Featured Author: Lisa Marie Lopez

We had the opportunity to interview author Lisa Marie Lopez about her approach to writing and newly published short story The Flowers that Changed Him.

What inspired you to write The Flowers that Changed Him?

In January 2020, my husband’s co-worker was killed while riding home on her bike. A few days later, my husband mentioned placing flowers in the spot where the tragedy had occurred. I didn’t know the woman, but was touched with the idea. The flowers, along with the reminder of how sudden one’s life can be taken, inspired me to write The Flowers That Changed Him.

Can you describe your creative process?

Once the first draft is finished, which I type on my laptop, the real fun begins: a series of revisions and edits. I absolutely love the revision process. I print out the draft and carefully read it over. If there’s a sentence or paragraph I don’t like or I think could be written better, I rewrite it on paper. Often I add things and cut things out. Then it’s back to the computer, to fix the changes, reprint and reread. And so begins more revisions… another five or six. I’ve sometimes had up to twelve revisions.

What does your work space look like?

My writing space is at my home in Northern California. I sit at the breakfast bar every morning with coffee and write. That could mean anything from scribbling ideas in my spiral notebook to typing final edits on a story. I always have plenty of sharpened pencils, coffee, and paper on hand. A little chocolate doesn’t hurt as well.

How did you become a writer?

I “made” my first book when I was five years old… four pieces of construction paper with drawings, stapled together. So my love for creating stories has always been in me. Throughout my childhood and teen years I was always writing little stories for fun. In 2012, I took a writing course with Long Ridge Writers Group. Best thing ever. I studied grammar, sentence structure, focused on description, and was required to read several short stories. I was also required to write a short story every few weeks, which of course I absolutely loved. Long Ridge teamed me up with author Lou Fisher as my mentor. He taught me many great things, things I still use and think about while writing today. During the course I fell in love with the short story: reading and writing them. Funny, I thought I had wanted to be a novelist. Since completing the course in 2013, I’ve had many short stories published in anthologies and literary journals. I believe hard work, determination, resilience, and my love for writing has brought me to where I am today.