Author Chat with Stephanie Shar

with Lit Happens With Sid. I am your host, Sydney Little, and we are diving right into it. Now I am joined by local author, Stephanie Scharr, and she has a pretty awesome book out, The Love Lottery, which we all could use money and we could all use a little bit of love. So it's a perfect, it's a perfect mix. So Stephanie, tell us a little bit about who you are and what really made you want to become an author. Absolutely. Well, thank you so much for having me. um i'm so excited to be here and talk about my favorite subject which is books and writing so i have wanted to be a writer i've actually been writing since i was seven years old and i was seven years old i was in second grade and i wrote a i hand wrote a 100 page chapter book and illustrated it and i stapled it all together and that was the first book that i wrote and i remember writing in my diary that One day, someone was going to read my words. Women were going to read my words and feel less alone. And so that's always been my core mission in life with whatever I do. I'm currently a social media manager. I also write for two local magazines, Greater Rochester Living and Shelby Neighbors. And I'm a content creator online. And with everything I do, I want women, people in general, but especially women to relate to it and feel less alone with whatever they're struggling And so even though it's a fiction book, It addresses a lot of themes that a lot of us go through loss and, you know, financial problems, you know, the economy, stuff like that, you know, we don't have to get into that, but I'm not that kind of show, but, but no, it's something that I hope everyone can relate to, even though it is fun and it is a love story. And so I came up with the idea for the love letter actually because of my boyfriend, my amazing partner. I was in my late thirties. He was in his late 40s when we met, and he told me, I feel like we won. the love lottery because we've both been through so much. We've both been engaged in the past and just a lot of life there. You know, when you meet at this time in your life, there's a lot of things that, you know, when you're reading a book about like an 18 year old couple or a 21 year old couple, it's like, okay, I'm past that. So I've had, I've had a few other traumatic events since that time. So we, you know, we're different people now. And so that's why I wanted to write the book. He gave me that idea accidentally. And just in my notes app, I put, Okay, the love lottery, this girl's going to walk down the street, find a lottery ticket, this other guy's going to claim that it's his, they're going to fight over it. And that was my initial idea, and it took me a little over a year to write, and then here we are, it came out in August, so. And I love it, too, when you go back to, you know, especially for women to read the book, and I want to pull it up so then that way everybody can, you know, get a little synopsis of it. It's very important, because I think a lot of times women fall into that category of, you know, like, I'm at this point in my life, you know, what's the cutoff? If I'm in my 40s, am I still going to be able to be loved? If I'm in my 30s, am I still going to be able to be loved? And, like, I've gone through this. Am I lovable? Am I unlovable? So I feel like it's kind of like a tit for tat. And I love when, you know, you have stories like this that kind of show, like, no matter what. And it kind of looks like you. You know, looking at the cover, I'm like, hey, that kind of looks like her. So it's very nice when there's different, not teenage love. Not that anything is wrong with that. No. But it's nice when you kind of have the adult version. of what love should be. So tell readers a little bit about what's kind of included. I know you said like they're both technically the owners of this lottery ticket. They're not going to be able to stop seeing each other eventually because everybody wants the money. So tell us a little bit about the storyline. Yeah. So they live in a small town. I grew up in Romeo, Michigan, very small town. You know, we just had Halloween, Tulsa Street was all crazy. And so I wanted to set it in a small town in Michigan. And so it is a fictional town, but it takes place in Michigan. It's kind of like that. And I really wanted to portray this storyline in that type of vicinity where it's like everyone's kind of nosy. They want to know what's happening. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. So I wanted to, to show that. And so what happens is everybody knows each other and so they know each other, but they're not super. Close. He's a bartender. And so she's been to his bar. And so they know each other that way. But it's a forced proximity type of thing. Kind of enemies to lovers because they're fighting over a lottery ticket. But they're also both single and they have chemistry. So like what's going to happen? I don't know. You'll have to read it and find out. Maybe get together and split the money. I don't know. You never know. You never know. Yeah. You never know. You already know it's going to be a happy ending. Yeah. You don't know what the happy ending is going to be. And then sometimes there's like a little bit of drama. In the middle of all romance stories, it's kind of like, what is that drama going to be, you know? Yeah. And so you were telling me, I got a little insider before we started this interview, that you were actually working on something else. Yes. Include the viewers on what that is. Yes. So I sought out to make this a series. I wasn't really sure which book would focus on which character. But now that I've written this book and we have this wonderful ensemble cast, all different types of people, all different ages, races, everything, It's a it's a real town. It's a real town in Michigan. And so by the time I was done with this book, I was like, OK, what do I want the next book to be about? Which characters? And so I know the characters. And and if you follow me on Instagram, you'll see more. But it is going to be a Christmas book. And so it's going to come out next year. So I'm going to be writing it during this holiday season. And so I'm excited. So this is like a spring into summer book. And then there is an epilogue which takes place in the fall. And then the next book kind of carries on right after that. So if you've read this, you can kind of just. Go on to the next one. And you already know it's going to be great because we were talking about like how fun it is and how important it is when you're creating these stories to kind of be in it in that moment. You know, like when it's the Christmas holiday, you're kind of in the field with like the Jingle Bells music and the nonstop playing and the lights and the trees. You kind of get into that festive feeling. And so, Stephanie, before I let you go, is there anything else that you would like to say to fellow book lovers out there or maybe future fans? Go after your dreams. Do what you want to do. Don't listen to anyone who tells you not to do it. As long as you're not hurting yourself or hurting someone else, go for it. That's what I tell my son. Go for what you want and believe in yourself and have fun. Just have fun. That's what life's about. Love people, love yourself. That's all I got to say. Yes. Well, Stephanie, thank you for telling these stories. And I can't wait to read the next one that get ready to come out. And then I'll have you back so we can talk some more love, romance in the holiday season. And thank you for taking the time to come and join us on the show. We greatly appreciate it. Thank you. Thanks for having me. Of course. And we will be right back after a quick break.