Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway | Brandy Jellum

Today I’m excited to share a fun little Q&A with author Brandy Jellum. Scroll on to read the interview and get a sneak peek excerpt of her new novel! Once you’ve read a bit about Brandy and her novel, don’t forget to enter the giveaway!!

This One’s For You by Brandy Jellum

Published: July 24th, 2015 by Booktrope

Book Details: All alone in a new state, Brennan Daniels has only the memories of her best friend, Reagan, to keep her company as she starts college.

Reagan is the reason for everything Brennan does—before she died, she made Brennan promise to stay good until she found a man worth keeping. No boys, no dating, and definitely no falling in love—those were the rules for college, and Brennan carved them into the brick walls guarding her heart…

But there’s a fire burning behind those walls, and when Brennan meets Owen Scott, the (mysterious) new guy across the hall, she can’t deny the pull between them. He is everything she should never want. Everyone warns her to stay away—even Owen himself—but the heart wants what the heart wants, even if it knows that it’s going to get hurt—even if it means throwing old promises to new flames…

Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Author Interview – Brandy Jellum

Author Bio: Brandy’s passion for writing began long before she actually sat down to write. As a child, she has had an obsession with reading, everything from the classic stories by Jane Austen to YA Fiction by Richelle Mead. Finally, in 2012, she decided to create her own stories for people to fall in love with. Brandy bounces back and forth writing both Romance and Young Adult Fiction (which is mainly just for fun). At the beginning of 2014, Brandy signed a contract with publishing company Booktrope. She is very excited about the next chapter of her life and cannot wait to share her books and passion with readers. When she isn’t writing, she can be found chasing after her husband, her four children and her black lab, Diesel. Or curled up on her favorite corner of the couch with her newest book.

1. Would you like to start by introducing yourself?

Hi there, I’m Brandy Jellum, author of the Say Something Series and my newest release titled This One’s For You. When I’m not writing, you can find me wrangling my four children and husband. Or coaching volleyball at our local junior high school. I obviously love to read and try to whenever I have the time, as well as listening to music and discovering new artists/groups to love.

2. Can you give us a brief overview of your latest novel and the inspiration behind it?

This One’s For You (TOFY) is a full length New Adult standalone. We meet Brennan, the main character, as she sets off for college, making memories, and trying to deal with the loss of her best friend. The inspiration for this story stems from my own loss that I experienced back in August of 2014. A tragic accident took the life of my best friend of thirteen years and the most amazing person I have ever known. She was the inspiration for this story as many of the characters shared physical/personality traits with her. Writing this story was healing for me while I dealt with losing her.

3. How long did it take you to write This One’s For You? What is your writing process like?

I started writing TOFY about a month after I lost Mirranda and the first draft was completed towards the middle of February. So about four months, which is longer than it’s ever taken me to write a story. But I was dealing with emotions I had never dealt with before, had a lot going on in my personal life, and so on. My writing process really isn’t all that fancy. Once I get an idea, I sit down with my laptop, plugin my headphones, and just start writing. That’s really about it!

4. Can you tell us a bit about what you’re working on at the moment?

At the moment, I’m working on a couple things, and waiting to see which one takes off. The one I’m really hoping will click soon is a Contemporary Romance that is sure to tug on a few heartstrings. It’s different than what I’ve written so far, but the story in my head is so beautiful, and I really can’t wait to put it into words.

5. If you were given an offer to turn This One’s For You into a movie, who would you want to see playing the roles of Brennan Daniels and Owen Scott?

Candice Accola as Brennan would be amazing and Colton Haynes as Owen! They would be my perfect dream couple on the big screen!

6. What is your favorite thing about writing romance novels?

I love the beauty behind it. I love how authors, not just me, can create these worlds, these characters, and set them on a path of forever. I absolutely love looking back to the beginning of my work, seeing where the characters started, the things they went through, and how they overcame it all. It may be fictional, but it gives me hope. The one thing I always tell my husband is, “We’ll figure things out. We always do.” And when writing romance, that’s exactly what I do. I figure out how to bring them together. It’s a beautiful thing.

7. If you could marry a fictional character who would it be?

I’d marry Harry Potter, (when he’s all grown of course). I grew up with him as my first book crush and I absolutely love Harry Potter, the books and the movies. I’ll be a Potterhead for life. Always.

8. Who are the authors that inspire you and what genres do you enjoy reading?

My author BFF CD Taylor! She’s a rockstar and is always there when I’m feeling stuck. After a ‘quick’ conversation –which really means like two hours– I’m always inspired to write again. I love to read anything with romance in it! As well as thrillers and suspense. I have a weakness for New Adult though.

9. What inspired you to start writing and what continues to inspire you?

I owe my best friend, Mirranda, for inspiring to write. I remember a conversation we once had and she asked me what I loved most in the world, and I told her books. She then asked why I don’t write my own. (At the time I wrote songs and poetry. It took a couple of years before I finally started writing after that but she planted the seed. What inspires me now is all the characters in my head begging for their stories to be told. And my kids think it’s pretty cool that mom’s a writer. So that’s always an added bonus.

10. What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?

Write the story that I would want to read! This has probably helped me out the most because I was so concerned with what people would think of my stories. It wasn’t until I accepted and actually followed said advice that I found myself in love and free to write whatever I wanted.

11. What kind of environment do you write in?

Utter chaos! I write whenever and wherever I can! Just two weeks ago, I was writing on the bus on the way to a volleyball game (I was coaching). And then after the game, we stopped off at a McDonald’s to eat, and I was scribbling away in my notebook while being surrounded by about 14 teenage girls. It’s no different than writing at home. However, at home, I just plug in my headphones, and set the kids lose. Not really, my husband is usually home, but that’s basically the same thing.

12. A few of your favorites…

Favorite scent? Pink Ice from Rue 21

Favorite color? Sea Green

Favorite food? Pepperoni Pizza and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Favorite word? F*ck. I curse like a sailor

Favorite song? My Demise by Mikey Duran

Favorite book? Harry Potter Series and Angela’s Ashes

Favorite/dream vacation spot? Athens, Greece

Favorite time period in history? Victorian/Renaissance

Favorite article of clothing? Leggings

Favorite drink of choice? Dr. Pepper

Favorite celebrity crush? Theo James

13. Either or…

Dogs or cats? Dogs. Specifically, teacup yorkies.

Red wine or white? White

Coffee or tea? Coffee

Summer or Winter? Winter

Sleep in or get up early? Sleeping in, only because it’s a rare occasion these days with four kids running around!

Apple or PC? I love my HP laptop!

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Excerpt – This One’s For You

“What are you doing?” I asked under my breath.

“Watching you sleep.”

I giggled nervously. It was a strange feeling, knowing that he was staring at me. Before, I would’ve found this weird, maybe a little creepy, but right now I found it incredibly sexy. And utterly embarrassing.

“Did you know that you wrinkle your nose in your sleep?” Owen asked. “It’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”

My face was on fire now. I groaned, tucking my head into his side. My body vibrated as he chuckled next to me. It was hands down, the sweetest thing I had ever heard. I draped my arm across his stomach and squeezed him.

“What time is it?”

“A little after two,” Owen answered.

I moved my head back and looked into his eyes. “Have you even slept yet?”

“Why sleep when I can spend that time staring at you,” he said softly. He pressed his lips against my eyebrow. “Have I told you how lucky I am?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Well, I am. I don’t know what I did to deserve you, Brennan Grace Daniels, but I will do anything to keep you here. Forever in my arms.”

I blushed, hoping he couldn’t see my rosy cheeks in the dark. “I’d like that.”

“Yeah?” he responded. “Me too.”

~~~