Two Girls and a Book Obsession had a chance to get to know BEST SELLING author of the suspense/psychological thriller genre, one of our favorite genres to read!  She is an amazing young author and we look forward to more work from her in the future!  Enjoy…

Q&A…

Q:  What was the first book that you remember reading that made you cry?

A:  Beach Music by Pat Conroy didn’t just make me cry once, I probablycried twelve times while reading it. It’s this incredibly powerful story about family and love and the bonds of friendship and it crisscrosses the globe from Italy to the deep south and goes back in time. This book manages to be heartbreaking and funny all at the same time. I usually reread it every few years and it still wrecks me

Q:  What is your writing kryptonite?

A:  My dog Stevie is so adorable and makes for an excellent distraction when I need a reason to procrastinate.

Q: How do you select the names of your characters?

A:  Sometimes they just come to me. I imagine it’s how people feel when they’re naming their children. You listen to it, say it out loud, start writing, and slowly it starts to feel right. Sometimes I use friends and family names (though I’m always careful to make sure they’re the good guys!)

Q:  Dark chocolate or milk chocolate? White wine or red?

A:  Dark chocolate. White wine in summer and spring. Red Wine in the winter.

Q:  What was the hardest scene from your books to write?

A:  Writing The Walls came very easily when I wrote the first draft. But once I turned it in, my editors had sizable edits. I had to rework the first half of the book a great deal, cutting 100 pages and restructuring. I’d been so convinced the book was perfect as is, so it took a great deal of time and emotional energy to revise it, but it was worth it in the end.

Q:  What can you remember about your favorite grade school teacher?

A:  My sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Skrovan, really ignited my love for English and writing. Her energy was contagious, and everyone, even kids who didn’t love school were engaged in her class. She was very creative in the work she assigned, someone who loved doing projects that were outside of the ordinary. She’d give assignments like writing a script and filming a video about the dangers of addiction or creating a reenactment from a favorite book/movie (mine was Carrie!) Her class was this safe space where you were constantly being challenged creatively and it left a huge impression on me.

Q: What is your favorite cold weather activity/warm weather activity?

A:  I grew up on the Gulf Coast, so I’m still drawn to beaches with super warm

water. Sadly, I’m the opposite of athletic, so I prefer activities like

kayaking, where you get to experience the outdoors without feeling like

a total klutz.

Q: Would you rather snuggle under a blanket with a good book or lay under the warm sun?

A: Is it cheating to say both?Because I really do love both.

Q:  If you could go back in time to give your teenage-self advice, what would you say?

Don’t obsess about things you can’t control (which is probably advice I’d give my adult self as well.) As a teenager I was always so panicked that I wasn’t going to accomplish all my goals, that I didn’t take time to live in the moment. I’m pretty sure my younger self wouldn’t listen but I’d still like to tell her eventually it would all work out.

Q:  Can you give your fans and followers any sneak peaks at what you might be working on?

I recently completed a TV pilot that’s making the rounds now. It’s inspired by a true story about a massacre in a small Tennessee town and explores the dark nature of female sociopaths. I’m also hard at work on my third novel, The Runaway. It tells the story of a teenage girl who disappears and her foster mother, a psychologist for the LAPD who sets out to find her. It showcases a different seedier and less glitzy side of LA than the one we’re used to seeing, and has a great mother/daughter storyline that I’m very excited about. The Runaway will be published Aug 2018.