Former Bethel Park resident muses about “do-overs” in her novel “The Second Chance Year”
Courtesy of Melissa Wiesner
By Brad Hundt
Staff writer
bhundt@observer-reporter.com
About eight years ago, Melissa Wiesner was a working mom, a night owl and looking for something to do after the lights went out and her children were tucked into bed.
Rather than vegging out with HGTV or Investigation Discovery – Wiesner grew up in a household in Bethel Park where television-viewing was strictly rationed – she decided to start writing. Soon enough, she had pulled together her first novel.
“I had always on the side done various creative pursuits,” Wiesner explained. “So I was really looking for a hobby, something to do after the kids went to bed at night. And so I started writing and I had an idea for a book, and so I kept going and I finished it. And that’s how it all began.”
Wiesner now has six published books under her belt, with the latest, “The Second Chance Year,” set to be published this week. It will be launched Tuesday with an event and book signing at Riverstone Books in Squirrel Hill that gets underway at 7 p.m.
Wiesner’s books fall under the classifications of romantic comedies or women’s fiction, and “The Second Chance Year” has a main character who is given the opportunity to repeat a whole year after her life comes undone thanks to the loss of her apartment, boyfriend and job. But, as she is given this opportunity for a do-over, she wonders if she even should have.
“We all have some time in our lives, whether it’s a moment, or a day or even a whole year when we look back and wish we could do something differently, where we wish we could have a do-over,” Wiesner said. “And so that’s the inspiration for this book.”
Before embarking on full-time work as a novelist, Wiesner worked at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Social Work. She has two master’s degrees, one in public health and the other in community agency counseling. Being under contract now to produce books on a schedule is a different experience from when Wiesner was doing the work as a pastime, but she maintains it is “still fun.”
“It is different to write a book when you are under contract,” she said. “You do have to sit down and do the work even when you’re not feeling it.”
It takes about three to six months to complete a first draft of one of her books, according to Wiesner, and from there it is looked at by an editor and a friend who writes who offers suggestions. Wiesner already has ideas for a follow-up to “The Second Chance Year,” including the story of a woman who wakes up one day and finds that her identity has completely disappeared – there’s not a record of her to be found anywhere.
“It goes through many revisions,” she said.
Additional information on “The Second Chance Year” and the event at Riverstone Books can be found at riverstonebookstore.com, or by calling 412-422-2220.