Eli Rallo Wrote A Book You Never Knew You Needed

Releasing her debut novel in the form of narrative nonfiction, writer and content creator Eli Rallo is reflecting on her experiences surrounding relationships and all the shades of nuances between them. “The questions that are keeping you up late at night, the things that are bothering you, the stuff in your mind,” she explains, “ all deserve a place to be heard.”

By Haneen Elmeswari

Posted at 12:00PM EDT, Wed November 16, 2022

Photo Credits: @eli.rallo

Eli Rallo has been writing for as long as she can remember. She has vivid memories of writing novels as a child. “I remember when I was seven years old. I produced a book out of my notebook and gave it to my parents.” That became her first memory of writing in long form. Little did seven-year-old Rallo know that one day Harper Collins would become the publisher of her debut book, titled “I Didn’t Know I Needed This”, at the ripe age of 24.  

Eli Rallo graduated from the University of Michigan in 2020, receiving a BA in Theater and Creative Writing. During her time at Michigan, she was the editor-in-chief of her Her Campus chapter and wrote for her school’s paper The Michigan Daily. She also wrote a blog and newsletter titled ‘Salt and The City’which she describes as “ a brush stroke of raw creativity, and an underlying semblance of theatre kid meets vibrant feminist meets mousy, introverted librarian energy.”

“I’ve always been writing and I always knew that was my end destination,” specifically, Rallo always knew she was going to be an author, “I just wasn't really sure how I was going to get there.” That was when Rallo enrolled at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. 

It was the height of the pandemic in Rallo’s time there. Most of her reporting inevitably surrounded Covid, as the school tried to navigate providing education through the restrictions of an infectious virus. However, in her time there, Rallo found that unbiased and ‘breaking news’ type journalism was not what came naturally to her, but rather more personal, long-form writing. 

Rallo was also thrown into the world of content creation during her time as a graduate student. She blew up in a way unrelated to her writing, but rather for making a jar of mixed snacks, considered a staple in her family home (hence her handle @thejarr on TikTok). She credits her start as a future published author to her online audience. It's through her content on social media that her agent was able to reach out to her and pitch a potential book deal. 

But non-fiction was not what Rallo had in mind for her first published book. “I always imagined my first book would be fiction.” But upon further thought, Rallo decided that what would bode best with her audience right now would be to continue writing in the style she was known best for. Her debut novel, titled “I Didn't Know I Needed This” will be narrative nonfiction, in a personal essay style. 

Rallo describes it as “lessons I wish I knew going throughout my life thus far but in an open-ended way.” The book marries her style of blog writing, which can be described as deeply personal while also having a comedic effect, and her infamous list of rules she is known for putting up on her socials. Whether you need guidelines surrounding a first love, how to navigate heartbreak or the rules of a one-night stand, Rallo has written about it and is ready to share it with you. 

“I'm just somebody that's always been really fascinated by opening up dialogue to people,” she says, “and having conversations about things that we don't have conversations about and asking questions that we don't feel comfortable asking.”

She has recently completed her first draft and has sent it along to her copy editor. There it will go through a few rounds of edits, complete things such as the dedications, and acknowledgments, and then be sent into pre-order in the early spring of next year.

Rallo wants you to know that really, the book is about relationships. “Our relationship to ourselves, our relationships to the people around us, our relationships with people that we love.” In her book, Rallo writes about how there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to relationships. “We can’t expect for it to look one certain way and beat ourselves up when it feels different.” 

This book is a reflection on her life thus far, how love has been everchanging for her, and has looked different in every stage of her life. The process of writing the book has been surprisingly therapeutic for her. “I've always known writing is therapeutic. But it's really hard to write about people that I loved very deeply and versions of myself that loved deeply that I mourn.”

As much as it's therapeutic, writing her first book has come with its challenges too. “The hardest part is definitely the anticipation of, like, the noise.” she explains, “And I think I've been very concerned with what people think.” 

The idea of criticism is something that has been crawling into the front of her mind as she gets closer and closer to her final product. How has she decided she's going to deal with it? By simply not reading it. “Obviously, if I'm blessed enough that the New York Times Book Reviews reviews it, I'm gonna read that, but I'm more so mean, I'm not gonna read random tweets about the book.”

When asked for that one piece of golden advice to give to young, aspiring writers, Rallo had a few words to say. “Put your head down and tread water, don’t let yourself drown. You’re going to get to shore.” She exclaims to write everything like it's going into the New York Times, with the same level of excellence, integrity, and passion. Most importantly, capture your vulnerability and raw side in your writing. “The minute you write something your family hates is when you know that you're good.”

Rallo still has a hard time conceptualizing that she has gotten as far and has achieved what she has. “If you told me 2 years ago that Harper Collins was going to buy my first book, I would be like you’re fucking out of your mind.” However, Rallo is learning to take a step back and enjoy the process, lean into her emotions, and linger at the moment for that much longer. 

Orginally Published on w27newspapers.com