Authors Interviewing Characters: Christine Nolfi

Christine Nolfi interviews sisters Vale and Blythe from A Brighter Flame

About A BRIGHTER FLAME:

She’s always wanted a sense of belonging. The last place she expects to find it is home.

Vale Lightner’s dreams turn to ash when the Pittsburgh bar she owns goes up in flames. Just like the past she escaped, very little seems salvageable. Facing unavoidable change, Vale returns to her hometown of Philadelphia to stay with her grandmother.

She knows that returning also means facing everything she left behind: a mother and stepfather who shunted her into the background from the day they married, and her charmed and favored half sister, Blythe, who has abandoned a perfect marriage and is now at a crossroads of her own. Everyone has their secrets, and this reunited family racked by them is about to reach a crisis point.

For a mother and her two daughters, this reunion is a chance for closure, newfound love, and forgiveness. As each of them reassesses her own memories of the past, only the truth can bring them together—in ways that could last forever. From the bestselling author of The Passing Storm comes a poignant novel about family secrets, healing, and the hope of second chances.

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Christine Nolfi interviews sisters Vale and Blythe from A Brighter Flame:

Christine: There’s no glory in adult women squabbling like children. Can you knock it off until we finish the interview?

Vale: What, you’re shocked we’re arguing? You invented us. If you wanted me to get along with my sister, you should’ve created different characters.

Blythe snorts: That’s a first. At least you didn’t call us half-sisters, Vale. Should we give you a gold star or something?

Vale: Start by giving me a break. I was just a baby when Mom ditched my flighty dad and boarded the gravy train with your father. How was I supposed to compete? You’re the original silver spoon kid. Everything you touch sparkles.

Christine: I sense a chip on your shoulder, Vale.

Blythe smirks: Try a boulder. Vale’s been lugging it around for so long, it’s a wonder she doesn’t have scoliosis.

Vale lifts her palms heavenward: Okay, I do feel aggrieved. Mom and Blythe’s father always favored her. I got the scraps. If you grow up believing you’re second best, you don’t build oodles of self-confidence. It’s not hyperbole to say that Mom barely tolerated me and Blythe’s dad . . . well, he disliked me—intensely.

Blythe: He didn’t dislike you. He was frustrated by your antics. Did you think he’d join your fan club after you lifted the keys to his BMW and drove to Franklin Square for a night of unsanctioned revelry? You left the keys swinging in the ignition. 

Vale lifts her shoulders to her ears: The sweet ride was never seen again.

Blythe: Exactly.

Vale: Well, I was acting out.

Blythe: Flaming out is more like it. In the life choices arena, it’s your go-to alternative.

Vale: Like you should talk. Want to explain why you’re considering divorce? You’re married to the Phillies’ star pitcher, a guy who adores you more than the fans adore him. Which is saying something. Why are you hiding out at our Nana’s house and putting a divorce attorney on speed dial?

Christine: It’s a fair point, Blythe. You’re a woman in a dream marriage. You’re heading for the exit. One might characterize your behavior as a major flame-out.

Blythe: I don’t want to talk about it.

Christine: Perhaps you should.

Blythe: No! You’re not the boss of me. Why don’t you mind your own business?

Vale grins: Great real, Blythe. Christine is the boss of you. She’s the novelist. You’re just a character in her book.

Christine: True enough. Although I wouldn’t call either of you ‘just a character.’ As the story progresses, you both become wonderful people.

Vale: You could’ve saved us some time and sprinkled fairy dust early in the book. Why did you put us through so many emotional scenes?

Christine: Readers like to follow each character’s emotional arc. Watch how they grow, evolve.

Vale: And the writer likes to play God. Mess around in other people’s lives. Skewer them in as many impossible situations as she can dream up.

Christine: It’s part of the fun.

Blythe: I didn’t have any fun. 

Christine: Sure, you did. Toward the end of the book, at least. You could have more fun now if you’d reveal your motives. Start by telling us why you’re thinking of pulling the plug on your dream marriage.

 Blythe: This is beginning to feel like the Grand Inquisition.

Christine: That’s also part of the fun.

Blythe glares at her: Who’s side are you on, anyway? 

Christine: If you’re forcing me to choose, I’m on your grandmother’s side. Throughout the story, Iris packs equal parts mysticism and cunning. She believes in giving synchronicity a little push. When it comes to mending her broken family, she’s all in when the ends justify the means. What’s not to love?

Vale casts a sulky glance: If that’s how you feel, maybe you should’ve interviewed Nana instead of us.

Christine smiles: Next time, I will.

BUY A BRIGHTER FLAME HERE

Christine Nolfi is the author of The Road She Left Behind, a top book club pick by Working Mother and Parade magazines, and the award-winning Sweet Lake Series: Sweet Lake, The Comfort of Secrets, and The Season of Silver Linings. A native of Ohio, Christine now resides in South Carolina with her husband and their crazy Wheaten Terrier, Lucy. For the latest information about her releases and future books, visit www.christinenolfi.com.

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Interviews, On Writing