Dana Schwartz will be reading at Difficult to Name in L.A. April 4
Your first book And We're Off was named a Seventeen Magazine Best Book of the Year and your second book, the memoir Choose Your Own Disaster, will be published on June 19th. First of all, I can't wait to read it. What was the process like working on a memoir?
Miserable? Is that an answer? The truth is, it re-opened a lot of old wounds, because part of writing for me was making sure I could get back in the headspace I had been in at the time. But it was also really cathartic, like a great therapy session or a super brutal facial. Let’s go with that metaphor—it’s like a very invasive, incredibly long facial, but now I have glow, baby soft skin and I will never have a pimple again.
I just saw your tweet: "Now that I moved, I can't figure out why was everyone in NYC shit-talking LA all the time—do they know it's sunny here???????" Let me know if I'm twisting your words, but I feel like you're suggesting people in New York want to be happy.
Honestly, the thing I was scared about in moving to LA was that it would be super incongruous of me to be depressed in good weather. But the good news is, LA has cured my depression and I am never sad here.
I'm just in L.A. for the week. Where should I visit while I'm in town?
I’ve heard the Last Bookstore is nice.
What can people expect from your reading?
I’ll be reading a tiny excerpt from my memoir, so expect some choose your own adventure bullshit.