“Los Angeles” was published in Granta in 2015, so it’s one of the older stories in the collection. That was my attempt at writing straight up realism. In the other one, it’s more of a realist take on domestic abuse. It has a very fantastical premise involving this woman who lives in this very nice and beautiful home with her 100 ex-boyfriends, and her new husband bankrolls the whole endeavor. One is more of a fantastical take on that subject. Ling Ma: Both stories, “Los Angeles” and “Oranges” deal with domestic abuse. Maris Kreizman: Tell me about writing two different incarnations of. On using fantasy to address domestic abuse: So I wouldn’t necessarily say that this is the most joyful or happiest of collections, but it has both dreamlike and nightmarish elements. I have found that when you attempt to inhabit some fantasy it usually turns nightmarish. I do feel like there’s an element of wish fulfillment throughout everything I write. That is what I try to inhabit first before I get deeper into the story.

My point of entry into writing a story is usually some sort of fantasy or wish fulfillment element. On the element of wish fulfillment in everything she writes:

Subscribe and download the episode, wherever you get your podcasts. This week on The Maris Review, Ling Ma joins Maris Kreizman to discuss her new story collection, Bliss Montage, out now from Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Bliss montage stories by ling ma