Chris Tusa: Author Interview by Angie Ledbetter

Meet Chris Tusa – poet, professor, and southern fiction writer – not necessarily in that order. Born and raised in New Orleans, the south’s most gothic of cities, is it any wonder Tusa’s work is filled with haunting images, crazy characters, and unforgettable twists and turns? A few of Tusa’s favorite quotes might be clues to his mindset and show his love of quirky characters: “I can’t see a man but you! Even with my eyes closed, I just see you! Why don’t you please get fat or ugly or something so I could stand it?” ~ Tennessee Williams, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and “Our Generation has had no Great war, no Depression. Our war is spiritual. Our depression is our lives.” ~ Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club.

Tusa takes time out of his busy schedule to talk with Rose & Thorn readers a bit here:

R&T: Not many writers delve into both fiction and poetry simultaneously. How do you manage it?

Tusa: For me, separating the two (fiction and poetry) has always been difficult. Many of the poems from my recent collection, Haunted Bones, were generated while I was working on my novel. For some reason, writing fiction always seems to initiate ideas for a poem. In fact, rarely do I complete a story without at some point considering the story as a poem. In a few cases, I have actually converted existing poems into stories and vice versa. As a result, many of my poems tend to sound like stories while much of my fiction tends to be overly lyrical.

R&T: Have your writing interests always been so varied?

Tusa: Yes. I’ve always enjoyed drama, poetry, and fiction. I try to read a novel every week, and I read drama and poetry here and there. I also read non-fiction occasionally, mostly when I’m looking for ideas for my next story or poem.

R&T: That’s interesting. Maybe your eclectic reading preferences reflect in your work. Being a college professor must seriously eat up your writing time. How do you find time to craft words while teaching?

Tusa: No matter where I am, I’m always obsessing over some image, idea, or phrase. I only teach on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I usually have lots of time to write. Ironically, though, most of my best ideas come to me when I’m busy (shopping, exercising, driving in my car), not when I’m sitting at home in front of the computer.

R&T: Lots of writers swear their best ideas come through when their brains are occupied by some mundane chore. How did you come up with the title for your book of poetry Haunted Bones? Our readers would probably like to hear about how creativity evolves from ideas to plots, titles, etc.

Tusa: Haunted Bones deals primarily with phobias and fears, particularly those obsessive fears that often take over our lives. The title comes from a poem in the collection entitled "Hypochondriac" which describes a potential illness haunting the narrator’s hollow bones.

R&T: And about Dirty Little Angels, your novel. How long did it take you to write it?

Tusa: I completed the first draft of Dirty Little Angels in about eight months, but I spent another year revising and polishing it.

R&T: What are you currently reading outside of class work?

Tusa: Fahrenheit 451, Paris Trout, Lullaby, and Wasp Factory.

R&T: Chris, how did you get started? Did you always want to be a writer? Can you give us some background?

Tusa: I always loved writing, but I never considered writing as a career until college. In 1992, I took a fiction class taught by Tim Gautreaux at SLU [Southeastern Louisiana University], and from that point on, I wanted to be a writer.

R&T: What do you think are the worst mistakes you made in writing your novel or poetry book?

Tusa: While working on Haunted Bones (my book of poetry), I made the mistake of writing individual poems rather than writing a book of poems. As a result, I had to rewrite much of the book so that the collection would read as a collection.

R&T: How do you come up with your material?

Tusa: Most of the characters in my stories are actual people I’ve known (or know), and most of my ideas for stories come from stories I’ve heard from family members and/or friends.

R&T: Thanks for doing this interview, and best of luck with all your writing projects. I can’t wait to read more.

Get a taste of Tusa’s work by following these links:
Poetry - http://christophertusa.com/hbsample.htm
Fiction - http://christophertusa.com/dla1.htm

Chris Tusa was born and raised in New Orleans. His work has appeared in literary magazines Passages North, Spoon River, New York Quarterly, The New Delta Review, Louisiana Literature, and many others. With the help of a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Tusa completed his first poetry chapbook, Inventing an End. His debut novel, Dirty Little Angels is currently agented and under consideration. Tusa holds a B.A. and M.A. in English, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing. Aside from teaching in the English Department at LSU (Louisiana State University), he acts as Managing Editor for Poetry Southeast.

More on Chris Tusa.


Angie Ledbetter is a freelance writer, author, and sometime poet. When not wrangling her three teens or teaching school, she works on various writing projects, including a fiction novel. She enjoys being part of The Rose & Thorn.