Please help me give a big Hoosblog welcome to Dallas Woodburn!
Dallas Woodburn’s debut novel The Best Week That Never Happened was the Grand Prize Winner of the Dante Rossetti Book Award for Young Adult Fiction. She is also the author of the YA novel Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life and the short story collections Woman, Running Late, in a Dress and How to Make Paper When the World is Ending. A former John Steinbeck Fellow in Creative Writing, her writing has been honored with the Cypress & Pine Short Fiction Award, the international Glass Woman Prize, and four Pushcart Prize nominations.
When she’s not writing, Dallas hosts the podcast Overflowing Bookshelves, teaches writing classes for teens and adults, and unapologetically bakes pumpkin-spice everything all year round. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and daughter.
Tell us about your book!
Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life is a YA friends-to-lovers contemporary romance. I like to describe it as “Brittany Runs a Marathon” meets “Some Kind of Wonderful” to the soundtrack of Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me.”
I worked on this novel for more than a decade and went through SO many seasons of rejection and disappointment. Over those 11+ years, I was represented by three different agents who tried to sell the book to many different publishers, with no luck. I submitted the book myself to numerous small publishers, receiving either no response or a form rejection letter from all of them… until Immortal Works Publishing bought my book last year!
And now, to hear from readers who are resonating with this story and falling in love with these characters I have loved for years and years… it is so gratifying and fulfilling.
The novel is a dual POV between Brad and Rose. Carissa is the linchpin who initially connects their narratives, but she is not a main character. It was my first time writing a dual POV and I really enjoyed the challenge!
Here’s the blurb:
The person who ruined their lives just might bring them together…
Brad is ready for a perfect senior year: he has a seat at the popular lunch table, a gig co-hosting the school’s morning announcements, and a gorgeous girlfriend. But a week before school starts, Carissa breaks up with Brad and his carefully constructed life comes crashing down. Convinced everything would be perfect if only Carissa would take him back, Brad creates a “self-improvement plan” and vows to re-win her heart.
Rose wishes she were having a normal senior year like everyone else, but leave it to her twin sister Carissa to butt in and ruin her life. Carissa secretly nominated Rose for the reality TV show Help Me Lose Weight and Live Again—and now Rose is on her way to Texas for three months of calorie-counting, marathon-exercising hell. Rose has always felt overshadowed by her “perfect” sister, and collapsing on a treadmill on national TV is not making things any better. Plus, as hard as she tries, Rose can’t squash feelings for her sister’s boyfriend Brad, even though she knows he would never see her as anything but a friend.
For fans of friends-to-lovers romance comes a heartwarming novel about self-improvement, identity and acceptance in our image-obsessed culture.
Buy Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life!
IndieBound | Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Bonus for Purchasing
Now for the fun stuff!
What’s your favorite genre? Do you read what you write?
My favorite genre is contemporary fiction, either for adults or young adults. I’m especially a sucker for a good romance. And yes, this is my favorite genre to both read and write! Back when I was studying writing in college and graduate school, it seemed like everyone else was writing Very Serious Literary Fiction, and my YA novel manuscript was my Secret Fun Project that I worked on late at night. It took me a while to realize that I could read and write in many different genres, and that I could fully embrace my love of YA fiction—that writing what I most love and want to read is all that truly matters.
I feel like so many readers and writers were made to feel bad for enjoying romance in our late teens/early twenties. I’m so glad you had a secret fun project!!
What’s your favorite part about writing?
It is so magical when the characters start to come alive and leap off the page; when they begin to feel like these real people you can’t wait to go hang out with again. I’m mostly a “pantser” who plots a little, and it is thrilling when the story is flowing and I just can’t wait to find out what happens next! Almost as if I am reading the book myself as I am writing it.
That feeling of looking forward to finding out what happens next it so exhilarating and hard to describe to non-writers.
What’s the hardest part of writing for you?
The first draft is exciting, but it is also the most nerve-wracking for me. I always feel like I am swimming across a giant body of water, leaning on faith and trust that I will eventually make it to the other side, even when it seems like I’m not making much forward progress. (And to keep the metaphor going, I often end up in a wholly new place, down the shore from where I was originally aiming when I set off at the beginning.) Once I have the first draft down on paper—even though it usually changes quite a bit during the revising process and the many drafts to come—the book feels somehow sturdier to me. I can exhale a little.
The first draft is my favorite part of writing, and yet I completely relate to this analogy. Perhaps because I love swimming?
What’s an activity unrelated to writing that you love?
I love to bake! It is a very peaceful activity for me, and it is always a treat to have something delicious to eat at the end. I enjoy trying out new recipes, and it is fun to throw together ingredients from the pantry to make up my own recipes.
I’ve never attempted making my own recipes, but my husband is making brownies from scratch as I write this, so do I get baking points?
Who’s your biggest cheerleader?
I am lucky to have so many cheerleaders in my life! My husband, brother, mom, and mother-in-law are hugely encouraging of my writing, celebrating successes with me and building me up during the low times. The best friend character in Thanks, Carissa is named Holly after my dear friend Holly, who is my first reader and metaphorical confetti-thrower. My dad is perhaps my biggest fan—he reads everything I write, listens to every podcast, shares every interview. He is also a writer and author, and has been my role model my whole life. It is very special to have someone who “gets” it, deep down, no explanation or subtext needed, because he is in it too—we are both journeying through our own writing lives together.
You are very fortunate! <3
Now I’d like to play a fun little game called This or That. As a writer, I find that a lot of interviews ask the same questions, so I always appreciate sharing something new about myself. I’m super excited about these questions—and I hope you enjoy them!
Introvert or extrovert? Introvert
Morning or night person? Definitely a night owl! My daughter has always been an early bird so I’ve been waking up early for the past 3+ years, but it still hasn’t turned me into a morning person.
Coffee or tea? Tea! I have a special green tea that I only drink when I’m writing.
Sweet or salty? Sweet. Chocolate is my love language.
Eternal summer or four seasons? I live in California, so we kind of get eternal summer. I’ll cheat and say that I’ll take the four seasons, California version. 🙂 Back when I lived in Indiana during graduate school and had to contend with actual snow, I would definitely have picked eternal summer.
Mountains or beach? Beach. I grew up in a beach town. The ocean always feels like home!
Dogs or cats? Dogs. But my sister-in-law and mother-in-law have helped me appreciate cats more!
Over 5’5” or under? Over. 5’10’’.
Left or right-handed? Right.
Hoodie or yoga pants? Yoga pants! I live in them!
Ha! I love the California four seasons. I’m also a green tea drinker and believe you can never have enough chocolate!
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you so much for having me as a guest, Melanie! Readers, if you do purchase, please fill out the form below and I’ll send you a signed bookplate, matching bookmarks and stickers!
Dallas, thank YOU much for spending this time with me and my readers. I’ve enjoyed this so much! Readers, you can find Dallas at these links—and be sure to check out Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life!
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
Buy Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life!
IndieBound | Barnes & Noble | Amazon | *Bonus for Purchasing
If you missed the previous interviews, you can read them here.
