This book, you guys.
I can’t tell you how excited I am to send this book into the world. I wish I could say it was always a joy to write this story. But that would be a lie, and my mother always told me not to lie. Honestly, Tyler and Gemma’s story brought me more angst than I expected it would.
For one thing, it was never supposed to be written. When I started writing Chasing Her Heart as a Covid project back in 2020, I wasn’t sure if I was even going to publish it, let alone turn it into a series. And when the other books of the Buena Hills series started taking shape, a book about Tyler wasn’t on my radar.
Such is the life of a creative writer, am I right? These characters take shape in my mind and form their own personalities. They’re kind of like having a dozen imaginary friends.
I should know. I had several when I was younger.
But once an idea strikes in my brain, I can never not follow it. Boy, am I so glad I did, because I am in love with this book. And I’m over the moon excited to introduce you to Tyler and Gemma. They’re pretty great. You can purchase your copy at the link below, or read for free in Kindle Unlimited.
Keep reading for some behind-the-scenes tidbits about Discovering Her Heart
*Like I mentioned above, this book was not supposed to be part of the Buena Hills series. Tyler was mentioned a few times in Elise’s book (Chasing Her Heart), and appeared on the page very briefly at the end. But he plays a larger role in book 3. Don’t worry, no spoilers ahead. I only tell you this to say that while I was plotting that book, his story popped into my head and wouldn’t let go until I started writing.
*I originally thought about making Discovering Her Heart book 3 in the series. However, Tyler and Gemma were both adamant that their story happened first. *Cue the angst that I talked about earlier in this post.* I’ve written enough stories (both published and unpublished) to know that when my characters start talking, I need to stop trying to tell the story my way and let them take over.
*Discovering Her Heart was originally supposed to be a novella. Somewhere along the way it evolved into a full-length novel, although it is still shorter than my other two books.
*Gemma’s full name was originally Gemini due to her mom’s profession as an astronomy professor. There was a whole subplot about how she was so embarrassed as a kid about being named after a constellation, so she insisted people call her Gemma. I ultimately cut it because it was making the book too long (see above point about the original length.)
*I didn’t cut any full scenes in Discovering Her Heart. Once I figured out the timeline issue (and Gemma’s name) there were very few structural changes I needed to make. I added a few scenes to add depth to a couple of side characters, but once the first draft was done, there were very few developmental changes.
You can find out more about this sweet friends to more story by going here. And one more time, here’s the link to grab your own copy:
Do you have any questions about Discovering Her Heart? I’d love to answer them in a future post, so leave a comment below.