When I got in touch with Lucy Monroe to be part of the interview series, I didn’t realise just how vast her backlist was. She has over ninety books published and she’s not slowing down. That’s not all, Lucy’s written in every romance subgenre you could possibly think of—short and long contemporary romance, historical romance, paranormal romance and romantic suspense. So whatever mood you’re in, there’s a Lucy Monroe book out there for you.
I spent a good time scrolling through her books, my mind completely blown by the different types of stories, the characters and the journey that her books go on. She’s been known as an “issues writers” (which I didn’t know was a thing until I connected with Lucy), which basically means that her stories tackle hard issues and topics. Which is truly one of my favourite things about the romance genre.
Lucy is currently five books into her spicy mafia romance series, Syndicate Rules, the latest of which just released! Most of her books are available in Kindle Unlimited (depending on where you live), so dive right in.
BEING AN AUTHOR
Who or what inspired you to write?
One of my first memories is telling myself a story in my head. My second is getting caught reading my mom’s books before I was old enough for kindergarten. Storytelling is in my DNA. Putting it in writing to share with others came much later in life and has been my full time career for more than two decades.
What’s the best and worst part about being an indie author?
The best part is absolute creative control. Worst is kind of a misnomer, but maybe hardest is the time necessary to devote to the administrative and business side of the equation, now that I’m my own publisher.
Why did you choose to self-publish instead of going the traditional route?
I was traditionally published for 20 years and gutting my books for marketing driven editorial guidelines became intolerable. I love being an indie author, the community, the readers who gravitate toward indie books (of which I have been one for nearly ten years) and the freedom to write the books I want to read.
When you’re not writing, what do you do to get the creative juices flowing?
I read. A lot. I also do a creative weekly spread for my planner, knit and cook with hubby.
If you were to recommend books to me (in any genre), what would they be?
I don’t recommend books so much as authors. My favorite authors write romance or mystery/thrillers. Right now, I would unequivocally recommend Neva Altaj (romance) and Dianne Freeman (cozy mystery) along with about a hundred others I read regularly.
What are your top 5 tips or pieces of advice for aspiring authors?
Write the book you want to read.
Don’t give up.
Be open to critique, but ultimately trust your own writing instincts.
Don’t compare yourself to others.
Be patient. Building a career takes time and rarely (like almost never) happens with your first book.
ROMANCE AS A GENRE
Why did you choose romance as the genre to write in? What is your favorite thing about the genre?
Going back to my favorite writing advice, I write the books I want to read. That’s romance with alpha heroes and strong heroines. The most emotionally satisfying stories for me are romance. The happy ending is critical to my enjoyment of the book.
If not romance/subgenres of romance, what genre would you like to write in?
Mystery.
What are your most and least favorite tropes?
I love a Beauty and the Beast inspired story, marriage of convenience/arranged marriage/forced marriage, alpha hero, enemies to lovers, and have recently discovered the magic of the stalker trope.
As much as I enjoy a story inspired by Beauty and the Beast (and other fairytales), I dislike retellings. When the books follow the plot outline of the fairytale, I get bored quickly and will usually DNF. The OW (other woman) trope has to be handled extremely well for me to like it. And I’m very much a minority, but I almost never like fake relationships.
What are some tropes you want to write in the future?
I’ve written pretty much all of them (a few times over), but the serial killer antihero trope in the horror light-romance subgenre is something I’m hoping to dive into next year.
What are some topics (sensitive and otherwise) that you think should exist more in romance?
Everything. I’ve been labeled an issues writer since my first published book in 2003. Hard issues need to be addressed, but here’s another bit of advice, if you want to address them, sometimes giving the reader a step back in the form of creating a world far removed from your reader’s norm can help the book not be too heavy. Like billionaire romance, or fantasy, etc.
If you write open door romance, why did you choose that and what inspires your sex scenes?
I have always written open door spice and it goes back to writing what I love to read. Sex is another way of connecting your reader to your characters on a visceral, emotional level. My characters inspire the sex they have, but I also research this aspect of writing like any other. I have read more than a dozen nonfiction books about sex and yes, hubby appreciates the fruit of my learning. 😉
YOUR BOOKS
What inspired your published stories? How and when did you come up with these stories and plots?
My newest series, Syndicate Rules, is a spicy mafia romance inspired by me falling in love with the new (to me) subgenre early last year. Once I’d read about 150 of them, my own story ideas started exploding inside my creative brain. So much so that I had to keep a notebook nearby to jot down ideas everywhere I went.
Can you briefly tell me about your books?
I have published short and long contemporary romance, historical romance, paranormal romance and romantic suspense. Every series comes from the desire to write about certain characters and their lives.
Do you already have a favorite character from the stories you’ve written?
My favorite characters are always the ones I’m writing in the moment.
How much of yourself do you put into these characters?
Real people influence each other the longer they are in contact and sharing space in their lives. Characters are a reflection of that for me. They carry bits of different people, myself included, but are never based on a real person.
What is a story/stories that you really want to tell?
Whatever story I am working on.
Is there one common element that readers can find in all your stories?
Heartfelt, steamy romance with a solid HEA.
What’s next on the bookshelf for you? Anything you can tell us about a future project?
Let’s see, Forced Vows just released and I’m really excited about that. But I’ve got a Halloween novella coming out in, you guessed it…late October. Enforcer’s Obsession is a stalker mafia romance with an unhinged hero for sure. Then in December, I’m putting together a mafia romance holiday anthology with a bunch of other mafia romance authors.
When you write these stories, what are you hoping your readers will feel?
So much. I want readers to feel joy, fury, sexual arousal, happiness, frustration and ultimately a sense of delight and satisfaction.
AUTHOR’S CHOICE
Paperbacks, hardbacks, ebooks or audiobooks
Contemporary, fantasy, historical or romantic suspense—Contemporary mafia romance
Single or Dual POV
Standalones, series or standalones in a series
Open door, ajar door or closed door romances
Music or silence when writing—Depends on my mood
Plotter, pantser or plantser
Water, tea, coffee or….wine?—No preference. Except I never drink wine…while writing.
Cold or warm weather—Lots of sun whatever the temperature.
Write better in the morning, afternoon or night?—All of the above. Except that two hour slump in the afternoon when I just want to take a nap. lol
Illustrated or photo cover?—Don’t care. Covers rarely influence my book buying decisions, but the blurb is crucial for me.
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