Q&A With Cecelia Mecca 

This holiday weekend I have the honor of doing a Q&A with Cecelia Mecca. Cecelia Mecca is the author of many historical romance novels and of contemporary novels under the pen name Bella Michaels. Fellow author Eliza Knight was kind enough to recommend her to me and I’m so glad she did. 

Q: So Cecelia at what point in your life did you realize you were called to be a writer?

A: In college as an English major and lover of medieval romance, the first story idea came to me, but it was more than fifteen years before I decided to actually write that story which later became my debut novel, The Thief’s Countess.

Q: Do you prefer writing historical romance or contemporary romance more? 

A: That’s a tough one! I know this is a non-answer, but really. . . both. I love to switch back and forth to keep things fresh for me. When I’m writing historical, that’s my favorite genre. And same goes when I’m writing contemporary. I love the research in historical but have fun getting inspired by real life events, like the Grado Valley Vineyards series which was based on a girl’s Napa Valley trip.

Q: What made you want to write historical romance specifically?

A: As a medieval studies minor, I’d also been fascinated with both English medieval history, and it’s literature. Around the same time I discovered authors such as Johanna Lindsey and Kathleen Woodiwiss and just fell in love with the genre.

Q: Does Hollywood have the rights to any of your novels?

A: Not yet, hopefully someday!

Q: If you were to write another genre other than historical romance and contemporary romance, which genre would you choose and why?

A: I did dabble in paranormal romance with one series out and absolutely adore those vampire heroes. But if I were to write an entirely different genre, my first love as a reader is epic fantasy, and that would be so much fun, if not extremely daunting, to write.

Q: What advice would you give to anyone who feels called to be an author like you are? What advice would you give to anyone struggling with writers block?

A: I would advise them to read in their genre, study craft books like ROmancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes if they write romance or Saving the Cat by Blake Snyder which is another of my favorites. Finding author’s groups on Facebook, networking and learning craft are great first steps. As for writer’s block, I’ve never struggled with it personally but perhaps stepping back might help. Inspiration can be found everywhere when you look—watching people, street names, friend’s story—start with your own experiences and let your imagination soar from there.

Q: Can you spoil any new projects you are working on now?

A: Sure! I am working on a steamy small town standalone romance called Meet, Play, Love coming in February 2023. The hero travels to Italy so half of the book is set in Sicily and the second half in Kitchi Falls, a small fictional town featured in my Grado Valley Vineyards series.