Perched atop a hill
in the tiny town of Marchburg, Virginia, The Goode School is a
prestigious prep school known as a Silent Ivy. The boarding school of
choice for daughters of the rich and influential, it accepts only the
best and the brightest. Its elite status, long-held traditions and
honor code are ideal for preparing exceptional young women for
brilliant futures at Ivy League universities and beyond. But a
stranger has come to Goode, and this ivy has turned poisonous.
In a world where appearances are everything, as long as students pretend to follow the rules, no one questions the cruelties of the secret societies or the dubious behavior of the privileged young women who expect to get away with murder. But when a popular student is found dead, the truth cannot be ignored. Rumors suggest she was struggling with a secret that drove her to suicide.
But look closely…because there are truths and there are lies, and then there is everything that really happened.
In a world where appearances are everything, as long as students pretend to follow the rules, no one questions the cruelties of the secret societies or the dubious behavior of the privileged young women who expect to get away with murder. But when a popular student is found dead, the truth cannot be ignored. Rumors suggest she was struggling with a secret that drove her to suicide.
But look closely…because there are truths and there are lies, and then there is everything that really happened.
Q&A
with J.T. Ellison
Do you plan your books in advance or let
them develop as you write?
Both.
Sometimes the story just unfolds, and sometimes I have to
relentlessly work on themes and turning points and characters’
points of view. Every book is different, every book has its own
unique challenges. I’m always thinking about what’s next, and
sometimes even what’s after that. But when it comes to actually
sitting down to write, I like to let the story unfold a bit, let it
stretch its wings, before I try to lash it to the mast and conform it
to my vision.
What does the act of writing mean to you?
It’s
a sacred contract with me and a mythical “someone” who might read
the words at some point in the future and find them entertaining or
moving. It’s sheer magic on my end, creating, and sheer magic on
the readers’ end, when they get to experience what was in my head
as I was writing. It’s the most incredible mystical experience out
there.
Have you ever had a character take over a
story, and if so, who was it and why?
All
the time. Oh my gosh, all the time. Honestly, if the character
doesn’t
run away with things, I know there’s a problem. Ivy, n LIE TO ME,
is a particular favorite. She’s just so nasty…
Which one of Good
Girls Lie’s
characters was the hardest to write and why?
Ash,
for sure. She was so elusive and aloof with me. The Britishisms, the
secrets, the lies, she was always just out of reach. Of course, that
was because I’d written her in third person. When I switched her to
first, she wouldn’t shut up.
Which character in any of your books (Good
Girls Lie or
otherwise) is dearest to you and why?
Oh
that’s an impossible question. Taylor. Sam. Sutton. Vivian. Ash.
Aubrey. Ivy. Juliet. Lauren. Becca. Gavin. Baldwin. Xander. They are
all me, on some level, whether it’s a fear or a triumph, a flaw or
a heroic action. A moment of love or a moment of animosity. It’s
like asking me to choose among my children, which one is my favorite.
(I don’t have kids, by the way, but I couldn’t pick my favorite
of my kittens, either.)
What did you want to be as a child? Was it
an author?
I
desperately wanted to be Colorado’s first female firefighter. When
that job was taken, I cast about. Doctor. Lawyer. Fighter Pilot. Spy.
International business maven. Olympic swimmer. Poet. In the end,
being a writer was my only choice. That way, I get to experience all
the lives I could have led.
What does a day in the life of J.T. Ellison
look like?
It’s
rather blissful. It starts rather lazily, with the cats cuddled into
my arms and the newspaper on my iPad, then progresses to kicking the
lazy beasts out, pouring a cup of tea and handling email. I am not a
morning person, so I tend to do business in the morning and writing
in the afternoon, when I’m sharper. I’ve always wanted to be the
writer who gets up at 5 am to write whilst the birds chirp and the
house sleeps, watching the sun rise and running five miles before the
rest of the world is awake, but alas, it was not meant to be. You
need to go to a concert that starts at ten p.m., I’m your girl.
What do you use to inspire you when you get
Writer’s Block?
It
depends. If it’s a genuine block, a I’ve lost faith in myself and
my work block, I will step away from the manuscript entirely, read,
walk, golf, yoga, go out for margaritas with my husband, anything to
remove me from the situation. But 90 percent of the time, it’s just
a story issue, so I work it out with some of my creative partners.
Lots of texting and phone calls and what ifs, until it shakes itself
free.
What book would you take with you to a
desert island?
Hmmm…
my knee jerk is the Harry Potter series – I know, I know, that’s
seven books, but I’m sure there’s an omnibus edition somewhere.
The fight for good and evil never ceases to amaze and comfort me.
Knowing love conquers evil is a big deal in this world. And Hermione
kicks ass. If I’m forced into a single title, Plato’s Republic.
I’ve been obsessed with the allegory of the cave my entire adult
life.
Favorite quote?
“Do.
Or Do not. There is no try.” – Master Yoda
Coffee or tea?
Loose
leaf earl grey. Making tea is a meditative experience for me.
Best TV or Movie adaptation of a book?
Clueless,
hands-down the best adaptation of Austen’s Emma
ever, and I’ve been enjoying A
Discovery of Witches,
based on the fabulous books by Deborah Harkness. Outlander isn’t
bad, either. And Game of Thrones… obviously, I don’t include
anything past the second episode of the final season of that, though
I did enjoy the whole Deanarys-Drogon airborne apocalypse. I mean,
talk about a girl who had reason to be aggravated with society.
Do you have stories on the back burner that
are just waiting to be written?
So.
Many. Stories. I will never get to them all. At last count, there are
49 in my “Story Idea” folder, with several more floating around
in my head.
What has been the hardest thing about
publishing? What has been the most fun?
The
hardest is staying in the game, juggling the necessary mix of
creativity and business, finding new paths to reach readers and
leveling up the writing so it’s possible to grow my career. It was
much easier to write, to focus, before our constant connections to
the internet consumed us. The most fun is that email from a reader,
when something I’ve written strikes a chord with them and they
write to tell me they love a story, or a character, or an ending. It
doesn’t get better than that.
What advice would you give budding authors
about publishing?
Stay
as much in a vacuum as you can while writing. You don’t need a
platform, you need an excellent, groundbreaking book. And read
everything. Everything you can get your hands on. You learn writing
through osmosis as much as writing the books themselves. Find your
writing habit and hold it sacred. If you respect your work, your
people will, too.
What was the last thing you read?
I
just finished Holly Black’s THE QUEEN OF NOTHING, the finale of her
Folk of the Air trilogy, and just finished listening to BAG OF BONES
by Stephen King. Both were exceptional.
Your top five authors?
Diana
Gabaldon
JK
Rowling
Deborah
Harkness
Leigh
Bardugo
Sarah
J. Maas
Book you've bought just for the cover?
That’s
how I found the Holly Black trilogy – I adored the cover of THE
CRUELEST PRINCE.
Tell us about what you’re working on now.
I’m
writing a novel about a destination wedding that goes very, very
wrong. It has loose ties to Rebecca, and it titled HER DARK LIES.
You can purchase Good Girls Lie from any of these retailers:
J.T.
Ellison is the New
York Times and
USA
Today
bestselling author of more than 20 novels, and the EMMY-award winning
co-host of A WORD ON WORDS, Nashville's premier literary show. With
millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim,
prestigious awards, and has been published in 26 countries. Ellison
lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens.
Connect with the author on social media:
Twitter:
@thrillerchick
Facebook:
@JTEllison14
Instagram:
@thrillerchick
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