We chat with author Kate Spencer about All’s Fair in Love and Pickleball, which sees chaos and chemistry ensue when colourful Bex, now in charge of her mother’s cherished racquetball club, teams up with a grumpy, former tennis player for a major pickleball tournament to turn their lives around.
Hi, Kate! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi, Nerd Daily friends! Thanks for having me. I’m the author of four books, three contemporary romances (All’s Fair In Love and Pickleball, One Last Summer, In a New York Minute) and a memoir, The Dead Moms Club. I come from a comedy background (I performed, taught, and was in the touring company at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in NYC) so I like to think that all my books incorporate humor in some way. Yes, even the one about grief and having a dead mom! I’m also an award-winning podcaster (Forever35) and a former entertainment reporter for VH1 and MTV. I once played Jenga with Pedro Pascal (for work) and it was everything you could hope for.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I can still remember the euphoric feeling of walking into a bookstore on Cape Cod as a kid and coming to stand in front of the shelves of Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley Twins books. I struggled a lot as a kid, and reading books was the one time I felt truly at ease. In 6th grade, our end of the year project was to write an autobiography, and it just clicked for me. I even included a poem about the Golden Gate Bridge (because I lived in San Francisco when I was two and felt…inspired?). That stands out as a pivotal moment for me, but truly for as long as I can remember, I’ve always loved writing and reading..
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: The Velveteen Rabbit is a life-long favorite, but I never remember a time without it in my life. I can, however, remember the moment I got my hands on Sweet Valley Twins #8: First Place, and how reading that book changed everything for me. I’m still obsessed with it!
- The one that made you want to become an author: Twilight, interestingly enough. That was the first book I could read after my mom died (grief and depression made reading nearly impossible), and it captured me so fully I remember thinking to myself: I want to make readers feel
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: The Things They Carried, by TIm O’Brien. I’ve read it several times over the years. It’s stayed with me for decades.
Your latest novel, All’s Fair in Love and Pickleball, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Tension + banter x heart = feel-good romp.
What can readers expect?
When I started drafting All’s Fair, I set out to write a fun, rivals-to-lovers story where the bickering and banter and eventual spice would leave readers kicking their feet in anticipation and excitement. And it’s all that and more! We have Bex, owner of a crumbling racquet club, teaming up with Niko, a brooding former tennis pro, to try to win a pickleball tournament and take home the cash prize to save her family business. They fall into a fake dating situation that benefits both of them, if they can pull it off. But because I’m me, the story also evolved to include a cast of loveable, goofy friends who are found family, some deep-seated heartache (grief, injury, grappling with expectations and life’s hard realities), and a really fun, crackling pickleball lesson filled with lots of sexual innuendo. You definitely don’t need to know anything about pickleball to enjoy the book.
Where did the inspiration for All’s Fair in Love and Pickleball come from?
I play pickleball, and find the “rivalry” between pickleball and tennis to be overblown and kind of hilarious. But I also thought it might make for some great romantic tension between a tennis player and pickleball player, who come from opposite sides of the court (lol) and can’t stand each other. So when my agent, Holly Root, first brought up the idea about a possible pickleball romance, I jumped.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Bex’s core group of septuagenarian-aged friends – which includes Niko’s Aunt Loretta – was an absolute blast to write. I think intergenerational friendships are so wonderful, and I loved giving her a crew of meddling, adoring, hilarious friends who show up for her even when she’s too stubborn to ask for help.
Bex, like me, has ADHD, and I wanted it to be an important part of who she is, while also not defining her, if that makes sense. So that was challenging and fun to explore based on my own personal connection.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
I was going through a great deal of personal and professional transitions while writing this book, including leaving the podcast I co-created/hosted for six years, and dealing with some chronic health issues. Working on being gentle and kind to myself was a real practice.
What’s next for you?
Hopefully some sleep. And when I’m not sleeping, I’m slowly brainstorming and plotting out a couple of new book ideas.
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed reading this year? Are there any you’re looking forward to picking up?
I am finishing up Beverly Jenkins’ Destiny trilogy, which I have loved. (Gorgeous, kind brothers?! Come on!!!) I have Joanna Shupe’s The Gilded Heiress on my bedside table to read next, and just pre-ordered Jayci Lee’s upcoming romantasy, King Foretold. My TBR is endless. It’s an amazing time to be a romance reader.
