I'm lucky (or cunning) enough to have lured yet another successful writer over to my blog for an SAT - Successful Author Talk. SAT authors have conquered the query, slain the synopsis and attained the pinnacle of published. How'd they do it? Let's ask 'em!

Today’s guest for the SAT is Erin La Rosa who has written many highly engaging... tweets, as a social media manager. But on her way to writing romance, she's also published two humorous non-fiction books, Womanskills and The Big Redhead Book. Her newest release For Butter or Worse comes out July 26!

Are you a Planner or Pantster?

I’m a planner by nature of being a Capricorn, eldest daughter, morning person, and all-around type-A gal (in my darkest hours, I probably relate a lot to Tracy Flick, played by Reese Witherspoon in Election). But I wasn’t always a planner—in fact, For Butter or Worse, which is my debut romance, started off as a pantster project. But as I soon learned by not having an outline I basically had to write a completely new book. So now I am squarely Team Planner.

How long does it typically take you to write a novel, start to finish?

I would say it takes me five to six months to write a book, from coming up with the idea, to outlining, to a draft. But I think a lot of my writing takes place in rewrites, and those notes from readers are oh so important for me.

Do you work on one project at a time, or are you a multi tasker?

I do multi-task! Right now, for example, I just turned in a draft of my book two to my editor and agent, but I’m also on deadline for a made-for-TV movie script that I sold with a writing partner. I try to handle these projects by giving them specific times of day—my book work happens the first half of the day, and I dedicate the second half to movies. 

Did you have to overcome any fears that first time you sat down to write?

I’ve been writing in some form or another since I was a little kid, so I’m not sure I was afraid when it came to writing. My fear comes in finishing a project—this is always hard for me to do. I can start a new project every day, no problem, but seeing it through to the end is when I start shaking and stress eating ice cream.

How many trunked books (if any) did you have before you were agented?

Oh my… I had to count and it took me a long time to dig up all of the books I’ve started and not finished, or simply just weren’t good enough. I would say I have four to five books that will never see the light of day.

Have you ever quit on an ms, and how did you know it was time?

I’ve absolutely quit manuscripts in the middle of writing them or changed direction on them. I feel like when I’m not having fun with the story—like, it feels like a slog—then I know something isn’t working. If I can’t rewrite my way to the fun, then it’s time to put it aside and maybe come back later.

Who is your agent and how did you get that "Yes!" out of them? 

I am so glad you asked this question, because I am OBSESSED with my agent—Jessica Errera at the Jane Rotrosen Agency. I had a month where I queried about twenty agents. Eighteen of those were blind submissions, and I was fortunate enough to have two people in my life who referred me to their agents. One of those was Jessica Errera, so I was able to at least be seen by her. But she wasn’t an immediate YES—she had a lot of notes on my book, and wanted to see me revise a few chapters to make sure I could meet what she needed to sell the book. So I felt like I had to win her over, but I made sure to view the whole process as me selling myself along with the book. Like, here’s the book but also here’s what I bring to the table as an ambitious, over-achiever. So I think that helped in the long run. I was fortunate enough to have three agents interested in me, but I knew I wanted to work with Jess after our first call and the amazing notes she had.

How many queries did you send? 

For my book, For Butter or Worse, I queried twenty agents. Out of those, I had three interested, and a few who sent nice rejections, and a handful who sent not nice rejections! Writing is so subjective, and you’ll never get a YES from everyone who reads your stuff.

Any advice to aspiring writers out there on conquering query hell?

The worst-case scenario is that someone says no. The world won’t end, it’s just one person saying no. But the best case scenario is a yes, and you’ll never know their answer unless you try and keep putting yourself out there.

How did that feel, the first time you saw your book for sale?

When I see For Butter or Worse as a book you can pre-order… I’m just floored. I went to visit my favorite romance bookstore, The Ripped Bodice, a few weeks ago, which is also where I’ll be doing a book launch, and it was surreal to know my book will be in that store, where I’ve walked so many times and bought so many books. I will probably cry when I see it there in person for the first time!

How much input do you have on cover art?

Truly not much! I sent examples of covers I loved, but ultimately cover art is not my area of expertise, and I trusted the team at Harlequin to choose an artist who would make my book pop. I was so fortunate that artist Natalie Shaw (@neobees) was my illustrator and we had the amazing art direction of Gigi Lau (@lau.gigi.lau).

What's something you learned from the process that surprised you?

I’m a romance author, so one of the really interesting things has been telling people I write romance, and they almost always have a funny reaction. Like, “Oh!!!” or “With sex scenes?!” I do enjoy making people a little uncomfortable, I have to admit!

How much of your own marketing do you?  Do you have a blog / site / Twitter? (I'll insert the links here)? 

I come from a marketing and social background—I wrote for BuzzFeed, and led social at Netflix and Amazon Prime Video—so I’ve definitely taken on a lot of the marketing and social in a proactive way. But I also have amazing teams at Harlequin and BookSparks (A PR firm I hired) who are helping to spread the words about the book. You can find me on Instagram TikTok. and Twitter !

When do you build your platform? After an agent? Or should you be working before?

I’m someone who deeply believes in the power of social, so I’m all for encouraging writers to be active in social and building out who they are, before selling a book. It’s not a huge deal for fiction, but in non-fiction it’s crucial!

Do you think social media helps build your readership?

One hundred percent, yes! I’ve had readers tell me they found me through a TikTok post and purchased my book because of that. BookTok is REAL, and everyone should try it out!

Erin La Rosa she lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three daughters (one human, two felines). Find her on Twitter and Instagram and on TikTok.