Her latest book is the historical fantasy, One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches.
You can visit her on Facebook, Instagram, Goodreads and Tiktok.
Tell us about your book! What inspired you to write it?
I wanted to write a sequel to the first book, “Whispers of the Pendle Witches,” but I didn’t want to just cover the trials, as I thought the ending of the first book was better and more empowering than what
happened in reality.
I love the idea of reincarnation, and those with strong psychic gifts often claim to remember snapshots of previous lives. At first, I was going to have Demdike reincarnate in the modern day, but then I realised there was a span of time between this, where others could have reincarnated. The next idea was to have the books set exactly two hundred years apart, but this was pushed aside when I learnt more about 1800s England.
The end of the first book ends with Demdike, Chattox, and Alizon casting spells, and I wanted to follow this thread. It developed into a story where Demdike and Chattox’s spell had unintended consequences, trapping them as spirits bound to their bloodlines, while Alizon’s actions (which they were unaware of) added another layer of issues.
The rest developed naturally as I learnt more about the time period. There are people in the modern world trying to pull us back to these past times, where women had so few rights, and I know for a fact that even back then, there were strong women fighting against these unfair standards. I wanted it to show how women are strong, no matter the circumstances, and hopefully, it will help empower others to keep going even in these uncertain times.
How did you choose the title for your book? Did it come to you right away, before you started writing it, or did it come later?
It was actually the original title for the first book. However, I didn’t think I’d be doing a sequel, and when betas talked about my book, they just kept calling it Whispers, so I shortened it to “Whispers of the Pendle Witches”.
When I decided to write the sequel and decided where the book was going, the first title felt like a perfect fit. The WotPW part became the series name, and One Foot in the Ether became the name of this new project.
Tell us about the cover design process. Did you have a basic idea of what your book cover would be like?
I knew I wanted it to be blue. The first book was green; this one is blue. The third will hopefully be red, and the fourth purple (subject to change). But this was my only real idea.
It did take several revisions, as the first few weren’t great, but the quality was much better once I sent more image suggestions and mockups. It was collaborative, and I think we made a great final cover.
Who is your cover designer and how did you find him/her?
I used Get Book Covers .com, which I’ve used several times. They’re affordable and do great work. Also, if you do have issues, they’re good about revisions. I’ve heard you can also change designers, but this hasn’t been necessary for me. I plan to continue to use them in the future.
What has been the readers’ response to your cover?
Positive, they think it suits the spooky atmosphere of the book.
What tips would you give to authors who are looking for a cover designer?
Shop around. Ask other authors who have covers you like. Look on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc, and see what’s trending and what you’d like your book to look similar to.
Anything else you’d like to say about your book?
Whether you judge a book by its cover or not, this one is worth trying.
