I know the world of this novel; I grew up in it–in Selma, Alabama, to be specific. The “Clanton” of A Circle of Earth closely details the small city of Selma. I thought it wise not to use the true place name, as that might set up the reader to expect a different sort of novel. Circle is not political per se; yet to my mind much social commentary is there, for the person who is alert to it. Even young, I wanted to see much more of the world than Selma. For my undergraduate degree, I was sent to a private woman’s college, designed to better prepare me for where I was. After graduation I moved out of the country, to live in France for a period of years. Since that time I have lived both in Europe and Africa, as well as other parts of the States. As a young child I watched the world. It was a world of extremes: poverty and wealth, privilege and insult (there w as strong class prejudice, as well as the prevalent race prejudice). All the niches between these extremes were filled with people—in this case mainly white–trying to live their lives according to some vision. It was rich material for writing. And at age twenty-one I conceived the main idea for this book. My motivation, then and now, is the conviction that life should be taken full notice of. Everything matters. In the present we are told to follow our dreams, even our bliss. My parents were never told that–much less their own parents (the generation that this book largely focuses on). Even the opportunity to think in this way is a privilege that very few people enjoy. I’m very aware of the injustice of that. For more on upcoming work, see: http://trishweil.wix.com/-circle-of-e...