Interview with Tiffany Schmidt for The Boy Next Story

The Boy Next Story (Bookish Boyfriends #2)

by Tiffany Schmidt

Publisher: Amulet Paperbacks

Release Date: May 21st 2019

Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary

Synopsis:

The second book in a series where your favorite literary characters come to life, inspired by the timeless classic, Little Women!

There’s no one better than the boy next door. At least not according to Aurora Campbell, fourteen, who has been in love with Tobias May since their very first sandbox kiss. The problem is, he’s in love with her older sister, Merrilee. And Merri is already dating one of his best friends.

Rory is learning all about pining as her class reads The Great Gatsby, a book she doesn’t find “great” at all. Also not great—her GPA, something she needs to fix, quickly, if she’d like to apply for the chance to spend a week studying art with her hero in New York City over winter break. But when Ms. Gregoire assigns her to read Little Women for extra credit, Rory discovers more than she expected—both about herself and Toby. Maybe she wasn’t in love with the boy next door. . . but the boy next story.

Love is complicated, and it’s all about to get even trickier for Rory at Reginald R. Hero Prep . . . where with the help of one quirky English teacher, students’ fantasies come true, often with surprising consequences.

Can you briefly describe what’s happening in THE BOY NEXT STORY and their main characters? 

Rory loves the boy next door, Toby. 

Toby pining for Rory’s sister Merri. 

Merri’s dating Toby’s best friend, Fielding. 

Literary hijinks ensue when their (maybe magical!) teacher assigns Rory to read Little Women and her life starts to resemble the plot of the book. It’s a story of sisters and outgrowing old crushes, knocking ideals off pedestals, and falling in love while figuring out who you are and how to use your voice. 

Who would you say is your favourite character from the story and why? 

Oh geez. I love them all. Is that answer allowed? I will say that Huck Baker is a character who exploded onto the page and stole scenes in a way I hadn’t originally envisioned or anticipated. He quickly became one of my favorites to write and he’ll be getting his own love story in BOOKISH BOYFRIENDS 4: GET A CLUE. 

How did the story occur to you? Did you find inspiration anywhere? 

I’m going to say something very controversial right here – I’m #TeamAmyMarch. It’s a younger sister’s prerogative and I’ve always been so frustrated by the Little Women Amy haters. This book might just be my attempt to get them to change their mind (and I’ve definitely done a fist pump for every early reader who’s contacted me to say they have). 

Even while drafting the first book in the BOOKISH BOYFRIENDS series, I knew that Rory needed her own story. As a younger sister myself, I know what it feels like to be overshadowed by a high-achieving and charismatic older sibling (Thanks, Heather!). Add in Rory’s lifelong secret crush on the boy who’s smitten with her sister, and you’ve got all the elements of an angsty rom-com. 

Oh, and I can’t forget Ms. Gregoire, the girls’ (maybe magical) English teacher whose assignments bleed over into the characters’ lives. Poor Rory has to read The Great Gatsby and Little Women. Drawing from and playing with aspects of these classic novels was one of my favorite parts of writing The Boy Next Story. And, yes, there is a twist on the book-burning scene. (Go, #TeamAmy!) 

If you could choose one song to describe your book, which one would it be? 

Vancouver Sleep Clinic’s “Someone to Stay” 

I have a whole playlist for this book, but this is the song that hits its emotional core. I still can’t listen to it without tearing up over the lyrics: “Can you keep me close? Can you love me most?” 

What drink/snacks do you think will go with your book to have a perfect book date? 

A cup of tea, a bottle of kombucha, a package of liquorice, and key lime pie. . . Hmm, probably not all at the same time.

Can you recommend your readers any other books in case they are left hungry for more once they finish THE BOY NEXT STORY? 

Jenny Han’s The Summer I Turned Pretty 

Stephanie Perkins Isla and the Happily Ever After 

Jessica Spotswood’s The Last Summer of the Garrett Girls 

Stephanie Kate Strohm’s Love a la Mode 

What’s next for you? 

Bookish Boyfriends 3 & 4! Talk Nerdy to Me (Eliza + Curtis!) and Get a Clue (Huck + Winston) are both in various stages of drafting and editing. I cannot wait for these romances to get in readers’ hands!

Tiffany Schmidt is the author of Send Me a Sign, Bright Before Sunrise, and Hold Me Like a Breath (Once Upon a Crime Family book 1). 

She’s found her happily ever after in Pennsylvania with her saintly husband, impish twin boys, and a pair of mischievous puggles.

You can find out more about her and her books at: TiffanySchmidt.com, TiffanySchmidtWrites.Tumblr.com or by following her on Twitter @TiffanySchmidt.

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FFBC: Welcome to the club, The Next Together (The Next Together #1) by Lauren James

The Next Together (The Next Together #1)
by Lauren James
Publisher: Walker
Release Date: September 3rd 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Historial Fiction, Contemporary, Fantasy, Time Travel

Synopsis:

How many times can you lose the person you love? 

Katherine and Matthew are destined to be born again and again, century after century. Each time, their presence changes history for the better, and each time, they fall hopelessly in love, only to be tragically separated. 

Spanning the Crimean War, the Siege of Carlisle and the near-future of 2019 and 2039 they find themselves sacrificing their lives to save the world. But why do they keep coming back? What else must they achieve before they can be left to live and love in peace? 

Maybe the next together will be different...

A powerful and epic debut novel for teenagers about time-travel, fate and the timelessness of first love. The Next Together is told through a mixture of regular prose, diary entries, letters, "original" historical documents, news reports and internet articles.

Hello Lauren! Welcome to the FFBC ! We are super excited to have you in our FFBC tours!

Thank you so much for having me, it’s been a lot of fun so far!

Could you tell our Book Addicts a little bit about The Next Together?

The Next Together is what I like to call a “reincarnation romance”. It follows the various lives of Katherine and Matthew as they meet and fall in love throughout history. There are timelines in the recent future and distant past, and each time a mysterious being is tracking Kate and Matt’s relationship, and making sure they fall in love and save the world in every life….

If you had to pick 1 adjective to describe Katherine and Matthew what would you choose?

For Katherine: sassy and for Matthew: cautious. 

How did you come up with the story? Did you find inspiration in any other story/movie/show and how has this affected your writing? 

It was inspired by time travel romances like Outlander and The Time Traveler’s Wife. I really wanted to write a book which combine my love for Jane Austen with my equal enjoyment of Doctor Who. I started writing by making a huge list of all the things I love reading most, and tried to combine them all into one storyline. It was quite challenging, but very satisfying!

What is your favorite quote from the book?

“Matthew was hers, had apparently always been hers, and now he was gone. How many times had they done this dance, this horrific, beautiful dance through time?”

Is there a specific scene that you had the most fun to write?

There’s a very flirty carriage ride near the start of the book, in the 1745 timeline, which I adored writing. It’s full of unresolved sexual tension and intrigue, and it was the very first thing I wrote which clicked for me. At that point it really felt like writing was something that I could do properly instead of just as a hobby. 

Was there anything you had to research or this book, that you would be worried if someone found in your browser history?

HAH. Yes. I end up googling lots of suspicious murder-related things which give me a moment’s pause - just yesterday I was trying to find out the best place to stab someone! Totally innocently, of course. 

I think being an author is the best excuse ever for collecting weird knowledge. 

What authors are auto-buys for you? 

Neil Gaiman, Rainbow Rowell, Sarah Waters, Susannah Clarke and Maggie Stiefvater. 

What you would you say is harder to write: The first sentence of a story or the last?

The first. Although I heard a great tip that the every first and last sentence should be in iambic pentameter, to really make the words slip off the tongue. 

What do you find yourself fangirl-ing over?

Recently people have starting writing fanfiction and making gifsets about The Next Together, and I’ve never been as excited about anything in my life. It’s so bizarre and wonderful that something I created exists in other people’s heads too, and they love Kate and Matt as much as I do. 

What is your favorite snack/drink to eat when you read? 

I chew peppermint gum and drink Earl Grey tea - though not usually at the same time!

Favorite book of 2015 thus far?

The most recent in The Raven Boys series by Maggie Stiefvater, Blue Lily, Lily Blue. Excellent world building, slow burn diverse relationships, and a hot like burning male lead in Gansey. What more could you want? 

If you could pick one author dead or alive to have a drink with who would you choose and why?

Douglas Adams. I’d love to hand him an iPad and see his face! He’s also the funniest and most brilliant writer, and I’ve adored his work since I was young. 

Thank you so much for everything, Lauren!

Thank YOU <3

Follow the The Next Together by Lauren James Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Lauren James is a scientist by day, writer by early hours of the morning. She graduated in 2014 with a first class Masters degree in Natural Sciences from the University of Nottingham, where she studied Chemistry and Physics. 

She now lives in the village of Berkswell in the UK.

You can find her on Twitter at @Lauren_E_James, which she mainly uses to fancast actors as her characters and panic about all of the overly ambitious plans she has for her PhD, or her website at http://lauren-e-james.tumblr.com. 

She likes strong, intelligent women, Dylan O’Brien, and things with plants on them. These are her favourite books: http://www.myindependentbookshop.co.uk/Laurenelizjames.

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Kelly is married to a wonderful Texas cowboy who has a knack for making her laugh almost daily and supports her crazy ideas and dreams for some unknown reason...he claims it's because he loves her!

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