A Q&A with Lyla Sage, Author of November Indie Next List Top Pick “Lost and Lassoed”

Bookselling This Week: You’ve had a heck of a year. You hit the ground running with Done and Dusted in June 2023 and have been in the spotlight (and bestseller lists) ever since. I feel like your whole life must be Rebel Blue Ranch right now. First of all, congratulations! I’d love to hear more about how you handle writing and releasing books at this pace.

Lyla Sage: Thank you so much! The short answer to this question is that I don’t — handle it, I mean. At least, I don’t always handle it well.

The long answer is that nothing could’ve prepared me for how much Done and Dusted would change my life or how it would feel when the spotlight started to shine on me. I really love that spotlight! It’s a joy to write these stories, and I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be able to do so. But no matter how positive the attention is, it can sometimes feel like a lot — especially where the internet is involved.

I try my best to stay organized and disciplined — my Google to-do list and calendar guide my every move. I’ve had to intentionally work on keeping my creative well full by taking time to do things I love, write stuff that has nothing to do with my books, and sometimes, do absolutely nothing.

That being said, I just really love to write. I love this little world and family I’ve created, and I love sharing it with other people so that they can (hopefully) love it too, and find a sense of belonging between the pages at Rebel Blue. Rebel Blue Ranch started as a safe haven for me, and it’s stayed that way. It’s a lot. The past year and a half have been a whirlwind, and sometimes I get overwhelmed. But at the end of the day, I can always go home to Rebel Blue Ranch.

BTW: You’ve talked in other interviews about the indie origins of Done and Dusted, and the pressure to make its sequel, Swift and Saddled, as good or better than your debut title. How did the process of creating Lost and Lassoed compare to its siblings?

LS: When I first sat down to write Lost and Lassoed, I felt totally lost (pun definitely intended). Gus and Teddy came with a different type of pressure than the other two books, because people had already fallen deeply in love with their characters and were excited about the potential for their love story since the first time they were on-page together in Done and Dusted. I found myself really struggling under the weight of expectation on this one. I didn’t quite know how to balance the expectations I had for myself and these characters that I created and know so deeply, while also balancing the expectations of the readers who have come to love them so much. It was tough! I struggled through a good portion of it.

Between the first and second draft, though, my dad had a health scare. I edited most of this book in a hospital room, and unknowingly started crafting a love letter to him between the pages. This book’s heart is the romance, of course, but it’s also the relationships that children have with their parents and what it means to love the people around us fiercely — even when it’s hard and even when it’s scary. It’s because of my dad that this book is etched so deeply on my heart, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it.

Even though I had a rough start with Gus and Teddy, I am so proud of where Lost and Lassoed ended up. I grew through the process, and the lessons I learned during it have made me a better writer. I love this book truly, madly, and deeply!

BTW: I’m sure you put a little of yourself into each of your characters, but is there a character in this series that you feel resembles you the most?

LS: Little pieces of me are everywhere, but there isn’t one character that has stockpiled more of those pieces than another. I feel very connected to Emmy because writing in her voice feels like coming home, and her brain works the way mine does. A few of my friends would say that Ada and I are alike because of our sense of humor and the way we armor ourselves. I feel connected to Teddy because she and I are in a similar phase of our lives, and I relate to Cam because I can be a little bit of a people pleaser. I like having things in common with my characters, but I also try to make sure they feel like their own people with their own motivations and hopes.

BTW: Lost and Lassoed sets us up for the next Rebel Blue Ranch novel, which we’ll get in 2025! Any idea what you’ll be working on next?

LS: I’m so excited for Wild and Wrangled to come out in April 2025. I can’t believe this series is coming to an end.

After Rebel Blue Ranch, I’ll be taking a trip about two hours north of Meadowlark (in this fictional version of Wyoming that I’ve created) to a small and sleepy ghost town called Sweetwater Peak for a duology of books. I’m currently working on the first one and having a blast getting to know this new town and the cast of characters. The main characters are twin sisters who couldn’t be more different, except for the fact that they can both communicate with ghosts. This is my contemporary take on a sort of gothic romance — with a lot of Western flare of course! I’m excited to share it with the world in late 2025!

BTW: For our last question, we always like to bring it back around to indie bookstores. Would you tell us a little bit about the role of books and indie bookstores in your life?

LS: I wouldn’t be who I am without books. I’ve been a voracious reader since I can remember. The only thing I used to get in trouble for at school was having my books open on my lap under my desk, so I could read while we were supposed to be doing something stupid — like math.

I didn’t grow up with an indie bookstore near me, but when I went to college, The King’s English Bookshop in Salt Lake City, Utah, was right around the corner from my apartment. I spent nearly every Saturday morning perusing their shelves and reading my buys on their back patio. I went there when I was happy or sad or stressed, and the books I found there always seemed to give me exactly what I needed. I vividly remember crying over a boy in their literary fiction room, which is the same room I had my very first signing in last year — a true full-circle moment for me!

There are so many stores I want to mention here: I remember the first time I walked into Powell’s in Portland and ended up staying there for three hours. I can always count on the staff at Paulina Springs Books in Sisters, Oregon, to have a good horror recommendation for me after I’ve finished a hike. I love getting coffee and a pastry at Stacks in Tucson, Arizona, before I peruse the shelves. I’m also incredibly grateful to now have a romance-forward indie bookstore near me: Lovebound Library in Salt Lake City.

As an author, the support I’ve felt from indie bookstores and booksellers has been amazing. Truly, you all make this author’s world go round! I’m so happy to live in a world where indie bookstores exist!