I enjoyed the freedom of writing a novel, while remaining true to the spirit of the activism that may have, at least temporarily, significantly slowed the spread of fracking in Michigan.

Maryann Lesert – 18 April 2024

The Back Flap

Once you’ve experienced the devastation of fracking, nothing but stopping it makes sense. After a year of well site visits and protests, four college student activists become determined to protect the people and the places they love.

In the river-crossed northwoods of Michigan, Kate, Brett, Sonya, and Mark, mentored by their former professor Rebecca, keep watch as North American Energy (NorA) connects a corridor of frack well sites deep in the state forests. When NorA expands in unexpected directions and their awful, bigger plan becomes clear, the action begins.

As grassroots activists gather and prepare to stop NorA’s dangerous superfrac, stresses other than the fracturing of the bedrock appear. Sonya is arrested, Rebecca reveals her hidden past, and the one person who knows both women’s stories arrives in camp. Love and solidarity want to win, even if most showdowns with Big Oil don’t end well for those who take a stand.

About the book

What is the book about?

Land Marks is a story of resistance. It’s part love story (love and respect for the natural world) and part warrior story (people coming together to protect the places they love). The characters in the novel would tell you: “Once you’ve experienced the devastation of fracking, nothing but stopping it makes sense.”

When did you start writing the book?

In the 2010s, fracking was quietly spreading throughout Michigan’s state forests, and I set out to learn as much as I could – about drilling and fracking, about the science behind the chemicals and risks such as earthquakes, about the water use and abuse – but what emerged as the story I needed to tell came from the people I met around the state. People who were living with fracking and eager to share their stories.

How long did it take you to write it?

During my first few years of “boots-on-well-sites” research, I wrote articles for EcoWatch and In These Times. But eventually, the sensory story of fracking called to me, the story of how fracking affects both humans and the more-than-human world, and that was a very descriptive, internalized story. I’m a college professor, so summers are my time to write. I worked on Land Marks over a period of seven years, revising and taking breaks, while working on other projects.

Where did you get the idea from?

I wanted to honor the solidarity I witnessed as the people of Michigan came together to fight fracking on public and tribal lands. Doctors, lawyers, Indigenous community members, artists, musicians, water well drillers, students, teachers, farmers—people from all sorts of diverse backgrounds and lived experiences came together around a common cause: to protect water, land, and air.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

When I first started the novel, I was transferring a lot of lived experience into story, which is more difficult than it sounds. I had to figure out where and when I could create engaging scenes, which means a lot of moments that were critical in real life didn’t transfer well in the novel. I had to make peace with the idea that everything I wrote didn’t have to be in “service” to the cause. I could have fun creating characters that experienced both heart-breaking and satisfyingly defiant moments.

What came easily?

I remember, distinctly, when the writing became fun: when I decided to devote half of the novel to direct action. During my initial years of visiting frack well sites, I often wished I could connect all the people I met. “Imagine what we could do if we all came together,” was a constant thought. So, I loved writing the direct action – creating the energy and the joy of an action camp and the tree sit and the lock down that occurs in the novel.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

The novel is based on the hard work of individuals and groups I met and worked with, though the characters and their actions are fictitious. I enjoyed the freedom of writing a novel, while remaining true to the spirit of the activism that may have, at least temporarily, significantly slowed the spread of fracking in Michigan.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

There are several women of science and nature that have impacted my writing, especially my love for research and creating a strong sense of place. I’ll name a few: Rachel Carson, Mary Oliver, Sandra Steingraber, Kathleen Dean Moore, Linda Hogan, Ursula K. Le Guin, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Camille Dungy.

Do you have a target reader?

Anyone who feels a strong connection to nature (to place) as well as readers who want to make that connection, are probably my ideal readers.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I usually begin a writing day with journaling. Whenever I can be, I am outside and writing by daylight. This is when I follow whatever characters or images or scenes come to mind until I know where it fits in my current writing project. When I feel compelled to work on a particular scene or chapter, I move to the computer and work for several hours.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

I don’t outline in the traditional sense. Maybe because I started out as a playwright, I tend to follow character’s experiences and their thoughts. I listen to and develop important scenes or passages of interiority until they become the core events of a chapter. Outlining, for me, comes much later. Once I am actively assembling a novel, I may create a chapter title and write a few snippets or sentences to describe a chapter I will come back to later.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

I usually write through to the end, in my first full draft. Sometimes I will write a scene or chapter in a few different ways and leave the decision-making for later. Sometimes, I’ll insert new material into a chapter I’m still thinking about. Usually, I leave the cutting and the “arting up” for later, after I get the entire story out on the page.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

I don’t listen to music while I write, but I often listen to classical or subtle instrumental music when I am reading student work. Music without lyrics helps me forget about time, when I’m reading and grading for the long haul.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

Yes. With both of my novels (my first, Base Ten was published by the Feminist Press), I submitted to agents. After a year or so of receiving sometimes wonderful rejections, I started to submit directly to presses.

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

Land Marks was offered a publication contract by a small, east coast press in 2021. With small presses suffering during the pandemic, the press made the decision to cancel all fiction in 2022, weeks before my ARC would have been prepared. I decided to submit to She Writes Press several months later, and once my editor knew the situation, she helped set a reasonable publication date for Land Marks.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

The cover, which I love, was professionally designed by a very experienced and talented designer. She Writes is quite serious and committed to cover design.

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

I hired Booksparks and have two very capable, encouraging publicists working with me. We’ve worked closely together to “divvy up” tasks and certain aspects of marketing the novel. I am also running pre-order campaigns that benefit local environmental groups, so I’ve had great support from these groups, too.

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

Begin with the basics, of course: research presses before you submit; read work from some of their authors; check out their cover art (covers are so important, in terms of capturing readers’ attention). Before you sign a contract, meet with the editor/publisher to get a feel for how they work with authors.

About You

Where did you grow up?

I was born and raised in west Michigan.

Where do you live now?

I’ve remained in west Michigan, though I’ve moved northward. I feel at home where water and land meet, in the forested dune coasts and river-crossed north woods.

What would you like readers to know about you?

Creativity, in general, is something that brings me great joy. I respect and admire art’s role in bringing about change – in changing culture, which is, essentially, the story we tell ourselves about how we live.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a new novel that is about grief – the grief inherent in a damaged landscape and in the souls of its inhabitants. It’s also about a very special friendship between two mothers facing heart-wrenching challenges.

End of Interview:

Get your copy of Land Marks from Amazon US or Amazon UK.