Steve Sarner asked Dan Lopez:

I'm enjoy your book so far (just got it on my Kindle this week) Curious, what inspired all the stories to be nautically themed?

Dan Lopez Hi Steve, thanks for reading! It's a great question. The decision to set the stories in and around boats started naturally enough. At the time that I was writing this book, I was also working on a traditional sailing vessel in New York harbor—what those of us in the industry call a "tall ship." I was around boats all the time and absolutely fell in love with the terminology, history, lore, and personalities that harbor life tends to attract. As the collection developed further, I found myself returning to boats as a setting. At first, I was confused. Why was I retreading the same ground? Shouldn't I be stretching my creative muscles? Eventually, I came to realize that boats were an ideal setting in which to explore the tension between sticking it out in a relationship or cutting and running, which is what the book is about at its heart. Once I committed to the conceit, writing became a fun challenge as I set about trying to find ways to tie in the nautical elements in a way germane to the particular story. I struggled with some more than others and there were definitely moments when I wanted to abandon the idea altogether, but in the end, I'm glad I stuck it out. I think the result is a tight collection made stronger by a shared vernacular.

Thanks again for the question! I'd love to hear your thoughts once you're done with the book. Happy reading!

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