Lainey Delaroque – Authors at the Armouries

As we gear up for this amazing event, I’ll be bringing you author interviews so you can get to know the attending authors in more detail! There are lots and lots of authors for you to discover, not to mention, hundreds if not thousands of books! Why not grab a cuppa and sit back and relax! All while hearing more about our writers and their writing lives, inspirations – and maybe even a secret or two!

What is the first thing people should know about you?
I’m a daydreamer in love with stories. I’m never bored and always on the lookout for new things to learn or read about. When I’m not writing, I’m reading, watching, or gaming, because there are too many great stories in the world and too little time.

Tell me which genre or trope you are most well-known for writing.
I write dark romance with badass, fearless FMCs. Think danger, organised crime, gangs, sex clubs and kink, but also found family, would-die-for-you characters and overcoming trauma.

Name a book you’ve written that you wish more people had read, and why.
Dark Ink (Dark Things #2), because it’s a personal story that weaves folklore and action together in a contemporary setting. It has a teenager who grew up in a cult discovering our world for the first time. I enjoyed writing it a lot and I think it has a lot of elements that readers love, together with some really intense action and romance. And it’s a standalone story so the series can be read out of order!

What is your favourite book (not your own), and why?
My favourite book is The Little Prince. I often stumble through life with no clue whatsoever if I’m doing okay or not, and when the stress gets too much, I just re-read it and everything is a bit better. My favourite quote is “It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.” Maybe that’s why I’m a romance author!!

Is your desk/writing space tidy or messy?
I wish I had a tidy desk! But I don’t have a tidy mind, so it’s an unreasonable expectation for my author surface to be anything but a manifestation of my inner world. I always have at least three plots fighting for attention in my head, and twenty-odd characters talking at once, so it’s no surprise there’s notebooks, pens and food scattered in front of me on a normal day.

Who or what inspires you as a writer?
Readers and other writers inspire me the most. I love stories, and the people who create and consume them are like little libraries – there’s always a recommendation on the tip of their tongues and they’re always excited to talk about made-up worlds. There’s no better inspiration than the shared love of fictional events and characters!

Are you an introvert or extrovert? Or something else…?
An introvert – but I love talking to people one on one. I struggle with big groups but once I have a person I can really connect to, you can’t shut me up!

The literary world moves fast, but what’s the one thing that never changes?
People’s love for stories – the formats and authors might change, but storytelling will always be there. It’s an intrinsic part of our culture and in many ways reading and writing is how we process the world.

What is your advice to authors just starting out?
Lower your expectations. Whatever they are, lower them. Hold off on publishing that first book and try to research your market and build a community around you if you can. Take it one step at a time because being a writer isn’t just about writing – and it can easily become overwhelming. Even if it feels like you don’t have time and you must grind yourself to the bone setting everything up and publishing ten books a year, it’s not true. You can take it slower, especially in the beginning. You will always have time to speed up later if you want after you have all the basics in place.

If you could live inside any fictional world, where would that be?
The world of Avatar: The Last Airbender, but only if I had bending powers. Or the world of Teyvat, but only if I had a Vision. Or in the Grishaverse, but only if I was Grisha. You get the idea, I crave elemental power!!

When you’re as old as Gandalf the Grey, how many books do you think you might have written?
If I manage to keep up my pace of three books per year, and we assume Gandalf is 24,000 years old (according to Google), then that’s 92,000 books. Not bad! But realistically, it would be nice if I reach a hundred before I go. It’s a nice, round number.

What did you always want to be when you were growing up?
I wanted to be a librarian – I would line up all my books and number them, and also create fake library records that I filled out diligently. I was very stern when one of my fictional visitors returned a book late and always fined them harshly! Around the same time, I started writing poetry but for some reason never thought I wanted to be an author, in my head, I was already a writer – for me, it’s never been a career or a job, it’s a calling, a vocation, and a craft.

Who is your biggest cheerleader?
My parents and my personal assistant. They support me in very different ways, but have always had my back when I was doubting myself or my writing. I know I’m very lucky to have a supportive family and to have found a PA who genuinely loves my books – and I’m thankful every day for both!