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What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write Daughter of Fire?

I’ve always been curious about what it feels like to grow into yourself as you get older—when you’re still strong and steady inside, but your body starts changing the rules. That idea is what sparked Daughter of Fire. I wondered what would happen if someone who’s been faithful and dependable her whole life—someone who’s guarded a portal and protected everyone else—became ill right when the world she’s been protecting finally opens… and she’s forced to step through. But the other side isn’t empty. There’s someone there. In that realm lives another protagonist—beautiful, fierce, the last of her kind—who looks at this elderly woman with something messy and human: jealousy. Not because of youth or power, but because of what the older woman carries with her—years of love, loyalty, and a bond that didn’t break just because life got hard. She can’t understand why devotion isn’t easily shaken, even with fire in your veins and a brand-new world calling your name. That contrast is the heart of the story for me: what happens when change meets steadfastness… when illness meets awakening… when two women collide at a threshold—one learning she’s still becoming, and the other learning that the thing she’s always wanted can’t be taken. It has to be chosen.

If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of Daughter of Fire, what would they be?

Melantha’s theme song is “Girl on Fire” because she’s pure, I’m not backing down energy. Vivica’s is “May It Be” because she feels like a quiet blessing—steady, tender, and brave.

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

My favorite genres to read are romantasy, literary fiction, and historical fiction—give me big feelings, beautiful writing, and a little time travel through the past, and I’m happy.

What books are on your TBR pile right now?

On my TBR right now: Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros, Alchemised by SenLinYu, and The Heart in Winter by Kevin Barry—basically, I’m in the mood for a story that grabs me fast and stays in my head.

What scene in your book was your favorite to write?

My favorite scene to write was the moment Dag and Vivica finally met, because it felt like two lonely threads finally finding each other in the dark. Dag—small, strange, and trying so hard to be brave—steps into her world with this hesitant kind of hope, and Vivica, who’s been carrying so much for so long, recognizes something in him that isn’t just fear or instinct… It’s becoming. There’s tension, tenderness, and that quiet shift where you realize this meeting isn’t random—it’s a turning point. It’s the start of trust, the start of change, and the first spark of something that might actually hold when everything else is breaking.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)

One of my quirkiest writing habits is that I have to have my dogs nearby—if they’re not with me, I’ll actually go find them and bring them to my quiet writing spot before I can really settle in. And I always start a session the same way: two cups of green tea with a dash of cinnamon and a splash of oat milk—it’s basically my little “okay, we’re writing now” ritual.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

It’s never too late to try—start where you are.

If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?

To me, Vivica and Melantha will always be the ones who became—two women learning, in real time, that it’s never too late to try. They start where they are—through grief, duty, and fire—and step into who they were meant to be.

Jaydee Lynn is the author of the new book Daughter of Fire

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