Author Spotlight: Erin Butler, Abby and the Cute One
Backstage Pass has become one of my favorite young adult (YA) romance series of all time, and the fact that this was a multi-authored series that felt as if it were written by just one person made it a remarkable feat. With the series coming to a close with the release of Abby and the Cute One, I was honored to have had the distinct opportunity to interview the book's author, Erin Butler. Over several emails, I discovered just how much of a boy band fangirl she is and I'm tickled to have met a kindred spirit when it comes to all things boy band. I ended up sending her a second batch of questions because I couldn't get enough of her witty answers.
So, I hope you all enjoy what I have declared the Best. Q&A. Ever. ^.^
A Q&A with Erin Butler
1. How did you become part of the multi-authored Backstage Pass series?
Oh my gosh. This whole awesome Backstage Pass Series ride was fate for me. It actually all started from a couple tweets! I happened to be on Twitter at my day job. Which, you know, is frowned upon. (If any of my bosses read this, Sorry! I swear it will never happen again!) Well, I can't remember who started it, but Lisa Burstein (Ryder's mastermind), Rebekah Purdy (Trevin's awesome creator), and Leah Rae Miller and Rachel Harris, who both ended up not doing the series with us, were all tweeting about how awesome a series of novels about a boy band would be. I happened to jump in, which I never do, but I'm so glad I did because the idea grew from there. We exchanged email addresses and I don't know if I really thought it would go anywhere but then I got an email. One of the Entangled editors saw our tweets, loved the idea, and asked us if we were serious about writing the books because they had a new imprint coming out, Entangled Crush, and they thought the series would be perfect for it.
Just think, it all started with me screwing off at work! Everything perfectly lined up that day in order for me to be a part of this awesome series and I couldn't be more grateful.
2. Did you and the four other authors stay in touch while writing your respective books?
Holy cow, yes! My inbox is still filled with hundreds--if not thousands--of emails from all of the lovely Backstage Pass series authors. We even have a whole Google Drive filled with docs that we worked on together to figure out the band's background info, what our guys looked like, what their personalities were, etc. It's the most fun I've ever had writing a book and I can't believe it's all coming to an end! What am I going to do with myself if I'm not talking to the other authors about boy bands?!? GAH!
3. Is there a particular boy band or boy band member that inspired you while writing Nathan Strong's story?
There was both!
My inspiration for the cute one is Nathan Sykes from the boy band The Wanted. Yes, they have the same name. Nathan just so completely fit my character that I couldn't see his name being anything else, and believe me, I tried! I also thought about all "The Cute One's" from other boy bands--Joey McIntyre from New Kids on the Block, Nick Carter from The Backstreet Boys, Justin Timberlake from *NSYNC, Niall Horan from One Direction. There are so many good ones!
As far as a particular boy band goes, I personally feel like Seconds to Juliet is a mix between New Kids on the Block and One Direction. Ophelia, Lisa, Rebekah, Suze, and I were all big fans of NKOTB, so that was the perfect framework to start with. Then of course, 1D is the biggest boy band out there right now so it was impossible not to be influenced by them.
4. Do you feel that there's more pressure on you because your book is the one that'll be ending what's been a popular series?
YES. At first I didn't think about it because when we started figuring out whose books would release when, we went by who had other books to write and when we could fit it into our busy release schedules. I was happy to go last because I had two other books I had to finish up and turn in. Then, the other books started to release and thankfully they were well received. We started to get a fan base and people were writing things like, "I can't wait to see what happens to so-and-so" and I started feeling ALL THE PRESSURE. I was last. What if I completely screwed up the book? What if people hated Nathan? What if...? Oh my God, it was terrible. When I saw the first review for ABBY AND THE CUTE ONE, I was so relieved. I could've kissed everybody at that point. I'm happy people seem to be liking Nathan.
5. If you could spend twenty-four (24) hours with any boy band in history, who would it be and why?
This is such a fantastic question! Wow. And I'm so torn about who to pick! My teenage self is being bipolar and going back and forth between The Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC. My current self is so onboard the One Direction train that I can't imagine picking anyone else. They are sooo huge. And how cool would it be to be with them for twenty-four hours and see what their everyday is like? They're on top of the world right now. What an amazing feeling.
BUT, since they are so huge, would you really get those intimate moments you want from them? Maybe *NSYNC or The Backstreet Boys would be better in that sense because you could pick their brains about past stories and they would open up more about what it was like to be so huge and how it has affected their lives now. THIS IS SO HARD.
Ummm...okay. I'm ready. I'm picking One Direction. The allure of hanging out with them is just too much to say no to. And I have a ten-year old niece I'd like to bring. Can you make that happen?
6. If you had to put together a playlist consisting exclusively of boy band songs, which top five songs are sure to be on it?
Woooo...okay. This will be fun. Another tough one, but it'll be fun.
5. Steal My Girl by One Direction--Every time I hear this song, I just get up and dance. I can't help myself.
4. You Got It (The Right Stuff) by New Kids on the Block--CLASSIC. I couldn't leave it off the list.
3. When the Lights Go Out by 5ive--I went through a 5ive phase, and I think I still know all the dance moves to this song.
2. Quit Playing Games (With My Heart) by The Backstreet Boys--I can remember the first time I saw this video on MTV, and let me tell you, it was love at first sight.
1. Flying Without Wings by Westlife--I saw them in concert when I was 16 or 17, and I swear, one of them flirted with me.
7. If you could create your own supergroup (boy band edition), who would you choose to become part of it?
Oh man! Great question, but do I really have to choose??? How about a band with all boy band members throughout time?
Okay, here goes...
Justin Timberlake (in his younger years when he was in *NSYNC)
Harry Styles
Brian Littrell
Nathan Sykes
Shane Filan
BOOM. Best Boy Band Evah!
8. Who would you rather be: Yoko Ono, who is believed to have led to the breakup of The Beatles, or Zayn Malik, who made 1D go from a quintet to a quartet, and why?
I'd rather be Zayn. I feel like he had the right to mix up the band considering he was in it! I do think it's sad, though. He'll probably regret it one day.
9. You're a confessed NKOTB fan. Who was your favorite NKOTB member then, and is he still your favorite NKOTB now? Why or why not?
Joey McIntyre! And um, yes.
From this:
to this:
Need I say more?
Ooh! Remember when he had a solo album? I was really into the song Stay the Same.
10. This is a three-parter: Which boy band member would you have wanted as your first boyfriend? Which one would you have wanted as your husband? Which one would you want as your "hall pass"?
This is so going to get me in trouble with my husband! Okay, so for my first boyfriend, I'm thinking Howie Dorough from The Backstreet Boys. He always seems so nice and sweet! And husband material? I'm going with Brian Littrell. I don't know why, though. I just feel like he'd be an awesome husband. As far as a hall pass, my first thought was Harry Styles, but my final answer is someone who doesn't make me seem like such a creeper. Justin. Timberlake.
It's funny, though. If someone had asked me these questions when I was a teen, I would've said Nick Carter all the way.
11. If you and your fellow Backstage Pass authors formed a girl group, what name would you suggest for your group and what would your first single be titled?
I've had a girl group name picked out since I was a pre-teen. Sisterz. (With a Z--clever, right?!) Originally it was a duo group for my sister and I, but then I realized I couldn't sing. Oh well. (Inside Scoop: I actually pitched Sisterz to the rest of the Backstage Pass authors for the name of the girl group in our series, but they vetoed it. I guess Cherry does sound better.)
As far as the first single title, that's a tough one! It would have to be something book related. Maybe Heroes and Heroines or First Chapter.
12. This one's a two-parter: What boy band song best described your teen years? What boy band song best describes your life now?
Teen years = The Hardest Thing
Life now = Chasing the Sun
The Hardest Thing is a 98 Degrees tune, and Chasing the Sun is a song by The Wanted. My teen years were kind of ugh. I was soooo awkward. I look back and cringe. The Hardest Thing sums that up nicely. Thank goodness I'm much more comfortable with myself now. I chose Chasing the Sun for my current life because it symbolizes my dream of becoming an author.
13. If you were marooned on a tropical island, which three boy band members would you take with you and why?
Hahaha. I LOVE THESE QUESTIONS!! I'm going to try and be as practical as possible. Because of that, I'm going with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. All three are young and able-bodied, but also popular right now so I think they would be missed sooner. Therefore, the quicker the rescue. And come on! Imagine the awesome book that would come out of that experience!
14. Let's do a Taylor Swift-type question but with an Erin Butler twist: If you were in a relationship with a boy band member but you guys split up and you decide to write a book about your time together, what would the title of the book be?
Why?
As in, WHY are we still not together?? Who breaks up with a boy band member? Not me.
So, I hope you all enjoy what I have declared the Best. Q&A. Ever. ^.^
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A Q&A with Erin Butler
1. How did you become part of the multi-authored Backstage Pass series?
Oh my gosh. This whole awesome Backstage Pass Series ride was fate for me. It actually all started from a couple tweets! I happened to be on Twitter at my day job. Which, you know, is frowned upon. (If any of my bosses read this, Sorry! I swear it will never happen again!) Well, I can't remember who started it, but Lisa Burstein (Ryder's mastermind), Rebekah Purdy (Trevin's awesome creator), and Leah Rae Miller and Rachel Harris, who both ended up not doing the series with us, were all tweeting about how awesome a series of novels about a boy band would be. I happened to jump in, which I never do, but I'm so glad I did because the idea grew from there. We exchanged email addresses and I don't know if I really thought it would go anywhere but then I got an email. One of the Entangled editors saw our tweets, loved the idea, and asked us if we were serious about writing the books because they had a new imprint coming out, Entangled Crush, and they thought the series would be perfect for it.
Just think, it all started with me screwing off at work! Everything perfectly lined up that day in order for me to be a part of this awesome series and I couldn't be more grateful.
2. Did you and the four other authors stay in touch while writing your respective books?
Holy cow, yes! My inbox is still filled with hundreds--if not thousands--of emails from all of the lovely Backstage Pass series authors. We even have a whole Google Drive filled with docs that we worked on together to figure out the band's background info, what our guys looked like, what their personalities were, etc. It's the most fun I've ever had writing a book and I can't believe it's all coming to an end! What am I going to do with myself if I'm not talking to the other authors about boy bands?!? GAH!
3. Is there a particular boy band or boy band member that inspired you while writing Nathan Strong's story?
There was both!
My inspiration for the cute one is Nathan Sykes from the boy band The Wanted. Yes, they have the same name. Nathan just so completely fit my character that I couldn't see his name being anything else, and believe me, I tried! I also thought about all "The Cute One's" from other boy bands--Joey McIntyre from New Kids on the Block, Nick Carter from The Backstreet Boys, Justin Timberlake from *NSYNC, Niall Horan from One Direction. There are so many good ones!
As far as a particular boy band goes, I personally feel like Seconds to Juliet is a mix between New Kids on the Block and One Direction. Ophelia, Lisa, Rebekah, Suze, and I were all big fans of NKOTB, so that was the perfect framework to start with. Then of course, 1D is the biggest boy band out there right now so it was impossible not to be influenced by them.
4. Do you feel that there's more pressure on you because your book is the one that'll be ending what's been a popular series?
YES. At first I didn't think about it because when we started figuring out whose books would release when, we went by who had other books to write and when we could fit it into our busy release schedules. I was happy to go last because I had two other books I had to finish up and turn in. Then, the other books started to release and thankfully they were well received. We started to get a fan base and people were writing things like, "I can't wait to see what happens to so-and-so" and I started feeling ALL THE PRESSURE. I was last. What if I completely screwed up the book? What if people hated Nathan? What if...? Oh my God, it was terrible. When I saw the first review for ABBY AND THE CUTE ONE, I was so relieved. I could've kissed everybody at that point. I'm happy people seem to be liking Nathan.
5. If you could spend twenty-four (24) hours with any boy band in history, who would it be and why?
This is such a fantastic question! Wow. And I'm so torn about who to pick! My teenage self is being bipolar and going back and forth between The Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC. My current self is so onboard the One Direction train that I can't imagine picking anyone else. They are sooo huge. And how cool would it be to be with them for twenty-four hours and see what their everyday is like? They're on top of the world right now. What an amazing feeling.
BUT, since they are so huge, would you really get those intimate moments you want from them? Maybe *NSYNC or The Backstreet Boys would be better in that sense because you could pick their brains about past stories and they would open up more about what it was like to be so huge and how it has affected their lives now. THIS IS SO HARD.
Ummm...okay. I'm ready. I'm picking One Direction. The allure of hanging out with them is just too much to say no to. And I have a ten-year old niece I'd like to bring. Can you make that happen?
6. If you had to put together a playlist consisting exclusively of boy band songs, which top five songs are sure to be on it?
Woooo...okay. This will be fun. Another tough one, but it'll be fun.
5. Steal My Girl by One Direction--Every time I hear this song, I just get up and dance. I can't help myself.
4. You Got It (The Right Stuff) by New Kids on the Block--CLASSIC. I couldn't leave it off the list.
3. When the Lights Go Out by 5ive--I went through a 5ive phase, and I think I still know all the dance moves to this song.
2. Quit Playing Games (With My Heart) by The Backstreet Boys--I can remember the first time I saw this video on MTV, and let me tell you, it was love at first sight.
1. Flying Without Wings by Westlife--I saw them in concert when I was 16 or 17, and I swear, one of them flirted with me.
7. If you could create your own supergroup (boy band edition), who would you choose to become part of it?
Oh man! Great question, but do I really have to choose??? How about a band with all boy band members throughout time?
Okay, here goes...
Justin Timberlake (in his younger years when he was in *NSYNC)
Harry Styles
Brian Littrell
Nathan Sykes
Shane Filan
BOOM. Best Boy Band Evah!
8. Who would you rather be: Yoko Ono, who is believed to have led to the breakup of The Beatles, or Zayn Malik, who made 1D go from a quintet to a quartet, and why?
I'd rather be Zayn. I feel like he had the right to mix up the band considering he was in it! I do think it's sad, though. He'll probably regret it one day.
9. You're a confessed NKOTB fan. Who was your favorite NKOTB member then, and is he still your favorite NKOTB now? Why or why not?
Joey McIntyre! And um, yes.
From this:
Need I say more?
Ooh! Remember when he had a solo album? I was really into the song Stay the Same.
10. This is a three-parter: Which boy band member would you have wanted as your first boyfriend? Which one would you have wanted as your husband? Which one would you want as your "hall pass"?
This is so going to get me in trouble with my husband! Okay, so for my first boyfriend, I'm thinking Howie Dorough from The Backstreet Boys. He always seems so nice and sweet! And husband material? I'm going with Brian Littrell. I don't know why, though. I just feel like he'd be an awesome husband. As far as a hall pass, my first thought was Harry Styles, but my final answer is someone who doesn't make me seem like such a creeper. Justin. Timberlake.
It's funny, though. If someone had asked me these questions when I was a teen, I would've said Nick Carter all the way.
11. If you and your fellow Backstage Pass authors formed a girl group, what name would you suggest for your group and what would your first single be titled?
I've had a girl group name picked out since I was a pre-teen. Sisterz. (With a Z--clever, right?!) Originally it was a duo group for my sister and I, but then I realized I couldn't sing. Oh well. (Inside Scoop: I actually pitched Sisterz to the rest of the Backstage Pass authors for the name of the girl group in our series, but they vetoed it. I guess Cherry does sound better.)
As far as the first single title, that's a tough one! It would have to be something book related. Maybe Heroes and Heroines or First Chapter.
12. This one's a two-parter: What boy band song best described your teen years? What boy band song best describes your life now?
Teen years = The Hardest Thing
Life now = Chasing the Sun
The Hardest Thing is a 98 Degrees tune, and Chasing the Sun is a song by The Wanted. My teen years were kind of ugh. I was soooo awkward. I look back and cringe. The Hardest Thing sums that up nicely. Thank goodness I'm much more comfortable with myself now. I chose Chasing the Sun for my current life because it symbolizes my dream of becoming an author.
13. If you were marooned on a tropical island, which three boy band members would you take with you and why?
Hahaha. I LOVE THESE QUESTIONS!! I'm going to try and be as practical as possible. Because of that, I'm going with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. All three are young and able-bodied, but also popular right now so I think they would be missed sooner. Therefore, the quicker the rescue. And come on! Imagine the awesome book that would come out of that experience!
14. Let's do a Taylor Swift-type question but with an Erin Butler twist: If you were in a relationship with a boy band member but you guys split up and you decide to write a book about your time together, what would the title of the book be?
Why?
As in, WHY are we still not together?? Who breaks up with a boy band member? Not me.
15. What advice would you give aspiring writers who look up to you as their inspiration?
Write what you love and don't give up. NEVER give up. If you do, you're sealing your own fate.
Also, screw off at work because it worked for me.
Write what you love and don't give up. NEVER give up. If you do, you're sealing your own fate.
Also, screw off at work because it worked for me.
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My never-ending gratitude goes out to fabulous Erin Butler for being game for anything I threw her way. Thank you so much for agreeing to answer my dorky and seemingly endless questions. Your eagerness was humbling. You. Are. Awesome! ♥
Read my five-plus-starred review for Abby and the Cute One and check out my series spotlight on Backstage Pass.
Make sure to grab a copy of Erin's books at your favorite e-retailers:
Falling for Shakespeare - Amazon
Bound in Blood (Adams' Witch #1) - Amazon
Cursed in Love (Adams' Witch #2) - Amazon
Last Wish - Coming 08 December 2015!
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