Author Elsie Silver—beloved for her effervescent, good-natured and heart-rending love stories—is redefining the world of romance one book at a time.
There is something quite radical about Elsie Silver’s books. Threaded with mountain towns, prairies that stretch past reason, and at the centre of all of it, always, is love—hard-won, a little bruised, and absolutely inevitable. Following a perfect formula, every page feels so visceral—by the time you surface, you’re not sure where the book ends, and you begin.
With 13 books up her sleeves, Silver came to writing the way many pandemic-era discoveries did: reluctantly, then all at once. And, since then, she’s turned it into a career that now spans three series—the Chestnut Springs, Rose Hill and Gold Rush Ranch series—, a devoted global readership, and two television adaptations currently in production.
So, we stole a quiet moment with her. There was a buoyancy about Silver that came in waves throughout our chat. Across different time zones, at midnight on our end and a bright 10 AM on hers, we spoke about her newest book, “Fever Dream”.
The book centres around Emmett Brandt, who has ridden bulls professionally his whole life—but nothing has thrown him quite like Julia Silva. When the professional bull rider signs up for a reality dating show to save his family’s farm, he arrives with a plan: perform, charm and leave with the prize money. What he does not account for is the location consultant who turns his carefully rehearsed life quietly, irrevocably upside down. Now, with cameras rolling and everyone depending on him, Emmett faces the only question that has ever truly unsettled him—what does he actually want?
But that’s not all we talked about. Now with her work moving off the page—she’s about to be one of the most influential voices. Ahead, Silver takes us deeper into her thoughts on romance, her Canadian roots and the trajectory of her future.
In conversation with Elsie Silver:
Photo courtesy of @thekindredwolf
Was there a single moment where writing went from something you did to something you couldn’t imagine not doing?
I started as a freelance editor, and I worked on my college paper, so I was always working with words in some capacity. Then, when the pandemic hit, my mom urged me to try writing. She was like, “You should write one of those books you’re always reading,”—I was a huge romance reader—and I was like, “No, that’s crazy.” But I did it anyway, and I think I just got the bug. It was an escape into a fictional world when everything else around me felt chaotic and scary. I just spent those few years channelling my creativity and escaping the state of the world. Then, one day, I took a breath and looked up, and my life was rapidly changing.
What does romance mean to you as a form, and why does it matter?
Romance is such a universal experience. The primary readership is women, but there’s a high level of relatability; no matter your sex or your orientation, there’s something that any person can connect with in a romance book. I love that you can explore that sort of human experience and the trials and tribulations, knowing that it will all work out in the end because romance always has that happily ever after. There is a sense of security and knowing that it’s pushing towards a happy ending, but it’s also the perfect landscape to have difficult discussions and explore challenging topics.
Your books are set in Canada, and that comes through in a very specific way—the towns feel lived-in, the land feels real. How much has where you’ve grown up and where you live shaped how you write?
I’ve always been in love with the scenery that I’ve grown up around, be it the mountains or the prairies or my time on the coast or near a lake. I’m just constantly enamoured with my home country. So every time I go somewhere, there’s almost something very romantic about the settings to me and the nature that is at our doorstep in this part of the world. It was easy for me to envision stories unfolding in these places. I grew up horseback riding very competitively, and I spent a lot of time outside of the cities, on farms, trail riding, and just really soaking it up. So, the ideas in my head were just automatically set in these locations. And, I do think that I’m sure you get this too, as a Canadian or as somebody living internationally, we’re just bombarded with American settings and stories, and there’s something that feels fresh to me, and I think to other readers too, about just a different part of the world to explore.
If someone had never read a single one of your books, which one would you hand them first, and why that one?
I would start with Flawless, the first book in the Chestnut Spring series. There is a loose connection to my debut series, but I feel like Flawless gives you a good ground. It lays the foundation for how I want my stories and writing to be perceived. The Chestnut Springs is such a beloved series, so I think it’s a great place to start. It’s a nice entrance to Elsie’s universe.
Photo courtesy of @thekindredwolf
What’s been your favourite book tropes to write so far?
[Laughs] I had a lot of fun with the secret baby or accidental pregnancy trope in Reckless, partially because everybody says they hate this trope, so I wanted to see how I could take it and turn something on its head. I enjoyed the challenge of it and the thought process that went into it—the angst and the connection. I don’t know if I could do it again though. I feel like I already did my thing with it, and there are only so many ways to spin it.
Tell us a little bit about your new book, “Fever Dream”. Where did the seed of Emmett’s story come from?
When I first wrote Emmett in Flawless—who was really such a jerk—I knew pretty early on that I would like to do something with him one day. But I like that about him, that he’s kind of soft and sweet with his family, but he’s got this shield up, and he really knows how to wield his words in a way that is cutting or sarcastic, and he’s not everybody’s cup of tea, and that’s okay. When I got to Reckless, Theo’s book, where it had a couple mentions of his sister, Julia, I was like, oh, that would be fun because there would be the forbidden tension and the betrayal of dating the guy he hates most on the circuit. I did have that pairin—Emmett and Juluia—in my head for quite a while and I was excited to get into it.
What did you like most about Emmett?
I have a soft spot for a misunderstood character. If you look back through my books, some of my favourite characters are Stefan and Winter—people who need a good old-fashioned redemption arc. I love writing that. I love a complex character who perhaps comes off one way from somebody else’s point of view. Then, you hop into their heads, and there’s a completely different story happening. And, that’s what I love about romance too—the exploration of different life experiences and understanding that people aren’t black and white. There are so many shades of grey.
What makes Julia and Emmett’s dynamic so compelling—or so complicated?
It is so complicated. Julia is probably one of my favourite female main characters that I’ve written because she is a lot like Theo in the sense that she is positive and glass-half-full, but there’s also a maturity to her or a bit of an old soul vibe to her. She kind of goes into meeting Emmett with her guard up for sure, but she’s not childish about it. So, the more she sees her own interpretation of his behaviour and how he speaks to her, treats her and how he conducts himself with his family and on the set of the dating show, she comes to her own conclusions about him. And, this is actually where her and her brother end up butting heads—it’s more like they don’t understand each other’s perspectives. So, this definitely adds to her intrigue with Emmett. She ends up trying to find her own way and form her own opinions about him, which was an interesting way to see his character develop, too, as the writer.
Is there a scene in this book that you’re especially fond of—something that landed exactly the way you heard it in your head? Can you share it with us?
One of my favourite scenes is when Emmett follows her to this place where she always hangs out and almost refuses to leave. He’s really just like, “No, we’re hanging out whether you like it or not. ” And they spend all night at this 24-hour diner drinking coffee and eventually talking to each other, and they just really connect. There’s nobody there, nobody to see it, no cameras, and there’s no family. And it’s just this moment where they’re both together, and it’s such a simple moment. But I love the way that he pursues her in that moment, and that it brings her guard down, and that’s sort of the tipping point of them starting to really trust each other and function as a team.
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What song or playlist was on repeat while you wrote “Fever Dream”?
I don’t usually have a song on while I’m writing, but I’d have to say weren’t for the wind by Ella Langley. When the song came out, it just felt like it fit the story.
This is the first book in a new series. Without giving anything away, what else can we expect?
You can expect a book for each of the siblings in the Brant family. So it’s four siblings and four books, and they will really centre around the farm as it goes from struggling to make ends meet and sustain itself to more of a balanced place, and the way that the family comes together to ensure the future of the family farm. But I think that every book in this series is going to have probably a little bit of a forbidden vibe, because I love that. I’m just writing what I like over here [laughs].
If Fever Dream were adapted tomorrow, which scene would you absolutely need to see on screen?
Probably, one of the jealousy scenes. There is one scene where they’re in the bar, and he leaves, and she follows him—there is already tension leading up to that—and then they end up having their first kiss. Any of those moments where the tension is just way up, or there are longing looks across the room because they’re not supposed to be looking at each other. Any of that would be really, chef’s kiss.
Photo courtesy of @thekindredwolf
Which scene from your other books would you be desperate to see on screen?
There are so many, and that’s actually been a conversation with the writers that I’m working with. So, I can tell you that one of the ones from Wild Love would be the blue pen scene, which is a spicy scene. I definitely was like, “That’s got to be in there. That’s so iconic.” And then I think for Chestnut Springs, Willa has to push that kid into the pool. We can’t skip that one. But there are so many. Once you start going through the actual thinking about it, I could probably go on and on.
How are you feeling right now with Chesnut Springs and Rose Hill being adapted?
It’s so surreal. It still doesn’t feel like reality to me. There are so many moving parts and so many layers to it, especially to have Rose Hill actually green-lit, casting and starting to film this year. I’m still processing the fact that I’m going to see my books on TV. It’s been fun.
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What do you do when you’re not writing?
I recently have gotten back into horseback riding, so you can often find me at the barn with my horse Dolly or doing anything outside, especially when I spend this much time at my desk. I’m gardening, biking, walking, spending time with my husband, my kid and my dog, and just taking it easy this year.
What are you reading and listening to right now?
The Love Trapped podcast and The Only One Left by Riley Sager.
You can pre-order Fever Dream now here.
