1–What is the title of your latest release?
2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
After a bet is made, a socialite and a mechanic swap lives in this modern twist on TRADING PLACES.
3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
This was a hard decision! I picked the beautiful, historic city of Alexandria. This setting is one of the wealthiest cities in Virginia and where there is money, there are neighborhoods without money. With the surrounding area of Washington D.C., the landscape of privileged versus underprivileged kept drawing me back to this place. It was also important to choose a location with a downtown to serve as a central area with opportunities for the two main characters to run into each other.
4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
Yes! I would hang out with Lexi North in real life. Knowing her character, I don’t think first impressions are the full story. Like anyone I hang out with, I love people who bring a fresh point of view to my life. She would have no problem helping me pick out the perfect shoe and I think we would have plenty in common with our love for over-the-top coffee drinks and pedicures. And we both don’t love doing laundry so we could complain about that together. But I think she is sincere about who she is, and I love her for that.
5–What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Stubborn, spoiled, and honest.
6–What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I don’t think I could swap lives with someone. Writing this story made me realize how much I rely on the four walls and roof over my own head, and what that would feel like to be yanked from a place I know well and plopped into a life I knew nothing about. This is a fish-out-of-water story, and through writing Lexi and Evan, I was reminded how hard it is to be the fish in real life, in any situation, at any age.
7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I do a combination of both. Some scenes are just place holders, others I know will remain, but the biggest hurdle is getting to the end, so my goal is to get there quickly and then start the re-write. If I am stuck and can’t move forward, I’ll step back and edit what I have written—sometimes this opens up a door for a new scene or detour which gets me to the finish line.
8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Ooh, Mac and cheese in any form. I don’t care if it is fancy with lobster, has burnt edges, or from a box. It doesn’t even need to be served hot.
9–Describe your writing space/office!
I have purple walls which I love. A huge bookcase with my favorite books and minimal clutter. Succulents are in this space so I can prove to myself I can keep nature alive, along with fun pens and an unashamed bulk supply of post-It notes. My office is in direct line with the front door, which means I am like a gatekeeper stopping and talking to anyone passing by and indirectly and spends half my writing time distracted.
10–Who is an author you admire?
Oh gosh, there are too many!
11–Is there a book that changed your life?
This book didn’t change my life but was the first moment I wanted to start writing. I have always been a book lover but had never considered taking up writing until after reading Emily Giffin’s Something Borrowed. I remember reaching the end and thinking, “Wow, I wish I could write a book.” I think in part it was because Chick Lit was just making an appearance in the book world and I found those stories relatable. That was the first time I expressed wanting to write—and yet, I didn’t pick up the pen until nearly ten years later.
12–Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be
published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
A fellow author in a writer’s group had suggested Entangled Publishing, and I wasn’t going to pursue this. I was at a point where I was just going to self-publish this story, but I wound up submitting Trading Places with no expectations. When an editor reached out a few days later, my heart sank because I assumed any quick reply was the end of the line, but I was wrong! The editor loved the story and wanted to fill me in on the next steps, but it still wasn’t a “yes.” Publishing is a process with many steps and moving parts. I had to sit tight and wait. But when I got the news, this was a “Yes,” I screamed—literally, scared my family out from their rooms. Then I cried, because it had been well worth the wait.
13–What’s your favorite genre to read?
I adore romance (all types from sweet to steamy), but I’m a mystery-thriller lover at heart. I read whatever I’m in the mood to read (except Sci-Fi). My reading list has no rhyme or reason, whatever I’m craving to read, that’s what I go for.
14–What’s your favorite movie?
The Cutting Edge (I have no shame about this). Each time I watch it, I love every second.
15–What is your favorite season?
This would be fall. I am a diehard lover of all things cliché from talking about the leaves changing to sweater and boot weather.
16–How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I love this question! My favorite way to spend birthdays involves shopping and cake. It’s usually low-key, spent with my husband and kids.
17–What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I just finished watching Project Greenlight, a rare look into what it takes to become a female movie director. I was fascinated with all the players involved in movie making, all the behind-the-scenes decisions and drama, and how difficult that industry is for females to get a foot in the door.
18–What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
This is an easy answer. Indian! I can’t get enough of the flavors and the spice. I could just eat naan on its own as a meal.
19–What do you do when you have free time?
My free time these days is chauffeuring my kids from one activity to another.
20–What can readers expect from you next?
I’m working on a new rom com. That’s all you get.
TRADING PLACES by Emily Duvall
From the outside looking in, socialite Lexi North’s life looks decadently perfect, right down to her diamond-dusted nails. But you know what they say about glass houses… When one night goes horribly wrong—with the whole world watching—she’s challenged to swap lives with the salty, albeit gorgeous, man she rear-ends with her car.
For mechanic Evan Bailey, life is definitely not a party. There’s no “daddy’s credit card” for fixing up his family’s auto shop, raising his too-precocious-for-anyone’s-good niece, and getting his accounts from deep in the red to black. Which is precisely when opportunity—and celebutante Lexi North—smashes into his life.
But what should have been an easy bet gets a whole lot harder with the inexplicably hot chemistry between them. Now the only way for either of them to get what they want is to go for broke…
Romance Comedy [Entangled: Amara, On Sale: September 26, 2023, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781649373953 / eISBN: 9781649374196]
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About Emily Duvall
Emily Duvall graduated from Sonoma State University and The University of Colorado, Colorado Springs with a Master’s degree in Sociology. She worked in the field of social and educational research for several years before taking up writing. She lives in Maryland with her husband and two children.
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