East Coast Girls: Q & A with Author Kerry Kletter

by Elisa Zied | May 20, 2020 | books, fiction, writers

I am literally counting the minutes to read the sophomore novel of the amazing Kerry Kletter. Literally. Because I know East Coast Girls (MIRA, May 26, 2020) will be wonderful. Her writing is from the heart. Lyrical, poetic, painful, and beautiful. I expect nothing less from East Coast Girls.

Here’s a description from Kletter’s website:

They share countless perfect memories—and one they wish they could forget.

Childhood friends Hannah, Maya, Blue and Renee share a bond that feels more like family. Growing up, they had difficult home lives, and the summers they spent vacationing together in Montauk were the happiest memories they ever made—campfires on the beach, salt-spray hair and the effervescent excitement of the bright future ahead. Then, the summer after graduation, one terrible night changed everything.

Twelve years have passed since that fateful incident, and during that time, their sisterhood has drifted apart, each woman haunted by her own lost innocence. But just as they reunite in Montauk for one last summer together, hoping to heal those wounds and find happiness once more, tragedy strikes again. This time it’ll test them like never before, forcing them to confront decisions they’ve each had to live with and old secrets that refuse to stay buried.

Told with lyrical prose and sharp insights into human nature, East Coast Girls unveils the dark truths that can threaten even the deepest friendships and the unconditional love that makes them stronger than ever.

I had the pleasure of doing an email Q & A with Kletter about the novel and her writing life. Here are the highlights:

EZ: You know I’m a big fan of your debut young adult novel, The First Time She Drowned. You had me at the first line (which I won’t spoil for others who haven’t yet read it). And I’m thrilled your sophomore novel, East Coast Girls, is out. What was the impetus to write it—and to write for an adult audience?

KK: First, thank you! You have been a wonderful champion of my first book and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.

You know when I published that book I felt such an outpouring of love and support from people from all aspects of my life and in particular the friends I grew up with on the east coast. Friends have always been a saving grace in my life and that support meant everything to me. I wanted to find a way to express my gratitude and so I decided to write a book that was, to me, a love letter to friendship. EAST COAST GIRLS is about a lot of other things as well—trauma, resiliency, compassion for our flawed humanity—but at its heart it’s about the beauty of lifelong friends.

As far as writing for an adult audience, my first book was technically considered a crossover novel—meaning that it might appeal to both young adults and adults so I didn’t really feel like I was leaping genres too much even though they are calling this my adult debut.

EZ: How was the process of writing East Coast Girls different from writing your first novel?

KK: I think second novels are harder in some way because now you have all the voices from the first book in your head—what sells, what readers like and don’t, what their expectations might be. It was tough to get past all of that and just write the story I wanted to tell.

EZ: What was the most challenging part of writing this novel in terms of craft and logistics?

KK: Having three narrators with three distinct personalities. Oy.

EZ: What was the best part of writing this novel?

KK: I think the thing I always like most about writing is that it allows me to grapple with questions I’m struggling with in my own life. In this book I was looking to answer two questions: “How do we acknowledge and accept the fragility of life and the fear of loss and still live and love fearlessly?” And then separately, “How do we cope with the fact that sometimes the people we love most cause us great pain and how do we know when to forgive and when to let go?” I feel like I learn by asking the question and letting the characters figure it out. Not that there are any easy answers, of course.

EZ: What do you need in terms of physical space and inspiration to sit down to write? And where and in what conditions do you do your best writing?

KK: A bed (my office), earplugs, laptop. I think I do my best writing after I’ve read really good writing. I’m always inspired by beautiful sentences.

EZ: What are some of your favorite recent reads?

KK: I loved Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano which I thought was beautiful and life-affirming and so carefully done. My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell was a perfect book, just perfectly structured, absorbing, well written, honest. A lighter read I loved was Emily Henry’s Beach Read which is hilarious and swoony and has depth as well. It’s set to be a huge and well-loved book which thrills me because Emily happens to be an incredible person.

EZ: What novels are you most looking forward to diving into?

KK: I cannot wait for Stephanie Danler’s memoir Stray. I loved her first Sweet Bitter so much. I also really want A Star is Bored by Byron Lane, The Paris Hours by Alex George and Christina Clancy’s The Second Home. As for young adult novels, Jennifer Niven has a new one out in the fall called Breathless. I love everything she writes. And I’m looking forward to Laurie Elizabeth Flynn’s All Eyes on Her and Marisa Reichardt’s Aftershocks.

EZ: What most inspires your writing/story ideas?

KK: Honestly, mostly just life. Other books sometimes, but yeah mostly life.

EZ: How has the current pandemic affected your creative/writing life?

KK: I’m being surprisingly productive! Writing is such a focused activity—I use it to help regulate myself and forget the big problems of the world for a while. It gives me a sense of purpose and meaning as well.

EZ: When you’re not writing, how do you like to spend your time—pre-covid-19 and during the pandemic?

KK: Pre-covid—spending time with friends, running, surfing, skiing, reading, binging netflx. During covid—running (mask on!) writing, binging Netflix, and much-needed organizing of my apartment. And in both cases too much Twitter.

EZ: How can friends, family, other authors and fans support you and your work during the pandemic? Where can they find you online?

KK: Obviously there are much bigger problems in the world, but it is an unfortunate time to be releasing a book. It’s harder for new books to get traction when all the bookstores are closed, book tours and events cancelled, and there are no booksellers handselling your book or even opportunities for people to impulse buy off the shelf. I never want anyone to feel they have to do anything to support me, but if they wanted to I’d be thrilled of course if anyone bought the book or asked their local library to buy it if they haven’t yet. Beyond that, social media posts and recommendations to friends are incredibly helpful in spreading the word—my friends, fellow authors and readers have always been so amazing with that and I’m so grateful. And, of course, Amazon reviews are always helpful. Unless you hated the book in which case, not so much 😊.

I can be found on Instagram and Twitter as @Kkletter, and on Facebook under Kerry Kletter. My website is Kerrykletter.com.

EZ: What’s next for Kerry Kletter?

KK: Finishing the third book, trying not to go stir crazy, and awaiting YOUR first novel.

EZ: Where would you like people to buy your books?

KK: I want people to shop where they want to but, if they are able, I encourage them to buy from their local independent bookstore or from Bookshop.org which supports indies. Those stores really need us right now and I’m very worried about publishing if we lose them.

Read an excerpt of East Coast girls here.