Ask the Author: Rebecca Brooks
Answered Questions (6)
Rebecca Brooks
Hi Eva! I actually never *explicitly* wrote that Claire was celibate—I wanted to keep it a little vague and open-ended. Ryan says that he knows he was her first, but he doesn't assume she hasn't been with anyone since him—and he still wants to be the best she's ever had, no matter what. So FWIW he didn't go into things thinking that she was celibate, even if he never asks for the details of her dating history. (It was important to me to write a hero who would NOT expect his ex to never be with anyone else again, and who wouldn't be weird or aggressive about her personal life and her choices.) Claire talks about how hard it is to date as a single mom who works full time, which to me also suggests that she has some experience trying to make that work. I didn't think it was fair to either character to assume that they wouldn't be with anyone else for 5 years...but I also know that since they were busy with their own lives and ups and downs, neither of them would have a ton of time or energy to invest in dating. So definitely no serious relationships! I agree completely that it wouldn't be fair to assume that the woman isn't dating while the guy is sleeping with whomever he wants.
Rebecca Brooks
Read everything, and write as much as you can. Write even when it's crappy. Especially then. Don't worry about having the right words or the perfect ending or even the best idea. Just write. Because after you write maybe a hundred pages you can't do anything with, you'll find a sentence, or an image, or a kernel of an idea—and then you can start to build something, layer by layer, discovering through trial an error and sheer persistence what else is there. But you can't get to that sentence, or image, or idea without floundering around for a bit. It doesn't mean you suck at writing or are on the wrong path. It's just part of the process, and everyone goes through it. For a long time I was afraid of writing a novel because I didn't know how. But of course I didn't know how—I'd never done it before! I only learned by doing. So my advice to anyone would be to do the thing they want to instead of waiting for a better time. There's never going to be a better time. And there's never going to be anything written unless you sit down and write it.
Rebecca Brooks
Getting to write! I think a lot of people love having written, but sort of hate the actual process of writing. Yeah there are frustrating days, but for the most part I really love the challenge, excitement, and inspiration that comes from sitting down and actually writing, whether it's drafting a new scene from scratch or trying to get that one final sentence just right. It can be hard to prioritize writing over everything else that needs to get done. Saying "I'm a writer" gives me permission to take the time I need. It becomes as important and as necessary as any other job.
Rebecca Brooks
MAKE ME STAY is the first in the Men of Gold Mountain series, but every book in the series can be read on its own, in any order, and each has a HEA. I promise I won't leave you hanging!
Rebecca Brooks
MAKE ME STAY is the first book in the Men of Gold Mountain series, so right now I'm working on the next book, MAKE ME BEG, which will be coming out in early 2017. Men of Gold Mountain consists of four books, each set in a different season. MAKE ME STAY is set in the winter. In MAKE ME BEG, the t-shirts start coming out and the characters get to show a little more skin. :)
Rebecca Brooks
I had been thinking for a long time about writing a ski novel. I had the hero and heroine in mind, but the rest was fuzzy. Then -- and I know this sounds crazy, but it's true! -- I woke up one morning deciding the book would be called Make Me Stay and the ski place Gold Mountain. I love the way it sounds like it could be a real place but also has a little bit of whimsy. And with a name like that, it has to be beautiful! From there, I had a sense of place and purpose and started writing right away. I have a lot of ideas come to me as I'm falling asleep or when I first wake up. I think I'm more creative then because I'm not thinking (as much) about the zillion things I have to do during the day.
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