I have been Twitter friends with Elyssa for quite some time now and she is always gives me the best romance book recommendations. Now with her first book out, I’ve invited her to Smexy to chat.
Who is Elyssa Patrick. Give us the low down.
I’m a former high school English teacher, and I love anything chocolate, Richard Armitage (no surprise there!), and cupcakes. As you can see, I have a horrible sweet tooth.
I know this sounds cliché—but I’ve always wanted to write ever since I was a kid. But I always thought it was one of those impossible dreams that would never ever happen. I got my Masters in Secondary Education and proceeded to teach, but it was a horrible experience and the writing dream was making itself louder and louder. I really began to write for publication when I was teaching, mostly because I was having such a difficult time in that job, and writing made me happy and I felt . . . fulfilled in ways I hadn’t.
There were two things that I consider the catalyst to going after my dream. One, I joined the former Eloisa James bulletin board and I found a bunch of like-minded people who also wanted to write, and I was encouraged in pursuing my path to publication. (I also met two of my critique partners on that board!). Two, I entered the Avon Fanlit competition. I actually had started off by writing historical romances but found my voice in contemporary. But the Avon Fanlit competition was wonderful. I finaled in one round; I was very proud of my title too (A Tale of Two Kitties, lol). I met more people and with that competition, you had to meet certain deadlines, word count limit, write blurbs, etc., etc. That competition taught me so much, and I’m really so grateful for that; plus, it was a bit surreal in being in that competition and having authors who I loved actually comment on my pieces.
I also started to really believe that I could pursue writing for publication. It was one of those things where I just thought that I would have more regrets in not trying than trying and failing. And I just wanted to take that chance because I had to write and go after my dream.
Tell us about your debut book, As You Wish.
Here’s a brief description:
Love doesn’t always follow the sheet music . . .
This Christmas, Portia Jackson needs a miracle to save her family’s generations-old florist shop. What she gets instead is a car that breaks down during a blizzard. Help arrives unexpectedly when the infamous Aubry Riley pulls over. She only expects him to drive her to the gas station . . . she never expects that kiss. But Portia lives in the real world—she knows this is only a holiday fling for Aubry. Except it doesn’t feel so temporary, and the last thing she wants is a broken heart.
Sometimes you have to sing some different notes . . .
Rock star Aubry Riley has no secrets. Thanks to the media, everyone knows about his troubled past. Six years have gone by since his world crashed, and now he’s ready for a comeback. But first he needs to reconcile with his family—starting with his six-year-old daughter. A month-long vacation at a Vermont lake house affords him the perfect opportunity to take a step in the right direction. He doesn’t need any other emotional entanglements, especially not with the bright-eyed florist he can’t stop thinking about. But no matter how hard he tries to resist her, he can’t. Now all he has to do is to convince Portia that there is nothing temporary when it comes to love.
Aubry is a very famous rock star. Do you have a rock star crush that inspired this character?
I actually didn’t have any rock star crushes that inspired his character. I’ve always been drawn to artists—mainly because I was heavily involved in acting/fine arts in high school, college, and when I taught with the high school drama club.
For Aubry, he actually came to me in this one image of him performing where it was obvious he was on something, and I kept wondering who is this guy, and what’s his story. I tried to push him to the side, but he was so insistent that I tell his story—I was actually writing his sister’s book and it ended up that a lot of the scenes were in his POV. So I stopped writing his sister’s book and told his—because I had to. (I know that sounds so cliché, too!)
I knew Aubry would be a hard character for many to like, but I couldn’t pull back and do him an injustice. I was really drawn to him and I honestly love him.
Portia is an adorable heroine. Quirky, witty and just really fun. What is your favorite thing about her?
Oh, thank you so much for saying that about Portia! She was actually the harder one for me to write, if you can imagine that. I think it might have been because Portia is just as stubborn as I am. ;) I worried a bit about her, too, with her quirkiness and I wanted to make sure I struck the right balance for her.
There are so many things I love about Portia, but the main two things were: her willingness to admit to her faults and her generosity.
As You Wish is self published. Tell us a little bit about that process. Did anything surprise you good or bad along the way?
There’s a bit of a story with that. As You Wish actually landed me my former agent, and it went on submission to publishers. It was rejected everywhere. (To be fair, my former agent had me revise it so it was a different version that went out there, but the core of the story remained.)
My friends, particularly my critique partner, Tiffany Clare, and Sara Lindsey, kept suggesting I’d self-publish As You Wish. But I was a little scared to do so because I had lost a lot of confidence in my writing and my stories. I wasn’t sure anyone would buy it.
But I decided to take that chance, even though I was positive I would only make one sale—and that one sale would be me buying the book, lol.
It was a definite learning process with self-publishing. I can’t even begin to tell you how many anxiety-riddled dreams I had this summer. It was just a lot of details that added up, and I wanted to make sure that I put out the best product to readers.
I learned HTML and formatted the book myself. That was the biggest thing I learned of anything. And I still would be stuck in the mire had it not been for Courtney Milan and Gwen Hayes, both of whom so generously answered my questions when I came across something I didn’t understand.
Did you do anything special to celebrate the release of your debut book?
Not really. Once it started going live, it felt very, very real, and I was just in the OMG, I finally did it. So I squeed to my critique partners and my friends, and that was it.
We are introduced to several supporting characters in this book. Will we see any future books about any of them?
Ah, the Finn question that was discussed on Twitter. No, there aren’t any plans for Finn. His story is wrapped up in As You Wish. I know there are some who would like to see a novella for him and you-know-who (I’m trying to remain spoiler-free for those who haven’t yet read As You Wish), but there really is nothing for me to tell—or rather, anything I want to tell.
When I wrote As You Wish, I always meant for it to be a standalone. However, all my characters live in the same universe, in the same way Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ characters do. I just really like exploring family dynamics in what I write, so I tend to have several supporting characters. The other two books in the series would have focused on other rock stars, but that was a long time ago and things have since changed.
But never say never! ;)
You can find Elyssa on her blog and Twitter.
Today, Elyssa is going to give away an E-Book of As You Wish. To enter, just leave a comment. Open to everyone through 9/13.
Congratulations Elyssa!! This is very exciting and I’m looking forward to reading As You Wish. :)
There’s something inherently romantic about flower shops, isn’t there? Beyond the whole gifts for a date thing, seeds, blossoms, it’s so generative right? Anyhow, it sounds charming and I’ve to read it!
Congratulations, Elyssa! I’ve heard great things about this book, which has to be gratifying for your first!
Congrats on your book!! I have a daughter wanting to write, but is going to teach first. Your book sounds great, and I am looking forward to reading it and want to read more from you.
Sounds like a very interesting book and I do love comtemporaries! I’m definately going to read it.
Thanks so much, Sophia! I really do hope you enjoy it. :)
Emma, you nailed it right on the head for flower shops. It just worked out that Portia would have a business full of life, bloom, etc., and Aubry is struggling to find those things for himself.
Oh, thanks for those kind words, Rebe! It’s been a really nice surprise. I am so happy that (for the most part anyway) people are enjoying and liking AYW.
Karen, that’s awesome about your daughter wanting to teach. I wish her all the best. It really is so important for new teachers to be nurtured and have a school system that supports them. And thanks for wanting to read AYW and read more from me.
Zippy, thanks! I love contemporaries myself (no surprise there, lol) but I hope you enjoy AYW.
Congratulations with your first book Elyssa! And how good of you to persevere and self publish it. I would know what I would do if my favourite actor or singer fell for me!
OMG A Tale of Two Kitties! I would read that in a hot second.
Aurian, thanks so much for the congrats! I wouldn’t know what to do, either, if I met a famous celeb. I’d be too gobsmacked to do anything. lol
Tamara, I wish I had manage to get those shorts before the site was closed down. The hero walked his cat, Odyseuss, in Hyde Park and the heroine had a cat named Penelope. I think one of the Avon authors remarked that the story focused too much on the cats. Hee!
And sorry about the typos. I’m on my iphone so I’m totally worried I’ll have a DYAC moment. ;)
:) Congratulations on your new release! Love the cover, the title, and it sounds super fun. PLUS, any woman who compares her book to SEP is a “gotta read” kinda gal! :)
Kudos for the self-publication too – When you know you rock, you gotta flaunt it!
Ohhh, my iPhone didn’t show that there was a reply button to each comment–sorry about that, everyone! Anyway…
Hi, Brunette Librarian! Thanks so much! SEP is like a writing goddess so I’m not sure my books are anywhere near her awesomeness but she is a huge inspiration to me and my writing. (As is Lisa Kleypas, Julie James, Nalini Singh, to name a few.) But SEP taught me a lot in her books, and if I’m in anyway comparable to her, then that would blow my mind. Of course you might read and think this is nothing like SEP!!! lol
Hi Elyssa!
CONGRATS on your release! I’m glad you got the courage up to self-publish:) Can’t wait to read As You Wish!
yadkny@hotmail.com
Thansnk so much, Yadira! I’m glad I decided to take the plunge too. :)
Congrats on your publication. Your book sounds like a fun read. Thanks for visiting today.
Thanks, LSUReader!
Elyssa, your book sounds fabulous to me – I love rock star romances (it’s a guilty pleasure). I saw this posted on the Kindleboards Indie romance thread and have downloaded a sample to check it out. Best wishes on the release.
Oh, thanks, Jen! I love rock star romances, too. ;) I hope you like the sample (I love that feature so much!), and thank you so much for the wishes.
I’ve seen a lot of talk about this book on Twitter so I had it marked on my “wish list” to check it out. So glad to see your interview here on Smexybooks! Congratulations!
Kelly, thanks so much! Mandi is fabulous, and I really am so thankful to her and everyone else who’s been so supportive. I hope you enjoy the book if you end up reading it.
What a way to start out, find a group of like minded individuals and go with it.
Congrats on your release, especially since you had to do so much work on it to publish it. The story line sounds very cute!
Lexi, I’m so blessed to have found the group of friends I have. It really is so important to have that! And I learned a lot by doing the work–but I felt very accomplished from doing something I didn’t think I could do (especially with HTML). And I’m so glad you think the story sounds cute–I’m very fond of it. :)
Congratulations! Wanting to read As you Wish already.
Thanks, Tina!
I’m always looking for a new author to fall in love with, and “As You Wish” sounds like it’ll be a great read! Congrats on your release!
Thanks so much for the congrats, Nicole! I hope you enjoy AYW if you end up getting it.
Congrats on the book! It sounds good.
Hi, BN! I recognize your name from Lady Scribes. :) Thanks so much for commenting, and for the congrats.
Thanks so much for the giveaway! And congratulations! Love learning about a new author.
Thanks, Helen!
Thanks for a fun post and giveaway! Congrats on the new release! This book had already hit my radar cuz I’ve been reading some great pre-release reviews :) I love the premise and that you are considering telling the stories of other people in this world :)
Erin, I’m glad you love the premise–and awesome for hitting your radar. :) I’m not sure if I’m going to tell the other stories for the characters in this story, but it’s one of those never say never situations.
This book sounds exciting, there is just something about those meeting where someone is a hero then they both leave thinking about the other…*sigh* Congrats on your first book, the cover looks appealing also! :)
Thanks, Chelsea! And I agree–I love those type of first meetings where you just can’t get that certain someone out of your head no matter how hard you try. Thanks for the cover love! My cover designer and friend did an amazing job with it.
Sounds really good!! Thanks for the chance to win!
Hi, Natasha! Hope you enjoy if you get AYW!
How exciting! Thanks for sharing your story. can’t wait to read the book!
Thanks, Jodie! Mandi asked really great questions. :)
Congrats on your e-book! It looks great.
Sarac, thank you! I hope you’ll like!
Thanks for the giveaway. I really want to read this book.
Hi, Victoria! Thanks for wanting to read my book–typing that is still so surreal to me that others want to read it.
Hi Elyssa!! Congratulations on your book! Fantastic interview and the book sounds awesome! I love chocolate, cupcakes and Rock Star books!! Thank you for the giveaway!
Hi Stacy, you clearly have great taste. :D And thanks for the congrats!