Steph Wrote a Book

Megan: Hey, everyone, it's Megan and Steph. But not just Steph, it is Stephanie Riley, soon to be an author. She has a book coming on everybody, and it is called Practically Perfect. And I have read it, and I cannot wait for everyone else to read it because it is amazing. Steph, can you tell us a little bit about your book, please?

Steph: So it's a book for romance. It’s obviously is spicy.

Megan: Duh, naturally.

Steph: I will say, I know when my editor read it, she said, damn girl, you can write some spicy scenes. And then you said, I told you that, you go, I will be the judge of that. And then I think you sent me like four or five chili peppers and like fire emojis. You're like, hot damn.

Megan: God damn.

Steph: It was the text I received. So, of course, it's spicy.  But it tells the story of Kate. She is in her mid-thirties. So all the books in my series, called the Unexpected Love series, there'll be four books that come out this year, but they're all going to be in their mid-thirties. And they are finding different ways to love.  But Kate is engaged to the so-called perfect man.  You will have strong opinions about him. Everyone does.

Megan: I had very strong feelings.

Steph: You, yes.

Megan: Very, very strong.

Steph:Then I've done my job as an author, if you have very strong feelings about him.

Steph: But everyone loves him.

Steph: He's perfect.

Megan: Supposedly.

Steph: Kate has a family accident that kind of sets her on a different path. And that sends her back to her hometown, which is a pretty small town, where she gets to spend a lot of time with her mom. And you'll have, if you've ever grew up in the 80s or 90s, you're going to have a couple of things that you're going to love about this. There's lots of 80s and 90s references. There's also some really great, I would say, narcissistic mom, gaslighting.  Expectations that I think a lot of firstborns, first eldest daughters have. And then her childhood best friend that hasn't spoken to her in 15 years, shows up.  And he just wants to go back to their friendship like nothing really happened.  And that kind of causes her to really question everything in her life. So it is a journey of self-discovery. It is a plot of space. There is a major love story to it. There is most people cry when they read it. Sorry, not sorry.

Megan: We gotta have a little bit of that.

Steph: You do.

Steph: If you're not emotionally devastated at some point in a book, I feel like that's a waste. It's a rom-com. Yeah. Yeah.  So it comes out March 27th, though.  So you can preorder it on Amazon. And I will be sharing the cover of it very soon, which you've seen.

Megan: Oh, my gosh.

Megan: Yes.

Steph: I know.

Megan: It's so good.

Steph: But it is book one in the series.

Steph: There is three more in that series to come out.

Steph: So I will have a completed first series before the end of this year.

Megan: That's amazing. I am just so in awe of you. And like, number one, I love that you're doing this, like, now. It proves like it's never too late to follow your dreams and do something that you are passionate about and that you love. And like, we started this journey of the podcast like a year ago. And like, now you've written a book. And more than one, actually.

Steph: Actually, more than one.

Megan: You're like, are like, gone beyond.

Megan: And you're like, I already have like two and three and like all this mapped out. And I'm like, yes. Yeah, it's amazing. You've inspired me to write a book. And I'm like, I'll see what happens here. But that's just great. And I love that you're doing the representation of like, not a 19-year-old or a 20-year-old. Like, there's plenty of that out there. So we need more like realistic, like relatable heroines for us to read about and like, see their sexual journeys and their awakenings.

Megan: So I love that.

Steph: I think that's one of my favorite things, is people who have read it, either editors or beta readers have said, like, this was so relatable. I've been this, like, I've been this person, or like one person said, do you listen to my therapy sessions? And I'm just like, no girl. But like, I think, I don't think you're the only one that's saying that. There might be a few of us. So that, I think, is like the best thing. Because I do think one of my favorite things about reading romance or romanesty is how you're able to heal through fiction and how sometimes, like, reading a story that is completely made up and is meant to allow you to escape into another world can help you reflect on things going on in your own life differently or help you with, like, some trauma that you have or help you see that perhaps you aren't being treated the way you deserve to be treated.

Steph: And that to me is like super, super powerful.

Steph: So I'm, I'm excited. Am I a little nervous? I am.

Steph: It's okay.

Megan: It's okay to be nervous.

Steph: I'm a little nervous. It's okay. Because it's a big risk. And I will tell you, the books will get spicier through the series. So book two  is...

Megan: Good.

Megan: I mean, it was already spicy, but you know, we always want more.

Megan: We always want more.

Steph: I don't know if I will ever top Pucking Around.

Steph:There was like what?

Steph: I think there was like over 25 chapters.

Steph: And that book, Spice...

Megan: Or The Never List.

Megan: The Never List was also like our spiciest book last year.

Steph: So I don't know if we'll all get to that, but let's just say like book two...

Megan: Get some good stuff.

Steph: We got some...

Steph: Yeah.

Steph: I can't wait.  That's the one thing that's really… Give it to me now. Give it to me now.

Megan: I want it.

Megan: I want it.

Steph: You're going to get a very similar one. I think what's interesting though is like you write out this plan for how you want the story to go, and if you ever talk to another author, they'll say characters talk to you. And I never understood that until I was like, you guys, you can't have sex again. Like, you just had… Like, I know. But you can.

Megan: It's what they do.

Steph: It is.

Steph: I say that all the time.

Steph: It's just like it's what they do. He runs his hands through his hair a lot, and they have sex a lot. Like, there's this one scene, and you've read it, like, in Hawaii, when they're snorkeling. And when I was writing it, I was like, you can't have sex in the ocean while you're snorkeling. Like, I don't think that's possible. And I was like, no, no. And my fingers are, like, typing under there. And then I was like, no, delete, delete, delete. So I love it. But yeah, Practically Perfect. It comes out on March 27th, and it'll be on Kindle Unlimited, ebook, and paperback.

Megan: Go get it now.

Steph:Thanks for listening to Late Night Reads.  Don't forget to follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook at Late Night Reads Podcast. And check out latenightreads.com for even more information about all the books we're reading. If you loved today's episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review our podcast. And share the show with your fellow book lovers.