Interviewing Debut Romance Author Georgia Stone
Georgia Stone is a London-based author of contemporary romance. She writes love stories that she hopes make people laugh out loud and angstily clutch their chests in equal measure. Georgia began as a Bookstagram account and has now proceeded with releasing her debut novel THE FRIENDSHIP FLING.
What inspired you to be an author?
I think anyone who reads a lot, at one point or another, has the idea to write, and I just so happened to go all the way with it. I’d written stories and fan fiction before but never finished a full novel, but back in 2022 I started to write and never really stopped. It wasn’t until I’d started writing regularly that I realised this was something I could actually see myself doing long term (which is a big thing, for someone who previously had no idea what they wanted to do with their life).
What is your writing process?
I find that my ideas for subsequent books simmer in the back of my mind while I’m working on my current project, so typically by the time I’m ready to start something new, I already have about 20,000 words of incoherent scene/dialogue/plot ideas in a Google Doc. From there, I organise those notes into something vaguely chronological, then transpose that onto a more structured plan. That outline and those notes typically make up probably about 70% of the story, so I work around that while writing the first draft and fill in the gaps where needed. After that, it’s just a lot of rounds of edits until I’m ready for early readers, then yet more edits, until I can pretty much recite the whole thing word for word.
Who is your favourite character you have written?
It has to be Ava, the female main character in THE FRIENDSHIP FLING. She’s a lot like me, so she came to me almost fully formed. I loved using her as a mouthpiece for all the tiny observations and thoughts I’ve had.
What inspired you to write THE FRIENDSHIP FLING?
The funny thing is, I have proof of exactly when this idea took shape, because I posted about it (thanks, digital footprint). Like many single women in their 20s, I begrudgingly open dating apps every so often, and in 2021 I started to make a list of obscure reasons I’ve swiped left on men. One day in summer 2022 I decided to share my ever-growing list to people on my close friends Instagram story, and they thought it was funny. From there, I thought, ‘Huh, what if I wrote a story about a woman who goes on dates with these types of men?’ While ACOS ended up moving away from that idea slightly, that’s definitely when the seed was planted.
What should we expect next?
I’m early in the process of editing my second book, which is an interconnected standalone following ACOS, and it’s so difficult to keep my mouth shut about it when all I wanna do is YELL. Hopefully, it’ll be out sometime this autumn, but I don’t want to rush it, so we’ll see.
How does it feel to be a published author?
As of right now, I’m still a few days away, so I’ll get back to you! From early reviews though, it feels surreal knowing that other people have met my lil’ imaginary friends. Someone told me the other day that they’d dreamed about my characters, which is wild to me.
Were you nervous releasing your debut?
Definitely. I’m someone who loves to be prepared, so it’s hard not knowing how things are going to go. I think when you’re an indie author in particular, it’s extra scary because, while you hopefully have a community behind you, you’re essentially a one-person team, which means you either back yourself, or your book doesn’t go out. There’s less space for self-deprecation, and that’s SCARY.
But I’m excited too, because this story has been hanging out in my brain for a while and I can’t wait for it to live in other people’s heads as well.
Will you branch out into any other genres, or stick to rom-com?
I’ll probably stick to contemporary romance for a little while longer, but I’ve always loved fantasy (with a love story, obviously) and would love to try writing that one day. I have some very vague ideas, but nothing at all concrete enough to write yet. Maybe I should try a paranormal rom-com first to bridge the gap.
Can you tell us 3 of your favourite authors?
Emily Henry for sparkling chemistry and banter, V.E. Schwab for masterful fantasy storytelling, and Jessica Joyce for her delicious writing style (despite the fact she’s only released one full-length book so far) (I just know I’ll love her next release too).
If ‘ACOS’ was made into a movie, who would play the main characters?
I have thought long and hard about this and I do not KNOW. There’s a woman on TikTok called Sixtine Rouyre who looks exactly how I imagine Ava, but I’ve been stuck on finding a Finn who fits all the vibes I’m looking for.
If there were actually a film made and I had any say at all in the casting, I’d be pretty relaxed, but my two non-negotiables would be that someone with an English accent has to play Ava, and that Ava and Finn have to be a similar height.
What is your favourite snack while writing?
I am obsessed with these BBQ crunchy corn snack things from Aldi and genuinely believe I singlehandedly keep the product afloat. Generally, though, I’m not a big snacker while writing; it’s just me, a terrible sleep schedule, and my three emotional support beverages against the world.
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