Author Interview with Mika C.C. about "Fastballs & Flirts"

This week, we've interviewed author Mika C.C. about her romance novel "Fastballs & Flirts". Her fifth book, the novel touches on themes of buried trauma, and has a romance between a girl and her brother's bad-boy best friend. She told us how she got into writing, what the novel is about and some other interesting facts, like for example that she wrote the book in only two months (and that her name is pronounced like Pikachu, without the ‘chu’)! Many thanks to Mika C.C. for indulging us in our many questions!

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself! Who are you, how did you get into writing, which work of yours are you most proud of?

A:  Hi! I’m Mika C.C. My name is pronounced like Pikachu, without the ‘chu’! I’m born and raised in Florida and am a mom and a pretty big nerd. I’ve been writing since I was old enough to hold a pencil and spell. I fell in love with writing shortly after reading the first book that got me thinking that books are more than just escapism. The symbolism, metaphors and the general consensus that the characters and plot can relate to real world events and can make you feel something solely based on one quote hooked me into the idea that I want to write something just as deep/profound… Then I found romance novels which do the same thing for me and made me follow the road of writing romance versus general fiction! One of the most proud of books I have published is my fifth book, the “sweet heat” book, aka: Fastballs & Flirts.

Q: What’s the book about? Tell us where the story takes us.

A: Fastballs & Flirts is about two characters learning that changing themselves doesn’t always mean losing the person they used to be, but growing from their past experiences and letting the people in their lives teach them how to be better versions of themselves. The main female character, Kallie, has been through hell and back and she’s finally found a place to settle, but she has to get settled with her new norm: a new job, a new apartment, her crazy-over protective brother and his best friend that won’t seem to leave her alone. The main male character, Jake, aka Kallie’s brother’s best friend, is your standard bad boy, tattooed, drives a motorcycle, and has hooked up with more women that work for his baseball team that he doesn’t even remember half of their names, but Kallie he remembers. No matter what Kallie’s brother says, the fight for the secret forbidden romance that buds between them is no more than a friends with benefits situation, where Jake teaches Kallie (a virgin) what she can do to stop the sudden cravings she has, even if it’s just for him…

Q: What are the most important themes you wanted to get out into the world with this book? Did you struggle to incorporate them into the writing?

A: I really wanted people to understand that trauma and depression can manifest both outwardly and inwardly in very different ways. The things that Kallie experienced in her past do not make her who she is, but because she knows herself better, she finds a way to grow with her trauma in mind rather than letting it take over her life completely. I don’t think I struggled with writing it, as much as I did with trying to make it sound cohesive and writing the dialogue as someone who has been through similar trauma that has trouble speaking out on it myself.

Q: How long did it take you to write this book? Did you grow in your writing during this time?

A: It took me two months to write Fastballs & Flirts, it was my fastest writing time. I like to think I grew while writing this book. However, I am sad that I had to cut out scenes that just didn’t fit into the plot of the book. So some people might not see this book as growing as far as length but I do think it has more depth than the first or second book in this series of interconnected standalones.

Q: The usual question is, of course, why people should read your book. We’ll get to that later, but why would you read your book, if you hadn’t written it?

A: I would read it because there’s a bad boy and good girl, if they change each other along the way that’s just a bonus.

Q: So… Why should people read your book?

A: I like to think it has the perfect blend of drama, spice and comedy. The characters have a good vibe and the banter is always a fan favorite. So I think people would enjoy the ride of tears, laughter and anticipation of the romance that is blooming between the characters.

Q: Are there any characters that you wrote parts of yourself into? Or did you detach yourself from the story to write from an entirely different perspective?

A: I always put a little of myself into my characters, but this one doesn’t have as much of me as my other books do. I would say Kallie has a little wit to her that she definitely got from me.

Q: Are there any scenes or plot points you cut out because they just didn’t work?

A: Yes, more of the spicy scenes than plot points, though there was one point to the story that I tried to make work that I ended up scrapping because it didn’t fit with the personalities of the main characters.

Q: Where did you draw inspiration from, when you were looking for outside inspiration? Did you do a lot of research? Did you look for pictures with the right vibe?

A: My inspiration mainly came from Tiktoks and Instagram videos, seeing a lot of the bookstagram girls fawn over guys on motorcycles had me wondering if I could make a story based on my own biker guy. I did read a couple biker romance books for research purposes, but I mainly looked for inspiration through videos and quotes that motorcycle people used on their video captions.

Q: Did you have alpha/beta readers? If so, what was the advice or comment that stuck out most to you, and helped you develop your story better?

A: I usually do have beta readers, but because I finished this book so quickly, I sent it to my editor and my PA, once it was edited and approved by the two people that I know would make it good with edits and the couple notes to embellish a scene further, we sent it to ARC readers.

Q: Are there any easter eggs in your story, or things that you’d only see if you read the book a second time?

A: The only easter eggs are the connections this story has to the rest of the series. Kallie’s brother for instance has his own book, Scoring & Scheming, so a lot of what’s mentioned between him and his wife are callbacks.

Q: Rapid fire word association. One word to describe your book for different topics. Here we go. 1: song, 2: different book, 3: color, 4: meal or food, 5: weather type, 6: environment (forest, cinema, kitchen, etc.), 7: mood.

A: Song - I Like The Way You Kiss Me (by Artemas). Different book - The Bad Boy Rule by Maren Moore. Color - Midnight Sky. Food - Donut. Weather - Warm. Environment - Highway. Mood - Relaxed.

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about you or your book?

A: This book is meant for adults and is written with the characters being in their early twenties, so I ask that readers please be aware that the characters are realistic in the case that they’re both flawed and have questionable actions as well as some natural cringe-worthy scenes, but that shouldn’t take away from the readers enjoying the plot and the characters’ relationships.

Q: Lastly, where can people find you and your book? (Paste links, we’ll turn it into a “click here”.)

A: Amazon & KU:  Click here

Signed copy: Click here

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