LR Friends
Character Study With Coco Mellors
We count ourselves very lucky to call Coco Mellors a friend. Now a best-selling author twice over, Coco spent time on Team LR as a copywriter before publishing her debut novel, Cleopatra and Frankenstein. This fall, to celebrate the launch of her latest hit, Blue Sisters, we caught up with Coco on a sunny September morning in her neighborhood. Read on as Coco shares the secrets to her writing routine, favorite moments of new motherhood, and more, self styled in pieces from our collection.
Shop the Ramina Dress & Maddie Cardigan
On The Beginnings Of Blue Sisters
‘"Until you know my sisters, you don’t know me.’ This was the comment, uttered casually by a friend several years ago when I was still writing Cleopatra and Frankenstein, desperately dreaming of finishing one (just one!) novel, that eventually planted the seed of Blue Sisters. Was this true of me and my siblings, I wondered? Could you know me if you didn’t know them? And, if it was true, who would I be if I lost one of them?
"I’m fascinated by the ways siblings shape each other, how addiction manifests between generations, and how grief changes us. I imagined Blue Sisters as a take on sibling stories like The Royal Tenenbaums, Little Women and The Corrections, in which very different siblings must find a way to co-exist in a family. It is, first and foremost, a family novel, but also (because I’m me, and I can’t write the dark without the light) about glamour, sex, and the joy of living."
Shop the James Jacket, Emlyn Skirt & Leonie Flat
On Her Writing Routine
"No Wifi and no phone when I’m writing, that’s a big one, but in general I try to keep an element of play to my work, and I think too strict a routine would be counter to that. I’m less concerned with how many hours a day I write and more with keeping the momentum going over long periods of time, since novels take years and years. For that I’ve found being in a writer’s group, and the community and accountability that offers, tremendously helpful.
"I'm a huge believer in "move a muscle, change a thought" so when I'm stuck I take what I call an imagination walk. The rules (made up by me) are: music is very helpful but NO other phone time is allowed, including podcasts and phone calls since it's hard to hear your own imagination with all those other voices in your head. I walk and imagine the scene I'm working on then walk some more - nine times out of ten, by the time I sit back down at my desk something has shifted and I can write a little more that day."
Shop the Maxwell Dress, Ramona Bag & Goldy Boot
On Her Tour Wardrobe
"This tour I wore all blue, white and gold outfits to match the cover—I had moments when I was still scrolling blue outfits online late into the night while my son slept, like why did I do this to myself, how have I managed to make shopping work?! But it ended up being so fun and I’ve loved seeing the readers come to the events in their blue best too.
"About half my tour wardrobe has been Loeffler Randall, from a gorgeous puff-sleeve gold dress I wore in London and LA that made me feel like a sparkly cloud, to my Fae denim platforms I paired with a matching blue pedicure. I even wore a Loeffler Randall dress in my author photo! I feel so feminine and confident in it. I think for a long time there was an attitude that serious writers only wore black turtlenecks and didn’t care about style, but I’ve always really disagreed with that. As Virginia Woolf said, clothes ‘change our view of the world and the world’s view of us.’"
Shop the Ramona Bag, Ramina Dress, Maddie Cardigan & Ginger Mary Jane
On Motivations
"I find myself drawn to writing about the subjects that are hard to talk about I think because fiction offers a safe and private space to explore some of the harder parts of living. I think of books as a light in the darkness—they illuminate, they create warmth, they guide us safely home. The books I love have made me feel less alone in ways that are truly profound and life affirming, and I hope I can offer that to a reader too."
Shop the James Jacket
On The Surprises Of New Motherhood
"My own capacity for love expanded so infinitely, exponentially, immediately. Rather than shrinking my life, as I feared, loving my son has made me love the world more, and feel more connected to every person in it."
Shop the Ginger Mary Jane & Maxwell Dress
On Her Book Tour Survival Guide
"My travel must-haves are my Liberty silk eye mask and Asystem Sleep Gummies—essential for good night’s sleep, even with jet lag and a baby!"
Shop the James Jacket, Emlyn Skirt & Leonie Flat
On Character Development
"Blue Sisters was the most research I’ve done for a book so far. Bonnie is a professional boxer, so to write her fight scenes with technical accuracy, I trained with a boxing coach in LA for over a year (and even proudly sported a black eye from sparring to prove it!). I also interviewed models from all over the world to better understand the youngest sister Lucky’s career as a teen model in the fashion industry.
"My next novel has a lot more about the film and music industries in it, so I’ve been researching that which is fun. And it’s set in Paris, so I simply have no choice but to spend more time there…:)"
Shop the Maxwell Dress, Ramona Bag & Goldy Boot
On The Blue Sisters In LR
"The eldest Avery famously loves a sensible but chic loafer so she’d get the Rachel.
"Bonnie’s the tomboy and lives in LA so she’d get the Jack.
"Nicky is very high femme so she’d love the exaggerated bows of the Noa or Margot.
"And Lucky is our rebel and wild child so she’d opt for a good boot she could dance all night in like the Nolan or Elise."
