By Isabell Macrina
Hometown Weekly Staff
Ever wonder how a novel gets published? What turns that idea in someone’s head into a book you can pick off the shelf? Author Violet Lumani and Entangled editor Rebecca Heyman took to Westwood Public Library to discuss the process and Lumani’s new book, “Not Good Neighbors” with the patrons!
“Not Good Neighbors” is Lumani’s contemporary romantic comedy about two neighbors, a prank war, and love landing close to home. While it may sound simple, it has gone through many edits and revisions over four years. Lumani admitted that it was a terrible first draft, but that was okay. A first draft can be fixed; it just must exist. So, she would edit, and later Heyman who went to school with her sister pitched the book to the team at Entangled during her first week working there. Then it was in the publishing world and the real editing began.
“Feedback is a gift, even if it stings,” Lumani said, which got a laugh from the crowd. Nearly everyone who read it had an opinion on the book, but it was up to Lumani and Heyman to figure out which ones were serious and which just needed tweaking. Like including heritage; Lumani’s parents are Albanian immigrants, and it was important to her to include that culture as a piece of her story in a side character. When she received some pushback about the character, she took a look at it and found a way to make him more realistic, appreciative, and more endearing for the readers.
The two took the group through the process, everything from finding an agent, Lumani’s experience with young adult fantasy writing before that publishing house closed, and how it inspired her to try something different. One of the great pieces of advice she had was to recognize your heart isn’t the only one in it. Once a book is out there, everyone who reads it is affected by the story in its pages.
What really sold the evening, and a few people on the book, was watching the dynamic between Lumani and Heyman. The two were friends and had a long history together, which made them not just a good team but a fun one to experience before our eyes.
Lumani also brought swag bags for the crowd to take home, with a tote bag, notebook and pens, and themed gifts like flower seeds, a matchbox from a restaurant in the book, and a mini tape measure. Along with the cardboard cutouts of the main characters, foam hammers, and bright pink hard hats and vests had patrons laughing and posing for photos. Be sure to check out “Not Good Neighbors” for a sexy New York romcom, with a refreshing and realistic banter between characters and a prank war that won’t bring on secondhand embarrassment, and keep your eyes peeled on the events calendar for more author talks out of Westwood Library.
