The Next Together

by Lauren James

This past Friday, January 8, 2016, Marcy and I posted our answers to Lauren’s debut novel The Next Together. Today, you get to read Lauren’s favorites.

Great in depth answers and insight in to your characters, Lauren! We can’t wait for our readers to read the novel. And hopefully to give us a few of their favorites, too.

1) What is your favorite line or paragraph from the novel as it relates to the main character's development and/or growth?

Beware, there are lots of spoilers in my answers!

Her thoughts kept flickering through thousands of memories; she couldn’t focus or process any of the scenes flooding her mind. She couldn’t place any of the moments, just had to let the snapshots of their lives together flow over her: images of Matthew smiling at her, snatches of conversation, kisses. They were on a boat, and then they were in a candlelit garden and now they were in a science lab.

This is the big pay-off for me, when Kate finally admits that she and Matthew had past lives together. It’s what the whole book was building up to.

2) What is your favorite chapter ending or cliffhanger?

I prefer this over some other cliffhangers, which are more plot based and dramatic, because this was the first kind of ‘cliffhanger’ I ever wrote, back when I was 18 and first starting to write, and I was just so impressed with myself for it.

He shrugged her off, turning his back to her and beginning to slowly, carefully, dress. There was a flush of angry pink spreading down between his shoulder blades. She watched him, not knowing what to say. When he had finished buttoning his shirt, he walked away without turning

back to look at her.

For a long moment, Katy stared after him. There was a lump in her throat that wouldn’t go away however much she swallowed.

3) Who is your favorite secondary character and why?

Tom Galloway, Matt’s brother in 2039. He’s a main character in the sequel, and I really loved exploring his personality more and developing him as a person.

Tom smiled seductively. “Like a feel?” He flexed his bicep. Kate gave an overdramatic sigh. She could almost feel the force of Matt’s annoyed glare.

4) What is your favorite line or paragraph of description?

Kate’s gaze was focused absolutely on the cardigan on the back of the desk chair. It had faded to a pale cream from the force of twenty years of sunlight, but the knitted pattern was still obvious in the fabric. She brushed her hand over it, feeling the threads beneath her fingertips. Her breath caught. This was Katherine’s.

This is a small but poignant moment that I really love.

5) What is your favorite line of dialogue?

Just because I laughed a lot when I wrote this (I write books primarily to entertain myself. If anyone else enjoys them too, that’s just a bonus. In this case, I really, really had fun.)

“I thought you were cool,” she said accusingly, sadly. “You misled me. All this time. With the retro haircut and the mismatched clothes, I thought you were being ironically hipster, but really you are just an old man! I can’t date someone who listens to farming radio shows. It will utterly ruin my street cred!”

Congratulations to Lauren on her debut novel, The Next Together!

To read more about Lauren James and her debut novel The Next Together, please go to:

Blog:  https://laurenejames.wordpress.com/2015/04/20/the-next-together-is-a-real-book/

Twitter:   https://twitter.com/lauren_e_james

Instagram:   https://www.instagram.com/laurenelizjames/

Amazon:   http://www.amazon.com/The-Next-Together-Lauren-James/dp/1406358053

Good Reads:   http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23266378-the-next-together

Tumblr:   http://lauren-e-james.tumblr.com/book