We had the absolute pleasure of chatting with author Elle Cosimano about her upcoming YA novel Seasons of the Storm, the start to a new fantasy duology. She talks about her inspiration behind the series, the parts she really enjoyed writing, characters who gave her a hard time, her next book, and a lot more!
Hello Elle! Tell us a bit about yourself!
Thanks so much for inviting me! In 2011, I left a long and successful career in real estate to pursue writing, and now I can’t imagine doing anything else. I currently live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Central Virginia (on the same mountain where several scenes in Seasons of the Storm take place) with my husband, my two teenage sons, and my dog. We’ve only recently moved back to the US after living six years in Quintana Roo, Mexico. My kids are homeschooled/distance learners, so I generally work with them during the day and I write at night when everyone else is asleep. I pull off my gruelling schedule thanks to my supportive partner and family.
Seasons of the Storm, your latest book, releases on June 23rd. Could you tell us a bit about what readers can expect?
One of the things I love most about YA is that there are no hard, fast rules. Genre lines are often blurred, making storytelling so much fun! Seasons of the Storm is a unique mashup of urban fantasy, sci-fi, mythology, adventure, and romance. I can honestly say it’s the most wildly imaginative story I’ve written, and I think readers will agree that it’s a fresh take on some common fantasy elements—star-crossed love, elemental magic, coming of age road trips, and plots to overthrow vengeful gods. It’s action-packed and full of heart. I hope readers will love my four Seasons—Jack, Fleur, Julio, and Amber—as much as I do.
How did you come up with the idea for Seasons of the Storm?
Several years ago, I was invited to blog weekly flash fiction pieces with a fantastic group of authors. Every month, we challenged each other with writing prompts and shared our work online. One of my writing prompts was simply a GIF of a pink-haired, carefree girl with butterflies on her face.
To me, she was the embodiment of spring, and because my stories tend to lean toward high stakes thrillers and star-crossed romances, I wondered what would happen if this Spring had to kill the season who came before her each year. And then I wondered what would happen if she and her ill-fated Winter fell in love. The short story struck a chord with my readers, so I decided to try developing it into a full-length novel. The book sold to HarperTeen the following year, and it has become one of my very favorite projects.
Jack and Fleur are the two POV characters in the book. Whose perspective was harder for you to write and why?
Fleur was tricky, not because of her voice or her character, but because of the timing and continuity of the story and the way it unfolds. A Season is awake and alive on earth for a set period of time that belongs only to them. The next Season is tasked with hunting the former and killing them, essentially ending the former Season’s cycle on earth and sending them back into a period of hibernation, during which time, they’re healing, gaining strength, and not conscious. They awaken and sleep in set cycles, and their time on earth only overlaps as long as it takes one to kill the other. Navigating the timing of their experiences, their voices, and their resulting chapters became a challenge. Since the story kicks off with Jack hashing a plan to escape, I had to carefully map out Fleur’s scenes to ensure she had a strong enough voice in those opening chapters within the confines of her natural sleep cycles.
At its core, Seasons of the Storm is all about friendship and the sacrifices we make to protect those we love. What made you want to write about this?
I didn’t start out planning to write about friendship. Seasons of the Storm started as a love story—just Jack and Fleur, a Winter and a Spring, willing to risk their immortality for a chance at love and the freedom to choose it. But as I was writing, it became clear to me that my star-crossed lovers couldn’t pull of the complex and dangerous escape plan I had conceived for them alone; they needed help. That help came in the form of Julio and Amber—an Autumn and a Summer trapped in the same annual cycle with Jack and Fleur. And in order for these two Seasons to be willing to risk their own lives, they needed deeply compelling reasons as well. As friendships began to blossom on the pages between these four characters, it became clear to me that the heart of this story wasn’t just about romantic love, but the kind of love that runs deeper—true partnerships and friendships, the commitment to take risks for each other and trust each other against all odds. As much as this is a love story, it’s also the story of a found family. And the power of that relationship was my favorite aspect to write.
Jack and Fleur are flesh and blood embodiments of the seasons winter and spring respectively. If you were to write yourself as a Season, which one would you be and why?
I grew up in the DC metro area, in an area that enjoys four full and vastly different seasons of the year. But while I was drafting Seasons of the Storm, I was living in the Caribbean. The winters were hot, the summers even hotter, and the jungle was always green. I found myself missing autumn the most, the warm days and crisp cool nights. I missed bonfires and hikes through brightly colored leaves. I missed hayrides, and apple-picking, and the misty, creeping arrival of Halloween. I could write myself as any Season, I’d probably be an Autumn. Also, truth? The power to wield fire would be pretty freaking amazing.
Is there a particular character or scene you enjoyed writing the most?
This is hard to answer without spoiling! My very favorite scene in the book is actually hinted at on the cover. It’s the first time all four Seasons truly work together, drawing from the others’ strengths, trusting each other as a unit to survive. Up until this point, they’ve had plenty of reasons to be distrustful of each other, and even themselves. They’ve all been committed to an end goal, but not necessarily yet to each other. This scene marks a critical shift in their relationship, when they realize what’s possible when they work together. The scene is loaded with pulse-pounding action—fire fights, high-speed chases, and wild elemental magic—but their growth arc resonates under all that, and the stakes mean more as the characters emerge changed.
What is your writing process like?
My process usually starts with a spark of an idea, followed by a brainstorming session with my critique partners. Often, I’ll try to craft a loose pitch or summary first, to see if the idea has legs—if the stakes and motivations have enough tension and shape to carry a full-length story. From there, I spend a lot of time staring at the ceiling fan, thinking, making up a very loose outline of key plot points. Sometimes I make inspiration boards. I almost always make a playlist to help get my head in the right mood. And once I have a handful of scenes in my mind, I start drafting. My first drafts are always a mess. I do a lot of heavy lifting during deep revisions and I try to leave myself time between drafts, so I can see the story with fresh eyes when I dive back in. I rely on feedback through every step of the process from key people who challenge me to do my best work—critique partners, my agent, and my editors. Fun fact? I’m super-critical of my own work, so I never re-read my books after they’ve been sent to the printer.
What’s next for you?
I’m hard at work revising the sequel to Seasons of the Storm (tentatively titled Seasons of Chaos) and I’m really excited about where this second instalment will take our heroes. I’m also wrapping up a new project I can’t wait to share with readers! Finlay Donovan Is Killing It is the first book in a brand new mystery series (my first novel for adult readers), and it has been so much fun to write! It’s a funny, fast-paced, smart contemporary crime thriller, coming out on February 2nd with Minotaur Books.
And finally, do you have any book recommendations for us?
YES! This last year has produced an embarrassment of riches in both YA and adult books, across all genres. Fantasy is one of my favorite escapes. I just devoured From Blood and Ash, the first book in Jennifer L. Armentrout’s newest series, and I stayed up until dawn to finish it in one sitting. Richly imagined worldbuilding, a sizzling romance, and a totally unique twist on supernatural lore, it was completely captivating! My readers also know I love dark, twisty thrillers. For the YA crowd, keep your eye out for a debut called Throwaway Girls by Andrea Contos, coming this fall! This mystery is gorgeously written, perfectly paced, and tightly plotted. An absolute 10! And for fans of psychological suspense, The Girl From Widow Hills by Megan Miranda was perfectly creepy and intense! I confess, I read the second half of the book huddled under the blanket with all the lights on.
