This was a great book to show that there are second chances
to true love. If you truly love one another, you will find your way back to
each other. The situations that the characters were faced with were pretty
close to real life situations; which helped to strengthen them to become a much
stronger person. Great job Stacy! Looking forward to your second book!
Interview:
On behalf of
The Naughty and Nice Book Blog, Heather, Liz, and I, would like to welcome
Stacy Borel, author of Ever Enough. After reading your book, I had a few
questions that had me wondering and thought other readers had some questions as
well. Readers, please be advised there are spoilers in this interview.
After reading the book, it appears
that Emilyn didn’t have a backbone. Can you explain why she is this way? Did
you create her this way so we could see her grow as a character?
Yes, I did.
What I want my readers to know and understand about Emilyn is that she may
appear “weak” but at a closer glance, she was actually quite strong. I know
that through the majority of the book, some may have wanted to throw their
e-readers, or was wondering what in the heck I was doing writing her responses
the way that I did. It’s very simple for me. I built characters around her that
were strong already. She was lost when Finn left her, and she really didn’t
understand the direction that her life needed to take in order for her to keep
moving forward. It’s not the say that West was an easy answer for her, but he
was able to show her a new way of living without Finn. A way that she would be
able to keep moving one foot in front of the other while that emptiness was
still inside. After the story was complete, I see now that some of my readers
would like to see West go down in flames. (haha!) Frankly I never thought about
that. I knew I wanted Finn to get a crack at him for what he did to Em, but I
suppose thinking about it now, West never really had any horrible repercussions
for his actions. That may end up being something that I mention in the next
book. Anyway, all of this is to say that Em did grow and she was strong but
strong in her own way. Towards the end of the book when she was at her absolute
lowest, she realized that she needed to go and be alone. She needed to be
independent and not have those around her stick up for her, or take care of the
mess that had become her life. She needed to stand on her own two feet, even if
that meant leaving Finn behind and they both had expressed that they loved each
other. I don’t know about you, but that’s strength to me. Walking away is a
very hard thing to do, especially when you know how bad it is going to
hurt.
Harper and Kyler and BFFs people wish to have in their
lives. Do you have either a Harper or Kyler in yours?
I definitely do
have a best friend. As much as I love my husband and children and other family,
my life would be a bit boring without my best friend in it. (Sorry honey!)
Do you have an inspiration for Harper
and Kyler? If so, who?
For Harper, she
is 100% based off of my actual real life best friend. She is a fellow military
wife and we have been living in the same place together for the past 2 yrs.
I’ve posted some photos of her on my author page before so my readers can see
what she really looks like. She is Harper through and through. I know everyone
loved her, and it’s easy to see why. Parts of the book are actually real
interaction my best friend and I have had, and also some of the conversation is
things we say to each other. For example, the part where Kyler walks up at the
bar after seeing Em and Harper for the first time and calls them scissor
sisters… my besties husband and a few of the guys out at my husband’s base call
us that. It’s just a long running joke. Or her and I would go to the gym, and
while we’d work out, we’d see a cute guy and go “holy crap that’s a nice back.”
(I’m giggling to myself) It’s just stupid things that best friends say while
together that makes her special to me.
As far as Kyler
goes, that’s a great question. Hmmm…I’d have to say that he is a combination of
all the guys out at my husband’s station. They are all very funny and have
typical ‘single guy’ behavior. So I suppose I took all of them and rolled them
into one character named Kyler.
You created the book so that Emilyn
faced all or majority of the tough situations, why is that?
I wanted no
lose ends in my story. I had no intentions of writing a book that had a
cliffhanger, and I tried my hardest to write a book that held most of the
things that I personally love when reading a book. As a reader myself, it makes
me nuts sometimes when I’m left to guess what happened to this or that aspect
of a book. Leaving something up to the reader can be awesome, but there are
some books out there that leave me shaking my head going “what in the hell was
that?” I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about. Em needed to hit on every
issue that was brought up because to me that made her complete. And once again,
I’m pointing out that this also made Em strong as a character.
A lot of the situations that arose in
the book were pretty intense real life situations. How hard were they to write?
Honestly… it
was about half and half for me. It wasn’t hard for me to write about Em losing
the baby or dealing with a cheating husband. Those were things that I knew some
of my readers would be able to connect with, but I didn’t personally struggle
writing them.
BUT, when I
wrote about the heartache Em with through after Finn left, and then having the
make the hard choice of moving on without him, those emotions and the actual
feeling I was trying to convey were extremely difficult for me. A tear or two
may have been shed while no one was looking…
Are there any characters in the book
that are just like you?
This is the
question that I was hoping would be asked. My answer is a big fat resounding
YES!!! Emilyn is me through and through (which is probably why I stick up for
her so much. Ha!) Emilyn was my easiest character to write because everything
from her personality to the way that I describe her emotions is me. They are
mine. I imagine that some are asking, “So are you saying you are a weak or have
no backbone?” Ummm… yes and no. Haha
My entire life
I have always hated to have any sort of conflict going on around me. No matter
if I was directly involved or not, I didn’t like it and I would do anything I
could to make it better. The best way I can describe it is by saying, if
everyone around me is okay and happy, then I am happy. If just one person isn’t
happy, it throws my whole world in a tailspin. Weird, but true story. I will
always avoid conflict, and I have NEVER been able to hold a grudge. If someone
or something is bothering me, just like Em does, I just don’t confront it or I
walk around it like it isn’t a big deal. Maybe this will give my readers some
insight into Emilyn, and my own personal need/necessity to have my very own
Harper there to back me up and help me speak.
Is there any significance to writing
about second chance love and reconnecting at a high school reunion?
No, not really.
But I knew that most women (and some men) would understand high school love.
I’d like to believe that all of us at one point or another have wondered where
our lives would be if we ended up with our high school sweethearts (unless of
course you are with yours) and or how it would be if we ever ran into them
again. That’s pretty much where this story got its start, and I just rolled
with it.
Was there a time in the book where you
felt that Finley should just give in to Emilyn and let her go?
No, never. If I
did, I have no idea where I could have even taken this story.
What was the point having Emilyn waste
many years of her life with Weston knowing she could never fully love him?
Emilyn was sort
of in limbo. She accepted West because he was the first one to come along after
Finn had left. She never expected West to go from the doting husband to a
complete dickhead a few years later. I wanted to show that as people we
sometimes just accept our lot in life and keep moving forward with the way
things are simply because we think we deserve to live with the hand we were
dealt. This is what Em did. I didn’t feel that she was any different than some
who might be living with a man that she could see moving away from her but stuck
with it because it was life.
If Emilyn knew her marriage was
starting to strain, why didn’t she try a little harder to entice him? They had
all this money, she could have used it to pamper herself instead of shopping at
chain stores like Target and Walmart.
Ultimately I
don’t think Em wanted to try harder
in her marriage. She accepted things the way that they were and she didn’t
think she deserved any better. At some point, she realized that West helped her
along, which I believe she will be forever grateful for, but she never had a
passionate love for him.
And I have to
laugh a bit about Em’s shopping habits. I like to say that I’m soooo not a
girls girl. I have girly habits, but shopping isn’t one of them. I wrote Em
this way because I don’t understand the desire to have name brand things, when
cheaper items can be just as nice. I’ve never splurged on that designer
handbag, and I could care less about the shoes I’m wearing. I did let Em have a
nice car because let’s face it, a hot car makes me feel good. Haha! But because
I wrote Em with my same tendencies, I wanted to portray her as showing that she
could care less about the things that money could buy. (Inserting an important
detail: There is a stipulation… always pay good money on your hair. That is
all.)
Describe Harper and Kyler’s love/hate
relationship? We all know Kyler is in
love with her. Why can’t see seem to commit?
I don’t want to
go into too much detail with this because it will give away some important
parts for the next book. Kyler definitely does love Harper. But that have a
very hard road in front of them. Maybe even a bit tougher than Em and Finn did.
When you were at the point in writing
where Emilyn was about to lose the baby, where you at any time going to make it
a happy ending? Why did you write in the way you did?
I’m not really
sure how to answer this question. Em and Finn were always going to have a happy
ending. I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t give them one. I certainly love
a darker book, but not with their story. After everything Em had been through,
I think she deserved it.
Now that we’ve cleared the air about some book questions that I had, let’s get
to know a little more about you.
What made you decide that you wanted
to write a book?
I wanted to
challenge myself. Like most writers, I’ve always loved writing and it’s
something that I do decently at. As I went along in the process, I realized
just how much it felt right, and that I wanted to keep doing it. Writing has
been one of the most difficult and rewarding things I’ve ever done in my life.
Who is your favorite author?
Ohhhhh, the
ever favorite author question. I have a ton at the tippy top of my list, but my
ultimate favorite will always been Colleen Hoover. I’m convinced she writes
magic!
What is your favorite book?
Same answer as
the last question. My favorite book will always been Slammed. But I have quite
a few that are tied for second place. Crow’s Row, Thoughtless series, Fifty
Shades, Black Dagger series, Easy…. Need I go on?
Did your storyline come from a real
life experience or just in your head?
98% of it was made up. What was real were the emotions. I had
two pretty harsh break ups around my high school time. I dredged up those
feelings to try and help me write this book.
How do you de-stress?
Is it sad for me to say Facebook? My husband is always
griping at me for being on my phone or computer. But also find contentment from
just sitting in the same room with my husband and kids, or having my bestie
around and we catch up on all of our CW shows. Vampire Diaries is the shit!
How do you juggle
being a mother, wife and author?
It’s something that I’m still learning how to do. It’s not as
easy as some might think. Since I’m promoting a book without a publishing house
or agent behind me, I have to spend a good amount of time online pushing my
book and making sure as many people see it as I can. It requires a lot of my
time. Fortunately my husband has been wonderful and sees when I need something
without me having to ask. He takes care of not only the kids, but me as well.
He’s good like that!
What is your writing
process?
After writing this book I’ve learned that I can’t just write
a little bit and then get up and not come back to it for a few days. I lose
things in my thought process. The best way for me to write is to sit down and
be completely involved and consumed by my book and my characters. Once I start
writing my next book, there will be no getting up and letting it go for a day
or two. I will be writing everyday as much as I can until it is done. And
deadlines are the best thing for me. Nothing kicks your ass into gear better
than a deadline with your editor. Haha
Who inspires you?
To sound completely cliché, my kids. Before I started writing
I’ve been a stay at home mom/wife for the past 9yrs and attending college part
time. I was working towards my nursing degree so I could eventually go in to
labor and delivery. The military lifestyle has made it very difficult for me to
complete and having my two kids have put some kinks in the plan, but I want
them to know that they can do anything they set their mind to. I also never
want them to settle for less than what I think they deserve. Their dad and I
will always stand behind them in their choices and steer them when their path
goes astray. They are why I do the things I do.
Any other thoughts or concerns or anything else you
want to add??
The only other thing I want is for my readers to look forward
to Kyler and Harpers book. BUT I want to give a little warning. They were a
very bubbly happy part of Ever Enough, but we are going to be diving in to
their lives and they are no longer the supporting characters. As much as I love
their humor and wit, I want the readers to expect to see a grittier side to
them both. I will always include humor in my writing because it’s what I enjoy,
but Harper and Ky’s book is going to be a bit darker than Ever Enough was. Just
some food for thought!!
Stacy, on
behalf of my partners, I would like to take this time to thank you for taking
the time in sharing with us. You have clarified some questions that I had
lingering. I do look forward to reading Harper and Kyler’s story.
***GIVEAWAY***
If you had a chance to meet one character in a book, who would it be and from what book?
ONE CLICK
"EVER ENOUGH"
BY STACY BOREL
