Lauren Aliza Green
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green
Author of The World After Alice
When Morgan and Benji send out their wedding invitations, they know the news will come as a shock. Twelve years have passed since the loss of sixteen-year-old Alice Weil, Benji’s sister and Morgan’s best friend, and nothing is quite the same. But as the young couple brings their two families together, they hope that old wounds can be mended.
However, as the guests descend upon the tranquil coastal town for the nuptials, with new lovers and deep-seated agendas in tow, it soon becomes clear that not everyone is ready to move on. Can the wedding's fragile peace survive the sunny weekend? Or will the two families learn that the darkest secrets always come to light in the end?
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green
Author I draw inspiration from:
Like all artists, I stand on the shoulders of so many greats; it’s hard to choose just one. Virginia Woolf continues to astound me: the music in her sentences, her remarkable grasp of the human condition. To the Lighthouse was especially formative. Among contemporary writers I frequently return to Nicole Krauss, Jonathan Franzen, Elena Ferrante, and Marilynne Robinson.
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book:
I travel often, so I read wherever I can—on planes, trains, by lakes, in coffee shops, tucked into library corners. Books are the best company. There’s something special and comforting about returning to the same characters day after day, especially when the world around you is unfamiliar. When I was younger, I used to read while walking. It’s difficult to do in bustling cities, but when it works, it feels like magic.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with:
The practical side of me would want to be stuck with a wizard: Albus Dumbledore, maybe, or Quentin Coldwater from Lev Grossman’s The Magicians. Someone who could set us free with a flick of the wrist. My more poetic side chooses the Great Dane from Sigrid Nunez’s The Friend. I imagine us sitting in companionable silence, me trying to figure out whether the stalled elevator might be a metaphor, the dog perfectly at ease by my side.
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author:
I’ve been writing stories since childhood. I would sit down and announce, “This summer, I’m going to write a novel!” The instinct was alive and urgent from the start. I’ve always loved listening to people tell their stories and pondering mythologies and histories. Writing, for me, is like the miller’s daughter in Rumpelstiltskin spinning straw into gold: it lets me gather the raw materials of life—grief, wonder, boredom, joy—and shape them into something that, if not beautiful, is at least comprehensible.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook:
Hardback: I love how official it feels, how sturdy and intentional. If I buy a book in hardback, I’m making a commitment to the author, who is bound to be a contemporary. There’s something thrilling about that, particularly when it’s a debut or a long-awaited release. Whenever I hold a hardcover, I think: how lucky the world is to have this new work.
Paperback: I love being able to love my books: to fold their corners, make little notations, engage with the text. Paperbacks feel more permissive. They make me think of the beach, of long flights.
Ebook: Ebooks are perfect for when I want to read in bed without waking my husband. I tend to buy them only when I want a book immediately, right there and then. There’s a kind of urgency to this format.
Audiobooks: I enjoy listening while walking or puttering around the house. I find that when I’m listening, I tend to anchor the words to the place around me. I’ll remember where I was when I heard a particular sentence: the corner where I was standing, the way the light moved. Ironically, audiobooks seem to add a visual layer to the reading experience that physical books lack.
The last book I read:
I just finished Scherzetto by Domenico Starnone, reading it first in Italian and then in Jhumpa Lahiri’s English translation (Trick). The novella follows a grandfather minding his young grandson for a few days. What ensues is by turns funny, claustrophobic, and deeply moving. Starnone’s economy of scale always awes me; he does so much within tight constraints. I aspire to be that efficient.
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer:
I write everything by hand. My drawer is full of journals from the past few years. There’s something about the tactile act of pen on paper that shifts my mind into a different gear. The moment my wrist comes down, it’s like stepping through a portal. Suddenly, I’m not thinking about notifications or errands; in fact, I’m hardly thinking at all. If a muse exists, it shows up in the moment my hand hits the paper.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with:
The characters whose voices I most enjoy on the page—those with sharp, cutting insight—are the last people one would want for friends. So I’d choose a character from a children’s classic: Lucy Pevensie, Charlotte from Charlotte’s Web, the Velveteen Rabbit. They’re each kind, imaginative, and a little bit lost in their own worlds.
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a:
In theory, I’d be an astronaut. In reality, I have a fear of flying and lack perfect vision. I went to space camp as a kid and was assigned to Mission Control. I remember being quietly terrified the whole time that the alarm would go off. Still, it tempts me: the isolation, the wonder of the solar system.
More realistically, I’d love to be an expedition documentarian or etymologist—some career path that allows me to weave together my love of travel, words, and human stories.
Favorite decade in fashion history:
The 1960s, without a doubt. This decade mirrors both halves of me: the wander-barefoot-in-a-field, free-love dreamer and the Mad Men-style appreciator of all things sleek and modern. This is also the era I would choose to live through. On the cultural front, it’s an embarrassment of riches. So many icons: Bob Dylan, Andy Warhol, Audrey Hepburn, Joan Didion? Sign me up.
Place I’d most like to travel:
I’ve been dreaming of visiting Botswana for some time. I was first taken with its conservation efforts and sustainability policies, which are truly inspiring. Besides that, the country offers dramatic landscapes (the Okavango Delta, the salt pans) and wildlife galore. As someone who is constantly looking to experience new things, I sense Botswana would promise me something completely wonderful and unexpected.
My signature drink:
Slightly boring answer, but water. I like to keep it simple.
Favorite artist:
Stephen Sondheim. A true genius when it comes to both music and lyrics. His wordplay is nonpareil. Those internal rhymes! Take Into the Woods: “Sometimes people leave you / Halfway through the wood. / Do not let it grieve you; / No one leaves for good.” To be both clever and cutting—that is the mark of a true great. Earlier this year I devoured every Sondheim biography I could find. He really did transform American musical theatre.
Number one on my bucket list:
My bucket list keeps getting longer! One dream is to live in multiple countries, across several different continents. I long to apprentice myself to the world, to immerse myself in other cultures, to never grow too comfortable with where I am.
Find more from the author:
About Lauren Aliza Green:
Author Interview - Lauren Aliza Green
Lauren Green is the author of The World After Alice (Viking US; Penguin Michael Joseph UK) and the Poetry Society of America-prizewinning chapbook A Great Dark House. Her work appears in Virginia Quarterly Review, Threepenny Review, American Short Fiction, and elsewhere. Additional honors include the Eavan Boland Award, sponsored by Poetry Ireland and Stanford University, and a place on Forbes’ 2024 30 Under 30 list.
