We chat with author Kate O’Shaughnessy about A Season for Falling, which is a swoony, heartfelt, and evocative standalone paperback original romance about first love, second chances, and finding yourself in the season of change—perfect for fans of Misty Wilson’s Falling Like Leaves and anyone looking for their next Gilmore Girls-esque fall read.
Hi, Kate! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi—sure! I’m a middle grade and YA author living in Northern California with my husband, our two kids, and our beloved ex-street dog, Mo, who my children exclusively call Momo. I’m a Sagittarius (Scorpio moon). I’m a hobby container gardener, although I’m not very good at it. One of my favorite parts of living in California is access to so much awe-inspiring, beautiful nature. I’ve always been a big reader, but I thought I wanted to work in the food industry after I graduated from college, so I went to culinary school and spent some time working in the food world until the siren song of writing called me back to books.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
Reading has been a part of my family’s DNA for as long as I can remember. Both of my parents are big readers, and the family room of the house that I grew up in was lined floor-to-ceiling with books. Our big family outing was going to our local Border’s (RIP), and we all got to choose a few books and a special treat from the café. My mom would read to my brother and I most nights, and my memory of children is falling asleep to the thrum of her voice reading us a story. My love of reading continued on through adolescence and college, where I’d often eschew my class reading, instead reaching for the stack of novels I kept on my bedside table. But it took me a long time—well into adulthood—to realize that I could write stories, too, instead of just loving them as a reader. After culinary school and a short-lived fling working at fancy restaurants in Manhattan, I had taken a two-year food and agriculture fellowship at Yale University, where I had done my undergraduate degree. I moved back to New Haven. All my friends had graduated and moved away by then, so I mostly spent my time after work alone. There are only so many TV shows you can watch and books you can read, so one day I decided it might be fun to try writing a story of my own. And then it was like all the pieces clicked together, and from that moment on, I fell deeply in love with writing.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: I absolutely loved Heckedy Peg by Audrey and Don Wood. That one sticks out to me. It was so freaky (complimentary).
- The one that made you want to become an author: This is kind of a cop out answer but every book that I love (which is a lot of books) makes me so inspired to get back to writing. I love seeing an author doing something experimental or exciting with structure (for example, Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta) or nailing chemistry between their characters (as Alison Espach does in The Wedding People).
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: North Woods by Daniel Mason. I read this a few years ago and when I finished I was in such a haze I kept bumping into things in the kitchen, so much that my husband was like, “what’s up with you?” I recommend this book to everyone.
Your latest novel, A Season for Falling, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Cozy. Swoony. Autumnal. Voicey. Emotional.
What can readers expect?
Readers can expect a swoony love story with rich emotional throughlines and journeys for both Claire as well as supporting characters. I love a good emotional character arc!
Where did the inspiration for A Season for Falling come from?
I’ve always been fascinated by celebrity culture. From the outside, fame seems to be such a complicated state of being. Child stars, in particular, have a iceberg-like quality of being cute and adorable on the surface, with a sprawling dark underbelly hidden below. I was very interested in exploring that via Claire, who’s an ex-child star from LA who had the chance to Hannah Montana herself into a normal teenager, living in a normal town in Central Connecticut. I wanted to explore this idea of fame and celebrity from her vantage point of running away from the spotlight, while actively falling back in love with her old co-star, whose own star in Hollywood is on the rise. I also wanted the setting to be as starkly different from her childhood in LA as possible, which is why I chose autumn in Connecticut. I grew up in Connecticut, and autumn is the season I miss most having lived in California for the past ten years. It’s so specifically cozy, with the crisp air and the blaze of foliage and the nights darkening and chilling early…it’s the season of change, and felt perfectly suited to Claire and Luke’s love story.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Other than the main love story, I loved writing the relationship between Claire, the main character, and her older brother, Nicky. They have a classic sibling relationship—they bicker, they tussle, they get on each other’s last nerves—but there’s something deep and tender between them. They really understand and support each other in a fundamental way that I loved writing. I also loved writing Nicky’s love story in this book. I also loved writing Claire’s friendship with her best friend, Evie. Claire has gone through a lot in her life, relationship-wise, and I wanted to give her a wonderful, supportive, truly healthy best friendship. That was a joy to write.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
I think mostly self-doubt! I’d never written a YA novel before, only middle grade, so I wasn’t sure how it was going to go. But I did it over a summer where I didn’t have anything contracted, and I told myself it was just for fun and practice. I didn’t even show my agent the manuscript for over a year! But when I took it out and re-read it, I really loved it, and the rest is history.
What’s next for you?
I have another seasonal YA romance on the docket I’m excited to share more details about soon.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up? Any you’ve read so far this year that you’ve enjoyed?
For middle grade, I recently read and LOVED How to Take a Risk by Rebecca Bendheim, which is out this spring. It was such a wonderful coming of age with a pitch-perfect voice. I also loved Quetzal’s Labyrinth by Karla Valenti, which is a rip-roaring MG fantasy perfect for fans of Percy Jackson. In terms of YA, I’m very excited to read Hawk & Sparrow by Ayana Gray and Jubilee Foster Is Totally Fine by Elise Bryant!
