Remember Truth or Dare? Spin the Bottle?
How about Seven Seconds In Heaven?
Now take yourselves back to those days of leg warmers and peg legged jeans...to the feelings you had when you thought about hopping in that closet with your crush--the one you'd confidently scrawled that you'd "LUV 4EVER" on the front of your Trapper Keeper. (Oh...where are you now, Neil Butler? cries Lisa.)
Well, fast forward, er, a couple o' decades later (and then some) and there are still a lot of hotties out there that bring back the same rush of emotions like we had in junior high. And we're not just talking about the McDreamys and McSteamys of the world. We're talking about men who not only look good, but damn, they can write! There's almost nothing sexier than a good looking and talented author. And that's why we're launching a new series called SEVEN SECONDS IN HEAVEN where we ask our favorite male authors seven things that inquiring and nosy female minds like ours want to know!
And who better to start with than Nicholas Sparks who we crush on pretty hard. His books are ultra romantic, his stories are deeply engaging and his writing is always entertaining. And for a moment, can we talk about those brown eyes? Ahhhhhh... and we know all you fans out there LOVE him, because in our poll of male authors women adore that we ran on our Chick Lit is not Dead Facebook fan page, you told us! Hands down, Nicholas Sparks won the majority.
So, to put it mildly, we pretty much went weak in the knees when this amazing writer of great romantic novels like THE NOTEBOOK (which makes Lisa cry every time and where Liz developed her unhealthy Ryan Gosling obsession.) and NIGHTS OF RODANTHE (did he help cast Richard Gere in the movie? If so, thank you, Mr. Sparks!) stopped by Chick Lit Is Not Dead!
We had so many questions...like could he be possibly be as much of a romantic in real-life as the characters he writes about? You don't just conjure up the Noah and Allies of the world if you aren't known to purchase a Hallmark card or two, right? (Right! Check out what he does for his lucky wife on every anniversary!)
So, in the spirit of that junior high make out game we all played waaaay back in the day-SEVEN SECONDS IN HEAVEN-we asked this dreamy husband (Mrs. Sparks, you are one lucky lady!), father of five and author of SIXTEEN books (including his latest THE LAST SONG which just might have made robotic Liz cry!) our seven seconds (questions) in heaven with Nicholas Sparks...
1. If you weren't a writer, what other career could you be passionate about? I love coaching track and field. I had the opportunity to coach for the last four years, and it was everything I thought it would be. If I wasn't a writer, it's definitely something I'd enjoy.
2. What one romantic movie could you watch over and over? What else? The Notebook!
3. You've said that you fell in love with your wife at first sight, what is the most romantic thing you've ever done for her? I write her love letters on every anniversary, reminding her of everything that's happened in the last year, and why she means so much to me. She now has twenty letters, and they've become something of a journal regarding our lives together.
4. What are some of your goals/dreams that you have yet to achieve? I would love to be able to enjoy the art of relaxation. I'm one of those type-A personalities.
5. What one thing would fans be surprised to know about Nicholas Sparks? That most of the time -- 99% -- I don't feel like, or think of myself as, an author. A writer, yes. A father and husband, certainly. But author? No.
6. You wrote a book with your brother? Yes, Micah and I wrote THREE WEEKS WITH MY BROTHER together from separate coasts by talking on the phone and faxing drafts back and forth.
7. What can your fans expect from you next? Another novel, another couple of movies (Dear John, The Last Song). It's what I do.
For more information about the incredibly talented Nicholas Sparks and his latest novel, THE LAST SONG, check out www.nicholassparks.com.
xoxo, Liz & Lisa