I read my first romance aged 12.
That seems way too young to be reading kissing books—but preteens are hormone central, and anyway, it wasn’t the kissing that drew me. Before romance, I read YA fantasy, and my reviews were basically: “Too much waffling about the end of the world and not enough focus on soft, mushy feelings.” Thank God for Julia Quinn’s Splendid. I hit the meet-cute and never looked back.
Get A Life, Chloe Brown
I’m not a hopeless romantic.
Considering all I do is read romance, write romance, and gush about romance, I’m sure people will struggle to believe this. But it’s true! I find romantic gestures and heartfelt affection mortifying in real life. The most my boyfriend gets from me is, “You’re alright, man. Stick around, or whatever.” Then again, a lot of the heroines I write feel the same way I do, so I guess it’s not that unbelievable.
I was almost a lawyer.
My mother told me I needed a sensible degree and a steady job, so I chose a lucrative career that genuinely interested me: law. I completed my first-year exams and everything. But in the end, I couldn’t let go of my true dream: writing. So I started my degree all over again and swore I’d become an author, whatever it took. (Just don’t ask me about the state of my student loans.) And it was worth it, because here I am years later, celebrating the release of Get a Life, Chloe Brown. I wish I could tell anxious past-me that she was on her way to writing a rom-com about chronic illness, enemies falling love, and rogue cats with highly-strung nerves. I think it would’ve made her smile.
I self-published my first novel aged twenty-one.
I was still at university when I started writing romance. In fact, I wrote and self-published my first eight books while finishing my dissertation—and no, I have no idea how I managed that. Determination is one hell of a drug.
I don’t have a favourite book.
The longer I work in this industry, the more I come across the same torturous question: What’s your favourite book? Why don’t you ask me what my favourite vital organ is, while you’re at it? I don’t love every book I read—far from it. But I fall head-over-heels in love with a solid 5% of them. And since I read at least 100 books a year, and I’ve been reading for, like, twenty years… that’s a lot of favourite books. It’s an impossible choice!
I’ve written entire novels while lying on my back.
Like the heroine of Get a Life, Chloe Brown (who is named, surprise surprise, Chloe Brown), I suffer with fibromyalgia and chronic pain. I have a few other chronic illnesses too, because being over the top is in my blood. I’m very good at managing my health now, but there were times in the past when I was too slammed with pain and fatigue to get out of bed. Since I still had deadlines to meet, I’d just prop my laptop on my chest and keep going. That was before I realised that being self-employed meant I could put my health first—and that I should put my health first. Chloe does the same. (Not the ill-advised workaholic thing, but the putting her health first thing.) 10/10, would recommend.
My parents aren’t allowed to read my books.
My mother is banned because she has no idea that I curse like a sailor. I just can’t do it in front of her. I physically can’t. And my dad is banned because he would have a heart attack if he read my sex scenes. He gave me ‘the talk’ when I was eighteen, at a supermarket check-out. Out of nowhere, he said, “Listen. You’re smart. Be good. No boys.” I said, “Yes, sir.” He was quiet for a second, then added suspiciously, “No girls, either. Alright? No girls.” So, basically… keep my parents away from Get a Life, Chloe Brown at all costs. The dick jokes alone might push them over the edge.