Erynn, do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

I love, love, LOVE homemade chocolate chip cookies. The Charmingly Chocolate Chip Cookies from Trader Joes are the closest to homemade that I've found that you can buy store bought.  I also love chocolate milkshakes. :)

Give your own definition of chick lit.

I think chick lit is has changed a little bit over the years. Before, the characters needed to be in their thirties, desperate for love and pretty sarcastic. Now, I think it can encompass different ages, different motives and different voices - as long as it's fun, entertaining and has that twinge of romance!

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

I'm forever putting my foot in my mouth, so awkward moments are pretty much a daily occurrence for me. Sadly.

What about any crazy college Bible study stories?

I was SO lucky to be a part of some amazing college Bible studies - and yes, most of the scenes in my books are usually directly related to some of the ones I lived through! I remember we used to meet at this house that four guys shared and they would roll out huge area rugs right before everyone came over and then roll them back up right after everyone left so they never had to vacuum their carpet. Bleugh!

Do you have any writing quirks? 

Oh gosh - I never do the same thing twice. Sometimes I sit on the couch, sometimes I'm at the kitchen table, sometimes at the desk. Sometimes I need coffee, sometimes a chai tea, sometimes just good old fashioned water. Usually I'm wearing sweatpants. I went through a phase where I chewed gum the entire time I was writing and let me tell you, I had enviable jaw muscles.

If you were going to co-author a novel, who would you choose to write with? Why?

Honestly, I don't know that I could co-author a novel. I think I write in such a scattered, unorganized way that I would drive any other writer absolutely insane. Plus, I never know where I'm going to take the story until I'm in the middle of writing it. Such habits do not a good co-author make.

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

Love Fools Rush In by Janice Thompson - I read that recently and just cracked up.  Robin Jones Gunn is always a magical read - I can only read her every so often though because I get so envious of her storytelling abilities! 

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

England and Austria. I want to go see where Jane Austen grew up and I want to do the Sound of Music tour. I can think of several really fun storylines that could happen on a Sound of Music tour. :) As far as people I would bring, I'd make it a girls trip and bring my mom, sister, grandma and a couple of my bestest friends. 

Also, I think it would be too fun to write a story in Australia and I would definitely want my husband to come with me for that one. After growing up watching Man From Snowy River, I think Australia is such a romantic place!

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

Sheesh! This is a hard question! Can I have multiple lives? I'd pick Pride and Prejudice, but they hadn't discovered deodorant yet, so that might be more of a See And Not Smell place I'd like to live. And I would love to have gone on the road trip in Elvis Takes A Backseat, because seriously - a life-sized statue of Elvis was in the backseat. But I think my top choice would be Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, because y'all, they had milkshakes falling from the sky.  

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

Every person I've ever talked to who is a photographer is absolutely in love with their job - I think that would be my next choice. Can you imagine a more fun job than capturing all of the priceless moments in people's lives? 

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

Writing-related advice: Accept criticism with a critical eye. Everyone is going to have a different thought on where your manuscript should go - listen to the advice that you believe really makes your work better and ignore the advice that changes your vision for the book. 

Non-writing-related advice: Don't get distracted while blow drying your hair or you might end up sucking hair into the wrong end of the dryer and that is painful. Be sure to break in the shoes you are planning on wearing during your wedding before your wedding day. Running while holding a bottle of water is harder than it seems, particularly if you've lost the cap to the bottle. I'm full of very important pieces of advice. 

Thank you SO much! This was fun!! :)

Thanks for joining us, Erynn!

To learn more about Erynn and her writing, check out her website. She has also graciously offered to give away a copy of Cool Beans, the first book in her Maya Davis series. You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about what novel you would choose to live in. Or, well, just comment below. :-)