Stacey McEwan: A Forbidden Alchemy, Bad First Drafts, & Why the Miscommunication Trope Can Go Away

NY Times and USA today best selling author Stacey McEwan joins Devin and Pete to kick off Fantasy Romance Month on Realm Runners, and it's a full hour of craft, chaos, and chicken-flavored chips. Stacey is the bestselling author of A Forbidden Alchemy (Peaky Blinders with magic) part of The Artisan series, published by Saga Press. She breaks down how the book came together from a genuinely unhinged first draft (dark academia war fiction steampunk romantasy was a real pitch), why she almost miscommunication-trapped herself into a corner, what it's actually like to get editor notes back when your entire brain is on the page, and where book three stands right now.A Forsaken Prophecy releases July 14 (AU/UK) and July 21 (US). Tour dates coming soon.===========================Connect with Stacey===========================Connect with Realm Runners Subscribe: ⁨@realm_runners⁩Follow Realm Runners: https://instagram.com/realm_runnersFollow Pete: https://instagram.com/pete_reviews_books_goodFollow Devin: https://instagram.com/bromantasyChapters:0:00 — Intro and Fantasy Romance Month1:30 — How Devin ended up with a signed copy of Ledge4:00 — Why Patrick works for readers regardless of gender7:30 — What makes romance land vs. what makes it die10:00 — Writing Nina's silence without it being a miscommunication cop-out13:30 — How the book actually came together: dark academia + war docs + nan's bodice rippers16:30 — The school arc that became its own book and then got cut18:45 — The editor notes reel: what it looks like on the outside vs. what it feels like on the inside21:15 — Coles vs. Woolies23:00 — Chicken-flavored chips and the cultural divide26:45 — Balancing writing, mothering, and touring (and the bargain she made with herself)31:20 — How teaching shaped her storytelling instincts35:00 — Student plot twists, reader DMs, and Raven Kennedy's lawyers37:00 — A Forsaken Prophecy updates and why book two was an absolute pain to write39:15 — AFV: the book three title tease41:00 — The Kindle highlights that surprised her43:15 — Readers obsessing over an air charmer that isn't coming45:30 — The gaslight fantasy world and how ANZAC tunnelers inspired the magic system49:30 — Writing real sibling dynamics (Patrick's brothers and the banter)52:00 — Tour dates, wrap-up, and the Stacia Stark teaser for next week