The Everygirl Book Club interviews Kirsten King, author of the summer bonus pick A Good Person, about Lillian’s provocative downward spiral after the death of her situationship, Henry. King discusses embracing polarized reactions to an intentionally unlikable protagonist, her current reads and recommendations for “messy women” books, and how her background in journalism and screenwriting (including using Save the Cat) shaped her debut novel while feeling more creatively exposed than in collaborative film work. She explains writing the book during the 2023 WGA strike, building side characters to reveal Lillian’s flawed POV, and choosing not to give Lillian redemption. The conversation covers modern dating, virtue signaling, therapy-speak, female friendship breakups, LA spirituality, and the Daisy Edgar-Jones/Working Title adaptation. King also previews a 2027 dark-comedy novel about a breakup, AI chatbot companionship, and a self-help podcaster chatbot.
01:26 Unlikable Heroine Talk
03:04 Read Receipts
07:10 BuzzFeed Millennial Era
09:02 From Screen To Novel
12:12 Handling Criticism
16:56 Creating Lillian
28:49 Morally Gray Influences
36:44 Reader Prescriptions
46:35 Building Side Characters
48:47 Etsy Witch Culture
52:11 Modern Dating Morality
55:05 Adaptation Update
56:38 Kirsten's Next Book
59:50 Ranking Morally Grey Characters
01:01:51 LITigation
A Good Person by Kirsten King
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
200 Monas by Jan Saenz
She's a Lamb by Meredith Hambrook
Salomé by Leslie Baird
Sky Daddy by Kate Folk
Famesick by Lena Dunham
Fruit Fly by Josh Silver
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Bad Marie by Marcy Dermansky
The Guest by Emma Cline
Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
Yellowface by R. F. Kuang
Big Swiss by Jen Beagin
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
Beautiful World, Where Are You? by Sally Rooney
Empire of AI by Karen Hao
September 24: It’s Different This Time
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