In Shooting Stars Above, a best-selling author and a federal agent, both burdened by past trauma, find a love that pulls from their emotional isolation. Where did the idea for this novel come from? 

There’s a saying that “hurt people hurt people,” but sometimes that isn’t true. Sometimes people in pain are able to love others in extraordinary ways. That’s the core inspiration for the book. I wanted to write a love story between two people who have experienced tragedy and violence in different ways. A love story between people in pain and who harbor visible and invisible wounds. Yet, they are deeply kind, generous, and good people. When they find each other, they decide to love with everything they have. No games or toxicity of any kind. They see what the other has endured and choose to just love and accept each other completely. Really, it’s about the healing power of love and learning to balance darkness and light in our lives.

I enjoyed the romantic relationship between Tess and Jack. How did their relationship develop while you were writing? Did you have an idea of where you wanted to take it, or was it organic?

Thank you. I loved writing about their romance. I felt it in my soul, and they had my heart completely. It was organic. I actually wrote the novel in reverse. I wrote the last scene first and the first scene last. So, I knew where I wanted them to end up as a couple and individuals. I knew the character growth, and then I wrote the arc in reverse to get the reader there.

There is so much to be said about love in this book. What do you hope your readers take away from your story?

Healing is possible. Kindness matters. Generosity matters. Love is a verb. It’s something we do, and we should do it well. That includes loving ourselves.

Can you give us a glimpse inside Book 2 of The Celestial Bodies Romance series? Where will it take readers? 

There are six books written to date and I honestly love each more than the one before. We’ll be releasing one each spring. Shooting Stars Above includes the first chapter of the next book, Twinkle of Doubt.Each novel takes place a year after the last and follows the same characters, although some fun new characters are introduced across the series too. Each series title explores love and a different theme. The first book is about love and healing. Other topics include doubt, intimacy, trust, commitment, and faith. While there are different kinds of critical events that happen in each book, really, none of the books are about external threats. The series is about the audio playing in our own heads. Twinkle of Doubt was especially fun to write, and I think is a good balance of lightheartedness and deep topics. Overall, it explores the nature of doubt. Readers will be introduced to the female president of the United States, whom Tess befriends. There’s a big gala, a death threat, and someone is held up at gunpoint, but the real danger is the audio in their own head. The book ends with an excerpt from one of Tess’s novels. Of everything I have ever written, the last line of that book, her book, are the words I most often hear in my head, sort of like a mantra when things get tough.

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