Interview With Author Lorna Bycroft
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi there,
I’m new to writing and excited to have my book, Meeting Along the Garden Path, 1st in a 6 book romance series, published. Book 2, Dreams Come True with Flowers, will be published on January 10, 2023 and is on pre-order now.
My passion is gardening and growing flowers, herbs and vegetables as well as reusing and recycling to help lessen the impact of climate change. I also have an interest in social issues such as how people are integrated into different cultures when they emigrate, social housing so people have warm, dry, healthy homes and intergenerational trauma and how it can be addressed.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My first book is called Meeting Along the Garden Path – Hannah and Matthew, a Second Chance Romance. It is book 1 in a romance series set in the Eugene Veran Community Garden where people come together to find peace and grow food and flowers. The series was inspired by my passion for gardening and interest in how women and children integrate into new communities and new relationships when they flee an abusive partner.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not that I know about.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I was taught to read at 4 years old and have always had my nose in a book since then. Barbara Cartland was my first introduction to the romance genre in my late teens I think. Jilly Cooper’s romance stories were a popular go-to for me later on. More recently I’ve been reading a number of Australian authors such as Liz Byrski and Fiona McIntosh.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on Book 3 at the moment. It’s a romance between Bella and Buford. Bella is an author who suffers from anxiety and is working hard with a therapist to overcome it, supported by her family. Buford is a shy, giant of a man who grew up in an orphanage. They meet at the Community Garden and ………well, I’ll let the readers find out how their story unfolds when the book is published in April 2023.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Awesome Gang is top of my list as well as some of the other promotion sites.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep on keeping on. The journey is like a roller coaster, sometimes you want to get off but have to stay on the ride. I’ve found joining an author community to be valuable for support when times get tough.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
It’s ok to stop, take a breath and refill my tank. Take a break a re-charge the batteries to be able to keep going.
What are you reading now?
Liz Byrski’s latest book ‘At the End of the Day. It’s about an older couple who meet when they are stranded together on a disrupted flight from Doha to Perth. They are surprised to learn they have much in common.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Finishing writing the Romance in the Community Garden Series is top of my list. I’ve still to decide on where the next series will be based, it will also be a clean and wholesome romance series.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, Wordsworth’s poems, Meeting Along the Garden Path and Dreams Come True with Flowers.
Lorna Bycroft’s Social Media Links