JENNA MILES

If The Catch had a soundtrack, here's what I imagine it would be. Which scenes in the book do you think these songs would pair with? And which songs do you think would make a great soundtrack to the book? Leave your comments below! "King and Lionheart," "From Finner," "Yellow Light," and "Love Love Love," all by Of Monsters and Men. "Hero," by Family of the Year. "Simple Song," by The Shins. "West Coast," by Coconut Records. "No One's Gonna Love You," by Band of Horses. "Fish

You may well wonder - are any of the places mentioned in The Catch real? Outer Sunset The Outer Sunset is the very real neighborhood where Julia and William grew up, in the southwestern part of San Francisco, just blocks from the beach and the ocean. It's known for its middle class, suburban character, and is also infamous as one of the foggiest parts of the city. Visit these links to see more photos and learn more about the Outer Sunset. https://www.airbnb.com/locations/san-

Uncle Rob is loosely based on my own Uncle Ed, who died of AIDS in 1994 and is pictured above with me when I was about 3 years old. Though Uncle Rob practically raised Julia, I did not have a close relationship with my Uncle Ed while he was alive. I never got to know him until he moved home to Dallas when he was dying. Even then, it was hard to know him well because he was very reserved. Like most of that side of the family, he was also somewhat literary, and when he passed a

Ah, Kevin - the "Cat Stevens doppelganger with glasses." Contrary to what many will assume, the relationship between Julia and Kevin is not based on any relationship I've ever had. But the physical description of Kevin when Julia visits him during his office hours? That's drawn directly from someone I knew for a short time exactly two years ago. At first glance, he wasn't much to look at, but as I wrote about Kevin, "the sum was greater than its parts." He was one of those ra

People often assume that Julia is a thinly-veiled me. But of the two main characters, it’s actually William whose personality is more like mine. He's reserved, a terrible flirt, and creative but reticent about sharing that side of himself. My high school boyfriend did have a motorcycle, but other than that, William is entirely a product of my imagination. My model for the physical description of William is a very young Mel Gibson, with the smile of Ewan McGregor. But I could

Another common question I get about The Catch is whether any of the characters have counterparts in real life. So I will write a series of blog posts, one for each of the major characters in The Catch. Many people assume that Julia is me, and that her story is autobiographical. After all, Julia is a redhead, her name begins and ends with the same letters as mine, and she’s the same age as me. All those classics Julia reads and the quirky things she does at age thirteen? Yep,

Hello, fans! Today, the answer to the question I get most often: "What possessed you to write The Catch?" The burst of inspiration that led to The Catch came from re-reading the Jane Austen novels Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion. What gets me every time in both novels are the themes of regret and redemption. In Pride and Prejudice, both Lizzie and Mr. Darcy work so hard to redeem themselves to each other after his disastrous first proposal. And my heart breaks every time f