Today I'm very happy to welcome the lovely Tracie Banister on my blog. She has joined me for a little Q&A.
Your newest novel is
called Mixing it Up, what is it about?
Mixing It Up is about a classically trained chef of French
cuisine named Cecily Sinclair whose life is upended when the network that airs
her cooking show comes under new management and she’s forced to work with Dante
Marchetti, an egocentric Italian chef. Cecily has butted heads with Dante in
the kitchen before, and she loathes him with the heat of a thousand habañeros.
The two chefs go to war, each one determined to prove their culinary supremacy,
while the president of the network tries to referee, and Cecily finds herself
vacillating between being drawn to and repelled by both men.
What was your
inspiration for the book?
I’ve been addicted to watching cooking shows
for years (everything from talk-and-chop shows like Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa to competitive reality
shows like Top Chef, Chopped, and Masterchef). So, I thought it would be fun to go behind-the-scenes
of a cooking show and explore what life is like for its star. Combining the two
worlds of food and entertainment gave me lots of great stuff to work with!
Can you tell us more
about the main character(s)?
Cecily comes from old
family money and was expected to either go into the Sinclair business (Asset
management? Boring!), or become a
career socialite. (Even more tedious!) Instead, she followed her bliss and went
to the Cordon Bleu to train as a chef. She feels more passionate about food and
cooking than she ever has a man and she’s beginning to wonder if she’s capable
of having an intense romantic connection with someone.
Cecily’s new boss, Devlin
Hayes, is only 30, but he’s already made his mark on the television industry by
creating several successful niche networks and programming geared toward
Millennials. He wants to revamp Cecily’s show, making it more flashy and hip.
Although she’s not keen on the idea, Devlin is a very persuasive man and Cecily
soon finds herself being dazzled by his charm and twinkly blue eyes.
Dante Marchetti is a
self-taught chef who’s made a big splash on the New York restaurant scene. Like
many creative geniuses before him, he is volatile and sparks fly between him
and Cecily whenever they interact. Viewers love their chemistry and rumors abound
that they are more than just co-workers off-screen. Cecily can’t deny that the
man is gorgeous (If you’re into dark, swarthy types who ooze testosterone.),
but she’s determined to get him out of her life once and for all.
Where and when do you
write your stories?
I’m probably one of
the last people on the planet who has a desktop computer. (I loathe laptops!)
So, I do all of my writing at my desk in my office. That’s where I can be found
8-10 hours a day.
If you could switch
places with a character from a book, who would it be and why?
I’d go with Jo March
in Little Women. I’ve always felt a
kinship with that character because she’s a feisty writer. Of course, if I was
Jo, I would have never turned down Laurie’s proposal (He was my first literary
crush!) and then it would be a totally different book!
What books have influenced your life most?
Oh, gosh, there are so many. Jane Austen’s books were
probably the most influential as her stories combined humor with romance, had
wonderfully witty dialogue and fully fleshed out characters, and were such
entertaining reads. My favorite book of all time is Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind. I just adored the
character of Scarlett O’Hara; she was so strong and sassy and she was very
flawed, which made her fascinating. These books and characters have all greatly
influenced my own writing.
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m currently devoting myself to getting the word out
about Mixing It Up, but I am very
much looking forward to getting started on my next writing project, which will
be a follow-up to In Need of Therapy.
I swore I’d never write a sequel to any of my books, but my readers have been
clamoring for another story about the Alvarez family and I have a fun idea for
Izzy, the bratty younger sister of the protagonist in INOT.
What do you enjoy
most about writing?
I love seeing the
characters and stories in my head come to life on the
page, and it always
feels great when I get a scene just right, sometimes even surpassing how I
originally envisioned it!
Pick three authors
you want to have dinner with and tell us why.
That’s a tough one
since I have so many favorite authors. If I had to pick three living authors to share a meal and a spirited
conversation with, I’d choose Sophie Kinsella, Janet Evanovich, and Lauren
Willig. Although these supremely talented ladies write in different genres, all
of them deftly employ humor in their books, which is something I really
appreciate.
Imagine Mixing it Up would be turned into a
movie, who would you cast for the main characters?
I’d cast Canadian
actress Laura Vandervoort as Cecily because she’s tall, slender, and
fair-haired, plus she’s got an elegant, aristocratic look about her. I
envisioned James Wolk (preppy good looks, great smile) as Devlin and Justin
Baldoni (dark coloring, muscular physique, super sexy) as Dante.
The third book you
published is called Twin Piques, can
you tell us more about it?
Twin Piques chronicles a critical few months in the lives of
sisters Sloane and Willa Tobin. They’re identical twins, but polar opposites in
every way. Sloane’s a hyper-intelligent, sharp-tongued forensic accountant
who’s focused on getting a promotion at work while Willa is a sweet, kooky pet
psychic who’s on a search for true love. How the two of them help (and
sometimes hinder) each other from reaching their goals and finding happiness is
the core of the story. There’s comedy, romance, cute guys, and even cuter dogs
in Twin Piques!
Blame It on the Fame and In
Need of Therapy are your first two books, what are they about?
Blame It on the Fame tells the story of the five
women who are in contention for the Best Actress award at this year's
Oscars. These are five very different ladies, ranging in age from 24 to
48, and they are all at very different places in their lives and careers. For
some, this nomination is a dream come true. For others, it's a
nightmare. All of them will experience tremendous highs and lows on their
journey to the ultimate red carpet event.
In In Need of Therapy, handling the problems of hysterical
hypochondriacs, lovelorn neurotics, and compulsive man whores is
all in a day’s work for super-shrink Pilar Alvarez. But she might end up on the
couch herself when she has to deal with her crazy Cuban family, a trio of
unsuitable suitors, and a threat to her practice all at the same time.
How would you
describe your style of writing?
Intelligent, witty,
and fast-paced, with a little heat. My stories are complex and focus on all
aspects of the heroine’s life—work, family, friends, and
romance.
You’re an avid reader
yourself, what’s your favourite genre and why?
I’m a genre-jumper
with my reading. I love Historical Romance, Cozy Mystery, YA, and Women’s Fic,
but Chick Lit is, and always will be, my favorite genre—a good thing since
that’s what I write! I adore Chick Lit because it’s upbeat and fun and contains
my two favorite elements in fiction, romance and comedy. Chick Lit is great
escapism!
How are the covers
for your books developed?
I’m a very visual
person, so while I’m working on a book, a concept for the cover art will start
to formulate in my head. In the case of Mixing
It Up, the cover art is a play on an important scene from the book. I then
collect a lot of inspirational pictures (everything from what I think the
characters look like to what they’re wearing, as well as color schemes) and I
send those along to my incredibly talented cover artist, Lyndsey Lewellen. She
always does a great job editing down my vision to something that’s workable and
she adds lots of her own touches that really enhance the cover art. I feel like
my fun, colorful, original cover art is part of my brand now.
Coffee or tea?
I am a big tea
drinker, iced or warm. Must be my English blood. (My great-grandparents were
from the UK.)
Paperback or
e-reader?
E-reader all the way.
I don’t have any more room to store books in my
house, and the inexpensive
price of e-books makes me feel less guilty about my reading addiction.
Mountains or the sea?
Mountains. I find
them very peaceful and relaxing. I’m not a fan of the beach as I burn too
easily.
Summer or winter?
Winter! I love the
cool, crisp temps, the bulkier clothing (sweaters/coats/hats/etc.), and the
holiday season. Of course, I should admit that winters aren’t that harsh in the
southern US where I live. I probably wouldn’t love winter so much if I lived up
north where people have to deal with piles of dirty snow for months on end.
Sweet or salty?
Salty! In moderation,
though. I never salt my food, but I do enjoy a salty treat like potato chips or
pretzels.
BOOK BLURB
Born
with a silver spoon in her mouth, Manhattan upper-cruster Cecily Sinclair now
uses that pricey utensil to dish up fancy French fare on her cooking show, Serving Romance. When there’s an
executive shake-up at the network, she’s not worried. Not much anyway. Her
show’s a hit after all. Why would the
new CEO want to mess with success?
The
driving force behind several buzzed-about networks, Devlin Hayes is considered
to be a wunderkind in the television industry. Although his plans to rebrand
CuisineTV and make Serving Romance
more Millennial-friendly don’t thrill Cecily, her charming, blue-eyed boss is a
hard man to say “no” to and she really wants to keep her job—even
if that means sharing screen time with a loathsome blast from her past.
Mercurial
Italian chef Dante Marchetti a.k.a. “Il Duce” was once Cecily’s boss, and she
has the PTSD to prove it. Now the owner of one of the hottest restaurants in
town, Dante’s egomania knows no bounds and his constant attempts to provoke and
upstage Cecily make her want to conk him on the head with a sauté pan. She thinks they’re toxic together, but
viewers love their chemistry and clamor for more.
As
Cecily battles to maintain the integrity of her show, she finds herself
scheming and manipulating right along with Dante and Devlin. Is she fighting a
lost cause? Does she really belong on TV, or would her culinary talent be
better served elsewhere? And could one of the men who makes Cecily’s blood boil
ignite a passion in her for something other than food?
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01MA4KDSY?tag=geolinkerde-21
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01MA4KDSY?tag=geolinkerde-21
AUTHOR BIO
An avid reader and writer, Tracie Banister
has been scribbling stories since she was a child, most of them featuring
feisty heroines with complicated love lives like her favorite fictional
protagonist Scarlett O'Hara. Her work was first seen on the stage of her
elementary school, where her 4th grade class performed an original
holiday play she penned. (Like all good divas-in-the-making, she also starred
in and tried to direct the production.)
Tracie’s dreams of authorial success were put
on the backburner when she reached adulthood and discovered that she needed a
"real" job in order to pay her bills. Her career as personal
assistant to a local entrepreneur lasted for 12 years. When it ended, she
decided to follow her bliss and dedicate herself to writing full-time. Mixing It Up is her fourth Chick Lit
release, and in it Tracie finally got to live out her fantasy of being a Cordon
Bleu-trained chef.
CONNECT WITH TRACIE
Author
Newsletter – The Banister Buzz http://eepurl.com/by0VAv
Great interview, ladies! Jo - good pick!
ReplyDeleteMixing It Up would make a great movie!