Thank you Alicia. I am simply delighted to see Francesca receive this well-deserved spotlight — her story here glows with the same warmth, wit, and generosity I have always felt in her words and presence. And Alisa, thank you for crafting such an inviting space for her voice to shine.
Francesca, your resilience and playful spirit are inspiring, and your reflections on this phase of life resonate deeply. Your reminder to lean into joy and creative mischief, even when the body places its own limits, speaks right to my own journey. The mother-daughter collaboration touches me especially — how beautiful to weave generations together through art and love.
I will be cheering on both your current and future adventures, with a smile and perhaps a croissant of my own in hand.✨
O.M.G. That link to Shoe Bliss is EVERYTHING! I immediately shared the link with my sister as we both suffer from bunions. That is so cool! Also, I love Victoria's clothes!!!
I love their shoes, and only discovered them last year. Their trainers are so comfortable, and I love their sandals, and their loafers, and I even bought some cowboy-style boots that actually run a little big in size. But most I've bought (!) are true to size. Enjoy your comfy feet!
Really enjoyed this interview. I've added Illicit Croissants at Dawn to my TBR list (which, like all of us, is constantly expanding!) - it sounds like it would be much better to get this in print than e-book format so I can see the illustrations. Great title and cover too.
Hi Daniel! Thank you for reading my interview 🙏. The hardback version is lovely as the illustrations are in colour. The paperback had to have the illustrations in black and white to keep the price down. I was sad to have to make that decision! The hardback makes a lovely little coffee tank book, too, and a great gift. I hope you enjoy it 🤗
Wiser and wonkier—a requisite aspiration for all midlife women. Love! And what could be more inspiring than a mother-daughter collab. I can’t wait to get my hands on this.
And gosh how cool that I won a book, I can’t even remember entering?! Thank you Alisa! DM’ing you now.
Wiser and wonkier, indeed! I hope you enjoy my book, Kimberly, and congratulations on winning another one, too! Thank you so much for reading my interview :) xx
Francesca! What an absolute joy to have brought to life a creative project with your daughter. My daughter is an artist, and we’ve talked about shared projects but nothing has yet come to fruition. So your book is an inspiration.
I too have an autoimmune disease (recently diagnosed). And I so understand the feeling betrayed by your own body. May this new medication work wonders!
Thank you for a wonderful interview, Francesca and Alisa.
And PS. What a treat to get to the end and find my name! 💕 (Off to DM you, Alisa!) Thank you!!
Thank you, Holly! Yes, having Olivia design the cover and do the illustrations is so special.
Autoimmune disease: they hit hard, and when medication doesn’t help, it’s a real downer. I’ve basically been living with a terrible tummy bug for three years. Except it’s not a tummy bug. Patience and trying to find a bright side is the way forward. Sending you love and best wishes for efficient medication!
Mine’s primarily joint pain and, other than flares and a few side effects, I’m at last responding well to medication, which is a relief i remind myself not to hold onto too tightly.
Joint pain is horrible, I also have fibromyalgia so I can relate. I find medication helps to a certain extent, but my immunosuppressants for my IBD are making my joints aches despite my fibromyalgia meds, so I'm trying to figure it out.
But today I went to a wonderful exhibition in Girona and just posted about it. I hope you'll stop by and have a read. I took some photographs and added them :)
Let's stay on the bright side. It's the best side! xx
Wendy, I bought the ebook version too, because I fell asleep while listening to The List of Suspicious Things the other night, and woke up at three in the morning with it still going! I forgot to turn the timer on. I know I can rewind it, but it’s good to be able to read it too.
The poetry anthology cover is sublime - I'd like to wear it!
Thank you! My daughter designed it. The poems are cute too… 😂🤗❤️
Thank you Alicia. I am simply delighted to see Francesca receive this well-deserved spotlight — her story here glows with the same warmth, wit, and generosity I have always felt in her words and presence. And Alisa, thank you for crafting such an inviting space for her voice to shine.
Francesca, your resilience and playful spirit are inspiring, and your reflections on this phase of life resonate deeply. Your reminder to lean into joy and creative mischief, even when the body places its own limits, speaks right to my own journey. The mother-daughter collaboration touches me especially — how beautiful to weave generations together through art and love.
I will be cheering on both your current and future adventures, with a smile and perhaps a croissant of my own in hand.✨
O.M.G. That link to Shoe Bliss is EVERYTHING! I immediately shared the link with my sister as we both suffer from bunions. That is so cool! Also, I love Victoria's clothes!!!
I love their shoes, and only discovered them last year. Their trainers are so comfortable, and I love their sandals, and their loafers, and I even bought some cowboy-style boots that actually run a little big in size. But most I've bought (!) are true to size. Enjoy your comfy feet!
Loved the interview!
Really enjoyed this interview. I've added Illicit Croissants at Dawn to my TBR list (which, like all of us, is constantly expanding!) - it sounds like it would be much better to get this in print than e-book format so I can see the illustrations. Great title and cover too.
Hi Daniel! Thank you for reading my interview 🙏. The hardback version is lovely as the illustrations are in colour. The paperback had to have the illustrations in black and white to keep the price down. I was sad to have to make that decision! The hardback makes a lovely little coffee tank book, too, and a great gift. I hope you enjoy it 🤗
Wiser and wonkier—a requisite aspiration for all midlife women. Love! And what could be more inspiring than a mother-daughter collab. I can’t wait to get my hands on this.
And gosh how cool that I won a book, I can’t even remember entering?! Thank you Alisa! DM’ing you now.
Wiser and wonkier, indeed! I hope you enjoy my book, Kimberly, and congratulations on winning another one, too! Thank you so much for reading my interview :) xx
Great interview!
Thank you so much!
Thank you for finding Francesca and giving her front door coverage. She is a remarkable person and writer and her readers are better for it. Celebrate
all her words. 🌸👑🌷
You are the best, Skye! Thank you :)
Another delightful Empress! Kudos on life and creativity.
Hi Mary! You were one of the hard acts to follow! I was rather worried, to be honest!
Oh, you’ve got to be kidding. 💕
Just a little bit :)!!
Woohoo! I love this. Francesca is truly an inspiration. And the perfectly titled “lilicit Croissants at Dawn” is on my bedside table as I write!
Ooh thank you Anna! For everything. You were one of the first to make me feel welcome here on Substack 🙏✨
Francesca! What an absolute joy to have brought to life a creative project with your daughter. My daughter is an artist, and we’ve talked about shared projects but nothing has yet come to fruition. So your book is an inspiration.
I too have an autoimmune disease (recently diagnosed). And I so understand the feeling betrayed by your own body. May this new medication work wonders!
Thank you for a wonderful interview, Francesca and Alisa.
And PS. What a treat to get to the end and find my name! 💕 (Off to DM you, Alisa!) Thank you!!
Thank you, Holly! Yes, having Olivia design the cover and do the illustrations is so special.
Autoimmune disease: they hit hard, and when medication doesn’t help, it’s a real downer. I’ve basically been living with a terrible tummy bug for three years. Except it’s not a tummy bug. Patience and trying to find a bright side is the way forward. Sending you love and best wishes for efficient medication!
Oh, Francesca, I’m so sorry to hear that.
Mine’s primarily joint pain and, other than flares and a few side effects, I’m at last responding well to medication, which is a relief i remind myself not to hold onto too tightly.
Yes to patience and finding the bright side.
Wonderful to have connected with you. ♥️
Joint pain is horrible, I also have fibromyalgia so I can relate. I find medication helps to a certain extent, but my immunosuppressants for my IBD are making my joints aches despite my fibromyalgia meds, so I'm trying to figure it out.
But today I went to a wonderful exhibition in Girona and just posted about it. I hope you'll stop by and have a read. I took some photographs and added them :)
Let's stay on the bright side. It's the best side! xx
Oh that game of taking this for that and then needing to find something to take for this of it all.
I added your post to my reading cue! Looking forward. 💕
Such a great interview!
Sorry, only just saw that you left a comment, Trudi :) Thank you xxx
You are welcome!
How brilliant to see Francesca featured here, Alisa. Love her Substack and her books, full of wit and exuberance.
Also brilliant to see you’re listening to The List of Suspicious Things, one of my favourite reads so far this year.
Wendy, I bought the ebook version too, because I fell asleep while listening to The List of Suspicious Things the other night, and woke up at three in the morning with it still going! I forgot to turn the timer on. I know I can rewind it, but it’s good to be able to read it too.
Thank you for reading this interview!