It’s the first day of autumn, and we have our hard-working President here for an interview.
RWF: Would you say you write women’s fiction or romantic women’s fiction?
JL: Romantic women’s fiction. I need my romance! See my article here for my personal definition of the genre.
RWF: Do you write in other genres?
JL: I’ve written a couple of short stories in other genres. Second Chance Dress has no genre that can I name, but you can get a copy of it for free when you sign up for my newsletter. 😉 The other one is a time travel (yes, me!) that I’m waiting on for rights reversion before I self-publish.
RWF: What is your last published title?
JL: Sight for Sore Eyes. Here’s the blurb.
How many stick and stones can one woman survive?
Emma Finn once dreamed of being a photographer, capturing exotic landscapes and poignant vistas. Then a series of tragedies tore her life apart. All she craves now is stability—reliable, boring, safe.
How many bumps and bruises can one man take?
Ophthalmologist Asher Stockdale left big city life when his ex-wife took his young son away. When he met Emma, he pictured her as the centre of his new life in Clarence Bay. So why is he encouraging her to resurrect her old dream and go gallivanting around the globe? Dare he ask her to stay?
How many roadblocks can one romance encounter and still cherish the love?
If Emma goes to India, will she be able to heal, or will she regret her choice?
Carpenter ants, a rescued Pirate, and a pair of scheming seniors help Emma and Asher to see what really lies before their eyes.
You can read an excerpt at www.JoanLeacott.ca
RWF: What would be your number one tip you’d give to someone who’d just finished their first manuscript?
JL: Celebrate the amazing thing you’ve accomplished! Treat yourself to something special. Then let yourself, and the story, rest for three weeks before you start editing. That way you’ll both be fresh and ready to go. For the first pass, just read; resist the urge to edit. Note where you catch yourself smiling or are confused, angry, or tearful. The places of confusion get your attention first.
RWF: Do you have a running theme?
JL: Reconciliation. I didn’t start out with that in mind; a friend pointed it out. I find the revelations and growth required for honest reconciliation to be an endless source of conflict and resolution.
RWF: Where do you find inspiration?
JL: In the bottom of a pail of dirty water. 😉 When I’m engaged in mindless chores like washing floors, I reflect on events (large, small, recent, and past) in my life and that’s my greatest source of inspiration. My first story grew out of the sentence, ‘A woman goes home to help her sick mother’. I was cleaning my mom’s house while she was receiving chemo treatments.
RWF: Do you have a job outside your writing?
JL: I’m self-employed as a book formatter and Microsoft Word educator. You can see more at www.WovenRed.ca. The job came out of the technical skills I acquired as a self-published writer.
RWF: Are you a plotter, panster, or combination of both?
Definitely a plotter—I Y Excel to weave plot lines and keep a series bible.
RWF: What’s a surprising or little-known fact about you?
JL: I’m taking piano lessons. My parents were immigrants with five children and not a lot of money. Once I had the time and resources, I realized a life-long dream to make music.
Thank you, Joan, for taking time out of your busy schedule to come share a bit about yourself and your writing.
Joan is a renaissance woman. She is skilled in many arts—sewing, knitting crochet, cross-stitch, painting, and piano. Oh, and writing contemporary romantic women’s fiction. The skill favored by her husband and son is cooking. She spends her winters in Toronto attending plays, ballets, Pilates and Yoga classes. Whew! Her summers are spent on the shores of Georgian Bay relaxing with a book and a glass of wine on the deck.
When does she write? In every moment left over!
Romantic Women's Fiction Chapter of RWA 