By Kat Georges

Three Rooms Press recently released PEOPLE ARE TALKING the debut novel by Amanda Eisenberg, to critical acclaim. Publishers Weekly calls this “a notable addition to the dark academia shelf.” and Unpacked Magazine raves that PAT is filled with “biting humor, sharp social commentary, and all the emotional chaos of a reunion gone horribly, horribly wrong.” I recently sat down to talk with Amanda her incredible book and what led to its creation.

Kat Georges: Let me start by saying a big “Congratulations!” on the release of your debut novel, People Are Talking. Why don’t you give us the elevator pitch version of what this acclaimed book is all about.

Amanda Eisenberg: Thanks so much! Two women join a secret vigilante society that tracks rapists on their college campus, only to then deal with the fallout of their best friend’s sexual assault allegation. A decade later, the friend group reconvenes in Austin, Texas, for a wedding, where everyone is blackmailing and hooking up with each other. When the secret society crashes the wedding, with deadly consequences, the women must determine how much they’re willing to protect themselves at the expense of their personal politics.

KG: You have a background as a journalist, with a focus on women’s health issues, including sexual assault, and in particular, the #Metoo movement. How did this background feed into the story in People Are Talking?

AE: Journalists are tasked with observing human behavior. I love writing dialogue and figuring out ways for characters to act that may be aligned or at odds with how they actually feel. That training helped me write nuanced characters – though I did need to turn to many craft books to learn how to structure a novel!

My reporting experience definitely influenced the topic I chose to dive into. I’m interested in power, which on a college campus can be boiled down to sex – who’s having it and how, and who’s not. I’m used to engaging in tough topics in a palatable way, so it made sense to infuse that in a novel-length piece of writing.

KG: In your novel, a collegiate secret society, The Newts, goes further than then courts in terms of seeking “justice” against perpetrators of sexual assault. As a reporter did you uncover evidence of similar groups on college campuses or in the community at large? What was the idea behind inlcuding this type of group in People Are Talking?

AE: College is a space for students to try on different personalities and take on different passion projects. Some stick and some don’t – both are OK – and I thought that environment would make a great playground for these characters to figure out what they believe in and determine how far they’re willing to go to protect that projection of themselves. It feels like second nature for young people to be conscious of how they’re perceived, with the proliferation of social media and having a self that lives in the world and another self that lives solely online. I set the novel in the 2010s because of the shift in #MeToo and the growing understanding of consent on college campuses. If this book were set a decade later, I think the secret society would be more online than secret meetups in the woods!

KG: While your novel deals with a serious topic, it is also sprinkled with a lot of humor. What inspired this?

AE: Grief and humor often go hand and hand. Women, as a generalization, are also taught by society that they shouldn’t fully express themselves, should they be labeled a slew of nasty words that equate to “too much.” I’ve seen humor used to soften those expressions of anger or frustration or hurt, which are common feelings when we talk about sexual violence against women. I also wanted my book to be enjoyable and not a bummer!

KG: You’ve described yourself as a “Manhattan-based writer of feel-bad fiction.” How would you define “feel-bad fiction?”

AE: I wanted to set reader expectations that People Are Talking isn’t a feel-good novel. My characters bring out the worst in each other, but I think that’s a more interesting dynamic that isn’t always shown in friend ensembles.

KG: What influenced your decision to become a fiction writer after years as a journalist?

AE: I always wanted to write a novel, whereas journalism is a career. I love a fast-paced environment and getting near-instant feedback on work. As a novelist, you often toil for years in solitude, sharing drafts with the occasional writing group or beta reader. It’s very exciting to see a 300+ page story finally make its way to readers after all these years.

KG: What was your process in writing People Are Talking? Are you an “outliner,” conceiving of the entire book before starting the actual writing? Or did the book evolve within the actual writing?

AE: I have a very structured writing schedule that allows me to write loosely. When I’m drafting, I aim for 1,000 words a day, inspired by author Jami Attenberg’s writing challenges. I allow myself to write scenes or dialogue until I hit critical mass (around 20,000-40,000 words) before I try to figure out what the plot is. My first drafts are messy and take a long time to write, but once I have that first draft done, I can edit for plot, for character development, for stakes, for line-level writing. With People Are Talking, I rewrote entire chapters through the eyes of a single character or threw out 30 pages (10% of the book) and rewrote new ones to strengthen the story. Being a journalist means you have to get comfortably very quickly killing your darling words.

KG: What are some of your favorite novels you’ve read lately?

AE: Open Throat by Henry Hoke moved me so deeply. I love Wuthering Heights, so I devoured The Favorites by Layne Fargo. It’s absolutely pulpy. And I’m halfway through The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue and laughing my ass off. It’s delightful.

KG: If PEOPLE ARE TALKING was to become a film who would you cast as the top three leads?

AE: I’d love Sadie Sink to play Mal; Beanie Feldstein to play Dani; and Regina King to play Professor Peterson! I also love Dylan O’Brien’s work and think he’d make a great Rosen.