How would you act if you knew someone had less than 72 hours to live? That is the premise for Darianne Schramm’s ’08 debut novel, “72 Hours of You,” published by Disney Hyperion.
The COVID-19 pandemic was a time when many were living out their dreams and Darianne Schramm ’08 decided she could too.
“I’ve always been a writer, but I never believed I could write a whole novel,” said Schramm, who majored in philosophy and journalism in 2008. “But during the pandemic I saw all these people living their dreams and I thought maybe I could do that too. This is when I came up with the idea for my novel and started writing.”
The young adult novel, “72 Hours of You,” tells the story of high school senior Sydney Hoffman as she sees pink neon countdown clocks over people’s heads 72 hours before they die. This has left her cynical, closed off and alone until she meets Peter Beckett, who changes everything she believes about life and death. Peter convinces Sydney she does not have to handle the countdowns alone, and together they help strangers live their best final hours.
“It felt like everyone around me had a clock over their head during the pandemic and I was really struggling to figure out how to live a meaningful life with the threat of the world possibly ending at any moment,” said Schramm. “I was sort of learning alongside the main character, Sydney, how to enjoy life and be present.”
During this time writing the novel became cathartic for her.
“My classes at Elon influenced my writing so much,” said Schramm. “This book is very philosophical and so many of the ideas in there are from my time eating bread around the fireplace in the philosophy building talking about existentialism and what it means to live an examined life. One of the teachers in the book is named in honor of one of my favorite philosophy professors, Dr. Jegstrup. She pushed me harder than any teacher ever has, and I owe so much to her and her classes.”
Schramm was originally only a journalism major, but that all changed after she took a philosophy class taught by Associate Professor Elsebet Jegstrup.
“After the first class, I walked directly to the registrar’s office and immediately changed my major to philosophy,” Schramm said. “I only needed one day for it to change everything.
Publishing a novel was not exactly what she thought it would be. While writing her debut novel, Schramm learned from other authors how the publishing world worked.
“One of the things I didn’t realize was how long publishing takes,” Schramm said. “My auction for “72 Hours of You” happened in early 2024 and it just recently came out.”
Life as a debut author has been a dream come true for Schramm. She has had the opportunity to meet many creative colleagues and visit stores to sign copies of her book.
“I feel wildly lucky that this is my job,” Schramm said. “To see my debut novel translated into so many different languages has been such an incredible gift.”
Now working on her second young adult novel, “Kiss Me Like the Last Time,” about a girl who kisses someone for the first time while also experiencing her last kiss with them at the same time, which is set to publish in 2027.
Schramm is also publishing her first debut adult novel in 2028 titled “The Eternal Deaths of Hattie Gold,” about a woman who is training to become Gen-Z Death.
While at Elon, Schramm participated in Greek Life and developed strong relationships with faculty.
“I loved attending Elon and being in the Department of Philosophy,” Schramm said. “The philosophy department was such a special tight-knot space, and I am forever grateful that I changed my major to philosophy.”
Schramm is earning her PhD in creative writing.