‘THAT SUMMER FEELING’

Love can be a fascinating subject. Therefore, author Bridget Morrissey wanted to highlight a queer romantic relationship in “That Summer Feeling.”

WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND “THAT SUMMER FEELING”?

“That Summer Feeling” is about a young divorcee who attends an adults-only sleep-away camp, where she falls in love with a woman for the first time. I never went to a proper sleep-away camp as a kid, so it’s always been a point of fascination for me. Writing this book allowed me to attend in the exact way I would want to — at a camp full of other adults who are seeking something genuinely fun and healing. When it comes to the divorce element, I have several close friends who got divorced before they turned 30, and I wanted to represent that too, because I really believe in reminding people it’s never too late to reimagine what you want your life to look like, and a great place to start is by reconnecting with the things you wanted to do as a child. Like summer camp!

WHY DO YOU FEEL REPRESENTATION OF A VARIETY OF PEOPLE IS SO IMPORTANT WHEN IT COMES TO WRITING BOOKS?

Fiction is one of the best tools for understanding how we all move through the world. Books deepen empathy, because they immerse you in the feelings of people who may not look, or think, or live like you do. So the more representation we get in books, the more acceptance and understanding we (hopefully!) get from those who read them. As a writer, I understand the importance of that, and I always seek to make my fictional worlds as inclusive as possible. I want my stories to be a soft place to land.

TELL US A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE BOOK AND WHY YOU DECIDED TO WRITE IT.

I have been trying to write a sapphic book for years now. All of my other ideas fizzled out for one reason or another. When I came up with the concept of adult summer camp, I knew it was the perfect setting for a queer romance. There’s something very soul-satisfying to me about imagining a woman in her thirties having her queer awakening at summer camp, because it goes along with what I said earlier — it’s never too late. You’re not too old or too anything to have the life you really want.

WHAT CAN FANS EXPECT FROM YOUR BOOK?

They can expect lots of queerness, romance, found family, inner child reconnection, and just a general sense of joy. All of the characters come to this camp to work through their pain in a place that’s safe, loving, and fun. This book is meant to be a warm hug from me to my fellow queer people.