Suzy Davies's Blog: Book News - Posts Tagged "interviews"
Author Spotlight: An Audience with Jessica Scachetti.
What gave you the idea to become an author?
I’ve always loved to write. I’ve kept books I wrote as a kid that I’ve been thinking about editing
and turning into published books, which I’ll expound on more in a later question. When
lock down took place in 2020, I really saturated myself in writing since there was so much free
time at hand. After I penned out “Wonder of Light” and read it to some of my friends and family,
whom loved it, I started considering publishing. I researched how to self-publish, which led me
to Fiver, where I decided to hire a gig for formatting, cover creation, and the launching of my
first published work. The gig even did some promo for me the first few days in. I continued the
same gig for my all my other published works but learned how to launch them through KDP on
my own. So, they’ve only handled the formatting and covers on my last three books.
Whose books have influenced your writing?
I can’t credit any specific Authors to have influenced my writing, but the romantic suspense
genre has inspired me, as I used to binge read many of those type of books. The Holy Bible has
evidently had an impact since I do write in the Christian genre and correlate many of my beliefs
to the New Testament books. Believe it or not, I haven’t read a significant number of Christian
books. Prior to becoming an Author, I hadn’t honestly read Christian books because of their bad
rep. for being “cheesy,” “overly preachy” and/or “sugar-coated.” I know that isn’t always the
case, as I have read some really fantastic Christian books, but being able to find the time to read
while working full-time, being an Author and attempting to run a handcrafted candle business
while also “home-lifing”, is slim.
You write Christian Romance. What would you say are the main differences between
mainstream Romance Novels and novels which are Christian Romance?
The main difference between mainstream (or “secular” as we Christians call it) and Christian
romance are the faith contents, or lack thereof when it comes to secular stories. Christian
romance novels are deemed as such for offering a faith message, like redemption or salvation
through Jesus Christ along with the love story. The love tends to remain clean, since biblically
speaking, intimacy should wait until the couple unites in holy matrimony. With Christian
romance you almost always get a happy ending because living a life of faith in Jesus Christ
promises for an endless happy ending; one of peace and love that is free of sin and pain.
Mainstream romance can be clean or dirty and can have a happy or sad ending, but the faith and
moral aspects are typically absent or questionable.
Where are your books set? What time period are they set in?
My books are all set in the 21 st century. “Wonder of Light” and its sequel, “From Dark to Light”
are set in a fictional (small) military town in Texas. The second book does have a scene located
in the UAE, as it is military-inspired. The final installment to that series, “Back to the Light,” is
set in both New York and Texas and involves the next generation. My mafia-inspired book starts
in Galveston, Texas, centers in Kansas, and concludes in Chicago, Illinois.
Who is your favorite character in a book penned by you?
My favorite character has got to be Catherine from "Back to the Light." She reminds me of myself in not giving up on the man that she loves even when what he's done seems unforgivable.
Do you have any special writing advice for Christian Romance authors?
Don’t be afraid to get a little gritty for those of us who have had a rough go in life, it’s nice to
resonate with imperfect characters and realistic struggles.
How long does it take you to complete a book?
When I was writing, “Wonder of Light,” I was sort of playing around with the storyline over an
extended period, but when I got inspired to publish it, I fine-tuned and completed the entire story
in less than a month. I honestly got so excited that I went a little too quick and didn’t edit it well.
It had many minor grammatical errors, but it was enough to cause me some backlash. I penned
the next book and published it two months later, and then my third book a month after that. My
last book was about eight months later because the holidays and catching COVID slowed me
down. I’ve been off and on working on the 5th book, but so many challenges have come up in my
personal life that I couldn’t find the time and paused writing for a significant while. Now I spend
a lot of my free time pushing my already published books and candles. On a brighter I have
started writing again. I’m working on a revamp and relaunch of “Wonder of Light.” Nothing
major, but I am refining the original work and expanding on some scenes.
What is your writing process?
I write whenever I can find the time, whether that be on my lunch break at work or at night or on
the weekends when not busy wearing my other many hats.
Writers wear many hats. Outside of writing, how do you spend your time?
I wear an array of caps at this point in my life. I juggle between working full time, momming
two young boys, caring for 7 pets (4 dogs, 2 cats and a pig), making candles, and promoting my
books and candles, along with promoting other Authors and small business owners in my
monthly newsletter.
What kinds of things, apart from writing and books, inspire your work?
Aside from books and writing, my faith plays a huge part in inspiring my work. The social media
communities I interact with have been phenomenal in boosting my inspiration. Feedback from
readers has inspired me to perfect and re-publish “Wonder of Light.”
Do you work in silence or do you like background music?
Background noise, whether music, loud kids, television, or whatever other chaos surrounds me,
does not impact my writing. Once I’m in the zone, everything else fades away.
Do you ever write on trains, planes or in public places, such as cafes?
I mostly write on a desktop computer. So, I can’t say that I have. Although, if an idea comes to
mind when I’m not at home, I make a note of it on my phone to pen later.
Describe your writing space. What is on your desk?
There’s nothing special about my writing space. Right now, it’s cluttered since we relocated our
office space in the house. The only thing on my desk of significance is the computer screen,
keyboard and mouse.
Who is the audience for your books?
Non-judgmental Christians or those curious about or returning to faith that love a good
redeeming romance, but not looking for an overly preachy read.
Have you ever done a book signing event? Where was it and how did it go?
I haven’t done one yet. Not to say that I wouldn’t, I simply haven’t planned or sought one out.
Although, I have sold my books at a candle event and signed copies per customer request.
We authors often have to engage in marketing. Do you enjoy publicizing your book, and do
you handle publicity yourself? Do you enjoy marketing?
I do handle my own marketing and publicity, but I use platforms such as Mailer Lite, for my
newsletter, and Bookfunnel, for group promos. X has been the best social media platform for
visibility. I’ve met a lot of wonderful fellow creatives who support me, and I, them. It’s my
marketing/promoting my books an enjoyable experience. I have also used Pubby for book
reviews, which worked out great when I had the time to read books in exchange for reviews.
However, I just don’t have the time to set aside for it anymore.
What books do you have in the works at the moment?
I’m currently working on the second installment of my mafia series, which I postponed for a
couple years. I’m also working on the rewrite of “Wonder of Light,” as previously mentioned.
I’m not making any major changes apart from a couple added scenes and grammatical edits.
What can we expect from you in the future?
I wrote a children’s book and a drama when I was a teenager that I’m hoping to rewrite and
publish at some point. If I can pull them together into a great story, I’ll definitely put them into
print.
Have you ever written books outside your usual genre?
I’ve partially written a memoir of sorts about my life/love story that I may not ever make public.
It’s a sordid tale, and I’m not sure if I want to make it public. I have also considered writing
some secular romance novels but haven’t started anything yet. Although, I do have some ideas.
So, we shall see. If I ever publish my children’s book, I may continue to write more.
What kind of books do you like reading, and why?
I do miss reading. If I had the time, I’d read both secular and Christian romantic suspense, as I
enjoy love stories with a little bit of action.
I’ve always loved to write. I’ve kept books I wrote as a kid that I’ve been thinking about editing
and turning into published books, which I’ll expound on more in a later question. When
lock down took place in 2020, I really saturated myself in writing since there was so much free
time at hand. After I penned out “Wonder of Light” and read it to some of my friends and family,
whom loved it, I started considering publishing. I researched how to self-publish, which led me
to Fiver, where I decided to hire a gig for formatting, cover creation, and the launching of my
first published work. The gig even did some promo for me the first few days in. I continued the
same gig for my all my other published works but learned how to launch them through KDP on
my own. So, they’ve only handled the formatting and covers on my last three books.
Whose books have influenced your writing?
I can’t credit any specific Authors to have influenced my writing, but the romantic suspense
genre has inspired me, as I used to binge read many of those type of books. The Holy Bible has
evidently had an impact since I do write in the Christian genre and correlate many of my beliefs
to the New Testament books. Believe it or not, I haven’t read a significant number of Christian
books. Prior to becoming an Author, I hadn’t honestly read Christian books because of their bad
rep. for being “cheesy,” “overly preachy” and/or “sugar-coated.” I know that isn’t always the
case, as I have read some really fantastic Christian books, but being able to find the time to read
while working full-time, being an Author and attempting to run a handcrafted candle business
while also “home-lifing”, is slim.
You write Christian Romance. What would you say are the main differences between
mainstream Romance Novels and novels which are Christian Romance?
The main difference between mainstream (or “secular” as we Christians call it) and Christian
romance are the faith contents, or lack thereof when it comes to secular stories. Christian
romance novels are deemed as such for offering a faith message, like redemption or salvation
through Jesus Christ along with the love story. The love tends to remain clean, since biblically
speaking, intimacy should wait until the couple unites in holy matrimony. With Christian
romance you almost always get a happy ending because living a life of faith in Jesus Christ
promises for an endless happy ending; one of peace and love that is free of sin and pain.
Mainstream romance can be clean or dirty and can have a happy or sad ending, but the faith and
moral aspects are typically absent or questionable.
Where are your books set? What time period are they set in?
My books are all set in the 21 st century. “Wonder of Light” and its sequel, “From Dark to Light”
are set in a fictional (small) military town in Texas. The second book does have a scene located
in the UAE, as it is military-inspired. The final installment to that series, “Back to the Light,” is
set in both New York and Texas and involves the next generation. My mafia-inspired book starts
in Galveston, Texas, centers in Kansas, and concludes in Chicago, Illinois.
Who is your favorite character in a book penned by you?
My favorite character has got to be Catherine from "Back to the Light." She reminds me of myself in not giving up on the man that she loves even when what he's done seems unforgivable.
Do you have any special writing advice for Christian Romance authors?
Don’t be afraid to get a little gritty for those of us who have had a rough go in life, it’s nice to
resonate with imperfect characters and realistic struggles.
How long does it take you to complete a book?
When I was writing, “Wonder of Light,” I was sort of playing around with the storyline over an
extended period, but when I got inspired to publish it, I fine-tuned and completed the entire story
in less than a month. I honestly got so excited that I went a little too quick and didn’t edit it well.
It had many minor grammatical errors, but it was enough to cause me some backlash. I penned
the next book and published it two months later, and then my third book a month after that. My
last book was about eight months later because the holidays and catching COVID slowed me
down. I’ve been off and on working on the 5th book, but so many challenges have come up in my
personal life that I couldn’t find the time and paused writing for a significant while. Now I spend
a lot of my free time pushing my already published books and candles. On a brighter I have
started writing again. I’m working on a revamp and relaunch of “Wonder of Light.” Nothing
major, but I am refining the original work and expanding on some scenes.
What is your writing process?
I write whenever I can find the time, whether that be on my lunch break at work or at night or on
the weekends when not busy wearing my other many hats.
Writers wear many hats. Outside of writing, how do you spend your time?
I wear an array of caps at this point in my life. I juggle between working full time, momming
two young boys, caring for 7 pets (4 dogs, 2 cats and a pig), making candles, and promoting my
books and candles, along with promoting other Authors and small business owners in my
monthly newsletter.
What kinds of things, apart from writing and books, inspire your work?
Aside from books and writing, my faith plays a huge part in inspiring my work. The social media
communities I interact with have been phenomenal in boosting my inspiration. Feedback from
readers has inspired me to perfect and re-publish “Wonder of Light.”
Do you work in silence or do you like background music?
Background noise, whether music, loud kids, television, or whatever other chaos surrounds me,
does not impact my writing. Once I’m in the zone, everything else fades away.
Do you ever write on trains, planes or in public places, such as cafes?
I mostly write on a desktop computer. So, I can’t say that I have. Although, if an idea comes to
mind when I’m not at home, I make a note of it on my phone to pen later.
Describe your writing space. What is on your desk?
There’s nothing special about my writing space. Right now, it’s cluttered since we relocated our
office space in the house. The only thing on my desk of significance is the computer screen,
keyboard and mouse.
Who is the audience for your books?
Non-judgmental Christians or those curious about or returning to faith that love a good
redeeming romance, but not looking for an overly preachy read.
Have you ever done a book signing event? Where was it and how did it go?
I haven’t done one yet. Not to say that I wouldn’t, I simply haven’t planned or sought one out.
Although, I have sold my books at a candle event and signed copies per customer request.
We authors often have to engage in marketing. Do you enjoy publicizing your book, and do
you handle publicity yourself? Do you enjoy marketing?
I do handle my own marketing and publicity, but I use platforms such as Mailer Lite, for my
newsletter, and Bookfunnel, for group promos. X has been the best social media platform for
visibility. I’ve met a lot of wonderful fellow creatives who support me, and I, them. It’s my
marketing/promoting my books an enjoyable experience. I have also used Pubby for book
reviews, which worked out great when I had the time to read books in exchange for reviews.
However, I just don’t have the time to set aside for it anymore.
What books do you have in the works at the moment?
I’m currently working on the second installment of my mafia series, which I postponed for a
couple years. I’m also working on the rewrite of “Wonder of Light,” as previously mentioned.
I’m not making any major changes apart from a couple added scenes and grammatical edits.
What can we expect from you in the future?
I wrote a children’s book and a drama when I was a teenager that I’m hoping to rewrite and
publish at some point. If I can pull them together into a great story, I’ll definitely put them into
print.
Have you ever written books outside your usual genre?
I’ve partially written a memoir of sorts about my life/love story that I may not ever make public.
It’s a sordid tale, and I’m not sure if I want to make it public. I have also considered writing
some secular romance novels but haven’t started anything yet. Although, I do have some ideas.
So, we shall see. If I ever publish my children’s book, I may continue to write more.
What kind of books do you like reading, and why?
I do miss reading. If I had the time, I’d read both secular and Christian romantic suspense, as I
enjoy love stories with a little bit of action.
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