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Melissa Whitney is the author of At First Smile.
With a name like Melissa Whitney she had two choices become a Real Housewife or a romance novelist. Lucky for us Andy Cohen hasn’t called yet, so she chose to be a writer. Melissa hails from Western New York but lives in Southern California with her husband and their rescue pugs.
When she’s not reading a good book, brewing a cup of tea or hunting for a delicious pastry, she’s writing contemporary romances. Melissa taps into her experience as a disabled woman/trauma survivor and her master’s in social work to write stories that explore themes of disability, mental health, trauma, autism, grief/loss, and healing in the swooniest and steamiest ways as possible. Life is not a romcom nor a melodrama; it’s somewhere in-between and so are Melissa’s books.
At First Smile is an own voice romance about a legally blind disability advocate and a non-disabled Irish Canadian hockey player.
Let’s get to know Melissa as she talks favorite novels, writing romance, story inspirations and more!
What are some of your favorite novels?
I am a huge reader, but some of my favorites include Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Light Among the Shadows by Jennifer Leigh Pezzano, The Giver of Stars by JoJo Moyes, Never Cross a Highlander by Lisa Rayne, The Bride Test by Helen Hoang, The Fastest Way to Fall by Denise Williams, and so many others!
When did you know you wanted to become an author?
As a kid I always had my head in a book. I loved stories. Reading them. Telling them. I used to scribble stories down all the time. I even, technically, wrote my first book in third grade. It was a story about three giants ostracized by a small town until three children that befriended them help the village see they aren’t what they thought. Like so many people, I thought writing wasn’t a viable path. I told myself so many stories why I couldn’t do it. It wasn’t until 2022 that I finally said, “No More!” and sat down to write my first novel. I told myself yes and I’ve not looked back.
What are some of the aspects you like best about contemporary romance?
I am a voracious reader of all romance. Something I adore about the genre and its many subgenres is the ability to explore heavier themes and have difficult conversations with the guarantee of a happy ending. I think the guaranteed happy ending allows us as readers to be open to these conversations and as a writer it allows us to depict these heavier topics like disability, mental health, grief/loss, trauma, and other deeper themes in a way that explores their many layers including healing and joy.
While historical, fantasy, paranormal, and other subgenres do this as well, I think because contemporary is supposed to be “now” it makes those conversations stand out just a little more. Also, it’s just fun to see some of the swoony moments in contemporary environments and who doesn’t love a good swoon!
Where do you draw your story ideas from?
I draw my ideas from various places. Some of it is inspired by my life, some are just hypothetical situations I think of, some are from research, and some are from stories I hear from others. Inspiration can come from anywhere. Like so many authors, I own that I do pull pieces from my life, but none of my work is non-fiction. In the Hello and in the Goodbye may be the most I’ve used aspects of my life in a book, but even that had a lot of fiction with a sprinkle of the actual.
At First Smile came from a joke I made to a friend that I’d run into Chris Evans at an airport and never know it due to my legal blindness. I started to play with that idea and thought wouldn’t that be a fun meet/cute for a legally blind FMC and went from there to build the characters and the story.
Tell us about At First Smile! What can readers expect from this story?
At First Smile is an own voice romance about a legally blind disability advocate and a non-disabled Irish Canadian hockey player. The book weaves a heartfelt, humorous, sexy, and emotional story that explores themes of disability, the dynamics of family, grief/loss, the dynamics of an inter-abled relationship, and what it means to build a healthy relationship. While there will be a swoony love story, some spice, laughs, and a cast of characters you’re going to want more of, it will have a thoughtful/sensitive discussion of various deeper themes. Each of my stories are croissants; there are many layers, but it’s always delicious.
What was your favorite chapter or part to write?
Don’t make me pick!!! There are a few parts that stand out to me in this book. The second brunch scene. There are parts of this scene that make me laugh so hard and others that make my heart hurt. I love books that do this! The White Knight chapter. That last line gets me every time. I also love the concert park scene with Rowan and Pen. Their conversation is something that I wanted to see happen in a book with a legally blind character that has an honest/heartfelt conversation about vision loss. Also, I’m going to say, “You’re welcome” to the kitchen counter scene. I will give you NO more info about that, but you’re welcome. I’m one hundred percent biased, but there are so many parts of this book that I adore for various reasons.
What are you currently reading and what’s on your (TBR)?
I just finished The Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Canas (chef’s kiss), The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava (soooo good) and Marriage and Masti by Nisha Sharma (the perfect way to end that series). I’m currently reading Written by a Woman by Andrea Andersen and Wild Eyes by Elsie Silver. TBR? I’m crushed beneath it. I’m a bit of a mood reader, outside of my book club books. I will be reading Jen Deluca’s latest release for my all-romance book club.
