You've reached the milestone of your second published book at a very young age, after your debut 'Lucy Min?' in 2016. How does that feel?

I am humbled and grateful - to my publisher, my friends and my family.

In this new book, 'Kissirtu Kullimkien', your stories tackle head-on the construction frenzy going on across the island. Did you deliberately set out to write a book of stories centred around this subject?

No. It was a non-deliberate process.

Soon after my debut Lucy Min? I started writing again. At the time, a huge construction of a massive apartment block was ongoing just opposite from where I lived. It went on for almost two years. Half-way through its completion, I went through a nervous breakdown - the noise, the dust, the ongoing chaos - it was too much and since I was going through a stressful time in my life, this made things much worse.

Though I always was politically-concerned, it was then that my writing started shifting towards a more political spectrum. Some two years later I also became an activist with Moviment Graffitti. There I found solace to belong within an organisation that had a structured approach to fight for a better standard of living, in all of its aspects. People from all spectrums of life send us messages of concern and heartbreak, with issues ranging from bad working conditions to construction trauma and to all sorts of political issues, which affect the day-to-day life of many citizens.

Finally, the short stories are a mixture of relevant political issues at heart set in the core but mostly mentioned within the sidelines of different heartfelt short stories.

The construction industry and the lobby empowering it, come up as the baddies in most of your stories in this book. What are Lara Calleja's thoughts on this situation?

It is not a secret nor fiction that the construction industry has escalated its power to a surreal extent over the years; seen by our governments as a basic "benevolent" to the Maltese economy. While our country ''turns a blind eye'', our landscape is being forever ruined thanks to an industry that gets greedier by the day. We're told to shut up because the industry provides work and is boosting the economy. What work? The underpaid, the exploited workers? The non-existent health and safety regulations, affecting and even claiming many lives over the past years of both workers and citizens? And what economy? When you bear in mind the huge margins of profit earned by just one party? How is that reflective of the mass economy?

In the meantime, lives are being affected. Rents have gone up with people barely coping to pay for their basic need of shelter. We constantly hear stories of thousands of residents terrified of the negative impacts caused by monstrous projects - with Pembroke's dB tower being a perfect case scenario, and about other construction threats caused by a lack of H&S measures and with no proper consideration to the impact of structural, landscape and quality of life for the residents.

How much would you consider your new book to be a progression in writing style from your debut collection?

I think the writing tone has kept its "shameless transparency", meaning no words are censored or spared if it means it will in some way not reflect the meaning well enough. The only difference is that this book is less personal and more political, but still, it describes strong emotions that all of us can resonate with, no matter how different we are.

I've been told several times that my writing is very colloquial and speaks to the reader - building almost a bond between author and reader. This is just a writing style which for now looks like I'm sticking with, and in the meantime will keep an open mind to improve it further.

If you had to recommend three books, local or foreign, that most influenced your writing, which would they be?

Stories of Eva Luna - Isabelle Allende

Kimika - Immanuel Mifsud

Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt

'Kissirtu Kullimkien' is dedicated to one of Malta's most respected, and most outspoken, authors: Immanuel Mifsud. Why this choice?

I have a profound respect for Immanuel Mifsud. Literary-wise, at 17 years of age he was my ''wake up call'' to Maltese literature and its whole new dimensions. My first read was Kimika, with heavy themes such as drug abuse and prostitution with dark but still resonating characters; all recounted through a very personal tone rather than the usual ''us and them''. The fact that I could relate with such characters at 17 years old, just fresh from church secondary, was mind-blowing. I also appreciated his writing style; short, direct sentences, with no fussing around "unnecessary" descriptions.

Immanuel was also crucial in encouraging me to continue my writing during my early 20s - a time where I was not confident about myself nor my writings. A friend of mine had forwarded him some of my writings and every now and then Immanuel used to send me emails to check up on me if I'm still writing or not. Such rare sensibility is one of the many reasons why it makes him such a unique person.

Finally and most importantly, Immanuel Mifsud is one of the VERY few authors who are vociferous in political issues. His views do not bind to any bureaucratic concern and his voice is as genuine as it can be. Immanuel, though cynical at times, is a sensible person who is kind to the world around him; that always transcends in his writings and that is another reason why it makes him special.

What's next, for Lara Calleja the writer?

I am currently at crossroads in my life. Figuring out I had to change some crucial lanes in my life, so I am taking some time off to see where I want to be heading. However, writing has been with me for years and years, so it's a crucial basic. I do hope that with an open mind and constructive criticism, my writing will develop further in the years to come.