Emily O’Malley Liu grew up in Palm Beach County, Florida and has lived in the American Southwest, the Midwest, New England, and Japan. Em now resides with her husband and three kids in the greater Washington, D.C. metro area, where she researches financial systems by day and devises magic systems by night. Wine for Roses is her first novel.

To learn more, please visit her website: https://emilyomalleyliu.com/

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Get to know Emily!

What’s your fave reading format?

I love reading in all formats, but I’m on a big audiobook kick right now. I especially love to listen to favorite books that I’ve only ever read on the page before. It’s like getting to read them again for the first time.

Favorite contemporary author?

Natasha Pulley is one of my absolute favorite writers. I love her at the sentence-level, and I love the worlds she creates. If you’ve never read her work, start with The Watchmaker of Filigree Street.

Who do you wish you could read one more story by?

I’d love to see what Madeleine L’Engle would’ve come up with today.

What story do you wish you could read again for the first time?

I had my heart in my throat the first time I read Connie’s Willis’ Black Out/All Clear duology. Willis always feels relevant, but these books really capture the anxieties of living through terrible times, and finding joy anyway.

What fictional world do you wish you could inhabit?

Right now I wish I lived in the Heated Rivalry universe. I’d love to have a beer at the Kingfisher.

What are your favorite qualities in a story?

I’m a sucker for a romantic subplot. I do read a lot of romance novels, but I also really love it when it sneaks up out of nowhere on you in another genre. Or when two side characters get together. Or when there’s a couple who make no sense together but Tumblr ships them anyway.

Where do you like to read?

These days I like to read on my kids’ nugget couch in the basement. I have my coffee and read a bit before I start writing for the day.

What story fundamentally changed you?

I imprinted on the much-maligned Joel Schumacher Phantom of the Opera film as a teen, and it never fully left my system. I still gravitate towards stories like that, in both my writing and reading. There’s something very powerful and relatable about the themes of isolation and difference, and the hope for human connection.

What genre would you like to write in that is outside your comfort zone?

I’d love to write a murder mystery! I’m so impressed by mystery writers. It’s a unique set of writing skills.