December 19, 2024 • 47 mins
Thanks to author Rachel Lewis for talking about her debut Yours, Unexpectedly and her new holiday novella, out now - Merrily Yours.
Follow Rachel:
- Yours, Unexpectedly (available on KU)
- Merrily Yours (available on KU)
- Website
- Follow Rachel on Instagram
Books Mentioned in this episode:
- Unsteady by Peyton Corinne
- Unloved by Peyton Corinne
- Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood
- The Bodyguard by Katherine Center
- The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center
- The Ex-Vows by Jessica Joyce
- Out on a Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young
For links to the books discussed in this episode, click the link here to take you to the Google Doc to view the list.
For episode feedback, future reading and author recommendations, you can text the podcast by clicking the "Send us a message button" above.
For more, follow along on Instagram @whereileftoffpod.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome back.
I'm Kristen Bowles and you'relistening to when I Left Off a
bookish podcast, and today I'mjoined by romance author Rachel
Lewis to talk about her debutnovel, yours Unexpectedly, and
her new holiday novella comingout soon Merrily, yours.
Thanks for coming on, rachel.
Thank you for having me.
I'm so excited to be here.
Oh my gosh, I loved your bookso I can't wait to talk more
(00:30):
about it.
Well, both of them actually,because I've read the novella I
know you kind of got to do itback to back.
I know I really liked it thatway.
It was nice, because then youknow you can't forget anything
about the characters and youkind of pick up on a couple more
things.
So that's kind of the way to doit yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Okay Well, you heard it here.
You guys do it that way.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Do a reread if you've already read yours unexpectedly
, and then you can come backinto barely yours and it'll be
perfect Perfect for the holidayseason.
So the first thing that Ialways ask everyone that comes
on is what are you currentlyreading?
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Okay.
So I'm going to have a reallylame answer to this, because I
am not reading anything rightnow.
Um, I am like I have not been.
It's been a crazy week, it'sbeen a crazy, crazy times, and
so I have been like I got suckedinto this stupid game on my
(01:27):
phone and it's like CandyCrush-esque but not, and so I've
what's it called, I don't evenknow Match sorting Good sorting,
good sorting.
It's like you move the littlelittle like grocery objects onto
the shelf to like match them.
Oh, I don't.
(01:47):
Okay.
So this popped up as an ad onmy kids color by number app.
I was like that looks kind offun, and so I downloaded it.
So that's what I've been doinginstead of reading.
I next am going to be reading,though I need to.
I need to read it.
It's been sitting on my Kindlebut I was like no, I need to get
(02:09):
in the headspace for it.
But my friend, peyton Curran,wrote her second book, unloved.
It's second in her Undoneseries, and so I have it and I
need to read it.
It'll be out in.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
February.
I think Unsteady is on myKindle, so I'm haven't started
yet, but I need to.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
It's so good, it's so good, so highly recommend that
and then and then, yeah, maybeyou can, or maybe you can just
do it like you did with mine andgo back, so yeah, that sounds
like a better way to do it,because then I definitely can't
forget anything.
Hers are really interesting too, because they're happening at
the same time.
(02:48):
Oh wow.
So like it would be interestingto like I might have to do a
reread of Unsteady and then likesee kind of how the timelines
interweave.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
That would be awesome .
Yeah, sometimes you just need abreak from reading.
But that's nice that you have afriend's book that you know is
going to be a guaranteedprobably five stars.
So then that way you don't haveto worry about, you know,
picking up a book that's justnot hitting it.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Yeah, yeah, I know I'm just such a mood reader and
I have to be in the right mood,but she writes really angsty, so
I know that I have to like beready to be sad a little bit.
So I've been.
I've been too in my feels, butyeah, once, once I get a little
bit out of my feels, then I canget into her feels.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Okay, Got it.
I'll have some tissues readyWhenever I start.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I am an easy crier though, so like, okay, maybe not
, but I cry at everything.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Well, your book's kind of perfect if you need a
break, because it's not superangsty.
So maybe that was the goal.
Yeah, everyone should readPeyton's first, cry a little bit
and then, whenever they need apalate cleanser, then jump over
to yours and it'll be theperfect sequence.
Yes, exactly that's the way todo it.
So what can you tell us aboutyour work in progress?
(04:06):
I noticed on the side of thebook it had a little one as if
it was the first in the series,so I'm assuming that there are
going to be more books.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
There are going to be more books, so it is going to
follow.
Each Bardot sibling is going toget a book.
So if you haven't read yoursunexpectedly yet, it follows Bex
Bardot.
She is the youngest sister andshe's got three older brothers,
so they are each going to get abook, and I am working on book
(04:36):
two now.
So what can I tell you about it?
I haven't announced who it is.
You about it.
I haven't announced who it is,though if you read the novella,
you probably know or you have agood guess of who it is, because
one of the things with thenovella is it ends on a
character that we haven't metbefore, but then there's one
(05:00):
brother that doesn't have aclear match.
So it's, it's going to be thosetwo together.
I don't want to give too muchaway, but that that will be book
two.
I am so excited about it.
It is going to be a singleparent, and so I really love
like tender single parent.
(05:23):
The new, you know, parentfigure comes in.
You know like that kind ofthing, just kind of seeing their
interaction and kids are soI've got two kids of my own and
so they're just funny andthey're just blunt and so
they're great to kind of likemove the plot along, because
they'll just say whatever theywant.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
So's perfect, oh my gosh.
Okay, yay.
So the little, the little hintsthat are in the novella are
true hints, for whose book isgoing to be next?
Speaker 2 (05:55):
yes, yes, yes so if you read the novella, you will
have an idea of what's comingnext okay, good, they just.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
He happens to be my favorite brother, so I am really
excited for this.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
Now, okay, Okay, so we can.
We can talk about it becausepeople will know this is going
to be announced soon and peoplewill.
Once the novella is out in theworld, people will know.
But who do you think it's goingto be?
So I think it's going to beJules.
Yes.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Oh yes, okay, good, he's, he's my favorite, he's
just the best.
But I was going to say I'm, Iwas a little bit frustrated with
you because I really okay, sotell me why I'm going to go into
it.
So, in the book, um, basically,you know, we know that there's
probably going to be somethingwith Gabe, right, right.
(06:44):
Oh, my gosh, why am Iforgetting my friend's name,
lucy?
Thank you, gabe and Lucy.
So I was like, okay, I'mlooking forward to that story.
Well then, in Merrily, yours,whenever you give us all of the
POVs I love Rivals to Lovers.
So then you throw Ben in thereand I'm like, well, now I'm
excited for his story, oh yes.
(07:05):
And then whenever you throwJules in there and hint that
he's coming next, then I waslike, well, now I just want them
all at the same time.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
I know it is so and I like they all kind of like live
in my head right now and Ithink it was really interesting
to write from every character'spoint of view, because you don't
typically do that when you arewriting, just like a dual POV,
right.
And so when I was writing Ben'schapter, I had so much fun
(07:36):
writing that that I was like, oh, I kind of want to skip and
write this book, but I'm like,no, don't do that, because I
cannot do like two.
I could not do them both at thesame time.
But yeah, I a lot of people arelike, wait, because you don't
get a lot of Ben in yearsunexpectedly.
So it was really something thatI wanted to have a lot of fun
(07:57):
with his character and just do Imean he could be anything right
.
Everybody else kind of had anestablished personality, you got
to know them a little bit, butwith him he was still kind of a
big question mark and so, yeah,that chapter was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
They just got better and better, and I was like
Rachel now you're just gonnahave to release these super fast
because you're killing me.
Yes, so sorry.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
I'm so sorry, I know.
And then everybody, evenespecially after yours,
unexpectedly, they'd read it andthey'd be like, okay, so we get
Gabe and Lucy next.
And I'm like I'm so sorry, no,you do not.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Well, I mean, I can wait It'll, it'll be worth it.
It'll be worth it, yup, it'llbe worth it.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
It'll be great.
Yeah, yeah, it's gonna.
That'll be.
The Gabe and Lucy book will beuh, I'm not an angsty writer,
but it'll be this one, jules,and then Gabe and Lucy's will be
my angstier ones, and thenBen's book will just be a ton of
fun.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
I can see that, especially, um, with Gabe and
Lucy, with that whole thing thatgoes down and you know, yours
unexpectedly there has to besome angst with that time gap
and then what happens in Merrily?
Yours, yeah, all of that.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
There's the time gap, yeah, and you'll kind of get
some little insight into what ishappening with them in the next
book, but you will have to haveto wait, dang it.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
I know it just means that, um, I'll have to reread it
all again.
So then, that way, all of theirbooks come out.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
I know it's so hard as an author I'm like, yeah,
read my book, read my book.
But then as a reader I'm likeis the series Like?
I want to wait and read it whenthe series is done.
So I totally get that.
It's tricky, it's hard.
I wish I could write faster.
Speaker 1 (09:54):
No, I mean, you know it takes so much to write a book
and you don't want to rush it,especially with these characters
, since you know you want themto tell their true stories.
But yeah, with these characters, since you know you want them
to tell their true stories.
But yeah, absolutely, I willdefinitely be rereading.
I have a book spreadsheet.
That's literally how I keeptrack of everything I love that
have to bullet point stuff,otherwise you'll forget all oh,
(10:15):
yeah, yeah, that's geniustalking a little bit about
merrily yours, so this is yourholiday novella that's coming
out books two well, one and aWell, one and a half, two, one
and a half yeah.
Yeah, are there any topics orthemes that you actually
discussed on your podcast thatended up kind of making it into
yours unexpectedly or merrily?
(10:36):
Yours just because you focus onromance and you talk to so many
different authors?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah, that's a great question, I think.
For me, really, the whole pointof and you kind of see Bex
grapple with this a little bitin years unexpectedly of like
loving what you love, right, andreading what you want to read,
and she kind of talks about likeromance as a genre where women
are safe and get you knowthey're happily ever after.
(11:03):
And I feel like in a lot ofother genres you just get like
women are being murdered orthey're like it's just not good,
good, bad things are happening,and so you get to see just kind
of like this, like cozinessthat comes with it, and we talk
a lot about that on the podcast,and so that was definitely
something that there's a lot ofme in Bex's character and so
(11:28):
that was something that I waslike this is really important to
me, so I'm gonna put it inthere.
So that's a big one that we'vetalked about.
I think really, I decided to dothe novella because we've
talked on past episodes justabout how we love like holiday
season books and I was like,well, I can't do a whole, like I
(11:53):
can't do a whole nother bookbefore the end of the year, but
I could do a novella.
So that's how we ended up here.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
Nice and it's hard for readers to read a million
different full length Christmasbooks.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
So I like the trend of novellas that we're seeing
this year, it makes it so mucheasier, I agree, and then you
can truly spend the last for me,like two months of the year
just reading Christmas things.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Exactly, I'm trying to start reading Christmas
things.
Merrily, yours got me in thespirit, so now I just want to
read a bunch of them.
Perfect.
What holiday themes can weexpect to see in Marilee yours?
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Okay.
So there's just like such agreat the Bordeaux's are such a
great family, and so you reallyjust get like coming home for
the holidays is a big theme inthe book and even though most of
the Bardos still live inSassafras, their small town in
(12:55):
Massachusetts, bex and Andersand their family are in New York
, and then not every once you'rean adult you know nobody stays
at the house anymore, but thenyou kind of get like them coming
together and spending timetogether all under one roof,
which is fun.
That is definitely somethingthat we have in our family.
(13:15):
Like we do a lot of like reallybig family things around the
holidays and so something that Iwanted included, so that's a
big theme.
And then I think I don't knowif this is necessarily a holiday
theme but too.
So then, like at the end, whenyou get Thea's chapter, she kind
of talks about how she'swanting a home too and like
(13:38):
isn't feeling at home in Bostonwhere she is.
So that's definitely ties intoit.
But I think there's a littlebit of like grappling with what
you think you should be doingversus what you want to be doing
.
I think you see that a lot withJules and Ben in this book and
Anthea just kind of figuring outwhat's next for them.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
So yeah, and then of course you have the parallel of
Thea not maybe having thespectacular Bardot family
Christmas.
So you kind of definitely haveboth sides, yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
Yes, her Christmas is much different, yes, much
different than the BardotChristmas.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
So, yeah, the beginning, I'm pretty sure you
said something that was likethis is a book for all the
people that wanted a big familyholiday and you do really get to
feel like you're with the wholefamily, which was awesome,
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
It's dedicated.
If you need a family, a bigfamily, to accept you for the
holidays, the Rardos are readyfor you.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Yay, with that fun Christmas lawn decorating smash
up.
I think that was my favoritepart.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Oh my gosh, that was like a fever dream.
I was like, what am I going todo?
Because with Hugo and Elaine'schapter, like with the younger
ones, I was like, okay, you know, I can kind of set up stories
with Hugo and Elaine's chapterthe parents.
I was like, okay, you know, Ican kind of set up stories with
Hugo and Elaine's chapter, theparents.
I was like I'm not doing spicefor them, Like I gotta like
figure out what's going to go on.
(15:12):
So, yes, a competition, holidaycompetition.
Who doesn't love a littlecontest?
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Yeah, nice, and speaking of kind of the whole
family, you had so manydifferent POVs.
What were some of thechallenges of trying to write
that from your side?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
I think it was.
I really wanted to make surethat they all had their own
voice and that they readcohesively, but also, you know,
we're showing their ownindividual characteristics, and
that was really tricky.
And it's not, it's short, it'snot a long book, and so it was
(15:52):
like I had to pack a lot intoeach chapter.
This was originally going to bea prequel, it was actually
going to be Hugo and Elainestory, and then I was talked
into turning that into a fulllength standalone, not having to
do with the Bardos, and so Iwas like, okay, how can I do
(16:14):
like?
We've seen Bex and Anders.
We've got a whole book of them.
I don't really want to write awhole novella.
I'm like, okay, so I think Iwant it to be like the days
leading up to Christmas and youjust get a little bit from
everybody.
So it was maybe not the bestidea I've ever had in the world,
but I think it turned out great.
I think it, I think it worked.
It was hard, yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
I had to walk away a lot.
I liked it.
Yeah, I know, whenever I wasgoing to say, whenever I was
reading every person's POV, Iwas like, oh wow, there's even's
POV.
I was like, oh wow, there'seven both parents and there's
every like there's everyone.
That must have been so hard,but yeah, they definitely came
across as completely differentuh, characters.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
Yeah, yeah, and I know it can be hard like when
you're switching POVs, like whenyou're reading it's hard to
like keep track of who you'rereading.
So it was really important tome that, like there was
something you know happening inthe chapter that was very much
tied to the character, and so itreally kept you in, whoever
that person's head was right,yeah, and I really hoped that
(17:18):
they were all hanging outtogether almost the entire time.
Speaker 1 (17:21):
So that way it wasn't like one person's POV and then,
oh no, the person in a totallydifferent situation that yeah, a
lot of togetherness if youcould only invite one of the
characters to spend Christmaswith your family, who would it
be, and why?
Speaker 2 (17:37):
okay.
So I did see this question andI was like that was rude,
honestly.
But I think I'm going to mypersonal favorite character.
This is kind of a cop outanswer, but my personal favorite
character is Elaine the mom,because she is, first of all,
(17:59):
she is like the kind of motherthat I aspire to be, that I
aspire to be Second of all,she's just like a great
combination of all of the likemotherly figures in my life and
she's a little bit crazy and Ilove that for her and definitely
makes things fun.
So I feel like she would reallylike spice up the Christmas
dinner table.
(18:19):
Yeah, give us some like sex edprobably.
And yeah, it'd be great,whether you want it or not.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
Yeah, yeah, unsolicited, but and if, merrily
, yours were a Christmas cookie,what kind of Christmas cookie?
Speaker 2 (18:35):
would it be?
That is another hard one.
I think it would be.
It's probably those like sliceand bake character cookies, you
know, like sugar cookies,because it's really sweet, it
doesn't last very long but youhave to eat a lot of them.
I don't know, that metaphorkind of got lost a little bit,
(18:58):
but yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
I like it, it works, it works.
I was going to say probably asugar cookie with like a bunch
of different kinds of likesprinkles and frosting and like
very decorated and veryChristmassy.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
Yeah, there you go.
Yes, yeah, or we make.
We make like a peppermint barkevery year and I kind of let the
kids put stuff on it and solike sprinkles, and everything
ends up being just like a pileof green sprinkles in one corner
of it so yeah, it'd besomething like that that's
perfect.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Yeah, that's definitely what happens when you
bake with kids.
Yeah, you could just say thatelodie got into everything and
she decorated the sugar cookie,and that's how it turns out Just
a little bit of chaos.
Yeah, focusing a little bitmore on yours.
Unexpectedly, your firstfull-length debut novel is
(19:52):
Sassafras, inspired by a realplace.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
No, it is not.
I knew that I wanted them to beclose to New York because that
is a very prominent part of thebook.
So you know, I was thinking andyours, unexpectedly, is set in
college.
And so you know one of the likeNortheastern college towns kind
(20:21):
of thing, but it was kind ofjust a melding pot of several
different ones.
So, no, it is not inspired by areal place.
Where did you go to college?
I went to TCU in Fort Worth,yeah, so I, and now I live, you
know, an hour away.
I'm still very close.
Yeah, I always said that I wasgoing to go really far for
(20:46):
college, like New York orCalifornia or something, and I
ended up an hour away from myhouse.
So, and then I ended up back inmy hometown.
Sassafras is inspired by somesmall town moments that I have
encountered in my life, but notthe actual town.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Nice, that makes sense.
Did you get to take like a tripup north to kind of see what
those campuses look like andstuff whenever you're doing
research?
Or did you just like Google abunch of stuff?
Speaker 2 (21:15):
Oh yeah, no, just a lot of Googling.
And I've been up to my husbandand I like to go to New York a
lot, so we're up therefrequently.
But yes, google was my bestfriend and I'm like okay, I got
to like those like YouTube toursand stuff and like Google
images.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
I mean, you can find almost everything you need just
right there.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
I got exactly, which is so nice because you know, and
I tried to like when at the endof Merrily Yours, you get Thea,
who's living in Boston, and Idid ask a couple of people like,
okay, here's the character,what part of Boston would she be
in?
And so, like I was like I needso I will reach out to people
(21:59):
right, and be like, okay, whatwould what would this be like?
Or I had a beta reader one timewho was reading and she was
like she wouldn't be going tothe bar with a coat on, like she
just wouldn't wear a jacket.
And I was like it's January andshe was like, no, you don't
wear jackets if you're going outup north.
I was like, okay, this is reallygood to know because I would
(22:21):
like I wear a jacket everywherein Texas as soon as it gets cold
.
And so she was like I wear ajacket everywhere in Texas as
soon as it gets cold.
And so she was like no, shewouldn't wear a jacket.
I was like, okay, I'll fix it.
So I get lots of, lots of inputto make sure that everything is
accurate.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
That's helpful because I know that if any book
takes place in Texas I'm alsokind of picky.
I'm going to notice thosethings too.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
Very true, very true.
Yeah, like I haven't read abunch of books set in Texas, but
that'll be.
One day I will write a likeHeart of Dixie inspired series
um set in Texas, and so that'llbe fun.
I'll be able to go and, like,visit on-site things that's
(23:02):
amazing.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Yeah, not in Love by Ali Hazelwood is in Austin.
Yeah, and it has those ties in.
Speaker 2 (23:10):
Oh my gosh.
Yes, I loved that book.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
Yes, and then all of Catherine Sinter's books.
She puts them in Houston.
Well, she lives in Houston andso she puts them somewhere kind
of in the area.
But those are.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
I read, read the bodyguard.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
I really liked that one oh my gosh, that's my
favorite.
You have to read the romcommerce.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
It's so good okay okay, yes, I did love the
bodyguard.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I thought that one was really good yeah, the rom
commerce is her most recent andit is really funny and really
good.
Um, you're gonna cry a littlebit, but but it's okay, all
right, you're gonna mainly laughand then you're gonna cry at
the end, so maybe not right now,when I'm ready, okay.
Yeah, exactly, I don't thinkI've ever like not cried at a
Catherine.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Oh my gosh, I cry at every book.
I'm like so good they love eachother so much.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
Okay, it's so cute so cute yeah, yeah, especially.
Don't even get me started on umandrew's like grand gesture
towards the end.
It's hard not to tear up alittle bit that was one of my
favorite scenes.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
I loved.
I loved that writing that therewas a lot of um, a lot of
shakespeare googling in that one.
I was like and my husband, ascene where somebody is
professing their love.
(24:47):
And so he was immediately like,oh, it's this scene.
So like go and Google and I waslike, oh my gosh, this is
perfect.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
That's perfect.
I was gonna say he's like thebest alpha beta reader ever, oh
yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Yeah, I was like I need, I need you to help me with
this.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
So in the story, how do your characters' kind of
individual journeys, end up,reflecting some moments where
love just comes at unexpectedtimes, I think with them.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
So Anders specifically, you see a really
big character arc for him, kindof off page.
You kind of just get thebackground, I guess of it.
But in the prologue you meethim when he's still in college
and he's a little bit of aplayer and stumbling drunk out
(25:37):
of a party and he and Gabe, youknow, are living together and
thick as thieves and just beingridiculous.
I in my notes, in my notes onGabe I love Gabe so much In my
notes on Gabe for Marilee, yours, I just put he's still an idiot
(25:57):
, so like that's just his vibe,but with Anders.
So then we skip ahead fouryears.
Now Bex is a senior in collegeand you see Anders now who is
now sober, so he no longer isdrinking and he went to New York
to try and make it in thetheater scene, broadway stuff
(26:20):
there Fails miserably, comesback to Sassafras, to Haw on
their university and is isgetting his mfa, um, but you
kind of see, the like anders wasalways a good person, right,
like bex really saw that fromthe beginning.
That's why she had a massivecrush on him and because he was,
(26:40):
you know, so cute.
But but he was always a goodperson.
But you, you also, like, youhear about his family.
He comes from you know a lot ofmoney and it's a pretty
terrible family situation, andso you really get to see him,
get get a chance to prove to Bexthat he's ready, right, because
it's always kind of been thatthing where it's like Anders was
(27:02):
there and she liked him but hewas not ready, and she knew that
Well and I think she justdidn't think she would ever have
a chance with him.
But so you see kind of thatjourney and him saying, no, this
is something I want and I'mgoing to work for it, which is a
lot of fun.
I love A man who Pines it islike elite.
(27:25):
I love A man who Pines it islike elite.
So I'm like, any time that Ican get that and work it into a
book, I will.
And then, with Bex, you get tosee her kind of grow in her
confidence right, and you see,like when she's when she first
proposes Friends With Benefits,she's like I don't trust that
(27:46):
you're ready, right, and I don'tknow that I want to like put
myself through this heartbreakand this means a lot to me and I
don't know if you know how muchthis actually means to me and
so she gets to kind of trust himor learn to trust him.
I guess I think the mostunexpected moment is just I love
, I have this vision in my head.
(28:06):
I would love to see this playout on screen one day.
I have this vision in my headof Bex walking into class the
first day and just seeing Anderson stage teaching and just like
, totally like fight, fight orfreeze, and girlfriend just
freezes, she just freezes, andso it's fun.
(28:28):
It was fun to play on thoselittle unexpected moments
throughout the story.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
I agree, and then it was.
I think that my favorite partwas also kind of hearing just
how long Anders had been timingbecause it's a little bit more
than you initially think.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Yes, yeah, and that was.
That was a really fun kind oflittle surprise, because you lot
with the flashbacks at thebeginning of each chapter and to
show that right, to show thatlike he went through that
journey to have it, knowing thathe's kind of from a messed up
(29:11):
family and but knowing to thatlike he sees these small things
in Bex and and is already, youknow, know, starting to fall in
love with those things beforethey're even really dating
exactly and with his wholefamily situation, it kind of
makes sense why he grew up alittle bit quicker than Gabe.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
So Gabe is just taking some time to mature and
he'll get there, gabe, when he'sready.
Speaker 2 (29:34):
Yeah, oh, he's, he's, I think he's.
Uh, I picture him as glennpowell in my head and just like
kind of oh yeah, goofy, and likeI don't know, he's just a mess,
he's a mess okay, so glennpowell has a little bit of time
to get ready to be able to playhe does he does oh man yeah that
(29:57):
is amazing.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
Um, if you could borrow one trait from one of
your characters, what would itbe?
There's a lot of them, rightthey're all so different and
there are a lot of them, so youhave a lot of options.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I think I go back to Elaine right.
Like I just want to be, like Ihave two daughters, I have two
little girls and I love, I justlove being a ridiculous parent,
like okay, maybe I have a littlebit of Gabe in me too, I don't
know and and so I think it'sgonna be so fun, like as they
(30:31):
get older, like obviously not tolike intentionally embarrass
them, but like just, I am verymuch the um, the Elaine type
parent.
Speaker 1 (30:43):
So you're not going to go like full cabbage, but
maybe something in there, youknow.
Speaker 2 (30:50):
I call them my chickens.
Um, so Elaine has her cabbages,I have my chickens, and that is
kind of where that came from.
I was like, okay, I want themto have a weird nickname.
I don't know.
I honestly we cannot rememberwhy I call the girls that my
chickens.
It came along several years agoand just never went away.
(31:11):
So, yeah, they're not mycabbages but they are my
chickens.
Yeah, and I will be yellingthat out the window at them when
I pick them up from junior high.
I'm sure they will absolutelylove that.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
They will love it.
Yes, yes, At least pick up anddrop offline.
Get a little bit better injunior high most of the time.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
We walk to school right now, so that's smart.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Was there a specific trait in each character that
kind of made Bex and Andersperfect for each other, despite
some of their obstacles over thecourse of the novel?
Speaker 2 (31:45):
That's a good question.
I think I'm just giving you allthe hard questions.
I know I'm like, I think, withBex she really appreciated
Anders' steadiness.
She really appreciated.
Anders steadiness, so like oncehe made the decision that he was
going to pursue this, like hekind of took it as a sign, right
(32:11):
when she came back into hislife, that it was time he
doesn't waver from that, like hereally is in it from moment one
and so, which is definitelywhat she needs, for sure she
does, yeah, she's just shedoesn't trust herself, right,
and so she doesn't trust.
If she doesn't trust herself,she's not going to trust him,
and so she really needs him toto keep showing up.
(32:32):
Then for Anders, I think Bex, Ithink she surprises him, I
think he's had this idea of thisyou know quieter little sister
in his head and he kind of getsto see like little pieces of her
(32:57):
.
You know sassiness and sarcasm,but she doesn't really ever
spend enough time around her toknow them for sure.
And so I think he gets to seethat and I think for him he
needs the excitement of like,never really knowing you know
(33:19):
like.
So she, she brings theexcitement to him and he brings
the steadiness.
She brings the excitementbecause you don't ever really
know what's going to come out ofBex's mouth.
She's like her mother in thatsense.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
And it's really fun how they play off of each other
and how she can always count onAnders to zing her back a little
bit.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Oh my gosh, yes, their banter that's another
thing is like I love A man whoPines and I love banter.
So those will always be, always, always, always be in my books.
Because you just like you justwant somebody who I wouldn't
consider this book, a friends tolovers book necessarily, kind
of, but you want to be able tosee that like they do have a
(34:01):
friendship and like they wouldbe friends.
I feel like that kind of givesyou a good foundation for a
relationship.
And so you see, like yeah, theyare, they are good friends with
each other.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Like they do kind of like poke each other and just
have a lot of fun together yeah,and they haven't really had a
chance to explore theirfriendship because, you know it,
it's always kind of been yeah,it's Gabe Ruin in the mood, yeah
, or, you know, just randomly,like picking them up in the car,
yeah, not really like actuallytalking to each other, just kind
(34:32):
of like little moments here andthere.
So it's nice that they get toexplore that.
If you were casting yoursunexpectedly as a movie, who
would play the leads?
I'm pretty sure you have anInstagram post where you cast
everyone, if I remembercorrectly.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
So they're not like real people that I cast.
I just found some pictures,yeah, some images, some stock
photos.
I have the hardest time withthis question for two reasons.
First reason is I don't knowI'm not good with like movie
stars or like celebrities, um,and so I'm like I don't even
(35:11):
know who is young enough to likeplay people in college.
I have no idea.
That's the hardest part, sothat's obviously.
I've got Glenn Powell for Gabe.
He's my only one that I'vereally like have an image of in
my head.
The second reason that I have ahard time with this is that
there are very few cuteredheaded men in Hollywood and
(35:32):
they're all British, like mostof them are British, so I'm like
I don't know he, I don't knowwho would play them.
It's hard.
There's nobody that really likesticks out in my mind of like,
oh, it's those, those two.
Speaker 1 (35:48):
I was having a hard time too.
I was trying to find someoneand I was like you know.
I just I can't find a guy that,like you said, has red hair, is
in the age range and isn'tBritish.
And I mean, even if you dyedthe hair like he has to have,
that I don't know like thatpersonality.
And I wasn't like no one wasquite right.
And then even same with Bextrying to find like the super
curly hair and big personality,that that was kind of hard to
(36:11):
know.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
I know it would be tricky.
We would have to make someadjustments.
Speaker 1 (36:17):
I don't know, or find some like awesome unknowns who
could just kick it out of thepark and then Exactly, yes, yeah
, they would be perfect, exactly.
Yep, I feel like all that stuff, though, can be difficult, and
then, of course, if you pickcharacters, then you're like set
on those, so then you know it'shard to deviate from that, I'm
(36:37):
sure.
Yes, yeah, and I just don't.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
You know, there's some things where you get.
It depends on what you getinspired by, right, like there's
some things where, again, Ikeep going, because this is the
only one that's like a person.
But Gabe's character is verymuch inspired by, like Glenn
Powell in Anyone but you, wherehe's just like, so, like that
(37:02):
for me.
I saw that movie and I was like, oh, I need a character like
that, like that's, he's funny,he's cute, it.
It works really well for thisstory.
That was such a good movie, bythe way.
Oh, my gosh, such a good moviefor this story.
It's inspired, inspired by myhusband and I.
So I'm like, okay, well, we'renot going to be in the movie.
(37:24):
So I'm like it's hard for me topicture, yeah, and not that I
picture us, that's kind of weird.
But it's hard for me to picturesomebody else.
And then for Jules, I have avery clear image in my head, but
he's not like like you.
Everybody knows that guy, right, but but I can't think of a
(37:45):
celebrity that looks like him.
And then Jules and Ben aretwins.
So, whatever, you know, juleslooks like, ben looks like.
Speaker 1 (37:54):
I always forget that they're twins and I always want
to make Gabe and Ben twins andthey're like no, they're not.
Speaker 2 (38:01):
They're not Because their personalities are so much
more similar, which is very muchinspired by.
So my husband's the oldest offour, so he's got three.
He's got two younger brothersand a younger sister, and so it
was very much inspired by theirfamily dynamic, where I feel
like Brian and and one of hisbrothers are much more similar
(38:23):
in personality and then hisother brother and his sister are
much more similar inpersonality, and so I'm like I
feel like that kind of happenswhere you get like two that are
you know the black cat kind of,and then two that are like the
golden retrievers, yeah, andthey still, of course, you know,
have that whole twin telepathygoing on.
So that's when.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
I always remember.
Oh yeah, they're the set oftwins.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
Yes, I think of them as like two sides of the same
coin.
Right Like they're just,they're almost like mirror
images.
Well, they are, because they'retwins but like just like
opposites, you know.
Speaker 1 (38:57):
So like Jules is dark and moody, ben's sunny and
happy you know, and so like theyin to each other's, yang a
little bit, yeah, exactly, yeah,yeah makes sense.
And last question what tropeshave you not written yet that
you would like to explore in?
Speaker 2 (39:13):
future books.
Okay, well, I told you alreadythat I'm dying to write a Heart
of Dixie inspired, which is notreally a trope, but I really
want it to be like Big CityDoctor goes to small town Texas,
mainly because I know a lotabout small town Texas and so
(39:34):
I'm like, okay, I can write this.
So I really want to write thatI think within this series
you're going to get the Rivalsto Lovers.
I'm really excited to write.
It's also going to be amarriage pact, so that one's
going to be really fun.
I'm very excited about that,yeah.
(39:55):
And then I love, love, love,and this is a controversial
opinion, but I love anaccidental pregnancy book.
So I know, I know controversial.
Speaker 1 (40:11):
You can, you can change my mind.
I'll.
I'll be open to it.
Speaker 2 (40:16):
Listen, listen.
I love an accidental pregnancy,so you will be getting an
accidental pregnancy interesting.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
I'm like trying to mentally figure out who I think
it'll be.
I don't have anything yet, butI'll just have to wait and see.
Speaker 2 (40:31):
Yeah, that's the theme yes, yes, wait and see.
Yeah, guaranteed good times allaround, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
I was gonna say you can.
You can definitely change mymind.
I'm always open to any of thetropes.
It's kind of like I didn't lovesecond chance romance and then
I read the x-files and I saidokay fine, okay fine.
Yes, yes, we changed my mind alittle bit.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
So, yeah it, anything can be turned around in romance
okay, have you read out and outon a limb by no but I need to.
Speaker 1 (41:09):
I know I need to.
Okay, I've heard amazing things.
Yes, an excellent, excellentaccidental pregnancy book I
literally have it in my hooplaqueue, so it is ready to go.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
Yeah, so good, so good.
So, if you're, though, that'llget you into it, and then you'll
be like, okay, okay, I can readRachel's accidental pregnancy,
I can do it.
Speaker 1 (41:32):
Well, and of course they're also different and the
circumstances are alwaysdifferent.
So I think that you know it'slike if you read a couple bad
examples of that trope thatdon't connect with you, then
it's easy to say I hate thattrope.
But then if you get the right,you know ingredients.
With said trope, then I thinkit just changes everything.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
And one thing that's really important to me in every
trope that I write or every book, is handling harder topics with
levity, and so just likefinding the humor like there's
not always humor in trauma,right, but like I cope with my
trauma by laughing, by likebeing fun and funny and silly,
(42:19):
and then like I want that in abook.
So even if even in my angstierbooks right, like they're still
gonna be fun and hopefully funny, hopefully they make you laugh
they're still gonna kind of leanheavily into like the rom-com
aspect of things.
So you'll get some heaviertopics that will be handled well
(42:44):
, right, like I'm not gonnabreeze over them, um, you see
that in like Anders sobriety andhis ADHD and all that but, and
even in like the third actconflict with Bex, which I won't
give away, but I also want youto laugh too.
So you'll get you'll get alittle bit of both.
Speaker 1 (43:06):
Nice.
That's what makes it fun, yeah,and of course it's nice to have
some depth in there too, youknow cause you want a rom-com.
But you want, you want like ayou know some depth in there, or
at least I do.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (43:18):
I think we are really like, just as human beings,
complex people, right, we're notalways moody and we're not
always funny and we're notalways, you know, sunny, and so
it's, it's, and we all havestuff that makes us who we are
as people, and so I think it'sreally fun to explore that in
(43:39):
characters as well.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
Yeah, and we don't always say the right thing at
the right time.
No, yeah, even though we wishwe could Exactly, exactly so.
So when you're kind of planningeverything out, do you come up
with the plot first and then thetropes, kind of like, stack
themselves in, or do you look attropes sometimes and say okay,
I know that I want this book tobe this particular trope.
Speaker 2 (44:02):
I do it both ways With Yours, unexpectedly.
I only I knew it was going tobe her brother's best friend,
because I knew that I wanted.
I knew that I was like startingthis world right.
So I knew that this was goingto be like a series that was
coming and I needed a way to totie them all together, and so I
(44:25):
knew it was going to be that.
And then I knew that he wasgoing to be her TA.
Like I knew those were thethings that I knew were were
going to happen within the book.
Um, and so then I really didlike not plot.
I pantsed the whole thing andlike oh, wow, yeah, I will not
be doing that again.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
It took me a long time, but I was learning.
Speaker 2 (44:47):
It was the first full length book I've ever written.
And so I was like I just kind ofwant to see what's going to
come from it.
So I would go back every dayand I would read what I wrote
the day before to come from it.
So I would go back every dayand I would read what I wrote
the day before and then I would,I would start writing and kind
of I would kind of plot outbeats a little bit in my head so
knowing like, okay, this isgoing to be like I'm getting us
(45:08):
to here and then once I getthere, I need to figure out
where we're going to go afterthat, and then I'm going to get
us to here.
So those are the two that Iknew as far as tropes for Years.
(45:33):
Unexpectedly, with book two andthree so Jules, the twins books,
jules and Ben I did have tropesthat I wanted to write that I
was like, okay, will this fitwith these characters?
Right, and does this make sense?
And then kind of plotted aroundthat.
And then with Gabe and Lucy'sbook, it's gonna be, I mean,
it's gonna be second chance.
And so that was kind of likebuilt in.
(45:54):
I knew that you get that.
You get a little bit of them inbook one, and so I knew that
that was just going to kind oflike drag out for a long time.
But I love that.
I, I love getting to seesomebody in the first book in a
(46:15):
series and like knowing whothey're going to end up with and
you kind of.
It kind of just makes it thatmuch sweeter when you get there
at the end of a series, Right,and and you're like this is who
we've been waiting for.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
So and it gives Gabe time to get it together and
mature a little bit more.
Speaker 2 (46:35):
He does.
Yeah, I don't know what he'sdoing.
Speaker 1 (46:37):
Well, I guess we'll find out later on.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
We will find out, yeah.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Thank you so much for joining me, rachel.
That's it for today.
Thanks for listening to when ILeft Off a bookish podcast.
You can sign up for Rachel'snewsletter and purchase all of
her novels through the links inthe show notes.
Speaker 2 (46:53):
Thank you so much for having me.
I really, really appreciate it,of course.
Welcome back.
I'm Kristen Bowles and you'relistening to when I Left Off a
bookish podcast, and today I'mjoined by romance author Rachel
Lewis to talk about her debutnovel, yours Unexpectedly, and
her new holiday novella comingout soon Merrily, yours.
Thanks for coming on, rachel.
Thank you for having me.
I'm so excited to be here.
Oh my gosh, I loved your bookso I can't wait to talk more
(00:30):
about it.
Well, both of them actually,because I've read the novella I
know you kind of got to do itback to back.
I know I really liked it thatway.
It was nice, because then youknow you can't forget anything
about the characters and youkind of pick up on a couple more
things.
So that's kind of the way to doit yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Okay Well, you heard it here.
You guys do it that way.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Do a reread if you've already read yours unexpectedly
, and then you can come backinto barely yours and it'll be
perfect Perfect for the holidayseason.
So the first thing that Ialways ask everyone that comes
on is what are you currentlyreading?
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Okay.
So I'm going to have a reallylame answer to this, because I
am not reading anything rightnow.
Um, I am like I have not been.
It's been a crazy week, it'sbeen a crazy, crazy times, and
so I have been like I got suckedinto this stupid game on my
(01:27):
phone and it's like CandyCrush-esque but not, and so I've
what's it called, I don't evenknow Match sorting Good sorting,
good sorting.
It's like you move the littlelittle like grocery objects onto
the shelf to like match them.
Oh, I don't.
(01:47):
Okay.
So this popped up as an ad onmy kids color by number app.
I was like that looks kind offun, and so I downloaded it.
So that's what I've been doinginstead of reading.
I next am going to be reading,though I need to.
I need to read it.
It's been sitting on my Kindlebut I was like no, I need to get
(02:09):
in the headspace for it.
But my friend, peyton Curran,wrote her second book, unloved.
It's second in her Undoneseries, and so I have it and I
need to read it.
It'll be out in.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
February.
I think Unsteady is on myKindle, so I'm haven't started
yet, but I need to.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
It's so good, it's so good, so highly recommend that
and then and then, yeah, maybeyou can, or maybe you can just
do it like you did with mine andgo back, so yeah, that sounds
like a better way to do it,because then I definitely can't
forget anything.
Hers are really interesting too, because they're happening at
the same time.
(02:48):
Oh wow.
So like it would be interestingto like I might have to do a
reread of Unsteady and then likesee kind of how the timelines
interweave.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
That would be awesome .
Yeah, sometimes you just need abreak from reading.
But that's nice that you have afriend's book that you know is
going to be a guaranteedprobably five stars.
So then that way you don't haveto worry about, you know,
picking up a book that's justnot hitting it.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Yeah, yeah, I know I'm just such a mood reader and
I have to be in the right mood,but she writes really angsty, so
I know that I have to like beready to be sad a little bit.
So I've been.
I've been too in my feels, butyeah, once, once I get a little
bit out of my feels, then I canget into her feels.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Okay, Got it.
I'll have some tissues readyWhenever I start.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I am an easy crier though, so like, okay, maybe not
, but I cry at everything.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Well, your book's kind of perfect if you need a
break, because it's not superangsty.
So maybe that was the goal.
Yeah, everyone should readPeyton's first, cry a little bit
and then, whenever they need apalate cleanser, then jump over
to yours and it'll be theperfect sequence.
Yes, exactly that's the way todo it.
So what can you tell us aboutyour work in progress?
(04:06):
I noticed on the side of thebook it had a little one as if
it was the first in the series,so I'm assuming that there are
going to be more books.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
There are going to be more books, so it is going to
follow.
Each Bardot sibling is going toget a book.
So if you haven't read yoursunexpectedly yet, it follows Bex
Bardot.
She is the youngest sister andshe's got three older brothers,
so they are each going to get abook, and I am working on book
(04:36):
two now.
So what can I tell you about it?
I haven't announced who it is.
You about it.
I haven't announced who it is,though if you read the novella,
you probably know or you have agood guess of who it is, because
one of the things with thenovella is it ends on a
character that we haven't metbefore, but then there's one
(05:00):
brother that doesn't have aclear match.
So it's, it's going to be thosetwo together.
I don't want to give too muchaway, but that that will be book
two.
I am so excited about it.
It is going to be a singleparent, and so I really love
like tender single parent.
(05:23):
The new, you know, parentfigure comes in.
You know like that kind ofthing, just kind of seeing their
interaction and kids are soI've got two kids of my own and
so they're just funny andthey're just blunt and so
they're great to kind of likemove the plot along, because
they'll just say whatever theywant.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
So's perfect, oh my gosh.
Okay, yay.
So the little, the little hintsthat are in the novella are
true hints, for whose book isgoing to be next?
Speaker 2 (05:55):
yes, yes, yes so if you read the novella, you will
have an idea of what's comingnext okay, good, they just.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
He happens to be my favorite brother, so I am really
excited for this.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
Now, okay, Okay, so we can.
We can talk about it becausepeople will know this is going
to be announced soon and peoplewill.
Once the novella is out in theworld, people will know.
But who do you think it's goingto be?
So I think it's going to beJules.
Yes.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Oh yes, okay, good, he's, he's my favorite, he's
just the best.
But I was going to say I'm, Iwas a little bit frustrated with
you because I really okay, sotell me why I'm going to go into
it.
So, in the book, um, basically,you know, we know that there's
probably going to be somethingwith Gabe, right, right.
(06:44):
Oh, my gosh, why am Iforgetting my friend's name,
lucy?
Thank you, gabe and Lucy.
So I was like, okay, I'mlooking forward to that story.
Well then, in Merrily, yours,whenever you give us all of the
POVs I love Rivals to Lovers.
So then you throw Ben in thereand I'm like, well, now I'm
excited for his story, oh yes.
(07:05):
And then whenever you throwJules in there and hint that
he's coming next, then I waslike, well, now I just want them
all at the same time.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
I know it is so and I like they all kind of like live
in my head right now and Ithink it was really interesting
to write from every character'spoint of view, because you don't
typically do that when you arewriting, just like a dual POV,
right.
And so when I was writing Ben'schapter, I had so much fun
(07:36):
writing that that I was like, oh, I kind of want to skip and
write this book, but I'm like,no, don't do that, because I
cannot do like two.
I could not do them both at thesame time.
But yeah, I a lot of people arelike, wait, because you don't
get a lot of Ben in yearsunexpectedly.
So it was really something thatI wanted to have a lot of fun
(07:57):
with his character and just do Imean he could be anything right
.
Everybody else kind of had anestablished personality, you got
to know them a little bit, butwith him he was still kind of a
big question mark and so, yeah,that chapter was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
They just got better and better, and I was like
Rachel now you're just gonnahave to release these super fast
because you're killing me.
Yes, so sorry.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
I'm so sorry, I know.
And then everybody, evenespecially after yours,
unexpectedly, they'd read it andthey'd be like, okay, so we get
Gabe and Lucy next.
And I'm like I'm so sorry, no,you do not.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Well, I mean, I can wait It'll, it'll be worth it.
It'll be worth it, yup, it'llbe worth it.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
It'll be great.
Yeah, yeah, it's gonna.
That'll be.
The Gabe and Lucy book will beuh, I'm not an angsty writer,
but it'll be this one, jules,and then Gabe and Lucy's will be
my angstier ones, and thenBen's book will just be a ton of
fun.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
I can see that, especially, um, with Gabe and
Lucy, with that whole thing thatgoes down and you know, yours
unexpectedly there has to besome angst with that time gap
and then what happens in Merrily?
Yours, yeah, all of that.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
There's the time gap, yeah, and you'll kind of get
some little insight into what ishappening with them in the next
book, but you will have to haveto wait, dang it.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
I know it just means that, um, I'll have to reread it
all again.
So then, that way, all of theirbooks come out.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
I know it's so hard as an author I'm like, yeah,
read my book, read my book.
But then as a reader I'm likeis the series Like?
I want to wait and read it whenthe series is done.
So I totally get that.
It's tricky, it's hard.
I wish I could write faster.
Speaker 1 (09:54):
No, I mean, you know it takes so much to write a book
and you don't want to rush it,especially with these characters
, since you know you want themto tell their true stories.
But yeah, with these characters, since you know you want them
to tell their true stories.
But yeah, absolutely, I willdefinitely be rereading.
I have a book spreadsheet.
That's literally how I keeptrack of everything I love that
have to bullet point stuff,otherwise you'll forget all oh,
(10:15):
yeah, yeah, that's geniustalking a little bit about
merrily yours, so this is yourholiday novella that's coming
out books two well, one and aWell, one and a half, two, one
and a half yeah.
Yeah, are there any topics orthemes that you actually
discussed on your podcast thatended up kind of making it into
yours unexpectedly or merrily?
(10:36):
Yours just because you focus onromance and you talk to so many
different authors?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah, that's a great question, I think.
For me, really, the whole pointof and you kind of see Bex
grapple with this a little bitin years unexpectedly of like
loving what you love, right, andreading what you want to read,
and she kind of talks about likeromance as a genre where women
are safe and get you knowthey're happily ever after.
(11:03):
And I feel like in a lot ofother genres you just get like
women are being murdered orthey're like it's just not good,
good, bad things are happening,and so you get to see just kind
of like this, like cozinessthat comes with it, and we talk
a lot about that on the podcast,and so that was definitely
something that there's a lot ofme in Bex's character and so
(11:28):
that was something that I waslike this is really important to
me, so I'm gonna put it inthere.
So that's a big one that we'vetalked about.
I think really, I decided to dothe novella because we've
talked on past episodes justabout how we love like holiday
season books and I was like,well, I can't do a whole, like I
(11:53):
can't do a whole nother bookbefore the end of the year, but
I could do a novella.
So that's how we ended up here.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
Nice and it's hard for readers to read a million
different full length Christmasbooks.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
So I like the trend of novellas that we're seeing
this year, it makes it so mucheasier, I agree, and then you
can truly spend the last for me,like two months of the year
just reading Christmas things.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Exactly, I'm trying to start reading Christmas
things.
Merrily, yours got me in thespirit, so now I just want to
read a bunch of them.
Perfect.
What holiday themes can weexpect to see in Marilee yours?
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Okay.
So there's just like such agreat the Bordeaux's are such a
great family, and so you reallyjust get like coming home for
the holidays is a big theme inthe book and even though most of
the Bardos still live inSassafras, their small town in
(12:55):
Massachusetts, bex and Andersand their family are in New York
, and then not every once you'rean adult you know nobody stays
at the house anymore, but thenyou kind of get like them coming
together and spending timetogether all under one roof,
which is fun.
That is definitely somethingthat we have in our family.
(13:15):
Like we do a lot of like reallybig family things around the
holidays and so something that Iwanted included, so that's a
big theme.
And then I think I don't knowif this is necessarily a holiday
theme but too.
So then, like at the end, whenyou get Thea's chapter, she kind
of talks about how she'swanting a home too and like
(13:38):
isn't feeling at home in Bostonwhere she is.
So that's definitely ties intoit.
But I think there's a littlebit of like grappling with what
you think you should be doingversus what you want to be doing
.
I think you see that a lot withJules and Ben in this book and
Anthea just kind of figuring outwhat's next for them.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
So yeah, and then of course you have the parallel of
Thea not maybe having thespectacular Bardot family
Christmas.
So you kind of definitely haveboth sides, yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
Yes, her Christmas is much different, yes, much
different than the BardotChristmas.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
So, yeah, the beginning, I'm pretty sure you
said something that was likethis is a book for all the
people that wanted a big familyholiday and you do really get to
feel like you're with the wholefamily, which was awesome,
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
It's dedicated.
If you need a family, a bigfamily, to accept you for the
holidays, the Rardos are readyfor you.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Yay, with that fun Christmas lawn decorating smash
up.
I think that was my favoritepart.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Oh my gosh, that was like a fever dream.
I was like, what am I going todo?
Because with Hugo and Elaine'schapter, like with the younger
ones, I was like, okay, you know, I can kind of set up stories
with Hugo and Elaine's chapterthe parents.
I was like, okay, you know, Ican kind of set up stories with
Hugo and Elaine's chapter, theparents.
I was like I'm not doing spicefor them, Like I gotta like
figure out what's going to go on.
(15:12):
So, yes, a competition, holidaycompetition.
Who doesn't love a littlecontest?
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Yeah, nice, and speaking of kind of the whole
family, you had so manydifferent POVs.
What were some of thechallenges of trying to write
that from your side?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
I think it was.
I really wanted to make surethat they all had their own
voice and that they readcohesively, but also, you know,
we're showing their ownindividual characteristics, and
that was really tricky.
And it's not, it's short, it'snot a long book, and so it was
(15:52):
like I had to pack a lot intoeach chapter.
This was originally going to bea prequel, it was actually
going to be Hugo and Elainestory, and then I was talked
into turning that into a fulllength standalone, not having to
do with the Bardos, and so Iwas like, okay, how can I do
(16:14):
like?
We've seen Bex and Anders.
We've got a whole book of them.
I don't really want to write awhole novella.
I'm like, okay, so I think Iwant it to be like the days
leading up to Christmas and youjust get a little bit from
everybody.
So it was maybe not the bestidea I've ever had in the world,
but I think it turned out great.
I think it, I think it worked.
It was hard, yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
I had to walk away a lot.
I liked it.
Yeah, I know, whenever I wasgoing to say, whenever I was
reading every person's POV, Iwas like, oh wow, there's even's
POV.
I was like, oh wow, there'seven both parents and there's
every like there's everyone.
That must have been so hard,but yeah, they definitely came
across as completely differentuh, characters.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
Yeah, yeah, and I know it can be hard like when
you're switching POVs, like whenyou're reading it's hard to
like keep track of who you'rereading.
So it was really important tome that, like there was
something you know happening inthe chapter that was very much
tied to the character, and so itreally kept you in, whoever
that person's head was right,yeah, and I really hoped that
(17:18):
they were all hanging outtogether almost the entire time.
Speaker 1 (17:21):
So that way it wasn't like one person's POV and then,
oh no, the person in a totallydifferent situation that yeah, a
lot of togetherness if youcould only invite one of the
characters to spend Christmaswith your family, who would it
be, and why?
Speaker 2 (17:37):
okay.
So I did see this question andI was like that was rude,
honestly.
But I think I'm going to mypersonal favorite character.
This is kind of a cop outanswer, but my personal favorite
character is Elaine the mom,because she is, first of all,
(17:59):
she is like the kind of motherthat I aspire to be, that I
aspire to be Second of all,she's just like a great
combination of all of the likemotherly figures in my life and
she's a little bit crazy and Ilove that for her and definitely
makes things fun.
So I feel like she would reallylike spice up the Christmas
dinner table.
(18:19):
Yeah, give us some like sex edprobably.
And yeah, it'd be great,whether you want it or not.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
Yeah, yeah, unsolicited, but and if, merrily
, yours were a Christmas cookie,what kind of Christmas cookie?
Speaker 2 (18:35):
would it be?
That is another hard one.
I think it would be.
It's probably those like sliceand bake character cookies, you
know, like sugar cookies,because it's really sweet, it
doesn't last very long but youhave to eat a lot of them.
I don't know, that metaphorkind of got lost a little bit,
(18:58):
but yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
I like it, it works, it works.
I was going to say probably asugar cookie with like a bunch
of different kinds of likesprinkles and frosting and like
very decorated and veryChristmassy.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
Yeah, there you go.
Yes, yeah, or we make.
We make like a peppermint barkevery year and I kind of let the
kids put stuff on it and solike sprinkles, and everything
ends up being just like a pileof green sprinkles in one corner
of it so yeah, it'd besomething like that that's
perfect.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Yeah, that's definitely what happens when you
bake with kids.
Yeah, you could just say thatelodie got into everything and
she decorated the sugar cookie,and that's how it turns out Just
a little bit of chaos.
Yeah, focusing a little bitmore on yours.
Unexpectedly, your firstfull-length debut novel is
(19:52):
Sassafras, inspired by a realplace.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
No, it is not.
I knew that I wanted them to beclose to New York because that
is a very prominent part of thebook.
So you know, I was thinking andyours, unexpectedly, is set in
college.
And so you know one of the likeNortheastern college towns kind
(20:21):
of thing, but it was kind ofjust a melding pot of several
different ones.
So, no, it is not inspired by areal place.
Where did you go to college?
I went to TCU in Fort Worth,yeah, so I, and now I live, you
know, an hour away.
I'm still very close.
Yeah, I always said that I wasgoing to go really far for
(20:46):
college, like New York orCalifornia or something, and I
ended up an hour away from myhouse.
So, and then I ended up back inmy hometown.
Sassafras is inspired by somesmall town moments that I have
encountered in my life, but notthe actual town.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Nice, that makes sense.
Did you get to take like a tripup north to kind of see what
those campuses look like andstuff whenever you're doing
research?
Or did you just like Google abunch of stuff?
Speaker 2 (21:15):
Oh yeah, no, just a lot of Googling.
And I've been up to my husbandand I like to go to New York a
lot, so we're up therefrequently.
But yes, google was my bestfriend and I'm like okay, I got
to like those like YouTube toursand stuff and like Google
images.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
I mean, you can find almost everything you need just
right there.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
I got exactly, which is so nice because you know, and
I tried to like when at the endof Merrily Yours, you get Thea,
who's living in Boston, and Idid ask a couple of people like,
okay, here's the character,what part of Boston would she be
in?
And so, like I was like I needso I will reach out to people
(21:59):
right, and be like, okay, whatwould what would this be like?
Or I had a beta reader one timewho was reading and she was
like she wouldn't be going tothe bar with a coat on, like she
just wouldn't wear a jacket.
And I was like it's January andshe was like, no, you don't
wear jackets if you're going outup north.
I was like, okay, this is reallygood to know because I would
(22:21):
like I wear a jacket everywherein Texas as soon as it gets cold
.
And so she was like I wear ajacket everywhere in Texas as
soon as it gets cold.
And so she was like no, shewouldn't wear a jacket.
I was like, okay, I'll fix it.
So I get lots of, lots of inputto make sure that everything is
accurate.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
That's helpful because I know that if any book
takes place in Texas I'm alsokind of picky.
I'm going to notice thosethings too.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
Very true, very true.
Yeah, like I haven't read abunch of books set in Texas, but
that'll be.
One day I will write a likeHeart of Dixie inspired series
um set in Texas, and so that'llbe fun.
I'll be able to go and, like,visit on-site things that's
(23:02):
amazing.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Yeah, not in Love by Ali Hazelwood is in Austin.
Yeah, and it has those ties in.
Speaker 2 (23:10):
Oh my gosh.
Yes, I loved that book.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
Yes, and then all of Catherine Sinter's books.
She puts them in Houston.
Well, she lives in Houston andso she puts them somewhere kind
of in the area.
But those are.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
I read, read the bodyguard.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
I really liked that one oh my gosh, that's my
favorite.
You have to read the romcommerce.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
It's so good okay okay, yes, I did love the
bodyguard.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I thought that one was really good yeah, the rom
commerce is her most recent andit is really funny and really
good.
Um, you're gonna cry a littlebit, but but it's okay, all
right, you're gonna mainly laughand then you're gonna cry at
the end, so maybe not right now,when I'm ready, okay.
Yeah, exactly, I don't thinkI've ever like not cried at a
Catherine.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Oh my gosh, I cry at every book.
I'm like so good they love eachother so much.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
Okay, it's so cute so cute yeah, yeah, especially.
Don't even get me started on umandrew's like grand gesture
towards the end.
It's hard not to tear up alittle bit that was one of my
favorite scenes.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
I loved.
I loved that writing that therewas a lot of um, a lot of
shakespeare googling in that one.
I was like and my husband, ascene where somebody is
professing their love.
(24:47):
And so he was immediately like,oh, it's this scene.
So like go and Google and I waslike, oh my gosh, this is
perfect.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
That's perfect.
I was gonna say he's like thebest alpha beta reader ever, oh
yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Yeah, I was like I need, I need you to help me with
this.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
So in the story, how do your characters' kind of
individual journeys, end up,reflecting some moments where
love just comes at unexpectedtimes, I think with them.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
So Anders specifically, you see a really
big character arc for him, kindof off page.
You kind of just get thebackground, I guess of it.
But in the prologue you meethim when he's still in college
and he's a little bit of aplayer and stumbling drunk out
(25:37):
of a party and he and Gabe, youknow, are living together and
thick as thieves and just beingridiculous.
I in my notes, in my notes onGabe I love Gabe so much In my
notes on Gabe for Marilee, yours, I just put he's still an idiot
(25:57):
, so like that's just his vibe,but with Anders.
So then we skip ahead fouryears.
Now Bex is a senior in collegeand you see Anders now who is
now sober, so he no longer isdrinking and he went to New York
to try and make it in thetheater scene, broadway stuff
(26:20):
there Fails miserably, comesback to Sassafras, to Haw on
their university and is isgetting his mfa, um, but you
kind of see, the like anders wasalways a good person, right,
like bex really saw that fromthe beginning.
That's why she had a massivecrush on him and because he was,
(26:40):
you know, so cute.
But but he was always a goodperson.
But you, you also, like, youhear about his family.
He comes from you know a lot ofmoney and it's a pretty
terrible family situation, andso you really get to see him,
get get a chance to prove to Bexthat he's ready, right, because
it's always kind of been thatthing where it's like Anders was
(27:02):
there and she liked him but hewas not ready, and she knew that
Well and I think she justdidn't think she would ever have
a chance with him.
But so you see kind of thatjourney and him saying, no, this
is something I want and I'mgoing to work for it, which is a
lot of fun.
I love A man who Pines it islike elite.
(27:25):
I love A man who Pines it islike elite.
So I'm like, any time that Ican get that and work it into a
book, I will.
And then, with Bex, you get tosee her kind of grow in her
confidence right, and you see,like when she's when she first
proposes Friends With Benefits,she's like I don't trust that
(27:46):
you're ready, right, and I don'tknow that I want to like put
myself through this heartbreakand this means a lot to me and I
don't know if you know how muchthis actually means to me and
so she gets to kind of trust himor learn to trust him.
I guess I think the mostunexpected moment is just I love
, I have this vision in my head.
(28:06):
I would love to see this playout on screen one day.
I have this vision in my headof Bex walking into class the
first day and just seeing Anderson stage teaching and just like
, totally like fight, fight orfreeze, and girlfriend just
freezes, she just freezes, andso it's fun.
(28:28):
It was fun to play on thoselittle unexpected moments
throughout the story.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
I agree, and then it was.
I think that my favorite partwas also kind of hearing just
how long Anders had been timingbecause it's a little bit more
than you initially think.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Yes, yeah, and that was.
That was a really fun kind oflittle surprise, because you lot
with the flashbacks at thebeginning of each chapter and to
show that right, to show thatlike he went through that
journey to have it, knowing thathe's kind of from a messed up
(29:11):
family and but knowing to thatlike he sees these small things
in Bex and and is already, youknow, know, starting to fall in
love with those things beforethey're even really dating
exactly and with his wholefamily situation, it kind of
makes sense why he grew up alittle bit quicker than Gabe.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
So Gabe is just taking some time to mature and
he'll get there, gabe, when he'sready.
Speaker 2 (29:34):
Yeah, oh, he's, he's, I think he's.
Uh, I picture him as glennpowell in my head and just like
kind of oh yeah, goofy, and likeI don't know, he's just a mess,
he's a mess okay, so glennpowell has a little bit of time
to get ready to be able to playhe does he does oh man yeah that
(29:57):
is amazing.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
Um, if you could borrow one trait from one of
your characters, what would itbe?
There's a lot of them, rightthey're all so different and
there are a lot of them, so youhave a lot of options.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I think I go back to Elaine right.
Like I just want to be, like Ihave two daughters, I have two
little girls and I love, I justlove being a ridiculous parent,
like okay, maybe I have a littlebit of Gabe in me too, I don't
know and and so I think it'sgonna be so fun, like as they
(30:31):
get older, like obviously not tolike intentionally embarrass
them, but like just, I am verymuch the um, the Elaine type
parent.
Speaker 1 (30:43):
So you're not going to go like full cabbage, but
maybe something in there, youknow.
Speaker 2 (30:50):
I call them my chickens.
Um, so Elaine has her cabbages,I have my chickens, and that is
kind of where that came from.
I was like, okay, I want themto have a weird nickname.
I don't know.
I honestly we cannot rememberwhy I call the girls that my
chickens.
It came along several years agoand just never went away.
(31:11):
So, yeah, they're not mycabbages but they are my
chickens.
Yeah, and I will be yellingthat out the window at them when
I pick them up from junior high.
I'm sure they will absolutelylove that.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
They will love it.
Yes, yes, At least pick up anddrop offline.
Get a little bit better injunior high most of the time.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
We walk to school right now, so that's smart.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Was there a specific trait in each character that
kind of made Bex and Andersperfect for each other, despite
some of their obstacles over thecourse of the novel?
Speaker 2 (31:45):
That's a good question.
I think I'm just giving you allthe hard questions.
I know I'm like, I think, withBex she really appreciated
Anders' steadiness.
She really appreciated.
Anders steadiness, so like oncehe made the decision that he was
going to pursue this, like hekind of took it as a sign, right
(32:11):
when she came back into hislife, that it was time he
doesn't waver from that, like hereally is in it from moment one
and so, which is definitelywhat she needs, for sure she
does, yeah, she's just shedoesn't trust herself, right,
and so she doesn't trust.
If she doesn't trust herself,she's not going to trust him,
and so she really needs him toto keep showing up.
(32:32):
Then for Anders, I think Bex, Ithink she surprises him, I
think he's had this idea of thisyou know quieter little sister
in his head and he kind of getsto see like little pieces of her
(32:57):
.
You know sassiness and sarcasm,but she doesn't really ever
spend enough time around her toknow them for sure.
And so I think he gets to seethat and I think for him he
needs the excitement of like,never really knowing you know
(33:19):
like.
So she, she brings theexcitement to him and he brings
the steadiness.
She brings the excitementbecause you don't ever really
know what's going to come out ofBex's mouth.
She's like her mother in thatsense.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
And it's really fun how they play off of each other
and how she can always count onAnders to zing her back a little
bit.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Oh my gosh, yes, their banter that's another
thing is like I love A man whoPines and I love banter.
So those will always be, always, always, always be in my books.
Because you just like you justwant somebody who I wouldn't
consider this book, a friends tolovers book necessarily, kind
of, but you want to be able tosee that like they do have a
(34:01):
friendship and like they wouldbe friends.
I feel like that kind of givesyou a good foundation for a
relationship.
And so you see, like yeah, theyare, they are good friends with
each other.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Like they do kind of like poke each other and just
have a lot of fun together yeah,and they haven't really had a
chance to explore theirfriendship because, you know it,
it's always kind of been yeah,it's Gabe Ruin in the mood, yeah
, or, you know, just randomly,like picking them up in the car,
yeah, not really like actuallytalking to each other, just kind
(34:32):
of like little moments here andthere.
So it's nice that they get toexplore that.
If you were casting yoursunexpectedly as a movie, who
would play the leads?
I'm pretty sure you have anInstagram post where you cast
everyone, if I remembercorrectly.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
So they're not like real people that I cast.
I just found some pictures,yeah, some images, some stock
photos.
I have the hardest time withthis question for two reasons.
First reason is I don't knowI'm not good with like movie
stars or like celebrities, um,and so I'm like I don't even
(35:11):
know who is young enough to likeplay people in college.
I have no idea.
That's the hardest part, sothat's obviously.
I've got Glenn Powell for Gabe.
He's my only one that I'vereally like have an image of in
my head.
The second reason that I have ahard time with this is that
there are very few cuteredheaded men in Hollywood and
(35:32):
they're all British, like mostof them are British, so I'm like
I don't know he, I don't knowwho would play them.
It's hard.
There's nobody that really likesticks out in my mind of like,
oh, it's those, those two.
Speaker 1 (35:48):
I was having a hard time too.
I was trying to find someoneand I was like you know.
I just I can't find a guy that,like you said, has red hair, is
in the age range and isn'tBritish.
And I mean, even if you dyedthe hair like he has to have,
that I don't know like thatpersonality.
And I wasn't like no one wasquite right.
And then even same with Bextrying to find like the super
curly hair and big personality,that that was kind of hard to
(36:11):
know.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
I know it would be tricky.
We would have to make someadjustments.
Speaker 1 (36:17):
I don't know, or find some like awesome unknowns who
could just kick it out of thepark and then Exactly, yes, yeah
, they would be perfect, exactly.
Yep, I feel like all that stuff, though, can be difficult, and
then, of course, if you pickcharacters, then you're like set
on those, so then you know it'shard to deviate from that, I'm
(36:37):
sure.
Yes, yeah, and I just don't.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
You know, there's some things where you get.
It depends on what you getinspired by, right, like there's
some things where, again, Ikeep going, because this is the
only one that's like a person.
But Gabe's character is verymuch inspired by, like Glenn
Powell in Anyone but you, wherehe's just like, so, like that
(37:02):
for me.
I saw that movie and I was like, oh, I need a character like
that, like that's, he's funny,he's cute, it.
It works really well for thisstory.
That was such a good movie, bythe way.
Oh, my gosh, such a good moviefor this story.
It's inspired, inspired by myhusband and I.
So I'm like, okay, well, we'renot going to be in the movie.
(37:24):
So I'm like it's hard for me topicture, yeah, and not that I
picture us, that's kind of weird.
But it's hard for me to picturesomebody else.
And then for Jules, I have avery clear image in my head, but
he's not like like you.
Everybody knows that guy, right, but but I can't think of a
(37:45):
celebrity that looks like him.
And then Jules and Ben aretwins.
So, whatever, you know, juleslooks like, ben looks like.
Speaker 1 (37:54):
I always forget that they're twins and I always want
to make Gabe and Ben twins andthey're like no, they're not.
Speaker 2 (38:01):
They're not Because their personalities are so much
more similar, which is very muchinspired by.
So my husband's the oldest offour, so he's got three.
He's got two younger brothersand a younger sister, and so it
was very much inspired by theirfamily dynamic, where I feel
like Brian and and one of hisbrothers are much more similar
(38:23):
in personality and then hisother brother and his sister are
much more similar inpersonality, and so I'm like I
feel like that kind of happenswhere you get like two that are
you know the black cat kind of,and then two that are like the
golden retrievers, yeah, andthey still, of course, you know,
have that whole twin telepathygoing on.
So that's when.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
I always remember.
Oh yeah, they're the set oftwins.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
Yes, I think of them as like two sides of the same
coin.
Right Like they're just,they're almost like mirror
images.
Well, they are, because they'retwins but like just like
opposites, you know.
Speaker 1 (38:57):
So like Jules is dark and moody, ben's sunny and
happy you know, and so like theyin to each other's, yang a
little bit, yeah, exactly, yeah,yeah makes sense.
And last question what tropeshave you not written yet that
you would like to explore in?
Speaker 2 (39:13):
future books.
Okay, well, I told you alreadythat I'm dying to write a Heart
of Dixie inspired, which is notreally a trope, but I really
want it to be like Big CityDoctor goes to small town Texas,
mainly because I know a lotabout small town Texas and so
(39:34):
I'm like, okay, I can write this.
So I really want to write thatI think within this series
you're going to get the Rivalsto Lovers.
I'm really excited to write.
It's also going to be amarriage pact, so that one's
going to be really fun.
I'm very excited about that,yeah.
(39:55):
And then I love, love, love,and this is a controversial
opinion, but I love anaccidental pregnancy book.
So I know, I know controversial.
Speaker 1 (40:11):
You can, you can change my mind.
I'll.
I'll be open to it.
Speaker 2 (40:16):
Listen, listen.
I love an accidental pregnancy,so you will be getting an
accidental pregnancy interesting.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
I'm like trying to mentally figure out who I think
it'll be.
I don't have anything yet, butI'll just have to wait and see.
Speaker 2 (40:31):
Yeah, that's the theme yes, yes, wait and see.
Yeah, guaranteed good times allaround, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
I was gonna say you can.
You can definitely change mymind.
I'm always open to any of thetropes.
It's kind of like I didn't lovesecond chance romance and then
I read the x-files and I saidokay fine, okay fine.
Yes, yes, we changed my mind alittle bit.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
So, yeah it, anything can be turned around in romance
okay, have you read out and outon a limb by no but I need to.
Speaker 1 (41:09):
I know I need to.
Okay, I've heard amazing things.
Yes, an excellent, excellentaccidental pregnancy book I
literally have it in my hooplaqueue, so it is ready to go.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
Yeah, so good, so good.
So, if you're, though, that'llget you into it, and then you'll
be like, okay, okay, I can readRachel's accidental pregnancy,
I can do it.
Speaker 1 (41:32):
Well, and of course they're also different and the
circumstances are alwaysdifferent.
So I think that you know it'slike if you read a couple bad
examples of that trope thatdon't connect with you, then
it's easy to say I hate thattrope.
But then if you get the right,you know ingredients.
With said trope, then I thinkit just changes everything.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
And one thing that's really important to me in every
trope that I write or every book, is handling harder topics with
levity, and so just likefinding the humor like there's
not always humor in trauma,right, but like I cope with my
trauma by laughing, by likebeing fun and funny and silly,
(42:19):
and then like I want that in abook.
So even if even in my angstierbooks right, like they're still
gonna be fun and hopefully funny, hopefully they make you laugh
they're still gonna kind of leanheavily into like the rom-com
aspect of things.
So you'll get some heaviertopics that will be handled well
(42:44):
, right, like I'm not gonnabreeze over them, um, you see
that in like Anders sobriety andhis ADHD and all that but, and
even in like the third actconflict with Bex, which I won't
give away, but I also want youto laugh too.
So you'll get you'll get alittle bit of both.
Speaker 1 (43:06):
Nice.
That's what makes it fun, yeah,and of course it's nice to have
some depth in there too, youknow cause you want a rom-com.
But you want, you want like ayou know some depth in there, or
at least I do.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (43:18):
I think we are really like, just as human beings,
complex people, right, we're notalways moody and we're not
always funny and we're notalways, you know, sunny, and so
it's, it's, and we all havestuff that makes us who we are
as people, and so I think it'sreally fun to explore that in
(43:39):
characters as well.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
Yeah, and we don't always say the right thing at
the right time.
No, yeah, even though we wishwe could Exactly, exactly so.
So when you're kind of planningeverything out, do you come up
with the plot first and then thetropes, kind of like, stack
themselves in, or do you look attropes sometimes and say okay,
I know that I want this book tobe this particular trope.
Speaker 2 (44:02):
I do it both ways With Yours, unexpectedly.
I only I knew it was going tobe her brother's best friend,
because I knew that I wanted.
I knew that I was like startingthis world right.
So I knew that this was goingto be like a series that was
coming and I needed a way to totie them all together, and so I
(44:25):
knew it was going to be that.
And then I knew that he wasgoing to be her TA.
Like I knew those were thethings that I knew were were
going to happen within the book.
Um, and so then I really didlike not plot.
I pantsed the whole thing andlike oh, wow, yeah, I will not
be doing that again.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
It took me a long time, but I was learning.
Speaker 2 (44:47):
It was the first full length book I've ever written.
And so I was like I just kind ofwant to see what's going to
come from it.
So I would go back every dayand I would read what I wrote
the day before to come from it.
So I would go back every dayand I would read what I wrote
the day before and then I would,I would start writing and kind
of I would kind of plot outbeats a little bit in my head so
knowing like, okay, this isgoing to be like I'm getting us
(45:08):
to here and then once I getthere, I need to figure out
where we're going to go afterthat, and then I'm going to get
us to here.
So those are the two that Iknew as far as tropes for Years.
(45:33):
Unexpectedly, with book two andthree so Jules, the twins books,
jules and Ben I did have tropesthat I wanted to write that I
was like, okay, will this fitwith these characters?
Right, and does this make sense?
And then kind of plotted aroundthat.
And then with Gabe and Lucy'sbook, it's gonna be, I mean,
it's gonna be second chance.
And so that was kind of likebuilt in.
(45:54):
I knew that you get that.
You get a little bit of them inbook one, and so I knew that
that was just going to kind oflike drag out for a long time.
But I love that.
I, I love getting to seesomebody in the first book in a
(46:15):
series and like knowing whothey're going to end up with and
you kind of.
It kind of just makes it thatmuch sweeter when you get there
at the end of a series, Right,and and you're like this is who
we've been waiting for.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
So and it gives Gabe time to get it together and
mature a little bit more.
Speaker 2 (46:35):
He does.
Yeah, I don't know what he'sdoing.
Speaker 1 (46:37):
Well, I guess we'll find out later on.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
We will find out, yeah.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Thank you so much for joining me, rachel.
That's it for today.
Thanks for listening to when ILeft Off a bookish podcast.
You can sign up for Rachel'snewsletter and purchase all of
her novels through the links inthe show notes.
Speaker 2 (46:53):
Thank you so much for having me.
I really, really appreciate it,of course.
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