Author Interview: Lacey Weatherford

Let me introduce you to Lacey Weatherford, author of Of Witches and Warlocks: The Trouble with Spells and The Demon Kiss


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How did you come up with the idea for Of Witches and Warlocks: The Trouble with Spells?

It is a funny story actually, but my daughter had decided to dye her hair from a light blond to a deep brunette color. After she was done it was a near black in color and someone jokingly made the comment that people were going to start calling her a witch. For some reason that comment just stuck in my head and I started contemplating a story about two girls who were basically polar opposites of each other and the friendship the story would go through when one of them found out she was a witch. Of course the storyline evolved and changed from there to become more of a love story between the main male and female character, but that was how it all started.

You have had an interesting road to publication. Can you let us in on what happened and your advice for aspiring writers?

(Laughing) I really had no clue to what was involved in getting a book published. When my family and friends encouraged me to pursue it I basically did a little bit of research on the Internet to try and find out what to do. I made up a query letter and sent it out to about 20 agents/publishers. I received requests for additional manuscript from several of those. I had an offer to publish the book within about 2 days. Being naive and excited, I accepted that first offer. I wish now that maybe I hadn't rushed it so much since I was still receiving offers clear up to the week the first book was published. I was devastated when I got the book though and discovered that the unedited version of the manuscript had been placed in it. This was partially do to a misunderstanding of an email on my part though, so as a rule the company refused to make the changes to the book to fix it. I am happy to say they have since changed their minds and the changes are being made right now. That made me very happy! I learned a lot over the next few months about book pricing, discounts and return-ability. As a result of learning some of those things by trial and error I decided to venture out to find a new publisher who would better meet my needs as well as book buyers/readers. I researched companies by the hour and ended up sending a query letter to my first and only choice. Thankfully they accepted me!! I loved the creative control I was able to have with this company! It was a complete day and night experience for me and I love the product they have produced! My advice to writers would be to please do your research when you query companies. Research their reputations and know exactly what you are getting in to before you sign anything! It can be a very rewarding experience but there are definitely sharks out there!

For those who have yet to read Of Witches and Warlocks, what can they expect out of the series?

It is most assuredly a paranormal romance. The story revolves heavily about the struggles of this young couple, Vance and Portia, and what they have to go through to try to overcome obstacles that are surrounding Vance and his past. Vance hasn't had any stability in his past when it comes to family so when he falls for Portia he falls quick and hard, partly because she fulfills this missing piece inside of himself. Vance is also very drawn to the darker side of things so Portia tries to help him balance out those things that would possibly sway him to a less than desirable direction. However, outside forces are "hell bent", for lack of a better term, from letting them reach that happy ending they so desire.

What book are you reading right now?

I actually just finished the book I was reading. It was Hush, Hush, by Becca Fitzpatrick. A very good YA paranormal story also about a fallen arc angel. I really enjoyed it!

How did you decide to stray from traditional Wiccan beliefs and choose to have a Christian Coven of Witches?

That was actually sort of an accident! I originally had been doing research on Pagan deities and beliefs for the book when I came across a book that reminded me of another book I had read for a research paper several years ago for my college composition class. The book was actually about love spells and it encouraged people to practice magic in addition to their current religious beliefs rather than changing their beliefs completely. This sparked the idea in my head of having my witches be Christian in their beliefs instead. As I was looking for ways to have this paranormal romance differ from others that were out there I really liked the idea of taking it in a different direction, away from the normal genre a bit.

I must say that Portia and Vance are in my top 10 literary couples of all time. Are they based on anyone? How did you come up with their characters?

Why thank you! That is a huge compliment! The character of Portia is very loosely based on some of the characteristics of my oldest daughter, such as love and loyalty to those around her though the character herself is just who evolved out of the writing. Vance Mangum on the other hand was inspired by a great young Hollywood actor named Matt Lanter (Liam Court, 90210). When I came up with the idea of Vance I wanted him to be someone who had great sex appeal, who could be either a really "good" boy or really "bad" boy. I instantly had this image of Matt pop into my head but I didn't really know who he was at the time so I researched him and the roles he had played. He instantly became the image of Vance in my head to the point that I felt I could "see" Vance's reactions to everything. It made the character incredibly fun to write and I have been paying homage to Matt every since!!

Take us through a typical writing day.

I am a very laid back writer. Literally! I usually sit all propped up with pillows around me on my bed with my laptop, several bottles of water, and my itunes and I just type away. I get very easily caught up in writing and usually before I know it the whole day has gone by and I realized I haven't even eaten yet! Once my mind is on a roll it doesn't like to stop! It sort of becomes all consuming to me. I have to get it all out or I can't sleep! It is very easy for me to write for even 20 hours at a time when I get going. I get too excited to stop!

Do you have any other stories you'd like to publish?

I do have one book that I wrote prior to this series that I would like to go back and revamp and see if I could get it ready for publication. It is a fantasy/fairytale type of story that is a lot of fun that has a nice romantic line in it as well. I am very partial to romance. I do have a couple of fresh story ideas that I have been mulling around in my head also that I would like to give a shot eventually when I am finished with these other projects. Right now I am finishing up the edits for books 3 and 4 in the Of Witches and Warlocks series so will see where things lead me when that is done.

Is there anything you wanted to say to The Sweet Bookshelf Readers?

Absolutely! Thanks for taking the time to read about my books and I hope that you will feel inspired to take a chance on them and see if you like them! I really enjoy hearing from readers and I try to do my best to respond to those who get in touch with me so feel free to leave comments on my web pages/social networks! I would also encourage readers who enjoy any author's work to get on discussion pages and tell other people about it. Reviews by other readers are in my opinion the best form of advertising! I know that is the way I like to pick my books to read so share, share, share, your opinions with others and keep reading!:)

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Thank you so much for stopping by The Sweet Bookshelf Lacey! I'm anxiously awaiting my copy of The Demon Kiss and can't wait to get my fill of Vance! Best of luck in your career and we can't wait to read what's next!!