Author Name: Susie Orman Schnall
Book Title: Anna Bright is Hiding Something
Book Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Release Date: 6/4/24
Publisher: SparkPress
Welcome, Susie! How would you describe Anna Bright is Hiding Something?
The Dropout meets Inventing Anna in this cinematic and page-turning read! A ripped-from-the-headlines story set in the glossy offices of Silicon Valley startups and NYC new media, ANNA BRIGHT IS HIDING SOMETHING explores our fascination with female founders breaking barriers—and sometimes behaving badly in the process.
What sparked the idea for this book?
When I was trying to decide what to write my next novel about, I was fascinated—still am—by news stories about female founders. Then I read Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup about Elizabeth Holmes from Theranos, and well, there was no turning back. My novel took off from there. I still have the email I wrote to my agent, proposing the idea to her. I wrote, “I want to embrace the energy of this topic, and its orbiting topics, through fiction.”
How long did it take for you to write the book? Did you do any research?
I approached my agent with the idea in November of 2021. This was after a significant amount of plotting and research. Once she gave me the go-ahead, I wrote a messy first draft over the next several months of full-time writing. The rounds of edits were another four or five months.
What drew you to upmarket/book club fiction?
I love writing about topics that are in the current milieu of conversations women are having amongst themselves. I did this with my second novel THE BALANCE PROJECT about work-life balance, and I loved writing about female founders behaving badly (and the good ones too!) for ANNA BRIGHT IS HIDING SOMETHING. We can read loads of nonfiction and journalism about buzzy topics, but it’s fun to explore them via fiction as well to get another perspective.
What’s your favorite part about writing/being an author? What do you find challenging?
My favorite part is holding the finished product (the actual book!) in my hands after years of hard work. And I also love the friendships I’ve made with other authors. The challenging part is the actual process of sitting down every day to bust out that first draft. It can be treacherous!
If you were speaking to someone who hasn’t read your writing before, why should they want to read Anna Bright is Hiding Something?
It’s topical, smart, and juicy, and fun!
Fill in the blank: Readers who liked _____(Book Title)____will also like Anna Bright is Hiding Something.
I’m actually going to take the liberty to change “Book Title” to “Show” and say “Readers who liked The Dropout on Hulu or Inventing Anna on Netflix (or any other show about founders or scammers or high performing women) will also like love ANNA BRIGHT IS HIDING SOMETHING.”
What do you hope readers will take away from this story?
Primarily, I want my readers to be entertained…to have that experience of sitting down with a book and being transported to another world – to have fun with a fast-paced relevant story. And then I want them to be exposed to this world of women in the workplace – to maybe learn a little with this peek behind the scenes of a tech firm in Silicon Valley and a business news website in New York City. I’d love for readers to be inspired by the women in my story – women who are following their dreams, women who are challenging institutionalized discrimination, and women who are literally moving fast and breaking things
Any words of wisdom you give your pre-published writer self (or to a new writer)?
Make sure you’re very clear with yourself what your goals are for publishing and then go after that goal with determination and dedication.
What are your interests outside of writing and reading?
I love spending time with my husband and our three sons (ages 19, 20, 22), playing around on Canva, doing crossword puzzles, organizing themed dinner parties, and hiking to the tops of mountains.
Are you working on a new project? Please tell us about it.
I’m co-writing a contemporary novel set in the publishing world with an author friend, and I’m deciding between two ideas for my next novel – both are dual timeline historical fiction.
What was the last book you read? What did you think of it?
I read an ARC of A NOVEL SUMMER by Jamie Brenner. Jamie’s one of my favorite authors – I always get so absorbed in and transported by her novels. And this one was no different! I loved it and highly recommend.
Where can readers find you?
Website: https://susieschnall.com/
My book events will be listed here closer to pub date: https://susieschnall.com/events/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susieormanschnall/
Thank you, Susie! Anna Bright is Hiding Something is out now.
Anna Bright Is Hiding Something
Susie Orman Schnall is the author of five novels about ambitious women: Anna Bright Is Hiding Something (2023), We Came Here to Shine(2020), The Subway Girls (2018), The Balance Project (2015), and On Grace (2014). She’s also a screenwriter currently shopping her first pilot and feature-length screenplay. A mother of three sons, Susie grew up in Los Angeles, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and now lives with her husband in New York. When she’s not reading or writing you can find her doing a crossword puzzle, playing around on Canva, or hiking to the top of a mountain.