Tough Girl: It's Not A Name, It's A Warning

So happy to have Libby Heily, author of Tough Girl, as a guest today for some Q & A. Libby was one of my very earliest blogging buddies, and I remember when this project of hers was in its infancy. Two years later she is finally ready to share Tough Girl with the world. First the blurb:

Danger lurks everywhere in eleven year old Reggie's world—from the bully next door to the unwanted attentions of a creep at school. Raised by her mentally ill mother, Reggie is left to fend for herself in a rough neighborhood. She escapes in daydreams, battling aliens with her alter ego, Tough Girl. When Reggie's mother disappears, her fantasy life spirals out of control and starts to invade reality. She is hunted by a creature of her own design, and even Tough Girl is not strong enough to stop him. Will Reggie survive long enough for her mother to return, or will her dream world take over? Contains adult themes and adult language.


I've read the book, and now I want to know how eleven year old Reggie became the main character of your adult novel. 

I had a rough idea of the plot before I ever knew who the main character was going to be. The basic idea was a girl slipping into a dream world.  Reggie came slowly over time.  Reggie in the first draft is not Reggie in the final version of Tough Girl.  I grew to know her better over the two years I worked on the story.  Every time I put her in a dangerous situation, she managed to remain calm and move forward.  In all honesty, even though she is fictional, I ended up really admiring Reggie and wishing I was more like her. 

Love it when that happens with a character. I feel the same way about my warrior woman. So, is Reggie mentally ill? Or just incredibly alone and desperate, coping the best way she can?

Reggie has a lot of issues, but I wouldn't say she's mentally ill.  She's definitely afraid of becoming ill like her mother, and she may very well one day.  During the story, she's dangerously underfed, suffers from insomnia and is under immense stress.  I think those three things combined take a toll on her that she cannot cope with mentally.

Did you always know Reggie's fantasy world and reality would collide, or was that something that grew organically as you wrote?

I always knew the two worlds would interact, but I didn't know how exactly.  The issues Reggie is wrestling with are terrifying and complex and she more or less has a break down throughout the novel, so it was a challenge to figure out how much of her fantasies should bleed through into reality and in what ways.  The dynamic between the two worlds grew and morphed with every draft, starting first with the character of Tough Girl, and growing organically from there.

Did you have a rich fantasy life as a kid? Or did you ever use fantasy to "check out" of reality?

Reggie is definitely not based on me, but her habit of daydreaming is something I stole from my own life.  I had a very rich fantasy life, often times casting myself in other realities.  I'm the youngest of six kids and grew up in a three-bedroom starter house.  My mind was the only peaceful place I could find and I spent as much time there as I could. 

Fun fact, I sometimes act out my daydreams as I'm having them.  I don't do big motions like sword fights or anything, just facial expressions and I move my mouth.  Apparently I've done it since I was a kid.  I had no idea I did it though until high school math class when a girl screamed out, "I think she's having a seizure!".  She meant me.  I was daydreaming. 

I think they call that writer face. Kind of like guitar face, only with more intensity. :P

I know you feel you took some big risks with this novel (which totally paid off). What do you see as the downside of a writer not willing to take a risk with a story?

Taking risks is dangerous territory.  One of my writing heroes is Eugene O'Neill because he took many risks.  He wrote "slice of life" reality plays that are just painful (for me) to read, absurdist and expressionist plays that are amazing and complex, and epic dramas that pull you in immediately and will not let you go.  Some of his plays I love, some I feel are failures.  I respect the failures more than the victories because it takes guts to try something different.  I always hope to be willing to take a risk.

I think the downside of playing it safe, is that you can limit yourself as a writer and, worse yet, limit your story.  Each story has its own language, its own style.  You have to be true to the piece.  I don't like risk for risks sake, but stories need to be told in an organic fashion and if that means going out of bounds, then go out of bounds.  

  

Amen, sister. 

You're also a playwright, and perhaps most people who follow your blog are familiar with your short stories and flash fiction, but what made you finally want to write a novel?

My first day of film school, we had to go around the room and say what our career goals were.  I was in my mid-twenties.  I stood up in front of my class and said, "I hope to one day write novels.  I think it will take 15 years of work until I'm ready to do so.  Until then, I hope to make films."  That was eight years ago.  I'm seven years ahead of schedule. 

I've always wanted to write a novel.  Even in elementary school.  It just took me a long to time to figure out fiction and to work up the nerve.

Parts of Tough Girl reminded me of Neil Gaiman's style of writing, particularly the mixing of genres so that things move from a gritty reality to a gritty fantasy world. Is he a big influence? Who else influences your writing?

I loved Neil Gaiman's American Gods and many of his short stories.  I like his other books, too, but those are the ones that stuck with me.  Definitely an influence.

My other big influences, in no particular order, are: Virginia Woolf, Eugene O'Neill, August Strindberg, Harold Pinter, Edward Albee, Caryl Churchill, Muriel Spark, Tracy Letts, Jasper Fforde, Ian McEwan, Martin McDonagh (The Pillowman), Kurt Vonnegut, Charlie Kaufman, Brock Clarke, Hubert Selby Jr., Philip K Dick, William S Burroughs - films - Darren Aranofsky, Lars Von Trier, David Lynch, Wes Anderson, Pedro Almodovar, and many many others. 

I tend to like people with a unique perspective that are able to manipulate their chosen medium to make an impact on the audience.  These authors and directors really make their stories a visceral experience.

Okay, I'm just gonna say it. Even though this story might not be for everyone (and what book is), Tough Girl is probably one of the best self-published novels I've read, so why did you decide to bypass the traditional publication route? And what do you feel are the benefits of self-publishing in today's market?

I self-published for many reasons.  The immature reason was immediacy.  I've seen writers spend years trying to find an agent and then, when an agent is secured, even more years of waiting while the agent tries to find a publisher.  My own plays have been languishing in slushpiles for years.  I could not pass up the opportunity to get Tough Girl into the world ASAP.

The more mature reason is that I did not want to compromise on the story.  I was given advice along the way to make Reggie older to appeal to more readers, to make the connections between the dream world and reality more obvious for a broader reading base.  I was worried that going the traditional route would mean changes to the story that I felt would be detrimental. 

Also, my plans in film school were to make independent films.  I do like working under the radar.

Yeah, I sort of pegged you as an independent kind of gal. Thanks, Libby, for taking the time to answer my questions, and best of luck with your story, even if you are a Ravens fan. 

Tough Girl is available for purchase from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. You can find Libby at Goodreads, Twitter: @LibbyHeily, and her blog. 



Now go forth and read! 

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