Interview with Jessica Brody, author of My Life Undecided

Did you always know you wanted to be a writer or was there something else you wanted to do as a career?

The short answer is yes. I’ve always wanted to be a writer. Although it took me a long time to figure that out. In second grade I turned in a four page book report (the assignment was to write one paragraph) and the teacher made such a huge deal about it. I really couldn’t understand why. Writing just came naturally to me. At that moment I remember wanting to be a writer. But somewhere along the way I convinced myself that I needed to get a “serious” job…you know, one that comes with dental insurance. So I majored in Economics in college (very serious!) and went on to be a financial analyst for MGM Studios. It wasn’t until later that I realized “serious” wasn’t for me. So I quit to pick up where I left off at age seven.

Is there one author that you have read every book that they have written?

There are a few, actually! Here’s a list: Emily Giffin, Sophie Kinsella, Alyson Noël, J.K. Rowling, Christopher Pike (I used to be obsessed with him as a kid!), and Jennifer Bosworth (technically she only has one release so far, but I’m lucky enough to be her friend and to have read her next book too!)

In your opinion what is the best movie adaptation of a book that you've read?

Well, it hasn’t released yet but I have VERY high hopes for THE HUNGER GAMES. I love love love the book series and so far, the movie trailers look excellent. It’s just a book that really lends itself to being a movie. It has a very cinematic plot. So I’m hoping that will be my answer in about two weeks! But until then, I’ll go with THE HELP. I thought they did an amazing job of capturing the magic of that book. And the Harry Potter series also made fantastic movies. But no matter how good an adaptation is, the books are always better, aren’t they?

When you are browsing book stores what is the first section you go to?

Young adult! I love this section. Actually nowadays it’s all I read. And not just because I write in this genre, but because I really think some of the best books out there are YA books. They have faster plots, more action, and great characters!

If your book was being made into a movie do you already have actors in mind for each role? What bands/singers would you put on the soundtrack?

For My Life Undecided¸ I’ve always pictured Shailene Woodley as Brooklyn Pierce. She has this great innocence about her look which I love. And she’s an amazing actress. For The Karma Club, I would really love to see Selena Gomez in the role of Maddy. As for bands for the soundtrack, well, I actually already did a soundtrack for The Karma Club. It’s on iTunes and it even has four original songs that were written JUST for the book. You can check it out here:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-karma-club-original-book/id407598156

When you're creating characters do you incorporate traits from people you know?

Yes, all the time! MY LIFE UNDECIDED actually has a few real people in it. I set it in my home town of Parker, Colorado, at a fictitious representation of my own high school. Mr. Simpson, the Algebra teacher in the book is based entirely on Mr. Simpson, my own high school algebra teacher. And I based one of the boys in MY LIFE UNDECIDED on a boyfriend I had in high school. He even has the same name and drives the same car as my ex did! And the funniest part was, I hadn’t spoken to this guy since high school and right when I finished writing the book, he Facebooked me out of the blue to say hi. It was really surreal. He must have knew on some level that I was writing about him. 

If you had the chance to have a sit down with any author alive or deceased who would it be and why?

I definitely think it would have to be J.K. Rowling. I would love to see how her brain works. I’m in total awe of that imagination of hers!

Thanks for the fun interview! These were great questions! I hope you and your blog readers enjoy my answers! 