Get ready to learn more about the book Survivor’s Guilt in this discussion with sapphic author Michelle Arnold.
Join us for an exclusive peek behind the scenes as we quiz Michelle Arnold about Survivor’s Guilt, writing, reading, and more.
This book is part of the Illinois category in the 2026 IHS Reading Challenge.
Why did you write Survivor’s Guilt?
I’ve had chronic pain for years and for a long time didn’t have a diagnosis to explain it, so I used to have a coping mechanism of imagining I was someone who’d been injured in some horrific accident and was recovering. The recovery was the important part – I was hopeful that the pain really was “all in my head” and that imagining a recovery would make it really go away! Unfortunately, that didn’t work, but I did make up some interesting stories in the meantime. The story of a woman who was badly injured in a plane crash and was being nursed back to health by a beautiful woman who was very much in love with her was what stuck with me. I began further imagining the drama of the plane crash survivor being the only survivor from the crash (what an awful emotional burden), and because there’s nothing I love more than a story of two friends who are in love but afraid to admit it, I threw that into the mix as well. Imagine you’re just about to tell the woman you love how you feel, and the plane she’s on crashes, with no survivors expected! Then imagining finding out there’s only one survivor and it’s her! Definitely an angsty story, but lots of opportunities for sweetness as well.
Who is your favorite character in the book?
I love Abi and Greta for different reasons. I love Abi for her determination to get to Greta and her patience in being there for her, and I love Greta for her grace in accepting what she’s going through and her heart for all her fellow passengers who didn’t make it.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
It came into my head early on. I knew the biggest challenge in Abi and Greta’s relationship wasn’t going to be Greta’s injuries from the crash, but her grief once she found out no one else survived. There’s no way anyone with a heart could go through that and not have a serious case of survivor’s guilt. So in the end, that’s what she has to overcome in order to properly be with Abi.
How much research did you need to do for Survivor’s Guilt?
I had to do a lot of medical research to determine what sort of injuries made sense for Greta, how they would be treated, how long they would take to recover from, and how they would affect her long-term. Luckily I knew a trauma nurse who was able to talk me through it! Another friend also gave me the email address of a friend of hers who is a commercial pilot so I could ask questions about possibly causes for plane crashes. Thankfully he’s never been in one, but I’m sure every pilot knows the stories! He gave me an example of a real-life plane crash that I largely based this one on. Just before starting my final edits, I came across a documentary called Lone Survivor about people who are the sole survivors of plane crashes. I had started this book thinking that probably never really happened, and it turns out it’s happened a bunch of times! The documentary was good research because we got to delve into the feelings of survivor’s guilt these lone survivors had and how surviving a crash no one else had survived affected them going forwards. I was pleased to see that what I’d imagined Greta feeling was pretty much spot-on, although I felt horrible for the real people who are going through this.
What is your writing process like?
I’m usually a plotter. With Survivor’s Guilt as with most of my books, I had a careful outline with dates and everything. I like doing this because it keeps things organized and I know what’s coming in the next chapter. However, I completely pantsed my book One Light and I think it’s the best thing I’ve ever written, so maybe I should be less organized?
If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?
I would choose Claire Highton-Stevenson because we’ve been friends online for close to ten years, but have never met in person since she’s in the UK and I’m in the US! I would really love to spend a day hanging out with her in person!
When you’re writing an emotional or difficult scene, how do you set the mood?
Music! I always have a playlist for writing. For this book two songs I listened to a lot were “Toto” by Africa, which captured Abi’s feelings of longing and anticipation while she was waiting for Greta’s doomed flight, and “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz because the chorus made me think of the scene where Abi is officially surrendering to her feelings for Greta. I did wish the song was a little more serious though! My current writing playlist has a lot of boygenius on it. I wonder what that could mean?
Do you feel bad putting your characters through the wringer?
Sometimes I feel bad, but I always give them happy endings, so it’s hard to feel too bad. I did feel bad for all the emotional stuff Greta had to go through, but she got Abi, so there’s that! The moment I experienced a bit of evil glee was when I was describing the passenger sitting next to Greta on the plane. I knew readers would love her immediately and obviously, everyone who’s not Greta has to die. That’s the plot of the book; it says it in the blurb! Yet I knew people would love this passenger enough to hope she would live. So yeah, I did feel a little proud of my ability to tear people’s hearts out there. I even felt bad for her, and I’m the one who made her up.
Are there any books or authors that inspired you to become a writer?
When I was eight, I was really into the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary. I found Ramona so relatable and loved the straightforward storytelling style. I loved it so much that I started narrating my life in my head nonstop, pretending I was a character in a book, something I did for well over a year. If my parents had known I was doing it they might have taken me to a child psychologist (I am NOT kidding when I say I did it constantly), they might have taken me to a child psychologist. But it was my secret, so they thought I was fine! That was when I started to imagine myself becoming a writer someday. I never really saw it as my main job, maybe because my dad was a writer so I knew it wasn’t something that usually made a lot of money, but just seeing the way Beverly Cleary made everyday life seem interesting made me feel like I could also draw from my life to write stories. I never stopped thinking about it from that point on.
Describe your favorite reading spot.
When the weather is nice, I love to read on my front porch. It’s enclosed so my kitty can come out with me, and I’m just surrounded by fresh air and sunlight.
