Elle Kennedy joins Morgann Book on 'Off the Shelf' to discuss writing romance, the Briar U universe, and 'The Graham Effect'.
Uploaded by Off The Shelf and Morgann Book, 2026 · Watch on YouTube ·
Kennedy reveals that the Off-Campus series was originally conceptualized as a trilogy where Tucker was meant to be killed off to devastate Dean. Her editor fell in love with Tucker and persuaded her to find someone else to lose instead.
Kennedy initially planned for Dean to end up with Sabrina in book three, but she scrapped the draft after writing the first ten pages because their dynamic felt genuinely toxic rather than romantic banter.
Kennedy dismisses claims from readers that Garrett behaves like a villain in The Graham Effect, arguing that he simply reacts the way any protective father in his forties would to his daughter's decisions.
Kennedy adopted the pen name E. Kennedy for YA thrillers like Thornbird to establish a clear boundary between her less explicit young adult work and her spicier Elle Kennedy adult romance books.
Kennedy shares details on Bad Idea, which brings readers back to Briar U to follow Dean's daughter Ivy and Jake and Brenna's son AJ as they start their sophomore year following difficult freshman experiences.
Intro & Welcome
Wanting to be an author at six years old
Selling her first book & publishing journey
How her writing process has evolved
Why The Deal was originally self-published
Creating Garrett, Hannah & the Briar universe
52 books, 12 series; 1 reviewed on LuvemBooks. Dates and covers from Amazon.
Who is Elle Kennedy?
Follow up
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