Jackie Lau
Jackie Lau decided she wanted to be a writer when she was in grade two, sometime between writing “The Heart That Got Lost” and “The Land of Shapes.” She later studied engineering and worked as a geophysicist before turning to writing romance novels. Jackie lives in Toronto with her husband, and despite living in Canada her whole life, she hates winter. When she’s not writing, she enjoys gelato, gourmet donuts, cooking, hiking, and reading on the balcony when it’s raining. Sophie Munk interviews Jackie as part of a series of profiles of this year’s lineup of LiterASIAN authors.
As a writer, geophysicist, and engineer, has your multidisciplinary background influenced your writing? How do you connect your different interests?
To be honest, I don’t really consider science and engineering interests of mine anymore. It’s like a previous part of my life that I don’t think about much now, but I’ve written a number of main characters who are engineers, as well as one who’s a geophysicist. I like showing women who work in STEM in my books, even if it wasn’t for me.
Being good with numbers can be useful in publishing, though, especially when you’re self-publishing.
What drew you to writing the romance genre, and what is your favourite aspect of writing?
When I first started writing in 2010, I focused on women’s fiction, but after realizing that my book was basically a romance, I started reading romance. It was a very difficult time in my life, and I appreciated the guaranteed happy ending and the hope that romances give.
I enjoy both writing first drafts and revising—which one I prefer varies from day to day. Most of all, I just enjoy getting to make stuff up. Proofreading, on the other hand, isn’t my favourite.
What are you currently reading and working on?
I recently finished The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary, and next on my list is Death by Dumpling, a cozy mystery by Vivien Chien. For non-fiction, I’m reading The Hidden Tools of Comedy: The Serious Business of Being Funny.
I’m planning to release three books this year, all romantic comedies. I’ll start revising the second of these—still title-less—very soon. I haven’t touched it since I completed the first draft a couple months ago, so we’ll see if I think it’s any good now…
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Jackie Lau will be at LiterASIAN 2021 as part of a panel, “Independent Authors or Self-Published Authors? Stories that We Live to Write About” with Cynda Yeasting, Diana Ng, JF Garrard, & Diana Morita Cole May 8th, 12.00pm – 1.30pm (PST). Register here for your ticket.