“A charming and original love story full of depth and characters you’ll be rooting for.”—Sophie Cousens, New York Times bestselling author of This Time Next Year
When Klara finds herself ‘nominated’ by her mother and sister to return home to Sweden, she isn’t exactly thrilled about the prospect. She knows little to nothing about how to run a construction company (other than what she’s seen in online videos) and she’s been making her own life in London after leaving her home country behind.
Our other main character Alex, is muddling through his day-to-day life father unsuccessfully after the death of his brother in a motor accident, decides to answer an advertisement for a carpenter’s job at the small construction company. With two main characters who couldn’t be more out of sink at the beginning of the novel, you’ll enjoy getting a chance to know them as they attempt to figure everything out.
The Happiness Blueprint is your debut novel. When did you first come up with the storyline?
My dad runs a construction company in Sweden and always used to complain that none of his kids would be taking over the family business. It got me thinking about what would happen if a really unsuitable person did take over her dad’s construction company. Enter Klara, who actually does a much better job than I ever could!
What was it like going from a career as a fashion model and then a full-time mum to writing your first novel?
I’ve never had a “real” job! I started modeling at 17 and stopped when I had kids, not sure what to do. I then did a Psychology degree when my youngest and thought I might work within that field but COVID put everything on hold and threw me back into full-time childcare. At the end of 2020, I felt I needed a project to keep me busy whilst home-schooling on and off, and started writing. The idea for The Happiness Blueprint came a few months later. It’s been a whirlwind journey and I’m so grateful I get to write books!
How long from coming up with the concept for the book did it take you to write the first draft?
I came up with the idea in April 2021 and the manuscript went out to agents in February 2022. It took around five months to have a very rough first draft and then a few months of editing it.
Where did you write the majority of the book?
I write anywhere! In the car, in bed, in cafes, on the sofa when my kids watch a movie. I’ve learned to hyper-focus so noise doesn’t bother me at all. I only got a dedicated writing space/office this past October and it does feel like a luxury when I get to sit there.
What I enjoyed the most about the characters is how relatable they are. They are real people dealing with issues that many people deal with but don’t discuss very often. How did your experience with being neurodivergent and having a child with Type I diabetes shape help bring the character of Klara to life on the page?
I love complicated and real characters. My eldest child had received an Autism diagnosis the year before I started writing the novel and I was reading and researching a lot about it. As I wrote – initially with no intention of writing about Autism! — I noticed Klara becoming more and more quirky and realized I’d written an Autistic character — so I added that to her journey. I now have an Autism diagnosis too and this book was very much me realizing I was neurodivergent and finding that voice alongside Klara.
Diabetes has been a part of my life for many years now as my second child got Type 1 Diabetes at age 2 1/2. It’s a 24/7, draining illness and I always knew I wanted to represent it in my fiction writing. Seeing Klara’s Dexcom (blood sugar monitor) on the cover gives me such joy.
Without giving too much away, what was your favorite scene from the book?
I love the end because they have both come such a long way from where they started, they are at peace with themselves and the world. When I leave them at the end of the book I know they’ll be so happy together. It’s almost a feeling of having raised them well!
If The Happiness Blueprint were to be turned into a feature film, who would you imagine in the roles of Klara and Alex?
This is not a question for me! I don’t use mood boards and actually struggle to visualize my characters. I think that’s why I like writing in the first person — I can feel them and their thoughts but not imagine them from the “outside”. Maybe it’s an Autistic thing?! I would be delighted for any talented actor to take on the role and I’d hope to see diversity reflected in the casting. I’d always like my characters to reflect the real world.
The novel has been described as “charming” and “a love story with characters you’ll root for”, what has it been like reading the early praise for the book before release?
It’s the most nerve-wracking moment waiting for that early praise to come in. I am forever grateful for each author who took the time to read and endorse. Authors get sent so many books and there isn’t enough time to read them all so I never took it for granted. I was especially grateful to Graeme Simsion. He was one of the first to read the novel and is just such a wonderful person who is so generous with his time and supportive of new authors.
Are you currently working on your next novel and if so, can we get a sneak peek?
Not sure how much I’m allowed to share! I’m working on a new Sweden-set novel that similarly explores themes of love but also includes a look at a fraught mother-son relationship, a devasting Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and a search for the one that got away.
Ally Zetterberg is a British-Swedish writer. She spent ten years working internationally as a fashion model before becoming a full-time mum. Being neurodivergent herself and the mother of a child with Type 1 Diabetes, she is passionate about writing relatable characters and representing those living with medical conditions in commercial fiction. She speaks four languages and spends her days doing her best not to muddle them up.
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