Rebecca Serle Author Interview ~ JeanBookNerd

Book Nerd Interview

Rebecca Serle is a full-time writer, which means she gets to wear pajamas to work. She went to the University of Southern California, then got her MFA from the New School in NYC. (She likes New York much more than LA, but don’t tell anyone that.) Rebecca loves shiny hair, coffee, yoga, and pretending to be British. She is the author of When You Were Mine and The Edge of Falling. Find out more at RebeccaSerle.com.

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Was there a defining moment during your youth when you realized you wanted to be a writer?

Not really. I always wrote. I grew up an only child and so the creation of stories was the way I played. I would make worlds of my own and spend days, weeks, even years in them. That probably makes me sound crazy but I think all writers would probably tell you the same thing about their childhood—we are born storytellers.

Beyond your own work (of course), what is your all-time favorite book and why? And what is your favorite book outside of your genre?

My favorite all-time book? Man, that’s tough. It might honestly be The Catcher in the Rye. If you read The Edge of Falling you’ll see that it has direct ties to that novel. Salinger was a genius.

I read quite a bit of memoir, actually. Joan Didion’s Slouching Towards Bethlehem is a collection of personal essays I cherish. “Goodbye To All That” might be my single favorite piece of writing.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

“Look for truth and beauty will follow”—Lauren Oliver

In your book; The Edge of Falling, can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it?

The Edge of Falling is the story of Caggie Caulfield—a young woman who is mourning the death of her younger sister and trying to come to terms with her role in it. In January, her sister died. In May, she saved a girl’s life from jumping to her death on the edge of a NY city building. But nothing is really as it seems. You learn early on that what people think happened that night in May is quite far from the truth.

The Edge of Falling is really a book about grief and responsibility and the ways in which we can move on from tragedy. It’s also about what it means to be a hero. I always say the tagline should read: you cannot save anyone until you’ve saved yourself.

What are some of your current and future projects that you can share with us?

I am over the moon excited about my new novel, FAMOUS IN LOVE. It comes out in October and is the first of a series. It’s about a girl who gets plucked from obscurity to star in the next major feature-film franchise based on the book—and the love triangles she gets involved in on (and off) screen. It is so much fun and has been in my brain for almost five years. I can’t wait to share it.

If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

If I was a terrible person I’d probably say Juliet and Astor—but yikes, can you imagine?

I think Charlie and Claire would probably get along like gangbusters—or hate each other. It’s definitely a toss up, but I’d try.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating Astor?

How damaged he was. I’ll be honest—he started off as just your average bad-boy. His darkness surprised me. Just how deep it is and where its roots come from. I did not anticipate any of that.

What's the most memorable summer job you've ever had?

I was an intern for a designer who Shall Not Be Named. She was…a character. She’d wear sunglasses indoors at all times and she had this habit of looking you right in the eye behind these totally opaque shades. It was unnerving. The job itself was terrible, but then again, I was terrible at it. I am very, very lucky this writing thing worked out. I’ve never been much good at anything else.

What would be harder for you, to tell someone you love them or that you do not love them back?

So much of that is context! I am pretty quick to love, and express love, so probably telling someone I did not love them back. Yeah, that’s hard.

When was the last time you cried?

I like to cry. Is that weird? I don’t know, I find it’s a good release. I cry every single time I read certain passages of books I love or watch certain scenes of tv shows (hello, Pacey and Joey!) I think the last time I cried though was last week. I was doing Shabbat with my family and my four year old niece said the whole prayer herself. It killed me.

What decade during the last century would you have chosen to be a teenager?

Probably the 90s. I was a teen in the early 2000s and I missed out on a lot of angst, I feel. I also missed out on My So Called Life.

What is your greatest adventure?

Life. All of it. I try to approach my life like an adventure—I have a plan, but I’m also open to seeing where my journey leads me. I don’t ever want to become so rigid that I stop paying attention to what is actually happening around me, as opposed to just what I want. Sketch your goals, don’t pen them in, right? That in and of itself is an adventure. What will happen next? No one really knows. I find the more I relax, the better life goes, so I’m trying to do that. Letting go is an adventure.

Where can readers stalk you?

Come play with me on twitter! @RebeccaASerle I am there all the time and all I want to do is talk to you J
www.rebeccaserle.com has everything you need to know about me (and a lot you probably don’t)

Thanks, guys! XOXO!

Growing up in privileged, Manhattan social circles, Caggie’s life should be perfect, and it almost was until the day that her younger sister drowned when Caggie was supposed to be watching her. Stricken by grief, Caggie pulls away from her friends and family, only to have everyone misinterpret a crucial moment when she supposedly saves a fellow classmate from suicide. Now she’s famous for something she didn’t do and everyone lauds her as a hero. But inside she still blames herself for the death of her sister and continues to pull away from everything in her life, best friend and perfect boyfriend included. Then Caggie meets Astor, the new boy at school, about whom rumours are swirling and known facts are few. In Astor she finds someone who just might understand her pain, because he has an inner pain of his own. But the more Caggie pulls away from her former life to be with Astor, the more she realises that his pain might be darker, and deeper, than anything she’s ever felt. His pain might be enough to end his life…and Caggie’s as well.