My Five Favorite Scenes from Select

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Select author Marit Weisenberg digs deep and narrows down her five favorite scenes from her author debut. Warning: spoilers ahead!!

1. When the entire pack of sixteen highly-evolved teens break the rules and go out in public as a group

This is my most favorite scene, and, because it was the first scene I imagined and the seed that grew into a whole story, I think of it as the heart of the book. It is extra special because it takes place at one of my favorite spots in Austin: Barton Springs, a natural spring-fed pool that has been referred to as the crown jewel of Austin. I move the scene through different aspects of the location — the steep slope of the lawn under the pecan trees, the crowds on all sides of the enormous pool, as well as the serious chill of the water and the eerie plant life floating beneath the surface.

Marit with Executive Editor Monica Perez

2. When the teens are arrested

This scene was inspired by imagining the night the Kennedys and their power brokers handled Teddy Kennedy’s accident in Chappaquiddick, an incident that resulted in the death of a young woman. The thought of the wealthy and powerful brazenly exerting their influence over the local authorities has always lived large in my mind. And, in other stories, I’ve always loved scenes when officers do their jobs and then find out from a higher up that they’ve accidentally messed with someone powerful who they should have stayed away from.

3. When Julia meets her former bad boy crush and longtime best friend Angus at the dock

I love stories about boy/girl friendships. Friendships between straight males and females can be so complicated, especially as they evolve over time. Even if lives go in different directions, even if one or both have had feelings for the other, I think there is always an extra special bond when two people have grown up together and have a shared history. Nothing can erase that.

Marit giving a talk at Book People in Texas

4. When the long overdue blow up takes place between Julia and her younger, breathtaking half-sister, Liv

This was also one of the hardest scenes to write because it had to be full of things the sisters have always been afraid to say out loud. From the beginning stages of writing Select, I knew I wanted to examine a blended family with a very uneasy, unspoken dynamic. What’s it like having a stepparent who makes you feel unwelcome in your own home? And how do children from a first and second marriage who are being raised together deal with the unequal division of love? This scene is where it all comes to a head between two sisters who really love each other but whose loyalties are being tested.

5. When Julia arrives at John’s house at dawn

This scene embodies what I love to write about most: the roller coaster of first real love. I wanted my novel to have romance and heartbreak and that out-of-control feel when the heart has completely taken over despite thinking you’d moved on. Most importantly, I wanted to include how very scary it can feel to make yourself vulnerable to another person.