Inspired to Take a Leap of Faith
Posted by Literary Titan

The Power of Us follows the emotional journey of two people that find strength together. What was the inspiration for the setup to this provocative novel?
I wanted to create two very different characters who each struggle with their own demons. Cassidy’s demon is her self-doubt while Harly struggles with guilt. While both characters are goal-driven and hard-working, there was always something holding them back from being truly happy. I think many people can relate to this and I wanted to create a story where the characters were far from perfect but still they found love in one another. Often in life we’re our own worst enemy and we’re fearful of taking the leap to follow our dreams. Cassidy and Harly found strength and acceptance in one another. My hope with the Us Duology is that readers will be inspired to take a leap of faith, especially if they’re being held back by self-doubt, because too often we don’t allow ourselves to see how special we are.
Cassidy and Harly are intriguing characters. What were some ideals that guided their character development?
Cassidy starts off as a driven young lady. She knows exactly what she wants in her professional life and she’s willing to work her backside off to succeed. In her personal life though, she’s guarded. Understandably so, considering her childhood. But then she meets Harly, and he unleashes a confidence in her that she’s never allowed herself to possess. This is especially evident in their intimate scenes. While Cassidy is young and naive in this department, most of the time she initiates the intimacy. This was especially important to me because Harly is quite a dominant character but I didn’t want him to dominate that area of their relationship. As the story progresses, so does Cassidy’s maturity. There comes a time in life when you need to fight for what you want and I hope readers will see that Cassidy grows into this role naturally. Harly is a strong character from the beginning but even he has demons. Without giving away any spoilers, he suffers from guilt which has made him guarded as well. But then he meets Cassidy and it’s almost like his attraction to her outweighs the force of guilt. It takes him a while to open up to Cassidy but it’s clear that he’s all in when it comes to their relationship. Cassidy’s love and acceptance proved to Harly that he was worthy of something he never considered – a romantic relationship. Most of us desire a partner who is willing to fight for us, protect us, and nurture us. I hope readers will find this in Harly’s character development because as the story progresses, so does his need to be everything Cassidy deserves.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Definitely overcoming self-doubt. Harly’s love gave Cassidy the courage she needed to fight for what she wanted. Secondly, I wanted to portray Harly as a confident man who isn’t afraid to show his emotions. He doesn’t always deal with it the right way, but there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for those he loves. Finally, friendship. Both Cassidy and Harly have amazing best friends. Cassidy’s straight-talking roommate, Emy, who on more than one occasion forces Cassidy to confront the cold, hard truth, is the girl everyone wants in their corner. She’s always there for Cassidy and she’s willing to protect her friend at all costs. Whitney is Harly’s best friend. She’s a powerhouse of a woman and similar to Emy, she speaks her mind, even when Harly doesn’t want to hear it.
This is book one in the Us Duology series. What can readers expect in book two?
Cassidy and Harly have to face some tough decisions and their journey won’t be easy. Readers can expect to see a lot more emotion from Harly and Cassidy’s character will develop even further. The bond readers already have with Cassidy and Harly will intensify as the reader is taken on an emotional rollercoaster.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
๐๐๐ โ๐ ๐จ๐๐ฃ ๐ ๐ ๐๐ค is the first installment of the ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐.
This steamy, NA Romance, told from both Cassidy and Harly’s points of view, allows the reader to experience emotions and thoughts from two vastly different characters.
Cassidy and Harly’s journey is filled with emotional struggles, but there’s no denying that these two are stronger together.
Life has a way of testing us, pushing us, and sometimes even breaking us. Love has a way of sewing us back together ~ ๐ข๐ ๐ฐ๐’๐ซ๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ง๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ญ.
๐ฆ ๐ฆ ๐ฆ ๐ฆ
Cassidy Knite is a young, naive journalist student with a childhood aspiration of interning at The Artefact – one of New York’s most successful newspapers.
This becomes reality when Harly Ashbey, publisher for her dream newspaper, presents an opportunity to Cassidy’s class. Their attraction is undeniable, and for the first time in his life, Harly ignores the powerful voice of guilt he secretly battles with.
๐๐พ๐ฝ ๐ท๐ธ๐ฝ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ท๐ฐ ๐ฒ๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ช๐ผ๐, ๐ช๐ฝ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ช๐ผ๐ฝ ๐ท๐ธ๐ฝ ๐ฏ๐ธ๐ป ๐ฝ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ผ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐๐ธ.
With Cassidy’s self-doubt, unwanted advances and Harly’s disapproving mother, their passionate journey is turbulent. A rollercoaster of events and a whirlwind of drama sweep these lovers into a scandal that could break them.
Friendships are tested and tempers erupt.
๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ง ๐ก๐ค๐ซ๐ ๐ฅ๐ค๐ฌ๐๐ง๐๐ช๐ก ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ช๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐จ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ฉ ๐๐ก๐ก?
About Literary Titan
The Literary Titan is an organization of professional editors, writers, and professors that have a passion for the written word. We review fiction and non-fiction books in many different genres, as well as conduct author interviews, and recognize talented authors with our Literary Book Award. We are privileged to work with so many creative authors around the globe.Posted on January 2, 2021, in Interviews and tagged author, book, book recommendations, book review, book reviews, book shelf, bookblogger, books, books to read, ebook, fantasy, fiction, goodreads, kindle, kobo, literature, love story, nook, novel, read, reader, reading, romance, story, The Power of Us, writer, writing. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.
Comment Cancel reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Leave a comment
Comments 0