Authors Krista and Becca Ritchie are a twin sister writing duo who became TikTok sensations with their Addicted to You series. Now, fans also adore the Webs We Weave trilogy, especially this epic finale.

Tell us about your latest book and how your co-author relationship showed up for this project.

Our latest release, Dangerously Ours, was a true collaboration. Before we even sit down to write we have a writer’s room style discussion to really unpack character arcs and the central plot. With this book having five POVs, it was essential to be a cohesive team to tackle all the different perspectives. Not only to ensure they’re all distinct but for both of us to write them in the same voice.

How did your co-author relationship begin? (Fully understanding you’re twins, but curious about who’s idea it was and where things kicked off?)

In the womb, of course! We joke. It started, really, around middle school. A teacher assigned a creative writing project, and it really sparked a passion in Becca. She started writing for fun at home, and I became so enamored with her stories that I would read over her shoulder as she wrote. It reached a point where she wasn’t writing as fast as I could read, so I decided to start writing too. We would switch our stories back-and-forth for each other to read and gush over. And we just never really stopped writing.

What drew you to a collaboration rather than writing solo?

We didn’t start collaborating until late high school and early college when we decided we wanted to take writing more seriously and complete an actual book together. It seemed more fun to write together than apart, and it turns out it was.

What were some ways you figured out your writing compatibility and how you complemented one another when you were just getting started?

We knew we didn’t want to just split POVs or give each other certain chapters. We loved the collaborative side of it where we both have a hand in everything. So it naturally made sense for us to have someone start writing first and the second writer filling in, adding details, and extrapolating. When we first started, the “first writer” changed between books but as we’ve developed a system, we realized Krista was better at the framework, so she usually writes first.

Did being twin sisters make it easier or harder? (I.e. Were you already used to doing things as a pair, or were typical siblings dynamics brought into the writing space?)

We think it made it easier! For the first ten years of our careers we were living together, so it made it convenient to have writing discussions at the drop of a hat. Being sisters and twins, we also know that there’s no way we can possibly hurt each other’s feelings. We’re incredibly honest when something isn’t working in the novel.

What does your process look like?

Like we mentioned, there is a “first writer” who will lay the framework of the first draft. The second writer comes in about 15,000-30,000 words behind the first writer. They will add details, fix plot holes, maybe even add new characters. Then midway through the first writer will stop and go back to the beginning and do another pass for pacing and consistency and adding more details or threads. Each of us do at least 2-3 passes of the entire book.

Do you have specific roles or rules that make a difference in the process?

Becca is much more detail-oriented and much better at writing action-heavy scenes. I prefer dialogue and character building. We’re twins but opposites, and our strengths and weaknesses truly do complement each other.

How do you manage creative disagreements?

Lots of discussions! Our persuasive skills have also been perfected. We pitch what we want, and usually if something isn’t working, there is a reason. Talking it out forces us to find a deeper, more complex solution and will make the story better. So we don’t ever shy away from disagreements because they always end up helping the book in the end.

How do you provide constructive feedback?

We start by explaining why something isn’t working as best we can. Sometimes the feedback will be as simple as “I don’t know why I feel like this is wrong, but it’s wrong” and we hash it out together and will try to figure out the exact issue together. These feedback discussions are so important in our process and happen almost every day.

What’s something writers might be surprised to learn about your partnership?

We didn’t start writing together. It took years before we collaborated. And for years we were just writing stories for each other because we simply loved writing. We loved it so much that we would write and give each other short stories as birthday presents.

Are there any challenges within publishing for co-authors that solo writers don’t face? Are there some perks?

For us, it’s double the work. Some might think that we write 50% of the time because we have someone else, but we’re both writing 100% of the book at the end of the day. So we’re taking on a lot and have to be constantly in sync since we’re in this business together. But the ultimate perk is having someone else equally invested in the story as you. We both care about these books and characters in ways no one else will. It’s not a solitary process. There’s nothing like it.

What are you working on next?

We are working on our new adult romance series called the Cobalt Empire. It’s centered around six siblings of a wealthy, elite family as they navigate love, ambition, and the weight of their familial legacy.

Dangerously Ours by Krista Ritchie and Becca Ritchie

Phoebe Graves used to spend all her time conning rich people and fleeing to new cities. That is until she started to form real connections with people from a small but wealthy town in Connecticut but she’s scared that someone will bring her new life crashing down. She has reason to stay in one place for the first time in a long time. Those reasons are her best friend’s older brother, Brayden “Rocky” Tinrock, who has been Phoebe’s partner in crime and then her best friend Hailey Tinrock whose secret Phoebe is determined to protect. Phoebe and her family alongside the Tinrocks are determined to make this place their home permanently but that means confronting some parts of the past and try to deceive a crafty con artist.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon