New interview with best-selling romance author Patricia Leavy

Romance author Patricia Leavy is chatting with me today about her new novel, The Location Shoot.

During her virtual book tour, Patricia will be giving away a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn participant. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:
Patricia Leavy, PhD, is an award-winning, best-selling author. She was formerly Associate Professor of Sociology, Chairperson of Sociology & Criminology, and Founding Director of Gender Studies at Stonehill College. She has published more than forty books; her work has been translated into many languages, and she has received more than forty book honors. Her last novel, Hollyland, was featured on She Reads in “The Most Anticipated Romances of Spring 2023” and was the 2023 Firebird Book Awards 1st Place Winner in Pop Culture Fiction and 1st Place Winner in Summer/Beach Read. Patricia has also received career awards from the New England Sociological Association, the American Creativity Association, the American Educational Research Association, the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, and the National Art Education Association. In 2018, she was honored by the National Women’s Hall of Fame and SUNY-New Paltz established the “Patricia Leavy Award for Art and Social Justice.” Patricia lives in Maine. In addition to writing, she enjoys art, reading, and travel.

Welcome back to Reviews and Interviews, Patricia. Please tell us about your newest release.
An eccentric filmmaker is shooting a film in Sweden over the summer where he lives in an inn with the lead actors. Before arriving in Sweden, we get a glimpse into the lives of the actors in the cast—each at a personal crossroads. The filmmaker invites his friend Ella Sinclair, a beautiful, free-spirited, provocative philosopher to join them for the summer. Hollywood star Finn Forrester is instantly enchanted by her and the two fall madly in love, embarking on a sexy and romantic affair. Meanwhile, the film they’re all making is about the meaning of life. The subject of the film and the deep bonds the group builds over the summer push everyone to reflect on their own lives. When the shoot ends, each returns home, changed. The group reconvenes months later on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival and we see the impact of their summer together. In the simplest terms, The Location Shoot is a love story. At the core, it’s about living and loving with everything we have.

What inspired you to write this book?
It was a lockdown project. Like so many others, I was bored at home, binge watching movies, double fisting potato chips, and filled with existential doom. I wanted to escape to someplace joyful, romantic, and creative. Due to the pandemic, I was thinking about the big questions of life, and so I decided to write a novel about a group making a film about the meaning of life and living together in seclusion. Given the topic of the film, my heroine became a philosopher.

Excerpt from The Location Shoot:
She paused and said, “Albie, tell them about how you met Margaret. It’s such a wonderful story. I’m sure everyone would love to hear it.”

“I would,” Finn said as he and Ella exchanged a smile.

“Me too,” Charlotte added. “In the many years we’ve known each other, I don’t think I’ve ever heard this story.”

Albie smiled. “All right,” he said. The waitstaff returned and passed around plates, each with a slice of tart and generous dollop of freshly made whipped cream.

They all began eating and Albie said, “I met her at a party in London thrown by some aristocrat. Completely pretentious. I was the lead in a play on the West End, and the director invited me. You know how that blue-blooded set loves to have a celebrity in their midst, something to gab about when they’re at their holiday homes.”

Everyone laughed.

Albie took a bite of his tart and continued, “I brought a girl with me, some actress, can’t even remember her name. We were all dressed in absurdly formal attire, could hardly tell the guests from the waitstaff, eating catered, crustless watercress sandwiches or some such rubbish. All of a sudden, in walks a stunningly beautiful woman wearing a simple, sky-blue frock and holding a pie. It’s hard to overstate how extraordinarily out of place she looked. I was immediately transfixed. She had the biggest, most beautiful eyes, and her hair fell in waves.” He paused, as if reliving every detail. “Anyway, the host’s wife ran over, greeted her, and ferried the pie over to the dessert table. I couldn’t take my eyes off this woman. The way she moved, her smile, the way her eyes sparkled when she laughed. I watched her for hours. I asked someone about her, and they said she was an elementary school teacher who happened to know the sister of the host. Eventually, I saw her standing alone at the dessert table and decided to make my move. The table was covered in mile-high meringues and fancy chocolate tortes encased in sugar domes, no doubt from the finest bakery in London, and there was her humble homemade pie off to the side. I sidled up to her and said, ‘Everything looks good.’ She smiled at me and I felt like I was struck by lightning. I picked up a plate and a serving utensil and said, ‘I think I’m going to try this one,’ and I took a slice of the blueberry pie. She looked at me and said, ‘I made that. To tell you the truth, I feel like a bit of a fool. I didn’t know what kind of party it was.’ I said, ‘I’m Albie, what’s your name?’ In her angelic voice, she said, ‘Margaret.’ I’ll tell you, I fell completely in love with her then and there.”

“What about your date?” Michael asked.

“Broke up with her at the party. I called a car for her and sent her home. Felt terrible about it, but when you meet the one, you can’t let anything stand in your way. True love is the greatest gift in the world; one mustn’t squander it or be foolish enough to think it will simply wait until it obliges our schedules.”

“So, it really was love at first sight,” Charlotte said wistfully.

“Indeed. Anyone who tells you that love at first sight isn’t real, well, those unlucky bastards have just never experienced it. Take it from an old fucker like me: when you get hit by lightning, you surrender to it. All the details, the little things you don’t know about each other, you’ll learn those over time, and if you really love each other, most of it won’t matter. There’s no replacing that inexplicable, inconvenient, all-encompassing feeling of love. Standing there in that moment, holding that slice of pie, I knew I couldn’t live without her. These days, people court each other like they’re applying for a job or running through a checklist. But this is where the artists—the poets, the novelists, the filmmakers—have always known better: true love has no reason.”

What’s the next writing project?
I loved writing Ella and Finn’s love story so much, that I didn’t want to leave it. My next novel, After the Red Carpet, picks up where The Location Shoot ends. It comes out in September 2024 (She Writes Press). I’m also working on a series of romance novels that explore different dimensions of love. It’s been a wonderfully creative time.

What is your biggest challenge when writing a new book?
It’s different with every book. Writing never happens the same way twice, which is why I think I’m still so in love with it. With The Location Shoot, I had drafted the entire book and then when I read it all together, I realized there were a couple of spots where something was missing. It took me stewing on it to figure out what was needed. I ended up adding two scenes that proved to be pivotal and paved the way for future books about these characters.

If your novels require research – please talk about the process. Do you do the research first and then write, while you’re writing, after the novel is complete and you need to fill in the gaps?
It’s different with every book. Usually, I do research upfront or as I go. For example, The Location Shoot takes place in Sweden. When I was writing it and realized there would be a beach day followed by a trip to a local town, I did some online research to make sure I was portraying the setting realistically. I also looked up some local foods to augment what I know from my own travel experiences in Sweden.

What’s your writing space like? Do you have a particular spot to write where the muse is more active? Please tell us about it.
I’m lucky to have a beautiful home office. It’s on the second floor of my house and there’s a balcony overlooking the backyard. Some of my favorite things in my office: photos of friends and artists I’ve been lucky to meet, awards that I’m proud of, and an antique writing desk which is the centerpiece of the room. I also have a cozy chair and ottoman in the corner when I want to curl up and read or take a little nap. When I need to shift my energy, there’s a beautiful Parisian-style café down the street. I’m a regular. I usually sit at a corner table, overlooking their outdoor area surrounded by greenery. I write there for hours. The treats are delicious too.

What authors do you enjoy reading within or outside of your genre?
There are so many. Colleen Hoover, Meg Donahue, Candace Bushnell. J. E. Sumerau, Lauren Richardson, Carolyn Ellis, just to name a few.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers today?
I’ve published over 40 books and without a doubt The Location Shoot is one of my all-time favorites. It’s meant to be a total feel-good that makes you believe in love. For me, it’s like being wrapped in a feeling of goodness. I hope it does the same for readers.

Links:
Website | She Writes Press | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

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