It is time for summer reading. A native of the Lehigh Valley has written the perfect summer romantic novel for the beach: \u201cShe Wrote, He Wrote: A New York Love Story,\u201d (406 pages; Wordeee; paperback, $24.95; ebook, $9.99; 2026).<\/p>\n
At the end of May, the Philadelphia Inquirer included the book in the list \u201cFive books by authors with ties to Philadelphia to take to the Shore,\u201d and called it \u201cthis summer\u2019s must-read.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a phone interview from her home in New York City, co-author Ashley Wren Collins says, \u201cShe Wrote, He Wrote\u201d is \u201ca little bit of escape, like watching a rom-com with laugh-out-loud humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cRomance is the number one book genre in the U.S.,\u201d she says, explaining how this book is different: \u201cEach chapter has an alternative voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collins takes the voice of the heroine Joanna, while her co-author, Jordan Rockwell, writes as the hero Logan. \u201cThey will tell different sides of the same story. Memory plays tricks, and we play with that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe Wrote, He Wrote\u201d gives an idea of what modern life is like in Manhattan for people of dating age. Says Collins: \u201cNew York City is a character in the novel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like the city itself, the book is fast-moving. Despite being more than 400 pages long, the crisp dialogue makes it an easy read by immersing you in the story.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is celebrating the people you cycle through to figure out yourself. In New York City there are more people and more choices to do that,\u201d Collins says.<\/p>\n
She insists that the book\u2019s characters, Joanna and Logan, are not based on the authors, but others in the novel \u201care a little bit of people we know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collins and Rockwell are married, but not to each other. Collins lives in New York City with her husband, classical guitarist Francisco Roldan; their young daughter Leopoldina, and her Chihuahua. Rockwell lives in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
They each graduated with a BA in English and Theater Arts from the University of Pennsylvania. They never met there, but heard about each other from a mutual friend who introduced them to each other.<\/p>\n
When they saw each other again at two separate weddings, they riffed on ideas and observations, and Collins thought, \u201cWe might have something here.\u201d<\/p>\n
They are planning two sequels to \u201cShe Wrote, He Wrote\u201d with additional characters set in different cities.<\/p>\n
Collins moved to the Lehigh Valley when she was three and attended Spring Garden Elementary, East Hills Middle School and Freedom High School, Bethlehem Area School District. She participated in dance and acting, appearing in productions in 1985 at Pennsylvania Youth Theatre.<\/p>\n
She has been an actor, producer, director, choreographer and writer. Her many credits are listed at her website: www.ashleywrencollins.com<\/p>\n
Collins is an associate director and associate choreographer for an upcoming musical based on Charles Dickens\u2019 \u201cDavid Copperfield.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her four other books are non-fiction. Two are travel books: \u201cThe Cheap Bastard\u2019s Guide to New York City\u201d and \u201cThe Cheap Bastard\u2019s Guide to Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p>\n
She wrote \u201cAlong Comes the Association: Beyond Folk Rock and Three-Piece Suits,\u201d with former group member Russ Giguere, and \u201cProduce Your Own Damn Movie!\u201d with Lloyd Kaufman, fabled B movie director whose films include \u201cThe Toxic Avenger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collins hopes that \u201cShe Wrote, He Wrote\u201d might be developed for a film or television series.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiterary Scene\u201d is a column about authors, books and publishing. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com<\/p>\n
PHOTO BY TED ELYAshley Wren Collins<\/p>\n
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