We chat with author Heather Marshall about Liberty Street, which is a riveting novel about one journalist’s harrowing journey into an infamous real-life 1960s women’s prison—and the detective who uncovers her story decades later.
Hi, Heather! Welcome back! How have you been since we spoke last year for the release of The Secret History of Audrey James?
I’ve been great! I was deep the throes of the research and development process for Liberty Street when we last spoke, and I couldn’t say much, so I’m excited to spill the tea a bit more here!
Your latest novel, Liberty Street, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Oooh good question. I would go with dark, compelling, feminist, emotional, and (ultimately) hopeful.
What can readers expect?
Liberty Street is another dual timeline, dual-POV story set jointly in 1961 and 1996. In 1961 Toronto, readers will meet Emily, an eager and very ‘green’ aspiring journalist bucking the conventions of the day. She goes undercover at a women’s prison to try to break the story of the horrible conditions the inmates are facing, but discovers that getting into the prison is the easy part: the real challenge is getting back out. In a small town in 1996, readers will meet Rachel, a detective with a haunted past trying to identify a body in an unmarked grave. The two stories will of course eventually intersect, but you’ll have to read it to find out how!
Where did the inspiration for Liberty Street come from?
It actually came from a few places, and the process began several years ago. Back in the summer of 2021, I stumbled down an internet rabbit hole and came across a reference to a jail in Toronto called the Andrew Mercer Reformatory, which shut down in the late 1960s after the inhumane conditions of the place were brought to light in the media, and that sparked an idea. About a decade ago, I learned about an American journalist named Nellie Bly, who went undercover at the psychiatric institution on Blackwell’s Island in New York to expose the atrocities within, and I’d been looking for a way to fictionalize that story for years. When the idea for Liberty Street hit, I knew I’d found a place to plug it in. I’ve also long been fascinated by rural cemeteries. I live semi-rural, so I see a lot of them, and one in particular made me curious. I noticed that there was a row of houses across the street from this cemetery, and it got me wondering what a person might see, living across the street from a graveyard. And that’s how my prologue was born, and the origin of my character Rachel’s story. My prologues often come to me first in the writing process, and a lot of the story flows from them.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Even though I write very emotionally-driven historical fiction, some of my favourite scenes to write in all my books are the action sequences. I see them very cinematically in my mind, so they flow out really easily, and they’re just so much fun. I won’t spoil anything in Liberty Street, but there were two action scenes in particular that I loved writing.
Can you share some insight into your research process for Liberty Street?
It was a weird and wonderful research process that involved a lot of diving into old archives, which I loved. I did face some challenges though, because so many of the women and girls who were incarcerated at the Mercer prison were minors, so their identities were protected by both youth court and privacy legislation. But with the help of some wonderful librarians, I was able to access a lot of the records, many heavily redacted, which still helped populate my understanding of why these women were incarcerated, and a bit of what their daily lives would have looked like. I also got to handle pre-construction blueprints of the prison, which gave me a strong sense of the layout. That was one of the coolest bits of research. Even the archivists were excited to get them out!
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
Writer’s block doesn’t usually hit me too badly, but when it did, I would go pull weeds, clean, or take my dog for a long walk and talk to myself along the way. Usually by the time I came home, I’d sorted out the plot snag or whatever the problem was. I also reached a juncture where I could have chosen two different directions for the story. My instincts were leaning one way, but that’s when I called my highly skilled and delightful editor to ask her what she thought. I value her input, but I also didn’t want to have to go back and do a lot of re-writes if she disagreed with the direction I’d taken. A collaborative editor is a wonderful thing!
What draws you to historical fiction?
I think to some extent, being a lover of history is just in my blood, so when I first started to read adult novels in my teens, I was drawn to historical fiction, particularly authors like Kate Morton and Philippa Gregory—two pillars of the genre—so I was certainly influenced by them when I started writing novels. I love that I get to do so much research in the process, and I think it’s so important politically right now, that we understand where we came from, how we got where we are at this moment in time and culture, so that we can—hopefully—avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. It’s a real privilege for me to get to both entertain and educate readers about history through my stories.
What’s next for you?
Well, I started researching my current work in progress about two years ago, so I’m deep in the throes of my fourth book now. I’ll share more about that when I can, but I think in many ways it might be my darkest novel yet (which is saying something, given that I’m coming off a novel about abuses at a prison!). I’ve got about three more ideas lined up after that one, so I need to nail one down and decide what’s next. My problem is never a lack of ideas, it’s having too many of them!
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up? Any you’ve read so far this year that you’ve enjoyed?
I’ve actually had a really great reading year so far. Recently I’ve loved The Correspondent (didn’t we all?), The Chambermaid’s Key by Genevieve Graham, and Lady X by Molly Fader, which comes out in July. I haven’t devoured a book like that in years. It was one of those rare reads where I was actually angry when I had to put the book down to participate in my life! I was doing the laundry and unloading the dishwasher with one hand while reading, and wishing I had it on audio to keep listening while driving. That’s definitely a book readers will want to pick up. It’s the outlet for feminist rage we all need right now; so satisfying! Next up on my TBR are The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer, and The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett.
