An Indies Introduce Q&A With Goldy Moldavsky

Photo by A. Melamud

Goldy Moldavsky is the author of Kill the Boy Band (Point/Scholastic), a Winter/Spring 2016 Indies Introduce debut for young adults and a Spring 2016 Kids’ Indie Next List pick. The story follows four friends whose devotion to their favorite boy band, The Ruperts, has darkly comical and murderous results.

“Reading Moldavsky’s debut is like reliving my first viewing of the movie Heathers and wanting to delve deeper and deeper into the craziness that those girls were getting themselves into,” said Kari Meutsch of Phoenix Books in Essex Junction, Vermont. “The world of fandom is a fascinating and terrifying place when watched from the outside, and watching someone wake up from living in that dream — or nightmare — is told here with an obvious love for the drama and flair of an ’80s cult film. I loved this book and cannot wait for more from Moldavsky.”

Moldavsky lives and writes in Brooklyn, New York.

What inspired you write Kill the Boy Band?

Goldy Moldavsky: I wanted to write something darkly comic and I kept going through different ideas but nothing was really landing. Then I saw something on TV about a boy band and their fans. Everything I wanted to explore was right there. I recognized the girls I was looking at because I’ve always been a very passionate fan myself, but some of the things these girls were saying were so dark that it was perfect for the kind of comedy I wanted to write.

Kill the Boy Band is reminiscent of the Brat Pack films and cult movies such as Beetlejuice and Heathers. What is it about the ’80s that inspires your writing?

GM: Thank you! That’s a huge compliment. I think you can ask anyone what their favorite teen movie is and nine times out of 10 it’s going to be something from the ’80s. I really don’t think the category of teen movie even existed before that decade and it’s because those movies took teens seriously and they did it with a lot of heart. Plus, a lot of those movies were really strange. I love that mixture of heart and wackiness and the ’80s were a golden age for that kind of storytelling.

How did music and pop culture shape your adolescence and influence you as a writer?

GM: Pop culture influenced me in a huge way. For me, it’s all about movies from the ’80s and music from the ’90s, but maybe that’s just because I’m a very nostalgic person. I was actually a pretty reluctant reader as a kid, opting to watch movies and TV instead, but I did read Entertainment Weekly cover-to-cover every week. I was one of those kids that had to know everything about movies and actors. People may have considered me a dweeb who would rather stay home and watch TV than go out, but I never saw it like that. Everything is a form of storytelling. You could be just as inspired by a book as you can be by a song or movie. They’re all on the same level to me.

To readers, authors are rock stars. In your opinion, how do booksellers launch debut authors into the stratosphere worthy of boy-band fandom?

GM: Being a debut author, I’m just starting to learn about the role booksellers play in launching books and it’s truly incredible. As a reader, I was totally naïve about what went on behind the scenes, but as an author, I realize just how knowledgeable the people in independent bookstores are. I’ve had the opportunity to be on a few author panels at bookstores and booksellers are so passionate! They’ve read all the books; they are prepared to talk to you about them. I mean, they’re truly the gatekeepers. I think if you write a book that booksellers love you’re all set.

Kill the Boy Band by Goldy Moldavsky (Point/Scholastic, Hardcover, 9780545867474) Publication Date: February 23, 2016.

Learn more about the author at goldymoldavsky.com or by following her on Twitter.

ABA member stores are invited to use this interview or any others in our series of Q&As With Indies Introduce debut authors in newsletters and social media and in online and in-store promotions. Please let us know if you do.