Why did you choose the backdrop of the 1980s Space Shuttle program for this novel?  

“I loved the idea of a woman on the ground having a conversation with another woman up in space. I kept imagining the intimacy of those voices, despite how physically far away they would have to be. So, I started researching how something like that would come to pass. And what I felt the most drawn to was the early ’80s, right as women were being let into the astronaut corps. Who were those women? What was it like to be among the first handful of women in space? From there, I threw myself into learning everything I could about the Space Shuttle program.”   

Your characters feel incredibly real and relatable. How do you develop such authentic voices and personalities?   

“I have to admit that I think about these characters to such an insane degree in the first few months … that they start to feel so fully formed in my head and I no longer have to really think about them at all. They are just there, talking to me. And what’s fun is that they quiet down when the book is done but they are never really gone. I can tell you right now Joan’s opinion on something, what Evelyn thinks, what Daisy would say. They may hang out in the background now, but they’re always there.”   

What message or feeling do you hope readers will take away from Atmosphere?   

“This book made me fall in love with the wonders of the universe a bit. And, at least for me, I couldn’t marvel at how our world works without feeling deeply connected to it. So, I’m hoping I can encourage other people to take a moment and think about our connections to the Earth and to one another.”   

How do you decide which story idea to pursue next?   

“I will just be going through my day, taking things in, and then I will come across an idea or a type of person or a moment in history and I will think, ‘That’s interesting.’ And if I’m still thinking about that thing a week later, it’s a pretty good sign that there is enough there to mine for a story.”