Sarah O'Leary Burningham Interview

Today I have an interview with Sarah O'Leary Burningham, author of the nonfiction books Boyology and How to Raise Your Parents.

So without further ado, here's her interview!

1) How much research did you do while writing Boyology? What did you research?

I have a network of over 2,000 teenagers (guys and girls) across the country and I relied on all of them for my research. I did interviews and sent questionnaires to find out what they really wanted to know about each other. And the best part is, I learn something from almost every single person I interviewed. Really! Everyone has different experiences and you can learn a lot when you put it all together. That's why the real stories in the book are so important to me - it's like having thousands of authors in one book!

2) How did you take all the research and stories you collected and turn it into a book? How did you decide what to cover in the book, and what to leave out?

SB: I had an idea of how I would outline the book before I started doing all the interviews and research but I rearranged things once I started getting responses. And after I started writing, I went back and re-interviewed a bunch of people. I ended up with enough material to fill thousands of pages, but I broke it down and tried to cover the most important things - from flirting to setting your boundaries to surviving a breakup (whether you're the one getting your heart broken or doing the breaking). Relationships can be complicated and I wanted to make sure the book covered all the important parts!

3) What do you think the most important thing girls can learn from reading Boyology?

I want girls to know that they are in control of what happens in their relationships. I had a few boyfriends in high school and in college. And I learned something different from each of them, but mostly I learned what I really wanted and I think that’s the whole point of dating. You want to have fun and find someone who makes you feel good about yourself. A guy who inspires you to try new things and that you can be yourself around. If I could go back and tell my teenage-self one thing it would be, “trust yourself.” Trust yourself and be good to yourself. And don’t put up with any less than that with any guy, either.

4) I saw on your website that you're working on book about teen girl relationships- how is that coming along?

I just started working on my third book and it goes way beyond mean girls, like how to be a good friend and find good friends and how to get through a fight without hating each other. Guys, parents and friends are the three of the biggest concerns for most of the teenagers I've met, so the friendship book is a good next step. I've done a bunch of interviews already but I'm always looking for other good tips and stories so let me know if you have anything to share.

5) Both Boyology and How to Raise Your Parents are non-fiction books- do you think you'll ever tackle fiction?

I've been working on a novel for the last few months, too! It's still in the early stages but is definitely something I'm putting my energy in to and am excited about. I'm planning to get it done in the next year.

6) I also saw on your site that you say you love riding your Vespa. So I must ask: Are vespas as amazing as I think they are? Because they seem AMAZING!

SB: In a word, YES! The Vepsa is awesome and super hot - it's red, of course. My husband Grant (he's in the book!) and I had been talking about what it would be like to ride around Manhattan on a scooter. So we took some of the money from my advance for How to Raise Your Parents and went for it! It's the best feeling to ride up Riverside Drive along the Hudson river and see the whole city with the wind in your hair. Ok, the wind is only kind of in your hair. The helmet blocks some of that. But still, it's amazing.

---

Thanks so much, Sarah! (:

And here's a description of Boyology, in case you need one, straight from Amazon:

A crash course in understanding boys Boyology delves into the many mysteries of teen guys dissecting flirting tactics offering dating suggestions and providing tips on forming solid friendships. It's an up-close-and-personal look at boys in their natural habitats with analyses by teen girls and insight from the boys.

Links: Sarah's website and blog/twitter

Chronicle Books/Paperback/$12.99/Amazon/B&N/Borders/IndieBound