Heather’s Bookshelf: Author Interview with Luna Westish

How did you come up with the names of your main characters?

Westish: I mull a lot over my characters’ names – several characters in Meet Me at the Ruins originally had different names, but as I fully fleshed out the characters, they demanded something different!  My naming choices are essentially based on vibes – what kind of name does this person feel like.  Sometime I look up name meanings or characteristics and make sure they line up with the characters I’m building!  Names are really important to me – it took me ages to find a name combination that felt “right” for both of children, so it makes sense that it takes me some time to figure out the perfect names for my characters.

Is there anything that you want readers to know about you, your writing process or your book?

Westish: College is a time where fairly low-stakes things (friendships, new relationships, classes) can feel immensely heavy and intense.  I want to readers to feel, or be reminded of, those wild times of learning how to be an adult.  I wrote this book about a neurodivergent protagonist because that’s my lived experience, but I’ve been so happy to hear that readers really feel “seen” in Margo’s story.

When you encounter writer’s block, what do you do to break yourself out of it?

Westish: I have found I work best when I don’t try to break out of, or push through, writer’s block.  Standard writing advice says that you should write every day, even if it’s crap.  But I refuse to write gibberish that needs a truck load of editing – it simply doesn’t interest me.  It works much better for me to write when I’m ready and in the mood.  I need to be well rested, at a coffee shop, Americano in hand, headphones on, early morning.  Then, writing is easy, smooth, and requires very little editing.  When I’m in this zone, all I have to do is type, and the story and characters flow subconsciously from my brain to the keyboard.  On the other hand, when I go through lonnngggg periods of time where I don’t feel motivated to write my second novel, I’ll shift formats.  I’ll write an article, whip up a quick blog post, or I’ll voice type about the arc for my horror novel that I’ll probably never write!  I’ve also gotten really into contests lately, because it encourages me to write things I wouldn’t naturally, like poetry or very short stories.  I find this mental shift to be a bit of a palate cleanser while also keeping my creative writing skills fresh.

What’s the weirdest or most unexpected place you’ve gotten a story idea from?

Westish: I have this horror novel kicking around in my head about a sentient illness that forms in a woman’s body.  It came from a scientific article about cancerous growths.  I’ve been mulling on it for years already, and I think it could be such a stunning piece of body horror.  The only problem is, I hate horror!  I’m such a baby when it comes to horror – body horror especially - so the idea of writing this book creeps me out!  I’ve tried to find a co-writer, where I could write the arc/storyline, edit, and assist, but not write the whole thing, but I haven’t found that magical person yet.

What is your favorite genre, book, and/or author?

Westish: I love books that are cross genre, like literary fiction x romantic x travel or coming of age x disability x family dynamics.  I had never read a true genre romance until this year, and only so that I could understand the dynamics of a “romance novel.”  My second novel could potentially be a romance novel, but I need to understand the format better, because romance readers have very specific elements they expect in a book.  On TikTok, people talk about being “mood readers” (reading whatever they’re into at the moment).  I’m more of a “chaos reader,” as I get most of my books from garage sales, Little Free Libraries, book exchanges, hand me downs, or what’s instantly available as an audiobook on Libby.  So while I’m happy to read just about anything, the books that resonate with me the most are literary fiction adjacent that tackle multiple themes.

What are you working on next?

Westish: I’m currently working on several projects, with the majority of my time writing my second novel.  It’s starting out as a rom-com set against the backdrop of leaving a cult (I can’t get away from cross-genre writing!), but I know there will be some twists as I move further into the story.  I’m also writing grant proposals to write a non-fiction book about how individuals can make a difference in local climate change policy.  I’ve been working on that one off and on for 20+ years, but only recently really felt the pull to write it.  This one would probably take a whole year of full time writing, which I don’t have available to me, so I’m applying to grants that could help give me time for that project.  I’m also writing a non-fiction book about social media marketing (I’m a business consultant in my day job), which is probably the closest to publication.  Lastly, I have that body horror story, which I come back to periodically.  This is all on top of writing articles on Medium under my real name, as well as writing essays that I’ve just begun to submit to literary magazines.  It probably sounds like I’m writing all the time, but it’s kind of feast or famine – usually less than an hour of writing each week, but sometimes multi-day, six hour writing blocks, when I’m feeling especially creative.

Learn More About the Author and Meet Me at the Ruins here:

IG, TT, Bluesky, Facebook: @lunawestish

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