Knee Deep by Karol Ann Hoeffner; Author Interview

Named after a hurricane, Camille is the rebellious sixteen-year-old daughter of a New Orleans bar-owner who grows up in the shadow of Bourbon Street, raised on stories of hauntings, lusty encounters and voodoo magic. And even though her family loses their home in a hurricane, she counts herself among the lucky until she discovers that her eighteen-year-old neighbor whom she secretly loves goes missing in the storm.

In Camille's own words: "This is the story of what happened to me on Fat Tuesday, how I ended up on the steps of St. Mary’s, the hem of my pirate’s petticoat soaked in somebody’s else’s blood. Although I know the story to be true, I don’t totally believe it myself. Like all good tales born out of the bayou, mine involves the dead, the living and the one trapped in the brackish waters between heaven and hell. It is the story of true love and true disaster, and at the end of it, I’ll leave it up to you to decide which is the harder to survive."

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Hi Karol, thanks for chatting with us today. We'll get straight in it with our first question;

* What inspired you to write about this?

I fell in love with New Orleans on my first trip when I was sixteen, the same age as the protagonist in my novel, Camille. As a teenager, I walked down the same streets that she walked, breathing in the culture of the Quarter. That first trip was followed by many other experiences in the Crescent City, and she eventually became a part of my heartsong.

I began work on the novel fifteen years ago, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, which I witnessed from afar, safely cocooned in Los Angeles. I watched the continual news coverage for five days, unable to take my eyes off the TV screen as the tragic aftermath unfolded. When the levee broke, I ,too, broke down. My grief was so strong that my own family began to worry about me.

Although I was not there for Katrina, I visited shortly after. I drove into the Ninth Ward where I had celebrated Twelfth Night in my twenties. All that remained of the shotgun house where I had danced until dawn were cracked concrete steps in the side yard. I spent my days in cafes, talking to the survivors, listening to their stories.

I spent my nights writing in my hotel on Royal Street. I imagined my sixteen-year-old self in the city with the hurricane brewing and what it would be like to be on the verge of becoming an adult and to have your whole life upended by a natural disaster.

When I returned, I continued working on the novel, but ultimately, I put the manuscript away, because I did not feel equipped to tell the story of the hurricane. That right belonged to the many who had lived through it.

So, I waited until enough time had passed and enough books had been written so that I felt that Katrina could serve as the canvas on which I painted the story and not be the center of it.


* What kind of research did you have to do?

I did a ton of research. On my trip to New Orleans after Katrina, I conducted prearranged in-person interviews with folks who had lived through the storm. I also chatted with strangers in cafes and bars; so many welcomed the opportunity to share their experiences. There are two things all New Orleanians like to do: eat and talk. And I like to listen. I toured the city and found a cabbie who drove me into the Ninth Ward, which was heartbreakingly ravaged from the storm. When I returned home, I combed the internet, collecting individual recollections from social media postings.

I also read a dozen books in the years that intervened between the storm and my writing the novel. I created my own Camille story specific timeline to coincide with the actual event (i.e., when the levee broke, when the evacuation order went out, etc.)


* What came first, characters, setting or plot?

Very early on in the ideation process, I go to character. I used to go to great lengths to create character bios for each of the characters and I still require my students to do just that. But in my own writing, the characters evolve more organically.

In the case of Knee Deep, Camille just jumped on the page, full blown. I had not intended to write the book as a memoir originally, but her voice was so strong that she very shortly took over. When it came to point of view, I had no choice but to follow her lead.

I stress to my screenwriting grads the importance of place in story and how it relates to mood and tone. The environment in which you place your characters can change the course of the story itself. That was never more true than it was for Knee Deep. New Orleans operates as one of the main characters in the book.


* What are you reading at the moment?

I’m always reading several things at once, which perhaps explains while I’m just now finishing up The Goldfinch, long after it was such a sensation. But I’m also reading Acid for the Children by FLEA, White Fragility by Robin Diangelo, and American Sunrise by Joy Harjo. Also, I’ve recently returned to the classic anthology of short stories Points of View. I’ve always thought short stories perfect for lazy Sunday afternoons, of which I have far too few.


* Is there anything particular you hope readers will take away from this book?

COVID-19 has left people everywhere desperate for an escape and yearning for a glimmer of hope. In the novel, Camille experiences both true love and true disaster and asks the question which is harder to survive. But I hope that readers are left with an uplifting message of hope - that whether it’s a hurricane or a pandemic, love has the power to transcend disaster.

I hope that readers will cry at least one during the book, that good kind of cathartic cry and will be buoyed by the hopeful message that the deep feelings of loss can be replaced with hope.

Thanks very much Karol! Watch out for our review coming soon, and as I'm quite an easy crier I'm sure I'll cry at least once...

ABOUT KAROL HOEFFNER (BIO):
Karol Hoeffner is the Chair of Screenwriting at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. She has penned several novels including the upcoming book Knee Deep. One of the most anticipated titles of 2020, Knee Deep is a coming-of-age, Hurricane Katrina love story that blends romance, suspense, and Mardi Gras magic from the shadows of Bourbon Street. Hoeffner also has fourteen film credits including Mary Kate and Ashley's Winning London, MTV's All You've Got, several Danielle Steel adaptations, a television mini-series Harem, movies-of-the-week based on true stories – The Making of a Hollywood Madam and Miss America: Behind the Crown. Among her other credits are the original movies, Voices from Within and Burning Rage.

Knee Deep publishes on the 25th September, 2020.