Fame, Identity, and the 2000s: Behind the Scenes of Far from the A-List
By Stephanie Burns
Within minutes of meeting me, you’ll discover that I am a proud pop culture fanatic. Mention one of my favorite TV shows and I’ll tell you exactly what happened in season two. Talk about a beloved band and I’ll regale you with stories about the drumsticks or guitar picks I’ve collected from their tours. Reference a classic movie star and I’ll bring up some little-known fact I remember from one of the biographies I’ve read over the years. I’m a full-fledged, badge-wearing fangirl of all things entertainment, so it’s no wonder why that industry is at the heart of my debut novel, Far from the A-List.
Far from the A-List is the story of former child star Michaela Turner, who wants the world to know one thing: that she is not Daisy Breyer, the precocious little girl she played on America’s favorite sitcom. Who she is apart from that, she’s still figuring out. A decade and a half after her show’s cancellation, twenty-seven-year-old Michaela is paid to party at New York’s trendiest clubs and is dating the hottest guy in baseball—until a fall from grace in the tabloids turns her into yesterday’s news. What transpires next is a coming-of-age journey of someone who never got a chance to come of age, complete with a toxic rock star of an ex dealing with an identity crisis of his own, an estranged stage mother who considers Michaela a genetic lottery ticket, and a retired boy-bander of a best friend who seems to be dealing with his former fame far better than Michaela ever could.
We all have our favorite stars from our youth, and so often, the media divides them into two camps. There are those who seamlessly transition from famed tot to successful A-lister, and there are those mired in tragedy. As someone who consumed every entertainment magazine and watched every episode of E! True Hollywood Story growing up, I wondered, “What about the ones in between?” I thought about how hard it must be to try to live a normal life when the whole world compares you to a character scripted for you when you were seven, when you can’t even go get a coffee without being gawked at and quizzed about a life you never signed up for. How does that affect your relationships, development, and sense of self? Out of those questions, Michaela Turner was born, and once she introduced herself to me, I couldn’t let her go.
The novel is set in 2007, during the height of tabloid toxicity. Blogs, gossip sites, and tabloids were making a sport out of the lives of celebrities—particularly young women—and there was this brand-new thing called the iPhone, so suddenly everyone had a really good camera and access to the internet in their pocket. Social media hadn’t taken off, so when a story was put out there, the subjects of those stories didn’t have the ability to hop on an Instagram live and tell their side of the narrative. There was a 24/7 news cycle of every step and misstep these young stars made, and as a society, we consumed it. There couldn’t have been a worse decade for Michaela to be trying to find herself, so I knew it was the only choice for the book’s setting. (Sorry, Michaela.)
Far from the A-List has been out for a few months now, and while talking with book clubs, the conversation inevitably turns into a discussion on pop culture and identity—which I couldn’t enjoy more. Some of my favorite conversations with readers are about the stars they followed in youth, and how reading this book has made them see things in a new light. I love to think of my Michaela, a character born from a question—what about the ones in between?—having that kind of impact.
Who says watching TV can’t be good for you?
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Stephanie Burns holds an MFA in Creative Writing and a BA in Theater Studies, both from Emerson College. When she’s not dreaming up stories of her own, she is championing women authors as the COO of the award-winning Tall Poppy Writers. She lives on the south shore of Massachusetts where she plots by the ocean with her almost-famous beagle, Ollie Twist. Far from the A-List is her debut novel.
FAR FROM THE A-LIST
In this fresh, propulsive take on fame in the tabloid era of the ’00s, a former child star struggles to figure out who she is beyond the characters she’s played—on television and in relationships.
Former child star Michaela Turner is ready for her next big role—she just doesn’t know what it is yet. As someone whose days were once filled with bright lights, never-ending rehearsals, and adoring fans from around the world, Michaela now struggles to define herself beyond the glitz and glamour of her past.
She tries hard to stay out of the tabloids, but fading into the background isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. Not when her manipulative momager, Caroline, is dead set on launching her daughter’s big comeback, no matter how many old wounds it tears open. And especially not when Michaela’s attempts at “normal” relationships fail spectacularly at every turn, from the toxic ex she can’t seem to escape to the nice guy she wishes she could see a future with.
As her mother’s demands grow more draining and her love life takes hit after hit, she learns a few hard truths about the significance of self-worth and the beauty of letting go. Now, with her ex-boyfriend-turned-best-friend Josh as her only support, Michaela is ready to rebuild herself, one misstep at a time. And maybe, if she’s lucky, after all these years of pretending, she’ll finally have the chance to discover who she really is.
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Category: On Writing
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