Maya Rodale
Author Interview - Maya Rodale
Author of The Mad Girls of New York
The year is 1887, and Nellie Bly is a young woman with a dream: to write for one of New York’s most respected newspapers. The editors on Newspaper Row are convinced that women are too emotional and delicate to report on the harshness of the city’s scandals—and Bly is on a mission to prove them wrong. But how does a woman pave a path for herself in such a cut-throat and male-dominated industry? Nellie’s solution: by playing a part that only a woman can. Her pitch: she’ll go undercover as an admitted patient at Blackwell’s Island Insane Asylum for Women, a facility that has long been rumored to be a deplorable ruin where New York’s unwanted women are locked away and forgotten. Journalists are turned away at its doors. So it’s up to a female reporter who can play the part of a mad woman to expose the truth—and Nellie is just the woman to do it. The New York World agrees to put Nellie’s acumen to the test. Nellie will have herself admitted, experience the horrors of Blackwell’s first-hand, and her editor will check her out of the facility in one week. But once inside, can she make it out and publish her findings before a (very attractive) rival journalist scoops her story?
Author Interview - Maya Rodale
Author I draw inspiration from: I’m inspired by all the authors of Romancelandia—they are such an imaginative, inventive and smart group of writers.
Favorite place to read a book: Anywhere that is not a moving vehicle :)
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with: Jessica Trent from Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase. Even though she predates elevators, she’d be cool and competent about the situation and I think she’d be fun, witty and snarky to talk to while we figure out how to get out.
Author Interview - Maya Rodale | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author: In college, in a fiction writing workshop. It was my turn to have my short story critiqued by my classmates and there was a heavy moment of silence, which made me want to crawl under the table and hide forever, but it was followed by a joyful explosion of happy comments about how much they loved this or connected with that or page two made them laugh. I had written something funny and real and sensational and from that moment on, I knew I wanted to do that over and over again.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook: Hardback for non-fiction that I want to highlight and keep forever. Ebook for novels.
The last book I read: When No One’s Watching by Alyssa Cole. It kept me up all night.
Author Interview - Maya Rodale | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer: All of the above! Pen and paper for lists, notes and ideas. Computer for writing novels.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with: I think I might be besties with one of my own characters—Emma, from The Wicked Wallflower. She’s kind, bookish and has a great sense of humor.
Author Interview - Maya Rodale | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a: Home organizer. My favorite way to procrastinate is to clean out a closet or reorganize my desk drawers. I love seeing the result of my efforts so clearly and immediately (unlike writing a novel!).
Favorite decade in fashion history: I love the look of Gilded Age gowns, but I wouldn’t want to actually wear one!
Place I’d most like to travel: At this point in the pandemic, literally anywhere. But I am dreaming of a hot, tropical beach vacation. Perhaps the Bahamas or Hawaii.
My signature drink: A glass of prosecco, for any occasion.
Favorite artist: Right now I’m really interested in the suffragist cartoons by Nina Allender. With her drawings, she dramatically helped to change how suffragists were portrayed in the press and people’s attitudes toward the cause of women getting the vote.
Number one on my bucket list: I’d like to write a New York Times Bestselling book!
Anything else you'd like to add: Thank you for inviting me to chat! My new book is THE MAD GIRLS OF NEW YORK, a historical novel about real life Gilded Age reporter Nellie Bly, as she embarks on a daring stunt for a story: feign insanity and get herself committed to an insane asylum—and make sure she gets the story before two rival reporters. For more about it, visit www.mayarodale.com.
Find more from the author:
Instagram: @mayarodale www.instagram.com/mayarodale
Twitter: @mayarodale www.twitter.com/mayarodale
