Interview with Ruby Landers, author of the GRACE NOTES trilogy

 

I am so excited about today's interview. Not only do I love her books, but I was also lucky enough to be able to beta read them! Ruby Landers is today's interviewee!!! She is the author of the Grace Notes Trilogy. Currently this trilogy has two released books, Falls From Grace and Graceless, as well as a novella, Two Tickets. I've been wanting to interview her since I began beta reading for her and Pride Month felt like the perfect time to do it! Links to follow Ruby and sign up for her newsletter are at the bottom, along with links to buy her books!
     

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

How did you come up with the idea for the Grace Notes trilogy?

I wanted to write some glorious total escapism and I love country music, so the combination led to the creation of Savannah Grace, and the first book of the series, Falls From Grace. I didn't set out to write a series, but once Falls was finished, I realised there was more to explore in this world. I loved Lane and I wanted to get to see them grow, so Grace Notes was born. Something about Rosalie absolutely grabbed me from the beginning and I really wanted to see where she and Savannah came from, so that led to Saving Graces.

That is so valid though! I adore country music and seeing queer romances written about country stars is honestly a lot of fun! And I love that it just kind of kept expanding!
Why did you choose to set the books in the United States even though you don't live here?

I think this just followed almost automatically when I wanted to write about a huge country star! Australia has its own country music scene but nothing that compares with Nashville. I also was bang in the middle of my first hot, humid summer in Queensland and I was craving the idea of snow, so basing it somewhere far away, beautiful and wintery felt like an ideal place to send my brain. It was a real challenge to get the setting and language right, so I'm really grateful to all my US-based beta readers who helped iron out any Australianisms.

That's fair enough. I can't really think of anything more country than Nashville! Plus I definitely understand wanting to escape the heat.
How long did the books take you to write?

The whole series got written in just over a year, give or take. The editing process blows that out to two years though.

Wow, even with editing that is pretty quick! I'm thoroughly impressed!!
What does your book plotting process look like?

I start out with a tiny seed of an idea, sometimes a setting or sometimes a trope I want to explore. I do a rough outline of the plot and some sketching out of characters but I've learned that if I explore the plot too thoroughly I lose interest in writing it, because it feels like I've read it already. I find it incredibly satisfying when my characters or storyline surprises me and that's what keeps my attention for a full book. It feels similar to the process of reading in a way so I like figuring it all out as I go along.

That's really well-worded. I've tried plotting out a few of my own books and I suffer that issue of over-plotting and the story becoming boring. It definitely sounds like you've got a solid process though!
How did you come up with the characters in these books?

It wasn't until you asked that, that I realised I have no idea how to answer that! While the story usually needs a little thinking through, I often feel like the characters themselves appear fully formed in my mind, like they already existed somewhere and are ready to jump into their place in the story. I don't know how that happens? It's a bit weird now I think about it.

Haha, I'm hear to show you the things you didn't know you didn't know. Maybe a bit weird, but I like the idea of that though. That you've got these characters just waiting for you to write a book about them.
I know that you used beta readers for this series (clearly I was the best ??) What was it like to find and use beta readers for what I'm assuming was the first time?

Not every indie writer works with beta readers and we all have different processe, but to me, they feel essential! (Obviously, you're my favourite!) Without outside viewpoints it feels really hard to get enough of a sense of distance from your own story to see how it's going to land and no one knows what their own blind spots are.
Learning how to best engage with beta readers is still a work in progress for me. I think it's a combination between getting enough different voices in the room, without having so many that it's overwhelming. I found that some people absolutely hate the things that other people absolutely love, so it's important to be able to give space to all those reactions and decide to back yourself in your own judgments with all that information on board.
Giving feedback is a real skill and not everyone has that ability. Some people want to be nothing but glowing and others can be quite harsh or just don't gel with your story at all. I think having a balance in your team between some cheerleaders (they build confidence and are incredibly reassuring) and others who are able to give thoughtful critiques about where aspects of the story didn't land (they'll make your work so much better) is the key. I do use an editor as well, but feeling like I can go into that process with some level of comfort, knowing my story is as good as I can get it before formal editing is really helpful.

Thank you! A little stroking to my ego is always good for me! That's definitely a very sound reason for using beta readers. I also love that you showcase the difference in feedback. It's important to realize that not every beta reader is going to be the same. And I also like that you noted that some readers just don't gel with the book. Yeah, I just love how you worded that entire answer.
Do you have any favorite lines/scenes from any of the books in the trilogy?

I think basically all the interactions between Savannah and Rosalie in book three (Saving Graces) are my favourites. I love these two so much as a friendship and seeing the different ways both their relationship and their shifting, variable abilities to support each other evolving over the years is really satisfying to me. I love romance but I'm a big believer that platonic love is equally important in our lives and that those stories should get told too!

YES!!! I absolutely love Savannah and Rosalie's friendship!!! It's so much fun and sweet and the tough love approach. I love these two so much!!!! Plus platonic love does not get enough...well, love.
I also just have to ask a couple of questions about Ribbonwood

as well. Where did you come up with the idea for a social pariah sort of character getting a romance novel?

I'm so excited for people to get to read Ribbonwood! It's a standalone novel and it's not coming out until November of this year. It's also the first book that's written in my Australian voice, so I'm really interested in how that's going to land for people after an entire American-based trilogy.
The original concept for Ribbonwood was around the interactions between all the women in a tiny rural town and all the complexities and layers that involves. I liked the idea of exploring someone who was really on the outside of a close knit community, the different ways a woman might figure out how to survive in that hostile environment, and what might happen if the town's perceptions started to shift. Lara is hands down my favourite of any character I've ever written. Some part of my brain really honestly believes she actually exists somewhere out there in the hills right now, it's a little odd.

I am also so excited!!! Ribbonewood is such a good book! For what it's worth I get it. Part of me also believes Lara might be existing somewhere. That definitely makes sense. There are a lot of things to work through as the outsider of a small, close-knit town. Especially as a female outsider.
The first and last chapter of Ribbonwood are written differently than the rest of the book, why did you choose to write it like that?

Ribbonwood is definitely structured less like a traditional romantic novel, although at its heart it is absolutely a romance. The prologue and epilogue are particularly non-traditional as they're written in first person plural; they're written from the point of view of the town itself. I wanted to start from a really wide, distant lens and see Lara as the town sees her, then zoom in slowly. How do specific people in the town see her? How does our other protagonist see her? Finally we get to really get up close and start to know Lara from her own point of view. The reactions to the prologue/epilogue were really polarised amongst my early readers; the people that love it are wildly into it and the people that aren't, hate it. I loved it though, so it's staying!

I love that lens as the opening and closing of the book!! I think it helps a lot with getting a general gist of what the town thinks of her and honestly it feels a bit like the opening to a movie. Some narration, some snippets of conversations. All of the good bits!
What has been the best part of writing and, in a little bit, publishing these books?

I don't know where to start with this question, because so much about this process has been kind of life-changing for me? Having these books out there has brought me so much joy: interacting with wonderful readers and some incredibly supportive writers; getting to work collaboratively with an amazing cover artist; getting to slowly learn more about craft as I go, with the help of my editor; getting to grips with everything involved in the publication process. On top of that, it's just enhanced my life on a lot of levels because now my job is just my day job and I'm starting to be able to support myself creatively too. Writing romance has brought a lot of love into my life in all kinds of startling ways. I'm so grateful for the entire experience!

I am so glad to hear all of that! I am glad this has been such a positive experience for you!!!
What are some of your favorite queer books that you've read?

I loved Emily Waters `Honey in the Marrow' recently. It's so different from anything else out there and just an immensely beautiful love story. I'm midway through Jo Havens `The Piano In the Tree' right now which is absolutely stunning! L.M. Bennett's `Bespoke' is bloody gorgeous, if you're after a short read, and I'll always read Haley Cass!

Adding those to my TBR now because, outside of Haley Cass, I have not heard of those books! Definitely a shame, but I'm glad I know of them now.
Thank you so, so much Ruby for participating in this interview. It was truly a pleasure to work with you and an honor to interview you. I'm hoping that everyone that reads this decides to check out your books as they are some of my favorites! I hope everyone has an absolutely amazing day!

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

You can find Ruby Landers on their website, Instagram, Goodreads, and newsletter.

You can buy Ruby Landers's books using universal links. Here is the universal link for Falls From Grace and here is the universal link for Graceless.

If you can't buy her books but you still want to read them, consider requesting them to your local library or checking out Kindle Unlimited!