Julie Buxbaum is a Harvard Law School graduate who recently gave up her corporate career to pursue writing. Her novel, The Opposite of Love, released in January of 2008, is the first of a two book deal with Random House, and it has garnered significant literary praise. Recently, WOW Book Reviewer Tracey Henry had the opportunity to interview Buxbaum.

As a first time novelist, you've received some very impressive reviews. These reviews had to have buoyed you as a writer. Were there any in particular that you felt captured the spirit of the novel in the way you had hoped?

To be honest, I try not to let my ego or feelings about the book be tied too much to reviews, good or bad. They are just one person's opinion, and when I read them, I try to listen with an open mind, hopefully learn something, and that's about it. I've found that e-mails from readers are significantly more gratifying than the reviews, though, since people are so generous with sharing their own stories about how the book touched their lives. That has buoyed me as a writer more than anything else, since when I write I hope to one day reach out and touch readers – that's what it's all about after all. I've never written with a professional critic in mind, and I really hope never to do so.

You've got some pretty powerful themes running through the book. Without giving them away (as I reader, I love to unravel the obvious and subtle themes of the story to see how they finish off in the end) was this a conscious effort from the beginning, or did they emerge as you got farther along?

I'd have to say both. There were some themes that emerged as I wrote, themes that I found were threaded through the subtext of my story somewhat subconsciously. Others, particularly the look at what happens when we delay grief, were intentional from the very beginning. It’s the central underpinning of the novel. I do think as you write, you find certain ideas start to assert themselves, sometimes with subtlety and sometimes not. And as the writer you have to decide which ones to nurture, and how to do it in a way that doesn't smack your reader as too heavy-handed.

How did the story develop for you? Did you begin with Emily's character first, or her story?

I actually began thematically – again, this idea of what happens to a person who doesn't deal with an early devastating loss – and from there created Emily's character. Once I fully realized her as a person, someone I could imagine living and breathing in the world, with strengths and flaws and certain motivations, just like the rest of us, her story began to write itself. It is cliché, but true, especially with a character-driven novel like The Opposite of Love. Your characters guide you along.

You have an absolutely delicious sense of humor. I laughed out loud in many places. But at the end, I was completely sobbing. It was a wonderful ride from beginning to end. Did you achieve that balance naturally, or was it something you had to work on?

Thanks so much! Although on the surface, humor and loss seem incompatible, I think for this story, in particular, they are natural counterparts. Emily uses the former as a defense mechanism for dealing with the latter. I've found people are often at their funniest when they are facing adversity, and I intentionally used humor to restore balance and add a necessary element of realism to the novel. The reader's experience almost parallels Emily's. They too are handed a defense mechanism – comic relief – for dealing with the grief that underpins the story.

Who do you enjoy reading?

I read pretty much everything I can get my hands on. I've recently discovered Richard Powers and Marilynn Robinson, both of whom are masters of language, and make me want to become a better writer.

I know you are well underway on your next project. Is it a continuation of this story, or something completely different? When can we expect to see more?

I am not sure when the next novel is coming out (maybe, '09?), but I'll keep you posted. It is a completely different story, but there is one crossover (somewhat minor) character from The Opposite of Love.

Click here for Henry's review of Buxbaum's novel. The author’s Web site is available at http://juliebuxbaum.com.