Jessica Francis Kane, "Family Weekend"

It’s December 22. Jessica Francis Kane, author of Rules for Visiting, prefers the third person, all things considered.

How would you describe your story?

JESSICA FRANCIS KANE: “Family Weekend” is the story of a woman having a difficult few days sandwiched between her newly adult daughter and her aging father. Nostalgia, love, and misunderstanding abound.

When did you write it, and how did the writing process compare to your other work?

JFK: Of all my stories, there are two that are more autobiographical than the others: “How to Become a Publicist” in my first collection, Bending Heaven, and this one. When I had the idea for “Family Weekend,” I knew right away it could be a kind of companion story to “Publicist.” In the first, the narrator is leaving home and settling in New York City after college for work. In the second, the narrator is going back home for a Parents’ Weekend visit with her daughter, who is in college. I say the stories are autobiographical, but it would be more accurate to say that I hold a funhouse mirror up to my life, look at the shapes it makes, and try to do something with them.

What kind of research went into this story?

JFK: I mined memories and spent a weekend at home taking notes. When I started writing and realized the story wanted to be in second person, I did a bit of reading to see how other writers have thought about and handled that decision.

What, to you, makes the short story a special form? What can it do that other kinds of writing can’t?

JFK: I love short stories and thought for years I wouldn’t be able to write anything else. It took me a long time to figure out how to tell a story over the length of a novel. I think stories offer a gut punch, while novels are a lingering fever.

Where should people go to learn more about you and your work?

JFK: I have a website, but it needs updating: www.jessicafranciskane.com.

What's the best gift you've ever been given?

JFK: A recent very good gift is an old Mexican silver necklace that bears on the novel I’m currently writing. My husband gave it to me for inspiration and I think it’s working.

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