Debut Contemporary Romance Author Hilary Wynne Interview!

Any of you readers spent time in South Beach, Florida? 

If so, you will want to pick up our guests’ book, Stay! 

Let’s welcome the author, Hilary Wynne!

Hilary: Thanks for having me Lexi, and thanks for the opportunity to answer some really great questions about Stay.

Lexi: When reading a book about a place you have lived or visited before and come across a location or reference you can literally visualize, it grounds you to the story in a real way. You don’t have to imagine everything, your own memory leaches into the world the author has created. Hilary, you do this in Stay which is located in South Beach. Did you have moments of nostalgia pop up when you were writing this?

Hilary: Absolutely! I spent a lot of time in South Beach in my late teens and early twenties and I drew from many of those great memories while writing. I hope my readers were able to visualize the sights and sounds of Miami while reading Stay.

Lexi: College life has drama, but yours was hopefully not as dramatic as Alexa and Julian’s experience. You have two characters who hold back but for very different reasons and in very different ways. Yet they seem to compliment each other. The day you had your, I’m going to write a book epiphany did you foresee the issues Alexa and Julian would face?

Hilary: I love this question because I truly did have an epiphany about writing Stay. I planned out the story line in its entirety, in that I knew what was going to happen, but no, I really had no idea what these two were going to be up against. They started to write themselves a little as the book went on, and as they developed as characters, things often went in different directions than I anticipated. I’m thrilled you see Julian and Alexa compliment each other, because I feel that way too, and hoped that would come out in the story. They have gotten to the places they are by different paths, but you will see in the second book, Hold On, that they really are similar in many ways.

Lexi: You have finished book two and are holding the answers to what happens 

next. Are you ever tempted to leak some spoilers or tell someone what happens? Or are you a vault and confide in no one?

Hilary: I tried to be a vault but failed because I love to talk about these characters! There are two people who know the whole story from start to finish and a few more that have Hold On in their hands as beta readers. 

I’ve had several people try to pry the answers out of me, but I didn’t give too much away. I want people to go on the journey with Alexa, Julian and Luke as it unfolds, and they hopefully will enjoy that journey more through reading about it.  

Lexi: I think it would be hard to not tell someone, especially your family who seems incredibly supportive. Even your kids are thoughtful enough to ask how things are going and speculate on your success. Have they read your work at all? 

Hilary: Ok, one of those two people I mentioned above that knows the whole story is my husband. I have been living in this whole other world with these people so I thought it was fair that I tell him about it. My kids really are supportive and it means the world to me. My eldest (23/girl) has read it, but none of my boys have. I don’t imagine they ever will either. Although they have watched me become an author, I’m still mom to them and Stay really isn’t mom-ish. Most of the women in my family have read it and have been extremely supportive as well. There really is no way I could have done this without them. 

Lexi: Beta readers, I hear they come in handy too. ;) Thanks for stopping by the blog today Hilary! Congrats on your debut, Stay, and good luck with book two!

Hilary: Should I be reading between the wines, I mean lines here? Beta readers are an absolute necessity to the success of an author and I probably could use a few more. ☺

Thanks again for having me on readingbetweenthewines.com, Lexi. I truly appreciate the support.

Title: Stay

Series: Alexa Reed #1

Author: Hilary Wynne

Format: Paperback, 364 pages

Published: November 18th 2013 by iUniverse

ISBN: 149171395X

Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Set against the steamy and sultry world of South Beach, Florida, a modern romance unfolds in Stay.
Alexa is beautiful, independent and hard to resist for serially unattached Julian. Neither one is looking for a relationship, but their palpable chemistry and instant emotional connection is too strong to ignore. For the first time in years, Julian is interested in more than just sex. He wants a relationship with intoxicating Alexa, but it's not that simple. Not only are Julian and Alexa struggling with the intensity of this new relationship, but they also have to contend with Luke, Alexa's best friend, whose own love for her leaves him willing to do anything to convince her that Julian is not the man for her. Luke's determination and Alexa's secret past threaten to tear Julian and Alexa apart as she struggles to open her heart to love. Julian and Alexa embark upon a roller-coaster ride of emotional and physical passion that both pulls them apart and holds them together. Despite their affinity for each other, Alexa fears that Julian will leave when he learns about her past and Julian is unsure he can love a woman who in so many ways remains a mystery, a woman who keeps threatening to run, a woman who can't decide if she is going to STAY.