Don't Write the Parts Readers Skip: Author Interview with Lyn Cote

Like many authors, writing was Lyn’s second career after being a teacher and a mother. Her first book was published through Harlequin’s Love Inspired imprint when it started in 1997. She’s now published dozens of books and isn’t stopping.

You’ve written five different book series in the sweet romance category. What drew you to writing that genre?

I think each author writes the books she "feels."

How long did it take to write the first book?

I wrote my first novel on a clipboard chasing two toddlers--took me 3 years

How did you go about finding an agent/publisher?

I attended national writer's conferences. But though I still have an agent and could write for my last publisher, I have decided to write what I want and go indie.

In what ways has publishing changed for you in your 20+ years of writing?

Everything changed with the intro of the eReader. 

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

I really enjoy writing, but it is a challenge to make sure I give my readers a reason to read each page. I don't write the parts people skip.

We have all experienced rejection. How have you learned to write past it?

You have to have a thick skin. Fortunately, I have one. '-)

What has surprised you the most in your writing career?

It surprised me how little publishers give authors for all their hard work. And that has only worsened in the past decade.

What is the best writing advice you’ve received or could give?

Keep writing.

What is the next book coming out? Can you give me a short synopsis?

My next book, Fatal Winter, is a contemporary romantic suspense. 

In a small town where murder never happens, two people with a tragic history must work together to protect their families before another murder happens~

Bookstore owner, Sylvie Patterson has a dark past with Detective Ridge Matthews. And hidden pain over the long-ago tragedy that marked them both. But he’s only aware of part of her secret feelings. Because of the past, she knows she has no future with him.

Now Sylvie’s cousin, Ginger, returns home from Alaska from studying whales. She’s to write her Ph.D. dissertation from her research. The evening Ginger arrives home, she ends their last conversation with these cryptic words: Sylvie, I am going to wow you with a big surprise tomorrow! Finding Ginger lying dead at the foot of the stairs is not any surprise anyone would ever want. 

Ridge had come to town on a family matter. When he and Sylvie discover the body, as a state homicide detective, he’s ordered to stay and solve the murder. Murders don’t happen in small-town Winfield—and he can’t get a break on the case. He’d wanted to leave town almost immediately, but the case drags on. Break-ins and odd occurrences—most connected to Sylvie and her family—keep him in town, unable to get a break. More and more he’s forced into contact with Sylvie and more and more the barriers between them start to crumble. 

When Detective Matthews fails to discover any motive or solid clues for her cousin’s murder, Sylvie refuses to believe that she might be next. What if she’s wrong…

That’s all for today’s interview. If you’d like to learn more about Lyn’s writing, here are the links to discover all the different books she's published. 

Website: https://booksbylyncote.com/SWBS/

Amazon:  amazon.com/author/lyncote