This is Ink & Intrigue—the blog where romance ignites, secrets simmer, and every love story hides a twist. I’m your blog host, Sheila Kell, romance author and lover of plot twists, slow burns, and morally questionable book boyfriends.
Today, I’m thrilled to introduce you to an author whose stories are fun and flirty, sensual and mysterious – Sheila Fowler! If you love cozy mysteries, small-town romances, or even a little romantic suspense, you’re in for a treat.
Sheila Fowler is known for creating unique characters with a quirky Florida attitude. Yes, the majority of Sheila’s books take place in Florida, so there are a lot of Florida Man/Woman stories to tell. Her latest release – Summer Nights in Willow Creek – is a small-town Florida romance where two friends become lovers.
In this spotlight, Sheila Fowler shares how she develops her stories and why she began writing. She also gives us a behind-the-scenes look at Summer Nights in Willow Creek, the first book in her Willow Creek Romance series.
Whether you write love stories, devour them, or dream of doing both, you’re in the right place. Let’s get into it and give a warm welcome to Sheila Fowler! 💖
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- What drew you to writing romance in particular? I was in lockdown during Covid and I started having these wild dreams. I decided to start writing them down, and that became the first book I wrote.
- What’s your typical writing routine like—do you write with emotion or outline first? I like outlines for the beginning and end. Most of the time I write the middle based off the beginning and ending.
- How do you keep romantic tension fresh and engaging across different stories? I write different character traits for each book, so I keep the ideas flowing better.
- What part of writing romance do you enjoy most—the meet-cute, the conflict, or the happily ever after? Love the Meet-Cute. It’s one of my favorite tropes.
- How do you handle writer’s block, especially during emotional or steamy scenes? I’ve had a few emotional things happen over the past year, so I use that to write.
- Can you tell us about your latest romance (other genre) and what inspired the story? I wanted to write another small town in Florida (after my Saddle Key Mystery series), and Willow Creek came to mind for me. It’s based off a small town near Gainesville called Chiefland (spiced up a bit). So, I created a town where the characters weave in and out of each story, and the MMCs in each story formed a group called The Four Seasons. That gave me the idea for the entire series. Each book is based off the season.
- How did you develop the chemistry between your main characters? I love a friends to lovers romance. So, I flipped it and made the two characters have feelings for each other and they never reciprocated.
- Are your characters based on real people, or entirely fictional? They are entirely fictional. Except the dog Jason has – his name is Hoagie (named after my dachshund).
- What romance tropes do you love to write—and which ones do you avoid? I love age-gap, cozy mysteries, and second chance romances. I love to read dark romances and Reverse Harem, but I can’t seem to write them.
- Was there a particular scene or emotional arc that was difficult (or fun!) to write? I loved writing the reunion in the beginning of the book. When the two characters see each other for the first time in 14 years. They are older, wiser, and so awkward around each other. It was so fun to write that.
- How has your writing evolved since your first book? The first few books I wrote were all told in first person one POV. I thought the stories were missing something when I didn’t have the second POV, so that was when I started writing dual POV.
- What was your journey to publication like? A friend of mine liked the first book I wrote and she told me about Amazon’s self publishing. I looked into it and thought it might be fun to use. Summer Nights in Willow Creek will be book #30 in Amazon, and I’m not sure I want to stop now.
- How did you find your agent or publisher (if applicable)?
- What advice would you give to aspiring authors? I feel like this is a funny phrase to use, but Just Do It. If you feel you have a story to tell, tell it. And you’ll have fun doing it.
- How do you deal with criticism or negative reviews? I’m an actress by trade, so I’ve had to deal with negative reviews my entire life. Yes, they are hard to hear, but sometimes they make you better for it. Now, if you just write a 1-star review with no written review, I start to question why!
- Which books or authors have influenced you the most? I love Janet Evanovich. She write quirky characters who solve mysteries and fall in love. Stephanie Plum is one of my favorite characters in any book.
- What do you like to read in your free time? I just love to read. Most of the time I like to find new authors, or I like to read friends’ books. Those are the best ones to read.
- What’s one thing people would be surprised to learn about you? I love to design and create jewelry. My mom got me addicted to that one.
- Do you have any quirky writing habits or rituals? Sometimes I’ll write while I work, but don’t tell my boss that one (wink).
- How do you balance writing with other aspects of your life? It’s difficult. But I try to stop writing each day at 6p (or a little earlier), so I can spend time with my husband and our doxie.
- What are you working on next? I’m putting the finishing touches on the 11th book in my Saddle Key Mysteries (Eleven Roses a Day), and then starting on book 4 in my Miami Sports Romance Series (Riding The Wave).
- Do you have a dream project you hope to write someday? I would love to co-write a project with an author friend.
- How do you see the publishing industry changing in the next few years? It’s changed so much since I started 5 years ago. AI has really changed the landscape (and not for the better). I hope people see some of that slop writing and they turn away from it for good.
- Are there any genres you’d like to explore that you haven’t yet? I’m thinking of doing a cowboy theme for a new series.
- What do you hope your legacy as a writer will be? She wrote what she loved and made people happy to read it in the process
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Sheila Fowler is an award-winning author, a lover of TV, and a dachshund fanatic. She is the beloved mother of 4 of those little hot dogs. Sheila and her husband George are living that romantic trope life. He’s older – age-gap romance. They met when he was married – forbidden love. They found each other again after a couple of years apart – 2nd chance romance.
It’s no wonder those are Sheila’s favorite romantic stories. Over the past four years, Sheila has written over 25 books. She has seven different series that compose these books.
I hope you enjoyed getting to know Sheila Fowler and hearing about her journey, inspirations, and latest swoon-worthy release, Summer Nights in Willow Creek. If you haven’t added this to your TBR yet, now’s the time—trust me, you won’t want to miss it. 💖
You can connect with Sheila Fowler here:
📚 Website/📱 Socials: https://linktr.ee/rockafowlers
🛒 Grab her books: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FBL84CXD
Thank you for joining me in spotlighting a fellow romance lover who’s giving us all the feels. Stay tuned for more author features, book talk, and behind-the-scenes romance goodness.
Until next time—keep reading, keep swooning! ✨📚