I, Hannah, was able to chat with Brianna Sugalski over email and read a portion of her book, Disenchanted (A Lay of Ruinous Reign: Book One). I was enthralled by the storytelling and imagery. Sugalski is able to show off her capable main hero, Lilac, and the mysterious Garin! I was so excited to be able to learn about this story’s journey to publishing (and re-publishing) and Sugalski’s own motivations for being a writer!

1. First off, what made you want to become a writer? 

My love for all things SF/F. I’ve always written but never finished a story, and I started writing full time when I became the mother of a medically fragile son, and had a lot of hard feelings and time on my hands. Writing Disenchanted gave me a place to put all the grief, dark, and nitty gritty that clouded my mind at the time.

2. That’s amazing! Can you tell us a little bit about what your writing process looks like as a full-time writer?

Right now my process is chaotic, but I write whenever I can. When my kids are in school, before and after my son’s therapy sessions. Sometimes I have an idea for a scene or dialogue, and it goes in my notes app. It is a miracle that it becomes a cohesive piece at the end. No matter what, I try my best to write a minimum of 1,000 words a day. Do I fall short? Yes, but the days I do, I make it up the following day.

3. What books inspired you to write?

Holly Black’s The Coldest Girl in Town. Alexandre Dumas‘s The Three Musketeers, and Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments Series.

4. Can you tell us a little bit about your book?

Lilac Trécesson is a prisoner in her parents’ castle after a most wicked secret was revealed on the eve of her fifteenth birthday. Years later, her Accession looms upon her father’s decision to abdicate, and between the riotous townsfolk and scheming noble bent on snatching her throne, she prepares for the worst… Until a letter arrives from The Witch of Lupine Grotto, containing a curious offer to banish her curse forever.

She begrudgingly trades her coronet for a cloak and ventures into the forest Brocéliande, only to find herself cornered by a bloodthirsty barkeep who demands her help in exchange for protection against the even deadlier forces of the woods.

With only the protection of her inherited dagger—and unsolicited help of the sardonic stranger who inserts himself on her quest—Lilac must find the impious enchantress and return in time to claim her crown. Pity the fool to underestimate the girl with subpar blade skills but the spite to make up for it.

This is the tale of a cursed princess,
A crestfallen killer,
The town that wants them to burn,
And the witch who can save them both.

5. What was the publishing process like for you? 

Disenchanted was originally a YA novel that was published by The Parliament House Press off of 2019 Pitmad on twitter. I chose to purchase my rights back and rewrite it as a New Adult Romantic Dark Fantasy novel in 2022, and the rest of this four book series will follow the updated genre and age rating. I appreciate aspects of both being with a publisher and self-publishing; a publisher gives you a larger platform seemingly with more immediacy because of other featured authors and the publisher’s backlist. Publishing this book myself gave me a greater appreciation and understanding for individuals who work in publishing and also those who’ve been doing it themselves. 

6. What was it like re-editing and making this a new adult book? What was the most challenging part of it? 

It was cathartic. I made the decision in early 2022 and had written it a few years back when I had things going on. It was strange and nice to revisit my world, and have the YA version be my “draft” as I reworked scenes and added some in a much healthier headspace. Rewriting and editing Disenchanted was the fun part; most challenging part was the overall production. Producing a self-published book isn’t just the novel itself; it’s managing time and finances, adhering to self-imposed deadlines, working with editors, cover designers, and sometimes formatters if you don’t do it yourself. There’s this impressive dance between “what can I learn to do (and execute well)?” and “what do I hire an expert to help me with?” It is hard but extremely rewarding work.

7. Also, what was it like buying your rights back? Can you tell us a bit about the process and what went into that decision? 

It was not an easy decision in the slightest; my publisher has given me much valuable insight and experience in the world of authors and books, and I appreciate them and we keep in touch. I decided to pull the Young Adult version of Disenchanted because as I was writing the sequel, titled Disillusioned (October 8th, 20240), it was already such an older story in terms of the plot and romance. Lilac is in a very novice headspace when she escapes her castle, and that was something I believe I misunderstood about her character when I first wrote it—when I, too was younger—that, just because she’d spent years in a castle because of her ability to speak to Daemons, she was still a twenty year-old girl. Her lack of life experience does not necessarily mean a level of immaturity, and once I clarified that with her character, she came so much clearer to me in the New Adult rewrite.

8. I think her maturity definitely jumps off the page. I was really happy she seemed like she came into the story fully capable and ready to do what needed to get done. What excites you most about your story? 

The development of Lilac. She’s a feisty princess who’s been forbidden from leaving her castle for five years when we meet her at the start of DISENCHANTED, and I love exploring the ways she interacts with the world in a realistic way where she’d had no blade skills, no magic (it’s forbidden), and all she has is her book smarts. But it takes her far with the help of Garin. 

9. What excites you most about your characters?

Their banter and backstories. Tragic, dark, delicious.

10. So I’ve read a little bit of your book, and I already love Lilac. Lilacs are also my favorite flower. I noticed she also discusses using lavender oil. Are these some of your favorites? Is there a reason for these particular flowers and plants? 

Thank you! Lilacs are also one of favorites, I love the pretty shades they come in. There’s a bit of intentional irony to her name. It’s the king, her father, Henri’s favorite flower, and he gave her a childhood nickname that stuck with everyone as he and the rest of the kingdom viewed her in femininity and innocence. Then on her fifteenth birthday, when it became clear she held an unknown ability to speak to the feared creatures of the Brocéliande forest, she was ostracized and trapped, and as a result began drinking and having sex to cope with the fact that her parents had asked her to remain in the castle until she took the crown. But the nickname still remained. 

In Disenchanted, her lavender oil was a familiar scent, a reminder of home—also rooted in the perception of youthfulness. In Disillusioned, she’s switched that oil out for a rose and amber perfume, which is also symbolic in her growth and fight for independence and romance. 

11. You also seem to really want to show how much work Lilac has done with what she’s been given. I was really impressed by how much knowledge she had. Was this something you did intentionally for her as a princess?  

It was! She was prohibited from leaving her castle after her fifteenth birthday soiree, so she sought adventure in the only ways she knew how—through her books. Many of these, gleaned through her tutors were boring, but she took special interest in the books on the different species of Daemons. As she actually get into Brocéliande, she sees how much of them is sorely misunderstood by her kingdom.

12. What was something you struggled with in the writing process? 

Their inner turmoil. It can be hard to put characters you’re fond of through hard times. Throughout my editing process I’ve found my editor and I focus most on, okay how can we make this worse for them? It’s fun. 

13. So I know that you’ve mentioned (off blog) this is The Princess Bride meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Ella Enchanted. That definitely leaps of the page with the banter and mystery that seems to underlie every interaction Lilac has. Is this the type of writing that gives you the most joy? 

Thank you so much. Yes it is, I enjoy reading books and watching romantic films with banter in them. Buffy is such a great show because it takes the viewer on many emotional rollercoasters; there’s something special in the way the writers navigated darker themes with silly humor and banter. I watched it way younger than I should have and found myself searching for the same qualities in every fantasy or romance I devoured. 

Writing Disenchanted, I don’t think I consciously tried to emulate that style, but when my ARCs went out with my publisher, lots of first time readers of my work who didn’t know me or my BTVS obsession reached out comparing it, saying that Garin gave them the Spike they were looking for in book form. That was the highest compliment anyone has ever given Disenchanted. 

I enjoy psychologizing my characters, exploring vulnerability and motive in their interpersonal lives. How do they view love, for example? How is their perception informed by their past relationships, their upbringing, the traumas of their childhood? Are they hopeful, hesitant, apathetic? Or are they afraid to yearn because they feel undeserving of the loudest celebration of themselves reflected in another person—whether romantic, purely sexual, or platonic (and how do they end up yearning anyway?) It adds layers of depth, and if I’m writing and a character feels flat, it is often because I’m having trouble connecting with their introspection, so seeing where they’re coming from also brings me joy.

14. Love the Spike comparison and the fact that you are a Buffy Stan!! What are you reading, watching, and/or enjoying right now??

I’m starting the Dragonlance Series and watching Shogun on Netflix and Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s live action show. All great series. I also can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get into the Dragonlance!  

(I am also currently watching Shogun. It’s so good, everyone go watch it!!) 

15. Where can people find your books and you?

My website: https://www.briannasugalski.com/
My landing page: https://authorbriannasugalski.com/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/briwritesthings
Instagram, Tiktok: @ authorbriannasugalski
Twitter: AlchemyBlooms

Thank you so much to Brianna Sugalski for coming on OWWR Blog. Sugalski has links on her website where you can purchase a book via paperback or ebook, or even order a signed copy directly from the author! Pick up a copy to read about a princess who has a power she doesn’t understand, her fight for her own place in this world, and the mysterious dark and broody man she aligns herself with on her journey! And it helps that there might be even a little steam!

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