Danielle Jackson: Welcome to Fresh Fiction, Jen! We are so glad to have you hear and chat about your new book, THE ASTRONAUT AND THE STAR. What are three words/phrases you think best describe your book?
Jen Comfort: funny, nerdy, and “horny” (the latter is according to the starred Library Journal review, and I am very proud she got away with that description in the official tagline!)
First things first, I love a grumpy sunshine pairing. But what I love more is when the female main character is the grump, and the male main character is the sunshine! Reggie and Jon are this to a T! What appealed to you about this grumpy/sunshine, opposites attract setup?
Jen: The original premise for this book was that it was a gender-flipped take on I Dream of Jeannie, which I watched a lot of growing up (I was just a very indoor child without many cool hobbies). In the show, there’s this grumpy, workaholic astronaut named Tony who gets saddled with the cheerful, chaos-causing magic Jeannie—a character who could be the blueprint for the “manic pixie dream girls” of our time. Since my absolute favorite thing to do is play, “What if?” with familiar stories and tropes, I thought, “What if the astronaut was a woman (or person who identifies as a woman, which going forward is what I mean when I refer to gender in this interview), and the agent of chaos she found herself stuck with was a manic pixie dream boy?” And then I got really excited about this concept, because they say authors should write what they want to read, and I’m absolute trash for big, lovable, well-meaning doofuses. Bonus points if they worship the ground a capable, ambitious woman stomps upon. What I’m trying to say is: Cronk from The Emperor’s New Groove can get it. I also think there’s been a real shortage of ostensibly “bitchy” (can I say that?) heroines getting their well-deserved HEAs in the contemporary romance genre… and in this context, I use the term “bitchy” as a compliment, because it’s so often applied to capable, ambitious women who don’t cater to traditional gender roles.
In this book, Reggie Hayes is determined to be the first woman on the moon, but her public person (or lack thereof) needs a boost… and training an actor to be an astronaut for an upcoming film is the perfect way to change her image and get on the radar of the decision makers about this new lunar mission. How do you think readers will relate to Reggie, even though her occupation is so specific and different?
Jen: Some of my favorite characters in media are ones I’d be wholly intimidated by if I met them in real life. For example: on paper, I have very little in common with Catwoman—she’s acrobatic, she masterminds extraordinary art heists, she looks great in a onesie… but we both love cats, and she often talks about how she steals diamonds to provide her cats a better life, and I think that’s a core motivation I can deeply relate to. In that respect, Reggie might be an astronaut on her way to the pages of our history books, but she’s also a lonely, socially awkward perfectionist whose entire life has revolved around her career. And I think there are elements there many of us can relate to, but especially career-driven women and women in STEM. Anyone who’s ever been the absolute best at the technical aspects of their job only to be passed over for an opportunity because they didn’t schmooze and booze and smile enough can probably understand how Reggie feels at the beginning of this book. Except in Reggie’s unique situation, likability and a pro-team attitude are actually very important traits for astronauts who have to spend months in confined spaces with each other. So, inner growth is really necessary for Reggie! If only she could meet someone who was naturally good at making people smile…
Jon Leo is also looking for his big breakout role, one that will get fans and industry professionals to take him seriously. But his charming, good looks and happy-go-lucky persona are covering up some of his own struggles. Even though she tries to resist it, what does Reggie find so appealing about Jon?
Jen: Whenever I think of Jon, I think of a really excited Golden Retriever. I was also told by my beta-readers that I needed to stop referring to Jon as an excited dog on the page because it was excessive in first drafts, and I’m not writing a dog-shifter romance (right now… never say never). The point is, I really like dogs, and I dare anyone to resist the charm of a dog who’s really excited to see you. That’s the energy that Jon brings to the table—he’s a ray of sunshine, he’s enthusiastic about everything, and he tries his very best. He also has a massive crush on Reggie, and it’s pretty hard to resist when Jon promises to be just as enthusiastic about every activity he participates in. But as they spend more and more time alone together, Reggie sees that there’s more to Jon than meets the eye, and that’s the real catch...
I imagine the amount of research for both Reggie and Jon’s professions was not only staggering, but a lot of fun! What were a couple of things you found out that seemed unbelievable at first, either about being an astronaut or an actor?
Jen: Everything about being an astronaut is unbelievable! I feel like that’s a cheat answer, but it’s true. These people willingly strap into a tiny metal container no larger than the interior of a car situated atop six million pounds of rocket fuel, and then launch into space, which is absolutely designed to kill us, and they stay alive up there. The most unbelievable thing about it all is that NASA does it on such a ridiculously small budget. Imagine what we could do if we even doubled the 0.5% of the total U.S. annual spending we allocate to space science!
There’s a bevy of really awesome side characters in this book: Reggie’s best friend and cosmonaut Katya, Jon’s publicist Jacqui, and the kind of skeezy/over-the-top prestige director of the film, Rudy Ruffino. Who was one of your favorite side characters and why?
Jen: It’s hard to choose, because I try to make my secondary characters almost as complex as the main characters, with their own goals and flaws and stories. Even the wacky villains—as zany as some of them are, they’re all drawn from real life. Tell me you don’t know someone you went to high school with who’s a total Milton Feltzer on social media! But if I must choose, I think it’s obvious I love Katya to death as she is clearly the best: her lack of conversational filter, her utter self-confidence, her deathly-but-somewhat-reasonable fear of bears, her superior taste in fashion and sappy romantic movies… I am praying to the Publishing Gods that I’ll get to write her book some day. I can’t wait to throw her in a muddy pit with someone who trains bears for a living and only speaks in grunts.
You also write fantasy romance under the name Kitt Masters. What are some of the biggest differences you’ve notice between writing fantasy and contemporary?
Jen: The biggest pain in the butt is not being able to make up facts about the real world to conveniently fix all the massive plot holes I write myself into during drafting. Oh, they’re stuck in a bear pit? Well, in this world, they can snap their fingers and all the mud will be magically washed off… just in time for the big sex scene! Nope. I have to spend my time squinting at obscure science proposals dragged from the depths of NASA’s archives, trying to figure out whether the solar panels they might use on the moon would theoretically support the body weight of two humans lying on them horizontally. For activities.
What can readers expect from you next?
Jen: My forthcoming book with Montlake, MIDNIGHT DUET, is a very different than THE ASTRONAUT AND THE STAR. I formally pitched it as a gender-flipped Phantom of the Opera meets Spinal Tap retelling, featuring a fallen Broadway star who retreats to an opera house she’s inherited in the fictional town of Paris, Nevada after a tragic accident. To save the theater from ruin, she rents out the venue to an up-and-coming German hair metal band, whose lead singer is in dire need of some late-night vocal lessons. And we all know what those lead to...
Rapid Fire Random Questions (feel free to explain/elaborate on your answers as much or as little as you'd like)
Cats or dogs: Yes. All of them.
Book you recommend the most: Currently? Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao. All time? The IAD series, Kresley Cole.
Favorite smell: Sunscreen lotion
Ketchup or mustard: Ketchup for fries, mustard for pretzels.
You’ve been invited to a costume party - what do you dress up as? I’ve procrastinated until the last minute and therefore don’t have a costume. Oops.
What fictional city/location would you visit? Pup Academy.
Favorite childhood movie: Mortal Kombat.
How do you practice self-care?: Cuddle time in bed with the animals.
Breakfast or dinner? Breakfast, but not if I have to cook it. Or wake up early for it.
You have a totally free afternoon - no deadlines, no obligations, no Twitter notifications! What do you do?: If it’s warm out, I go outside and get drunk on Vitamin D while I have the chance. If it’s not, I cuddle in bed with my animals and read or play video games.
An out-of-this-world romantic comedy featuring an astronaut tasked with training a Hollywood actor for a space flick.
Astronaut Regina “Reggie” Hayes wants to be the first woman on the moon - it’s all she’s ever dreamed of. But after a PR disaster, Reggie is off the list for a lunar mission. To rehabilitate her reputation with NASA, she agrees to a different kind of assignment: astronaut “training” with a Hollywood action hero.
Jon Leo is a charmer. With credits that include an underperforming sitcom and a campy action flick called Space Dude, his upcoming role in a prestigious movie could prove he’s a star. But Jon isn’t just big muscles and an otherworldly smile - he’s also a total space nerd. He’s pumped about his own personal space camp…until he meets ice-cold Reggie.
Although Reggie and Jon are polar opposites, their mutual attraction is undeniable, and it only takes a few weeks in close quarters for them to give in to its magnetic force. Jon is set on convincing Reggie this is a match made in the heavens, but her future is in space, and his is among stars of the Hollywood kind. The odds of successfully launching a real relationship outside the confines of the training base are anything but optimal.
Reggie, content with keeping things casual, is forced by a sudden turn of events to confront the possibility of losing Jon forever. Now, she’ll do whatever it takes to win both the man and the moon.
Romance Comedy | Romance Contemporary [Montlake, On Sale: March 1, 2022, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781542032605 / ]
Jen Comfort is a Portland, Oregon, native who dabbled in astrophysics before spending a decade working in restaurants in New York City and Portland. Now, she writes romantic comedies about hot nerds with very cool jobs. She spends her free time growing plants destined to die before their time, playing video games, and encouraging her two cats and malamute-husky dog to become internet famous with zero success.
Danielle Jackson is a contemporary romance author, avid reader, lackluster-yet-mighty crafter, and accomplished TV binge-watcher.
Once upon a time, she was a publisher publicist and continues to cultivate her love of books and reading by chatting with the best authors in the business as a co-host of the Fresh Fiction podcast. Danielle also moderates industry panels, interviews authors, and hosts a romance book club.
Danielle lives in Chicagoland with her very own romance hero husband, darling daughter, and two tempestuous cats.
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