All Ed needed to become the Internet's latest boyfriend was a chili-pepper costume. But getting sunny foreign-exchange student Audra to prom will take a lot more than that. Ed doesn't know he's beautiful. But he is. Even when his crazy boss forces him to wear an "extra-spicy" chili pepper costume as part of a May 5th promotion. It was only meant to be an after-school job at a low-key Mexican restaurant; Ed never signed up for abject humiliation. And when a lovestruck girl snaps a covert picture of Ed while he serves her an enchilada, he couldn't possibly have anticipated becoming the internet's latest imaginary boyfriend. The fame is immediate and disorienting, but if it helps Ed convince quirky foreign exchange student Audra to attend prom with him, being "Enchilada Ed" might not be so bad. (Formerly Ignorance, Bliss, and Mexican Food)

WATTPAD ORIGINAL EDITION In 1955, mixed-race Ethan Harper leaves his progressive hometown for a summer in Alabama where he's not welcome, except by resident free spirit, Juniper Jones. ***** After getting himself into a bout of trouble, 16-year-old Ethan Harper's parents send him to Ellison, Alabama, to live with his aunt and uncle for the summer. But the year is 1955, and Alabama is a far cry from his beloved home of Arcadia, Washington. As much as it's hotter in temperature, it's colder in every other way, and Ethan learns the hard way that people see his mere existence as a threat. Amidst all the mayhem, a fiery, free-spirited, oddball walks into Ethan's life. Her name is Juniper Jones. She is the first person in Ellison who seems unfazed by their racial differences, and she promises to give Ethan a summer he will always remember, filled with endless adventure and discovery. With Juniper, Ethan can breathe, he can be, despite the incessant attention and bullying their newly formed friendship attracts. Can the two survive the summer, run in the light and block out the noise of the outside world? [Published version comes out June 16, 2020 with Wattpad Books!] [[word count: 70,000-80,000 words]]