Author Marit Weisenberg writes YA fiction that revolve around family secrets
It was fitting to be interviewing author Marit Weisenberg in the backyard of the Atherton home she grew up in. The writer of four Young Adult books now lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two daughters. But her most recent coming of age mystery — This Golden State — is set in a fictionalized Atherton and Menlo Park.
While there is a novel with an adult as the lead character in the future, Marit is currently writing the screenplay for This Golden State, which has been optioned by Madison Wells to be produced as a feature film.
“I’m finding it’s a different skill than writing novels,” she says. “It’s hard work getting my brain to be more visual. And to remember the importance of brevity.”
Marit, who attended Laurel, Encinal and Menlo Atherton High School has been a writer at heart since her schools days. There was the summer when TV was taken away, and she and a group of friends wrote their own soap opera after getting hooked on Days of Our Lives. And a friend and her wrote a romance novel during high school Latin class.
Marit explains that YA fiction features a young person under 18 and that what ties all four of her books together is a secret. “I think I’m fascinated with people who sense something is wrong, something is going on around them, and they dig to find out what it is,” she says.
Each of her books takes about a year to write. “I wake up a 5:00 and work, get the kids to school, and then get back to it.
“Plotting is really difficult for me. But once I’m into it — and writing — it starts to flow.
“The best moment is when I finish a book — when I have a complete first draft. You’ve climbed a mountain and gotten to the top. There’s more work still to do but you have a book.”
When she’s finished with the screenplay she’ll turn to her first adult fiction. “It’s going to have a secret, too. I really love family dynamics!”
Find out more about Marit’s novels online. This Golden State is available at Kepler’s.
Photo by Robb Most (c) 2022
