Meet author Carly Spade. Carly describes herself as an author forever supporting 'Enemies to Lovers' Trope, delicious slow burns, and swoon worthy alpha males. She calls herself a Gamer, Fan Girl, Shield Maiden and Scottish Viking Wife.
Lets find out more.
Tell me about yourself
I am an adult romance writer who has been writing since I could pick up a pencil. After the insanity of obtaining a bachelor’s and master’s degree in cybersecurity, creating worlds to escape to still ate at me. I started writing Fan Fiction (which can still be found if you scour the internet 😉 ), and soon felt the need to get my original ideas on paper. I live in Colorado with my husband and two fur babies, and I revel in an enemies to lovers trope with a slow burn.
How long have you been writing?
Since I was a kid but my first serious full-length novel I wrote in 2017 and have just kept going.
Did you have a favourite book as a child?
I read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogy quite a bit and “borrowed” my aunt’s copy of Interview with The Vampire younger than I probably should’ve been to read it, but it started my obsession with vampires.
What do you love about your chosen genre?
I love writing “rom-com fantasy” the most because nothing gives me more happiness than making a reader smile, laugh, swoon, and cry tears of joy.
Can you tell me about your latest release
Eros, which is the fourth installment in my Contemporary Mythos series (each can be read as a stand alone but there are Easter Eggs for those that read them all) and is a rom-com with the Greek god of love and passion disguising himself as a bartender to help couples find true love. The heroine, Elani, has stopped believing in true love and fairy tales and runs her online dating service business around a scientific algorithm to match you to a compatible partner. Eros unknowingly starts stealing business from her and she takes matters into her own hands. A banter-filled, funny, swoony story ensues while Eros helps her navigate her way back to love...and his arms. ;)
You love gaming. Has this influenced your work?
Most definitely! I actually find that gaming helps me plot out action scenes more effectively. I play a lot of games with sword fighting, magic, and/or sci-fi elements so I most certainly use it in my writing.
Are you a plotter or a panster?
Both! I never have it completely plotted out from beginning to end but I always need to know how it’s starting and ending.
What is your writing process?
I’ll spend a week making a Pinterest moodboard and Spotify playlist as these two elements will serve as constant inspiration for me throughout the entire process. With the Mythos series, I spend several days researching and deciding what elements of the myths I want to incorporate and those I want to re-shape. Then I’ll make a skeleton list of ideally how each of the chapters will work, sometimes it’s as simple as “Their First Kiss” due to the beats I like to keep for pacing purposes. And finally I fast draft, meaning, I don’t go back and re-read/edit what I’ve written for the day. I get the first draft out and done as fast as possible and then, the revising process normally gets 10-12k words added and all is refined.
Do you have a dedicated writing space?
I have a desk that I like to write at. In a pinch, I can make other places work, but find that I get easily distracted.
As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
I couldn’t tell you why, but a sea otter is the first thing that came to mind? Lol.
How long on average does it take you to write a book?
It depends on the genre. With the Mythos books I can usually get them done in 4-6 weeks if my muse cooperates. For the space fantasy I’ve been working on for the past 3 years...the world building, characters, and just all around process takes a lot more to fine tune.
What advice would you gave a new author?
Write. Write. And write some more. Don’t ever stop. If you get stuck...write a short story, write Fan Fiction, virtually anything to just keep at it. You’ll be surprised how randomly an idea will strike you. Also, don’t let negative reviews kill your spirit. An author friend of mine gave great advice for that: Negative reviews are simply a sign you’re being taken seriously.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
Video games is the number thing you’ll find me doing when I’m not writing and I claim all day it’s research. But I also love to bowl, hang out with my husband and dogs, and listen to audiobooks.
A big thank you to Carly for sharing with us. If you would like to check out her work, click on the links below.
