An Interview with Lainie Jones

I have been a commercial artist, a farmer, a teacher, and an academic, all of which feed into my love of writing. I hold a doctorate in creative writing and my essays and short stories have been published in several anthologies and journals. My books include a memoir, seven novels, a collection of short stories, and a non-fiction work on women’s writing.

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Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I think I’ve wanted to write ever since I could read, but my life as a writer really began when I went to university to study creative writing, progressing from a BA (hons) degree to a PhD.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I began my working life as an airbrush artist when an airbrush was a physical, rather than a digital tool. I swapped that life for the life of a farmer, changed again to become a teacher, and later an academic. I love reinventing myself, but I love writing more, so I doubt I’ll change again.

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

The working title of my book was “Starhands,” but the deeper I got into the story, I realised it was less about a woman with healing hands and more about the prophecy that drove her to do what she did. Thus, Prophecy was published. And having chosen a one-word title, the following three books in the series became Balance, Redemption, and Power.

What part of publishing your book made it feel real for the first time?

Holding the finished product in my hand. Flipping through the pages and thinking, “I did this!”

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Love songs, for the love between Zylah, a shunned foundling, and Peregal, an Elven lord, which threads through the book. In a world where elves and humans are mortal enemies, their love underpins The Luminara Chronicles. Two old songs come to mind. John Denver’s “Annie’s Song” and “Unchained Melody,” both filled with love and sensuality and longing.

What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?

I hope they see the underlying themes of the story, that choice has more power than destiny, that perceptions are formed by our social conditioning, and it is up to us to challenge those perceptions.

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

Readers telling me they couldn’t put it down, and asking for the next book in the series.

What creative projects are you currently working on?

I’m currently proofreading Power, the fourth and final book of The Luminara Chronicles, which will be released at the end of September. I’m also well into a standalone novel set in the same world, featuring one of the minor characters from Prophecy. Tentatively titled “The House of Mist,” it tells the story of Sharla, an abused queen who becomes a witch.

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