The Luckiest by Mila McWarren
Release Date: July 7, 2015
Goodreads Link
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: C.B. Messer
Sales Links: Interlude Press | Amazon
A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Author Interview with Mila McWarren
• I love it when an author chooses unusual professions for their characters. Why a memoirist? Does his profession play an important role in the story or was the choice separate from what you wanted to “get” from the plot?
Oh, man, I love this question.
So (a) I love the hubris of Aaron being a memoirist. I love the hubris of ANYBODY being a memoirist, but especially this kid who is still, in so many ways, really actively figuring out who he is. I mean, really, how dare he – but of course he does. It’s actually a central piece of thinking about who he is and how he understands himself; the kid has balls, for sure. (b) In my heart of hearts, I totally want to be a memoirist. I wish I had the skill of capturing a moment of my life and distilling it into a perfect story that somebody else might actually find some beauty in. I wish I felt like my own experience was important enough that other people should care about it more! That must be an amazing way to live! (c) You’re right on with the point about what it does for the plot – I think, ideally, it helps encourage us to slow down a little bit and think about the impact of experiences. It’s just a week at a beach house, right? Or maybe it’s more. And, finally, (d) man did it help do some structural work. It’s a common cheat, diary entries and the like, as a way to sneak in a little more exposition without dumping it all over your reader. I’m not even a little sorry, because I ended up really loving and enjoying the little interstitial bits of Nik and Aaron’s writing that it allowed me to sneak in there.
- What was the inspiration for the title?
So there’s a scene in the book where they sing at the wedding, and the song they sing is Ben Folds’ The Luckiest. Google it – it’s gorgeous. But I loved the parallel of that title with the two central characters, because really: who is lucky enough to get it so damn right the first time out, and then also get a second chance after you’ve blown it all to hell by being a dumb teenager? They are, most sincerely, the luckiest.
- Do you stay in touch with your old school friends and did that help inspire your story?
Not. Even. A little bit. I have a really active and close group of friends in the city where I live, and most of those I’ve met on the internet over the last 10 years, or through work. It’s definitely the case that Aaron and Nik’s friends from The Luckiest are more wish-fulfillment than anything inspired by my real life. (Also, though: I’m so much older than Aaron and Nik! A thing I’ve thought about a lot is which of those people they’ll still be close to in another 10 years. I think Alex and David will stay, and probably Stephanie, in her own slightly distant, self-absorbed way. I am really not sure about Jasmine. That girl worries me. I am probably too attached.)
- . How do you choose a setting?
Well, first of all: I have to have been there. The internet is great and all, but honestly, you can get so much just from sitting on a bench for an hour – who’s walking by, what the air smells like, whether it sounds like bells or traffic or trucks or water, where the shade is, whether you need a sweater at night. And then I like to think about what kinds of stories that place might have to tell. Texas was an easy pick, in this case, because I know it so well. Texans are proud and so many never leave the state because they don’t have to; it’s a huge place, the economy is growing well, and there is work to be had. The people who do leave (especially those who have deep roots there) do so because they have reasons: they don’t feel comfortable there, or they want to try something very distinctively different, or because they needed some kind of escape. Being from a place like that, a place you never HAVE to leave, marks you as a little bit different when you do – and that is a story worth thinking about, I think.
- Favorite wedding themed book or movie?
Besides this one?
So, first: when I was thinking about this book, way way back in the beginning, I thought about it as a ‘Big Chill’ story. Obviously it’s a little bit different – a funeral story is especially depressing about characters so young – but the central idea of all these people in a house as the central setting was the common thread.
Which, now that you’ve asked this question, makes me feel kind of dumb. Because one of my all-time favorite favorite movies is ‘Monsoon Wedding’, a Mira Nair film from 2001, and there’s a good handful of common elements: people coming together for a wedding; that exciting/manic/ awkward energy of people who don’t see each other very often anymore coming together; and a secondary love story between the guy who comes to build the whole wedding and another member of the household. Huh. Look at that.
- What’s next for Mila McWarren?
So much work to catch up on! In terms of fiction writing, though: I honestly have no idea. I really believe in the value of letting my brain go fallow for a little bit and then waiting to see what grows up. There are just the barest green shoots now and there’s not even a central character attached but I’ll say this: every year I go to San Diego with my husband for Comic-Con, and we nerd out pretty hard. This year it just might turn into a little bit of a research trip.
Thanks! This was really fun!
Blurb:
When New York-based memoirist Aaron Wilkinson gathers with his high school friends to marry off two of their own, he is forced to spend a week with Nik, the boy who broke his heart.
As they settle into the Texas beach house where the nuptials will be performed, Nik quickly makes his intentions clear: he wants Aaron back. “He’s coming hard, baby,” a friend warns, setting the tone for a week of transition where Aaron and Nik must decide if they are playing for keeps.
Pages or Words: 256 pages
Categories: Contemporary, Gay fiction, M/M Romance, New Adult, Romance
Excerpt:
Aaron finishes the song and Stephanie snatches the mic out of his hand, crooks her finger at Nik and launches them into a reprise of their performance of “Dancing on My Own” from the homecoming weekend they all spent here at the house back in senior year. Stephanie still has questionable rhythm and tragic pitch—she loves to sing, which is why they have a karaoke machine in this house, but it’s one thing she will admit she doesn’t have much of a gift for—but there’s a reason Nik majored in music at The University of Texas, and his voice has come a long way.
Somehow, this deliberate throwback to a memory that was never anything but happy seems different than what Aaron has just done. He sits on the sofa, flanked by Alex and Jasmine, hating them both a little for participating in it even while he smiles. Nik dances—how can you not, with this song—but he still watches Aaron, gives him a little head-tilt during the chorus, and it’s charming and devastating and infuriating.
Jasmine leans to murmur, “Oh, I see how it is.”
“Oh, shut up.”
“You might not be desperate, but I’m not sure about him. He’s coming hard, baby.”
About the author:
Mila McWarren grew up in Texas, but has happily made her home on the East Coast for the last decade. In her day job she works as a social scientist and has spent the last 10 years developing her fiction writing online. She lives with her husband and their two kids. When she isn’t using working, writing, or hanging out with her family, she likes knitting and watching television, because they go together like peanut butter and chocolate, two of her other great loves.
Where to find the author:
Twitter: @milamcwarren
Tumblr: https://www.milamcwarren.tumblr.com
Website: https://www.milamcwarren.com
Contest
Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: One $25 Interlude Press gift card. Five e-book copies of ‘The Luckiest’. Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.
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Tour Dates & Stops: July 7 – July 20, 2015
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Thanks for having me here today – I really loved talking to you!
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It was a great interview, please make a return visit!
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