Interview With Scarlett Savage

Effin’ author

Scarlett Savage was a big fish in the small pond of Portsmouth, working with the local “a” list of writers, actors and media makers. So what possessed her to try to swim with the sharks and whales on the entertainment ocean of Los Angeles?

Whatever it was, it seems to have paid off. Scarlett’s award-winning locally produced play, “She Effin’ Hates Me: A Love Story,” is now a book [Skyhorse Publishing] and her online novel “Narcotic Nation” is a hot item for downloads while both works are getting attention from movie business insiders. Meanwhile, Savage is trying to figure out how to share her success with her local peeps.

How’s life in the big city and do you ever miss Portsmouth?

Oh, I love them both! The great thing about L.A. is ANYTHING you want to find — from Japanese sumo wrestling to a thousand kinds of yoga to (of course) the history of film, you’ll find it here. But Portsmouth is a very, very special place. I love the historical feel of the area, so I miss it plenty!

So we can continue feeling smug here in the Granite State, what’s the worst thing about living in L.A.?

OMG THE TRAFFIC! Back home, if you’re 10 miles away from something, you’ll get there in 10 minutes. HERE? It can be HOURS!

“She Effin’ Hates Me” started as a play. What turned it into a book?

[Nottingham science fiction author] James Patrick Kelly! He said, “She Effin’” would be a fabulous novel, so I went home and busted it out in about a month. He’s such an established writer — is there a sci-fi award he hasn’t won?

You’ve worked with such a roster of local talent. What’s one or two names you remember most fondly?

I have to narrow it down? [She couldn’t.]

I’ve heard that one of your ambitions is to pave the way for some other NH artists to find success in the entertainment capital. True?

Absolutely. What I eventually aim to do is to create a studio back home, buy our own YouTube channel and promote it just like a regular TV show. The Internet is the future for television, everyone says; and since there is NO talent like the talent we have back home, why not get in on the ground floor? Plus, even if I cast people back home in my L.A. projects (which I absolutely plan to do), I could only cast so many. If we create our own studio, I can put them ALL to work. It’ll be like showing the whole of the Seacoast talent to the whole world in one great big casting call!

What’s the best advice you can pass along to a local writer, hoping to make it?

Never, ever give up. It helps to submit work from a larger city. And take advantage of EVERYONE you know! Most writers live for fan mail. In fact, that’s how I got my cover blurb from Jodi Picoult, arguably one of the best fiction writers in America — as well as one of the most prolific. I sent her a fan letter through her website, she answered immediately, and we struck up an online friendship. So don’t be afraid to ask other NH writers for help (including me). We want to help show the world the talent we have there.

What’s next for you?

So many things! And I’m working on the sequel to “She Effin’ Hates Me.” It’s called “She Effin’ Loves Me: A Wedding Story.”