First Comes Love

Pillows? Check! Car games? Check! Sanity? Check…? We’re ready for the road trip of a lifetime! Let’s dive into the behind-the-scenes scoop on First Comes Love:

Olivia: The person you've loved since college is back in town for a trip with your old friends, and you're finally ready to cash in on the marriage pact you two made after one bad college breakup... But can you use this trip to convince them that you're meant to be?

Jeffrey: You know when you have a plate of food and you try every piece while saving the one you want the most for last? Imagine that, but as MC's love life.

Oh, my! 😅  Well… We can’t wait to meet MC and friends! Who are you most excited for our community to meet?

Olivia: We have a really fun, close-knit cast of characters - but I'm especially excited for people to meet Blake, the girl or guy of MC's dreams. The two of them have so much history, and their playful, supportive dynamic is really sweet (if I say so myself).

Katie: Blake is adorable, but by far Eve is the coolest BFF ever. The first time I saw her outfit, I fell in love with her entire vibe.

Amanda: We have a fun little friend group in this book, who all have really unique personalities! One of my favorite characters is Blake; their "effortless" vibe really makes you grow to love them, especially when they're not afraid to goof off with you and your friends. You get a lot of opportunities to walk down memory lane, and really discover how your friendship (and love) grew for each other! 

Jeffrey: The core cast is great, but one of my favorites has to be Marcelino, our zany dad-energy friend who is a little *too* invested in your love life because he has a stable marriage and needs to get the hot tea from somewhere.

We do love some good spilt tea. 😏 What type of fun scenarios can our community find themselves in throughout the book? We heard some situations can get a little spicy. 😈

Olivia: Anyone who's ever been on a friend-cation knows that it puts you into close quarters. Mix that with being reunited with your one true love, and things definitely might get spicy.

Katie: This book is all about the outdoors! So there are lots of fun activities awaiting, including so many adventure fits I wish I had in my own closet.

Amanda: The setting for this book is at a national park lodge resort, so there will be a lot of outdoor scenes that will be a bit more unique. But most of all, the fun games that you and your friends play together are pretty interesting, especially when you get the chance to flirt with Blake.

Jeffrey: There's enough pining in this book to reforest a national park.

Better start planting! What did you enjoy the most about creating First Comes Love?

Olivia: It has a lot of tropes that I love (I won't spoil just what, although I am a sucker for angst). But overall, MC and Blake go on a journey that has been really rewarding to write. We get into the realistic complexities of relationships, expectations, personal baggage, and wants for the future that I hope will resonate with players as much as they've resonated with us!

Amanda: My favorite part about working on First Comes Love was brainstorming with the team about how our characters' outfits should look! We all wanted to make sure everyone had their own fashion/style that evoked their unique personalities. Additionally, getting the chance to create outfits that were both sexy and practical for the outdoors for our main player was a nice challenge. 

Jeffrey: The banter between the core cast makes you feel part of the friend group. I love it when a story can capture that special feeling.

We are seriously, so excited to be part of the group! Now, last but not least, what is one of the craziest moments you’ve had from a road trip or vacation with friends/family?

Olivia: I once got trapped in a hotel bathroom, to an extent that when someone finally heard me calling for help, the staff had to dismantle part of the door to get me out. The moral of this story is that it helps to travel with a buddy – or just never leave your phone in the other room, even if it's only a few feet away.

Katie: Growing up, my mom was all about those 2-3 day weekend getaways. A city we visited a few times was Morro Bay, which is known for an extremely large rock that sits in the bay. It was the first and last time we rented a 4-person bike and spent an hour yelling at whoever was driving to "do it correctly". My brother insisted I shouldn't be allowed to drive the bike since I was 11, and didn't have a legitimate license.

Amanda: When I went camping up in Northern California one autumn, I was walking by a lake to see the beautiful view. For a short moment, I saw a huge Osprey dive down into the lake to catch a fish! Right after, as it flew back up in the sky with its fish, a seagull started attacking the Osprey in mid-air in hopes of stealing the caught fish. I felt like I was watching National Geographic for a short moment.

Jeffrey: I was out whale watching off the coast of Hawaii in this tiny little zodiac boat when a storm started rolling in. Even at the outskirts of the dark grey clouds, the waves had become choppy enough that we had to sail through them in the U pattern where you throttle up the crest of the wave, then ride it down before throttling up the next wave. Everyone's hanging on to the ropes around the edge of the boat as water splashes up over the sides. One lady even screamed when we dropped down a wave! Most people felt comfortable near the center of the boat where the jostling was the weakest. Meanwhile, I, a teenager with a questionable sense of self-preservation, was riding up at the front of the zodiac so I could feel like a pirate braving the storm while the captain does all the actual work of keeping us out of Davy Jones's locker. 10/10 would recommend.

WOW – uh… We’ll stick to the book road trip for now. 😭 As always, thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. We’ve got our car snacks ready to go! Look out for the VIP launch of First Comes Love on 3/29!

<3 The Choices Community Team