“Unveiling Grief: Eiren Caffall Reveals the Hidden Wisdom in ‘The Mourner’s Bestiary'”
AE: Yeah.
EC: And, then I got lucky, you know—I broke my leg. I had sold the book. Then I broke my leg and was bedridden. I went to my editor, Gina Frangello, and said, “I know I sold you this book and you love it. But would you mind if I tried another pass at it?” She said yes, and that permission—the freedom I felt, having sold it, having an editor that I trusted, having time on my hands—helped me take all of this material and think about an ideal reader. Not an agent, editor, publishing house, but a reader. I was editing the novel at the same time, which was really helpful because I could borrow things I was learning in that book as a writer about how to write a propulsive story.
