How Critically Acclaimed Debut Novelist Jessica Goldstein Writes

Critically acclaimed debut novelist Jessica Goldstein spoke with us about her career path from teen mag intern to freelance culture writer, time travel, and her nostalgic debut, RETRO.

Jessica M. Goldstein is a journalist, humorist, and longtime contributor to Vulture, where she has recapped ‘Emily in Paris,’ ‘Hacks,’ ‘Wednesday,’ and ‘The White Lotus.’ Her work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Marie Claire, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and more.

Her highly anticipated debut, Retro, is described as “Party Down meets one of those great George Saunders short stories about how weird and dystopian work is. A little White Lotus, a little Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”

In a starred review, Kirkus declared the book “a nuanced, biting cautionary tale about how not staying present can erase our very selves.”

Jessica also publishes a weekly Substack newsletter, The Retro Report, where she shares vintage mood-based recommendations for what to read, watch, listen to, meditate on, and obsess over. 

[Discover The Writer Files Extra: Get 'The Writer Files' Podcast Delivered Straight to Your Inbox at writerfiles.fm]

[If you’re a fan of The Writer Files, please click FOLLOW to automatically see new interviews. And drop us a rating or a review wherever you listen]

In this file Jessica Goldstein, Milena, and I discussed:

The origins of her debut novel and how she snagged an agent

Getting long-listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize

Her intense nostalgia for the "Before" times

Why you need to opt out of the imagined timeline of becoming an author