The 40 But 10 Interview Series: Ursula Villarreal-Moura

 

I had retired the literary Would You Rather interview series, but didn't want to stop interviews on the site all together. Instead, I've pulled together 40ish questions - some bookish, some silly - and have asked authors to limit themselves to answering only 10 of them. That way, it keeps the interviews fresh and connectable for all of us!

 

 

Today, we are joined by Ursula Villarreal-Moura. Ursula is the author of the story collection Math for the Self-Crippling (2022) and the forthcoming novel Like Happiness (2024). Her stories, essays, and reviews have appeared in Tin House, Electric Literature, Catapult, Story, and Prairie Schooner, among others. Her work has been nominated for Best Small Fictions, the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and one of her stories was listed as distinguished in Best American Short Stories 2015. 

 

 

What do you do when you’re not writing?

I read a lot and I run. Luckily, I live across the street from a library, so I am around books a lot. Long distance running is my favorite form of movement. Plus, it gives me the opportunity to be in nature.

 

What’s something that’s true about you but no one believes?

I read a lot of scientific journal articles and science books. PubMed is incredible. No one expects me to know anything about science, much anything recent. Obviously, I don’t know everything, but I know more that people ever expect. I get questioned a lot, doubted. When it turns out that I’m correct, I quietly dust my shoulders off.

 

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

I would want to never get sick again or infect anyone else. That’s the answer of a chronically ill person living in a never-ending pandemic.

 

What’s the best money you’ve ever spent as a writer?

A home printer has changed my writing. Revising my work by hand is a must. The work is mine, but I also get to look at it more objectively when it’s on paper.

 

Describe your book in three words.

Magical. Cerebral. Witty.

 

What is your favorite book from childhood?

Say Goodnight, Gracie by Julie Reece Deaver is my favorite childhood book. I adore it and bought a copy again as an adult. It holds up! I reread it occasionally in one sitting, which is the best way to devour a literary favorite.

 

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading Cooked by Michael Pollan, a food science book. Sometimes I read multiple books at once. My other current read is Punks, the poetry collection by John Keene.

 

What genres won’t you read?

I’ll read any genre, but I haven’t read plays recently. I can go years without reading a play.

 

Do you read the reviews of your books or do you stay far far away from them, and why?

I definitely read them. Sometimes it’s useful to know how others process your work. I have a feeling I might stop reading reviews when my second book drops in 2024. I’m not sure I want to know what others think of it. We’ll see how much self-control I exercise then.

 

Are you a book hoarder or a book unhauler?

Both. I buy a lot of books from independent bookstores as well as used books online. Conversely, I donate often to my local free library, those birdhouse looking-libraries that have popped up everywhere. I also sell many of my books. You gotta keep space open on the bookshelves.

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Math for the Self-Crippling is an interlinked flash fiction collection beginning in 1990s San Antonio through to the present day. Told in first, second, and third person, the stories explore Chicana imagination, the tie between religiosity and mysticism, the loss of belongings and family, marital strife, mental health, and dream travel. Equal parts dark and humorous, Math for the Self-Crippling shows how it is to be burglarized and bullied yet still rise up to own the day.

Buy a copy here: 

https://bookshop.org/p/books/math-for-the-self-crippling-ursula-villarreal-moura/18743690?ean=9781938900426