The Imperial Orchid

I recently interviewed Nicola Italia. We talked about her latest book The Imperial Orchid https://amzn.to/3jk6SZB 1. When did you decide you wanted to write? I was an avid reader when I was younger. I remember reading and going to the library when I was in elementary school. When I was in high school, I was writing a novel about a ballet dancer. It took me years to finish it. It was titled “Kelley” after the main character. It wasn’t until many years later, that I actually thought of publishing a book for people to buy. That happened in 2014 with my first novel “The Sheik and the Slave.” 2. Tell us about your path to publication. As mentioned above, I was working at a nonprofit and had published stories on a website called “Literotica.” Several of my stories had become very popular including my Sheik stories. It won several awards. I decided to take my two-week vacation in December which I did and spent the entire time finishing the novel, adding a major beginning to it and ultimately publishing it in February of 2014. 3. How did you come to write this particular book? I wanted to write a very grand, very adventurous book about a sheik and an Englishwoman he falls in love with. Reading the bodice rippers of the 1980s, it was an ode to those lavish books and the larger-than-life characters and storylines. 4. What is your writing schedule? I think about the era and the story background. I start creating my characters including their names, physical features, family backgrounds. Then I write a 2-3 page outline of what the entire book looks like. After that, I have an Excel spreadsheet and I write 1,500 words a day so usually, my novels are about 80,000 words in length so it takes about a month and a half to finish just the writing. 5. What do you know now that you wish you'd known when you started? Everything. How to format a book, how to design a book, how to find beta readers, what are beta readers, how to market the book, how to become a millionaire from my book :blush: 6. Where is your favorite place to write? When I took off a year to write, I would go to cafes, Starbucks, McDonald’s, Library to write. But a lot of places are very noisy and distracting. Majority of the time I write inside my house in the living room, on the couch. 7. What do you enjoy most about writing? As a historical romance/mystery writer, I love researching items for accuracy. For instance, my current book takes place in 1880, so I was researching what kind of houses did a middle-class Victorian era man live in, how did they illuminate their homes, what colors did people wear. here's the rest 7. What do you enjoy most about writing? As a historical romance/mystery writer, I love researching items for accuracy. For instance, my current book takes place in 1880, so I was researching what kind of houses did a middle-class Victorian era men live in, how did they illuminate their homes, what colors did people wear as they were leaving mourning etc. Obviously, I do take so artistic license, but I try to stay true to the time period. 8. What do you enjoy least about writing? The editing. After my book is finished, it goes to the editor and then they send it back to review and if necessary, rewrites. I don’t like this part of writing because it makes me self-doubt and I start thinking it’s the worst book I ever wrote. And I literally do this for every book I have written. 9. What's next on your publication schedule? The Imperial Orchid was just released and is available on Amazon. I am currently working on a dark Victorian novel about a writer who writes penny dreadfuls and gets pulled into a web of murder and deceit. FUN! I am looking for an October release for this one for Halloween. 10. What advice would you give others who want to try their hand at writing? Put the words on paper, write away. Get a good editor, publish. Repeat.
from I Love Romance Novels https://ift.tt/3z6Iqz9