In this chat, we catch up with Stacia Moffett, the storyteller behind the captivating series Lost and Found in Tennessee. Set in the 1950s in the small town of Radford, Tennessee, the series follows the spunky and daring Jessa, an orphaned runaway who stirs things up in her hometown, shaking the delicate peace between its Black and white communities. With her fresh perspective from Oregon, Jessa isn’t afraid to call out the Jim Crow practices she once accepted, and she’s ready to speak her mind—even if it means ruffling some feathers. Stacia gives us the scoop on what inspired her to bring Jessa’s bold journey to life, her passion for storytelling, and why she loves taking readers on a ride through a town filled with secrets, struggles, and heart.
Q. What do you like doing in your spare time?
Retirement didn’t pose a problem of too much spare time! When our German friend was staying with us, he noticed that we headed back to work after dinner, and he gradually convinced us that we should sit outside, enjoy the canyon’s birds and scenery, maybe have a beer, and talk. That is my favorite thing to do with my spare time.
Q. What would you change your name to?
I am perfectly happy with my given name, Stacia. My mother chose to take her mother’s name,
Eustashia, shorten it and simplify the spelling, and that gave me a name that was as unique as I sensed myself to be.
Q. What’s your biggest pet peeve?
As a careful writer, I am irritated when we lose distinctions that the wonderful English language provides us with One example is the use of less when fewer conveys the same information plus the fact that we are talking about something that is subject to being counted.
Q. Who is your inspiration?
My family is my inspiration, especially my mother, who loved her life as a teacher because she loved her classes and what she was able to give them. Each year, she would write an original play for her second-graders and then they would each have an important part, because the creation of the scenery, changing the set between acts, operating the curtains were all jobs done by the class, as well as the students who had to memorize their lines (and the good student who was ready to provide prompts backstage itf needed.) The capper was that she entrusted the entire production in those second-graders and went out into the audience to watch the play. The other teachers were flabbergasted, but the kids pulled it off, year after year.
Q. Do you speak any other languages?
I began by studying Latin in the eighth grade, and continued with Juiius Caesar, followed by two years of Spanish. In college, I finally was able to study French, which was not available in my high school, and I studied German for its presumed relevance to a scientific career, but it was my knowledge of French that allowed me to read critical older scientific literature that was crucial to my Ph.D. research. Language study has been valuable to me, but I cannot say that I speak any language but English fluently.
Q. Where would you like to visit?
The place I would love to visit is Australia and Tasmania, for the wonderful animals and the interesting history of the aboriginal people.
Q. If you weren’t famous, what would you be up to right now?
Famous? Well, I guess I would be trying to get even more famous so that my books would be very widely read, but fame can come with a cost, and I have never pursued fame at any cost.
Q. Who is the messiest person you know?
That would definitely be our son, the winemaker. He has the most active mind of anyone I know, but it can’t be bothered with mundane things like hanging up a towel or closing a drawer that he has rummaged through…
Q. What’s the most interesting thing you’ve read or seen this week?
I am enjoying a book, The God of the Woods, by Liz Moore which my daughter recommended for its presumed similarity to my books. It is not similar, being a murder mystery, but it is similar to my books in having a lot of characters that all contribute to the plot – I still don’t know how it ends….
Q. What would you like to remember about you?
I have always been a person who was marching to music others didn’t hear. Feeling myself to be different but also having the wonderful backing of my family made it possible for me to make unusual choices in my life, and I hope people can remember me for my pioneering spirit.
Q. Baking or Cooking?
Both! I love starting with the basic ingredients, straight from the garden or orchard, if possible. Pies are my specialty, though.
Q. Margarita or Cosmo?
A: Neither – I would prefer one of the wines that our son made from our own vineyard. Our site in Eastern Washington is just right for classic wine grapes, and our Ben is a superlative vintner.
Q. Holding a Puppy or Holding a Baby?
A: I started out with puppies, as my family raised both Pekingese and miniature poodles. I think dogs taught me a lot about how to hold and love another creature, and when it became time for me to hold my own babies, I was “prepped” to love the experience.
Q. invisibility cloak or sparkling skin?
A: Definitely invisibility cloak! What an opportunity to be present without being an imposition…
Q. Coffee or tea?
A: If I had to choose between two beverages I love, the choice would have to be coffee – I cannot imagine living without it. Our son the winemaker has experimented with roasting green coffee beans and thereby expanded our appreciation of the gifts the coffee plant offers.
Q. Dinosaurs or princesses?
A: Oh, definitely dinosaurs. I love paleontology and archaeology. Another of my mother’s tricks to teach second graders to read was to use their fascination with dinosaurs to help them sound out the names, which, unlike many English words, are reliably phonetic. Their parents were impressed!
Q. Laptop or phone?
A: I prefer the laptop because it is better for writing. The phone is handy when a fact needs to be checked, but for communication, the laptop is my friend.
Q. Mountain or Beach?
A: Summers were a chance for my family to visit the beaches of Florida and the Carolinas. We would drive through the Smokies, an old and gentle mountain range, to get to the beach, but the crashing of the waves, the moonlight over the water, and the many shells and living animals we encountered at the beach were very special to a landlubber from Tennessee. In Washington State, we have the Rockies, which are thrilling to explore, but my first love is still the beach.
Q. Beer or Vodka?
A: Beer! I was first introduced to beer the summer I spent at Woods Hole Massachusetts at a marine lab. Each week the class studying marine invertebrate zoology would take a field trip to collect the creatures that lived in one of the several ecosystems of the region. We would have a lunch packed by the cafeteria that consisted of three sandwiches – one with cheese, one with salami, and one with peanut butter and jelly. We were all working very hard and these minimalist sandwiches were consumed with delight (although some trading was allowed) because we were ravenous. When we got back to the lab, the strict rule was that the many creatures collected into vials, all numbered, must be transferred to bowls of fresh sea water before we could go to eat dinner. It was in the context of hot, exhausting work and near starvation that I had the first experience with beer – and boy, did it hit the spot!
Q. Fame or Fortune?
A: Fame, for sure, as it will promote my books, which I want very much for people to read. So far as Fortune is concerned, I think it was Mae West who, when asked whether riches or poverty was better, said “I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor – rich is better.” My personal preference is to not want for anything basic like food or housing, but I think having to plan and prioritize acquisitions while living within my budget is the best condition.
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