We chat with author Kerri Maher about All You Have to Do Is Call, which is a dramatic and inspiring novel based on the true story of the Jane Collective and the brave women who fought for the right to choose.
Hi, Kerri! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! Thanks so much for having me. Let’s see…. I live outside of Boston, I write historical fiction, and I recently started teaching again in the Emerson MFA program in Popular Fiction, which I love. When I’m not writing and teaching, I’m usually walking my dog, swimming, or chauffeuring my active 13 year old daughter around. I also love to travel, fiddle around with watercolor paints, and arrange fresh flowers. Sometimes I like to cook.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I wrote my first unfinished novel in 5th grade. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do, ever since devouring the Ramona Quimby and Homecoming books as a kid.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss; Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett; Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus!
Your latest novel, All You Have to Do Is Call, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Women Standing Up For Women. (Inclusively – if I can add a 6th word!)
What can readers expect?
Although All You Have To Do is Call has themes in common with my previous novels—like strong, independent women making their way in the world, against the odds—this book is also different in some key ways. Instead of writing from the point of view of one real-life woman, I’m writing from the perspectives of several entirely made-up women. And since the novel covers a shorter span of time than the biographical novels I’ve written before, it has a faster pace. Readers can expect some moments of high drama, and a deep dive into what it means to be a woman—as individuals, friends, mothers, lovers, wives, providers, professors….all the things.
Where did the inspiration for All You Have to Do Is Call come from?
In 2018, I was listening to NPR on my way to meet a friend for a movie and heard an amazing news story about the women of Jane in 1970s Chicago—how regular women just like me had learned to give safe abortions to other women, illegally and inexpensively but safely and with dignity. I was amazed and inspired and immediately knew I had to write about them.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I love every last character in this cast. It’s impossible to pick a favorite. But I will say that a scene I wrote in a very late draft keeps coming back to me: Margaret and her boyfriend’s young daughter Charlie have a conversation about Charlie’s mother Siobhan at a crucial moment in the story. All I’ll say is that it involves Joan of Arc. But no spoilers here!
This is your fourth published novel! What are some of the key lessons you have learned when it comes to writing and the publishing world?
Find your people. Build your community. Trust your team. Lean in.
What’s next for you?
I just signed a contract for two more books with Berkley, and I couldn’t be happier! I’m in the early stages of researching and writing Summer of Love, a dual timeline novel alternating between the 1960s and 2010s and set in the California wine country and the San Francisco counter-culture revolution.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
I’ve read so many great books this past year! In no particular order: Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez; Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin; Circe by Madeline Miller; Vigil Harbor by Julia Glass (Glass is one of very few authors whose books I’ve read ALL of, and her latest is amazing).
