Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin La Rosa.
Hi Erin, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a romance author, and co-founder of the Burbank Book Festival. I published my first book almost ten years ago, and since then have published five more. I’ve always loved reading, and worked at Random House when I graduated college. So I think my interests have all led me to the place where I’m able to write books, and also help create a bookish community. I co-founded the Burbank Book Festival with another Burbank author, Emily Barth Isler, and we’re going into our second year with it.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Nothing is ever smooth, right? I think the bigger hurdles with books are that being an author doesn’t mean you can have that as a full-time job. Publishing a book is not a get rich quick scheme, so while writing books, I also have a full-time job. The hardest part is just finding and making the time to write.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’ve written two humorous non-fiction books, called Womanskills and The Big Redhead Book. But my last four books, and what I want to continue to write, are romantic, contemporary books. My books have a lot of humor, are set in Los Angeles, and deal with real-world issues. So, for example, my debut romance, For Butter or Worse, features a character with panic attacks, while my most recent book, Not You Again, deals with grief in various forms. I try to strike a balance of realistic romance with the comedic elements.
How do you think about luck?
Probably a lot! I don’t come from a creative family. My dad is a surgeon, and my mom is an RN. I was expected to go into medicine in some form. But a teacher in high school told me I was a great writer, and should think about it as a career, and that changed my whole life. Then, meeting Emily Barth Isler at Three Sisters Coffee Shop in Burbank led me to brainstorming a way to form a book-loving community in Burbank, and the Burbank Book Festival was founded. So I don’t know if those things are luck, or timing, but here I am.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.erinlarosacreative.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/erinlarosalit/
