The Nerd Daily recently had the pleasure of chatting to Alison Cochrun, debut author of the upcoming The Charm Offensive, a heartwarming romantic comedy about an awkward tech genius on a reality dating show who falls in love with his producer. We got to ask Alison our burning questions about her debut novel, all things reality TV and so much more!
Alison Cochrun is a high school English teacher living outside of Portland, Oregon. When she’s not reading and writing queer love stories, you can find her torturing teenagers with Shakespeare, crafting perfect travel itineraries, hate-watching reality dating shows, and searching for the best happy hour nachos. The Charm Offensive is her first novel.
Lightning round: what was the first book, the first song and the first movie you can remember consuming as a child?
The cartoon movie Charlotte’s Web. I can remember my experience so distinctly because it was the first time a movie ever made me cry, and I immediately ran into the bathroom so no one would see me. I was maybe five at the time? Since then, I’ve gotten very used to crying at just about everything I watch.
Now, tell us about The Charm Offensive! What can readers expect?
The Charm Offensive is a queer romantic comedy about a socially-awkward tech genius who goes on a reality dating show to revamp his image and ends up falling in love with his producer instead of one of his contestants. Readers can expect reality television drama, angst, lots of kissing, and tropey romance goodness. But the book also deals with more serious topics surrounding sexual identity, mental health, and the stigmatization of mental illness. Expect to laugh (hopefully) and cry (maybe, if you’re anything like me).
What inspired you to write The Charm Offensive?
I’m a long-time critical viewer of reality dating shows, and especially The Bachelor, but overwhelmingly, the love stories highlighted on those shows are heteronormative. One day at work, I got bored and tried to imagine how someone like me would end up on one of those shows, and the plot of the book sort of spun out from there. In a lot of ways, writing The Charm Offensive was a way for me to write the version of a reality dating show I would want to see, one where there is space for people like me to find love.
Since The Charm Offensive is your debut, share some insight in your writing/publishing history with us! What was the most challenging and perhaps the most rewarding part of this journey for you so far?
The most challenging part and the most rewarding part are intertwined for me. Even though I’ve been writing books since I was six, I had never really shared my writing with a stranger until I began the querying process for The Charm Offensive. The biggest hurdle was being vulnerable enough to share my work with other people, especially this book, which is so deeply personal to me. Yet, on the flip side of that, having other people read the book now and reach out to me about what the mental health rep or the asexual rep has meant to them has been by far the most incredible part of this journey.
The Charm Offensive both celebrates the magic of reality television yet also exposes the rigorous and antiquated structures it upholds. If you were to design your very own reality television show, what would that look like?
My ideal reality dating show would be like the sexually fluid season of Are You the One? meets the grandiose romantic gestures of The Bachelor (because I’m a bit of a hopeless romantic like Dev). It would obviously have to be queer and representative of the world we actually live in, both behind the cameras and in front of them. And I would love to watch a reality dating show that celebrates platonic love, as well as romantic love. So many dating shows are predicated on drama between contestants, which is often rooted in toxic masculinity and internalized misogyny. Let us see the moments where these people are uplifting and supporting each other, because we know they happen. We just don’t prioritize their importance.
And speaking of your imagination – if The Charm Offensive were to be adapted, what scene would have to be included in the adaptation and why?
First of all, I love this question. Second, this question is so difficult to answer because I am precious about a lot of scenes in this book. However, one of the most important scenes for me takes place close to the end of the book, when Charlie is discussing his sexual identity with Dev, and I would hope any adaptation would include that moment and the nuances of Charlie’s sexuality.
If Dev and Charlie had a playlist for their journey in The Charm Offensive, what three songs would have to be on there?
“Jolene” by Dolly Parton, “Shallow” by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, and “Last Kiss” by Taylor Swift.
Your debut novel addresses a variety of important topics with an incredible nuance – from exploring sexuality to dealing with mental illness. What do you want readers to take away from Charlie and Dev’s messy yet beautiful story?
For me, writing this book was incredibly cathartic, because it was a chance for me to write a happy romantic ending for two characters who represent the parts of myself that don’t always feel loveable. So the biggest thing I hope readers take away from The Charm Offensive is that they’re worthy of whatever kind of love they want. I also hope any readers who are questioning their sexuality will know that it’s okay to not have all the answers. It’s okay if you don’t know the right label or if your labels change. You’re still valid, regardless of what stage of life you’re figuring it all out.
I have to say, the ending to The Charm Offensive was one of the most memorable ones I ever read. Did you always know how Charlie and Dev’s story would culminate or
I wrote the first draft of this book very quickly and with no pre-planning, so I honestly had no idea where it was going, aside from knowing it would have to end with a happily ever after. But as I was writing the middle of the book, I suddenly had this image of Dev watching the season, and I had to jump ahead to write the ending. It absolutely poured out of me, and that is the part of the book that’s remained most unchanged throughout revisions.
With The Charm Offensive releasing soon, are you already working on another project? If so, can you share a sneak peek of what’s to come with us?
Yes! My second book Kiss Her Once for Me will come out in fall 2022 from Atria books. It’s a Sapphic Christmas romcom with a fake-dating twist. It features one chaotic bisexual artist in the midst of a quarter-life crisis, one hot butch baker, and a lot of holiday shenanigans.
Last but not least, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
I have so many book recommendations! I just finished Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon, which comes out in January, and if you like romantic comedies about mental health, this one’s for you! I’m also so excited for Timothy Javonsky’s new adult queer romcom Never Been Kissed, which features the asexual spectrum representation I love to see. I’m also obsessed with Anita Kelly’s Moonlighters novellas Sing Anyway and the upcoming Our Favorite Songs, and I can’t wait for her novel Love and Other Disasters. Anita’s books have wonderful nonbinary representation.
