2020 has been a YEAR. I know I don’t have to go on and on about the trials and tribulations associated with it, but with the US Thanksgiving holiday next week, I decided to practice gratitude and think about the things I’m grateful for… some of these are silly, some are serious, and some are, of course, books. Keurig K-Cafe Coffee, Latte, and Cappuccino Maker  This was one of our early pandemic purchases and it has made my life so much better. I’m not saying I stopped going to Starbucks, but having the ability to make delicious lattes at home with just a few pushes of a button has changed my life–and probably the lives of the two people I live with, who know I must be caffeinated to be remotely pleasant. Harlequin Desire Category Romances 2020 will be the year of desire for me… Harlequin Desire, that is. Between the recent cover style revamp and the current crop of authors writing for this line, Harlequin Desire romance novels have saved my life this year. When things began in March, I was in a huge reading slump, and the comfort I found in reading about outrageously beautiful and unfathomably wealthy…

Welcome back to Fresh Fiction, LSA! This may be a loaded question, but how are things going?  Marissa Backlin, co-owner of LSA:  It’s going, haha. It hasn’t been easy, but every month we can pay the bills, we breathe a sigh of relief. I keep saying, if we can hang on until the holiday season and stay healthy, we’ll have some wiggle room. Of course, now that schools are starting to go hybrid and in-person (I’m also a kindergarten teacher), the risk level goes up, but we’re trying to pack up anticipated holiday trope boxes in advance and we’re doing a preorder campaign for them so we can get as many as possible boxed up before Thanksgiving. What are some of the ways you’ve adapted your bookstore to the pandemic? Definitely focusing on online sales and pushing preorders. Before March, aside from November/December, most of our sales were in person. Now, most of our sales are online, which does benefit us because we can sell books we don’t have in store. Now that the store is open to the public, we’re very strict on mask-wearing and we have hand sanitizer at the door, and we have changed our checkout process…

Confession time: I’m a big ol’ scaredy-cat. I’ve been to one haunted house in my life and never want to go again, and I’ve been known to sleep with the lights on after seeing a trailer for a scary movie.  But I love Halloween. Weird, right?  I have been known to dip my toe in what I’m calling “spooky” reads, though. They aren’t really scary per se, but they definitely have an atmosphere. My #romancelandia pal, BandHerBooks, and I like to say we’re “pastel goths,” which I think just means we like skulls and cozy sweaters and idolize Morticia Addams, but that’s a topic for another blog post.  I gravitate toward spooky reads around this year especially, but my supernatural-lite obsession lasts year-round–does my skull soap dispenser stay in the powder room even if it’s weeks past October 31st? Yep. Do I wear all black pretty much every day? You bet. Will this lovely typewriter with a “heartwarming” message have permanent residence in my office? MOST DEFINITELY!  Here are a few spooky reads for the rest of the pastel goths out there–enjoy them at Halloween or whenever you want to do your best Lydia Deetz impression. . . *** THE…

This is our last post this month showcasing Love’s Sweet Arrow. We’ve enjoyed getting to know more about Marissa, the store, and her adorable dogs! We’ll continue to check in with LSA throughout the year. Many thanks to Love’s Sweet Arrow for hanging out with us all month long. In the meantime, remember to support your local independent bookstore!!  Hi everyone! I’m back to do a fun name challenge, acrostic poem style! I hope everyone has been doing well this past week! L—L is for the laughter we all share in the store (You thought I would say ‘love’ I bet!) O—O is for the open doors we hope to have again soon once it’s safe! V—V is for the volumes of love and kind messages we have been receiving since we had to switch to all online ordering, we love reading them! E—E is for everyone who continues to support us through this uncertain time, we truly appreciate every online order and pre-order! S—S is for the super bookstore dogs we have and I live with. Lady and Brando are truly my biggest comfort at this time. * S—S is for the surprise boxes, which are still available in our…

Hi everyone! I thought this week, I could talk about what I’ve been reading lately and why I think I am reading these things. Just like everyone else, I am struggling a lot with the social distancing and isolation as a result of the Corona Virus Pandemic. I moved out three years ago to my own place and I currently live alone with my two dogs (a big reason I picked the place I did – it allows up to two pets). Normally, that’s not so bad and I like having my own space, but it’s been difficult this past month. Also, my younger dog, Lady, has been having trouble too because she’s very social and misses my family too. We’ve had some recurrence of accidents and she is easily scared more than usual by things. If anyone else is dealing with this with their pets, one thing that has been helping immensely is having special body massage time and extra cuddles! I have always taken comfort in reading. When I was in junior high and struggling to make friends, I reread Anne of Green Gables and Tamora Pierce over and over, finding comfort in the found families and the…

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Bookseller-Reader Match” where we introduce you to a bookstore as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Marissa of Love’s Sweet Arrow!  Writes/Sells: I’m Marissa, one of the co-owners of the romance bookstore Love’s Sweet Arrow, the second one in the country! Love’s Sweet Arrow opened last June in Tinley Park, so we are coming up on our first anniversary soon! Love’s Sweet Arrow focuses on having a diverse variety of romance in all subgenres, but also has fun t-shirts, tote bags, buttons, and stickers (some made by BestFriendKelly), soaps (by Perennial Soaps), and candles (NovellyYours, Big White Yeti, and Hearth and Hammer). About: I am 31 and I’ve been a bookstore owner for almost a year now. Before this, I was a special education kindergarten teacher in a local school for a few years and I’m currently a one-on-one paraprofessional in a kindergarten classroom in a different school, which means I’m home from that job too. Before that, I was actually involved in the performing arts and I have an undergraduate degree in music (vocal performance). I’ve got an interesting…

Throughout the month, we’ll be checking in with Marissa Backlin, co-owner of Love’s Sweet Arrow, a romance-focused independent bookstore in Tinley Park, IL. Be sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, sign up for their newsletter, and check out their Patreon. Their online store is still open! Up first, an interview with LSA co-owner Marissa Backlin and FF’s Editorial Manager, Danielle Dresser.  Danielle: Welcome to the Fresh Fiction blog, Marissa! We are so thrilled to learn more about Love’s Sweet Arrow. Where did the idea come from to open a romance-only bookstore in Chicagoland? Marissa: Roseann and I have always been big romance readers. I’ve been reading romance since I was sneaking it around 12 and Mom read it growing up too. I also ordered a few times from The Ripped Bodice once they opened and two Christmases ago, I got Mom the Lydia Bennett box! So two summers ago, we were just talking about how if we had an unlimited amount of money, opening a romance bookstore would be one of the things we would love to do. After a whole summer of daydreaming together about it, we decided to go for it! What are some of your…