Author Q&A with Audrey Schuyler Lancho

Audrey is a North Carolina native who writes sweet and warm romances, both historical and contemporary. She likes to add a touch of humor to all her stories to keep a smile on her readers' faces.

She is a freelance fiction editor, as well as an in-house editor at a literary agency, and she’s training to be a literary agent in the future. Audrey lives with her Spaniard husband and two sons, and when she’s not editing, reading, or writing, she’s doing something with her hands, like crochet or a puzzle.

Visit her website at https://www.audreylancho.com

Q&A

1. When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve always written books, even as an elementary school student. I’d bind them with a cereal box’s cardboard and a stapler! In high school I continued writing prose, but of course no one knew about it––because, how embarrassing and uncool! As a twenty-something, I got really interested in my family’s genealogy, specifically my ancestors Andrew Jackson Shuler and John Adam Schuyler. I wrote a family saga based on true events from their lives, but to put it plainly it was horrible. I learned all my writing lessons from that failed, and later shelved, manuscript. It’s now a file on my computer that I’ll always be thankful for, because it taught me what I needed, because the next book I wrote was Seven Days at Mannerley! I was sure by my twenties that writing was my calling, so in 2020, now heavily pregnant with my second son and just having turned 31, I quit my teaching job with my husband’s support and began to pursue writing full-time. Well, not full-time. It was more like, during my baby’s nap times. He’s still a great napper, so I get 1-3 hours of work in daily.

2. If you could meet any author who would it be and why?

I’m blessed to know so many powerhouse women authors in real life, so I’d have to go with an author who has already passed away. In that case, I’d love to meet Jane Austen. I think she was a fantastic observer of human nature and a lot of her assessments of behavior and personality come across in her writing in a subtly funny way. I think that’s what always draws me to her, the depth of her characters. You know she had to be studying people around her to pick up on the silly things they did and their “most ardent” motivations. I also think she had to have been a fantastic daydreamer, because I believe she never married, which means she had to imagine a lot of the romance that took place, or at least observe it in other couples as an outsider and then later reimagine her protagonists experiencing courting, love, engagement, and marriage. She’s just timeless and unmatched!

3. What inspired you to write Seven Days at Mannerley?

As I mentioned, I’m a Jane Austen fan for sure, so the idea of rich people in their early twenties together in an estate for a week was definitely born from the setups of her novels, as well as the subtle humor and banter throughout. Apart from that, the idea for the plot and the characters simply came to me years ago and I couldn’t ignore it. I just thought how much I loved rags to riches as a trope, and Cinderella in general, and then I thought, I could do this but make it  Victorian. The idea became stronger and stronger with time and as I added details, which meant I knew it was worth pursuing.

4. Do you have a favorite fictional character?

This is a hard question, but I believe I can safely say that Landon Carter from Nicholas Sparks’ A Walk to Remember tops my favorites list, or Michael Hosea from Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love. I love a good, strong, moral male character who isn’t afraid to love hard with courage. I try to make my male leads similar to these two.

5. Do you have another book in the works, and if so, can you tell us a little about it?

Where to begin! This November I hope to publish a sweet, contemporary Holiday romcom via Amazon. I’ve never self-published anything before, but the 70% royalty rate is very tempting, and I feel like this Christmas book is a perfect first venture. It’s about a bicycle loving man who’s had a few trust-breaking blows in life, and a nurse who dreams of more––both in career and her romance life! When a sudden snowstorm comes in and they’re trapped at his grandmother’s house, well…. You get the idea. :) My next work under contract is The Silver Lining, publishing with Harpeth Road in May 2025. That one’s content is pretty much under wraps until closer to release. The sequel to Seven Days at Mannerley is titled A Telephone at Mannerley and follows my protagonist Mary as she tries to save a property from imposter heirs. I’m currently about 1/4th of the way done writing that first draft––the Mannerley books are so fun to write! I also have a 1930s dustbowl inspirational romance that I’m extremely hopeful has success on submission by my agent to bigger, faith-based publishers! I’m always working on something, either writing or editing. Now I’ll add releasing and selling to the mix!

Seven Days at Mannerley

Book Blurb

The suitcase she found changed everything. The contents? An elegant dress and an invitation in another girl's name. Twenty-three-year-old Mary would go to the ball, enjoy how the rich lived just for one night, and then quietly slip back into her real life, sorting rubbish as a poor barmaid. No harm done. Of course, there wouldn't be much of a story to tell had it turned out that way.

It's 1870 in rural England, and Mary assumes the identity of the suitcase owner, Agnes. When Mary's one night at Mannerley estate turns into a seven-day, hilarious farce, she quickly makes friends, finds suitors, and keeps fibbing. Not only does Arthur, the heir himself, fall for her, but so, too, does Mr. Singh, his friend visiting from India, making advances in plain sight of the heir. Making matters worse, a former workmate recognizes Mary and extorts her: she must steal a golden watch from the heir for him or have her true identity exposed and risk being thrown in jail, which could mean death--and that would certainly ruin her stolen, er, borrowed ball gown.

The only way Mary can get close enough to Arthur to steal his watch is via sensuality and flirtation. But as Mary scrambles to cover her tracks, her lies and crimes compound, weaving themselves into an impossible tangle. All the while Agnes, the real owner of the fancy ball gown, is making her way ever-closer to Mannerley. Happily ever after seems as unlikely as a barmaid among dandies, when Mary's only possible escape is a confession and the hope her scandalous true love will risk his reputation to defend and forgive her.

You can purchase the novel through the following link ➝ https://t.co/IPPU3hdm5d