'Seeing your life in a different way'

 

I wasn't one of those kids who grew up wanting to write or who read a particular book and thought: 'I want to do that!' I always told stories and wrote them down, but I never thought writing was a career path, even though, clearly, someone was writing the books and newspapers and magazines.” – Gayle Forman 

 

Born in Los Angeles on this date in 1970 Forman has authored 14 books led by the YA novel If I Stay, which both topped the New York Times bestseller list and also was made into a popular film.   The story is about a 17-year-old girl named Mia who has been involved in a tragic car accident and lies in a coma fully aware of what is going on around her.  It earned Forman several "book of the year" awards..

 

Forman began her career writing for Seventeen, with most of her articles focusing on young people and social concerns.   For a number of years, in addition to her YA writing, she has been a successful freelance journalist for publications like Glamour, The Nation, and Elle.   Her most recent book is 2025’s After Life.

 

Now a resident of Brooklyn, NY, married and the mother of two girls, Forman said she found her niche in YA writing by zeroing in on themes that give you an in-depth and often wrenching look at her protagonists’ lives.

 

“I think we like movies and books that give us this emotionally moving experience,” she said. “Where you feel like a slightly different person, and you see the world a little different after you finish. It lets you see your own life in a different way, and it actually makes you feel really good.”