Faithless Friends and Replacement Lovers is a collection of short stories about the messy, complicated, and sometimes sweet intersections of love, loss, loyalty, and self-discovery. The title is striking. What does “faithless” mean to you in the context of these stories?

To me, being faithful means you’re devoted and true to another person, despite the obstacles that inevitably arise, and you learn how to communicate and work those things out. By contrast, faithless means you give priority to your inner confusion, uncertainty, or misguided desires, which means you stop acting and communicating in honesty and goodness where the other person is concerned.

For example, in the story Faithless Friends and Replacement Lovers, Tracy was faithless in the way she suddenly checked out instead of communicating why she no longer intended to be friends with Connie. A lot of people do that today, never giving a friendship or relationship another chance, but just “ghosting” and moving on. It creates a lot of unnecessary hurt and confusion. How can friendships and relationships continue unless each person is willing to be honest and challenge themselves to grow in love?

Several characters mistake loyalty for obligation or desire for love. Why do you think that confusion is so common?

Broadly speaking, who can truly know the human heart except for its Maker? At the same time, I’ve found that my understanding of my own motives has grown and matured over the years, so I imagine that is true for everyone, whether for good or for bad.

For example, in Sweet Vengeance, the main character thinks she has loved a certain rich fellow since high school, when she actually lusts after his lavish lifestyle and cares nothing for the man himself. Unless she comes to an awakening of what true love is, it’s doubtful that she will ever have his best interests in mind.

The reality is that all of us come to the table with our own experiences and expectations about love and loss, which makes communication often confusing and challenging. The best thing we can do is acknowledge the differences and constantly seek to learn how to be our best selves to the people around us.

Are there particular stories you feel change meaning depending on a reader’s life experience?

Of course, and the stories have even changed for me over the past decade since I wrote them. Since I often write to process my own experiences or what I see in other people’s lives, I look back at the majority of my stories with a better understanding. I expect others to view them differently as well, based on where they are in life. My favorite part is that readers often bring a completely new understanding, teaching me additional things that I never would have recognized without their fresh perspective.

What did writing this collection teach you about relationships?

Writing these stories taught me a lot of things over the years, and still gives me new insight to this day. For example, I have learned a lot about the diversity of human experiences and the necessity to both be more strict in some things (like setting personal boundaries) and also be a lot more relaxed in other areas (like not needing to explain myself or be fully understood by others). Looking back, the biggest lesson I see is how time truly does change perspectives and experiences. I wouldn’t say it heals all things, but it helps us handle the pain of love and loss.

For example, Silvia and Jed no longer come to mind, but losing Tracy occasionally still brings me grief. Meanwhile, Luigi did not turn out to be who I expected, but then again, I am a completely different person today as well. As long as each of us remains humble and teachable, love and loss will only shape us into better people who are more capable of loving others who join us on the journey of life.

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