Continuing her series of author interviews, today Ali Muldrow sits down with writer Dantiel W. Moniz to discuss her new debut collection of short stories, Milk Blood Heat.

They have a wide-ranging conversation about writing and the stories in the collection, including the setting of Florida, remembering what it’s like being a kid, noticing your body, connecting with other people, and the power of fiction.

Dantiel’s wish for readers? “I hope that they walk away from this book with empathy for their own lives that they’re living.”

Dantiel W. Moniz is a writer based in Northeast Florida. She currently teaches fiction at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Her debut collection is Milk Blood Heat (Grove Press, 2021).