This transcript was generated with the help of AI and only got a quick once-over from a human. So if you spot a typo or something that doesn’t make sense… let’s just blame the robots. 🤖

[00:00:04.940] – Alan Petersen
Hey everybody, this is Alan with Meet the Thriller Author, and today I’m joined by Monica Arya, who is here to talk about her psychological thriller The Favorite Girl. It’s upcoming with a major traditional re-release by Simon Maverick on November 10th. So I’m excited to talk to her about all that. Monica, welcome to the podcast.

[00:00:31.250] – Monica Arya
Thank you so much for having me. I’m thrilled to be here.

[00:00:34.120] – Alan Petersen
Oh, great. Thank you. So, so before we get into the nitty-gritty with The Favorite Girl and your work and all your books that you’ve been writing, can you tell us a little bit about how you got started writing and what drew you to these types of dark psychological thrillers that we all love?

[00:00:48.810] – Monica Arya
Yes, absolutely. So my own author lore goes back to age 5 when I was in kindergarten. And I don’t know if you are familiar with the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer. So it was out in theaters, and my older brother and his group of friends were supposed to be babysitting me. And I’m a true ’90s kid, so instead of babysitting me, they snuck me in to see I Know What You Did Last Summer as a 5-year-old.

[00:01:18.600] – Alan Petersen
I liked your siblings.

[00:01:20.380] – Monica Arya
And, you know, it’s so funny because a Disney movie was playing, and they gave me the option to drop me off by myself in that theater or go see the scary movie. And naturally, I picked the scary movie. And I was not at all terrified. I remember going home and thinking, that was the coolest thing ever. And so I remember just doodling and writing from a very young age. I remember my kindergarten teacher, who amazingly enough is actually in my Facebook reader group, still posts little tidbits about how I would show up in these pretty dresses but write these, like, wild stories. So that’s pretty much who I am— the author in sundresses who writes pitch-black nightmares. So it’s honestly, it’s just always been something I’ve loved. I remember in 9th grade, my English teacher was like, I really think one day you’re going to do something with your horror thriller because I was just, like, consumed by Edgar Allan Poe and all of that. So, um, I think it’s been a part of me for a very, very long time.

[00:02:28.440] – Alan Petersen
Yeah. Well, that’s great. That’s awesome that your teachers are, are in your Facebook group and everything. That’s pretty, that’s really cool. Yeah. Yeah. Is that why—’cause I’ve noticed that you’re, you’re pretty big on, um, on warning people on the trigger warnings. Is that because, I mean, when you go to your Instagram or whatever, you know, it does look very like light and a lot of colors, but your books are very dark. Is that why you feel like compelled to like warn people?

[00:02:52.540] – Monica Arya
You know, it’s so true because the best way— people who meet me in person, they say I am human sunshine in a sundress. I remember thinking that should be on like a bumper sticker, but I will write the darkest thing. So genuinely, I strive and thrive to be a really kind person, and I do love like all the pretty girly things, which makes no sense with the path. And so I remember someone actually met me at a book convention and said, I would think that you would choose, like, romance and happily ever afters. And I’m just so drawn to darkness that I do think when readers engage with me, they’re like, oh, there’s no way this, like, butterflies and sunshine is about to write Grim Reaper. Yeah,

[00:03:33.590] – Alan Petersen
How bad could it be?

[00:03:34.790] – Monica Arya
Yeah, there’s no way. So, I do like to have those warning pages because I do— I think they are pretty dark books. And, you know, they aren’t the traditional popcorn thrillers or cozy mysteries that I think, you know, make up a large portion of the industry right now, which are great and fun and entertaining. But I like to take it next level darkness.

[00:03:55.780] – Alan Petersen
So tell us a little bit about The Favorite Girl, how did it all come together? And you originally had independently published that on your own, right? Because, wow, it’s amazing. Now you’re like with one of the big— was it 4 or 5? How many are left of the big publishers? Crazy.

[00:04:13.530] – Monica Arya
Yes, it’s truly been such a wild journey. And I’m so grateful for every single reader who took a chance on me and the book. I think when you independently publish a book, you really learn how much readership means everything and how I think even human nature of being willing to try something outside of our comfort zone where we might think, you know, I really like the cozy mystery written by my favorite top 3 authors that, you know, we consistently see on shelves. So I will always be eternally grateful for the fact that, you know, it was just me in this like white lace dress with the— I would wear the blonde wig that Demi has on and market the book. And readers took a chance on it. So yes, back 2 and a half years ago, I wrote it. And I knew it was a strange, weird, dark thriller. And I always say, you know, it’s truly the symbol for me of resilience and believing in yourself, even when maybe no one else is believing in you. So I wrote it. And shortly after publishing in May, it took off. It hit 34 in the entire Kindle store.

[00:05:26.410] – Monica Arya
It actually, right now, I checked this morning and it’s at like 290 in the Kindle store. And that’s 2 and a half years later when, you know, I haven’t been talking about it nearly as much as I used to because now you have a million other books. But it— yes, it has been just such a journey. And, you know, it got picked up to be re-released and the whole series did. So now all the paperbacks will have beautiful sprayed edges and be more accessible to readers. So I’m really grateful for that opportunity.

[00:05:55.850] – Alan Petersen
Yeah, that’d be great. You’ll be in all the bookstores and the airports and all that good stuff that we can’t get in as indies.

[00:06:01.540] – Monica Arya
It’s so true. It’s so true.

[00:06:05.140] – Alan Petersen
It’s awesome. So how did the story for The Favorite Girl come together? Tell us a little bit about that.

[00:06:11.890] – Monica Arya
Yeah, so The Favorite Girl, I always say the, you know, quick synopsis of it is Demi is a brown girl trapped in an all-white world, quite literally. And so I was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, and obviously a brown girl. And so I went to predominantly Caucasian schools. I was always kind of like the misfit.

[00:06:32.880] – Alan Petersen
Hmm.

[00:06:33.120] – Monica Arya
And this is circa the ’90s/early— I graduated high school in 2009, for perspective. So, you know, things have evolved and changed, definitely. But I just remember always feeling kind of like this outcast. I think parts of my own personal life experiences growing up in the South, where you have a lot of the conservative, very racially divided communities still in many places, and when you get into the smaller towns of North and South Carolina. And so it just kind of came to me and evolved into creating this terrifying white world where Dr. Ian Ivory is obsessed with the color, but then he’s also— like, you know, suffering from this compulsion to essentially transform these women into what he does. I don’t want to spoil it.

[00:07:28.490] – Alan Petersen
No spoilers.

[00:07:30.340] – Monica Arya
No spoilers. But yes, so it kind of was personal experiences. And then my background is in psychology. I worked with human trafficking cases and things like that. I got to really dive headfirst into real-life darkness. So it’s always intriguing to me because some of my negative reviews will say, this is so unrealistic, which, first of all, it’s fiction. We would hope it’s unrealistic for— I actually, yes, personally, I hope my neighbor isn’t anything like my villains. But I do think it’s kind of interesting how we all grow up so differently and experience different things because the baseline of the book is human trafficking, which is very, very real, and the horrors and violence against women and all of that. So kind of weaving in together a bunch of things, and there was The Favorite Girl.

[00:08:26.450] – Alan Petersen
And you know what, it’s so creepy too with all the— I hope this isn’t spoiling too much, but there’s like all these rules and all this stuff. I mean, so when you first started writing this, do you, uh, did you already have that all planned out, or do you kind of like write from the seat of your pants, or did you outline this? What’s your process like?

[00:08:43.040] – Monica Arya
So it’s really funny. I do not outline. I usually will think of the idea in my head, and it plays out like a movie for me. And I’m always so curious to hear how writers end up producing their books because it’s so true. We’re all so very different with them because I have friends who are like, they’ll show me their detailed charts and I’m like, oh, I should be like that. I play it out almost like if it was a movie, and I always joke it plays out like a nightmare in my mind. And then I go and just start writing from start to finish. I don’t skip chapters or anything. So as I’m writing, these very strange dark thoughts will come up, like the rules for the Ivory Estate or symbols. I am a symbolism person through and through. So I will have Greek mythology kind of symbols, like the peonies. There’s a whole Greek myth story tied into that. And I just think it elevates that experience for the reader because it’s not just something I came up with, but also deep-rooted in things we might have learned in school.

[00:09:49.530] – Alan Petersen
That’s great. And then, and so what’s your— do you like set, like, when you’re writing a book, do you have like set hours? Do you like write in the same spot? Or do you go to like a coffee shop? How does that work?

[00:10:02.110] – Monica Arya
So I am very easily distracted. And I love people watching. I feel like you could really get a lot of inspiration if you just watch. But I try not to go to coffee shops because I think just the noise really distracts me. So I usually work from— I actually joke it’s a literal pink office. Like, the walls are pink and there’s peony wallpaper behind me, and my computer is actually one of the, like, pink iMacs. And so when readers are like, I don’t know where this woman came up with this sick book, and I’m like, here, Barbie Land. I love it. Yeah,

[00:10:41.740] – Alan Petersen
so

[00:10:42.150] – Monica Arya
I’ll do that. But then we also have, like, an in-home library downstairs where I like to change it up and I’ll curl up with my dog on the couch and write from there too.

[00:10:52.180] – Alan Petersen
And I noticed you, you have a lot of books out. It’s like, how many books have you published so far?

[00:10:56.480] – Monica Arya
You know, I was just trying to count today and I was like, am I on 13 or 14?

[00:11:00.820] – Alan Petersen
Wow. Yeah.

[00:11:02.020] – Monica Arya
So, um, I believe the one I’m working on is number 13, or actually it might be 14. So I think you start losing count.

[00:11:11.740] – Alan Petersen
Yeah. Yeah. That’s great. And then, uh, so when you first wrote The Favorite Girl, was it a standalone? Because now it’s a, it’s become a series, right? Do you have the 3 books in there?

[00:11:20.680] – Monica Arya
So initially, I thought 3 people would buy it. Pity buys, like from my husband, my mom, and my best friend, maybe myself. Like, I promised myself I wouldn’t buy a book because I feel like that would, you know, change the trajectory of sales. But I was fully convinced that it was just such an out-there book that there was no way it would find its readership. And so I ended the book where I thought the story could just end off, and it would give the readers peace if they didn’t ever have a second— like, if I didn’t have the opportunity to write a second. But then it obviously did find its readers. And it was funny because I actually wrote the sequel because readers wanted it. I didn’t even have an idea. I just was like, This is how it ends. And so luckily the ending was pretty open enough for me to just build into The Caged Girl. And then I left The Caged Girl off thinking the exact same, because, you know, as writers, we’re always going to think no one’s going to buy this. And so I left The Caged Girl off a little open, but also enough to give, give peace to readers.

[00:12:38.520] – Monica Arya
And then I kept getting messages like, I need more. I miss Demi. And so The Favorite Daughter is officially the finale. And I actually— it’s coming out next year. But I have readers saying, can we get a prequel? And I’m like, listen, there’s only so much I can come up with.

[00:12:56.390] – Alan Petersen
That’s great. It’s like reader demand is like the spur that spurred this on.

[00:13:01.030] – Monica Arya
Yeah. Yes, for sure.

[00:13:03.170] – Alan Petersen
And so I was curious because I was reading about with the re-release with Simon Maverick. So you actually went back and added some content and you went back to the there’s some new stuff in there. Uh, so can you tell us about that? Because I’m so curious about that. Because once, you know, once we’re done, like, it’s a hard time for me to go back and read because I’m like, oh no. But you actually went back and was able to do changes or whatever. How can you tell— walk us through that? How was that for you?

[00:13:28.170] – Monica Arya
Well, you know, I think with being traditionally published, one of the big pros is just having an extra set of eyes on your book. So I did already have an amazing editor and, you know, I did self-hire a team of my own, which I still love and will always use. But I think just having, you know, their editorial team, so I was able to comb through it again and edit anything because, you know, we’re human. I think sometimes it’s easy to forget when you’re reading a book versus writing it. It’s so funny because I could read the manuscript 10 times, and you just don’t see it. And I have like a beta team and 2 editors, and there were still some typos that slipped by. And of course, that’s what like a reader will be like, this is the worst written book ever.

[00:14:19.830] – Alan Petersen
Hire an editor.

[00:14:23.260] – Monica Arya
How dare she ruin life with this grammatical error? And I’m always like, you know, we have to remember there are many people, but we’re all human. And also how we read differently, because I’ve been an avid reader since childhood, and I don’t read particularly looking for an error. Like, I’m so engrossed in the story, and I just— I also feel like it’s such an art. And I know, I’ve always known, being an author and a writer is being an artist. And I know how much creativity and blood, sweat, and tears go into it, and imposter syndrome. So the last thing I’m going to do is judge over, like, a comma.

[00:15:00.160] – Alan Petersen
Yeah, yeah.

[00:15:01.780] – Monica Arya
You know, okay, his eyes turned blue. Like—

[00:15:05.250] – Alan Petersen
Yeah, it’s—I think it’s impossible to have a 100% perfect book.

[00:15:12.390] – Monica Arya
You know, so I think that was a big thing. So it did get like, you know, we went back through it, and I got to fix anything. The end has a sneak peek into Let Me Show You, my April 2027 thriller, which is really fun because the prologue of that book is an AOL chat. And so that got added to the end. And I actually haven’t seen like the finished copy yet. So I’m excited because it’ll be a surprise for me too. So I’m not really sure if like anything got added on with like The Caged Girl and The Favorite Daughter coming out. And then the actual physical book has red— I call them bloody sprayed edges, like blood from my own soul poured into this book. Sprayed edges. And then Demi’s sunglasses are reflective on the cover. And then the font has like blood dripping from it. So they did a beautiful job in transforming it to give readers like a whole new experience with it.

[00:16:09.070] – Alan Petersen
And the audiobook, is that, is that done through them? Or did you do that yourself, the audiobook version?

[00:16:14.260] – Monica Arya
The audiobook is through a different publisher, Podium. And then, yep. And then the ebook is mine. So it’s a child with multiple homes.

[00:16:26.380] – Alan Petersen
Yeah. What is it called? The hybrid now?

[00:16:29.810] – Monica Arya
Yeah. I did. I think, you know, the ebook, that book, The Favorite Girl, is always going to be that book that will be so special to me. So I had to keep something for myself.

[00:16:41.200] – Alan Petersen
So I’m kind of curious too, because now I always get to the nitty-gritty of the writing. So what do you use to write your books? Do you use like Word or some software app? Or what do you—

[00:16:51.240] – Monica Arya
So just Word. And when I first started, I actually remember writing so much on my phone. Because at that point I had a newborn and a toddler.

[00:17:00.960] – Alan Petersen
Oh, wow. Yeah.

[00:17:01.910] – Monica Arya
So I was just always on the go, so I couldn’t sit still and writing on my phone and then just putting it into Word, which was a nightmare with formatting. And so, um, but yes, now I just write in Word and I’ll just take my laptop, whether it’s at extracurriculars or in the parking lot or at home. And just use Word.

[00:17:24.720] – Alan Petersen
Wow, that’s amazing. So you wrote, you wrote that with 2, 2 babies, basically. Wow. That’s very impressive.

[00:17:30.410] – Monica Arya
Thank you. Yes, it was some very, very long sleepless nights. I joke it was like such a blur because I think it’s almost as if the universe wanted to give me another time to experience The Favorite Girl coming out, because when it came out, I was in such a blur of life that I don’t think I fully enjoyed the success of it. And so now I’m—this is exciting. We can re-celebrate.

[00:17:56.930] – Alan Petersen
Yeah. And so for readers who actually had read it a couple of years ago, there’s still new stuff in there for them. Uh, so it should be fun for them to read it again. Uh—

[00:18:05.780] – Monica Arya
Yeah. So I think, and a lot of them are so kind and sweet and supportive that they just want the physical new version because the sprayed edges are a limited print run.

[00:18:15.310] – Alan Petersen
Oh, okay.

[00:18:15.870] – Monica Arya
Once those sell out, then I don’t think the other ones will have the sprayed edges. So it’ll be kind of cool to see who actually gets the editions with sprayed edges because it’ll be kind of a limited edition set.

[00:18:27.340] – Alan Petersen
Nice. Nice. And so you said you’re very active on social media and the Facebook groups. I’ve seen you in some of the Facebook groups that I’m in. Uh, is that the best way to connect with readers? I’m kind of thinking from the author mentality, because it’s so amazing the support that you, that you have from, from readers.

[00:18:46.740] – Monica Arya
Yeah. You know, I think it is probably so. I’m such a people pleaser and I’m always overly grateful for everything. I’ve been like that since I was a kid. So it like crushes my soul if I can’t thank someone 3 zillion times. So I really have had to like learn the balance, and I’ve learned that I just can’t reply necessarily to everyone. So a lot of times on my Insta stories, I’ll just be like, I love you all. Thank you. Yeah. But if I do see something, I usually tell readers, if you tag me in something, I will see it. But sometimes, you know, between all the like spam and random messages, it’s hard to always see. So I do think social media is such a blessing with that, with being able to connect with readers and just have that balance though, where you do have to remember, like, to be a writer, you have to write books, and that takes time. So I allot time to it. I’m like, okay, this is the time I’m gonna do on social media, and the rest I actually really have to work. But it’s really— it’s honestly, you know, I always say that there are so many moments where I don’t believe in myself.

[00:19:51.320] – Monica Arya
Like, I’m currently going through that with this next book. I’m like, no one is gonna pick it up, no one’s gonna want it, no one’s gonna read it. And I’ll get on social media and see a reader saying, I got them back into reading. The Favorite Girl, you know, pulled them back after decades of never reading a book. Or someone has a tattoo of The Favorite Girl. And it blows my mind because I think it bridges that gap of not believing in yourself and having incredible readers saying, like, no, like, this is great, we love this. So I do think it’s such a blessing to be able to connect with readers.

[00:20:22.090] – Alan Petersen
Yeah, that’s a whole different level of fandom. Wow. I’ve never had a guest that had a reader put a tattoo of their character on them. That’s amazing.

[00:20:31.260] – Monica Arya
So I actually have like a few readers who have sent me pictures. And I actually posted it a lot on Instagram because it blows my mind. I’m like, this is it. Like I tell— I told my husband, I was like, you say you love me, but do you have a tattoo?

[00:20:45.780] – Alan Petersen
No pressure there.

[00:20:47.400] – Monica Arya
No pressure. You know, I think that it sets the bar very, very high. I’m glad I’m like already married and not in the dating world because I would just be like, hey, are you planning on getting a tattoo of my book symbol or my name? So one reader actually has Arya on a book.

[00:21:02.410] – Alan Petersen
Oh.

[00:21:03.230] – Monica Arya
Her arm. And then multiple have the cage from the cover or like peonies or the teapot because, you know, tea is a symbol too. And they send them to me and I’m just like sitting there crying my eyes out like, how? Why?

[00:21:18.700] – Alan Petersen
Well, yeah, that speaks a lot of the connection too. It’s not just, you know, yeah, the thriller, all that’s all fun, but they’re really connecting with the characters. That’s amazing. Amazing for someone to do that. That’s kind of— I could see why, I could see why you were in tears.

[00:21:30.460] – Monica Arya
Yes, yes. I like talking— anytime I talk about it, I’m like, okay, here we go, my, my ugly crying.

[00:21:37.340] – Alan Petersen
So, so you mentioned you’re writing something now. Can you give us a little sneak peek what you’re working on next?

[00:21:41.680] – Monica Arya
Oh my gosh, I’m so like— I am so excited about this one because Let Me Show You is the one that’s coming out in spring, and then The Caged Girl will get re-released, and then The Favorite Daughter comes out in October of 2027. But then this book is what I’m hoping is my 2028 book, and it is pitch black, disturbing. I call it a [coined genre term unclear], which is a thriller and a horror blended together. I’m just making up words, and I’m like, people just, you know, believe me because I’m a professional writer.

[00:22:15.560] – Alan Petersen
I like it though. No, it’s got a good ring to it.

[00:22:17.800] – Monica Arya
No, like, we could, we could just start doing this, making up words and convincing people to believe it’s a, it’s a whole genre.

[00:22:23.600] – Alan Petersen
Start hashtagging it.

[00:22:25.460] – Monica Arya
Yeah, get it trending. But I think it will be perfect for my readers who loved the Favorite Girl series. So it’s the very similar vibe, but a totally unique, different story. Because I like to challenge myself as a writer and not fall into that trap of, like, this is your one-hit wonder. You have to write everything to be that book. And I think my readers have definitely given me creative space with that because Let Me Show You is like a twisted millennial true crime nostalgic thriller, totally different from Favorite Girl. And I was so terrified to even put that one out there. But everyone’s like, no, I want to change it up. And I want something different and to see where your mind goes. So this one kind of takes us back into my favorite place of that, you know, basement creepy darkness. And it’s a girls’ trip, serial killer, an obsession, childhood trauma, all kind of interconnected to create this pitch-black psychological thriller.

[00:23:28.300] – Alan Petersen
I like it. Sounds good. That’s really good. Can’t wait for it. And are you— are you still working with Simon Maverick? Are you doing that one on your own?

[00:23:35.320] – Monica Arya
So that one does not have anything connected to it yet. So we will see, to be determined. I’m not sure yet. I think once I turn in the manuscript to my agent, we’ll go from there. But I’ve obsessively been tweaking at it. So if no one wants it, then yes, I will definitely believe in her myself. But, um, I would obviously love to continue working with the same publisher, but we’ll see.

[00:24:04.100] – Alan Petersen
And so do you— when you’re writing, do you write every day? Is that— do you make it a goal? Like, okay, this is my job, I’m gonna write every day?

[00:24:11.100] – Monica Arya
Yeah, I— so I feel empty when I don’t write every day, but you know, life lives. And sometimes, depending on where we are, you know, traveling, or the kids are sick, or something just comes up, sometimes I don’t get to. I try really hard to make up for that loss of word count, though. So if one day I’m just all over the place, or sometimes I feel like you just are not in the creative mindset to write. Mm-hmm. And so sometimes I’ll just feel that burnout when I’m especially promoting new books and trying to convince people like, please preorder this, please preorder.

[00:24:48.380] – Alan Petersen
Talking to people like me.

[00:24:50.140] – Monica Arya You know, it’s one of those things where you get so deep into the marketing. I think people forget it’s like you’re writing, editing, marketing, putting yourself out there. And the funny part is, is I’m actually one of the world’s most private people who just got trapped in an industry that social media is like. So putting myself out there already gives me plenty of anxiety doing it. And people are always stunned at book signings. They’re like, I never thought that you would be nervous. Like, you seem so happy to be on. And I am, but I am such an anxious, nervous wreck to put myself out there. And so I think just doing all of that sometimes burns you out, and that creative energy you need to be in the headspace to write your best work sometimes isn’t there. So then on a Friday, if I feel better, then I’ll just try to knock out as many words as possible. So it comes in waves. There are waves, and like, there are seasons of life where I definitely have had to just pump the brakes. And that’s why I think it’s important to kind of get ahead so you have like, okay, so that’s why I’m working really hard to finish this 2028 book, just in case life gets too busy next year with 3 releases.

[00:26:05.000] – Monica Arya
I know I already have the next one lined up.

[00:26:07.450] – Alan Petersen
Yeah, that’s nice. Yeah, you’re not always thinking, oh, I gotta write, I have to write, I have to write outside of that.

[00:26:11.540] – Monica Arya
Yeah, for sure, because it can get draining. Oh yeah. Sure. And it sucks the joy out of it. And I never wanted writing to feel like a job, even though it is my career. I didn’t want it to feel like that. I wanted it to still always be a passion.

[00:26:26.520] – Alan Petersen
So I’m gonna ask you this question for all those aspiring writers out there, not for me at all. So you mentioned that, you know, it was hard for you to get to be so public on social media, uh, but that’s so important nowadays. So for people who are like shy and struggle with it, what, what advice would you give to them? To me?

[00:26:46.790] – Monica Arya
Listen, I feel that. I, you know, I joke that I look at it as a diary. So I do not pretend to be anybody that I’m not on social media. And I do think just hearing from other people’s experiences when you start faking who you think people want you to be, it becomes this exhausting job. So my readers have seen me post actual, like, Insta stories where I’m, like, crying over the keyboard, you know, stressed out and thinking I won’t be able to write ever again. Like, they’ve seen me go through imposter syndrome, or, you know, I’ll put quirky, silly, dark things, and it’s one of those things where I think it also has helped me find the right readers because I am definitely a dark humor girl. I am not the girl who’s going to be very hilarious and funny with the classic jokes, but dark humor is where I’m gonna shine. So I feel like if you are easily offended by dark humor, you’re not gonna like my books either. So if I pretended to be someone that I’m not, I also think it hurts who your social media following is composed of. And I think that’s where it all loops together, is I just look at it honestly as an online diary where I’m my most authentic self.

[00:28:09.050] – Monica Arya
I mean, to a certain degree, right? Because we want to keep personal. So I don’t post family at all on social media. And for me, that has been a really healthy balance and divide where I still get to just be Monica and who I am outside of being a writer. But my readers do know that, you know, I’m married with kids. So if I’m not always responding, I am also living a whole different life outside of books. And I think that just being your authentic self is where you truly find the people who connect with you, and you find your people and your community. So— putting yourself out there. And you know, this is, this is my millennial advice. I remember back— I just posted this actually, um, for Let Me Show You— I remember back when AOL Chat and Facebook had just started, I would put the most dramatic statuses from music. Like if I was going through a heartbreak over a boy, or me and my best friend fought, and it would be the most dramatic away statuses for the whole, like, everyone to see. And I didn’t care who saw it.

[00:29:18.480] – Monica Arya
So I’ve tried to remind myself it can’t be as bad as that. I can’t embarrass myself. And that girl didn’t care. So I’m sharing. I think we just have to remember you’re sharing about something you loved and poured yourself into. And at the end of the day, people who love it and want to support you aren’t going to judge you for putting yourself out there.

[00:29:40.370] – Alan Petersen
That’s good to know. Yeah, I like that, to be, to be yourself. Because if you’re like, oh, I have to be like her, then they’ll sniff that out. People will, the fakeness of it. So yeah, that’s right. I love that advice.

[00:29:53.600] – Monica Arya
Yes, for sure. I think, you know, I remember being asked so many times, like, who would you want to be as an author? And I was like, just Monica Arya. Everyone else is taken. And I don’t know how to be someone else. I’m too strange.

[00:30:07.020] – Alan Petersen
Okay, and then I always close out the show with, for, again, for aspiring writers, especially the advice that you would give them, especially, you know, you’re like, you’re so busy with toddlers and finding the time. Any advice you have for somebody who wants to write a thriller or write that first book?

[00:30:23.020] – Monica Arya
Yeah, definitely. I think you just start doing it. You just start writing. And, you know, I always tell myself the first draft can be a dumpster fire, but we will work through it and get through it. But I think just having an idea, believing in yourself. Because, you know, I do love— to be honest, as much as The Favorite Girl put me through it, and indie publishing is its own beast, I think the beauty of it is you do learn resilience and believing in yourself and knowing that you can do it and you can have your dream come true, even if you don’t have the publisher or the team or everybody believing in you or the fancy PR packages, you know. So— I think just doing it and remembering there’s always gonna be someone better than you, selling better than you, having the movie deal, you know, it’s never enough. And I’ve learned that because I’ve had author friends ask me like, well, you’ve hit— like, people are getting tattoos now. Like, is this filling your— I’m like, you know, but there’s always gonna be something, right? Someone’s always gonna have better and more. So comparison is a thief of joy, and I truly believe in that.

[00:31:32.340] – Monica Arya
I think that this industry is so hard. I think there are so many backwards methods and beliefs that could change significantly. But until that day comes, I think believing in yourself is the number one starter.

[00:31:46.850] – Alan Petersen
All right, great. Well, that’s awesome. That’s great advice. So, um, where can the listeners find you? What’s your, uh, your socials?

[00:31:53.910] – Monica Arya
So Instagram is where I am most active, and it’s @monicaaryaauthor. And Facebook, Monica Arya Author, Monica Arya. And then my Facebook reader group is Monica Arya’s Misfits. And then TikTok is the same thing, Monica Arya Author. So you can find me everywhere.

[00:32:13.000] – Alan Petersen
All right. All right, Monica. Well, thank you so much. Really enjoyed talking with you.

[00:32:18.190] – Monica Arya
I enjoyed talking with you too. Thank you so much for having me.