Welcome back to Writer Wednesday! Today we talk with Alexa Day, writer of “Romance served hot … with a swirl!”
Alexa is a fellow Virginia Romance Writer whom I met In Real Life at the Charlottesville Festival of the Book LoveFest – Huzzah! So settle in, and hear what Alexa has to say about her love of romance, and her latest release, 1-800.
Which type of romance do you love most, and why?
I like those really nontraditional romances, the ones where the hero and heroine are already together but having trouble, or the edgy ones involving complicated themes and ideas like dubcon or sex for money, or the ones with older characters or lesser known periods in history. Romance in the real world looks more like those nontraditional stories, and older people and kinky people and people in rocky relationships find real sexy love, too! We have so much power to change the world’s perception of what romance is, and I’d like to see us pushing the envelope more. Everyone deserves that HEA, and everyone wants to see herself reflected in these stories.
What fellow romance author do you recommend reading, and why?
I have to recommend two: Cara McKenna and Megan Hart. They’re both writing the sorts of stories I love to read, with very complicated romance situations, characters who seem like the cool people you want to know (or maybe already know) personally, super hot sex, and really tender emotions. You can’t go wrong with either of them.
What one piece of advice do you wish you’d had when first starting out?
My author journey started when I entered a pitch contest, for which I did not have to have a completed manuscript. I definitely didn’t think I’d win, so when I did and the editor asked for my full manuscript, she had to wait a pretty long time for me to finish. On the one hand, I wish someone had told me to have that book done when I entered, but if I’d waited and not entered that year (the last, I believe, for that contest), I wouldn’t have gotten the chance!
About Alexa’s latest release, “1-800”:
All Jason wants is the perfect gift for his perfect fiancée, but where’s he going to find a present special enough for the love of his life? To his surprise, the answer is on TV — along with some very sexy saleswomen and some unusually detailed product demos. Shopping channels have never looked quite like this!
Want to know more about Alexa Day herself? Visit her here: Website :: Facebook :: Twitter
Interesting and well-written! I had no idea the romance category was so large. That’s cool!
Oh, yes – romance commands quite a large following and consists of numerous subgenres, everything from inspirational to erotica, paranormal suspense to Regency, etc. And the community is huge – and wonderful – as well!
Margaret! Thanks for having me! So awesome to have finally met you in the real world. 🙂 I’ve been so turned around lately that I thought *today* was Wednesday.
Kathleen, I’m so glad you enjoyed my post! This is such a great time to be part of the romance community. There’s never been such a wide variety of books with such a wide variety of characters. We’ve got something for everyone, and the endings are always happy — everybody wins!
Alexa, I feel your time pain; it’s all good! Thanks for joining me.
I had to remind myself more than once that today wasn’t Thursday, actually. I probably need to slow down or something. 😉
Hi, Margaret and Alexa! 1-800 is a great fun read, as are all of Alexa’s stories. I agree with Alexa that the romance genre needs to continue to expand and encompass more of the diversity of humanity’s romantic experience. Love is Love, and it should always be celebrated. Alexa’s voice and her characters are always so approachable. Thanks for having extra innings for Writer Wednesday!
Hi Denise – thanks for stopping by! I’m so enjoying meeting and learning from other romance writers.