We chat with author Kayla Cottingham about Practical Rules for Cursed Witches, which is a sapphic fantasy adventure about a teen witch who must complete her magical training by breaking a powerful family’s curse. But her own affliction—to never find true love—gets in the way when she falls for the girl she’s trying to save.
Hi, Kayla! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Thanks so much for having me! I’m a former teen librarian and current full-time writer based in Boston. My books are about queer identity, found family, and first loves. My first two books were horror, but as my career develops, I’ve started branching out into more speculative genres. There’s always a romance element, though, because I’m nothing if not a hopeless romantic.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I think the love of storytelling came first. From the time I learned to talk, I was rattling off long and involved stories to anyone who’d listen. I actually won an award in fifth grade for “Best Story Sharer” which I realize now is definitely teacher code for “Worst At Shutting Up”—thankfully, that’s around the same time I learned to write those stories down instead of holding my classmates hostage as I recounted the entire plot of the most recent Warrior Cats book in excruciating detail.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: I think I made my dad read me The Little Engine That Could roughly a thousand times as a little kid.
- The one that made you want to become an author: The Frog Princess by E. D. Baker.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: Currently? I’ve been doing my yearly reread of Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones because I’m obsessed with how she managed to blend fantasy and humor so beautifully. I want to be her when I grow up.
Your latest novel, Practical Rules for Cursed Witches, is out August 27th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Cozy fantasy road trip rom-com.
What can readers expect?
Practical Rules is the story of Delilah Bea, a young kitchen witch who casts spells through baking. The women of her family are cursed to never fall in love, so she plans to use her Calling—which is essentially a final exam for witches—as a chance to break her curse. However, when her Calling is hijacked by Kieran Pelumbra, the son of one of the richest families on the country, she’s forced to take on the challenge of breaking the curse on him and his twin sister, Briar. It’s both an exploration of healing from past trauma and finding love when you least expect it.
Where did the inspiration for Practical Rules for Cursed Witches come from?
It’s a mix of all of my favorite comfort media. There’s a lot of influence from Howl’s Moving Castle, Stardust, and Fruits Basket—fantasy stories about flawed people finding love despite the hardships they’ve encountered. At the same time, I love the mix of humor and fantasy you get from stuff like The Princess Bride and Shrek, so there’s a healthy dose of those as well.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
The story’s love interest, Briar, was definitely my favorite to write. Her past has made her prickly and distrustful, and getting to write about her slowly opening up to Delilah was super rewarding. There’s one scene about two thirds of the way through the book where Delilah finally discovers the dark secret Briar’s been hiding, and that was my absolute favorite to write. I’ve also noticed there’s a notable lack of butches in YA, so I was definitely stoked to get to write a character who’s an unapologetic masc lesbian.
Can you tell us a bit about the process and timelines from concept to publication?
I actually wrote Practical Rules before my second book, This Delicious Death. Both are definitely COVID novels. This Delicious Death was written in 2021 and focused a lot on trying to recover from/cope with global tragedy. Practical Rules, meanwhile, was written in 2020 during the worst days of COVID lockdown— I just wanted a fluffy project that could distract me from how terrible the world around me was. We sold Practical Rules a few months after This Delicious Death came out, and going back to it after a two-year break was surprisingly easy. The characters had been in my head for so long that it felt natural to jump back into it. We finished the bulk of it by the end of 2023, and I’ve been focused on the sequel since then.
What’s next for you?
Practical Rules is the first in a duology—both books can be read as standalones, but it’s definitely more rewarding if you read both. The sequel/companion focuses on the same cast of characters six months after the first book, with a few new faces. We haven’t officially announced the title yet, but I can share that the second book is from Kieran’s POV and focuses on his Calling.
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed so far this year and are there any that you can’t wait to get your hands on?
I’m a huge fan of TJ Klune’s work, so I’m beyond stoked for Somewhere Beyond the Sea. In YA fantasy, Brewed with Love by Shelly Page and Where Shadows Bloom by Catherine Bakewell immediately come to mind. In my other big genre, YA horror, I got to blurb Helga by Catherine Yu and absolutely adored it. Definitely check all of them out!
