Anna Larner, What got you into writing?
The clues were there:
Clue 1- A daydreamer with an overactive imagination.
Clue 2- A degree in English Literature and master’s degrees in The Word and Visual Imagination and Museum Studies.
Clue 3- A heartfelt passion for all things LGBTQ+.
Let’s just say I eventually joined the dots.
Where do you get your ideas?
Inspiration comes from the world around me. People, places, events are captured by my senses and tucked away in my memory.
I then form ideas by re-imagining these memories through the lens of Me! Who I am, my sensibilities, my sexuality, the stuff I find hard, the stuff I find fun, that kind of thing.
Why lesbian romance as opposed to any other kind of story?
I write lesbian romance because it’s simply in my heart to write stories about a woman falling in love with another woman.
I can still remember feeling very lonely and isolated by my sexuality, not seeing myself portrayed positively in literature, art or the media – so to now write stories about women falling in love means the world to me.
Also love is such a rich subject matter to write about. How a person reacts to love tells us so much about them. It draws out a person’s values, bringing out the best and the worst in all of us.
What is your writing process like?
I know this is common to many writers, but I get the sense that I’m writing a story that is waiting to be written. That doesn’t mean I automatically know the story, or that it is easy to bring it out.
What is one piece of advice you would give to a new writer?
I would say that the most unique and valuable thing about your writing is you. So write the story that is in your heart, the one that speaks of your experience and burns brightly in your imagination. This will add individuality, authenticity, depth, and richness to your story that will reach out to readers.
Bold Strokes Books
Anna Larner is the author of passionate & captivating lesbian romance stories which are published by Bold Strokes Books, an independent LGBTQ+ publisher based in New York.
Lesbian Romance Stories by Anna Larner
Highland Fling – an evocative age-gap novel set in the majestic Highlands of Scotland.
Love’s Portrait – an enthralling slow-burn romance. Contemporary with an historical twist.
Highland Whirl – a poignant forced-proximity story. (Sequel to Highland Fling).
Anna has also written and published a joyful grumpy/sunshine short story called ‘Hooper Street‘.
Poetry
Anna Larner is also a poet and her poems about life are published with the University of Leicester’s Centre for New Writing and Paradise Press (LGBTQ+ independent printing press).
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