Author! Author! goes ‘Wild’ in Bend

Published 12:00 am Saturday, March 1, 2014

In the mid-1990s, Cheryl Strayed was lost. The rock of her life, her mother, had died of cancer when Strayed was just 22, and what remained of her family began to break and drift apart.

Strayed’s stepfather changed into someone unrecognizable, and she grew apart from her brother and sister, “in spite of my efforts to hold us together, until I gave up and scattered as well.”

The quote comes from Strayed’s best-selling 2012 memoir, “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail,” a chronicle of her 1,100-mile journey from California to the Oregon-Washington border, with flashbacks of her young life.

Strayed, 45, will visit Bend on March 16 as the next in the Deschutes Public Library Foundation’s Author! Author! series, in which visiting authors discuss their work. Revenue from the series helps fund library programs.

In 1995, Strayed — rootless, divorced and drifting amid drugs and doomed relationships — was drawn to hike the trail in order to reconnect with possibility and the strong young woman she’d once known as herself.

As she writes in the book, “I’d made the arguably unreasonable decision to take a long walk alone on the PCT in order to save myself.”

After the challenges she faced on the hike, the trajectory of her life took her to Syracuse University, where she earned a Master of Fine Arts in fiction writing under the tutelage of writers including George Saunders. She wrote the novel “Torch,” about a 38-year-old mother who is dying of cancer and the devastating impact it has on the survivors. Today, Strayed lives in Portland with her husband and two children.

Two months after its release, “Wild” was chosen as the first selection for Oprah’s Book Club 2.0. The book had already reached as high as No. 5 on the New York Times Best Seller List, but after the announcement, it went immediately to No. 1.

Now, the book is being made into a film starring Reese Witherspoon, with a script adapted by Nick Hornby, author of “High Fidelity,” “About a Boy” and other books that have made the leap from book to film. The film is slated for a fall release, the date yet to be determined, Strayed said.

The in-demand author was traveling last week but took time to answer a series of email questions about her writing, the film and her upcoming visit.

Q: After the publication (of “Wild”) … a couple showed up to an early reading saying they’d met you on the trail in ’95. Have you had other reunions with people you met on the trail, or discovered other interesting connections as a result of people reading your book?

A: Yes, I’ve reunited with many of the people I wrote about in the book and also with people who didn’t make it into the final draft of the book — such as the couple you mention, who I’d met and shared a meal with before hiking on. One of my favorite reunions is with Ed — the trail angel who I met in Kennedy Meadows. I’d not been in touch with him since I met him on the trail, but he showed up at one of my readings in L.A. when the book was first published. After he said hello he opened up his backpack and pulled out my foldable saw — the one I’d left behind in the PCT hiker free box. He’d kept it all these years.

Q: What was the hardest part of writing a memoir about your mid-20s? The number of years that had passed, facing your younger self, or something else altogether?

A: The writing. The writing is always the hardest! Because, of course, I wasn’t just trying to give a report of my hike, but to actually write a book with literary merit. The point of “Wild” isn’t “Look at me! I went on a long hike!” It undertakes the deeper work of literature and so that was hard. I doubted every page and suffered over every sentence.

Q: If you could go back and talk to your younger self before she set out on the trail, what would you tell her?

A: “You’ll be okay. You ARE okay. You haven’t wrecked your life even if you think you have. You haven’t made any permanent mistakes.” The older I get the more forgiving I am of myself and others.

Q: What was your reaction when “Wild” was selected for Oprah’s Book Club 2.0? How big of an impact do you estimate it had on its success?

A: I was gobsmacked and thrilled beyond belief. I mean, OPRAH! Every time I think of that moment when I answered my cell phone and realized it was her on the other end I just smile so big. It was fantastic. Oprah chose “Wild” for her book club after it had already been on the New York Times best seller list, as well as many other best seller lists, so it was successful on its own, but she did give it a solid boost. It was like she came along and served the book a triple shot of espresso. It was after her announcement that “Wild” shot to number one on the NYT list.

Q: Do you get different reactions to “Wild” in different regions of the country? Do different people seem to connect to different aspects of the book?

A: I get similar reactions to the book all over not only the country but the world. That has been the most moving aspect of this experience, to see how universally people relate to the book. They tell me about their own struggles and losses and also about their own adventures and journeys. It’s been beautiful to have so many people — across genders, generations, races, religions and cultures — feel connected to me. I will say that when I visit communities like Bend, where many people are avid hikers and nature lovers, I feel the difference. In places like Bend I get a lot more: “Hey, I did something like that too!” than I get: “You’re completely crazy!”

Q: Did Hornby consult with you while writing the screenplay, or did he just read the book and have at it?

A: We talked about the book before he began writing the script and then after he wrote it he sent it to me and I shared my thoughts with him. He was so respectful of me all along the way, as was everyone involved in the film. He’s not only a brilliant writer, he’s a generous, big-hearted man. I feel incredibly lucky that he adapted my book for the screen.

Q: Anything in his screenplay that will come as a surprise to readers?

A: Not in terms of additions, but a few omissions might come as a surprise to some people. We couldn’t put everything that’s in the book into the movie — it’s just too much material — so not everything in the book is in the film.

Q: On a scale of 1-10, how surreal is it seeing as talented and famous an actor as Reese Witherspoon portraying you?

A: With ten being the most surreal it was a ten and a half. It was mind-blowing. I was often on the film set and it was incredible watching Reese work. Not only because she’s an amazing actress, but because she was playing me! It was an experience unlike any other I’ve ever had or probably ever will have again.

Q: How closely involved in the making of the film have you been?

A: I was very involved. I always felt welcome on set and at every turn I’ve been included in the conversations, which is really wonderful and unique. Reese and her producing partner Bruna Papandrea were the ones who first optioned the book for film, before it was even published, and we just clicked immediately so I think that set the tone for how we’d proceed. The director, Jean-Marc Vallee, feels like a brother to me. He’s so smart and talented and kind. I’ve already said how much I adore Nick Hornby. And the entire cast and crew — from the big stars all the way to the craft services people — were extraordinary. I spoke with most of the actors about the real life people they were playing. I talked to the people in wardrobe and makeup and props and production design and the art department and on and on and on. They all wanted to do right by my book and my life. I’m honored that so many talented people came together to make “Wild.” It was an experience I’ll never forget.

Q: Any stories from the set that you can share?

A: So many stories! One thing that was really special to me is that Laura Dern, who plays my mother, wore a ring and a bracelet that belonged to my mom in several of the film’s scenes. They fit her perfectly. She wore them on the first day she was shooting and she told me they felt warm against her skin, like my mother was there with her. If my mom knew Laura Dern would someday play her in a movie, she’d never ever believe it. It still shocks me. It’s a beautiful, breathtaking thing.

Q: After that first photo of Witherspoon surfaced with Smith Rock in the background, local tongues were wagging noting that Smith Rock is not on the PCT. Can you set the record straight? Was that just a scenic setting for a publicity shot?

A: To shoot on locations that are not literally the locations being depicted is a common practice in film. It’s necessary for a number of logistical reasons. The intention was always to capture the stunning and diverse natural beauty of the PCT, even if we weren’t always on it. Though Smith Rock is iconic to Oregonians, most who see the film won’t know the difference. They’ll just say wow.

Q: Are you working on another book now? Anything you can tell us about it?

A: I am, in fits and starts. I can’t say much about it because it’s so new.

Q: Do you get to Central Oregon very often?

A: A few times a year. I wish it were more often. It’s so beautiful there.

Q: What do you have planned for the Bend event?

A: I love to make people laugh and I love to make people cry. I hope to do both in Bend.

— Reporter: 541-383-0349, djasper@bendbulletin.com

Editor’s note: This article has been corrected. The original version mischaracterized the arrival of “Wild” at No. 1 on the New York Times Best Seller List. The Bulletin regrets the error.