Good question to start with – it’s a little unusual. We couldn’t have done anything, in the days
before the internet, because we live thousands of miles away from each other! Lillian is from the
northern USA, and Constance is from the UK. We were introduced through a mutual friend over
ten years ago, and discovered that we both had a passion for writing. We started writing
together ­ both sending each other what we’d written alone, and crafting stories as a pair.

That is, of course, the beauty of writing. Words on a page do not actually need the physical
presence of the other person. Writing together was a little strange at first, but over the years it
has become second nature. These days we are both very strongly of the opinion that our writing
is at its best when we collaborate.

It’s difficult at times! There are days that we would love nothing better than to be able to decamp
to the local coffee shop and brainstorm. That, clearly, is never an option. Instead, long hours on
skype is an necessary part of the entire process. We also have a great set up with online
collaborative software. Of course, one of the biggest challenges is the time difference! With
Constance being in a time zone ahead of Lillian, often we have to work to very odd schedules!
It helps that both our families have come to the conclusion that we share a brain. Whilst we both
come at matters from different angles ­ which actually is an asset in keeping our writing dynamic
and interesting ­ we find it easy to understand where the other is coming from, and to pick up an
idea and run with it. Very often, the ideas will come from one of us, we’ll draft together, and the
other will provide the polish.

At times, the fact that we come from very different backgrounds has been a real benefit to us
and to our books. Between us, we have a wealth of experience which we put to good use in
bringing our characters and stories to life. Our partnership gives us a unique perspective,
allowing us to bring our readers a whole new way of looking at a genre which has been around
for quite a while now.

We get asked this all the time! The answer is, we just talk it out. Neither of us has a big ego to
get around, and our main focus is always getting the best story out of our ideas. We both are
happy to go with whatever works best, and if ideas don’t get used, that’s fine. If we’re ever stuck
on something, we ask our editor for a third opinion.

We’ve just published our first novel ­ The Dreamwalker, a contemporary fantasy which will be
enjoyed by teenagers and adults alike. The book is the first instalment of The Witch Lake
Chronicles, and follows the story of Sam Gardener, a boy who returns to high school to take his
senior year, having been pulled out of middle school by his mother when he was twelve.

Nobody knows what to make of Sam, and in the small town high school, rumours are flying
about him. All wrong, of course! He’s not about to come out and say that he can do things that
most people can’t. Sam would like to just settle down and get through the year unscathed. Then
he meets Rhionnan ­ a girl around his own age, though she’s been dead for nearly a century. A
strange bond develops between the two. The Dreamwalker is their story ­ of Sam’s reintegration
into life, and of Rhi’s fight to save her family, even in death.

We did consider approaching traditional publishing houses, but the more we looked into the area,
the more we realised that self-­publishing was right for us. There is a certain bias against
self-­published authors, but the simple fact is that more and more authors ­ even those extremely
successful, household names ­ are publishing themselves. Especially in electronic format.

Self-­publishing allows the author to retain so much more control over the finished book. Of
course, with that control comes a whole host of added responsibilities, which can seem very
daunting at times! We both still work full time, so coming home from work and realising that you
still have several hours to put in in not only writing, but marketing and designing ­ not to mention
working on the latest batch of comments received by our editor! ­ can be exhausting. Anyone
who thinks that self-­publishing is the ‘easy’ route needs to take a closer look!

Yet, for all the hard work, it is remarkably rewarding. We now have a novel which is ours in
every respect. Nothing comes close to that. It’s the best feeling in the world, and worth every
moment of the work we have put in.

Oh yes, definitely! We’re hoping to publish the second instalment of The Witch Lake Chronicles
in the coming months, and the third is already plotted out. We’ve also got a second series
planned, which will focus on a different story entirely. We intend on being around for a while!