'I Decided To Walk Away From Everything': Hilarie Burton Morgan On 'One Tree Hill' & Book 'The Rural Diaries'

(CBS Local)-- Hilarie Burton Morgan was one of the biggest names in Hollywood during the 2000s and then decided to walk away from the industry.

The actor has always been open about her life and pulled no punches in her new book "The Rural Diaries: Love, Livestock, and Big Life Lessons Down on Mischief Farm." The former star of "One Tree Hill" discusses her issues with the program's showrunner Mark Schwahn, battles with infertility, and why she moved to a farm in upstate New York.

"I have been very open about the miscarriages that my husband and I dealt with," said Burton Morgan in an interview with CBS Local's DJ Sixsmith. "I think writing the book was a way for me to create a path from that constant mourning to the joy we felt when our daughter was born. You feel guilt about celebrating that joy, especially when you know people are in the depths of mourning. It created a pathway and I feel good about putting that out into the world."

FULL INTERVIEW:

Burton Morgan made a name for herself as Peyton Sawyer on "One Tree Hill." In 2017, the actor spoke out against Schwahn over allegations of sexual assault. While the set of the show was toxic at times, Burton Morgan is able to look at the positive and negatives of the experience with some separation from the show.

"That was a totally different time in the television industry," said Burton Morgan. "I remember during that period of time, Nicollette Sheridan was having her lawsuit with Desperate Housewives. Someone pointed that out to me and said if you want to be a troublemaker that is going to happen to you. That was really jarring as a 26-year-old kid to be told that I'd be ruined forever should I go public. That was really stressful and I decided to walk away from everything. Thankfully that next job White Collar, was the healthiest, most beautiful, most supportive work environment I could've stumbled into."

"I'm pretty good at compartmentalizing and I'm such good friends with that whole [One Tree Hill] cast," said Burton Morgan. "I'm really good friends with the crew and I've watched their children grow up. Peyton [Sawyer] had a pretty big chip on her shoulder, which was good. When you are in the throes of adolescence, it is good to have a character that has it so much worse. If you're in a fight with your mom and dad and Peyton Sawyer has two dead moms, at least it's worse for her.

Burton Morgan's book is available now wherever books are sold. Watch all of DJ Sixsmith's interviews from "The Sit-Down" series here.