'Tis the season for Rachel Winters...plus a book giveaway

Photo by Lou Abercrombie

Calling all rom com fans! Today we have Rachel Winters here to talk about her debut novel, Would Like to Meet. It's perfect for anyone who loves a good romantic comedy film (or novel). Thanks to Putnam, we have one copy for a lucky reader!

Rachel Winters has lived and worked in London since graduating with a degree in Creative Writing, and a Masters in Publishing. She's spent most of her twenties freelancing for local papers and online magazines—including writing a weekly column about her cat (though she has never owned one). It's very Sex and the City. She firmly believes there are few problems that can't be solved with good friends and very large glasses of wine. She's currently an editor at Orion Books. Visit Rachel on Twitter and Instagram.

Synopsis:
Can you fall in love like they do in the movies?

It's Evie Summers's job to find out. Because if she can't convince her film agency's biggest client, Ezra Chester, to write the romantic-comedy screenplay he owes producers, her career will be over. The catch? He thinks rom-coms are unrealistic--and he'll only put pen to paper if Evie shows him that it's possible to meet a man in real life the way it happens on the big screen.

Cynical Evie might not believe in happily ever after, but she'll do what it takes to save the job that's been her lifeline . . . even if it means reenacting iconic rom-com scenes in public. Spilling orange juice on a cute stranger? No problem. Leaving her number in books all over London to see who calls? Done. With a little help from her well-meaning friends--and Ben and Anette, the adorable father-daughter duo who keep witnessing her humiliations--Evie is determined to prove she can meet a man the way Sally met Harry. But can a workaholic who's given up on love find a meet-cute of her very own? (Courtesy of Amazon.)

In one sentence, tell us what your road to publishing was like.
Long and unusual (heyoo)! I wanted to be a writer since I was little, did a Creative Writing degree, had my confidence knocked, went into publishing instead and ended up finding my way back to writing.

How are you similar to or different from Evie?
A great question. Eagle-eyed readers might notice that my surname – Winters – and Evie’s – Summers – is similar, however it’s a lovely coincidence. I’m a big Buffy fan. My friends who read the early drafts said it felt like they were inside my head, but as I found Evie’s voice, and how strong it was, it became very much her journey and her story to tell. I did have a similar experience to her as my confidence in my writing was knocked by someone in a role that was supposed to be supportive. In the end, she turns out to be far braver than I am, though she definitely shares my sense of humour (I spared her the dad jokes).

If Would Like to Meet were made into a movie, who would you cast in the leading roles?
I honestly didn’t start thinking about this until after I’d written it. But, since watching LAST CHRISTMAS, I can only see Henry Golding as Ben, and, as I’ve grown up watching her in films, I can’t think of anyone more perfect than Emma Watson to play Evie and give her earnestness and heart. Also, how brilliant would Hugh Grant be as Evie’s terrible boss Monty?

What is your favorite winter holiday activity?
My family and I have a tradition of going out for a curry on Christmas eve with some old family friends. I don’t know where it came from, but my fondest memories are of crisp, wintery evenings, slightly tipsy on rose wine, walking back from the restaurant together on quiet streets with snow crunching underfoot.

That, and rewatching THE HOLIDAY (because Jude Law will one day turn up on my doorstep)

What is your favorite winter holiday dessert?

Chocolate Yule Log! Desserts should always include some variation of chocolate/caramel in my humble opinion. I will never understand the British fondness for Christmas pudding.

What is your favorite winter holiday song?
One of my family’s first CDs was an old Christmas album. I’ve no idea who the singers were, or what it was called, but their rendition of "Winter Wonderland" feels like the only correct version. As a kid, I remember belting out ‘Then pretend that he is Parson Brown’ and feeling like he was the only one who truly understood me.
I wish that was a lie.

Thanks to Rachel for chatting with us and to Putnam for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

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Giveaway ends December 17th at midnight EST.