Ink and Flame Episode #1
Bridgette Hooper: Author of Reverie

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Transcription

Tina Koutras (00:00)
welcome to Ink and Flame. I'm your host Tina Koutras and today we're sitting down with Bridget Hooper to talk about her book Reverie. Hi Bridget, how are you?

Bridgette (00:10)
Hello, I'm good, how are you?

Tina Koutras (00:12)
Good. You say that you're experiencing a little bit of weather down at home right now. Where's home? Nice. That's awesome. So that weather's probably headed up to me shortly anyway. ⁓ goody. I think that's what my day is tomorrow is a lot of rain. So I get your after storm, I suppose. So I'm going to get started with asking some questions about what it was like

Bridgette (00:16)
Yes. New Jersey. Yes. Yes.

Absolutely, absolutely. Lots of rain.

Tina Koutras (00:38)
growing up with your imagination? What's a childhood memory or experience that you think shaped your love of storytelling?

Bridgette (00:46)
You know, my parents always read stories to me as a little girl. It's my siblings too. but I was just always one of those kids that had like journal after journal after journal. And I was constantly writing. and I wrote a book in the sixth grade. had this, this contest and, I wrote a book about my guinea pig and his name was Snookums and the

book one first place. And I was like, yeah, I was kind of like, wait, you know, maybe I can do this. And and now here we are a billion years later.

Tina Koutras (01:11)
exciting.

That's pretty cool. So how long was this little book?

Bridgette (01:21)
Yeah.

Ooh, I want to say like maybe 20 pages. Maybe, but I there were illustrations too. I know. Yeah. Yeah, it's it's real good.

Tina Koutras (01:27)
Okay. ⁓

Self-drawn ones? Nice. Do

you still have Snookum's book?

Bridgette (01:41)
My parents do. They won't give it to me. They won't.

Tina Koutras (01:42)
That's sweet.

That's funny. So what created your love of storytelling? you, that was the first time you wrote, but what sort of started it?

Bridgette (01:46)
Yeah.

I don't really know. You know, I just had an imagination, I guess, and I had to get the stories out. Like I couldn't just keep them in my head because everything kind of got jumbled and I was getting confused and I was like, you know what? Just start writing. And I wrote and I wrote and I wrote and a lot of it was absolute garbage. But you know, when you're a kid, you're excited to write and you don't have any inhibitions.

Tina Koutras (02:16)
Good.

Right, exactly. So how did that translate as you got a little bit older?

Bridgette (02:26)
Well, it's hard to say because when I was growing up, you kind of realize like being an author isn't necessarily a secure stable job, you know, and it was kind of, kind of told to me that maybe I should do something else. And I fell in love with medicine. I love medicine. I love science. And I decided to be a nurse. So I was a nurse for 10 years.

Tina Koutras (02:37)
Mm-hmm.

Okay.

Bridgette (02:53)
and now took a break and here we are.

Tina Koutras (02:57)
So did you keep writing while you were a nurse? Like just letting your imagination pour out or did you put it to sleep for a little while?

Bridgette (03:03)
I

did not have time to have an imagination between nursing school and then I was a night shift nurse for, I don't even know how long, too long, way too long. And you just kind of lose, you lose a part of yourself sometimes when you work nights and when you're giving so much of yourself to other people, you kind of lose part of yourself. So I didn't really have a chance. I didn't even get to read.

Tina Koutras (03:26)
Yeah.

Bridgette (03:31)
Like I wasn't even reading. I was just trying to survive on Night Shift.

Tina Koutras (03:37)
Wow. Yeah, I can relate to that. Actually, I just did a reel on Instagram about the fact that I did, it's like talking to myself. I did the same thing. I wrote a lot when I was young, exactly what you just said. I did a lot of handwritten stories and books and things like that, like notebooks and things. And then when you get to a certain age and you got to pay the bills, you kind of get your head out of the...

Bridgette (03:37)
Yeah

Mm-hmm.

Tina Koutras (04:06)
per se and pay the bills and same thing I totally relate to what you just said.

Bridgette (04:10)
No, exactly.

And then all of sudden you're like, wait, I loved doing this. Why did I stop doing this? Like this makes me happy. This is like, feels like what I'm supposed to be doing.

Tina Koutras (04:17)
Exactly. ⁓

Right, so that leads right into the next question of if you could go back and give your younger self any advice on writing, what would you say?

Bridgette (04:32)
I would tell her that the stuff that everyone is saying is weird, the dragons, the wizards, the magic, all this stuff, it's not. There's a ton of people who love it, who want to read it, who love it just as much as you do. Just stay weird. Like just stay weird.

Tina Koutras (04:52)
That's awesome and so true because I grew up when, know, nerds, we hid in the closet if we were nerds. So I totally get that. So was there a specific moment when you realized I'm an author and I'm going to do this?

Bridgette (04:59)
Yeah

I would say, you know, it's funny, because my husband was like, you're an author, you're an author, because I wrote a book. And I was like, no, no, I'm not. Like, very much imposter syndrome. Very much like, if, you know, if I can do it, then it's not, it can't be hard, you know? But when I sent the book out to my ARC readers, to people I don't know, to people I've never ever met and might never meet, I was like, oh.

Tina Koutras (05:23)
Right.

Bridgette (05:35)
But this is real, like I'm actually doing this.

Tina Koutras (05:39)
I read some of those reviews. There's some, some love in there.

Bridgette (05:42)
Yeah, they're really all, everyone who's read it has just been so sweet and I love when they come to me and they tell me like through DMs, through my website, whatever, just if they liked it, what they liked, if the characters resonate with them. I love that. I love it.

Tina Koutras (05:59)
That's exciting. I think that's beautiful. So what's the most surprising thing that you've learned about yourself through writing?

Bridgette (06:08)
that I can do it.

Tina Koutras (06:09)
hahahaha

Bridgette (06:11)
Just that, you you can do hard things and it takes time and I shouldn't be scared of what I'm feeling inside because I can translate it to paper, to pen, whatever, and someone else might actually relate to it as well.

Tina Koutras (06:27)
Yeah, that's awesome too. And I think there was a social media post that I saw that goes through my mind all the time is tell your story, somebody needs to hear it. think there's quite a few motivational and indie authors are fantastic for it because they say it, you know, that's a common phrase for them. Just tell your story, somebody wants to hear it. I love that.

Bridgette (06:30)
you

Absolutely.

Tina Koutras (06:51)
So how has your life outside of writing, like your love of the Philadelphia Eagles or other hobbies influenced your stories?

Bridgette (06:59)
First all, go birds. We won the Super Bowl this year. It was a great night, great night. But I, so I'm actually, I bake at home and I, in Reverie, Ashlyn, the main character, bakes as well. So it's just, it's nice to be able to, I think, stuff that you do into the book because it's just kind of pouring a little bit more of your heart, a little bit more of your soul into it.

Tina Koutras (07:22)
Yeah.

These subtle little nods that are directed at certain people. They're fun to, to plant in there. Have you done it with more than just yourself? Like included other people that you know specifically? Yeah. Do you want to talk about any of them or are they a secret?

Bridgette (07:26)
Yes.

Yes.

⁓ yeah. Yeah, actually. Yeah, they're not the villains. They're not the villains.

So I have like three best friends and I kind of incorporated part of their personalities into the characters of the book. And I actually in the acknowledgement of the book, I put like, you know, thank you for unknowingly lending me parts of your personality. I don't even think they've read that part yet, but they're gonna, they're gonna feel so special.

Tina Koutras (08:05)
They're gonna go through it with a fine-tooth comb now.

Fantasy is such a vast genre. What's your favorite aspect of it to explore in your writing?

Bridgette (08:21)
I enjoyed the journey of a soul. How every single fantasy novel is kind of like, who are you at the basest level? And it brings out exactly who you are. And I love, love, love, love stories like that. Because it's not about the nonsense. It's just about you and what you can do when hard things happen.

Tina Koutras (08:47)
I think that's, so automatically a certain book comes to my mind, but I'm going to ask you what book comes to your mind as a source of inspiration for that.

Bridgette (08:55)
There's two. so everyone loves to hate Nesta Archeron. Everyone. I loved Nesta. I loved her because she's so real. She's angry. She's, she's kind of violent, like, and she doesn't care, but she grows. And I love, love seeing character growth and not this, you know, the like kind of fake growth, like

Tina Koutras (09:00)
That's the book I was thinking.

Bridgette (09:23)
from the soul, you kind of bloom. That's what I like to see.

Tina Koutras (09:27)
Yeah, but that's that was exactly the book that was going through my mind because I felt the exact same way. As soon as you said that that's what you love about the fantasy genre, I'm like, yep, I can definitely resonate with that. I totally agree.

Bridgette (09:30)
Yeah.

Yeah, I loved her.

Tina Koutras (09:43)
So if you could bring one element of fantasy into the real world, which one would it be and why?

Bridgette (09:50)
The romance. No, I'm kidding. ⁓

Tina Koutras (09:54)
Hahaha!

I'm

Bridgette (09:55)
I I would bring in, this sounds ridiculous. I would love to be good at like hand to hand combat. I would love to just be able to fight someone.

Tina Koutras (10:05)
I get away with it.

Bridgette (10:06)
Yeah,

yeah, and be like praised for it. Yes, what do I have to do?

Tina Koutras (10:09)
for it to be the norm.

I don't know, join some martial arts somewhere. That's cool though. I think that's a neat, that's a feisty spirit right there, I think. Nothing wrong with that.

Bridgette (10:15)
Yeah, I know. I have to let that go.

Yeah, you know, I know, I know. It gets me in trouble.

Tina Koutras (10:28)
What do you think makes a fantasy story truly memorable for your readers?

or is it the transformation again?

Bridgette (10:33)
The reader, yeah,

the reader has to relate to the character. There has to be something like an actual person. You know, they're not this all-knowing, brilliant fighter, brilliant everything. Like, there has to be realistic flaws.

Tina Koutras (10:52)
Yeah, like they gotta go through it.

Bridgette (10:54)
they have to go through it. Because if not, you're kind of like, all right. Boring. Yeah.

Tina Koutras (10:59)
What's the point? Yeah.

Yeah, that makes sense. That's good. Are there any fantasy cliches or tropes that you actively avoid or enjoy flipping on their head?

Bridgette (11:12)
There is one trope I will never, ever, ever, ever write. And anytime it's in a book, I debate closing it, throwing it away. It's the love triangle. I cannot stand that trope. And I couldn't tell you why.

Tina Koutras (11:20)
really, it's that bad? Okay, I wasn't expecting that.

Bridgette (11:31)
I just...

Tina Koutras (11:31)
So

just in general, like the animosity between the third person, I'll say, or what aspect? I'll be honest, I don't, I can't even think of one love triangle book that I've ever read. I don't think I have one. except for, know, maybe Sarah J. Maas has like the hint of one kind of.

Bridgette (11:51)
⁓

yeah, well, I know that's the hard part, you know, her next book, you know what, and I'm probably gonna love it in that book. You know, but there's not really any trope besides that one that I'm like, I love, you know, I love Fated Mates. I love Enemies to Lovers. I don't like bullies. You know, the bullying trope, I don't like that. Like you can not like someone and not...

Tina Koutras (11:56)
Yeah.

Yeah.

I don't.

Bridgette (12:17)
be like totally awful to them.

Tina Koutras (12:19)
Yeah.

How do you balance creating a fantastical world while keeping it relatable for readers?

Bridgette (12:28)
So in Reverie, there's two worlds. She's living in this world and she's also living in her dream world. And for me, the balance was just making sure that it felt real, that her dialogue was real, her relationships were real, her feelings were real. Because if not, then it kind of gets away from you. And you have to reel it back in and say, wait, what is the point? What am I trying to get to here?

Tina Koutras (12:49)
Yeah, I get that.

Right. So, Reverie, aside from Snookum's, it, is your first book, right? So, it has a very strong title. I was definitely, I love the word, reverie. I love what it invokes. What does it mean to you and how does it tie into your story?

Bridgette (13:01)
Rest in peace. Yeah.

I actually got the title from a lyric in Sleep Token's, one of Sleep Token's songs. They were all I listened to when I wrote this book. And I just liked, one, I like titles that are like in your face. It's memorable, sort of. And it just means daydream. And that's kind of what the book is. For me,

Tina Koutras (13:28)
Okay.

Right.

Bridgette (13:42)
For me, the book is a daydream. I dreamed about this book for three weeks before I finally said, okay, I need to put something about this on paper. And now it's real, like it's a real book. It's not just a daydream. And it's the same with Ashlyn. Like this is her dream, but it could be her reality too.

Tina Koutras (14:03)
That's a cool thought process. ⁓ So what was the most challenging part about writing reverie for you?

Bridgette (14:05)
Thanks.

The most challenging part was definitely Ashlyn's inner monologue, her feelings are very closely tied to mine for what point of life I was in. And it was necessary for me to get how I was feeling on paper. And it was hard to make sure that it translated to the story and not just to my life.

Tina Koutras (14:38)
Okay, now I have to read it.

Bridgette (14:39)
Yeah.

It's just, it's, kind of a relatable. It's a very relatable feeling that Ashlyn has of feeling useless, feeling like she's not really meant for anything that she like, what's the point of her being there? You know, but she still always holds out just a little bit of hope that something could change. And that hope is kind of what

keeps her going and she's, she realizes she is worth something in the end.

Tina Koutras (15:12)
Beautiful.

Bridgette (15:14)
Yeah.

Tina Koutras (15:15)
So, do you have, I mean, I suppose you have, is your favorite character Ashlyn?

Bridgette (15:22)
Yeah, but I feel like that's, that's lame. Like, oh, the main character is my favorite, but like she is, she, I love her. I feel very connected to her, but I do, I have a very close second and her, her name is Amory and she's very much, she was the easiest one to write because all she is is my inner thoughts that aren't filtered, that my sister would be like, oh, like stop, like, oh, you know.

Tina Koutras (15:34)
Okay, who's your close second?

Bridgette (15:52)
And it was just,

Tina Koutras (15:52)
Yeah.

Bridgette (15:53)
she was just so easy, right? And she's fun. She's a fun character. Yeah.

Tina Koutras (15:56)
See, she's fun, yeah.

You need those characters to cut through the tension sometimes.

Bridgette (16:04)
Absolutely, and she does a great

job of that.

Tina Koutras (16:06)
How do you approach writing emotional or high stakes scenes?

Bridgette (16:11)
I don't really have an approach. just kind of, just kind of go for it and hope for the best. And, and, later on through edits, I'm like, okay, I know what I was trying to get to and what's a more polished way for me to say what I meant to say.

Tina Koutras (16:27)
So you said you dreamed, this is kind of on the fly, you said that you dreamed about Reverie for about three weeks before you started writing it. How long did it take you to do the first draft?

Bridgette (16:40)
four weeks.

Tina Koutras (16:41)
wow. You were writing.

Bridgette (16:42)
It literally was like, it was like vomiting. I,

there was no plan. had no outline, nothing. I just wrote. And then I was like, wait, there's a story here.

Tina Koutras (16:55)
Now that's going for it for sure. So do you, do you draw from a lot of, you said that one of your characters is kind of your inner dialogue, but do you draw from a lot of personal experiences for some of the emotional depth that you achieve?

Bridgette (16:57)
Yeah.

Absolutely. And I feel like a lot of authors do because you want it to feel genuine. You want it to feel like this is something that other people have felt before and that you're not alone. And if you're writing something that you don't know, it sometimes it just feels fake. It feels forced. And I didn't want anything to feel forced about what she's going through.

Tina Koutras (17:27)
Yeah.

Yeah.

I did see in one of the reviews somebody does mention the connection of the characters that they feel very real. So that's cool. You achieved it. So what is one thing, and this is like my favorite question because it's such a deep question. What is one thing that you would love for readers to take from your writing?

Bridgette (17:45)
Yes, yes.

from my writing or from just this book?

Tina Koutras (18:01)
from this book.

Bridgette (18:02)
From this book, I want everyone who reads it to know that you are not worthless. You are not useless. There is always hope for better. And you do mean something. Even if you don't feel it, even if it doesn't seem like it, you are loved. I swear.

Tina Koutras (18:24)
So, I think I hear the nurse coming out maybe in that sentiment. Yeah. Because nurses deal with a lot and I think that there's maybe some definite notes of that nurse coming through in that sentiment for sure. So...

Bridgette (18:28)
Yeah, she never goes away. She's always there.

I can't quiet her, she's so annoying.

Tina Koutras (18:47)
let's lighten it up a little and talk about your creative process and inspirations. You had mentioned that you listened to, a certain album or band, throughout the writing process. I, I can't listen to lyrics when I'm writing it just kind of gets noisy. So what was the name of the band? Sleep Token. Any specific album?

Bridgette (18:51)
No.

sleep token. Yes.

No, no, just their whole, I listen to literally every single one of their songs.

Tina Koutras (19:15)
Okay, I'm gonna have to check them out because I've never heard of them before.

Bridgette (19:18)
They're very interesting because they're metal and pop and I don't even know how to describe them. There's a lot going on with them.

Tina Koutras (19:25)
I'm going to write them down.

Sleep token. I think it's funny that I take the time to write stuff down when all I have to do is hit replay later on, but I still write it down. So what's your writing setup like? What do you like to do? Do you have snacks or specific time of the day or what do do?

Bridgette (19:32)
You never know.

So I tried to do snacks. I really did. But it would just turn into me being like, I should get more. Like, you know, and I'm still hungry and I'm still hungry. And I would, I would just eat the whole time and kind of stare at the computer. So now I don't really do snacks. I do a water. I have a giant cup of water and mint tea. Yes, exactly. Mint tea. And I have to listen to music.

Tina Koutras (20:07)
you

Bridgette (20:13)
have to listen to it. And if it's not sleep token, have this other playlist that I listen to. It's a lot of classical, classical music or like pop songs redone in a classical way. Sort of thing, but I cannot be in silence. I just can't do it.

Tina Koutras (20:22)
Yeah.

Okay.

me either.

So have you ever, did you, I mean not in four weeks, I don't imagine did you get writer's block, but maybe during the editing process did you ever struggle with you know connective tissue and stuff that's inside the storyline?

Bridgette (20:47)
Oh yeah, but I think the easiest thing for me to get rid of writer's block was to move. So working out, going on a walk, doing something and then you're like, wait, you know, all of a sudden it comes in from the ether. Like there is no rhyme or reason. It's just like bam. And you're like, there it is.

Tina Koutras (21:07)
It's funny, said go for a walk, because one of my authors that I just spoke to, maybe two weeks ago, she was the same thing. She'd just go for a walk. I haven't had it happen to that degree yet, maybe because I spent a lot of time outside with my dog. So maybe that's one of the reasons I get that little bit of outside time there. surrounded by nature is definitely my favorite way to.

Bridgette (21:16)
Yep, every time.

Yeah.

Tina Koutras (21:36)
to feel stuff, you

Bridgette (21:38)
Yeah, I don't even know. can't even explain it. Like all of a sudden it just is there and you're like.

I could have had this like 10 minutes ago, 20 minutes ago.

Tina Koutras (21:44)
Yeah,

exactly. So how do you stay motivated during the tougher parts of the storyline?

Bridgette (21:50)
I think motivated is a funny word because I don't. And I noticed it's the same thing with fitness. I used to be a fitness instructor as well. And I'm not always motivated. I don't always want to write. I don't always want to work out. But it's dedication. I will carve out that time. Even if I don't want to, even if I, know, kicking and screaming, I will carve out that time and I will do it regardless.

Tina Koutras (21:55)
Okay.

Okay, I love that. I want that to play in my head every day. So right now I started cold plunging about, I don't know, two weeks, maybe three weeks now. Two weeks, I guess. Maybe. Anyway. And I do it every morning at the same time. I get up and go downstairs and outside into the cold plunge. And I see that as easy now.

Bridgette (22:25)
my god.

Tina Koutras (22:43)
It wasn't easy on day one, but it's easy now and I definitely need to apply that to my workouts because those are still, you know, like three times a week and I want them to be five. thank you for that. Back to writing. What do you suppose is one piece of advice that you've received from another writer that stuck with you?

Bridgette (22:43)
Great.

It's so hard.

Yeah.

Tina Koutras (23:05)
That was my moment right there. Another writer just told me, go do my workout. Okay, so what's yours?

Bridgette (23:09)
⁓ Yeah, right go work out and then go right doctor nurses orders ⁓

Mine I don't really know if it's advice is it's it's more just like the first draft is just you telling the story to yourself Like you can always go back you can delete you can carve it up, but just get the story out

Tina Koutras (23:33)
Yeah, that's fantastic advice. And it's so true. You're not committed and, you know, it's not in stone. ⁓

Bridgette (23:34)
You know.

Right. Right.

You can change all of it, but you have to get it out first.

Tina Koutras (23:46)
perfect. So if you could co-write a book with any author, living or dead, who would you choose?

Bridgette (23:51)
Right.

I have two and they're both alive. Gerald Brahm, I don't know if you've heard of him. He wrote Sleuthfoot, which is one of my top five favorite books of all time ever. And Pierce Brown, who wrote the Red Rising series.

Tina Koutras (23:55)
Okay.

Okay. So what is it about them that grabs you?

Bridgette (24:15)
So I like Brom because he's weird. Like he writes weird things, macabre, they're fantastical, they're mythical, but he does it in a way that you fall into the world. Like it feels real. Like you actually are talking to the devil. Like you actually are, you know, doing whatever. And Pierce Brown just has a way of telling a story that you're

Tina Koutras (24:36)
Right.

Bridgette (24:43)
just so involved in from literally from page one.

Tina Koutras (24:48)
and they're both fantasy authors.

Bridgette (24:51)
Yes, Pierce Brown, he does more like the sci-fi and Braum, think they characterize Braum more as like horror.

Tina Koutras (24:56)
Okay.

Okay. All right.

Bridgette (25:03)
But

yeah, they're great.

Tina Koutras (25:06)
So you like those deep emotions getting rocked a little.

Bridgette (25:11)
Yes, and I like the weird stuff. I like this. I like to read stuff that people are afraid to admit that they like.

Tina Koutras (25:14)
Hahaha.

Okay. All right. So what's the last book that you read that completely blew your mind? It might be from one of those guys. So

Bridgette (25:31)
I'm literally reading the Red Rising series right now. I just went to the store today and bought the last three books of the series. So there's six, six right now. And I think he's coming out with a seven.

Tina Koutras (25:34)
Okay.

How many are there total?

Okay, I'll have to check it out because I like some I like some fantasy storylines like is he the fantasy writer or is he the the science fiction one? Science fiction, okay.

Bridgette (25:54)
He's a science fiction. Yeah,

but God, it's so good. Literally the first sentence, I was like, well, I'm stuck in this. It's so good.

Tina Koutras (26:05)
Do you know it? Can you share it?

Bridgette (26:07)
Yeah, was, it's something like I wanted to live in peace, but my enemies brought me war. Well, all right, tell me more.

Tina Koutras (26:15)
Okay, yes.

So if Reverie were turned into a TV series, what song would you choose for the opening credits?

Bridgette (26:27)
You know, I want it to be something unique and like in your face, but I love the song. It's called The Love You Want by Sleep Token.

Tina Koutras (26:39)
Okay, I'm going to add that one to my list of things that I could just rewind and watch again.

Bridgette (26:39)
because I... Let me write that one down real quick.

It talks about...

the love that you want. And I always, when I listened to it, I always imagined the dream, her dream was talking to her saying like, I'm full of the love that you want. Like I'm full of what you want. You just have to, you have to give in. You have to see it. You have to accept it. Yeah.

Tina Koutras (27:02)
Nice.

Okay, so let's talk a little bit about your audience. Do you have a favorite experience with some of your readers, whether it be in person at events or or through Goodreads or whatever?

Bridgette (27:19)
I, yes, I had one reader DM me on Instagram and she said, I read it and I'm reading it again. And it was before the book even came out. She was an art greeter. She's like, I just, I feel so connected to it. And I was like, I'm gonna cry.

Tina Koutras (27:40)
My heart!

Bridgette (27:41)
Yeah,

I was just so reassuring that other people connect to her as much as I did.

Tina Koutras (27:46)
Thanks.

And that's like to have an arc reader. Like, it's one thing when you send your book out and it's with maybe hundreds of thousands of people that you don't even know. But for your arc reader who may or may not know you right off the hop to connect with you that fast, that's pretty amazing. Like statistically, sooner or later, somebody's gonna love you. But for it to happen so early is what I'm getting at. That's pretty cool.

Bridgette (27:59)
Mm-hmm.

I just...

Yeah.

Yeah, I was just so grateful. And I don't think people realize like how much a simple DM or a simple email like that means to an author. You know, that like I'm not screaming into the void. Like someone has read it and someone enjoys it. It's beautiful.

Tina Koutras (28:23)
Yeah. Yeah.

Right.

I spoke

to somebody, yeah, exactly. So are there any upcoming projects or surprises that you can tease your fans with? Some new works?

Bridgette (28:34)
Yeah.

I so reverie is the first of a duology. have the second book ready for beta readers. ⁓ Yeah, no, I'm insane. Because when I sent book one out to beta readers, I wrote book two in like six weeks. And it so I've had it ready. I've had it done but

Tina Koutras (28:51)
Nice.

Bridgette (29:03)
The tease, I think, would be the villains in the book are called the cruento. And they are like a rebel group insistent on control of women again, complete control of women. And in the first book, in Reverie, you just learn about them, you hear about them. In book two, we experience them. And it's a bumpy ride.

So buckle up.

Tina Koutras (29:27)
Well, that's a good tease. think that's a good introduction. And what's the best way for your readers to connect with you? I know that you mentioned Instagram. What's your handle there?

Bridgette (29:29)
Yeah.

Yeah,

my Instagram handle is at Bhooperauthor. And that's probably the best way to get to me, but you can go on Bridgettehooper.com and I have a little contact sheet. Do it there. Smokestacks, whatever, just talk to me.

Tina Koutras (29:53)
any questions that you wish your your readers could know about you?

Bridgette (29:57)
Now I just want them to know that, I am an author, which is like really weird to say. but I also am just a normal girl. don't put me on a pedestal. Don't do it. Just talk to me. Like, like you would a friend get into my DMs, comment on my stuff. Like I will talk back to you.

Tina Koutras (30:16)
That's awesome. So do you have a copy of your book on hand?

Bridgette (30:17)
Yeah.

Tina Koutras (30:22)
It's a beautiful cover and I see dragons in the background.

Bridgette (30:25)
Thank you,

Tina Koutras (30:29)
Yeah, so

that was one question that I ask all the time is what's your favorite fantasy creature? And I mean, I could guess, but am I right? Do we have this in common?

Bridgette (30:41)
I love, I know I saw that. I was like,

I love dragons. I love their, power that they have, the, how like they kind of just have a wisdom to them and that they're just, they're bad ass. Like they're just so cool. But I, it's not so much a character. Like a very close second for me, it wouldn't be a creature, is I love.

Tina Koutras (30:51)
Yeah.

Ha ha ha ⁓

Bridgette (31:06)
a good sidekick that is completely unhinged. Like they're weird, they're violent, they're... I love that. I will eat that up every single time. Yeah, I love it.

Tina Koutras (31:17)
keep you guessing.

Awesome. So I guess the last question is, what's one thing you'd like to say to someone picking up your book?

for the very first time.

Bridgette (31:30)
You know, go into it with an open mind and.

If it brings up emotion, like don't tamp it down. Just, just feel it. And if you relate to it, that would be, it would make my day.

Tina Koutras (31:43)
That's beautiful. So Brigitte, I think that that's a very exciting novel you have there. And when do you have a release date for your second one?

Bridgette (31:53)
It for my second one. no. no

Tina Koutras (31:54)
Yeah,

all depends on how the beta goes, I guess.

Bridgette (31:58)
no.

Yes. Yes. I've had two readers so far and, you know, obviously I need more.

Tina Koutras (32:08)
So do you have applications open for it now?

Bridgette (32:10)
Not yet. I wanted to give myself a month between the release day and doing anything else with Book 2, just to kind of decompress. Because April 24th.

Tina Koutras (32:22)
Okay, what date did Reverie come out at?

Okay, so it just came out for the first one and you've got the second one like ready to launch. Wow, okay. ⁓ No wonder why you want to take a little break.

Bridgette (32:28)
Yes.

Yes. I know. I know. I know. said I was insane. I said I was

insane. I was not joking.

Tina Koutras (32:40)
That's wild. Okay, that took me. Now I remember seeing it was April 24th, I believe, that it launched, So yeah, that was pretty recent. Yeah, actually it was my first day doing Cold Plunges just to be honest with you, because it was my... ⁓

Bridgette (32:41)
Yeah.

Yep. Yep.

Yeah. Yeah. I don't even know. Was it two weeks ago? I don't even know.

my god. I would rather

release a book.

Tina Koutras (33:04)
I only remember it is because it's my nephew's birthday and it's the day after my son's birthday. So I know that I started my cold plunges the day after my son's birthday. you know, you'd be really surprised. I'm in Canada and I'm doing cold plunges. Trust me, you could do it.

Bridgette (33:08)
⁓

Good for you. That's one I could never.

I don't know.

Yeah.

Tina Koutras (33:26)
Anyway, so that's pretty exciting that you've got the second one ready to go to Beta Readers. I'm sure you're going to probably do a ARC sign up at some point. I have to keep an eye out so I can cross promote with you. And that's pretty exciting. I'm very excited for you to have not one, but two, because my sister despises when an author takes forever to between books. And as a writer, when

Bridgette (33:36)
Absolutely.

Yes. Okay.

Thank you. ⁓

Yeah, because then you don't want to,

you don't want to forget what happened. You know, but yeah, and I'm actually

Tina Koutras (33:57)
Exactly. Or suffer through

the cliffhanger that whoever leaves you on.

Bridgette (34:03)
Right, and I have a, starting another series now. It's gonna be.

Tina Koutras (34:07)
Okay, so this

second book is actually gonna close off the duology like completely.

Bridgette (34:13)
I haven't decided yet.

haven't decided yet but there are ideas.

Tina Koutras (34:16)
Okay, but you are starting another series.

Bridgette (34:20)
I'm starting another series, yep, it's gonna be a trilogy. And that's all I'm gonna say right now.

Tina Koutras (34:28)
Okay.

That's exciting. So exciting. So from, from not getting to write at all and only participating in the real world for a few years, now you've gone full throttle into the author life.

Bridgette (34:31)
Thanks.

Absolutely, yeah, and it feels good. It feels wild and some days disheartening and all that other stuff, but it feels good.

Tina Koutras (34:56)
Are you still working as a nurse?

Bridgette (34:58)
Absolutely not. No.

Tina Koutras (35:00)
Nice! So you're full

on full time as an author now.

Bridgette (35:04)
Full on, yep.

Tina Koutras (35:06)
Well, that definitely explains the four weeks to get it written. ⁓ That's awesome. Okay. So we've covered off how people can find you. Where can people buy your books?

Bridgette (35:11)
I know.

Mm-hmm.

You can buy my book on Amazon. have a, I'm on Kindle Unlimited and you can also buy the ebook there. And the paperback is on Amazon. then Barnes and Noble sells the hardcover and a paperback. And any indie bookstore, whatever, if you ask them, they might carry it. So if you have like a local one and you are interested.

Tina Koutras (35:42)
Okay.

Awesome. I'm so excited to check out this book. I think it's fantastic. It's right up my alley. I am struggling to read right now because I'm falling in love with every author I talk to and I have this big long TBR now while I'm still writing and I'm sure you can relate to that challenge. But I am going on vacation soon and I do plan on bringing a lot of books with me.

Bridgette (35:48)
Ask about it.

Thank you.

Yes. ⁓

There you go.

Tina Koutras (36:13)
And my sister is

Bridgette (36:13)
Yeah, I don't.

Tina Koutras (36:14)
also reading just as often, so she's like my reading buddy. That's right.

Bridgette (36:18)
She's your wing woman.

Yeah, no one tells you when you are an author how hard it is to also read. You know, you're like, because I love reading and I love writing, but there's only so much time in a day.

Tina Koutras (36:25)
Right. That's exactly my problem.

That's right. So Bridget, thank you so much for sitting down with us tonight on Income Flame. I really enjoyed getting to know you and to hear about Revary. to, you know, I'm excited for you. I love the feel of your excitement. It feels amazing. So thank you. I really appreciate the chance to sit down and talk to you. And I hope the incredible success for these two books.

Bridgette (36:42)
Thank you.

Thank you.

Me too.

Tina Koutras (37:03)
Yeah.