Cat Sebastian: On Writing Queer Historical Romances

Cat Sebastian writes queer historical romances. Before writing, Cat was a lawyer and a teacher and did a variety of other jobs she liked much less than she enjoys writing happy endings for queer people. She was born in New Jersey and lived in New York and Arizona before settling down in a swampy part of the south.

When she isn’t writing, she’s probably reading, having one-sided conversations with her dog, or doing the crossword puzzle. She is the author of several series including the Turners, Seducing the Sedgwicks, the Regency Imposters, and the London Highwaymen. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

Cat Sebastian

In this post, Cat Sebastian explains the inspiration for her latest novel and shares a writing lesson that took her a while to figure out.

Name: Cat Sebastian
Literary agent: Deidre Knight
Book title: We Could Be So Good
Publisher: Avon
Release date: June 6, 2023
Genre/category: Romance
Previous titles: Queer Principles of Kit Webb, Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes
Elevator pitch for the book: A reporter befriends, and then falls for, the boss’s son at a newspaper in 1950s New York City

Bookshop | Amazon
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What prompted you to write this book?

I can’t get enough of 1950s New York. Aesthetically, it’s such a great setting. More importantly, since we’re living through a time when civil rights are increasingly threatened, the 50s resonated for me.

I wanted to write a story that’s fundamentally cozy and domestic, despite being set in a frightening time. I wanted to show queer people finding happiness not despite their persecution, but rather as an act of defiance.

How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?

I started the first draft of this book during NaNoWriMo in November of 2021. The book as it currently exists is very close to what I initially planned on. I’ve had books change pretty radically from initial idea to finished book, but this wasn’t one of them.

Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?

I worked with a new editor for this book, and that turned out to be an excellent experience.

Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?

The biggest surprise was how easy it was to write. It’s a different setting and a slightly different voice and structure than most of my other books, so I was expecting a bit of a challenge in finding my feet, but after the first few pages the book felt like it wrote itself. I wish I knew what makes some books like this (while others almost resist being written) so I could replicate the conditions later on, but I suspect it’s just lightning in a bottle.

What do you hope readers will get out of your book?

Writing this book was such a warm and joyful experience, and I hope that readers experience some of that warmth and joy.

If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?

This is probably extremely obvious to most people, but it took me a while to figure out: When you’re coming up with a book idea, pick something that you’re excited to devote a year or more of your life to.

There are loads of things that I can be interested in for the length of time it takes to read a book, but the level of interest it takes to sustain writing a book is a whole different level. There’s nothing worse than getting halfway through a draft and realizing that you’re bored, and then having to go back and fix or abandon it.

While there’s no shortage of writing advice, it’s often scattered around—a piece of advice here, words of wisdom there. And in the moments when you most need writing advice, what you find might not resonate with you or speak to the issue you’re dealing with. In A Year of Writing Advice, the editors of Writer’s Digest have gathered thoughts, musings, and yes, advice from 365 authors in dozens of genres to help you on your writing journey.

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