In Conversation with Liza Wemakor

This month, I got to chat with author and academic Liza Wemakor about her recently released novella Loving Safoa, published by Neon Hemlock!

2. This is your debut novella! Congratulations again! What was the most enjoyable part of writing/editing this piece of work and why? What advice would you give someone looking to write their first novella? 

Thank you again! I would say the most enjoyable part of working on Loving Safoa, both in the initial drafting process I embarked on alone and the official editing process with dave ring, was translating abstract ideas I had about Cynthia and Safoa’s story into tangible moments. My initial inspiration (inspiration is not a forbidden word for me [insert rant about careerism and capitalism making inspiration a dirty word]) stems from sensations, images and feelings, which I then clarify like developing lengths of film through a web of external references, fleeting thoughts and soul-searching. It's such a relief to arrive at a point of contentment with a scene — ah, yes, that's how this should unfold. ah yes, this past scene is part of how we arrive at that future moment... As for advice: I would advise writers to take the form and length of the novella seriously. Shorter lengths are not a limitation, they are an opportunity! Don't try to crush a novel into a novella if you can help it, or stretch a short story that doesn't want to be stretched. Think carefully about what can be expressed in broad strokes, and what calls for smaller, detailed strokes. Novellas can hold both approaches. 

3. Your novella spans centuries, but most of it takes place in the 1990s. What was it about that decade that drew you to it? What is your favorite part about the 90s?

1990s New York City is one of the foundations of my creative sensibilities. My earliest memories happened there, and I'm drawn to the baggy fashions, the music, the grunge and grittiness. There was a lot of pain in that era, as usual, but it also felt wide open, you know? Pessimism and optimism were concurring, and in that tension, historical memories were awakening. When I think about the 90s, I think both about toddling around a ratty basement apartment, and playing with random kids at Coney Island — making new friends everyday.

4. Both of your main characters are wonderfully complex, strong, and determined. Safoa especially carries the weight of centuries of living with her. Who or what was the inspiration for Safoa?

My mom is straight by all accounts (and allegedly not a vampire), but a lot of the inspiration for Safoa did come from my mom. Witnessing her experiences as an immigrant in the U.S., which entailed a lot of precarity, but also some fun and community, informed how I wrote Safoa. I intentionally emphasized the fact that Safoa is an immigrant in the U.S. who has to navigate documentation (which is further complicated by her vampirism). Safoa differs from my mother on many counts, though: in her lesbianism, in her reclusiveness, in her hesitance to share herself with people. 

5. In your novella, Safoa is a vampire. What drew you to telling the story of a Ghanaian vampire instead of a different supernatural being? What other supernatural beings might you write about in the future and why?

Beyond writing within a tradition of black/feminist vampires that preceded me, I love that vampires place oral eroticism at the forefront. That lends itself so well to a sapphic story, for reasons we can all imagine. I could've potentially written a similar story about shapeshifters, robots, fairies or succubi (s/o to Tamara Jerée's The Fall That Saved Us), but none would hold the ideas and sensations I wanted to explore as completely as the vampire. It hits all of the marks: sexiness, immortality (and therefore memory), rituals (via blood and "turning"), potentially exploitative power dynamics... For future work, I have a running interest in hot-girl robots (see: my "Magic City" story in Prismatica Mag) that I want to keep exploring. I started a story about a robot cowgirl during the Clarion West workshop last summer that I want to pick up again. And I'd love to bring the logic of the siren-seductress to land-based settings — perhaps by using a magic system...

6. Fantasy stories come in many lengths, shapes, and forms. They can be short stories, novellas, novels, and series. How did you know that Safoa’s and Cynthia’s story had to be a novella?

As I thought through Loving Safoa and the form it required, I realized it had a very pointed "thesis" (where do romance and politics meet?), and I didn't want the story to lose its focus. Loving Safoa was too broad in its scope to be a short story, but it was also a bit too conceptual to meander for as long as a novel (in my opinion — though I would consider writing a novelette or novella prequel about Safoa's adventures one day, or the community Safoa and Cynthia eventually find themselves in).

7. Just for fun, between Safoa’s and Cynthia’s personalities, who do you closer align with?

Definitely Cynthia! We both went through that diaspora kid insecurity of worrying that we weren't Ghanaian enough [cringe], we're both English teachers (though in different settings), and we both have that Dog in us when it comes to pursuing people we have romantic interests in [blushes].

8. Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about your novella that I haven’t touched on?

I don't think so, though I definitely encourage people to check out the work of the authors who blurbed my book. They're all fantastic writers, and lovely people!

9. To close things off, what’s next for you in your writing endeavors and where can readers find you and your work if they’re hungry for more?

I'm going to work on a novel during the summer (while I have time off from teaching), try to polish and send out more short stories, and toy with finding an agent! All things related to my writing should be on my website: www.lizawemakor.com

And there you have it! You can purchase Loving Safoa directly from Neon Hemlock, Barnes & Noble, and Little District Books!

Liza Wemakor is a writer and a Ph.D. student in UC Riverside's English Department. She writes and studies speculative fiction and Black American literature. Her fiction is published and/or forthcoming in Strange Horizons, Anathema Magazine, Baffling Magazine, Prismatica Magazine, and elsewhere. She is a member of the 2023 Clarion West Writers' Workshop cohort.

Her debut academic articles are currently under peer review.

In a bit of publishing news, Neon Hemlock is launching their 2024 fundraising campaign on March 1st!!

this includes my debut novella The Dragonfly Gambit!!

And in some personal writing news. This past month I had two stories published!

“A Matter of Taste“ was published in Hexagon’s Issue 16

“For the Pollinators” was published in Seize the Press’s Issue 9

Both Stories will be free to read very soon, so keep your eyes peeled! Although, I highly encourage you to purchase the issues, subscribe, and otherwise support these markets!

Nebula nominations will be closing TOMORROW! If you enjoyed any short stories I’ve put out this past year, it would mean the world to me if you typed them down on your ballot. Some of the heavy hitters of 2023 have been:

Svitla—Embroidered Worlds: Ukrainian Fantastic Fiction

The Succubus and the Store Clerk—Baffling (Issue 13)

A Robot, a Physicist, and a Monk Walk into a Bar—Fusion Fragment (Issue 19)

phew….and that’s all! Stay warm friends. Stay safe!