Jeneva Rose: Don’t Write for Trends
New York Times-bestselling author Jeneva Rose discusses writing a book that acts as both a sequel and a standalone with her new thriller novel, The Perfect Divorce.
Jeneva Rose is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including Home Is Where the Bodies Are, You Shouldn’t Have Come Here, The Perfect Marriage, One of Us Is Dead, and The Perfect Divorce. Her work has been translated into more than two dozen languages and optioned for film and television. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband, Drew, and her stubborn English bulldogs, Winston and Phyllis. Follow her on X (Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
In this interview, Jeneva discusses writing a book that acts as both a sequel and a standalone with her new thriller novel, The Perfect Divorce, her advice for other writers, and more.
Name: Jeneva Rose
Literary agent: Celeste Fine
Book title: The Perfect Divorce
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Release date: April 15
Genre/category: Thriller
Previous titles: The Perfect Marriage, One of Us is Dead, You Shouldn’t Have Come Here, Home Is Where The Bodies Are
Elevator pitch: Sarah and Bob are headed for divorce, but the only thing standing in their way is a missing mistress, a decades old murder investigation, and each other.
What prompted you to write this book?
I’m sure many will assume I was prompted to write The Perfect Divorce solely due to the success of The Perfect Marriage and that couldn’t be further from the truth. Yes, the success helped in having a publisher get behind it, but I wanted to write a sequel long before the first book was published. I always knew I wasn’t done with Sarah Morgan, and I’ve had an idea as to how to reopen the story for a very long time. It wasn’t a fully fleshed out idea, just the catalyst to continue, but I didn’t know if I would ever have the opportunity to write it.
When sales surpassed two million copies, I knew it was a possibility, but I wasn’t going to write it until I was confident in the storyline. I didn’t want to fall into “the sequel curse,” so I brainstormed and plotted and outlined until I had a story I knew I would be proud to write and a book I’d be proud to have my name on. I didn’t want to disappoint my readers, and I hope this story doesn’t.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
The nugget of the idea was there back in 2017 after I finished writing The Perfect Marriage, but I didn’t finalize it until 2023. I wrote it in 2024 over the course of four months, and it publishes April 15, 2025. There were changes while writing it, like additional reveals, twists, characters, and storylines I hadn’t planned for, but the core idea has remained the same.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
A learning moment for me was figuring out marketing language for a sequel. Yes, The Perfect Divorce is a follow-up to The Perfect Marriage, but it can be read as a standalone. Hitting that messaging to ensure it would appeal to fans of the first book but newcomers as well was a balancing act.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
I was surprised at how easily it was to get back into the heads of characters I’ve been away from for 6+ years. I was also surprised by how much I was in my own head while writing this book. I hit a lot of roadblocks due to anxiety and worrying that the sequel wouldn’t live up to The Perfect Marriage. I wrote with caution rather than throwing caution out the window, and it took me a while to get into my usual writing rhythm and routine. Once I did, the words poured out of me.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope readers will get an escape from their life. I write to entertain, and there is value in art that makes the world around us melt away.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Write what you want to write. Don’t write for trends. Don’t write to the market. Don’t write for anyone else. Write for yourself.
Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Editor of Writer's Digest, which includes managing the content on WritersDigest.com and programming virtual conferences. He's the author of 40 Plot Twist Prompts for Writers: Writing Ideas for Bending Stories in New Directions, The Complete Guide of Poetic Forms: 100+ Poetic Form Definitions and Examples for Poets, Poem-a-Day: 365 Poetry Writing Prompts for a Year of Poeming, and more. Also, he's the editor of Writer's Market, Poet's Market, and Guide to Literary Agents. Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.
