Q&A WithMeredith Broussard

Q&A With…Meredith Broussard

By Laura Gilbert

Meredith Broussard

By Laura Gilbert

The editor of The Encyclopedia of Exes: 26 Stories by Men of Love Gone Wrong reveals how men and women deal with dating disasters.

	This is your second collection of nightmarish relationship stories—The Dictionary of Failed Relationships: 26 Tales of Love Gone Wrong came out two years ago. What got you hooked on horror stories?
	What happened is that I met a guy called Tony Columbo. Tony Columbo cheated on me. I started talking to my friends about it, and I realized there are a lot of women with relationship horror stories. It’s always comforting to know that you’re not alone. And when you read something truly outlandish, you feel better because whatever you’re going through isn’t that bad!

	Your first book features all female authors; your new one all men. Notice any differences in their definition of “dating disaster”?
	Sex! When you ask men to write about love, they write about sex.

	What’s the biggest myth out there about men and dating?
	From the women’s side, I think it’s easy to think the man is being heartless and isn’t emotionally affected by a breakup. But I’ve found that the men’s stories I’ve read have a lot more emotional nuance than I’d expected.

	What do you think is the most painful part of a breakup?
	When you realize that a person you looked up to has feet of clay. I had my heart broken in college one time by a guy I was seeing; I found out he was sleeping with my male roommate. It’s not that I was in love with him, but realizing that I didn’t know him as well as I’d thought I did was awful.

	What are the best remedies for a broken heart?
	Chocolate and good friends.

Laura Gilbert’s worst breakup story involves a lot of credit cards and a note from a guy who moved out while she was at Thanksgiving dinner.


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