From a Whisper to a Flame: Writing Air, Fire, and the Men Who Love Them

I’ve been thinking a great deal about the elements lately. This is hardly surprising when you spend your days with witches.

With Daughters of Time, I’ve had the lovely challenge of writing four women whose magic is tied to very different elements. And while I knew from the beginning that their powers would distinguish them, I’m discovering just how much those elements influence the women themselves.

With Eilis in The Witch and the Gatekeeper, I began with air. Air suited her from the start. Eilis is a healer. She is compassionate and thoughtful, and there is a gentleness to her that should never be mistaken for weakness. Air can be soft enough to barely stir your hair. It can carry a whisper. It can fill your lungs and give life, but it can also become a storm and I loved that contradiction for Eilis. She doesn't need to charge into every room announcing what she's capable of. Much of her power comes from restraint, compassion, and knowing when to act. Writing the man who could love her required much the same consideration.

Cian couldn't simply be strong enough to protect Eilis. He needed to understand her beyond just her magic. As her gatekeeper, he of course carries formidable abilities of his own (along with a rather stubborn instinct to keep her safe). But Eilis isn't a woman who needs a man to take over her battles. She needs one strong enough to fight beside her, respect what she's capable of, and perhaps learn that protecting someone doesn't always mean deciding what's best for them.

That balance between protection and independence fascinates me in romance.

Then I moved on to Darian and GOOD HEAVENS, fire has absolutely no interest in behaving like air.

Writing Darian after Eilis has been rather like leaving a room and discovering someone has lit the curtains on fire. Figuratively speaking, of course. Although with Darian, perhaps I shouldn't make promises!

She is a fire witch in every sense. Feisty, passionate, hot-tempered, fiercely independent, and intensely loyal to the people she loves. She lives in colonial Massachusetts, works as a carpenter and part-time blacksmith, and is not terribly interested in anyone telling her what a woman should or shouldn't be doing; especially Magnus Munro, which presents an entirely different romantic challenge.

You cannot put a man beside Darian who wilts when she burns hot. But I also don't want a hero who simply tries to overpower her. Where would be the fun in that? Magnus has to be strong enough to withstand the fire without extinguishing it.

He's a Scottish time traveler from the modern world, dropped into Darian's century without the conveniences he's accustomed to and tasked with watching over a woman who most certainly did not request a guardian. He can meet her temper. He can challenge her. And he has enough strength and confidence of his own that Darian doesn't have to become less for him to become more.

Naturally, they irritate each other. Quite a lot, actually. But I do enjoy that part and I know my readers will, too!

Moving from Eilis and Cian to Darian and Magnus has made me think more deeply about what makes two characters complementary. I don't mean that they must be opposites. Sometimes they are. But I think a satisfying romance needs two people whose strengths can meet each other without one swallowing the other whole. Air moves around obstacles while fire meets them head-on. So the romantic dynamics surrounding those women can't possibly feel the same. Cian's steadiness gives Eilis room to discover the full force of what she can do. Magnus needs to be made of sterner stuff because Darian is quite capable of producing enough sparks for the both of them.

Eilis heals while Darian burns. Eilis considers while Darian would probably prefer we stop considering and get on with it. BOTH are powerful. BOTH are stubborn in their own ways. BOTH love deeply. BOTH will fight ferociously for the people who matter to them. And BOTH deserve a love interest who recognizes all of that and possesses enough strength of his own to stand at their side.

Add supernatural abilities, time travel, dark magic, family expectations, and the occasional murderous entity, and relationships become even more interesting.

And then there are earth and water. I recently sent my completed manuscript for The Witch and the Alchemist to my editor, featuring Fiona, the reserved, yet spirited, earth witch. I’ve also begun plotting the delightfully uninhibited water witch, Trista, in The Witch and the Sea King. 

These two wonderfully complicated women bring their own elemental magic, personalities, and romantic challenges to the series. And, of course, the men who love them will need to prove they're capable of keeping up with the forces of nature they’ve fallen for.

Magical wishes,
Leigh Ann​