When she's not writing or devouring new novels, you can find her hiking, camping, fishing, and sipping a spicy margarita!
Want to hang out? Find Lena on Tiktok or IG!
Connect with Lena
Website | www.lenahendrix.com
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I found Lena with her debut novel "Finding You" and fell in love. She has only gotten better. She has completed two series and is working on her third. I am a proud member of her ARC team and had the opportunity to meet her in person at Music City with the Belles in Nashville in February 2022 where she was attending as a reader. (And I failed to get a picture.) I was thrilled to meet her again in March 2023 where she was signing at Charm City Romanticon. Lena has a bubbly personality and a fun sense of humor. She has embraced TikTok and is very popular there and on Instagram.
I wanted to ask her some questions to coincide with her newest release and help other readers find and get to know this fabulous author.
New Release 06/30/2023
I can fix
everything around me: my friends' problems, my brothers' love lives, maybe even
the decades-old rivalry that divides our cozy coastal town. So Beckett's snarl
and heavy sighs are no match for me.
Download
today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited!
Start
The Sullivan Family series today!
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/44RRGrH
#SmallTown #BrothersBestFriend #Taboo #ForcedProximity #GrumpyHero
#FamilySeries #ARC
5 STARS
Book two in the series can be read as a standalone and ends
with a HEA. It is written in first
person from an alternating dual POV.
I loved Kate in the Redemption Ranch series as one of Gemma’s
best friends. Now as she moves back home
to help her aunt, she finds her HEA. Her
older brothers protect and tease her.
They also know that the aunt has a soft spot for Kate and will allow her
to renovate the crumbling farmhouse.
Beckett is Kate’s oldest brother’s best friend. He also happens to be the grumpy older
brother of her ex-boyfriend, Declan. And
Declan broke her heart. There are sparks
of all kinds flying when he shows up as the contractor hired to renovate the
farmhouse.
There is a lot of witty banter, teasing, and sass that goes
on between the two characters as renovations get underway. Kate decides to document the whole thing on
IG as she somewhat objectifies the Brutish Builder and gains a huge and viral
following. There are some definite HGTV vibes that I loved. They have a lot of
heat between them leading to steamy scenes.
Their relationship is complicated, and they both have some baggage to
get through. Beckett falls hard and fast.
They can’t deny their mutual attraction and even friendship that
forms. What starts as banging quickly becomes
so much more. Ultimately, when they have their dark moment, it is because
Beckett decides to get some therapy to help him be a better person for
Kate. I loved this swoony story. It was steamy, funny, and full of love
received from family both born and found.
(Note: this was not Beckett’s born family. There is not much love there.) Beckett was easy to love, and Kate was full
of fire: impossible not to love.
I am super-excited to read the rest of this series. Outtatowner is a fun small town full of
interesting characters and lots of shenanigans. The Sullivan family and a feud with
the King family leads to some fun times.
I am looking forward to what’s next.
Twenty Questions with Lena Hendrix
1. What is your favorite food?
I LOVE food, so this is so hard to answer but I would probably say my go-to snack is corn chips and obscene amounts of queso.
2. Do you have a favorite color?
Green
3. What time of day do you prefer to
write?
I am freshest in the mornings and routines are a HUGE help. If I get stuck, I go for a walk around my neighborhood and try to shake something loose.
4. What does a day in the life of
Lena look like?
First of all, I’m SO boring. My kids are early risers so we’re up with the sun. Typically it’s mom things like breakfast and feeding the animals. Then I’ll check in with the gals I typically write with and make a big cup of coffee (Cinnamon Vanilla, cream, no sugar!). If it’s a school day, the kids get on the bus and I write until I hit my word count! Then I usually forget to eat lunch and tackle emails, social media, and other admin tasks during the afternoon until the kids are home from school! After school I try my hardest to shut off my writer brain to be present for the kids and my husband. I’ll make dinner and we’ll usually sit on the porch or go for a walk in the evening. Then it’s bedtime routines and I can snuggle with a good book!
5. Are you a plotter or a pantser?
I am a solid plant-ser. Ha! I like to have the main points of the story (the bones, as I call it). I always know the characters and their wounds and I typically know a few scenes. The rest I love to discover as I write!
6. What is your favorite part of
author life?
I love the freedom being an author allows me. I like having my routine and schedule, but if I need to shift something, I can. It’s the first time I’ve been able to volunteer at my kids’ school or go on a field trip and I love that!
7. What is the most challenging part
of author life?
Authoring can be lonesome. There are days when I will realize I’ve gone HOURS without talking to a single other person and that feels weird. I do my best to stay connected to my friends through texts and voice memos and that helps!
8. What kind of books are your
favorite to read? (Contemporary, historical, fantasy, sci fi, monster,
paranormal, etc.)
I love contemporary romance, but usually when I’m writing, I can’t seem to get out of “writer brain” so the story isn’t as enjoyable. During those times, I will pick something way outside of contemporary romance like a paranormal or monster romance. In between writing books, I always go back to contemporary romance!
9. Do you have a favorite trope to
read or write? Why is it your favorite?
I love to write a grumpy/ sunshine, enemies to lovers! They’re super fun to read too.
10. Do you have a favorite character
from any of your books? This is the toughest question for almost any author, I
think. But…I get asked it a lot and almost always go back to Lincoln Scott from
Finding You.
What makes him/her your favorite?
Lincoln was the MMC from my debut book, so I think I wrote in every single thing I wanted in a hero. He’s hot, tattooed, grumpy, broken, and broody, but so devoted and in love with his woman. Plus, I thought it was really hot when he beat someone up for her! :)
11. What is your favorite part of a
book to write?
I LOVE beginnings! The build up, the tension, all of the banter is so fun for me to write and I usually fly through the beginning of a draft.
12. What is the hardest part to get
through?
I hate endings. (Isn’t that terrible for a romance writer who always writes HEAs??) For me, I have been living with these characters for a long time and by the end of it, I just feel so done with them and I’m ready for the next story!
13. Do you draw inspiration from real
life?
I pick up little, random bits everywhere. I once saw a man in a coffee shop smile at the barista and when she turned around, she made a really funny face. Instantly I was like, BOOM…that needs a story. It’s funny how and where it can hit sometimes.
14. What inspired you to write Beckett
and Kate’s story?
The thought of falling for an ex’s brother was so tempting. In real life that would be SO complicated. I also love the banter between enemies to lovers because the tension is to thick. Plus, my HGTV-loving heart has always wanted to write a home renovation into a book!
15. What made you decide to write a
series set on Lake Michigan?
My parents own a small cottage near Lake Michigan. There is something so enchanting about every single coastal town. Last summer I was driving through the country roads and was like, “Why am I not writing about this place?!”
16. How did you choose the name
Outtatowner for the small-town setting of this series?
Those coastal Michigan towns all have their own quirks. I wanted a place where vacationers would go, but being a “townie” meant something special. I liked that little play on words.
17. There is a lot of construction
that occurs in "One Touch." Did you have
to do much research to write about it or did you already know a lot of it?
There’s a line in "One Touch" where Kate says to Beckett, “So…I’ve been thinking…” My husband knows these words mean construction chaos. I love a home project and my dad was always super handy growing up and he passed that on to me. I love home building and renovation projects, so there wasn’t a whole lot of research I had to do for this one!
18. What is your favorite part of
writing an interconnected series?
I like teasing future couples. Most of the time I know who I want to end up together, but sometimes it takes an unexpected turn! I am also a HUGE fan of found families. They make my heart happy.
19. What is the hardest part of
writing an interconnected series?
So. Many. Details. Keeping them all straight is really tough. Also, sometimes names change and I have to go back and fix it and occasionally little things slip through. Thankfully, I have a team of editors, proofers, and beta readers that help keep everything straight!
20. What’s next after the Sullivan
family?
I JUST finished my first draft on Book 3. Lee Sullivan is going to be a force to be reckoned with when it comes to book boyfriends—that man loves hard. I am going to attempt to give myself a break (this usually never works) and then I’ll dive into the fourth and final Sullivan book. After that, I am considering a King family spin off…LOTS of readers have been asking about Royal King and I am dying to write him!
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