Violetta Brooks on Writing the Book You Want to Read

What This Weink Podcast Episode Is About

In this episode, Elsa and Violetta talk about writing the books you want to read, creating a completed romantasy trilogy, sharing work online, finding critique partners, and reaching readers as an indie author.

The conversation moves through Violetta’s writing journey, her love of fantasy and darker romance, the creation of Aislinn in the House Woodthorne trilogy, and the experience of writing A Fever Cruel and Lonely chapter by chapter.

From Reader to Writer

Violetta has always been a reader, and writing came into her life early.

She remembers being introduced to creative writing at school by a teacher who made storytelling feel exciting. That spark stayed with her, even though she stopped writing for a long time and focused mostly on reading.

Over the last five years, she returned to writing more seriously.

Like many indie authors, Violetta did not wait for a perfect plan, a formal creative writing degree, or total confidence before beginning. She describes herself as mostly self-taught, shaped by practice, reading, writing courses here and there, and the process of actually putting words on the page.

“The best way to learn, I think, is just to start writing. It doesn’t have to be great on your first draft.”

The House Woodthorne Trilogy

A big part of the episode focuses on Violetta’s completed House Woodthorne trilogy.

The series follows Aislinn, a 32-year-old widowed single mother, as she faces danger, hidden powers, found family, romance, forgiveness, redemption, and plenty of drama.

One of the most interesting choices Violetta made was writing a romantasy heroine who is not extremely young, and who is also a mother.

“I wanted a strong, independent woman character. Also, it was important to me to write a mother-type character.”

That gives Aislinn a different kind of emotional grounding. She is not stepping into the fantasy world as a blank slate. She has lived, lost, loved, carried responsibility, and still has to find her way through a dangerous new chapter of her life.

When One Book Becomes a Trilogy

Violetta did not begin The Great and the Dark with a fully planned trilogy in mind.

In the episode, she describes the first book as “totally chaotic.” She is mostly a pantser, meaning she often follows the story as it comes rather than outlining every detail in advance.

But once the first book was finished, she realized there were too many loose ends to leave behind. Books two and three required more planning, more outlining, and a lot of tying things together.

That mix of instinct and structure became part of the trilogy’s journey: first the story arrived, then the shape of the full series became clear.

The Value of Critique Partners

Another strong thread in the episode is Violetta’s appreciation for critique partners.

Sharing her work with trusted readers helped her shape her stories, build confidence, and eventually feel ready to share her books more publicly around 2024.

At first, receiving critique was not always easy. Like many writers, she had to develop a thicker skin. But over time, she learned how valuable supportive feedback could be, especially when it came from people who wanted the story to grow rather than simply tear it apart.

“I think you learn just as much critiquing somebody else’s work as you do when they critique yours.”

For indie authors, that kind of creative support can make a huge difference. Writing may happen alone, but growth often happens in conversation.

A Fever Cruel and Lonely

After finishing the House Woodthorne trilogy, Violetta moved into a new kind of story with A Fever Cruel and Lonely.

The book is a werewolf-shifter romantasy with medieval vibes, a grimdark world, and a strong romance focus. It was also the first book Violetta posted chapter by chapter in a serialized format.

That changed the writing experience. Instead of finishing everything privately before sharing it, she was writing and posting as she went, which gave her a closer look at how readers were reacting while the story unfolded.

“That was the first one I’ve done where I posted it chapter by chapter, in a serialized kind of format. That was a fun challenge for me.”

Blending Romantasy With Horror

One of the most interesting parts of the conversation is Violetta’s move toward darker, more paranormal elements.

Her critique partners had pointed out that some scenes in the House Woodthorne books had a creepy, horror-like quality. Instead of ignoring that, Violetta decided to explore it more directly.

That helped lead her toward A Fever Cruel and Lonely.

She has always enjoyed horror, paranormal romance, and fantasy, and she is interested in blending those elements together. As she says in the conversation, romantasy and horror are not always put together, even though dark romance exists as a genre space.

That gives her work a clear creative direction: romantic fantasy with danger, atmosphere, and darker emotional edges.

Writing as Therapy

For Violetta, writing is not just a task or a publishing goal. It is also something deeply personal.

She writes constantly, even when she is not sitting at a document. She keeps notes on her phone, catches dialogue while doing everyday tasks, and sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night with characters or ideas in her head.

“Writing for me is like therapy. It’s so fun. If I’m not enjoying what I’m writing, then who else is going to enjoy it either?”

That sentence captures one of the warmest messages of the episode: writing should still have joy in it. Even when it is hard, even when the first draft is messy, even when marketing feels overwhelming, the story itself has to matter to the person writing it.

Finding Readers as an Indie Author

Elsa and Violetta also talk about the reality of being an indie author.

Violetta’s books are available across multiple platforms, and for her, the goal is simple: she wants to get her work out there and find readers.

But as she says in the episode, that is hard.

Indie authors often have to do everything themselves: writing, editing, covers, publishing, social media, marketing, and reader outreach. There is no big team behind the scenes doing every piece for them.

That is one reason Weink has been helpful for her.

“I love Weink. It’s been so helpful.”

Violetta shares that Weink has helped her reach more readers through posts, TikToks, Reels, and visibility on the platform. She also says that although her books are on many platforms, she thinks a majority of her reads have come from Weink.

Writing the Book You Want to Read

Near the end of the episode, Violetta shares advice for other writers.

Read often. Write often. Find critique partners. Keep learning. But above all, do not chase trends at the expense of the story that actually matters to you.

“Write the story that you want to read. You don’t have to chase trends or what’s popular.”

In a publishing world full of algorithms, trends, tropes, and pressure to be visible, Violetta’s reminder feels grounding. The story has to start somewhere honest. It has to be something the writer wants to live inside too.

What’s Next for Violetta Brooks?

For now, Violetta is taking a small break from drafting new books while preparing new editions of the House Woodthorne trilogy for other retailers and possibly print versions.

She is also considering a future standalone book set in the same world, though nothing is confirmed yet. In the episode, she says she is open to reader suggestions about which character they would love to see get their own story.

So if you have a favorite House Woodthorne character, this might be your moment.

You can find Violetta on Instagram at @_violettabrooks, where she shares updates and supports other authors.

You can also read Violetta Brooks’ books, including A Fever Cruel and Lonely and the House Woodthorne trilogy, on Weink.

Listen or Watch the Episode

And stay tuned for more Weink Podcast episodes, where we keep talking to authors about their books, their writing journeys, and the stories behind the stories.