This was very much meant to be that thing about family asking “Have you eaten yet?” as a way of saying “I love you”

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2020-03-21

She’s reaching for her family, but what’s within reach is the necklace and Graham—and though she cares about Graham a lot, he’s not a substitute, just like how the necklace isn’t a substitute either

8 128
2020-03-21

I saw a lot of people upset at Graham for not confessing to Lucy here, but she’s very much not in a good state for having more big feelings thrown at her??

Graham centering Lucy’s feelings and not his own was meant to be the proof of how much he cares about her

10 171
2020-03-21

1. No one irl talks like this

2. I wanted to make it clear that excessive self-sacrifice isn’t good—it can feel like if you’re the only one suffering it’s alright, but it’s still a net gain of suffering entering the world!

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2020-03-21

I WAS REALLY NERVOUS ABOUT LUCY GIVING UP HER SEARCH....

Realistically, this is a healthy choice!

But storytelling-wise, having the central plot premise thrown out the window felt risky? It’s not a far leap to thinking, “So nothing that happened before matters”

4 132
2020-03-21

Graham has gone from a person who did not want to see his old coworkers, and felt like an imposter among them, to this! He’s farther along his character arc than Lucy, which I know can be frustrating

3 130
2020-03-21

I wanted to emphasize that the people Lucy can best commiserate with isn’t Graham—the two of them being in love won’t fix Lucy’s grief

Bartlett and Colby are the ones who most understand what she’s going through

9 166
2020-03-21

This wasn’t meant to be a Flowerpot reference, I’m just used to drawing greenhouses ha ha

Also, Saffron is the school nutritionist and does community gardening!

2 120
2020-03-21

Like Lucy, Colby is a person who has gone through loss and doesn’t want anyone else to feel the way he did (and sometimes he goes too far)

2 121
2020-03-21

I wanted a moment for Bartlett that felt more solid and immediate than just thinking “I miss her”—him realizing that he’ll have to change his emergency contact was one of them

3 150
2020-03-21

The thought that I’d live a life where I’d think “I just have to make it until the end of this week” over and over for the rest of my life is one of my biggest anxieties

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2020-03-21

There have been times when I’ve felt sad, and the worst thing was that it felt unproductive—I didn’t learn anything from it, it didn’t make me a better person. I just dwelled in it. I had nothing to do with those feelings.

That’s sort of the sentiment here

5 140
2020-03-21

The character I’m most defensive of is Madeleine, but second is Colby!!

His good intentions and youth don’t outweigh the wrongness of his actions, but I was really startled by how vehemently readers reacted to him blocking Lucy’s number!!

3 131
2020-03-21

This joke is overwrought at this point

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2020-03-21

Colby isn’t overprotective of Bartlett because he doesn’t want to lose another parental figure

Colby is protective of Bartlett because they both lost parents when they were young, and Colby doesn’t think Bartlett deserves any more suffering in his life

2 139
2020-03-21

Lucy and Graham have both experienced an interrelated loss, but at this moment, Lucy realizes it’s not the same loss

Graham wants to talk to the other chefs who also lost Bartlett; Lucy wants to talk to someone who also lost Lynn, or their family

4 127
2020-03-21

These random strangers too, we were close enough to the end that I knew I didn’t have to save up food names anymore!

2 114
2020-03-21

Don’t worry, the old ladies are named after foods too!

2 131
2020-03-21

Even though there’s no words, I hope it was clear that Lucy’s burning the candle at both ends between her job, friends, and search for Bartlett!

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2020-03-21