My special guest today is young adult author Lorna Schultz Nicholson. We’re chatting about When You Least Expect It.
Bio:
Lorna Schultz Nicholson has published children’s picture books, middle grade fiction, YA fiction and hockey non-fiction. Her books have been nominated for many different awards. Lorna loved sports as a child, and she also loved to read and write. She is thrilled to be able to combine her love of literacy with her sport background. When You Least Expect It is a novel that is close to Lorna as she rowed for West Park Secondary School and the St. Catharines Rowing, and she also coached rowing at the University of Victoria. Lorna now lives in Edmonton with her husband (Go Oilers Go) and Mexican rescue dog.
Welcome, Lorna. Please tell us about your current release.
Avid competitive rower Holly is seventeen. There is nothing she wishes for more than to compete in the Olympics. When she fails to make the rowing team that is going to Europe she is shattered. Her dream has exploded and she is left dealing with the disappointment. She is also confronting a new reality at home: she and her mother have moved in with her mother’s boyfriend and his two sons. And then her mother announces she is pregnant. . . a situation she has been hiding from Holly.
This news is a blow to the close relationship Holly thought she had with her mother. And it provokes her to secretly take up training as a single-scull rower with a coach who has his own tragic story. And when Holly starts seeing someone who could become a significant romantic partner, she hides that from her mother as well. How long can you keep secrets like this? This coming- of- age story is enhanced by fascinating detail of what it means to an athlete— as well as an emotional core that is powerful and compelling.
What inspired you to write this book?
I was a rower in my teens and to me it such a beautiful sport. I also went through a tragedy as a rowing coach, and this book just needed to be written because of that.
Excerpt from When You Least Expect It:
Chapter 1
My heart pounded right through my spandex singlet. I sat halfway up my rowing slide, with my oar angled and buried in the water. My entire body vibrated in anticipation of the word “go!” Water splashed against the side of the boat. The sun beat down. Polarized sunglasses, secured tightly around the back of my head, hugged my face.
Today was the last day of tryouts for the Junior Canadian Rowing Team, and this was the last race of the day. My making the team was down to this one last seat race. I’d made it through three days of racing on the rowing course in St. Catharines—home of the Royal Canadian Henley and Canadian Secondary School Regatta—and now I was fighting with one other rower for the last spot.
One spot was left. That’s it; that’s all.
And there were two of us competing, our fates still undetermined.
What exciting story are you working on next?
I have a few new projects. I had another Young Adult novel being released February 15th in Canada and will be released on August 1 in the U.S. It is titled Denial. It is a story about that first love and how it can be hard when the feelings aren’t mutual. There is also a mystery element to the novel.
I also have a series with four books to date titled my One-2-One series. I feature the Best Buddies Club (a real club in schools in North America) and the books are from the two voices of the Best Buddies. I have a fifth book coming out in that series in the fall of 2022, Behind the Label.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I always love to write as a child, but I never considered myself a writer. I also never considered it as a career choice. I wanted to be an “athlete”. I grew into writing as a career when my children were little and it was almost a full circle for me because of that love of reading and writing when I was young.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I am a full-time writer. I’m a project person, so when I start something I write almost every day until I have that first draft on paper. I try to clear my schedule to get that first draft done, but, of course, things do pop up like author visits and speaking engagements. I usually set a word count and write in the morning. Then I have time for business stuff in the afternoon. AND I try to stay off social media until the afternoon. I’m not always that disciplined. Lol.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
This is probably everyone’s but candy or some sort of snack beside my desk. When I’m thinking, trying to create, I’m always getting up and going to the kitchen for snacks. Or I walk my dog. He loves it when I’m creating because I need to get outside for thinking time. For my snacks I get something that is easy to munch on like Goldfish or pretzels or CANDY. I do the sweet and salt combined sometimes. I also talk to myself as if I’m in the dialogue.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be an athlete and my parents kept telling me, “That’s not a job.” Those were days when women weren’t really professional athletes. Or the sports were limited where you could be a pro.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
This book is about dedication and perseverance and a strong teen female who has a goal and is determined to make that goal. I think we need books to showcase strong teens, those who are willing to sacrifice for something they are passionate about. Does she always make the right decisions? She is a teenager. Let’s cut her some slack.