Author Interview: Elizabeth Briggs (Chasing the Dream Series)

I have something special in store for you all today! One of my favorite NA authors just dropped by the blog! It's Elizabeth Briggs!

Now, I first heard of Elizabeth Briggs on Oops I Read A Book Again when she hosted the More Than Music tour. When I read More The Music, I fell in love with Elizabeth's stories. She wrote a novella, More Than Exes, and now she just released the second book of her Chasing the Dream series, More Than Comics.

Fun Questions:

The last TV show you watched?
- Parks and Recereation - we're rewatching the entire series on Netflix.

The first book you've ever read?
- I have no idea. My mom says it was Goodnight Moon. On my own? I remember devouring Nancy Drew novels as a kid.

The first thing you do in the morning?
- Take the dogs outside and grab a cup of coffee.

Any weird reading habits?
- If I have a print book, I ALWAYS read the last paragraph of the book before I read the rest. I also like to read Acknowledgements first.

How many times have you been to Comic Con?

- I've been going every year since 2008 so this year will be my 8th time!

The Interview:

How was the writing process for More Than Comics?

- More Than Comics was so fun to write! It originally started as a novella but the story kept growing and growing, and I really enjoyed digging into Hector's story. It's also my first book told from dual POVs, which was both challenging but rewarding to write.

What do you think of relationships that started online? Do you think they last longer?

- My husband and I met online over ten years ago, so I definitely think they can last! I've also met many of my closest friends online. It's one reason I wanted to write a book about it.

What do you think makes Tara McFadden stand out from Maddie and Alexis?

- Tara is more warm, optimistic, and friendly than my two previous heroines. She's not afraid to go after what she wants, even if she's not sure what that is sometimes. She's less awkward than Maddie, but just as big a geek. She's not as bold as Alexis, but she's just as independent. All three girls are smart, strong, and passionate about something. 

If you were given a chance to write your own graphic novel, which company would you choose; DC or Marvel?

- Marvel all the way!

Are any of the characters you've written ever exist in real life?

- All of them! I would LOVE to hang out with everyone in Villain Complex.

I just finished reading More Than Comics now that I'm done with my undergraduate thesis. And can I just say how wonderful that book is? IT IS SO GOOD. My review will be posted soon. Thank you so much, Liz, for agreeing to do this with me. It has been an honor!

Hot Dudes Reading

If you've been living under a rock, then I suggest you get the hell out of there. I have something for you. So, not only was the Internet abuzz with that ridiculous dress (if you don't know, then I suggest you get on with program), it picked up one of Instagram's hottest accounts, Hot Dudes Reading. Basically it's just an account showing hot dudes, well, reading. So far, it only has 35 posts and about 400K followers. You won't be disappointed with the amount of hotness that are men reading books. I mean, they're like so hot, okay? I'll count down my personal favorites from this account.

Go follow this account if you want some eye candy on your Instagram news feed. I swear, you won't regret it. Got any favorites? Let me know through your comments!

{Wicked Review} Books, Blogs, & Reality by Ryan Ringbloom

Published: October 24, 2014

Publisher: RyanRingbloom

Acquired: Digital copy

Amazon

Life can suck…

When reality becomes overwhelming, seeking comfort in fictional fantasies keeps hope alive. And while this escape may be a little delusional, it’s also therapeutic.

Sharing secrets is daunting, but virtual friends don’t often judge and they are always ready to share a glass of wine…or three…while typing out life’s latest endeavors. 

Brooke believes obstacles only add to romance, not detract. Rachael longs for a more intense relationship, or so she thinks. Lizzie misses the excitement in her life, but sometimes new situations find you when you’re not even looking. And Jess believes a tiger can change his stripes. It can’t. 

Bound by a shared passion for blogging about happily ever afters, these four young women use keyboard therapy to work through their expectations, anxieties, and inadequacies, all with the hopes of achieving the perfection found in romance novels.

Completely blinded by what they think life should be, they navigate their unique paths in search of what they envision is right. But when reality taunts them with persistent curve balls, will they be strong enough to choose wisely? Or will their happy endings escape them?

Thank you to Giselle from Xpresso Reads for this review copy. This is no way affected my opinions towards the book.

So, let's get down to business. I LOVE this book! I mean, how can I not? It's about blogging and books and reality. It's starts with four girls-Brooke. Jess, Rachael, and Lizzie-and they have bonded through the internet, sharing the same love for romance novels and the woes of their lives.

Brooke Bloomfield:

Hers was the first I read. The book starts off with Brooke turning 23 and she shares her feels with a book they've read and the gifts Rachael sent over. Note that those gifts are R-rated and quite funny too! Brooke starts her new job as an accountant and falls madly in love with her boss, Jag Patel. Forbidden office romance! What I like about Brooke is that she's pretty simple. She's the mediator in the group. Her relationship with Jag is forbidden and both of them wants to take it to the next level. But when Jag tells her that a multi-culture relationship is hard to work out, Brooke takes a back step. This is in the latter part of the book. I mean, you read or watch relationships like this and it's screaming LOVE CONQUERS ALL. Yeah, sure, love conquers all but then you might want to take a step back and figure out the options. Since Jag Patel is Indian and they are known for upholding traditions, Jag emphasized this. But in the end, love did conquer all.

Rachael Miller

She is...crazy. The good crazy. She likes reading BDSM themed novels. She has a boyfriend, Kevin. While their sex is good, for Rachael, it's not great. Rachael kicks it up a notch, inviting Kevin do things to her that are stuff of her daydreams. Or so she thinks that is what she needs. I almost felt sad for Rachael when she broke down. She's the outspoken one in the group. She would always share tips on how to spice up the other girls' sex life. Rachael and Kevin's experiment on sex spirals downward. It is reminiscent of a popular story that I have read with this particular theme. Kevin, on the other hand, was strong. He was in love with Rachael. Rachael was in love with him. They lived happily ever after.

Jessica Davis

Jessica is the youngest among the four girls. She's still in college and is madly in love with Riley Matthews. Riley is the epitome of a bad boy. Who doesn't want to fall in love with a bad boy? We hear about them. We see them. We know who they are. Most innocent girls think that they can change a bad boy like Riley. She falls very hard, desperately wishing that she be the one to change Riley. She meets a guy named Mike, pretty ordinary and smart and polite. Basically, everything that Riley isn't. I almost want to scream at Jessica to fall in love with Mike instead. She realizes it all to be too late but in the process she has earned a friend.

Elizabeth Shea

Elizabeth is my favorite! Now, Elizabeth is across the Atlantic Ocean. She's married and has a cute kid named Thomas. While her friends think her life is like the ones in the books, it isn't quite that. She goes through what most mothers go through-pregnancy fats, mom jeans, yoga pants, and a rather dull sex life. I wouldn't know because I'm not married and I have no plans in the future. What I love about Elizabeth or Lizzie is her outlook in life. We hear stories about our friends getting married and getting their happily ever after. While that is really nice, it's not quite the reality for most people. EVERYTHING CHANGES. So, Lizzie finds solace with her new found online friend Dragonfly23. Lizzie thinks this is her high school friend James Pearce with a different name. So she spills everything to Drgaonfly23-how her relationship with her husband Edward is not going so well. It was then she realizes that Dragonfly23 is actually her husband Edward. A very important key in a relationship is not just good sex: COMMUNICATION.

All in all, not everything you read is true. It is so easy to get caught up with the things we read, with fantasies, that we forget that there is a fine line between fiction and reality. Ryan Ringbloom, with her flawlessly written characters, made me realize that and more.

Ryan Ringbloom is a YA/NA author who lives for anything Romance. The passion, love, angst, awkwardness… she loves all of it. When Ryan needs a break from reality she sneaks off to read a romantic story or write one of her own. Drinking coffee, reading Tweets and hugs from her five year old are the best part of her day.

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Songs of Love

Since the love month is about to end, I think it's apt that I share some songs of love on my playlist. I played around with colors and fonts and this is what I came up with. I'm trying my hand at typography and these songs inspired me to do these.

{Book Blitz: Excerpt} More Than Comics by Elizabeth Briggs

More Than Comics (Chasing The Dream #2)

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They're friends online - but can they be more in real life? 

Writer Tara McFadden has been friends with artist and drummer Hector Fernandez for years, long before his band became famous on reality TV – yet they’ve never met in person. They finally have a chance to connect offline when they’re both sent to Comic-Con to promote the graphic novel they collaborated on. 

Hector's secretly been in love with Tara for as long as he can remember, and once they meet, she sees him in a new light. All the years of longing lead to an incredible night of passion after one of his concerts, but neither is sure if their online relationship can translate into a real life romance – or if this will ruin their friendship forever. 

Over four crazy days at Comic-Con, Hector and Tara must decide if they want a future together. But when their story seems to be over, it’s up to Hector’s entire band to make sure he and Tara get their happy ending. 

Excerpt 2 (Hector):

I stopped to examine my work. For the first time I felt like I was able to capture her, the real her, now that I’d finally met her in person.

“Are you done?” Tara asked, trying to sneak a peek.

“Mostly.” I could tweak the thing forever, but it was good enough to show her. Still, I hesitated, taking a moment to add a little more shading to her hair. She’d seen hundreds of my sketches before, along with that other drawing of her, but this one felt more important than anything else I’d done.

“Can I see?” She inched closer to me, her hip nudging against my side.

I relented, unable to deny her anything when she was this close. She gasped as soon as she saw the drawing. “Hector, this…this is beautiful.”

“You like it?”

“I love it. I want to hug it to my chest, that’s how much I love it, but I’m worried I’ll smear it.” She smiled down at my drawing before setting it beside her on the couch. “I’ll just hug you instead.”

Then she was in my arms again, soft, warm, and curvy, and I wrapped myself tight around her. This time neither of us pulled away. Instead, she smoothed her hands along my chest and looked up at me, her rose-colored lips parting. As I stared at her mouth I was tempted to do the thing I’d dreamed about for so long.

I’d never seen a more beautiful girl than her. Never wanted a girl more. Other women had been easy to resist.

But not her.

She was my weakness.

When she didn’t move back, even after the reasonable time had passed for a friendly hug, courage flared in me. I bowed my head and brushed my lips across hers, the softest, lightest touch in case she didn’t want this kiss. I expected her to pull away, to ask, “What are you doing?”

But she didn’t.

She let out a quiet sigh, barely audible against my mouth, and closed her eyes like she was waiting for more. I took that as my cue and gave her another kiss, a real kiss this time. I was still hesitant, half-convinced she would stop me at any moment. This was crossing the line beyond friendship. I wasn’t sure I should be doing it, but I couldn’t help myself either. I’d dreamed of kissing Tara for years and now it was finally happening.

And impossibly, amazingly, she kissed me back.

I’d kissed girls before, but it had never been like this. Kissing Tara was like being kissed for the first time. Her lips were so sweet I wanted to taste her all night. I eased her mouth open softly, sliding my tongue inside, still waiting for her to stop me. I did everything slowly, giving her the opportunity to end it. But she didn’t.

I kissed her deeper. Harder. Demanding more from her.

And she let me.

Then she kissed me, shifting so she was on her knees on the couch and leaning against my chest, almost in my lap. She clutched my face and I drew her in closer, gripping her waist, her breasts rubbing against me through our clothes. My hands dipped down to cup her ass, to slide along her curves for the first time.

I’d suffered through years of lusting after her and now I finally had her in my arms. I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted, needed to touch her everywhere. I had to explore her and see if she lived up to the fantasy in my head. Except after that kiss I knew she would be even better than anything I’d imagined.

When we finally broke apart she whispered my name and it had never sounded so good. “Are you sure those drawings mean nothing?” she asked.

I tensed up, completely caught off guard. “What?”

“I…forget it.” She shook her head, pulling back. “God, what are we even doing?”

I drew in a ragged breath. “Do you want to stop?”

“Maybe…maybe we should.”

It was hard to stop touching her, so fucking hard, but I lifted my hands off her. “Whatever you want.”

She slowly climbed off the couch and yanked down her shirt, which had ridden up to show off her smooth, pale stomach. She looked dazed, like she wasn’t sure what to do. “I…I should go. Before this goes any further.”

I stood, but didn’t say anything. I wasn’t sure how to convince her to stay. Wasn’t even sure I wanted her to stay.

No, that was a lie, as evidenced by my raging hard-on. I was dying for her to stay.

She walked to the door, but once there she paused and turned around. I took a step closer, unable to resist her magnetic pull. She stared at me and I was hypnotized by the way her breasts rose and fell with each of her quickened breaths. I moved even closer, until I was only an inch in front of her. Still, she didn’t leave. It was almost like she wanted me to stop her.

Did she?

“The drawings do mean something,” I confessed.

Her eyes widened. “What do they mean?”

I reached up to cup her face with my hands. My fingers were too big and unwieldy, too rough for her perfect, soft skin, yet I wanted to touch her everywhere.

“That I’ve been dying to kiss you for years.”

I captured her mouth with mine again, showing her exactly how much the drawings meant.

And she kissed me back even harder.

Elizabeth Briggs is a full-time geek who writes books for teens and adults. She plays the guitar, mentors at-risk teens, and volunteers with a dog rescue group. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and a pack of small, fluffy dogs.

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Oh hey, while we're at it, More than Comics (Chasing the Dream #1) is on sale for ONLY 0.99c!

Stay tuned for more on More Than Comics on the blog! I have lots of stuff in store! :)