Meet the Author: Emily B. Riddle

Hello, hi, howdy! 

I’d like to introduce you to Emily Riddle. I read her debut novel First Comes Love after she read my book With you and sent me a message saying “I think our books would be friends,” and I think she was right!  Emily lives on a farm in Tennessee with her husband and two kids, where she inspires me regularly by posting her word count goals, misses, and successes on the internet. And now, let’s get to know Emily a little better!

What is your favorite part of the writing process, and least favorite part of the writing process?

Even though it can be hard to get myself in the chair, I love writing the first draft. It’s messy and I know it won’t stay the same. I have to push through when I start to doubt the words I’m putting down. But when I sit and dig in, getting caught up in the characters and the story is a rush for me. It’s so satisfying dragging myself away from the keyboard because I’m not ready to leave my fictional world. 

My least favorite is easily the editing process. I don’t edit until I’ve finished a full rough draft. So I find it daunting to sit down with the whole manuscript and think, “now it’s time for you to make sense! And be shorter!” Wordiness is definitely my number two struggle. Why say it in five words when you can use fifteen?

Tell us about someone who has inspired you creatively. I love reading about late-bloomers and Julia Child is one of my top choices. She married later in life, found her passion later in life, and published later in life, going on to have the most amazing career in her late forties and beyond. She also, based on what I’ve read and seen portrayed, appears to have been her own biggest advocate and I admire that so much. It’s encouraging to watch a woman believe that what she has to offer matters and to stand behind that, whatever the response might be. 

What kind of books do you gravitate towards in your own reading life? 

B.C. (before children) I read a little bit of everything. These days, I still aim for a variety but mostly I read the books that are what I want to write. So lots of contemporary women’s fiction, family fiction, or, that awful term, chick-lit. I love stories about a woman working her way through a challenge and finding both a better version of herself and love on the other side of it. Some of my favorites these days are Katherine Center, Marian Keyes (have loved her for a couple of decades now!), Sonali Dev, and Sophie Kinsella.

What do you hope people take away from your books?

At first glance, humor. I love making folks laugh. But underneath that, I want readers to feel hopeful after finishing my book. I write for women who need to believe in second chances, late-in-life starts, and unexpected happily ever afters. And I want those readers to put down something I wrote feeling hopeful, even eager, about the future.

What is your superpower?

In writing or real life? It might be the same, actually! Straight-talk encouragement. I will not be the person who says life will be all rainbows and roses (or in the world of romcoms, toned bodies, and string quartets in the background). Nor will I suggest it’s a dull and dismal place, abandon all hope now. I fully believe, about 72% of the time, in realistic optimism. In my experience, it’s a weird, crunchy, delicious world and I’d suggest you put on your apron and get to work on whatever weird, crunchy, delicious ingredients you’ve been given (or whatever weird, crunchy, delicious menu someone handed you). And I'd like to think this is an actual quality that I bring that into my relationships and writing. 

What is one of the best pieces of advice you’ve ever gotten?

Your book won’t be the worst one ever written or the best. My friend, another writer, Sarah E. Strong, said that to me when I was close to publishing First Comes Love, and it was exactly what I needed to hear. I didn’t need confidence, exactly, but a clear perspective and that’s what she offered. Somehow knowing my book wouldn’t set the world on fire, but wouldn’t burn it down either, helped make it possible for me to go forward. That might be a weirdly specific-to-me need, but it was ideal advice.

What are you working on next? 

My second novel! It’s part of a three-book series that are interconnected standalones (I love this phrase so much). Readers will see some of the same characters they met in First Comes Love, but we’ll have a new leading lady and man. It’s a romantic-comedy, first-person, single-POV story, about a divorced mother of two. She’s smitten with a farmer from the market where she works. After jumping into a hasty marriage, she finds herself and her two boys living on a farm, sorting through the sweet and sticky situation that is early marriage and step-parenting, plus navigating her husband’s tricky, and overly-involved family. Hijinks ensue and our girl has to work out when it’s time to dig in and when it’s time to bolt (gardening puns 100% intentional).

Thanks, Emily! If you want to check out Emily’s first book you can find it here, and if you’re on Instagram be sure to give her a follow: https://www.instagram.com/emilyriddlewrites/