Authors Interviewing Characters: Marilyn Simon Rothstein

May 24, 2022 | By Women Writers Women Books | 1 Reply More

Speaking Of—And To—My Protagonist

My new book, Crazy to Leave You, is published by Lake Union. Maddie Dawson, author of The Magic of Found Objects, said “Crazy to Leave You is the funniest book I’ve read in practically forever.” The protagonist, Lauren Leo, is a forty-one-year-old, scale-obsessed, advertising executive. She is the last of her friends to marry, down to a size 12, in her wedding gown and about to tie the knot. Just one thing is missing: the groom. Lucky for me, I caught up with her in the excruciating days following what she refers to as “The Great Humiliation”. I was fortunate to land this exclusive interview.

Marilyn:

Lauren, where did you meet the louse who left you at the altar.

Lauren:

I wouldn’t call him a louse. I’m in advertising. I would use a more descriptive word. Maybe three words.

Marilyn:

He texted your sister to say he wasn’t going to marry you.

Lauren:

Okay, Eric is a louse. I met him at sleep-away camp. I kissed him behind Bunk 8 when we were thirteen. Then, I didn’t see him again until I was thirty-nine. He was much taller. By then he was standing on his money. He asked me to marry him in a hot air balloon. He told me his mother was an event planner so she should plan the wedding. He never mentioned she was a dictator.

Marilyn:

Why Bunk 8?

Lauren:

All the other bunks were taken.

Marilyn:

After you were jilted, you ran across the street from the synagogue and sat in a diner in your wedding gown. Eventually, your parents joined you. What was your mother’s advice?

Lauren:

She said I should keep off the weight I lost for the wedding—and freeze my eggs.

Marilyn:

How did you feel about this?

Lauren:

I ordered more food.

Marilyn:

I thought you showed a lot of strength because you returned to work at the advertising agency the day after the wedding.

Lauren:

I prefer to call it The Great Humiliation. I was embarrassed. I decided to tell everyone at work that Eric had died. My boss was kind. He said, “If you miss one bus, you catch another.” Easy for him to say, he has a driver and a Bentley.

Marilyn:

Can you tell me about your client, New England Can?

Lauren:

New England Can is the world’s largest manufacturer of port-a-potties, the number one john on college campuses. It’s located in a one-horse town. That’s if you visited on a horse.

Marilyn:

What did you do with the wedding gifts?

Lauren:

I had left the gifts in the bridal room in the synagogue. I went to pick them up with Rudy, a man my boss hired to drive me to clients after I had a car accident because I was stoned on donuts. We opened the good wine and went to dinner with one of the gift certificates.

Marilyn:

Tell me about your family.

Lauren:

I have two sisters. Stephanie, the mother of my two nieces, who is so perfect it’s downright annoying. And my older sister, Margo, a soap opera star who died three times on her show—and then was written out because she gained too much weight in real life. Margo didn’t attend The Great Humiliation, but she showed up afterwards to camp on my couch. Margo wouldn’t stand up if the sofa was on fire. My father has his own problems—he’s married to my mother.

Marilyn:

I know you are obsessed with your weight. Do you weigh yourself every morning?

Lauren:

After I floss.

Marilyn:

What advice would you give to other women who are about to be married?

Lauren:

Don’t take the tag off the wedding gown.

Marilyn:

Why would people enjoy Crazy to Leave You?

Lauren:

I’m in it. What’s not to like?

—

About the Author

Marilyn Simon Rothstein is the author of Crazy to Leave You, Husbands and Other Sharp Objects, and Lift and Separate, winner of the Star Award presented by the Women’s Fiction Writers Association for Outstanding Debut.

Marilyn grew up in New York City, earned a degree in journalism from New York University, began her writing career at Seventeen magazine, married a man she met in an elevator, and owned an advertising agency for more than twenty-five years. Marilyn received an MA in liberal studies from Wesleyan University and an MA in Judaic studies from the University of Connecticut. She enjoys speaking at book festivals and community events.

Find out more about her on her website https://www.marilynsimonrothstein.com/

Follow her on Twitter @nounsandverbs1

CRAZY TO LEAVE YOU

“A heartfelt, delicious story.” ―Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Palace

From the author of Husbands and Other Sharp Objects comes a witty, bighearted novel about the happy accidents that lead to love and second chances.

Forty-one years old, the last of her friends to marry, and down to a size 12, Lauren Leo is in her gown and about to tie the knot. There’s just one thing missing: the groom. With one blindsiding text, Lauren is unceremoniously dumped at the altar.

In the aftermath, her mother is an endless well of unsolicited advice (Stay on your diet and freeze your eggs). Her sisters only add to the Great Humiliation: one is planted on Lauren’s couch while the other is too perfect.

Picking her heart up off the floor, Lauren turns to her work in advertising as she gathers courage to move on and plan her next step. She should know by now that nothing in life goes according to plan. What lies ahead is the road to self-acceptance and at long last feeling worthy. With a new way to measure love and success, Lauren chucks her scale―and finds a second chance in the most unexpected place.