1.- Could you introduce yourself to Jamreads’ readers?
Hi, I’m Rose, I’m a writer from Bath in the UK. I have one son, enjoy baking, photography, and making cheese, though I’m not very good at any of them! I’m bi, dyslexic and suffer from anxiety and depression.

2.- What made you start writing?
I’ve always had stories in my head. At some point it became more convenient to get them down on paper than to leave them running around up there. 

3.- How did the idea of Til Death Do Us Bard appear?
I think it sparked from one of those tumblr posts that become memes, about a married adventurer couple talking about domestic things like darning socks around the fire. That evolved into the idea of a married couple separated and looking for each other. I also wanted something fun and lighthearted, after the previous book I’d written, which was full of heavy themes. 

4.- Could you tell us a bit of how this book evolved from its inception to the version finally published?
Bard isn’t that different from the version I queried, in terms of structure. There’s more detail, more depth of character, but largely the plot goes in the same direction. The last act was rearranged slightly, so the tension builds right up to the climax. 

5.- Which challenges would you say appeared while preparing TDDUB? 
Mostly, it was the speed of things. The book was announced in May, and came out in November. That meant doing four rounds of revision in four months, which is tough. That’s on top of working full time, and having a family.

6.- Let’s talk about your most recent book, Fated Winds and Promising Seas. How would you say it is different working on your sophomore novel in comparison with the debut?
I think there’s always the “what happens if they don’t like it” fear. Bard went through querying and the acquisitions, so I knew people saw something in it, but this was something new, and it was different to Bard. It was the story I wanted to put out - it’s a deeply important book to me, but I was worried they’d try and make it something lighthearted like Bard. Which did happen - they wanted something fluffy and that cut out all the themes of fighting fate and choosing your own path. I offered to write a different book that matched this, but they’d already started on the cover design, so I had to fight like hell for the book to keep the heart of FW&PS the same as I’d written it. I’m glad I did.

7.- Why did you choose a setting such as the sea and ships for FWaPS?
I think the sea represents a place of freedom. It’s away from the rules and restrictions of dry land, a place where people can be themselves. There’s a lawlessness to it, but the nature of the environment requires people to work together to survive. That made it ideal for the story.

8.- Both of your books feature queer romance; did you find challenging to write it? Why do you think it is important the LGBTQ+ representation in books?
My books are queer because I am. I think even if the relationships weren’t, the themes of identity, of being free to be yourself, of breaking away from rules that harm and constrain, are themes that will resonate with queer readers. With rise of the far right, book ban etc, I think having queer representation is going to get harder, but so much more important. And for me, personally, it gives me a chance to explore things like identity and gender that I can’t do in real life. 

9.- What can we expect from Rose Black in the future?
I’m on sub with a fantasy adventure about flying sailing ships, strange cults, dead gods, and a sentient city, so keep your fingers crossed for that. And I’m currently writing a horror set on an ocean liner, so that’s a direction I’d like to go down as well.

If you are curious, you can use these links to order her books: TDDUB and FW&PS