Morgan falls in love with the lattes at Peak Perk Cafe while she also falls back in love with Fern Falls and Rachel. For example, Rachel gifts Morgan her favorite candies to show that she remembers what she likes, that she cares. I’d also worked briefly at a bakery during college, so it made perfect sense to me to make my protagonist Amy a baker.Ĭourtney: Something I enjoyed doing with ITEOL is using food to convey feelings. I was writing it entirely for me, and I found that writing about baking provided some of the same stress relief as actually baking. When I first started writing QB, I didn’t expect it to be published. Susie: Oh yeah, food and baked goods were in my vision for Queerly Beloved from day one! I love cooking and baking, and I’m 100% a stress baker. I wanted to channel that feeling of accomplishment into Dahlia. Even if the meal doesn’t turn out quite right, at least my brain was working well enough to try. I’ve always found cooking to be something I can only really do when my brain is working right, and it always makes me feel good. But food played a part in my development of each character’s backstories, as well, in particular with Dahlia, who uses cooking as a way to comfort herself and regain control after her divorce. When you conceptualized both L&OD and QB respectively, did you know you wanted the story to feature food, and was there a specific inspiration for that?Īnita: Since L&OD takes place on a cooking competition, food was always involved from the get-go. I wanted it to have drinks and sweets that warm from the inside to highlight the warmth of the story being told. Pair that with a romantic comedy and it’s a recipe for all the feels! I promise to lighten up on the food puns.:) I knew from the start that ITEOL would be brimming with decadent treats that many enjoy during the winter months.

Courtney: Hi, Anita and Susie! There’s something about food, right? It brings comfort and care and nourishment.

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