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The
Blonder, The Better:
AMANDA BROWN
by
Robyn Tellefsen
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According
to Amanda, there's a general lightheartedness
to being blonde. "It's about not taking yourself
so seriously."
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Just
when you thought you were out of the "woods,"
AMANDA BROWN, author of the acclaimed novel Legally
Blonde (Plume, 2003) and creator of all things Elle,
beckons you back to dish on success, college, and being
blonde.
Did you ever imagine your first novel would become a
blockbuster hit movie?
Amanda: No; [but] it's very exciting. I was never
a writer until this -- I was in law school (at Stanford),
and I started writing letters to my friends to amuse
myself.
Why did you hop around to so many different colleges
for your degree in political science? (Arizona
State University, University of Southern California,
Phoenix College, Scottsdale Community College, Rio Solado
Community College, and Gateway College)
Amanda: I was looking for someplace with no math
requirement. Sadly, there was a requirement everywhere
I went!
To
what do you attribute your success with Legally Blonde?
Amanda: Elle is a character everyone can relate
to -- she's a girl with heart.
  It's
time to reencounter Elle Woods (a.k.a. REESE WITHERSPOON)
in Legally
Blonde 2: Red, White, & Blonde.
Elle's busy juggling her career in law with wedding
preparations, all while trying to defend her first love
-- Bruiser Woods, the Chihuahua.
Did
you have any input into Legally Blonde 2?
Amanda: No, there are new writers and a new director.
But I never had that emotional attachment to my work.
When I'm almost done with a novel, I'm ready to move
on to something else. I guess I'm atypical that way.
Why
do you think your books are so film-friendly?
Amanda: I was always really visual as I was writing,
and I think that's easier to translate. I've had great
screenwriters, too.
Does
being blonde define who you are?
Amanda: No, but there's a general lightheartedness
to it. It's about not taking yourself so seriously.
And,
though her books grow up with her, Amanda still writes
with youthful flair about the spunky characters in her
new novel, Family Trust (Dutton, 2003) -- a workaholic
and a trust-fund playboy who become sudden parents of
a precocious four-year-old girl.
How did Family Trust
come about?
Amanda: You write what you know. I have a three-year-old,
and I've been seeing a lot of neurotic parental behavior
-- I like to people-watch. Plus, my husband and I were
named godparents for friends of ours, and I was thinking
about that situation and what could happen.
How
do you feel about Universal Pictures already purchasing
the film rights for Family Trust?
Amanda: The producers, HILARY SWANK and CHAD
LOWE, are wonderful. They view this as an open adoption
process of my book.
 Do
you have a favorite of your two books so far?
Amanda: I love both my characters. I purposefully
made Becca [of Family Trust] a brunette; she's
totally different from Elle. But they're each good role
models, someone to aspire to. Both books are funny and
have a lot of heart.
What's
up next for you?
Amanda: A Legally Blonde musical, and
maybe a TV show. I'm also working on a Mommy Diary,
and a yet-to-be-titled novel.
Any
advice for aspiring writers?
Amanda: Follow your passion. You've got to be
really disciplined about it, and work certain hours
per day just like with any other job. But I feel pretty
lucky, because I can do this job at any hour. It stops
when I do.
Visit
www.legallyblonde2.com for a Sty-Elle Fashion
Quiz, Elle-ssentials, and more.
Photos
courtesy of MGM.
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