We chat with author Lia Louis about The Key to My Heart, a heartwarming novel about hope after loss as a young widow receives mysterious messages of love!
Hi, Lia! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi everyone! My name is Lia Louis and I’m an author from the rainy UK. I have three children and a cat called Rocky (who totally rules our lives) and I’m happiest when I’m baking, by the sea, or of course, writing romcoms (with a little darkness, but I hope, also, a lot of light!)
When did you first discover your love for writing?
Gosh, it sounds cliché, but I really have been writing for as long as I remember! I was about five when I would fold pieces of A4 paper together into a ‘book’ and write and illustrate my own stories, and when I was a teenager, it was all I did. Diaries, poems, fanfic, short stories – you name it. Writing always been my safe haven; something that made me feel happy and seen and heard.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
The Georgia Nicholson books by Louise Rennison! I remember discovering them as a young teenager and them completely infiltrating my every thought. Hilarious, conversational writing, about normal, flawed people and families. Those books swept me up because I found them so relatable, and also because it was the first time I’d read something so outwardly, unapologetically funny and warts-and-all. I remember feeling like I wanted to write like that.
Your latest novel, The Key to My Heart, is out December 6th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Ohh, good question. How about: ‘When life has other plans.’
What can readers expect?
Readers can expect a novel about a relatable, funny, but slightly broken protagonist, who slowly learns what it is to move on and let go when life doesn’t pan out how you think it will. They can expect a little mystery that will (hopefully) keep them guessing, and a hot romantic hero who (if I do say so myself) offers so much light relief but also, romance! And if I can say this, because of him, the ending scene is my favourite scene from anything I’ve written so far!
Where did the inspiration for The Key to My Heart come from?
I have always been so enamoured by train station pianos. I find them so romantic – a little injection of light and joy in an otherwise quite boring, bustling place. Something that makes you turn your head on your regular, autopiloted commute. And really, it was just the question of ‘what if someone left music for someone at a piano, and it was more than just a random gesture?’ that broke it all open.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
I found writing about the grief in this book quite hard sometimes, in that it would leave me feeling really emotional and drained. But equally, it was quite cathartic, and I always hope those painful pages to write will resonate most with readers.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Tom and Natalie’s scenes together just came out of my fingers so fluidly! I loved them! You can’t force it, but when that creative alchemy happens, it’s like a gift from the writing Gods!
What’s next for you?
I’m just about to start editing my fifth novel, which features my favourite hook so far – what if all your email drafts got sent, including a love declaration to your ex, who is just about to get married? I have had such fun writing it!
Lastly, what have been some of your favourite 2022 reads? Any 2023 releases our readers should look out for?
The Christmas Wish by Lindsey Kelk – Lindsey is by far one of my favourite romcom authors, and this one has a brilliant groundhog day element.
