AUTHOR INTERVIEW with JAYE ELLIOT | NO CHANCE MEETING BLOG TOUR

I mentioned No Chance Meeting in my most anticipated 2020 Indie reads… and it’s releasing! I’m honored to be part of the blog tour and am interviewing Jaye Elliot. Excited yet? Let’s jump right to the festivities! (Even though I had this post ready and missed my posting date by a day. Oof.)

NO CHANCE MEETING by JAYE ELLIOT

BLURB

Alex Jennings is done with life. After losing her brother in Afghanistan, everything has collapsed around her. Getting laid off from her day job and failing in her art career, she has nowhere left to turn. She once had faith to believe that all things would work together for good, but that faith died with her brother. Now she just wants the pain to end.

Riley Conrad served thirteen years in the military until three bullets sent him home. After a year and a half of physical therapy and scraping together a living, all he wants is to live a simple life and perhaps even open the coffee shop he dreams about. However, the weight of failing his parents’ expectations doesn’t make it easy, and working as a bartender isn’t getting him anywhere fast.

Could a “chance” meeting between Alex and Riley set them both on the path God always intended?

Available now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and more! | 20% of all February sales will go to the Mighty Oaks Warrior Programs. | Add to Goodreads

AUTHOR BIO

Jaye Elliot is an award-winning author, country girl, and hopeless romantic at heart. She loves a good hero and will always sigh happily during the lights scene in Tangled. She writes from her home in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, which she shares with three cats she considers her kids. When not writing romance novels, she pens fantasy and adventure stories as Jaye L. Knight.
Website Facebook Instagram Twitter Pinterest

BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE

Friday, February 14

• Tour Intro at Jaye Elliot
• Spotlight at Writings, Ramblings, and Reflections
• Review & Author Post at Reading Anyone
• Review at Losing the Busyness

Saturday, February 15

• Author Interview at Angela R. Watts
• Review & Author Interview at Resting Life
• Author Post & Excerpt at Lady Grace: A Quiet and Gentle Spirit

Sunday, February 16

• Review at Perfectly Quirky in Every Way
• Spotlight at The Music of a Story

Monday, February 17

• Author Post at Morgan Elizabeth Huneke
• Review at Write Hard and Pray Harder
• Author Post & Excerpt at A Day In The Life

Tuesday, February 18

• Review at Tricia Mingerink
• Excerpt at Waggin’ Tales Inspirational Pet Stories
• Review and Excerpt at Read Review Rejoice

Wednesday, February 19

• Review at Green Tea With Books
• Review & Author Post at Leah’s Bookshelf
• Book Spotlight at The Page Dreamer

Thursday, February 20

• Review at Stories by Firefly
• Review & Author Post at God’s Peculiar Treasure Rae
• Author Interview & Post at Read Review Rejoice

Friday, February 21

• Review at Books, Life, and Christ
• Author Post at Backing Books
• Review at Poetree

Saturday, February 22

• Tour Wrap Up at Jaye Elliot

GIVEAWAY #1

To celebrate the release of No Chance Meeting, Jaye is giving away a reader bundle that includes a signed copy of NCM, a hand-painted watercolor bookmark, a coffee mug, and a bag of Dove chocolates! Enter using the form below. U.S. entries only. Not open internationally.
ENTER HERE!

GIVEAWAY #2

For her second giveaway, Jaye is offering 3 ebook copies of No Chance Meeting. Open internationally! ENTER HERE!

AUTHOR INTERVIEW with JAYE ELLIOT

What inspired you to write romance since you wrote fantasy for so long?

Considering I used to say I couldn’t write contemporary romance to save my life, I really don’t know how that happened. Unfortunately, I don’t remember what thing or thought was the very first bit of inspiration. I was binge-watching the TV show Leverage at the time and developed a serious fictional crush for the character of Eliot, who then inspired Riley. No Chance Meeting was in some ways a challenge to myself. I thought of the story just over a week before NaNoWriMo 2016. I more or less just thought, hey, why not see if you could actually do this? It’s the perfect opportunity to try something different. And here I am.

This story doesn’t sound like your usual girl-meets-boy-all-ends-well romance. It sounds raw and moving, unafraid to touch the pain of life. Did you learn anything about yourself, or life, while writing it?

I’m not sure I can say I learned anything—it was more like I took my own painful life experiences and used them to create a story. While I’ve never quite been suicidal myself, I know people who are/were, and I have struggled with depression. I like romantic “fluff” as much as anyone now and then, but I’m just not that kind of writer. I like to tell real stories. Life is messy, and hard, and scary. We don’t always make great decisions. We are human, after all. But God is always working in our lives, even if we can’t see it. That’s the sort of story I like to tell because it shows there is hope even when life is dark.

Do you enjoy romance novels, and if so, how long have you enjoyed them? Have any favorites?

I LOVE romance novels. I am a hopeless romantic, after all. I think I read my very first historical romance novel that my mom gave me when I was fifteen. Considering I just released a contemporary romance novel, it may seem really strange to say that I’ve hardly read any contemporary romance. Historical romance is my favorite. I pretty much devour anything by Karen Witemeyer. I also just recently read and fell in love with Fierce Heart by Tara Grayce, which is an Elven steampunk romance. That was my absolute favorite read of 2019.

What is something you hope readers will walk away with after reading this novel?

I guess I sort of already answered this, but I hope it will encourage readers to seek and trust God, even when life is brutal. He is the one who gives us the strength to face our trials victoriously. And don’t be afraid to seek Him if you’ve turned away in the past. He’s always waiting with open arms.

Can we expect more romance novels from you in the future?

So I always joke that my short stories turn into novellas, my novellas turn into novels, and my novels turn into series. NCM was actually supposed to be a novella. Yeah. That didn’t happen. It was also supposed to be a standalone story. Well, said standalone spawned ideas for two and then three more loosely connected books all in the same town. So yes, I do plan to write more romance novels. I just don’t know when yet. I have to finish Ilyon Chronicles first.

~~~

Thanks for the amazing interview, Jaye. I’m so excited to read No Chance Meeting!

I hope y’all enjoy the tour! Be sure to check out the blog tour stops and enter the giveaway. 🙂

God bless,

Angela