Don’t Make Me Turn This Life Around is a witty and unexpected novel about a woman trying to keep her family vacation—and yes, her life—from going south. We chat with author Camille Pagán about her new release, writing, book recommendations, and more!
Hi, Camille! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Absolutely! I’m the #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author of seven novels, a certified coach who helps aspiring to established authors reach their goals, and a former journalist who’s written for Health, The New York Times, Time, and many others. I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan with my husband, two kids, and way too many animals.
How is your 2021 going in comparison to that other year?
Well, I’m fully vaccinated, so that feels amazing! And my family and I are headed to Puerto Rico this summer. Much of my husband’s family is there and we usually spend four to six weeks each summer there; of course, we didn’t travel last year, so we’re really excited to see everyone after nearly two years.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
I can’t remember which book was first, but I remember loving The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes and realizing that someone had actually written that story. That was probably around the point at which I wanted to become an author, too! One I can’t stop thinking about: Lovers and Writers by Lily King. It’s that rare novel I wish I’d written.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love scribbling in a notebook and coming up with stories! But I won a young author contest in fourth grade and that’s when I really got hooked on the idea of writing my own books.
Your latest novel, Don’t Make Me Turn this Life Around, is out May 11th 2021! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Wry, wistful, escapist, real, life-affirming.
What can readers expect?
The novel is about Libby, a cancer survivor who has just gotten good news about her health—but instead of feeling elated, she can’t shake her blues, which in turn makes her feel guilty. She decides to fly her family to Vieques, where she and her husband met and fell in love. But instead of the magical getaway she’s envisioned, the trip only intensifies the family’s tension and shines a spotlight on what has created by pretending like everything is fine. It’s ultimately a story about how joy and meaning sometimes come from the most unexpected places.
Where did the inspiration for Don’t Make Me Turn this Life Around come from?
The story is inspired by a trip my family and I took to Vieques in August of 2019 that didn’t turn out the way I’d hoped it would; it rained the entire time, and a massive storm hit that was quite frightening. But it turned out to be a really wonderful trip for our family—albeit not in the ways we imagined—and I channelled that when writing this book.
Can you tell us about any challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
I wrote this novel at the beginning of the pandemic, and it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. But it was also extremely cathartic, because I was able to explore the idea of whether we have a right to feel lousy when we know we’re lucky just to be alive. It’s an issue I, like so many people, definitely grappled with last year.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Of all the characters I’ve ever created, Libby, the protagonist of Don’t Make Me Turn This Life Around, has always been my favorite—her wry but optimistic outlook is arguably the closest to my own—and I knew even before finishing the first novel that I’d write about her again one day.
What do you hope your readers will take away from Don’t Make Me Turn this Life Around?
That life is what we make of it.
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you have received?
Best: write for yourself.
Worst: it’s supposed to be hard. I don’t know where we got this idea that writing is supposed to be a terrible struggle, but it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s time-consuming, sure. But it can also be a joy from start to finish.
What’s next for you?
I’m nearly done with my eighth novel, Everything Must Go. It’s the story of a woman on the verge of a starting a new chapter in life who puts her plans on hold after learning that her mother’s ‘forgetfulness’ is actually full-blown dementia. But no sooner does she join her two sisters at their childhood home in Brooklyn when she discovers that dementia isn’t the only thing her mother’s been hiding—forcing her to decide whether to reveal a devastating truth about their family to her sisters, who have some secrets of their own … and whether to follow her heart, even if it means breaking her mother’s.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
I recently read, and loved, Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library. And if you like my writing, pick up anything by Kelly Harms. Her books have the perfect combination of wit and heart.
