Fangirling Over Marcus Kliewer
This author is *literally* living my dream!
Marcus Kliewer is a writer and stop-motion animator. His debut novel We Used to Live Here began life as a serialized short story on Reddit. Film rights were snapped up by Netflix, and it was acquired by Simon & Schuster in the US for publication even before it had been extended into a full-length novel. He lives in Vancouver, Canada. (Copy/Pasted from Simon & Schuster’s Author Page for Kliewer)
I discovered Marcus Kliewer via the ‘Available Now’ filter on my ‘TBR’ tag in the Libby App, and oh, what a ride. The book I am talking about is We Used to Live Here. I had just finished There There by Tommy Orange and wanted to dive into something else (because, damn, that book wrecked me).
At first, I wasn't sold on We Used to Live Here. There were parts where I even thought the book was heavily written or edited with AI, but I didn’t give up on it and eventually reached a part of the story written in a completely different style. This is when I realized that Kliewer was writing in a broken, short, punchy sentence structure, which was meant to evoke doubt, confusion, and unease.
I really can't tell you what We Used to Live Here is about because I don't want to give away anything about the story, but it's wild, confusing, makes you question everything that's happening, it’s just really, really damn good.
But this isn't a book review anyway; it’s more of an appreciation post about this author. I opened this post with a copy/paste from his publisher’s author page on the Simon & Schuster site, and it really says it all… This writer, this author, is just like us… writing for the love of writing and sharing those stories in any format that will put eyes on our words. I don't really need to repeat it, but We Used to Live Here was a serialized story on Reddit… damn, if that isn't inspiring, then you just can’t be inspired.
Kliewer’s story really shook me, both his book and his story of getting the book published. It makes me feel like there is a chance to share my own little capsules of creativity with others. Sometimes I feel like I am screaming into the void, with algorithms and feeds fighting against me, while my own busy life snatches up my precious art-making and writing time. However, I guess I just need to remove my focus from that and realize that showing up is all that matters. Giving this little nook of creativity a few minutes each day is all I need to complete the story and eventually post it. It's just a few minutes to draw in my sketchbook and snap a picture of my progress. Just a few minutes to make a list or plan for the sewing project, so I am ready to jump in when I have more time.
I guess I am writing all this just to say: Kliewer struck the match and ignited the flame of possibility again for me. For that, I am so thankful.
If you are a creative, you CAN do it. Kliewer did, and I am sure that there are other, similar stories out there that I am not aware of. So, I suppose this little love letter to the art of making, showing up, and sharing what you’ve got is also me shouting out to anyone reading this — hey, you've got this.