How do you make a choice when you don't want to choose? Oliver's friendship may be important to Ali, after all, she's the only friend he's got, but that's all they will ever be – friends. When it comes to Noah, she can't help but hope their friendship will become something more.
I'm pleased to welcome author Elie Yarde to The Writing Desk:
Tell us about your latest book
My first book released on March 1st. It is called Escape the Choice, and is the first in a trilogy of Young Adult Romance short stories about three university roommates. Escape the Choice is about Ali, as she tries to figure out who to choose, the guy who she has a crush on, or a guy she is friends with.
What is your preferred writing routine?
I don’t have much of a writing routine. I tend to write later in the afternoons, or in the evenings, but usually on the weekends. I can’t have any music on when I write, because I get too easily distracted by it, but I also cannot have silence. A good amount of background noise is good for me. I often make tea or coffee before I sit down to write, and it always goes cold because I forget about it.
What advice do you have for new writers?
Keep writing. You might read back over your work and think it is awful, and not want to keep writing because you think you can’t do it. But writing is like learning anything. You can’t just pick up a new instrument and immediately play it perfectly, or start learning a language and speak it fluently straight away. Writing is something you must also learn. Read as much as you can in your preferred genre, and treat it as research. Write as often as you can, even just short stories, or a paragraph here and there. The more you write, the better you will write.
What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?
I am thankful to have a wonderful community of friends on Twitter, who are all incredibly supportive of each other. We all share each other’s work, and it helps to get it out to new people. I think a good network is important, especially before you have any reviews, because the book won’t sell itself. I also think taglines are very important, because they can help give potential readers an insight into the tone of the book, and lets them know what they can expect. There are two that I am using currently, and they are both from my blurb:
How do you make a choice when you don't want to choose?A quick read filled with friendship, love, and a deep adoration for coffee and muffins.
Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research
I do not do much research for my books. I primarily write romance and fantasy, so the most research I have to do is generally to gather information about the jobs I have given my characters, to find out what their daily tasks might be, or what hours they might work. One thing I do remember researching was about an essay one of my characters was writing. I needed a question for her to answer, and remember wondering how students were meant to write so many words with a question that could be answered in a few sentences.
What was the hardest scene you remember writing?
I found the last chapter of my book very difficult to write. Without giving anything away, everything comes to a climax, and Ali finally decides who she is going to choose. I had several ideas for the ending, but nothing seemed to fit. I didn’t want to jump ahead, or skip any time just for the sake of a peaceful ending, where the characters could sit and reflect on what happened. It took a couple of rewrites before I settled on keeping everything in the moment, and leaving the peaceful ending for the characters to relax with after the book has already ended.
What are you planning to write next?
I am currently writing the second book in The Choice Series, as well as working on several other projects. I am mainly focusing on book 2, though, which is from the perspective of Lena, Ali’s roommate, as she finds love. I am nearing the end of writing it, and am looking forward to getting the third story down as well, for Kyra, the third roommate.
Ellie Yarde
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About the Author
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