Hello, everyone!

Here is an interview with @xkalopsia , the author of 'A Week in Rome', a beautiful and unique story that I happen to love. Please go check out this book. It is truly heart-wrenchingly sorrowful while being happy at the same time. It might just teach you how to live life to the fullest. 

Q: What gave you the idea for 'A Week in Rome'?

A: I believe that I can pin the inspiration for "A Week in Rome" on two facts: one, I've always been a hopeless romantic, and I'm constantly thinking up scenarios and characters in my head. My biggest goal when writing a story is to make people feel something. To impact their lives. Secondly, one of my strongest desires is to travel the world, but it's far too expensive and unrealistic for me to do right now. What I've discovered is that writing takes you on a journey of its own, so I decided to write a story about a fleeting romance in a foreign country. My stories are always inspired by dialogue. First, I imagine the characters and what they would say. The conversation that constantly lingered in my mind was this one: "What brings you to Rome?" "A broken heart. You?" "I've got three months to live. And I've heard gelato is pretty good." I wondered, what would happen if a broken heart collided with a withering one? Thus, this story was born.

Q: Is there a real-life inspiration for Max?A: Max is not inspired by a real person; rather, he's what I imagine a person who lives life to the fullest to be like. And he embodies a person who's easy to fall in love with. When I was writing his character, I wanted him to represent the meaning of life and love. Who better to appreciate life than a person who doesn't have much longer left to live?

Q: Your ending is quite different than that of other books on Wattpad. You left a lot to the reader's imagination. What prompted you to do that?A: I was hoping you'd ask! I think that the reason I left out so much information about my characters is because I wanted this story to be /only/ about Max and Amora. It's their story. The little inconviences and details don't really matter in life when you've got a love as strong as theirs. Their pasts become obsolete in the face of their love. As for Max, it doesn't really matter what he's dying from. The fact is that he's dying, and instead of focusing on why, I thought I'd focus on how he can make the most of his final days. The adventures they have after the point where my story leaves off are up to the readers. I feel that everyone should be able to fill in the blanks exactly the way they want to. That way, they can share part of the story with me!

Q: Do you relate to Amora? If so, how?A: I can relate to Amora. Much like many other authors, I can see a little bit of myself in my main character. Amora's heartbreak is something I have endured myself, which is why I was able to pour so much passion into the story. Her character development is also something that reflects my life a bit. She learns to live freely and not care about her past. It's the present that truly matters. And after having learned this myself, I've found that I'm content with my life. I hope that my readers can connect to Amora the way that I'm able to.

Q: I have noticed various instances of peanut butter making an appearance in your stories. Is that your signature? Also, since Amora likes it and Max does not, I feel the need to ask this- do you like peanut butter?A: You know Trevor, this question really made me laugh. Peanut butter was never really meant to be a signature, but I guess it just developed into one. While writing deep/passionate scenes, I ask myself what's something light that I can throw in there? And for some reason, I find myself writing two words: peanut butter. What an odd signature, I know. I always thought it'd be something deeper, but I guess not! It may come as a surprise, but I really do not like peanut butter. I avoid it like the plague, so I enjoyed writing Max's scene.

Q: So, what is next for you as an author? 

A: I've announced that I'm going to be turning AWIR to a series of books with a similar theme.

Q: Have you ever actually been to Rome? What is your favorite place there?

A: I've never actually visited Rome. It is, however, on my list of cities I'd like to visit. The history there just seems so enticing, and especially after researching it for this story, I'd like to go and see for myself.

Q: The wedding scene in your book, wherein Max and Amora crash into a wedding was beautiful. What inspired you to write it?

A: Thank you! I have always wanted to crash a wedding. My best friend and I talk about it all the time. And when I wanted Max and Amora to do something rebellious and daring, I thought why not crash an extravagant wedding? I imagined that it would provide the opportunity to describe a beautiful setting and beautiful people, yet Max and Amora would still be wrapped up in each other. It also gave me the perfect chance to have them dance with one another, and I truly believe that this dance is where Amora truly realized she'd fallen for Max. It gave me the perfect opportunity to add meaningful dialogue. Even though they're among maybe a hundred complete strangers, they're both in their own little world. They have each other, and that is all that matters.