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Ligia de Wit is a quirky bilingual writer, residing in Mexico City. An eternal romantic who’s loved fairy tales and swashbuckling stories all her life, she blends both with fun language and a hefty sprinkle of romance while she’s at it. Her stories are full of personality with endearing characters.
You can find her short stories with Palamades Publishing, Backchannel Magazine, and WordCrafter. Three of her short stories have received an Honorary Mention in Writers of the Future. She has published a fantasy romance novel, Touch of Faete, with Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing, and soon the Spanish version under Penguin Random House Mexico.
When not concocting stories, she works at a global leading distributor company. Chat with her at ligiadewit.com
Buy Touch of Faete here: https://books2read.com/u/3R0MJD
Buy Burden of Faete here: https://books2read.com/u/bzrkB2
Her website: https://ligiadewit.com/
Her newsletter (free short story): https://ligiadewit.eo.page/bd8xf
Star Trek or Star Wars?
Can it be Lord of the Rings? ;) But I was a huge Star Wars fan when I was little... uh... sometime between WWII and the 80s... The problem is, I love the first three movies, and no, I am not referring to the ones done in this century. Every time I mention the first three to my kids, they think first of Phantom Menace... sigh
A book that pleasantly surprised you?
Khyven the Unkillable by Todd Fahnestock. I wasn’t expecting much, just enjoying some fantasy, and now Todd is one of my favorite authors.
Coffee, tea, or cacao?
Can it be all three?? Honestly, I love coffee but I don’t need it to my surving… gasp! Yes I know. I drink tea because it’s good to my health. Cacao? Gimme some dark chocolate any time and I’m happy!
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
It was either keeping the pesky little people in my head or letting them out! Well, not quite, but close enough. I had a lot of stories in my head, but I wasn’t aware I could actually write them down until I tried. And once I started, I couldn’t stop.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I vomit words onto the page. I've decided that no one will ever read my first drafts, and my brain keeps telling my fingers that there are more scenes ahead, so they can barely keep up with that tyrant (my brain).
What does your family think of your writing?
I surprised them. At first, they thought it was just a hobby and didn’t take me seriously. Ah yes, I started writing in my early forties, with a family of my own, so yeah, they didn’t see it coming. But after years of dedication, after many tears, frustration, and cries of despair, as well as some occasional whoops of delight, they knew I was in it for the long run. And now they’re very excited and encouraging.
How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?
When I started writing, I couldn’t stop, so I wrote about ten stories in three months or so. None will see the light of day, I can tell you. But then I started getting better, though it took me years to gather the courage to publish one. The silver lining is that I have a few unpublished stories waiting for me to revisit them. I dearly love the Bradais Pledge series; already, books 1 and 2 are published, but there's one unpublished that I hold close to my heart— one where a haunted house isn't really haunted.
Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer? If so, what are they?
Perseverance. It’s so easy to give up along the way, but endurance is a writer’s middle name. And last too. Also, and this is my favorite tip, is to get feedback from peers. Not friends or family, but from those who undersand the craft. Join a critique group, in person or online, and be prepared to thicken your skin!
Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
I am blessed to have enough reviews to know what they think, or some follow me on Social Media. It is so amazing to hear that the world you created and the characters you molded, are loved. To have someone tell you how excited they are to read the next book in the series …. That is why I write. Well that and to let out the stories in my head!
What do you think makes a good story?
One that resonates with the reader in more than one level. That makes them stop for a second to appreciate what they’re reading. One that leaves them thinking about it even days after they finished it. Oh I love those!
What is the first book that made you cry?
Or send flying to a corner? I don’t remember one making me cry since I’ve always loved adventures and historical fiction, and neither really makes you cry. But I got so mad while reading Never Ending Story that I sent the book flying to the corner and let it there for three full days, until grudglingly I read again. Counts?
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
Oh, energizes me for sure! I wished I coud devote more time to writing instead of Real Life… sigh.
What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Follow all rules to the T or not follow any rules at all. Or break rules before understanding them. Having said this, there are no rules for writing…
What is your writing Kryptonite?
Internet.
Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?
Ah, great question! All my stories are born “original”. I put this in quotes since we are influenced by other great stories, movies, news, our own lives, etc, so what is really original? Now, if you mean that I don’t write thinking about market, well yeah, then I’m original since I need to feel passionated about the story before even writing it. I need to be absorbed by my writing and crying and laughing and getting a bit mad about some things, for a story to be there on the page.
Having said that, I do care about market since I won’t be writing about somethig completely off. I write what I love to read, and what I love to read already exists, so…
What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?
Oh I love this question! You know, maybe it’s me, but for many years if you asked me how I’d pictured a writer, it’d be one writing in a wooden cabin away from everyone (ha!!). And male… huh… Anyway, above I talked about how important is to receive feedback from your peers. And that’s because I did that when I first started writing, and found many writing friends there. Two of them grew to become something more, and now we three are thick as writers (that’s how the saying goes, doesn’t it??). We share ideas, plot holes, character issues, writing frustrations, every other day. We support each other and cheer each other. I know it’s cheesy but I’ve always said they are the winds beneath my wings.
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you building a body of work with connections between each book?
Both. I’ve written mostly standalones but the series I’m publishig, well, it’s a series. It is kind of exciting to create new worlds, but it is emotionally satistying to dwell in one you know well too.
Who shot first, Han or Greedo?
Oh that’s easy. It was…
Do you write novels, novellas, short stories, episodic fiction, poems, screenplays, or something else? What is your preferred format?
I’ve written poems in my youth (if you can call thm that), short stories then and now, and I have this exciting novella… unpublished, alas. But I gear toward novels. I love getting lost in a book so it is inevitable I do the same when writing.
Are you traditionally or self published? Or both? Do you feel there are advantages to one over the other?
I’m soon to be both. My debut novel is published in the US with a small publisher. And that same novel was picked by Penguin Random House Mexico and will be published in Spanish this year. Both experiences have been great since I’ve been lucky enough in both instances. I dearly love the publisher in the US and the authors, we are a small community that support each other.
But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to be published under one of the Big Five. Especially since I translated my own work from English to my native tongue, Spanish. It was quite an experience, believe me.
How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?
Hmm I migth have about 4 unpublished novels, a few half-finished which varies from a few pages to half a book.
What is the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything?
Dolphins.
What does literary success look like to you?
When readers cannot wait to read my next book.
What’s the best way to market your books?
Let someone else do it while you focus on writing…. Well I can dream!
What do you have coming next?
Second book in my Bradaís Pledge series comes out March 26th, which is before this is published :) After that, I’m working on the 3rd and 4th books. They will all be published under Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing.
