Welcome back to Behind The Debut, a podcast to shine a light on first-time authors and their journey to publication.
In this episode I’m delighted to welcome Libby Tanner, author of the debut novel ‘Better Than Gelato’ which came out under City Owl Press in August 2025. Libby grew up in a small town in California but a love of travel (and food!) led her to live abroad in Italy and Chile and indeed her debut contemporary romance is set in Milan.In our conversation, you’ll hear:
- The true life love story that ‘Better Than Gelato’ is based on
- How Libby approached writing her debut novel and the planning and writing system that she prefers
- The mindset that Libby had to let go of during the planning process to write what the story needed
- The scenes that she struggled to write and the ones that she absolutely loved (spoiler alert: there’s food involved)
- How making time to write with four young children kept her sane and how she stayed motivated over the five years it took her to write her debut
- The negative feedback that Libby got for her initial manuscript which almost led her to give up on her writing dream
- The online writing academy Libby used to learn the tools she needed to revise her manuscript into a publishable novel
- Libby’s writing routine and the surprising tool that helps her get into the writing mindset
- The piece of advice that she would give her pre-published self and other new writers
- Some exciting news that Libby shared on the show about what’s coming next for her!
LINKS MENTIONED IN THE SHOW
Save The Cat Writes A Novel by Jessica Brody (https://savethecat.com/products/books/save-the-cat-writes-a-novel)
The Writing Mastery Academy (https://www.writingmastery.com/)
Trello (https://trello.com/)
Mindful Mamas (https://mindfulmamasclub.com/)
ABOUT ’BETTER THAN GELATO’
Book #1 in the Ciao Bella Series
Goodbye mind-numbing business classes, hello hunky Italian men…
When Juliet Evans scores a job as a nanny in Italy, she’s ready for a year of excitement and glamour. She is not ready for a diabolical six-year-old who swears like a pirate and hurls silverware with terrifying accuracy.
Still, it’s a small price to pay to explore Milan, take a million photos, and fantasize about becoming a professional photographer. And yes, she knows she has to take over the family business when she returns home, but a little denial never hurt anyone.
And speaking of denial, she is definitely not attracted to research intern, Jake Fields. She barely even notices his adorable dimples and quiet charm. Besides, dating an American in Italy is like eating at McDonald’s in Rome—ridiculous! Yet, despite her best efforts, Juliet finds herself in the bewildering and euphoric grip of first love.
It’s exhilarating! Intoxicating! Even better than gelato! Until it’s the one thing standing in the way of her dreams.
The future she’s always wanted is so close. Now what is she willing to give up to get it?
CONNECT WITH LIBBY
Website: https://libbytannerauthor.com/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/libbytannerauthor/ / https://www.facebook.com/libby.tanner.author
Buy ‘Better Than Gelato’ on Amazon US / Amazon UK
BEHIND THE DEBUT
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Show music by music_for_video from Pixabay
CONNECT WITH MICHELLE
Join me on Substack at michellreeveswrites.substack.com where you'll find all the latest episodes of Behind the Debut, plus behind the scenes chat about author life, books, writing, publishing and more.
