TJ Alexander
Author Interview - TJ Alexander
Author of Chef's Kiss
A high-strung pastry chef’s professional goals are interrupted by an unexpected career transition and the introduction of her wildly attractive nonbinary kitchen manager in this deliciously fresh and witty queer rom-com.
Author Interview - TJ Alexander
Author I draw inspiration from: There are so many authors I find inspiring who are writing a lot of cool new stuff these days--indie authors who are doing it up right like E.E. Ottoman and Arden Powell, authors like Meryl Wilsner and Rebekah Weatherspoon who write stuff that just gets to me. I don't know, don't make me pick one!
Author Interview - TJ Alexander | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book: I read in bed, mostly. I've got my cup of tea, my houseplants, my fuzzy socks.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with: Haha, literally any Hobbit from JRR Tolkien's books--not because they would probably have plenty of drugs! Just because they would definitely be chill about it, as long as we had snacks. It is my sincere wish to be as laidback as a Hobbit.
Author Interview - TJ Alexander | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author: I don't know if there was a moment I knew? I would make up little stories as a kid and make them into stapled booklets, and I would definitely force my family to watch me act out the plots with paper puppets. I thought this was a completely normal thing that everyone thought about all the time. I don't know when I learned that sometimes people would pay you money for doing this, but that was probably when I knew.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook: I love books in all their forms! There isn't a single format that I wouldn't read or listen to.
The last book I read: OK, you cannot judge me: it's a book called Columbo: The Helter Skelter Murders by William Harrington. It is one of several official tie-in novels to the TV show that were published by Tor in the '90s, and I was given a set of them as a birthday gift. I love Columbo more than I can express. He's--well, I guess he's very Hobbit-like. If Hobbits solved murders. I needed something light after reading something pretty heavy (Ann Petry's The Street). A multiple murder comfort read!
Author Interview - TJ Alexander | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer: Computer, all the way. My handwriting is pretty horrible, so it's the only way I get anything written.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with: Charlie from The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochran. I vibe with that sweaty, anxious man!
Author Interview - TJ Alexander | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a: Miserable person! When I was in college, my writing professor once told our class, "If you can do literally anything else for a living, do it. Writers write as a career because they can't do anything but that." And I thought, gosh, I have a lot of other talents; I guess I should focus on those and forget writing professionally. When I graduated, my professor asked what I was going to do, and I told her about my very safe choice to go down this other career path, and she said, "Oh, too bad! I thought you were good; I'd hoped you'd stick with writing." (That would have been nice to know, lady!) And I said, "You told us not to do that unless we had to!" And she kind of shrugged and was like, "I didn't think YOU'D listen." Anyway! This is all to say it took me many years to figure out I should not have listened. As it turns out, I *can* do other things but I do not like it very much.
Favorite decade in fashion history: The 1910s. Wake me up when they bring back boater hats.
Place I’d most like to travel: Paris! Taipei! Mexico City! Literally anywhere at this point; I have not been on a trip for a long time. But those are the top three.
My signature drink: What are we talking, cocktails? If I had to choose, I think that would be a French 75. If we're drinking wine, it's a glass of prosecco. If it's beer, it's a sour ale. If it's tea, it's English breakfast with a dash of milk. I am very into beverages and I have a lot of opinions.
Favorite artist: I am going to be basic and say Van Gogh. Wait, I just realized this probably means musical artist.
...No, I'm going to go with my first answer.
Number one on my bucket list: I would like to see my book in a bookstore!
Anything else you'd like to add: Thank you for letting me go feral on all your questions! It's been a pleasure.
Find more from the author:
https://twitter.com/tjalexanderNYC
https://www.instagram.com/tjalexandernyc/
