Excess Baggage follows a baker engaged to her childhood sweetheart, as a cross-country trip with her sister and a writer forces her to confront whether the safe life she planned is still the one she wants. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I never imagined myself as a writer, but did have that typical “if I ever wrote a book, this is the plot” in the back of my mind that I had thought about for years. I was interested in a man and woman meeting by chance on a train and having that spark of attraction. As the journey continued, so did their growing interest. In my original idea, by the end of the train ride, it would turn out they were both going to the same place—a wedding, where she was the bride. This book is not exactly that, because I didn’t want the devastation of an interrupted wedding to be the start of their romance, so I reworked my original idea, where they each had time to think about their time together. Of course, it turns out in my book that these two people are already connected, so I needed a “why” for why they didn’t recognize each other, and thought a lot about what circumstances they had met under previously and how they had changed since then.

What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?

It was important for me to think about why Tess and Sam fell for each other, and what made them attractive. Tess has felt like she had to become someone else to be with her fiancee, but when she meets Sam, he is instantly into her. She has a passion for life, baking, and music that appeals to him. Tess sis attracted to Sam’s good looks, but more than that, she is taken with how he sees her, and how she sees herself through his eyes. She doesn’t want to be drawn to him, but she is.

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

Insecurities, about the way we see ourselves vs how others see us. Growing up and growing apart in relationships. Sisterhood. Commitment to ourselves vs someone else.

What is the next book that you are working on, and when will it be available?

The 4th book in my series, Second Chances, will be available August 3rd, and the MMC is Henry, the father of Tess’s rejected fiancee from my 1st book, Excess Baggage. I am currently writing the 5th novel in my series, titled Falling Slowly, that will be released sometime next year.

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