but right now I’m mostly attending to an interwoven collection of flash nonfiction.
