"Doing research as a historical fiction writer is a little like eating comfort food."

Debut author Aurélie Thiele on falling down rabbit holes, filling in her plot's "missing middle", and her immersive historical fiction, THE PARIS UNDERSTUDY

Check out the collection of past Words With (Author) Friends, wherein I g-chat with an author and you get to read over my shoulder, and order Aurélie’s arresting new novel, out now!

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Aurélie: It's my first Gchat interview.

Me: How thrilling! It's pretty much like AIM, if you have any memory of that

A very vague one, I must admit! But I'm excited to share that THE PARIS UNDERSTUDY was named by The Washington Post as one of ten noteworthy books for September!

Huge congrats!! How are you feeling ahead of the big day?

I'm getting a little nervous. I hope people like the book.

Can you share a little about THE PARIS UNDERSTUDY?

It's about two opera singers in Paris during World War II. (The book actually starts a little before the war and ends a little after.) One is the understudy of the other. When the Nazis occupy Paris, these two women have to decide what they're willing to do in the pursuit of their art and how to save the people they love.

Love the setup! What was the inspiration for the novel?