Alexis Bass burst on to the writing scene in 2014 with her YA romance/coming-of-age novel, Love and Other Things and has remained a staple of the young adult genre with her subsequent releases. This year she released her YA mystery Happily and Madly, the tale of Maris Brown, a teenage girl visiting her estranged father and his new family in the lush holiday destination Cross Cove. When she meets the enigmatic Edison as he runs from a group of teenagers threatening to kill him, Maris’s world is turned upside down as she gets dragged into the dark underbelly of this beachside utopia.
Alexis took some time out of her busy schedule to sit down with contributor Tasha Leigh and chat about books, publishing and her favourite holiday destination.
Thank you so much, Alexis, for agreeing to sit down and answer my questions. Firstly, congratulations on the release of your latest novel, Happily & Madly. It’s the tale of Maris going to see her estranged father George and his new family in the beachside getaway of Cross Cove. Was there a real life inspiration for this quaint slice of paradise?
Thank you so much; I’m excited to chat!
Cross Cove, the wealthy beach town in Happily & Madly, was inspired by many places. It’s a mishmash of real life beaches—east coast and west coast, South America and Hawaii, and also some large lake beaches I visited while revising this book.
The “love interest” Edison turns out to have a rather sad but interesting role in the grand scheme of things. Did you always envisage his path through the narrative to be so twisted?
Edison’s character and his place in the story were unwavering even after the first draft. He was always held together by this painful backstory that made him feel both incredibly guilty but also indebted to the Duvals. I knew his behavior was going to be in the grey area and that he’d be haunted by his mother’s death, wishing for something different, but also not having much of a choice, while knowing it could be much worse, and hoping that it will be over soon.
Now Maris has a devastating history of her own with her mother & father going their separate ways in some pretty emotional circumstances. Was she ever destined for a happy ending?
I think so! But it definitely wasn’t going to be an easy road. She had to discover her own path and figure out what she wanted her life to be and how she wanted to react to certain situations, especially when dealing with her father’s past.
There is an unlikely hero when it comes to the action-filled crescendo of H & M. Your character development in relation to him and the other main players within the narrative is amazing, and keeps the reader intrigued. Do you have a process for writing your characters? Or do they steer the narrative themselves?
My characters always steer the narrative, sometimes to the detriment of the plot, and that ends up what I have to go back and do the most work on during revisions. I have a pretty good idea about characters when I begin a project, they are what comes to me first when I’m thinking about a story, and then their interactions with each other often help inform me even more about them, and the direction the plot should take. The unlikely hero surprised me as well when I was drafting, so I’m glad to hear you were intrigued also!
I have to say l read a lot and that ending had me reeling, as have your other novels. Can you tell me a little about how your novels come together?
I almost never know how a novel is going to end completely when I start a project. I have an idea about what elements might be wrapped up, versus what things might end feeling less resolved (while still doing the story justice), but typically I discover a lot during drafting.
Usually, I write out of order, though I almost always start at the beginning, and the ending is the last part to come together.
All your novels seem to have an underlying lesson to teach, have an underlying romance and fit firmly within the YA genre. What initially drew you the genre?
Where to start? I’m really drawn to writing characters and stories that get to explore the thrill of being young and doing so many things for the first time; learning things the hard way and finding out who you want to be in the world.
Have you ever undertaken professional writing training? If so, what was it?
I’ve taken some writing courses and many workshops: a few college courses, workshops offered through various writer’s organizations when I was living in Seattle (Pacific Northwest Writer’s Association, Hugo House, Write on the Sound), and online courses through Writer’s Digest.
How long did the idea of Happily and Madly take from its inception to being a finished manuscript?
I had a finished draft of Happily and Madly in 2015 and then worked on it off and on since then. The plots and themes changed a lot during revisions, but it was a good evolution for the story.
Do you have any sage advice for writers trying to get published?
Keep writing. Hearing “No” is a part of the business and you have to keep going even as you navigate rejection. Always do whatever it takes to hold onto the part of the process you can control, which is the work and the joy the work brings you.
Have you got anything currently in the works that we can look out for?
Nothing I can announce yet, but hopefully soon!
Last question – Are we going to see you at any upcoming events?
I don’t have anything scheduled right now, but I keep events updated on my website, so that’s the best place to check in the future.
QUICKFIRE ROUND
Fiction or nonfiction? Fiction
Plotter or pantser? (Do you plot out your entire story to the smallest detail or just have a vague idea + major occurrences and let the characters guide you?) Pantser
Favourite bookish trope? Hate to love romance
Least favourite bookish trope? Characters who cover up a crime that was self-defense all along
Coffee or tea? Tea
Pizza or pasta? Pizza
Beach holiday or hiking in the bush? Beach
Convention crowds or smaller signings? Both!
Sunny or rainy? Rainy
If you could pick a single holiday destination for the rest of your life, where would it be? Paris
Music, books or Netflix – you can only pick 2? How to choose?! Netflix and books
Other than being an author, what was your dream profession? Paleontologist
