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Holy calamari, we did it!

I can't fully express how extremely happy I am right now. This book has been my baby for the past year and I am so thrilled to be able to tie it off neatly and move on to the next project! I'm pretty sure this is a common disease with authors: we're never completely satisfied, but it's that ongoing drive we have to just write another book--that craving that just can't be ignored--that makes us thrive, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

The sun's setting over the ocean [which doesn't make any sense since the sun actually does not set over the East Atlantic coast; it rises, but that's beside the point so we're going to ignore it] and it's a great time to reflect back on the thrilling, refreshing day you just experienced. The beach is always there, no matter the weather or the circumstances, always ready to thrill you with a breath of salty air and the warm nostalgia of summer. [can you tell how sad I am that it's September?!]

We're walking away now, while the disappearing sun paints the sky in various shades of pink and red. If you squint, you might still see the newly revamped Fine Apple market tucked underneath the distant boardwalk, a cute bamboo shack underneath a straw roof. Nicholas is probably there as usual, lying relaxed on his beach chair with his suntanned legs perched up on the lid of a cooler. Aria, the new manager-in-training, might be there with him now, still nibbling on a particularly delicious mango she can't get enough of. The old radio is undoubtedly playing staticky reggae music, which Aria is gradually warming up to because it reminds her of the warm, sleepy summer afternoons that she loves so much. The old store phone is back as well, its flaws barely visible now that Nicholas has polished it with plans to leave it on the shelf forever as a lasting memory of the first stupid phone call that brought the two of them together. He'll never let Aria forget the time she made that one first call, panicking over her apparent loss over the very same phone she was using. She can't stand it, but she knows that he's always ready to take care of her when she is lost to her scatterbrained self and needs a hand. And her persistent visits to the market in return are what motivate him to keep plugging away at life, snatching every bit that's fallen by the wayside so he can reconstruct it.

Summer's fading along with the day. Soon Aria and Nicholas will have to withdraw from their simple little paradise and return to the real world. The Fine Apple Market will close for the season. Aria will head off to Stanford for her freshman year. Nicholas will be blending smoothies on board a St. Kitts cruise liner to serve all the wealthy elderly individuals who have the luxury to migrate south for the winter. Real life drags itself on with only a nostalgic whisper of summer left in the air.

This is the close of Nicholas and Aria's story, the aftertaste of a mango on your lips, the last crest of a dying wave beneath your board. The sun sets, the cool settles, and it's time to return to daily life. We leave our ocean retreat behind, load up the truck, and drive off down the highway. In the distance, the ocean continues to crash, its waves whispering a goodbye with each syllabic break.

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Q: Did you think about that really cheesy thing Nicholas said about the fine Apple when you came up with the title cus omg I would of never thought of that.

A: Fun fact: I didn't think of the title! The title was created by the lovely evethespy (author of Waffle Cones) along with a cover of her design (see foreword.) I used the cover and the title as a prompt to create the story idea and called the store the Fine Apple Market after the title, rather than vice versa! As the story drew to a close, I wanted to have Nicholas use some cheesy pick-up line or something to reference the title, so I just added that on the fly :) After all, it's the sort of thing he would say!!

Q: Are you planning on writing any bonus chapters??

A: Great question! I have actually a few one-shot ideas on hand if I ever decide to, although I don't know when exactly that will be. I was thinking of starting an anthology book on my side account for bonus chapters from all of my books, but since Fine Apple is the only real completed book I have up at the moment, I may wait until I have a few other stories published. In the meantime, I love having characters from different books pop up in each other's stories, so stay tuned :)

Q: will you make a sequel with lindsey's story???

A: Lyndsey is a character that shows a surprising amount of potential, and I had to develop her character in a lot of ways that unfortunately didn't show up in this book, since she was just a minor character and the story's format wouldn't allow for too many irrelevant details. I would love to write another story about her at some point, but I do not yet have plans for one. Stay tuned, as always :)

Q: who was your favorite character to write?

A: Ah, here it is. Let me first say that I'm going to say that Kale was my least favorite character to write because I feel that the time he had in the book was sadly not really in his favor at all and that I wasn't really "allowed" to make the audience root for him in the least. Unfortunately, the poor guy got the short end of the stick for this story. I would be willing to write about him again, but he deserves a little more character development first. Lyndsey and Aria were the easiest to write--their characters rolled right onto the pages with little effort since I could so easily relate to different aspects of their characters. Nicholas was the most fun, though! I loved enhancing his "surfer-style" attitude (even though we found out he's never actually been surfing!) that sort of accompanied his idle frustration with the life he was living. I loved his obsession with Bob Marley and found it perfect for his character, and I loved how he was such a geek about certain random things, like Star Wars, because same dude same. *hang loose hand sign*

Q: How does this make Aria's mom feel?? XD AND KALE TO LOL

A: That's a great question and one I actually didn't think a whole lot about. The little we did learn about Aria's parents implied that they care very much about her excelling in school and are perhaps a little protective, given the paranoid way she acted about Nicholas possibly being a "stalker creepzoid seventy-year-old guy." I think now that she's met Nicholas in person and now that he's doing a little better in life in general, she won't have as much trouble getting her mom to like him. Bonus chapter maybe? We'll see. ;)

Kale... Oh, Kale. Honestly, his obliviousness through the book was frustrating, but when he realized how Aria truly felt he took initiative and broke up with her so she didn't have to "break his heart." We didn't really get to see the aftermath of that on his part (poor guy!) but I think he's finally recognized his relationship with Aria (#karia!!) wouldn't have worked out well for either of them in the long term. In his defense, he does seem to have a general acceptance for "the way things are" when he realizes he can't change it, so I think he'll do fine.

Q: ARE WE GONNA SEE KALE AGAIN KALE IS MY BAB

A: I'M SO GLAD YOU LIKE HIM!! In answer to the question, I'll go with what I did for Lyndsey--nothing is confirmed within the near future, since I have at least two upcoming books at the moment that steal the main priority (see note below) but I'd be interested in writing a spin-off at some point, if I have spare time. Don't hold me to this though; things are always changing! :)

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Final note 1.0-- I have an upcoming story in the works. It has yet to be officially announced, but I'll drop a little teaser for my dedicated readers. It's a sort of twist on the traditional superhero flick with a unique new setting and characters that you're guaranteed to love. More will be revealed later as soon as I'm ready to release a formal description.

Final note 2.0-- I have decided to enter NaNoWriMo this November! You probably don't remember, but I attempted it in July 2016 and failed terribly because I severely underestimated how hectic my schedule would be that month. The story I crafted at the time is still very much alive in my journals and drafts, however, and I plan to revive it this year. It's called Road Rage. I don't know at what point it will be released, but I sincerely hope that I will be able to follow through with it this time around. This book is very dear to my heart and I believe it will eventually make it through the blues of the writing process and into a published book on Wattpad. More info on this to come eventually, so stay tuned.

Final note 3.0-- As of right now, there are no sequels planned for this book. I have other projects to focus on and need to take a little break from dialogue writing. However, the future is always open, and I'd like to know--would you rather see a spin-off about Kale or about Lyndsey? Again, I'm guaranteeing nothing, but I'd like to hear from you guys! Hit me up whenever :)

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until next time,

work hard,

live boldly,

never give up,

and eat an occasional mango; it's good for the soul.

-said nicholas vern at some point probably

tina