(bell dings) - [Susan] I am Susan Beckham Zurenda, this is "The Girl from the Red Rose Motel."

It is inspired by my teaching experience, and I had the privilege of teaching very, very different groups of students.

And so I wanted to see what would happen if I put two students from these vastly different backgrounds and circumstances together.

(gentle music) - What is it about the dynamic between teachers and students that makes for such good stories?

- Teachers trying to key into who students are, how to reach them, and then also students.

A teacher-student relationship is a unique relationship.

There's a little bit of friend in it, a little bit of friend in it, we hope there's a lot of respect in it, but that student is learning from that teacher, but the teacher is also learning some from the student.

(gentle music) - [Jeremy] This is very much a classic forbidden love story.

- It is.

- What drew you to exploring that?

- Another interviewer asked me, he said, "You've got two forbidden love stories in The Girl from the Red Rose Motel.

You've got a forbidden love story in my debut novel, "Bells for Eli," what draws you to forbidden love stories?

I thought, oh my gosh, what kind of warped person am I?

- I just think they're the best stories.

- I guess.

- Where your two people who are very much in love have all the odds stacked against them, and I just wonder if that's just what makes the best stories.

- Well, maybe, but I guess perhaps I'm a romantic at heart because I really do believe, I believe that love is a stronger emotion than hate, and I believe that love has an overwhelming capacity to help people get beyond seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

- So you're gonna have to write the sequel now, everybody's gotta know what happens.

- A lot of people have asked me about it.

Yeah, I guess I'm gonna have to wrap my head around that.

- Susan, thank you so much for doing this.

- Thank you Jeremy.

- And thank you for watching "A Word on Words."

I'm Jeremy Finley, remember, keep reading.

(bell dings) - [Susan] I just didn't think Zurenda sounded southern and I've lived my entire life in South Carolina.

I'm southern through and through and I thought I better put that Beckham on there.

(gentle music)