BCC Shines a Light On: AJ Maiorana
BCC Shines a Light On:
AJ Maiorana
Name of the piece published by BCC:
When/where was it originally published:
Meeting People was originally published in The Bear Creek Gazette
What is the background of the piece? What led you to write it? What’s your process?
The piece was originally just the first paragraph, something vaguely about the end of the world and an anecdote about my old grade school librarian. It sat in my drafts for a while while I was kind of doing that, starting small flash fiction ideas and letting them sit. It felt pretty bare so I added a little more and then kinda wanted this series of vignettes that happened in this semi apocalyptic world. The section about the priest was the second thing I wrote because I did want to attempt a bit of religious dread, but I realized I don’t have that much to say about my catholic school background haha. Each section got so many rewrites because I wanted them all to be the same length, 100 words. That was a fun self-imposed restriction.
How did you feel when it was first published and how have your thoughts or feelings on the piece changed from then to now?
I was really excited because it was the most serious thing I’d written to that point. It felt like the thing I put the most work into and the best execution of flash fiction. There are a few lines I’d change about it, maybe not restrict myself to the 100 words each, but I still think it’s my favorite thing that’s been published.
Is there a specific message you’d like readers to take away from reading this piece?
Readers can take whatever they want from this, especially since I didn’t really have anything super important to say while writing most of it. We might all be the guy in the grocery store worrying about breaking little rules while the world is way beyond those.
I think when I got to the end I was in a period of talking myself through this thing where we all want solid, understandable answers to things, to people. And at that point I was convincing myself to get out of that frustrating mindset of needing the answers to be happy.
Where can readers find more of your work? (Website/social media, etc)
All of my work is linked in my linktree, https://linktr.ee/Aj_Maiorana except my piece in Gutslut Press’ BONEMILK collection, which you should buy to read all the amazing writers included as well.
