A Date with Contemporary Romance

1) What is your Author name; use your Pen name if you have one.

My name is Havelah McLat

2) What is your genre and what drew you to it?

I write contemporary clean romance, but I also like to dabble in other genres such as fantasy, inspirational, and sometimes historial fiction. This may sound ridiculous but I like to watch Hallmark movies. Yes, it is cheesy and many of them can be incredibly unrealistic. However, when I write romance stories, I try to write romance with reality and how they overcome the struggles and issues, etc.

3) How did you come up with your cover design?

To be honest, the cover you see on A Forever Summer is not my first idea. I have been looking at other covers and tried different things to capture the story. None of them really stand out. When I saw The Misty River Romance series by Becky Wade, the inspiration hit. There is something beautiful about those covers. I love the sparkles, the tone and the warm vibe.

4) What is the hardest challenge in being a writer?

I think the hardest part is trying not to compare myself to other writers. Especially indie authors. The past few years, since the pandemic, I have not written a lot of stories. I have written one or two novels. Maybe a couple short fictions. I talked to my friend and she said that I shouldn’t compare myself to the past or others about how many stories I or they've written. I may’ve written a lot when I was younger, but things changed. Write when you feel the need to and do it at your own pace. If you need to rest, then rest. Don’t feel guilty because you should be writing. So, I try to remind myself that I may not write as fast, or write as many stories or publish many books. That is okay. So, if you feel that way, you are not alone. Just don’t give up and keep on going. You got this too!

5) Pick five books that are must-reads in your mind.

I am not sure if this means the books I read or wanted to read. Here are some books I read: The Time, Wishing for Mr. Right, The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs. Kip, Love will Find You in Sugarcreek, and Hadassah: One Night with the King. And books I do want to read: When the Ice Melts, The Wishing Tree, To Win a Prince, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and The Librarian of Auschwitz.

6) Where is your favorite place to read?

I like to read when I’m walking in the backyard. I pace around, so there isn’t much I won’t trip over. In most cases, I like to read in my bed at night.

7) Name one book that you have reread several times.

Love will Find You in Sugarcreek.

8) If you had to write in any other genre, what would that be and why?

Probably fantasy. I have always enjoyed writing something creative and fun. I may not read a lot of fantasy books growing up, but I’ve always liked watching animation movies involving fantasy elements.

9) If you could live in any “book world” what would that be?

Probably Narnia.

10) Do you own any interesting ‘bookish’ memorabilia or clothes? If so, what?

I have one mug that has all the famous books by female authors, and a nightshirt with books on the front.

11) What is your best book memory?

Jimmy by Robert Whitlow. This book is special to me because it is about a young boy with a disability and has strong faith in God. He struggles but he is always trying to do the right thing and overcome the obstacles. I was devastated by the ending but love the book. I can't gush enough about it, except the ending. Fortunately, the author wrote an alternative ending online. It is much better in my opinion. This is probably my best book memory.

12) What is the name of your book/series? Tell me a little bit about them.

A Forever Summer, and here is the blurb: It’s hard to know who you can trust, when you can’t remember your past.

Katherine is an artist struggling with the grief of losing her mother at a young age. When her father dies, she and her sister unexpectedly inherit a house in Westchester Bay—a house she doesn’t remember. When she finds a strange collection of old letters addressed to her, she starts to question everything. Her dreams and drawings all seem to hold a secret, a hint of who she was before the day her mother died. While searching for answers, she befriends Janson Caswell: a kindhearted man with a complicated past of his own. The deeper their relationship grows, though, the more they are faced with a darker reality. Will the truth tear them apart?

It is a clean, contemporary romance, and age category for adult fiction. There is some grief, loss and family dynamic. It is heartfelt, filled with mystery, but also a story of love and healing in difficult times.

13) Do you have a website? If so, what is it?

It is havelahmclat.wixsite.com/home. You can sign up for my newsletter to get a free download of short fiction.

14) Where can we find and follow you? (Name your social media platforms.

You can follow me on Instagram @havelahmclatwriter, Amazon Author Page: Havelah McLat, and Pinterest @havelahmclatauthor and Goodreads @havelahmclatauthor

15) If there anything important that you would want my readers to know about you?

I’m adopted from Ukraine and hard of hearing. I like to draw and sometimes crochet. In most cases, I spend the day reading or watching YouTube or listening to music and think about what to write next.