What Am I Thinking?
My mind was blown about two years ago when I discovered Lauren Landish and read a few of her books. They were so different than all the other romance novels I’d read in the past and I loved them so much. They were like a breath of fresh air.
Meet: Maddox
Maddox was actually the second character that really solidified himself in my mind when I was writing Finding Zen. He was partially inspired by the song “Marry Me” by Thomas Rhett. I knew what his story would be like, but I wasn’t quite sure about his personality.
But the more I wrote him, the more of an asshole he came to be. But I loved that about him. He was the snarky one, the first one to make a snide comment, to flirt unabashedly, to stir up drama and give people shit. He spoke his mind without reservation and I loved that about him.
Character Inspiration: Ryan
When I first started thinking about the story line for Saving Maddox, I knew who Maddox was because I’d already played with his character and spent some time developing it in Finding Zen and Loving True. I also knew some of the details I wanted to have happen in the story because they were inspired by a song. (If you’re curious, check out the Playlists tab).
Character Inspiration: Charlie
When I’m starting the process of writing a book, I figure out who my main characters are going to be and then I start digging into their backstory. Who are they? What was their childhood like? What’s their relationship with their parents like? And do they have siblings?
Character Inspiration: Yates
The original idea for Saving Maddox came from the song “Marry You” by Thomas Rhett. I listened to the lyrics and pictured a guy who was totally tortured and heartbroken sitting in the back row watching the woman he’d loved for basically his whole life marrying someone else.
Character Inspiration: Quinn
Whenever I start writing a new book, I spend a lot of time developing the main characters, their families, and the main antagonists, but outside of that, I don’t give it a lot of thought. I started writing Saving Maddox and realized there was a gaping hole on Ryan’s side that needed to be filled by someone. But who?
Sneak Peek: Saving Maddox Prologue
I’ve been busy writing away on book three of the Shadow Phoenix series - Saving Maddox! It’s coming along great and I can’t wait to share it with you next month. Maddox and Ryan are childhood best friends and are finding their way back to each other.
You can read the prologue below to get a sneak peek into how their friendship started.