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| Sophie Stava (photo: Alison Bernier) |
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A writer based in Southern California, Sophie Stava received her B.A. in Literature from the University of California Santa Barbara. She is the author of the novel Count My Lies (Scout Press/Gallery, April 2025), a psychological thriller sure to delight fans of Paula Hawkins and Gillian Flynn. Stava's debut is set in a charming Brooklyn neighborhood and is centered around a flourishing friendship between two women--Sloane and Violet--both of whom have something to hide.
You mentioned Elizabeth Gilbert's quote in Big Magic about planting a small seed and seeing how it grows. What was that small seed for you that led to this incredible story?
The premise of Count My Lies was inspired by a chance encounter a few years ago. I'd just had my second baby, and we'd recently (finally!) settled into a routine of going to the same neighborhood park every morning. One day, there was another woman I'd never seen before, also with two small children. We started chatting and instantly hit it off in the way that you hope to make friends as an adult but rarely do; there was an immediate chemistry, easy conversation, and a shared sense of humor. She was a nanny, and the two kids she cared for also lived in the neighborhood. So, we excitedly exchanged numbers in order to meet up again, but as we left--her out one gate and me out the other--I had this sudden, chilling, thought: What if we got along so well because she already knew things about me? What if it wasn't a chance encounter? What if she had engineered the meeting?
My writer brain ran away with this idea, and I thought: What if there was a character so desperate for connection, she would say anything, what if it turned into something sinister? And thus, the premise of Count My Lies was born!
As you write, Sloane is "the liar in all of us." How did you navigate the complexity of creating a character who is not only a diabolical liar but also a good daughter with flaws that make her utterly relatable?
I think what makes Sloane relatable is why she lies: she lies to be liked, desperate to say the right thing, whether or not it's a true thing. Her intentions aren't nefarious--she doesn't find joy in the deception, only in the result: that people find her more interesting. I think we can all relate to the desire to be liked, to be accepted, to be interesting. I think there's a level of lying that, as a society, we've collectively deemed appropriate: saying "I'm fine," when you're not, polite fibs to spare others' feelings, to project confidence at work, and so on. So, in Sloane's mind, her behavior is an extension of that, a step further than the little lies we all tell with barely a second thought.
What made you decide to set the story in New York?
When I began writing the first chapter of the novel--in which Sloane meets Jay [Violet's husband] in a park--the scene was so clear in my head: they were in the middle of a bustling neighborhood, surrounded by oak trees and brownstones, and I knew the story was begging to be set in New York. I loved the idea of the novel taking place in a big city, but at the same time, in a small community, and the borough of Brooklyn felt like that sweet spot.
Can you describe your writing style and how you've navigated motherhood while authoring your debut novel?
I wish I was a plotter and an outliner, but my brain just doesn't work that way! Usually, I start with a "what if" or a tiny seed of an idea and see where the story goes as I write. I typically have a few scenes in my mind that I'm transcribing, if you will, and as I write, more and more scenes become clear until the whole story emerges.
I ascribe to Stephen King's theory that writing a novel is like going on an archeological dig: the first draft is often finding the bones and discovering what is under the surface. When you're working with the right beta readers, the right agent and editor, they're able to say, "keep digging." And with each draft, the story becomes clearer and the writing tighter.
If what to write is half the battle, the when to write is the other half. When my kids were very little, I'd often have only small pockets of time--30 minutes during naptime, an hour in the evenings, a few hours when my parents would babysit--but I'd write no matter how short the window. I always try and have a word count goal for the day. On some days, it was as little as 300, but little by little the story comes together.
Getting a book published is a team effort. Can you share a little about how that process unfolded for you?
As a writer, your dream is to find people who fall in love with your characters and who are excited and willing to champion your work. I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to my literary agent, Elisabeth Weed, who saw something special in this story and found the right home for it, which was with my editor, James Melia, and Scout Press. From our first conversation, it was clear how passionate James was about the novel and his commitment to bring it to readers. He generated a tremendous amount of support from the Simon & Schuster team, another integral piece of the publication puzzle, and together we polished and polished until we had a draft that we are now incredibly proud to share.
Who is your favorite female character in a novel?
I recently read Matrix by Lauren Groff. The novel follows Marie de France, a young woman who is appointed as the new prioress of an impoverished 12th-century abbey. Marie's tenacity, cleverness, and ability to adapt are everything I want in a female character--I love seeing the creative ways female characters solve problems and respond to adversity, no matter what the genre. --Shahina Piyarali