I was running late.
I thought I was going to miss her but when I finally got to Borders in West L.A. I must have walked through the bookstore three times before I found someone that could tell me where the book signing was. I was finally steered in the right direction and once I was upstairs walking toward the book signing, I was greeted with pleasant welcomes and a delightful author who was more than happy to sign copies of books for my blog and sign my own book.
I was so excited.
It was my first ever book signing and I thought it was a fantastic one. Short but definitely sweet. I enjoyed The Best Day of Someone Else’s Life and I was beyond happy that I got to meet the author who wrote the book and that she was delightful and witty.
Kerry Reichs is so great that she agreed to meet with us today to answer some of the questions we had for her and without further adeu, let’s get into the questions, shall we?
Book Binge: Your mother is an author as well, has anyone compared your writing to hers yet? If so, how does that make you feel? If not, are you prepared for it?
Kerry Reichs: We write in such different genres, it doesn’t really beg comparison. People who know us both say we have a similar sense of humor. My mother is such a talented writer it would only be a compliment to be compared to her, but I think we’ve followed very different paths into writing fiction.
BB: Your mother writes thriller novels, did you ever want to go that route instead of writing chick lit?
KR: I didn’t really deliberate what to write prior to beginning my book – my story presented itself to me fully-formed. I’m a believer in “write what you know,” and I’m happy to say I don’t “know” murder, so thrillers were out for me! While my book is a work of fiction, it is drawn from life experience. Though much of any book is imagination, the soul of being able to interpret our imagination into something people can connect to derives from our real life experiences. In my case, Vi’s wedding odyssey is informed by my own thorough experience.
BB: Would you ever consider collaborating with your mother to write a book, like Jennifer Crusie did with Bob Mayer?
KR: I won’t say yes or no to the question of whether my mother and I would ever collaborate, but I will say the topic has been discussed, and she’s continually pestering me to put a dead body in my stories so that we could.
BB: What was the first thing you did when you found out Harper Avon picked up your book?
KR: I think it probably involved some sort of embarrassing dancing about holding the phone. What I recall most clearly was when I learned I had an agent. I was in Hawaii for the first time ever. Two days before, I had completed a 100-mile one-day bicycle ride to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Team in Training. After, I treated myself to a few days relaxation in Maui. I was resting on a beach chair with a frozen drink in my hand thinking “it doesn’t get much better than this,” when I got the email from William Morris Agency on my Treo, and realized, actually, it just had.
BB: What was going through your head when you held The Best Day of Someone Else’s Life in your hands for the first time?
KR: “Finally! Now people will believe me!”
BB: Has becoming a published author changed your life in any way? Has it changed you, as a person in any way?
KR: The thing that struck me the most after leaving the security and regimen of Large Law Firm life was that if you take a risk, and open yourself to opportunity, fortuities land like birds on your shoulders. I was amazed at all the wonderful opportunities that presented themselves to me when I opened myself up to chance and trusted that I would land on my feet. I am truly fortunate in that I love what I do, and it affords the chance to continually challenge myself and try new paths.
BB: So what’s next for Kerry Reichs? Are you working on another book? Can you tell us anything about it?
KR: I am currently working on book two. It’s a spin off, following the story of Maeve Connelly, Vi’s sister from The Best Day of Someone Else’s Life. I can’t say much, but Maeve is a great character and she’s going to have some wonderful adventures in the course of a cross-country trek with her bird, Oliver.
BB: When did you decide to take up writing?
KR: I always intended to write a book. In my mind, it was to be when I was older, perhaps an empty-nester, and I had Something to say. I felt that some nadir in my life had to occur to give me a sadness and wisdom to write anything meaningful. As I approached 35 and partnership in a large law firm, I questioned why I was waiting. I realized that I did have something to say. You don’t have to be a James Joyce to write something that people will want to read. You simply have to tell a story people can connect to. For me, I write what I know. Romantic comedy may be the second-class citizen of fiction, but it gives me a good laugh, and often, that’s what I need.
BB: What are you reading right now?
KR: I just finished the remarkable And Then We Came To The End, by Joshua Ferris. It was excellent. I was actually a “judge” in an “Ides of March” bracketology organized by a friend. The brackets faced off the best fiction of 2007 in a tournament style challenge to raise money for literacy. I judged Ferris’s book the winner of my bracket in round one.
BB: Who’s your favorite author?
KR: It’s impossible to answer this question – so much depends on my mood. The easy answer is Jane Austen, but Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 is some of the best satire written, and Michael Bond’s A Bear Called Paddington still makes me laugh every time.
About the Book
BB: So how much of Vi is in you?
KR: Certainly Vi’s experiences are derived from my own, but she is not me. She is a unique character with thoughts that sometime surprise me, and, occasionally, persuade me. I have thought that Vi and Imogen represent two different sides of my own personality. But, I have to be careful when I joke about characteristics of myself that resemble my characters. The other day a friend said, “I can’t believe you had your first alcoholic drink at age 6!!” I was surprised to hear that as well, and asked wherever she’d gotten the idea, to which she replied, “Chapter 1!” I had to remind her that the book is, in fact, fiction.
BB: When you were writing BDOSEL did you ever have another hero for Vi in mind, like I don’t know…A Candadian tile salesmen, eh? =)
KR: I never had an alternate hero, though I originally wrote an alternate ending. It didn’t sit well, and only lasted about a week before I realized it was all wrong and changed it.
BB: How did you keep all of those characters straight in your head? There were so many weddings, so many circle of friends that it was like a roller coaster of people running in and out of the story…how in the world were you able to keep them all straight while writing?
KR: Lots and lots of outlining. Every wedding had identified characters and a back-story somewhere in my notes. Even if a wedding was only referenced in passing, I could tell you what Vi wore, what the ceremony was like and how she knew the bride and groom. With over sixty weddings under my belt, I had an excellent library of factual experience to instruct me.
BB: Let’s talk Caleb, is he someone you know from real life? =P
KR: Doesn’t everyone have a Caleb in their past?
BB: Quick…don’t take time to think about this but why should people buy this book?
KR: Because they will laugh out loud at scenarios they recognize, and because after reading it they will feel like they’ve just spent a really good time with wonderful people they’d like to see again.
BB: Do you have any plans for a sequel to this book or did it end the way it was supposed to end?
KR: I originally wrote a different ending, but realized it was wrong and changed it. Now, it ends the way it is supposed to end. There won’t be a sequel, but as I was finishing up The Best Day of Someone Else’s Life, Vi’s sister Maeve gave me a nudge and told me her story. It’s a good one, so I’m writing it now. I think you’ll like it, and you’ll get a peek back at how Vi and…her friends are doing now.
BB: Where did the name Kevin for a girl come from?
KR: Naming Kevin “Vi” Connelly was challenging. I wanted an Irish name and spent a lot of time trying out different ones that just didn’t work. When one day Kevin popped into my head, I knew it was right. Unfortunately, it makes me a poor “interviewee” because often, truthfully, my answer is “it just popped into my head…”
BB: Casting Call…if BDOSEL was turned into a movie, who would you cast as Vi? Niall? Imogen? Ethan? Come to think of it..that’d be a really large cast.
KR: In an ideal world, I’d cast Colin Firth, Daniel Craig, James Marsden, Orlando Bloom, Jon Stewart and Johnny Depp…so I could meet them. But, that would give our female heroines some hairy legs and chests.
BB: Don’t you think Rowena is a fine name for a character in your next book? I do. j/k. =)
KR: My sister teases me about my penchant for unique names. Rowena would be a good fit!
GIVEAWAY ALERT: Now if you haven’t read Kerry’s book, you should because it’s a great chick lit story that most every woman out there can relate to…and since we are the greatest like that, us Book Bingers are going to give three of you lucky readers a shot at winning an autographed copy of Kerry Reichs debut novel, The Best Day of Someone Else’s Life. All you have to do is leave a question, a comment or anything you want in the comments section of this post and you will be automatically entered to win 1 of 3 copies of this fabulous book. 3 lucky winners will be chosen at random and will walk away with lovely gifts from us Book Bingers. Just because we love you guys like that. So what are you waiting for….show us and Kerry Reichs some love and win a free book! =)
Winners will be announced on Friday, 6/6/08 at 5pm, so all entries must be in by noon tomorrow PST.
We’d like to thank Kerry Reichs, who will popping in and out of the blog all throughout the day to answer any questions you lovelies have for her. She’s incredibly busy, being out on the road right now and all but because she’s the greatest, she will be popping in and out so let’s take advantage of the time we have with her.
Thanks again to Kerry and good luck on the rest of your book tour and many hugs from your fans here at Book Binge.
This book is available from Avon. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
