Page 177 of A Love Letter to Whiskey
• • •
A Note From Lauren Sweet, narrator of the A Love Letter to Whiskey audiobook:
I've narrated more than 225 romance audiobooks. I've narrated amazing stories of love of all kinds, all ages, and all body sizes. There've been harems and werewolves and second chances, and I have lost my virginity more times than I can count. Even with all that, I can honestly say that A Love Letter to Whiskey stood out.
I remember leaving the booth every day feeling totally gutted in the best way possible. It was an experience of putting all my emotions on the table, because that's what Whiskey asked of me. Some books reach deep inside you and demand you pay attention. They grab hold of you and don't let you go. Not until you've consumed every last drop.
As an audiobook narrator, I love books that challenge me to use all of myself. I love books that delve deep into the human experience, that make your gut churn because you know they're talking about something so real that it scares you. I love a good happy ending, but I also love the dark, underside of things. Whiskey does all that.
It reminds me of my favorite Shakespeare sonnet, number 147:
My love is as a fever longing still,
For that which longer nurseth the disease
There was something deeply poetic and darkly rich about Whiskey, with writing that got past the barriers of your head and straight to your heart. I'm honored to have been able to lend my voice to it.
I hope you love it as much as I did.
Lauren Sweet
• • •
Fun Facts from the Author:
The yellow house on Scenic Drive that B lives in during high school was based on the house I lived in when I was in high school. And yes, it was bright yellow with red shutters on the windows, and it was right on Scenic Drive.
Pittsburgh became a star in this book after I visited for the Black & Gold Author Event hosted by Southern Belle Book Blog. I fell in love with the city and knew I wanted to set a story there.
B’s love of taking baths is inspired by my own, and how much comfort I find in them when I’m going through a particularly tough time in my life.
While most of my novels take months to write and edit, A Love Letter to Whiskey flew out of me in nine short weeks. And this was while I was still working a full-time job 45 hours a week. It completely consumed me, and I couldn’t sleep until I’d written for these two crazy characters.
When I first wrote the scene of Jamie and B surfing in California, I had them both in swimsuits. It was one of my beta readers who informed me (someone who had never been to Cali
ornia at the time) that the Pacific ocean is a lot colder than the Atlantic over here in Florida. Turns out, surfing in a skimpy bikini isn’t the best choice, and so I re-wrote the scene with B discovering how different the surf was on the other coast.
Jamie and B’s love for The Piano Guys stemmed from my own obsession with them in college. They were my favorite to study to, and it opened my eyes to how much I actually really love classical music. Since then, I’ve expanded my knowledge of the genre and still write to it to this day!
There were two scenes that I physically cried during writing: the scene when Jamie and B fight in her apartment after hooking up when she’s engaged, and the scene where they fight in the parking lot after B tries to surprise Jamie and finds him with Angel. Those scenes just played out so viscerally in my mind and I couldn’t help but get swept up in the emotion.
My favorite scene in the book is a tie between the fight scene in the parking lot and the bonfire scene at Alder, just because they were so young and emotions were so high. I loved that angsty feeling!
I swore I’d never write a longer ending or anything from Jamie’s POV… and apparently, I lied. ;)
A book is never truly written by just one person, and I had the A-team on this project. I have so many people to thank, but first (mostly to save you from having to read this novella), I want to address you — the reader. Man… that was a rough one, wasn’t it? I know I put you through a lot of emotions with A Love Letter to Whiskey — some that you probably loved, and some that you probably wanted to kill me for. I just want you to know that I love you, and I am so thankful that you let me take you on this journey — even if it wasn’t the easiest. Please, don’t ever stop reading. And don’t ever stop taking a chance on Indie. OH, and come find me on the internet, because I love to hang out with my readers. You can start by joining the Kandiland group on Facebook.
