My Life After Now
Jessica Verdi
Lucy just had the worst week ever. Seriously, mega bad. And suddenly, it’s all too much—she wants out. Out of her house, out of her head, out of her life. She wants to be a whole new Lucy. So she does something the old Lucy would never dream of.
And now her life will never be the same. Now, how will she be able to have a boyfriend? What will she tell her friends? How will she face her family?
Now her life is completely different…every moment is a gift. Because now she might not have many moments left.
Tell us a little about yourself and how you got into writing.
It’s really cool how you went from acting to writing. It sounds wonderful to be able to choose your own schedule and stories to tell. What did you learn while researching for My Life After Now?
We learn about some stats at school, but there’s nothing like hearing an actual story to learn about the realities of HIV and AIDS. Lucy goes through a challenging time in her life what with losing acting and her boyfriend, having her estranged mother show up after three years, and contracting HIV in a one-night stand. What was it like having to put Lucy through all this through the drafting and editing/revising process?
It is because she goes through all that that we can really sympathize with her. How did you go about finding the balance between sharing enough facts about HIV and all that Lucy goes through while keeping her story relatable and not preachy?
While the story is about Lucy at its heart, the people around her also move our hearts in different ways. Many of the characters reveal new sides to themselves as the story progresses. Is there any that surprised you in particular?
Relationships are a big part of the book, I agree. Would you share an excerpt from the novel that sets the tone for Lucy’s story?
On the other hand, if no one knew, they would still be expecting me to be the same old Lucy. But how do you play the role of yourself when “yourself ” no longer exists?
What are you working on right now?
Thanks for interviewing, Jessica. I’m looking forward to your next book!
Jessica Verdi is a young adult author who writes envelope-pushing stories about not-so-pretty real-life issues, but always with a positive spin. After nearly ten years on the stage, she got an idea for a novel. Now she can’t imagine doing anything else. Jess received her MFA in Writing for Children from The New School and works as an editor at a romance novel publisher. She loves all animals, from the cute and cuddly to the large and freakish, has been a vegetarian for most of her life, is a little too obsessed with TV shows about vampires, and has an amazing group of writer friends who keep her sane. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and dog.
Author: Crystal
A story girl at heart, Crystal is a bibliophile who can easily spend the day immersed in a good read. She writes under the name Kristy Wang. You can follow her writing adventures on X and Instagram @_kristywang.
Victoria Zumbrum says
This book sounds very interesting. I can't wait to read it to see what happened.
Danny says
Wow.. this sounds like such a powerful story with a brave topic to touch.