Interview With an Author: Jeneva Rose

Jeneva Rose is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including the multi-million copy bestsellers, The Perfect Marriage and The Perfect Divorce.  Her work has been translated into twenty-eight languages and optioned for film and television. She has amassed over one million followers across social media platforms, thanks to her humorous, relatable content and her candidness in connecting with her readers. Jeneva lives in Wisconsin with her husband, Drew, and her stubborn English bulldogs, Winston and Phyllis. Her new book is Sometimes I Scare Myself: A Collection of Horror, and she recently talked about it with Daryl Maxwell for the LAPL Blog.

What was your inspiration for Sometimes I Scare Myself?

I’ve always loved horror, and I’ve always had these strange, dark ideas that pop into my head—ideas that might not have enough legs for an entire novel, but that I still really want to explore. Sometimes I Scare Myself gave me a place to put three of them. It was also a chance to step outside the rules of a traditional thriller and play with horror, shorter-form storytelling, and some of the things that genuinely scare me.

Did you write the three stories in Sometimes I Scare Myself for this new collection, or did you select them from pieces you had previously written? If it’s the latter, how did you select the stories that are included? 

I wrote all three stories for Sometimes I Scare Myself, and I went into the collection knowing I wanted each one to feel distinct from the others, not just in terms of the story, but in the type of horror I was exploring. That gave me the freedom to tackle different fears, tones, and ideas while still making the collection feel cohesive.

Have you ever had an “unusual” encounter with a Ouija Board (or known someone who has)?

When I was a kid, I played with Ouija boards at my friends’ houses, but I can’t say I ever had an unusual encounter with one. Most of the time, it was just one of us pushing the planchette…I think.

However, I did have an experience with a medium that I still can’t quite explain. A friend’s bachelorette party was supposed to include a male strip show, but it was canceled due to low ticket sales, so she hired a medium instead. At first, I was extremely skeptical. Then the medium started saying things he had no way of knowing. He knew I had recently moved. He knew I’d lost my mom when I was young. And he knew that I was pregnant, despite the fact that I was only a few months along, wasn’t showing, and had only told my family and a few close friends. I still don’t know what I believe about mediums, but that experience stuck with me, and it helped inspire Never Kill the Medium.

Do you have a favorite cursed/haunted house story (novel or short story), television show, or movie? A favorite about a person (or group of people) who have been cursed or a cursed object? A least favorite? (I realize that you may not want to address this one, and if that is the case, please don’t. But I also realize they might be so bad that it could be fun to answer.)

I love a good curse story. Weapons, Obsession, and Smile are all recent favorites of mine, and I’ve always enjoyed television episodes built around supernatural rules, too. Buffy the Vampire Slayer had some great episodes, such as “Halloween,” “Innocence,” and “Hush.” More recently, I’ve been obsessing over Widow’s Bay. If you tell me there’s a curse involved, I’ll watch it.

I think what fascinates me most about curses is that they usually come with rules, and part of the fun is watching those rules slowly reveal themselves. There’s also this sense of inevitability to them. You can’t fight a curse the way you fight a person or a monster. Sometimes you don’t know why it chose you, how to stop it, or whether it can be stopped at all. That helplessness is beyond frightening.

Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had an encounter with something paranormal?

Yes and yes. I’ve had multiple encounters throughout my life that I’d consider paranormal. In one of the houses I lived in growing up, I kept seeing a little boy in a green hoodie, usually through the glass doors in our basement. I was terrified, and whenever I had to go upstairs, I’d run as fast as I could, convinced he was right behind me.

Then, in college, I woke up one night because I could feel the springs of my mattress sinking, like someone was getting into bed. I bolted for the door, flipped on the lights, and when I looked back, I saw some sort of black smoke seep out through the open window.

Your biography says that you were born and currently live in Wisconsin. Do you have any favorite places? A hidden gem that someone visiting should not miss, but would only learn about from a resident?

Wisconsin’s lake towns are some of my favorite places in the state, especially once you get further north. Tomahawk tops the list. My family spends a lot of time there, and it’s actually where my upcoming thriller, Dead Girl Summer, is set. It has everything I love about a Wisconsin lake town without feeling overly touristy. You can spend the day boating or fishing, and then stop somewhere on the water for food and a drink (like Bootleggers or Tilted Loon Saloon).

Most of your previous novels would probably be classified as Mystery or Thrillers. Are you a fan of the Horror genre? What are some of your favorite novels, films, and/or series? Who are your favorite authors and/or filmmakers?

Absolutely. Horror has always been one of my favorite genres, even though most readers know me for my thrillers. I grew up loving anything that scared me, and I still chase that feeling now.

A Nightmare on Elm Street will always be at the top of my list, and I love The Conjuring, the 2013 Evil Dead, Ready or Not, and Bring Her Back. For horror novels, I love A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay, Pet Sematary by Stephen King, and Play Nice by Rachel Harrison.

Do you have a least favorite? (Again, I realize that you may not want to address this one, and if that is the case, please don't. But I also realize it might be so bad that it could be fun to answer.)?

I’m going to avoid naming names, but I’m not a huge fan of horror that feels grotesque just for the sake of being grotesque. Don’t get me wrong, I love gore. Give me blood, guts, and a truly gruesome death scene. But when something feels like it’s only trying to see how far it can push the audience or how disgusting it can be, it tends to lose me. I want the gore to serve the story, not be the story. Unless it’s Tucker & Dale vs. Evil or anything by Sam Raimi—then bring on the cheesy, over-the-top gore.

If you could choose one of the three stories in Sometimes I Scare Myself to be adapted to a film or television, which one would it be, and who would your dream cast be? 

"Never Kill the Medium" without question. Horror comedy is one of my favorite subgenres, and I think that story would be so much fun to see on screen. It’s high-concept, shocking, hilarious, gory in the best possible way, and has this great cast of characters who become increasingly unhinged.

And since you said dream cast, I’m going to dream big. Samara Weaving would be my Erica. She’s so good at balancing horror and humor. I’ve always pictured Paul Walter Hauser as Elias, the medium. For Chad, I’d want someone like Glen Powell who can really lean into that handsome, douchey charm. Aubrey Plaza could be hilarious as Beckie, and I could see Dylan O’Brien as Zach. Then give me Lucy Boynton and Nicholas Hoult as Liv and Derek.

What’s currently on your nightstand?

Several books I’ve agreed to read and blurb, including The Worst Wife by Amy Tintera and A Girl To Kill by Alex Kiester.

Can you name your top five favorite or most influential authors?

I’ve always struggled with questions like this because the second I name five, I’ll immediately think of ten more I should have included. I also think “favorite” and “most influential” are two very different things. There are authors I grew up reading (Lois Duncan, R.L. Stine, Gertrude Chandler Warner), authors who made me want to write (Stephen King, Gillian Flynn, Liane Moriarty), authors whose careers I admire (James Patterson, Colleen Hoover, Harlan Coben), and authors whose books I’ll buy without even reading the description (Lisa Jewell, Karin Slaughter, Abby Jimenez).

What was your favorite book when you were a child?

I don’t know if I could name just one, but it was probably something by Lois Duncan. I was obsessed with her books and devoured everything of hers I could get my hands on.

Was there a book you felt you needed to hide from your parents?

Not really. My parents never policed what I read, and I don’t remember ever feeling like I needed to hide a book from them.

Is there a book you’ve faked reading?

Definitely one of the classics. Couldn’t tell you which one, though.

Can you name a book you’ve bought for the cover?

I’m absolutely guilty of judging books by their covers. The Hunting Wives has one of the best covers I’ve ever seen, and the story inside is just as good.

Is there a book that changed your life?

Can I say one of my own? Because The Perfect Marriage changed my life. It was my debut novel, and I could never have imagined, when I wrote it, where that book would take me. It transformed my career and what I believed was possible for myself. So, while there are plenty of books that have affected me as a reader, that’s the one that quite literally changed my life.

Can you name a book for which you are an evangelist (and you think everyone should read)?

My own. I’m their biggest evangelist. I’m constantly telling people to read them. Someone has to keep the lights on. But if I’m not allowed to pick myself, The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson. It’s an incredibly twisty thriller, and I recommend it all the time.

Is there a book you would most want to read again for the first time?

Any great thriller with a twist I never saw coming. There’s nothing quite like that first read when you realize the author has completely fooled you. I’d happily erase a few books from my memory just to experience that feeling again.

What is the last piece of art (music, movies, TV, more traditional art forms) that you’ve experienced or that has impacted you?

I’m currently obsessed with "Sue Me" by Audrey Hobert. I can’t stop listening to it or singing along. You can catch me belting out "Sue me, I want to be wanted" at any given moment. It’s also become the unofficial theme song for a character I’ll be writing in the future. Their mindset is essentially: Who cares if I’m doing terrible things? I just want to be wanted. There’s nothing wrong with that, right? It’s a wonderful, dangerous justification for some very bad behavior, and the song drops me right into my character’s headspace.

What is your idea of THE perfect day (where you could go anywhere/meet with anyone)?

I’d wake up somewhere beautiful with my husband, Drew, and my son, Chase—maybe a private villa overlooking the Mediterranean, with nowhere we have to be and nothing on my calendar. We’d spend the day swimming, exploring, eating yummy food, and probably taking an afternoon nap because any perfect day should include one. Then we’d have dinner outside, stay up too late, and somehow Chase would be content and well-behaved through all of it. We’re dreaming here, so I’m allowed to make that part aspirational too.

What is the question that you’re always hoping you’ll be asked, but never have been?

I’ve done a lot of interviews at this point, so I’m not sure there’s a question I’m still waiting for someone to ask. Although “Would you like a snack?” doesn’t come up nearly enough.

What is your answer?

Yes.

What are you working on now?

I just wrapped up copyedits on my next thriller, Dead Girl Summer, coming April 27, 2027. So I’m technically in between projects, which is one of my favorite places to be. This is when a new story and its characters start rolling around in my head. I get to try them on for a while—figure out who they are, what they want, and what horrible things they might do.