Good Reading for Young Adults caught up with co-authors RACHAEL LIPPINCOTT and ALYSON DERRICK to discuss Make My Wish Come True, asapphic Netflix-esque Christmas movie.
Make My Wish Come True reads like a heartwarming romantic holiday movie. What are some of your favourite romantic holiday movies and books?
R: I love holiday movies. Watching incredibly predictable, cheesy Hallmark movies all December long is kind of my thing. Some of my favourite movies are Love Actually, Happiest Season, When Harry Met Sally, A Christmas Prince, Love Hard, and Ghost of Girlfriends Past.
Also, unabashedly, we watched Hot Frosty last week and I absolutely loved it.
A: Happiest Season, Love Hard, and I’m also counting While You Were Sleeping as a holiday movie!
What is your writing process like as co-authors?
R: I think it depends on the book! It always starts with us brainstorming together, coming up with ideas, and then from there putting together a very detailed outline. How the story gets written and what the editing process looks like differs depending on the book, but what matters is that we work together as a team to cross the finish line.
What are some of the challenges with writing a book with a co-author?
A: We both have very different writing and working styles. Rachael works fast. I like to take my time. Enjoy the view. I think this was something we used to run into some friction with, but as time has gone on we’ve learned to make it work, which I think is necessary if you want to successfully co-author a book with someone.
What are some of the best parts of writing a book with a co-author?
R: Getting to collaborate is really special. Sitting down and coming up with ideas and having someone there to take the story to new and unexpected places that you wouldn’t have thought of on your own. I feel like getting to work on a book with Alyson is extra special, because we have such a great baseline of trust and honesty, which I think is essential for success when working with another person.
And, honestly, only having to write and edit half a book is pretty cool. Which, with two kids now, is REALLY nice.
In terms of writing the characters Arden and Caroline, what was your writing process like for those characters? And what was the inspiration behind them?
A: I actually felt like it took me a very long time to get into the mindset of Arden. She was basically the opposite of any character I have ever written and also very different from me. I felt like I was finally able to sort of feel her heartbeat after the first draft. I found that her strong connection with her grandma (much like my connection was with my own) was really my way into understanding who she was and what made her tick.
Make My Wish Come True looks at unrequited love, friendship turned romance, and choosing love over a career. What inspired you to deliver these themes inside a romantic holiday novel?
A: Rachael has always wanted to write a friends-to-lovers, unrequited-love story. So I think we started with that, and then we thought what better way to deliver this than wrapped up in a fluffy holiday novel? I feel like any romance is always upped by the magic of the holidays!
What are some of your favourite romantic tropes?
R: My top three are enemies to lovers, forbidden love, and, like in Make My Wish Come True, friends to lovers. I love some good yearning. Nothing tastier.
A: Only one bed is a classic. And, my personal favourite, damsel in distress.
What is your favourite part about the holidays?
A & R: Family time.
Reading this book feels like a love letter knowing that it was written by a married couple. To me, as a reader, it made the story feel even more special. Do you have any plans to write any more books together as a couple?
R: That’s so great to hear! I know we definitely had that feeling when we wrote our first book together, She Gets the Girl.
A: Which, speaking of future books we’re writing together, we hope you’ll check out the sequel She Gets the Girl Christmas novella coming out next year! We know a lot of readers weren’t ready to say goodbye to Alex and Molly, and neither were we.
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Read an extract from Make My Wish Come True
Find out what’s on Alyson Derrick’s bookshelf
Read an extract from She Get’s the Girl
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rachael Lippincott is the coauthor of All This Time, #1 New York Times bestseller Five Feet Apart, She Gets the Girl, and Make My Wish Come True and the author of The Lucky List and Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh. She holds a BA in English writing from the University of Pittsburgh. Originally from Bucks County, Pennsylvania, she currently resides in Pennsylvania with her wife, daughter, and dog, Hank.
Visit Rachael Lippincott’s website
Alyson Derrick is the coauthor of New York Times bestseller She Gets the Girl and Make My Wish Come True, and the author of Forget Me Not, which was longlisted for the National Book Award for Young People’s literature. She was born and raised in Greenville, Pennsylvania. Alyson currently resides in Pennsylvania with her wife, daughter, and dog, Hank.
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