Author Biography
JC Peterson is an author of contemporary rom-coms. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in journalism, worked for years as an award-winning journalist in Oklahoma, and now lives in Denver, CO, with her husband and children.
In 2019, her YA novel Being Mary Bennet earned her a spot in the popular mentorship program, Pitch Wars. After completing the program, she sold Being Mary Bennet in a two-book deal to HarperTeen, with the first release in March 2022 and the companion novel slated for winter 2023.
How did you come up with the idea for BEING MARY BENNET?
It was a bit of a lightning strike moment, actually. I realized I probably had more in common with Mary than Lizzy—you know, being a bit awkward at times, not having the immediate, witty retort, always looking for that corner to stand in during overwhelming events.
And I realized that there are most likely a lot of us out there who are more Mary than Lizzy, yet we all have a story to tell. So I decided to give Mary her own main character moment.
This story is set with Pride and Prejudice in mind. Why did it feel like a story that needed a modern retelling?
I don’t think it needs a retelling, but I just think that Jane Austen’s stories are so rich in character and have these really timeless qualities. There’s so much to explore in her works, and it’s a joy to do that in a new way. I loved the chance to take one of her characters who, really, isn’t on the page a lot in P&P and let her run wild in a new story. I feel like Austen set up us writers with so much material to wander through and dig into.
Being Mary Bennet
It is a truth universally acknowledged that every bookworm secretly wishes to be Lizzy Bennet from Pride and Prejudice.
A less acknowledged truth is that Mary Bennet might be a better fit.
For Marnie Barnes, realizing she’s a Mary Bennet is devastating. But she’s determined to reinvent herself, so she enlists the help of her bubbly roommate and opens up to the world.
And between new friends, a very cute boy, and a rescue pup named Sir Pat, Marnie finds herself on a path to becoming a new person entirely. But she’s no Lizzy, or even Mary–instead, she’s someone even better: just plain Marnie.
With a hilariously sharp voice, a sweet and fulfilling romance that features a meet-cute in an animal shelter, and a big family that revels in causing big problems, this charming comedy of errors about a girl who resolves to become the main character of her own story (at any and all costs), is perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Becky Albertalli…and Jane Austen, of course.
-Image and Description from Bookshop.org
Like many writers in the writing community, you have children. One of the aspects of writing that so many writers struggle with is time. How did you manage to find the time to write a book with kids at home?
By never sleeping, basically. Ha! (And also, sob.)
It is legit really tough, especially when you’re dedicating time to writing without being able to point to anything concrete, like a publishing contract or a reliable income. Like most things with parenting, for me it comes down to being flexible and changing as the dynamics change.
I wrote Being Mary Bennet while I was pregnant with my second child, and let me tell you, that’s one hell of a deadline motivator. At first, I really only worked in small chunks and usually after bedtime. (Writing after bedtime is basically how I get anything done.)
As they both got older, I was able to set aside more time while they were at preschool. I’ve also been vocal about saying that my writing is my job (not a hobby) and that I love my job. I want my boys to see their mom pursuing something she loves.
Did you have a specific writing routine/process for BEING MARY BENNET? Are you a plotter or pantser? Has that changed at all?
I’m like a … plantser. I write out full plots before drafting, then completely go off the rails by twenty percent in. It’s helped me to consider my first drafts as Draft Zero, just getting all the mess onto the page and figuring out who my characters actually are, not just who I want them to be.
I’m not someone who can write in short bursts—I need a couple hours of head-down writing time—so I try to plan out my week by figuring out when I can get that time.
Bonus points if it’s not after bedtime.
When did you start writing? Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always been a storyteller. My Papa was a big influence on me when I was little. He’d take me on walks and just spin folk stories out of thin air. So I started telling stories too.
I used to tell my little sister these bananas stories to try and scare her because I was an awful big sister. (She spent a whole summer refusing to swim because I’d convinced her our lake held a man-eating sea bass.)
Being a writer was just kind of inevitable. I never considered anything else. Which is why I still can’t calculate tip without using my fingers.
Looking for ways to build tension and suspense into your novel?
You were a journalist for a while. How has that shaped your writing?
I worship the deadline.
Okay, but beyond that … journalism was where I got to sharpen my voice. I was never, ever going to be a hard news journalist. But I somehow finagled my way into writing a first-person column for a news magazine and got to play around with who I was as a writer.
My last feature piece I wrote for them before moving was just a tour of the state fair eating the most disgusting(ly delicious) food I could find. It was marvelous.
How did you find your agent? What was it about your agent that made you want to work with her? And do you have any advice on what writers should look for in an agent?
I was accepted into a great mentorship program called Pitch Wars, and that’s how I connected with Amy Bishop (of DB&G). I’m a list maker, and I made a giant spreadsheet full of metrics for the agents who offered representation, but it just came down to trusting my instinct.
From the moment I got on the phone with Amy, I could tell she got my book. That is so important!
Because of that, I trusted that she understood who I was as a writer and would be a great sounding board for my other ideas. I think sometimes writers can be a bit starry eyed about an agent’s social media presence or client list (and client list is important, but it’s not number one to me!).
But this is someone you’re hoping to work with over a career. You want to feel like the two of you understand each other and can talk things out in an authentic, respectful way.
What book(s) are you reading at the moment?
I just finished Emma Lord’s When You Get the Chance, which is a super fun Mama Mia! retelling set in the theater world.
And I’m excited to start See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon, a time loop YA rom-com. I’ve been saving it for vacation.
What book(s) most inspired you to write?
My main girl, Anne of Green Gables. I was a big reader as a kid (shocking!) and I just got sucked into the world L.M. Montgomery created in that series.
I definitely used the words “depths of despair” at least once while being overly dramatic as a pre-teen. As I got older, I rediscovered my love of YA when I read Libba Bray’s Great and Terrible Beauty trilogy.
So now that BEING MARY BENNET is out, what are you working on?
A companion novel to Being Mary Bennet called Lola At Last will be coming out winter 2023! It’s the story of my modern-day Lydia Bennet and what happens after things (literally) blow up with her Wickham.
She is truly the most fun to write. She’s all id at first, so you can just let her go wild then force her to deal with the consequences, which is seriously a blast to write.
What’s one thing you hope people take away from reading your books?
That it’s okay to make mistakes. That it’s okay to say the wrong thing and succumb to your worst impulses, as long as you can pick yourself back up and try not to make that same mistake again.
I love writing YA because the characters are kids figuring out who they are and who they want to be, and that comes from making some truly epic mistakes and becoming better through it. Also, I really just want people to laugh at my jokes.
