Prickle Forrest Chronicles – Special Edition – Cecelia Conway – Three Months in Spring – PrickleForrestChronicles By Chrissy Hartmann

PRICKLE FORREST CHRONICLES

SPECIAL Edition

Author Interview with Cecelia Conway

Welcome to the Prickle Forrest Chronicles, Cecelia Conway!

It’s wonderful you could take the time to share with the Pricklers a bit about you and your writing.

First, where are you from? How long have you been writing? What book is this for you? First? Second? Or too many it’s hard to remember?

I’m from Southern Wisconsin and have just started on my publishing journey about eight months ago. I’ve always been interested in writing and majored in English/Creative writing in college but then put it aside to pursue other ventures until now. Three Months in Spring is going to be my third full length novel and is part of my Door County Dreams series.

What type of romance do you write? What romances do you love to read? Do you have a favorite romance author that inspires you?

Right now I’m focused primarily on contemporary romance although I do have plans for a paranormal series that will debut in late 2024.

As far as what I read, I’ll pick up almost anything. If you name a trope or subgenre I’ve probably got it on my shelves or in my Kindle.

When I was younger I got a lot of my inspiration from authors like Lori Foster and Debbie Macomber. To me, seeing them in the grocery store aisle seemed like the pinnacle of success. Right now, I’m loving all the creativity coming from Indie Authors that I’ve been introduced to through BookTok and BookStagram. Self publishing has opened up so many options for storytellers to stay true to their creative vision.

In brief, tell us about your book, Three Months In Spring.

I knew after finishing my first two books in this series exactly who was getting their happily ever after in book three.

Andrea Owens is a reclusive chef with a dark history that she’s trying to keep buried. Unfortunately her charming boss, Steven Freider, isn’t letting her do that.

Their turbulent relationship is put to the test when her past comes back to haunt her. Will he get serious and commit to what they could have? And will she take the risk and put her trust in him?

When you received your first copy of your newly published book, Three Months In Spring how did you feel? Did you flood social media with a book selfie? Celebrate with Champagne? Chocolate? Or pass out?

As a baby author, seeing that box of books with my name on the cover come in the mail is always nerve wracking and exhilarating. With this one, I was so excited to see them and share Steve and Andrea’s story that I posted about it right away.

When you’re stuck with a scene, how do you resolve the trouble? Take a shower? Call your writing pals? Reenact the scene with your significant other?

Honestly? I mostly stare at my screen, scroll through TikTok for an hour, and then realize I’ve put myself behind schedule 😛 It seems the adrenaline rush from procrastination usually resolves whatever issue I was having and my brain will conjure up a solution.

Besides your computer, what can be found on your writing desk? Pictures of a hunky guy? Gorgeous woman? Coffee? Popcorn? Craft books? Empty wine glass? Chocolate? The latest issue of Vogue? The Writer’s Magazine? Or maybe a fluffy fur ball? In other words, what helps you write?

My desk is super small so there’s not too much on it. The biggest things are a daily journal, planner, and my reading log for the year. My one concession to decoration is an eiffel tower letter opener. You might have It was super popular on BookTok because it looks just like the dagger on the cover of From Blood and Ash 😂

What type of character populates the majority of your pages? What’s your favorite trope to read and write? After you’ve written your novel, ever get stunned by the fact that you wrote it?

I think, foundationally, all of my characters are dealing with some kind of trauma and ultimately overcoming it. When I started seriously writing again, it was a way for me to work through some of my own demons and I put a little of that into each of my stories.

When I get to the end of a manuscript I’m definitely a little shell shocked that I’ve managed to string together 80,000 words.

If you write the hotter romances, when’s the best time for you to write those scenes? Does the writing come natural or do you make yourself blush? Have your parents stopped answering your calls? Buy you a gold-plated keyboard? Or have they signed you up for sex counseling classes?

I think the best time to write them changes a little with every character’s story. In my first two books, the main female character was a sexual assault survivor so they didn’t get to that point in their relationship until well into the second book.

But with Three Months In Spring, the characters have a history…that comes up in the prologue.

Funny story. My dad actually reads my books. At first I was completely horrified but we’ve come to an understanding that we never mention those parts of the story and we never ever tell mom about it.

So, say you want to do a box set with two other romance authors, who would you choose? What romance trope would you write?

I did a charity anthology last fall with a group of indie authors and that was the start of my West Wing inspired series of novellas (the first one comes out this June). I’m also in a small town anthology with Fluffy Fox Publishing this coming fall and that will be the prologue to a new series of equestrian themed books that will be coming in 2025.

If you had the opportunity to promote one of your books from your backlist, which would you choose? Why?

Well, it just so happens that my second book, Four Weeks in September, is going to be free on Amazon from March 5th-7th. This past weekend Book 1 was on sale so now it’s Book 2’s turn in the spotlight.

If someone were to make a movie based on your book, which actors would play the leading roles?

According to my pinterest board suggestions, for Three Months In Spring I’m looking for a blend of Rachel McAdams and Scarlett Johanson for Andrea’s part and for Steve I’ve always pictured him as a bit of Luke Evans mixed with Charlie Hunman.

Finally, we know you’re a romantic, right? So what is the most romantic thing you’ve ever had your MCs do to win the love of their life?

It seems like the best answer is always groveling, especially for Steven in this book 😛

Where can we find your books…