Today I’m chatting to Laurie Tomlinson about her novel, Rachael Ray, and almost pulling an all-nighter writing.

The Writer

Please describe yourself in three words (ask your best friend or family if you are struggling!)

Intuitive, Studious, Loyal

What’s your favourite season, and why?

Definitely fall. The leaves are gorgeous here, there’s a welcome reprieve from 100-degree days, and the smell of fireplace makes us feel cozy on our neighborhood walks. Give me football, fleece, and hot cocoa any day!

What is the best part of your day?

As much as I enjoy being with my kids all day, I love the second their bedroom doors are closed, my husband and I collapse on the couch, and I have him all to myself 🙂 Preferably with a good TV show, hot tea, and a cookie.

What do you miss most about your childhood?

Getting to read whenever I want! Reading time for me is stolen on the treadmill and the last minutes before I fall asleep these days.

Which TV talk show host would you like to be interviewed by? Why?

I don’t watch many talk shows, but either Harry Connick Jr—if he’ll play piano for me—or Rachael Ray. I would love to make pasta with her and chat because she seems like so much fun!

You are at a fruit market – what do you reach for first?

Give me some late summer champagne grapes! I love to reduce them and serve with a protein or grill them and put them on a steak salad. Is it dinnertime yet?

What was the first Christian Fiction novel you read?

As a kid, I devoured the Christy Miller series. As a young adult, the A Place Called Home series by Lori Wick was how I rediscovered Christian fiction.

What is one author and/or book you always recommend?

Five Days in Skye by Carla Laureano!

What book character has stuck in your mind from a book you have read this year?

Oh, man. The characters from The Lady and the Lionheart by Joanne Bischof will never leave me.

The Book

There can be more than comfort in food… 

What could well-known and wealthy Graham Cooper Jr. have in common with a blogger like Sloane Bradley, a woman with secrets she’s kept firmly out of the public eye? That is, besides a love of food. Sloane still can’t believe Cooper’s the chef at the restaurant she’s been assigned to promote. But she’s boiling to prove to him that her “little blog” can put his place on the map. She can also fall head over heels for the guy, who has secrets of his own, it turns out…except for one thing. She can’t get past the post-traumatic stress disorder that keeps her walled up in her home studio.

What was the working title?

Just Breathe: There’s more to life than just breathing.

Describe your book in 5 adjectives

Heartfelt. Hopeful. Relatable. Redemptive. Appetizing 🙂

Which character took you by surprise?

Definitely Cooper. The story was supposed to be Sloane-strong, but his storyline sort of developed a life of its own.

What was the latest you stayed up working on this story?

I believe I saw some 4:00 or 5:00 hours writing this one. Definitely a night owl here.

Which character’s name was the hardest to choose? Why?

Levi, Sloane’s techy friend, is the only character I renamed through the entire process. (I stole his original name for a new story’s hero, but don’t tell!)

What’s something that didn’t make it into the final copy?

We ended up deleting over 15,000 words before all was said and done. There was a scene where Cooper taught Sloane how to drive again that was very enlightening about them 🙂

Thanks Laurie!

Laurie Tomlinson is an award-winning contemporary romance author and cheerleader for creatives. She believes that God’s love is unfailing, anything can be accomplished with a good to-do list, and that life should be celebrated with cupcakes and extra sprinkles. Her novella That’s When I Knew was featured in the Love at First Laugh collection, and her debut novel, With No Reservations, is now available from Harlequin Heartwarming. You can connect with Laurie on her website, Facebook page, and Instagram.

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