About the Author
Tiana Smith is a copywriter turned novelist who grew up in the Wild West of Montana. When she isn’t writing, she’s chasing after her ninja boy, reading, or binging the Disney Channel. She’d love to be fluent in sign language, but for now she gets by with awkward hand gestures and even more awkward French. She has double degrees in Honors and English from Westminster College but wants to go back to school to be a lion tamer.
Author Interview
Thank you! Being a debut is a lot of things all at once. Exciting. Scary. Validating. Nerve-wracking. It's a lot to take in and a lot to try to juggle. But I'm learning as I go and I'm trying to not sweat the small stuff.
In your opinion, what is the hardest part of the writing/publishing process? What's the easiest?
I hate editing. A lot. I would much rather be writing a first draft. That's when things seem magical to me. I discover a lot as I'm writing, so a new shiny idea always holds my interest. But editing? When I've read the book 1,000 times and I feel like I've written the same sentence five different ways? Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of that.
The other thing that's been hard for me is trying to balance everything (drafting something new, editing something old, marketing, and promotion) all at the same time, with deadlines for everything. I'm getting better at it, but I still feel like there has to be a better way of handling things that I'm somehow missing!
What's some advice that you have for aspiring/fellow debut writers? What do you wish you could've told your pre-debut self?
Don't compare yourself to others. It's so easy to do in this industry, but so damaging to your sense of self. There will always be other people hitting lists, getting huge sale numbers, glowing reviews, and a host of other things. Comparing yourself to others is instinctive, almost inevitable. But all those things are outside of your control, and not worth your time.
Where did you find the inspiration for Match Me If You Can?
I've always loved rom-coms. Movies, TV shows, books, it doesn't matter which medium. So I wanted to write a book that gave readers that Happily Ever After satisfied feeling. Match Me If You Can came about because I was watching the movie She's the Man and I could not stop laughing. I loved the idea of multiple couples getting caught up in one huge comedy of errors. And that's where the idea started!
Who you do think was the hardest/most difficult character to write in Match Me If You Can? Why?
I think Elena was probably the hardest for me to write. I had to rewrite her several times, in fact. In the first draft she was so unbelievably cruel, it was hard to imagine why she and Mia (my main character) were even friends to begin with. Then she got softer in subsequent drafts, and while she still does some pretty harsh things, I think she's more rounded as a character.
Who was your favorite character to write in the story? Why?
I loved writing Logan. He's so suave and sure of himself. He gets some of the most flirtatious lines, and I really enjoyed getting to know him. I'm a little worried my future love interests in books won't measure up!
Do you have any plans for building off of Match Me If You Can in the future?
I've considered doing a companion novel, taking one of the minor characters from Match Me If You Can and giving them their own book. I left a few things open, especially with one particular character, so that I could if I wanted to return one day.
But for now, I don't have plans to do that. I have too many new ideas competing for my attention, and new ideas always seem so shiny compared to revisiting old ones. I'm a bit like a dog chasing after a squirrel in that way, I guess.
About the Book
Title: Match Me If You Can
Author: Tiana Smith
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Hardcover, 288 Pages
Publication Date: January 9th, 2019
Summary: Mia's best friend Robyn is known for her matchmaking skills, which is perfect, because homecoming is just around the corner. But Robyn refuses to set Mia up with the guy of her dreams, which forces Mia to take matters into her own hands. She uses Robyn's matchmaking service to make sure popular Vince Demetrius falls for her. Vince asks her out, but Mia doesn't count on Logan, the persistent school newspaper photographer who seems to like her out of the blue. Now she has to choose between Vince - the guy she knows is right for her - and Logan, who insists that she give him a chance. And she needs to make sure Robyn doesn't find out that Mia's been matchmaking behind her back. Mia has two weeks before homecoming. Can she fix the mess she made or will she have to kiss her perfect match goodbye forever?
We'd like to thank Tiana Smith for being awesome enough to stop by the blog and let us host this interview! If Match Me If You Can sounds like something you're interested in, then don't forget to add it to your Goodreads TBR, which you can do by clicking here. This was a great one that we enjoyed reading, and our review is coming to you next week!
No comments
Please note that if your comment doesn’t appear right away, it’s because we have to approve it. Make sure to click the Notify Me box so you can check back once your comment has been approved! ❤️