Ellen Sherman is the author of the new novel Bad Girls Go Everywhere. She is also an actor, screenwriter, filmmaker, and journalist, and she lives in New York City and Bridgehampton, N.Y.
Q: What inspired you to write Bad Girls Go Everywhere, and how did you create your character Rin?
A: The inspiration for my book came from the years I spent in London attending a quirky English acting school (which still exists today and whose graduates include Jude Law!)
The experience of being a young person choosing to be thrust into a totally different world than the world one knows and the wildly disparate experiences I found myself immersed in were the inspiration for the novel. It was about choosing to take a chance and go outside your comfort zone.
The character of Rin is partially based on the person I was at that time. However, she comes from a background that was very different than mine in some ways. It was the “ vibe” of the time that created Rin. That time challenged young people to push the boundaries of what they could be and achieve.
Q: The writer Alan Zweibel called the novel a “lyrical combination of naivete and wisdom.” What do you think of that description?
A: I think it is, as they say in England, “spot on.” Rin, the main character, is an innocent, naïve young woman but she has an insightful eye on the challenging circumstances in which she finds herself.
Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?
A: The book’s title has “ provenance.” I first heard it as coming from Mae West, a bawdy, clever entertainer of Old ‘30s-‘40s Hollywood. The entire quote is “Good Girls Go to Heaven…Bad Girls Go Everywhere.” Which I love.
Decades later, the author of the autobiography of Cosmopolitan editor Helen Gurley Brown borrowed the quote to title Brown’s story. And now I have chosen to use the phrase.
What it signifies? It just means that if you dare to go outside the boundaries of what’s expected…well, then the world is open to you!
Q: The novel is set in London in 1968--how important is setting to you in your writing?
A: The setting of London 1968 is pivotal. At that time, London was the “coolest” place on earth. No question. Today, due to social media, etc., we all know that there are lots of “cool” spots on the planet. In 1968, there was only London. It was the nexus of film, music, culture, fashion…nowhere else like it.
Bottom line. London is a major “character” in the book.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I just finished my second novel, a comic murder mystery called I Could Just Kill Him. I hope the world will love it as much as I do.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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