Today, we’re talking with Erica Devon about her book, The One Who Ghosted Me
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I spent 20 years as a geologist and computer scientist in the energy industry before becoming a romance author—talk about a career pivot! My love of storytelling started when I raided my mother’s bookshelf as a kid and discovered sweeping multi-generational romance sagas. Those epic stories hooked me for life. These days, when I’m not writing, you’ll find me hiking Colorado mountain trails or binge-watching K-dramas, which taught me how to balance emotional depth with humor and hope—something my scientific training definitely didn’t cover.
Why do you write?
I enjoy the craft of building a story, and I enjoy sharing my stories with others. Love of story, pure and simple.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
My current book, The One Who Ghosted Me, was inspired by so many things. I knew I wanted to write a second-chance romance, and the first order of business was deciding why the couple needed a second chance. What happened to them the first time around? I landed on “ghosting” as the a phenomenon to explore, because it’s something that I find baffling. Why would someone just ghost someone and disappear? It seems an act of cowardice to me, and yet it is apparently very prevalent in society today. I wanted to more deeply explore the topic, and why someone might feel they had to ghost someone. Aside from that, I fell in love with the Pacific Northwest when I visited Olympic National Park many years ago … the giant rainforest and beautiful lakes, what’s not to love? That trip, coupled with the idea that I wanted main characters who work for the timber industry, inspired me to create my fictional town of Rainmere in the state of Washington, near Seattle. It’s the perfect backdrop for a workplace, second-chance romance! And the fake dating trope in my story? Well, that’s in there because it’s a fun trope and well, why not?
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I love stories about hope and finding your happily ever after, which is the core of romance stories.
How would you describe your writing process?
I’m an uber-planner! I love plotting and making sure all of the story elements fit together into a satisfying story for the reader. So I plot, then I write, then I scrutinize what might be missing and write some more. Then comes the dreaded editing, which seems to be endless, but so necessary! And I love my editors, they are invaluable and completely save my sanity. Thank goodness they are passionate about the editing process… someone should be. Lol.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
That’s a tough question. As an author, I really appreciate participating in facebook groups that are specifically designed for the author community. I have learned so much by engaging with other authors in this way and learning from their experiences shared and discussed. That said, I find posting about my books on social media to be a necessary evil, but not something that provides me energy and so I don’t have as much enthusiasm for that aspect of the business. I do it, but begrudgingly. So yeah, I have a love-hate sort of relationship with social media at the moment.
What advice would you have for other writers?
When I talk with other writers, the ones who are moving forward in their careers are the ones who prioritize making time for writing, not just talking about wanting to write more. If you’re serious about writing more books, then prioritize it. But realistically, don’t beat yourself up about it if you need or want to prioritize other things in life. Whatever your choice, own it, and be proud of the choices you make.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
I spend a lot of time brainstorming my book titles. Since I write romance, the titles have to reflect the characters, and immediately make a reader go “Ooo, I want to know more about that!” As for covers, so far I’ve been using pre-made covers by The Cover Collection. I love Debbie’s covers and the response service from her is excellent. For the rest of my series, I may need to branch out a bit and have some custom tweaks added to the pre-made to indicate that the series is moving in more of a fantasy direction.
What’s your next step?
I just published Book 1 of a series … now it’s time to move on to writing Book 2!
What book do you wish you had written?
A Stitch in Time, by Kelley Armstrong. I LOVE time-travel romance, and this (first in series) book is my favorite.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
Haha, that depends on the review! I’ve heard a lot of authors say they don’t really read the reviews much, but honestly, I don’t think I’ll be able to resist reading them. I do go in with eyes wide open. What a reader likes or doesn’t like about a book is a very personal thing and unique to each reader, so I take it as an opportunity to get a glimpse into the thoughts of someone who decided to take a chance on my book. But I try not to take it too seriously if they don’t like it.
