Maeve Greyson’s The Finest Scottish Fate released a few weeks ago, and she was kind enough to answer some questions for us.
You can get your copy of this magical start to a new series HERE!
Did you always know you wanted to be an author? What is the first story you remember writing? How did you get from there to where you are today?
I’ve always been a storyteller, although I didn’t always realize that meant I would someday become an author. I’ve had stories running through my head for as long as I can remember. I was one of those children who could stare out a window and disappear into another world without ever leaving the room.
The earliest stories I remember creating were the sort where imagination mattered far more than pesky things like logic or historical accuracy. I loved making up characters and adventures and deciding what happened next. That fascination with “what if?” never went away.
But life took me on quite a journey before I became a published author. I married my sweetheart, followed him around the world during his career with the U.S. Air Force, raised a family, worked, and accumulated a lifetime’s worth of experiences. Eventually, the stories in my head became too persistent to ignore.
Once I finally decided to seriously pursue writing, I approached it the same way I approach most things: I dug in and refused to quit. There were rejections, lessons, revisions, more lessons, and plenty of moments when I wondered if I had lost my mind. But I kept writing.
That persistence eventually took me farther than I ever imagined—from that person quietly inventing stories to becoming a USA TODAY bestselling author, an Amazon Top 100 and Amazon All-Star author, and seeing my books recognized with RONE Awards and as HOLT Medallion finalists.
It’s one reason I’ve always believed so strongly in my personal mantra: “No one has the power to shatter your dreams unless you give it to them.”
If you have a dream, never give it up!
What is the most inspiring place you’ve visited, and has it shown up in one of your books?
Scotland. Without question.
There is something about the Highlands that takes hold of you and won’t let go. The mountains, lochs, mist, ruins, ancient stones, narrow roads, and that incredible feeling that the past is never very far away—it’s a storyteller’s paradise. You can literally “feel” the spirits of those who have gone before us. The land cries out with their voices.
And yes, Scotland has most definitely found its way into my books. Again and again and again!
How much research do you do into the time periods and places you write about? Are you a living-history person, or more of a libraries-and-online-resources researcher?
Research is extremely important because it seasons my fantasy and time-travel romances with just enough reality to immerse the reader in the story. I’ve always believed that there’s a little bit of truth in every myth or legend. I mean…how else would that myth or legend have been created?
I research everything from clothing, food, weapons, customs, laws, religion, social expectations, inheritance, travel, and household life to wonderfully obscure details that may only end up contributing one sentence to the finished book.
And while the internet has made research so much easier than when I first started writing, you have to triple-check whatever you find. Just because it’s on the internet, doesn’t mean it’s true. Libraries and books are still invaluable, but now I can virtually explore museums, historical documents, maps, castles, archaeological sites, and collections on the other side of the world without leaving rural Kentucky.
Of course, there are things photographs simply cannot tell you—the scale of the mountains, how quickly Highland weather can change, the sound of water rushing over rocks, the smell of the air, or how very small you feel standing beside something that has survived for centuries. Visiting Scotland and Ireland taught me that.
What drew you to the eras you write in? Is there something about those periods most people don’t know? What would be the most difficult part about living then?
I’m fascinated by periods when survival demanded resilience, resourcefulness, loyalty, and courage. Those qualities make wonderful foundations for romantic heroes and heroines.
But I also think we sometimes romanticize history. People in earlier centuries weren’t fundamentally different from us. They loved, laughed, worried about their children, complained about their neighbors, wanted security, fell in love with inappropriate people, made terrible decisions, and probably had relatives who drove them crazy.
The surroundings change. Human nature doesn’t.
As for what I would find most difficult about actually living in one of those periods? I could give you a very noble answer about women’s rights, medicine, sanitation, or the dangers of everyday life—and all of those would be true.
But I’m also extremely fond of modern plumbing and air conditioning.
I write time travel. I don’t necessarily want to live it. 😉
What are your favorite kinds of characters to write? Do you have a specific trope you’re drawn to?
I love strong characters who have been knocked down by life but refuse to stay there.
My heroines tend to be intelligent, independent women who may have scars—sometimes visible, sometimes not—but still have enough courage to take another chance on life and love. And I have an undeniable weakness for powerful, protective heroes who appear perfectly capable of handling anything until the right woman walks into their lives and completely destroys that illusion.
As for tropes, fated mates is probably the one closest to my heart. I love the idea that two people belong together even when time, circumstances, common sense, interfering gods, curses, centuries, or occasionally an entire magical realm insists otherwise.
Give me fated mates, time travel, a protective Highlander, impossible odds, and a happily ever after, and I’m quite content.
Where is your favorite place to write? Does it change depending on where you are in the process?
I’m happiest in my office with a snoring cat on the corner of my desk—or trying to sleep on my keyboard while I type.
But once I’m deeply involved in a book, the physical location matters less because I’m not really there anymore. Mentally, I’m in a Highland castle, standing on a windswept cliff, arguing with a stubborn chieftain, or trying to figure out why one of my characters has just done something that was absolutely not in the plan.
The deeper I get into a story, the more completely that fictional world takes over.
Which comes first for you: the plot or the characters?
Usually the characters—or at least the spark of a character and a situation.
Or I’ll get that irresistible “what if?” question.
What if a modern woman who believes wholeheartedly in fated mates discovers hers was born seven hundred years before her?
What if a woman who has lost her singing voice is transported to a realm where a prophecy says her song is the only thing capable of saving an entire race?
Once I have that central contradiction, the characters begin telling me who they are, what they need, what they fear, and exactly how difficult they intend to make my life.
Then the story grows around them.
Do you know where the story is going before you begin, or does it come to you as you write? Are you sometimes as surprised as the reader?
I generally know where I’m headed. I know the major conflict, the emotional destination, and—because I write romance—I know my couple will earn their happily ever after.
How they get there can be an entirely different matter.
Characters have an irritating habit of developing opinions and becoming feral little beasts that run amok.
I can begin a scene completely certain about what is going to happen, and then one of them says or does something unexpected that changes everything. Those moments are often some of my favorites because the characters suddenly feel completely alive.
So yes, sometimes I’m every bit as surprised as the reader.
The difference is that when a reader is surprised, they get to keep turning pages.
When I’m surprised, I have to rewrite chapters and pray my editor catches any plot holes I may have missed.
Does your writing process include any rituals—playlists, tea, candles, for example?
Coffee. A glass of sparkling water. A cat snoring on my desk. My electric lap blanket plugged in and nice and toasty—even in summer.
Do you write better in the morning or evening? How do you handle the distractions of working from home, especially if you share the space with others?
One of the strangest parts of being a professional writer is discovering that inspiration does not necessarily respect office hours.
Sometimes the words arrive beautifully first thing in the morning, sometimes late in the evenings, and other times inspiration wakes me at 2 a.m. and says, “Hey! What about this?” And then there are the days every household chore I have ignored for six months suddenly becomes fascinating.
After years of writing, I’ve learned to protect my writing time as much as possible, and everyone in my family—except the cats—respects those boundaries. But life sometimes happens. The important thing is returning to the story.
When it’s difficult to physically travel, how do you find ways to escape?
Books.
That is one of the greatest gifts stories give us.
I can be sitting at home in rural Kentucky and, within a few pages, find myself in medieval Scotland, Regency London, beside a Highland loch, or somewhere that has never existed except in another writer’s imagination.
Research can provide that escape, too. Maps, photographs, documentaries, museum collections, travel videos, and historical records can send me down some wonderful rabbit holes.
Of course, sometimes those rabbit holes are so interesting that several hours later I realize I was supposed to be writing.
I call that research.
From all your books, who is your favorite hero and why?
Choosing a favorite hero is rather like choosing a favorite child. Each one owns a different piece of my heart because I know everything they’ve survived, everything they’re afraid of, and exactly what it costs them to surrender their heart to the woman meant for them.
I do have a particular weakness for my Highland heroes, though. I love writing that combination of strength and vulnerability—the formidable warrior or chieftain who can face an enemy without blinking but is utterly defenseless when it comes to the woman he loves.
Those are some of my favorite moments to write: when the powerful man realizes that loving someone requires a kind of courage he has never needed on a battlefield.
So I’m afraid I’m going to take the coward’s way out.
My favorite hero is usually the one whose story I’m writing at the moment.
Please don’t tell the others.
What do you like to read when you’re not reading in your genre? Did you have a favorite book or series growing up?
I’ve always been drawn to stories that take me somewhere else, whether that escape comes through romance, history, fantasy, mystery, adventure, or simply unforgettable characters.
What matters most to me as a reader is the emotional connection. I want characters I care about. I want to become invested enough that I worry about them, cheer for them, occasionally become irritated with them, and hate saying goodbye when I reach the final page.
That’s also what I try to give my own readers.
Because in the end, whether a story takes place in modern-day Kentucky, Regency England, medieval Scotland, or a magical realm filled with dragons and meddling gods, I believe readers remember how a story made them feel.
And if I can make someone laugh, sigh, shed a tear, fall hopelessly in love with my characters, and close the book believing that love really can conquer impossible odds, then I’ve done exactly what I set out to do.
