09.13.2010
Contest Alert/Three Questions with Andrea Lavinthal

So I’ve known Andrea Lavinthal for a few years now and I have to say, she regularly impresses me with her witty writing, in-depth beauty knowledge and lastly, the fact that ‘she’s co-written THREE books by the age of 30.  Impressive, to say the least.  Her latest is titled Your So-Called Life: A Guide to Boys, Body Issues, and Other Big-Girl Drama You Thought You Would Have Figured Out by Now (available tomorrow).  After checking out an advanced copy, I realized how I am completely and totally in this phase of my life…it’s a mix of the quarter life crisis and what Andrea and co-author Jessica call your “thrisis” or “redo-berty.”  Check out the three burning questions I had for Andrea and enter for a chance to win your own free copy of her genius book.

Q: What does “thirty, flirty and thriving” mean to you?

A: Depends on the day.  When someone compliments me on a story I wrote, a blind date actually has all of his hair, and my skinny jeans zip up without a fight, that phrase embodies the confidence you gain in your late twenties and early thirties.  However, when your boss utters the words, “pay freeze,” the cute guy with hair goes MIA, and you’ve taken to wearing leggings EVERYWHERE, “thirty, flirty, and thriving” can feel like nothing more than a line in a Jennifer Garner movie (albeit my favorite Jennifer Garner movie).

Q: What part of your “redo-berty” or “thrisis” is personally hardest for you?

A: You know how when one area of your life is going great, another one is falling to pieces?  Well, I feel good baout what I’ve accomplished so far in my prfessional life and I’m thrilled that I achieved my goal of publishing three books by 30.  Now I’m ready to get married and be a mother and let’s just say that writing the relationship chapter of the book hit a little too freaking close to home!

Q: You and Jessica obviously have an amazing friendship, which is so important to have, and especially during the “thrisis.”  What did Jessica bring to the book and what did you bring to the book that makes you such a great team?

A: As Women’s Wear Daily put it in a feature on the two of us, “Lavinthal, all citified sorority girl in knee-high Michael Kors boots and honey-colored highlights, and the more cerebral, reserved, Rozler seem at first glance an unlikely pair, but it was these differences that drew them together.”  While this quote not-so-subtly implies that Jessica is the brains of this operation while I’m the, um, hair, we are actually more similar than people think.  For starters, we share a wildy inappropriate sense of humor and a love of pop culture.  Also, we’ve been writing together since we met as journalism students at Syracuse University so at this point we can literally finish each other’s (written) sentences.  However, Jessica is more patient, conscientious, and thoughtful than I am, which makes her not only an amazing writer, but a meticulous editor as well.  Plus, she lets me hog the spotlight.

CONTEST:

Leave a comment and let us know your biggest “Thrisis” challenge then email me with your answer and email address (QueenoftheQuarterLifeCrisis@gmail.com).  Three winners will be selected on Monday, September 20th!