An Interview with Chris Van Etten

I recently got the chance to ask Chris Van Etten some questions about the series he co-wrote with David Levithan and David Ozanich.

1. What was it writing with David Levithan and David Ozanich?

Heartstopping. David Levithan has an awe-inspiring imagination and a magic touch where characters are concerned (Don't you want them to be your friends?). He's also a gentle taskmaster. Despite my inexperience and sheer terror at writing a book, he was able to provide easy guidance and quell my fears.

David Ozanich and I go way back. I hired him (years ago) as an intern at One Life To Live and we became fast friends. The germ for Likely Story began there between the two of us. David O. and I have similar sensibilities that make our working together a dream.

I was mostly nervous that my effort would never measure up to books one and two. But with their support I muddled through and am ultimately pleased with the result that is Red Carpet Riot.

Specifically about my experience with the process: I was very lucky in some respects to land the task of writing book number three in the series. A lot of the work had already been done for me by the two Davids, as they're written the first two books. They had developed a cast of rich, fully realized characters from which I could draw at will and already set up the story for the conclusion in book three. All I had to do was resolve the conflicts they'd already set in motion - or, in one or two cases, nearly resolve them.

The two Davids had the harder jobs. David Levithan had to start the story from scratch, or from an outline the three of us had constructed. David Ozanich had to move the story along but because the books were designed as a trilogy, could not move the story along too far. Basically, he had to tread water. Of the three of us, I probably had the easiest job.


2. Do you plan on writing any more books?

I wouldn't say I "plan" on writing more books. I'm kicking around a couple of ideas, sure. Will they become books? Maybe. I think about it often. As hard as it was to write RCR, I loved the process and I love Mallory. If I luck upon the right character and the right story, definitely. So we'll see. Was that a vague enough answer for you?

3. Will there be more books in the Likely Story series?

There are currently no plans for further installments in the Likely Story series. However, we're quite open to it, and there's certainly more story out there for Mallory and her cohort (you didn't think Mallory's mother would give her a simple answer at the end of RCR, did you? There's more where that came from...). The door is open. I suppose it's up to the readers and Knopf to invite us to come in.