UnCensored Ink Interview – Shaelynn Long

Hey everyone,

Ian Tan here, lead editor and project coordinator of UnCensored Ink: a banned book anthology, set to release this October 29. Here is an interview series called The UnCensored Pages to introduce you all to the incredible writers, as well as the local bookstores and libraries that gave them safe creative spaces. Hopefully you can put these incredible places on your to-visit list, and feel inspired to support your own local bookstore, library and indie authors.

Today, I am with Shaelynn Long from Michigan. As well as being a current small-town English instructor, she has previously published Fury’s Fate, Ache, Blur, Work In Progress, and Dirt Road Kid, as well as appearing in a previous Wild Ink anthology: The Carnation Collection. Shaelynn can usually be found with her nose in a book and covered in Corgi fur.

1. You’ve written a fine piece for UnCensored Ink: A Banned Book Inspired Anthology. Can you give us a synopsis? How did the idea for this piece come about?

For UnCensored Ink, I was driven to write a poem–something that captured my frustration with book bans. Frankly, book banning enrages me. The poem really focuses on my sense of what’s lost when we start determining which voices get heard and determining which perspectives have validity. For too long, literature has prioritized those who already have power, and it feels too coincidental that book banning is happening more frequently now that there are such loud calls for more diversity in literature. We still have such a long way to go, and the focus on banning stops that work, which is so beyond unfortunate that it’s hard for me to remain calm when talking about it. So I tried to take all of these really complex feelings and channel them into a poem that showcases my own sense of what could be lost if we let people ban books.

2. Now, we would love to know you more! What do you enjoy doing in your free time, what is your favorite book quote, and how did you get into reading and writing?

I spend most of my free time writing, which is probably not surprising. If I’m not writing, I’m probably reading! Writing has kind of turned into a bit of a side job, though, and I teach literature, which means I’m often reading books for my classes, so I’ll focus on some non-work-related hobbies! I taught myself to crochet last year, and I’m still loving it. I also sew, quilt, and cross-stitch. Something I do almost every day that I really love, though, is cooking. I bake, as well, which is so fun to do in northern Michigan because of the access to so many fresh fruits.

I’m going to be honest, I don’t really remember getting into reading and writing. It’s kind of always just been there? I know that I was frequently read to as a child, and I’m sure that has a lot to do with it–if not everything! I was always encouraged to read, and I was always given the freedom to choose books for myself. No one ever told me I was too young for a book or minimized my selections in any way. Something like that would have stuck with me, and I know I’m really lucky to have had the support of my parents and extended family. I had amazing librarians and teachers, as well, who saw me with my nose in a book and just kept encouraging that. I had a particular teacher in high school who would lend me books from her own personal library–ones she thought would interest me. Really, at every turn, I was encouraged to love reading–even when my mom caught me multiple times reading under the covers with a Fisher Price flashlight.

Choosing a single book quote is too difficult a task. I will, however, share one of my favorites:

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.” – Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey

3. Do you have a favorite local library or bookstore? Also can you remember bookstores and libraries from your childhood, if they are not the same as the ones now?

I live in a pretty small town in Michigan, currently, and we don’t have a local bookstore. There is one in a nearby city, though, called Mclean and Eakin, and it’s fantastic. I’m an instructor at the community college in the same city as that bookstore, and I still remember how giddy I was when one of my students sent me a photo of my debut novel in that store. Such a surreal feeling!

I grew up in yet another small town in Michigan, and I spent quite a bit of time during my childhood at the Coleman Area Library. That’s really where I fell in love with fantasy and science-fiction, and I’m pretty confident in saying that I wouldn’t be a writer without having had access to a library. There was no way my parents were going to be able to afford what was and has continued to be a very consuming habit with books, and being able to go to the library and find things that interested me was irreplaceable in terms of both my experiences and my memories.

4. Tell us more about this bookstore/library. What do you love most about it?

So, here’s the difficulty of talking about my time in the Coleman Library. It doesn’t exist anymore. At least, it doesn’t exist in the location that I remember most. It moved into a beautiful new building that I’ve been in and do enjoy, but my memories are all of a very old, really gorgeous brick building. (The building still exists!) The insides were pretty cramped space with metal shelves that seemed like they reached the ceiling. They probably didn’t, but I was short then and I’m only 5’2″ now, so bear with me! I remember walking in and having the wood floors creak underneath my feet. The checkout desk was just to the right of the entrance. I can still hear the sound of the date stamp being used to tell patrons when their books were due. The children’s area was upstairs, and you’d have to walk across the creaky wood floor and go through a big, heavy door. There was a narrow staircase with carpet. I think it was blue. And upstairs, through another door, was the children’s area. It’s funny how much I remember about that area, because I don’t recall choosing books from there. I remember the science-fiction and fantasy section that was just to the left of the checkout desk. A small square. It was dark and cozy.

The library was a safe space for me. I still remember the day I got my own library card. As you can imagine, it was a Big Deal. I just have so much love for libraries and librarians. Good spaces and good people.

5. What do you have to say on the importance of sustaining bookstores and libraries?

I have a strong stance on sustaining local bookstores and libraries. For one, local bookstores are small businesses that serve a very specific community, most of the time. It’s a place you can go and be a regular. And while that might not be a meaningful experience for everyone, going somewhere that feels like a place you’re not only welcomed into but made to feel like you belong in is absolutely paramount for many individuals. Supporting local bookstores means supporting community members, thus supporting the community. Local bookstores are also so much more likely to support other businesses, including local artists. That’s huge. They’re also so much more likely to respond to their consumers.

Libraries are the cornerstone of a community, plain and simple. They’re a safe place for people to go and spend time. They house tons of information, as well as ways to get to the information they don’t have. Libraries have tons of free services, too. With the rising cost of living, having access to those services can be life-changing. I said before that my parents could not have afforded to buy me all the books I read. Without access to a library, I simply wouldn’t have had access to books. Which means my world would have been very, very small and very, very limited. With access to a library, the entire world opened up for me. Beyond access to books, there’s access in a library to the internet, to meeting rooms, to activities, to social events, and to all kinds of other things. And librarians? Coolest people on earth.

Libraries are such a valuable resource. We need to support them!

6. Do you have any projects that your current and future readers can look forward to?

I do! I’ve recently written wild thing, which is a book of poetry that will be coming out from Wild Ink. I’m also working on a new romantasy, but there are no plans for publication yet. Subscribing to my newsletter is a surefire way, though, to make sure you know what’s happening in my world!

7. Lastly, what platforms can we find you?

TikTok: @shaelynnlong

Instagram: @shaelynnlong

Threads: @shaelynnlong

Twitter: @shaelynnlong

my website