LI's Tessa Bailey talks about 'Unfortunately Yours'

“Unfortunately Yours” (Avon, $18.99), the latest of Tessa Bailey’s more than three dozen romance novels, takes place in a small winemaking community in California's Napa Valley — about as far from Long Island as you can get within the continental United States. Nonetheless, says the veteran author, her move to Floral Park from Brooklyn almost a decade ago, has had an ongoing impact on her work.

“When I started, all my books were city-based. I’m from San Diego, my husband and I are city people, and that’s what I was used to,” she says. “I’ve started writing more small-town romances now that I understand the mechanics and the politics. Our daughter is really thriving here; we love Long Island.”

Small town-big city contrasts are spotlighted in “Unfortunately Yours.” Heroine Natalie, back in her Napa hometown after a humiliating failure in New York City’s high-pressure financial industry, finds herself falling in love with August, the man she married to get her hands on the inheritance she needs to fund a new business. Will she commit to August and his fledgling Napa vineyard or go back to the soulless city? Bailey discussed her characters and her craft in a recent Zoom conversation.

You’ve used a classic romance premise in “Unfortunately Yours” — the marriage of convenience that turns into a marriage of genuine love. What makes that such a popular plot?

There’s something very sexy and attractive to the reader about forced proximity, because there’s a built-in closeness for the characters. There’s not a lot of time with them in separate places, they’re always together, and I think that’s what people like. They don’t want to read a lot of scenes where the characters are apart; they want to be there for every moment of this build up in the romance.

Speaking of sex, traditional romances don’t have as much of it as your novels do. Entertainment Weekly called you “the Michelangelo of dirty talk.” Are you OK with that term?

I’m very proud of it! When I first started writing romances, I thought, “Oh, gosh, can I write this? My mother might read it!” My no. 1 piece of advice for new writers is, don’t write as if your mom is going to read it. That will be a watered-down version of what you actually want to read and what actually turns you on. I had to make a decision whether I was going to write what I like or what wouldn’t offend the people in my real life.

Natalie and August also appeared in “Secretly Yours,” although the main romance involved her buttoned-up brother and a freewheeling gardener. Many of your previous novels have been in series as well — what appeals to you about that?

It’s just that I keep writing secondary characters that demand their own book! The second that Natalie threw her drink in August’s face in “Secretly Yours,” I knew that was going to be another book. Lately, I’ve been trying to write in duets as opposed to long series, because I get very anxious to create new worlds and meet new characters. I don’t want to get bored, because I love this job.

You also love your readers. They always get a shoutout in your Acknowledgments.

I can’t tell you how immediately comfortable it is between a romance author and romance readers; we have this incredible love for this genre that connects us right away. Book tours are my favorite part of the job. When I meet my readers, it’s like we’ve known each other for years when we start talking. I’ve been doing this for 10 years, and some really good friends I’ve made along the way started out as my readers. This bond we have is a huge strength of the romance community. You go to these readings, there are thousands of people there, each of them has a shirt that represents a book that they love, everybody makes crafts with their favorite quotes from the books on them. It’s a magical thing to witness; they adore these characters and feel like they’re real. I feel like they’re real when I’m writing them!

Have you started another book?

I’ve finished three! I’ve got a Christmas book coming out, and then I’m going to try sports romance for a while. I’m just having fun kicking around.