Feb 4, 20222 min read

Elizabeth Dear's Mer-Mazing Book Awards Mini Interview

"Which of your characters do you relate the most to and why?"

"I'm sure it's no surprise that I relate to my heroine, Mave. We're both pretty dry and sarcastic in real life--and we both cuss like a sailor. Mave is the first heroine I've ever written since the book was my debut, and she's super aspirational for me--she's got the self-assuredness, backbone, and smart mouth that I wish I could have had at age 19 in the face of adversity."

"How do you celebrate your book releases?"

"Quietly with my husband. Not very many people in my real life know what I'm up to!"

"What was the hardest scene for you to write?"

"Tough one! Mave is first and foremost a rejected mates book, so the rejection scene itself was hard because I wanted to badly to make sure I struck the right tone. Mave is a strong character that my reader generally does not have to worry about crumbling under pressure, but the rejection had to hurt. I also find that epilogues are difficult to write because I want to include all the things. I felt this in particular the one I just finished for Book 3 in this series because it's THE END for these characters I fell so in love with that I wrote two unplanned follow-up books in the series!"

"What do you love about being an author? Do you have any favorite memories since becoming one?"

"I've really loved becoming part of this community of indie authors and readers. Everyone has been so supportive and friendly. I've also really loved discovering this thing about myself that I didn't know--creating and telling stories is so much fun, and I found that I love it as much as I've loved reading since I feel into the indie romance world over a few years ago."

"What is your favorite genre/trope to write? Are there any genres you plan to delve into in the future?"

"So far I've only written paranormal romance, but I do think I will dabble in other romance genres. I really REALLY enjoyed writing Mave's brother's book (Ben Fortune) which was M/M--not something I ever thought I'd attempt but now I want to do more, for sure. Mostly, I love to read and write in the New Adult space, so I'd expect mostly that from me!"