An Interview With Ramona Gore

Under the twinkling starry night sky, the Lark sleeps under the canopy. It twists and turns in its warm nest, as dreams waft through its mind, of a girl in a bed, a bethrol gone amiss, and a secret which shall send the Lark aflight. The night's end draws near, and Ramona Gore wakes with the sun.

Summer has properly enveloped the Serein Lark Review, putting its scheduled August release on the near horizon! If you haven't submitted yet, do so now before it's too late. You can read the guidelines here. And of course, thank you to all the talented writers who have submitted their work already, and to those whose stories didn't quite make the cut: don't be discouraged. Keep writing! Keep writing like your life depends on it! The world will thank you for it.

Now, if you skipped the first paragraph, shame on you! Allow me to catch you up:

The Serein Lark Review has required its third contributing writer! Ramona Gore enters the scene with 'Whitewashed Tomb', an enchanting new fantasy short story filled with mesmerizing metaphors and a way with words that feels much like a twinkling starry night sky.

As always, the Serein Lark celebrates its newest writer with an interview!

Can you introduce yourself? Who are you, Ramona?

I am a graduate student at the University of Georgia, studying Journalism and Mass Communication. I have lived in all four regions of the United States: Northeast (New York), Midwest (Iowa), South (Georgia), and West (Arizona). My goal is to visit every continent and I am already halfway there. I am also a (script) writer.

Without telling us too much, how would you describe your short story 'Whitewashed Tomb'? What can you tell us about it?

I believe a lot can be gleaned from the title alone, which perfectly sums up my story. The term "whitewashed tomb" refers to something that may appear nice on the outside but is actually unpleasant on the inside. The protagonist, Calliope, becomes familiar with this expression in more ways than one.

Talk us through what inspired your piece and the process of writing it. Was it a particularly difficult story to get down, or did the words flow like a river?

When I was in middle school, I enjoyed an anime called Kamigami no Asobi, in which a girl is spirited away to a boarding school for problematic gods to teach them about humanity and love. Yet, when I thought about the show years later, I wondered if she would still be willing to ‘heal’ these deities if their mythology hadn’t been sanitized for plot purposes. What if their worst traits were revealed to her? Though it may be difficult to understand how I arrived at the final draft, this line of thinking served as inspiration for my own story. It took me almost a week to write 'Whitewashed Tomb' in the end.

Here is an excerpt from Ramona's short story, 'Whitewashed Tomb'.

In the silence she leaves behind, Calliope drags her nails down her body, desperate to make it feel like her own again. The itch, however, has a claim on her.

Do you have any habits for when you write, such as always having a cup of tea by your side or a special place you must write for the sake of the creative juices (or something more peculiar, such as Victor Hugo's alleged need to write in the nude)?

Sadly, I don’t have any interesting writing habits. I just get comfortable in my bed and listen to music as I work.

What do you enjoy reading? What are you reading right now?

Fantasy, particularly retellings of fairy tales, is my favorite genre. It's likely for the same reasons that everyone else enjoys it: escape. It’s easy to forget about your problems when the protagonist is dealing with a whole different beast, literally. One of my favorite book series growing up was the Sisters Grimm by Michael Buckley. Since I'm currently reading The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh, it’s safe to say my taste hasn’t changed that much.

Do you have any other publications you'd like to point our readers to? Or is there someplace readers can follow you for updates on future work?

Links to other publications can be found on my website at ramonagore.com! It will direct you to short stories, poems, and comics that I've written.

Thank you, Ramona, for taking the time to submit the Serein Lark Review. It's both a grand honour and a thrilling pleasure to be publishing your story, 'Whitewashed Tomb', in the upcoming first issue of the Serein Lark Review. Indeed, I can't wait to discover what you might write next!