Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 105667 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105667 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Nora’s eyes light up. “Cam and Reya,” she says, testing the names out. “I like those. Are they married, or do we get a meet-cute?”
“Both, in a way. Cam is married,” I say, hesitantly. “At least in the outline I wrote almost two years ago.”
Nora’s eyebrow rises. “Oh. Unexpected. A triangle?”
I hesitate, glancing off-screen for a moment as if the answer might be hiding somewhere in the shadows. “I don’t know. That’s how I had planned it, but . . . I might change it. You never know.” I originally outlined this story before the backlash from the adaptation, and I think that’s part of what has me blocked. The fear that maybe I don’t know what I’m doing when it comes to writing about things I haven’t experienced.
“No, no, no,” Nora says, leaning forward toward the camera, her expression an animated betrayal. “You know love triangles are my favorite. I want the triangle.” She’s whining now.
“Let’s just hope I get at least one character fleshed out, much less three. Then we’ll talk.”
“Deal. Okay, let’s take a question,” Nora says, her eyes squinting as she scans the screen. Like she suggested, I have the chat box minimized and leave the sifting up to her.
“Here’s one. Ally Panzano wants to know why this one has taken you so long to finish. ‘You’ve always been a fast writer,’” Nora says, reading off the question.
I lean back in my chair, wondering how to delicately approach this one. “If you’re looking for complete transparency, I’d have to say . . . the public attention. I’m not used to it. I don’t like it. Not even the positive attention.”
“It’s true,” Nora confirms. “She squirms just as much when she’s complimented.”
“I’ve always used writing as both an escape and therapy, and when you’re in it and enjoying it, you aren’t thinking about what comes after you finish writing. The book releases, the book tours happen, the interviews begin. I’ve never really found that stressful because I’ve always enjoyed the tours and release days. To an extent. I’ve never enjoyed the publicity, but the requests have been manageable. But now that my public image is amplified even more, everything that comes after the writing feels more fraught, so I stress about it more than I used to when things were less chaotic. The idea of finishing a book and writing The End doesn’t feel like it’ll be an accomplishment. It actually fills me with fear that I’ll have to enter that next phase of publicity. And that’s what scares me now, because the publicity requests and content of the interviews have changed. And not everyone is born with a natural ability to speak in front of a camera, especially when you’re being asked to speak on more than just your books.”
Nora smiles at me. “Thank you for your vulnerability, Petra. That was a really good answer. Very honest. Okay, here’s another one. ‘Why did it sound like you’re hesitating to write the love triangle in this new book? Is it because of what happened with the love triangle being cut out of the adaptation?’”
“Is that a real question from a reader, or is that a Nora question?” I ask, raising a brow at her.
“It’s a real one, I promise,” she says, laughing.
I’m surprised at how I’m not hating this so far. It feels like the old days a little, and with each moment that passes, I start to feel more at ease.
“I’m not sure. After the last one, I obviously took the criticism to heart. This book I’m writing was meant to be a love triangle also, even though it’s very different in every way. But I’ve never been in a love triangle, and they say write what you know. Maybe that’s where I went wrong with the last book. I guess I find it difficult writing something I’ve never experienced,” I say.
Nora lets out a laugh, a sharp burst of disbelief. “Bullshit,” she says. “Your bestselling novel was about a woman who fell in love with an ex-convict. You’ve never dated an ex-convict.”
“Exactly. And several reviewers said it was unrealistic.”
Nora shakes her head, the look on her face a mixture of exasperation and fondness. “First of all, stop reading your negative reviews. Second . . . almost every negative review calls the book, or the characters, unrealistic. It’s the go-to term for reviewers who didn’t like something. I personally don’t need every single thing in a book to be realistic. Dragons aren’t realistic, but Fourth Wing is killing it on the charts.”
“That’s intentionally unrealistic,” I point out. “It’s called fantasy for a reason.”
“Romantasy,” she corrects. “Whatever. I can still recognize a good story when I read one. Realism is overrated. Sometimes people just want to escape into something that feels impossible, like it could never happen in real life. That’s the beauty of fiction. Why do you think Lifetime and Hallmark are successful channels? They’re escapes.”