LIKE A LILY AMONG THE THORNS
Winner of the 2026 IndieReader Discovery Awards in Romantasy, Fiction
What’s the book’s first line?
“Here is a tale of romance and magic.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
A librarian inherits a magical B&B in Vermont where goddesses work to save Earth from climate disaster while helping her find the family connection she craves.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
Humanity must wake up to the fact that we are quickly reaching the tipping point for a climate crisis that can make this planet inhospitable to all life. It’s possible the planets in our solar system once had life and are now dead. We must save the Earth for future generations. If the Gulf Stream stops and there are signs of its slowing, England will become Siberia.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
To stop our government and other governments from drilling and destroying the world. Alternative energy sources look promising.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
She’s the best version of myself. Grateful for the miracle of life in spite of hardships.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I aways enjoyed writing anything. Came easily. Poetry, plays, novels. Now only novels.
Is this the first book that you’ve written?
I’ve completed four books and about to finish my fifth.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
I’m retired now but I earned a MS in Mass Communication and was an editor/writer/ marketer for a major accounting firm.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
Two to three hours.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
Finding an audience.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
I finally hired a marketing company who claims all my work will be discovered finally and will sell well. I should have done it sooner.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
Yes, it validates me to myself. I had an indie publisher for my first book who went out of business and gave me all my files. No other publisher was interested to take it over. So here I am.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
Fame, fortune, haha but I’m already 79. My last hurrah for me and my kids.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
I love Jodie Picoult, Alice Hoffman, Andy Weir
Which book do you wish you could have written?
The Martian haha even though not my genre, and The Help.