Soap Opera Digest: When choosing participants, do you look for certain "characters?"
Sasha Alpert: Well, for soaps, they're written. It's very different. When we cast, we're looking for stories, we're looking for people we can help in the time period available.
Damon Furberg: I do look at them in some respects as you would a fictional character. You want to look for someone who has growth. You don't want to look for someone who has a particular personality and leaves exactly the same. You want to start at point A and end up at point B. That's both in terms of their growth as a person and as a story. You do think about it a little bit.

Digest: How does the casting process differ from prime-time reality shows?
Joan O'Connor: It's interesting. I think that viewers watch most nighttime reality shows because they can look at the cast and compare their lives to them, and say, "Thank God, I'm not like that person who'll sacrifice ethics." With STARTING OVER, I think viewers watch for a totally different reason. They say, "Wow, look at these women. I'm just like them. There's a part of me in all of them." They not only root for the cast member, but experience their own vicarious starting over journey. This is a positive show. It's fascinating to me when I hear feedback about why viewers watch; it's for totally different reasons than nighttime.

Digest: Did it seem inevitable that someone would create a reality soap like STARTING OVER?
Furberg: I think you're definitely seeing a cross-pollination between reality and scripted shows. In a way, this show is like if you mated DR. PHIL with a soap. The child would be STARTING OVER.
O'Connor: After we debuted, it started to make sense to me that Bunim-Murray created what is a pioneering hybrid. I realized that they were really touching upon an area that was going to be big. They kind of created a genre within a genre. It's difficult in TV to find a new niche, but infusing reality into daytime, I think it's inevitable and it makes sense that they were the people to do it.

Digest: Do you think more shows will try to blend the genres?
Alpert: I think reality TV has gone in many directions. THE SIMPLE LIFE, for example, is a reality comedy. So, I don't see why not.

Digest: A lot of reality stars go on to get acting jobs. Have you seen that trend with the STARTING OVER ladies?
Furberg: A lot of people who want to be actors apply to reality shows. We're looking for people who want to be themselves. Some shows don't care as much about that.
Alpert: A lot of soaps have stories that are relatable to viewers. They're stories about loss of love, all kinds of things that are relatable to fans of daytime TV. We're just doing it with people who are experiencing it.
O'Connor: There's the fantasy element. I sometimes sit here and go, "God, I wish I could go into the STARTING OVER house!" Who wouldn't want the ability to put their life on hold? That's a luxury that most of the viewers can't do ... But then they can get makeovers and be really taken care of. As for the women's stories, their struggle is so difficult. Changing your life is hard. I realized you can change your life at any point. That's an exciting notion and also plays into the fantasy element. The show is a mirror for everyone's life. They might share something with certain characters. With most reality TV, you see one facet, but here, you see the layers. Sometimes what they're going through, there's no way you can make it up. The truth really is stranger than fiction. Like soaps, the stories are based on emotion.