Amanda Pellegrino‘s debut novel, “Smile and Look Pretty,” tells the story of four assistants working in media who join together to take on their toxic office work environments, developing and following through the ultimate comeuppance; somewhere from “Sweetbitter” meets “Whisper Network.”
Their online identities are The Aggressive One, The Bossy One, The Bitchy One, and The Emotional One. In real life, best friends Cate, Lauren, Olivia, and Max have one thing in common; they’re overworked, overtired, and underpaid assistants to some of the most powerful men in the media and entertainment industries. When they secretly start an anonymous blog detailing their experiences, their posts go viral and hundreds of other women come forward with stories of their own. Confronted with the risks of newfound fame and the possibility of their identities being revealed, they have to contend with what happens when you try and change the world.
Amanda Pellegrino is a TV screenwriter and novelist living in New York City whose writing has appeared in Refinery29 and Bustle.
Read on to discover more about Amanda, her debut novel, “Smile and Look Pretty” and her five favorite books and authors of all time.
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Author Amanda Pellegrino – photo by Erin Pellegrino
What was the overall influence that led to you writing your debut novel with Smile and Look Pretty?
Amanda Pellegrino: Though I wrote most of “Smile and Look Pretty” before the #MeToo movement really took off, that absolutely became part of my inspiration. I was encouraged by these prominent women coming out against their abusers, some of whom had been infamous in the industry for their bad behavior for decades. I was compelled by the concept of a secret hiding in plain sight, something that everyone knew about but no one acknowledged. Since I was an assistant at the time, I wanted to explore what would happen if a movement like this had been started by a group of people so low on the career ladder they’re still subterranean. What would happen if people with no clout and no influence and no voice started speaking up?
Did you use any of your own personal experience to build your characters and plot around?
Amanda: I think most women have stories they would contribute to the website in Smile and Look Pretty–about working with toxic people or in toxic environments. Because these four characters work in different aspects of media and entertainment, industries where the line between personal and professional is often blurred through the creative process, where people making minimum wage are direct reports to people making millions, there’s really no story too ridiculous to be true. There are articles about assistants getting everything from a computer to a potato thrown at their heads at work. Because of that, I didn’t really need to plunge into my personal well of stories to write relatable and distinct characters. Sm
What was the first book you ever read?
Amanda: I had all the “Madeleine” books (by Ludwig Bemelmans) read to me when I was little if that counts? The first book I read myself was probably something by Roald Dahl or one of the Magic Treehouse series.
What are your top five favorite books and/or authors of all time?
Amanda: This is constantly changing so I’m not sure I can pick my favorite authors and books of all time, but I can say my favorites right now. My favorite authors right now are: Jessica Knoll, Colson Whitehead, Michelle McNamara, Andrea Bartz, and Rumaan Alam. My favorite books right now are: “Luckiest Girl Alive” (Jessica Knoll), “Gone Girl“ (Gillian Flynn), “On Writing” (Stephen King), “Such a Fun Age” (Kiley Reid), and “When No One Is Watching” (Alyssa Cole).
Do you have a guilty entertainment (book, film, television, music) pleasure?
Amanda: I’m devouring anything Anna Delvey right now. I had read the original Cut and Vanity Fair articles and finished “My Friend Anna” (Rachel DeLoache Williams) in one sitting when it first came out. I’m loving the resurgence of interest in this insane story. Generally, I try to avoid feeling guilt over things that bring me pleasure, but this one makes me feel a little guilty because I’m sure all this new attention is making Anna some money.
