Category Archives: Writing Process

Historical Fiction Author – Ben Kane

06 Thursday Jun 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Enthusiasts, Military Stories, Writing Process

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Ben KaneI am delighted to welcome Ben Kane on the same day as his latest novel HANNIBAL: FIELDS OF BLOOD is being published. Set in Roman times, Ben’s novels are known for their dramatic action, realistic battle scenes and suspenseful plot turns. 

Novelist is a far cry from veterinary science. What prompted the change and why do you choose to write novels set in ancient times?    Complete and utter desperation about being a vet. It’s a strange thing, because most people think that being a vet is the best job in the world. Well, it’s not, and once you’ve had a bellyful of late nights and weekends on call for no extra pay, it’s hard to know what to do with oneself. I naively decided to write bestselling novels! I decided to set them in ancient times because I have long been fascinated by those periods in history.

What ingredients do you think make for a top historical fiction author?    Gosh, I feel a bit embarrassed being asked that! An absolute focus on the end target would be one. Attention to detail. The ability to learn from others and from one’s mistakes would be others.

Have other writers of historical fiction influenced you and, if so, how have they influenced you?    Rosemary Sutcliff, for her iconic children’s novel, The Eagle of the Ninth. She awoke in me a love of Roman times, and of Hadrian’s Wall. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, for his little known novels, Sir Nigel and The White Company. Those two books transported me to the 1300s, but they didn’t just do that. I loved them so much that I really wanted to read more about soldiers in other times and places.

Do you have a particular approach to research and writing?    Yes. Before I start a new book, or a new series, I spend a long time researching the time period, and writing the plot outlines of each book. When I’m done, I start writing, but textbooks are never far from my keyboard, and I refer to them regularly. Sometimes a bit too regularly!

How difficult is researching times like ancient Rome and the time of Hannibal?    To some extent, it’s very difficult. Understandably, far less material survives from ancient times than it does from say, World War One. Also, what survives cannot be relied upon in the way more recent news reports can. (Clearly, even modern news agencies have agendas, but 2,000 years ago, they were far more partisan.) It’s also very frustrating that no Carthaginian records survive. In other words, the victors (the Romans) wrote the history of the Punic Wars, and we have no other material to work on. All this being said, these massive gaps in our knowledge allow an author huge amounts of freedom!

You’ve created the Forgotten Legion trilogy, two books about Spartacus and now two books about Hannibal. How do you balance these different series?    I wrote the Forgotten Legion trilogy first, so to some extent it was done and dusted before I began another series. I then decided to break up the Hannibal series by writing the two Spartacus books before I’d written the second Hannibal novel. This annoyed a few readers, I know, but it wasn’t meant to do this, and it felt like something I had to do. It’s been a good experience, and it will therefore be a tendency that I follow. After the third Hannibal novel, I’m going to write a book called Crécy, set during the Hundred Years’ War.

What advantages do you think come from writing a series? Any disadvantages?    It’s much easier to write a series of books about the same characters than it is to start a whole new novel with a brand new set of people and/or a different time period.

What brand are you trying to create for yourself?    That of an author who writes incredibly exciting, page-turning, blockbuster novels about people and soldiers in ancient times.

What do you do to connect with readers?    I have a website, where I blog infrequently and people comment. The traffic there seems to have moved to Twitter and Facebook, where I am very active. I also reply to the many emails that I receive. You can find me at: www.facebook.com/benkaneauthors ; @BenKaneAuthor and ben@benkane.net

What do you know about your readers?    That they’re great people whose custom allows me to lead the career I love, and that they are interesting and fun to interact with, via email and social media. They’re from all walks of life, and from all over the world from the UK and Ireland to the USA, South Africa, Australasia and South America.

What data do you collect about your readers?    When people check out my website, they are asked if they’d like to register. If they do, their email address goes onto my list for sending out my regular newsletters which include competitions and book giveaways.

What strategies guide your writing career?    Phew. Things are very different now to when I started writing, and even from a year ago. Success breeds success, and it also breeds more things to do that aren’t writing. I now have to leave at least a day to a day and a half a week just to do housekeeping and reply to emails.

What would you do differently if you were starting again?    I don’t know that I would change anything. My path to becoming a full-time writer has been an amazing one, and although it’s been hard, I have loved it.

Hannibal: Fields of BloodDo you have any advice for writers of historical fiction?    Read lots of historical fiction – as much as you can. Learn from every book that you read.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?    That in 1992, as a veterinary surgeon ― having walked on an unapproved crossing (minor road) into the Irish Republic, late at night, to do a calving ― I was pursued upon my return to Northern Ireland by a car full of armed police, and soldiers.

Many thanks for appearing on A Writer of History, Ben. I’m intrigued that of all the writers I’ve interviewed, you are one of the only ones who has articulated a brand for your work. I’m sure readers will be interested to know that you are going to write about the Hundred Years’ War – quite the change of venue and time period.

Hannibal: Fields of Blood by Ben Kane is out NOW in all good bookshops or here: www.bit.ly/BenKaneBooks

Hannibal: Patrol, an accompanying digital short story is available here: www.bit.ly/BenKanePatrol

 

Grandma’s diary

03 Monday Jun 2013

Posted by in Family History, Historical Fiction, Researching historical fiction, Writing Process

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My grandmother – the inspiration for Ann Jamieson in Unravelled – kept a diary one year. She was in her sixties at the time, living half the year in Florida with my grandfather and Ella, one of her sisters-in-law. Ella was the sister left behind in England with a maiden aunt when her parents and two or three of her siblings (I’m unsure of the number) emigrated to Canada. I try to imagine what that must have been like – a little girl essentially abandoned by her family, not to see any of them again for years and years.

Scandalously, Ella married her uncle – not a blood uncle but an uncle by marriage. To escape the gossip of a small English town, she and her husband left England and settled in Florida. After her husband died, she made a little money working in a dental office. Eventually, my grandfather purchased a home that Ella lived in year-round while my grandparents came for the winter.

Ella behaved like a spoiled child when she lived with Grandma and Grandpa. She threw tantrums and often accused my grandmother of being mean to her. I think my grandmother would have referred to this situation as one of life’s little crosses she had to bear.

Here’s an excerpt where she explains buying the diary:

I finally managed to buy this book for my Diary. It needn’t be kept a secret, but I would prefer to. I feel the need of a little privacy and it is a scarce article in this house. Les, I know, likes some time to ponder over his affairs. He has no difficulty – just retires to the den and becomes absorbed in his papers. No one disturbs him. I have some conspiring to do before I can arrange my little sessions. Writing letters is, of course, a legitimate exercise, and can be indulged in regularly as long as it can be managed under a running commentary on the news, some scandal, or any other items uppermost in Ella’s mind at that time. It would be difficult to explain why I am writing in a book and of what use to waste time on it and so I shall write in secret, if possible. Probably is a waste of time, and surely is of no use to anyone but me – and so I shall continue.

Just a little insight into my grandmother’s character.

The blurring of truth and fiction

23 Thursday May 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Writing about WWII, Writing Process

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My mother has helped me enormously with Unravelled, the novel I plan to self-publish this summer. Although the plot is pure fiction, some of the details came from the stories she has told me about her parents and growing up during WWII.

The other day, I told her about a scene I’d written where a young New Zealander named Jack who had been training in Canada to be a pilot, leaves for England. In my story, Emily (modelled after my mother) and Ann (modelled after my grandmother) take Jack (based on a real Kiwi named Jack) to the train station.

Mom corrected me. “My mother didn’t go with me to the station, my brother did.” But in my case, I need the fictional version for other purposes. Here’s the scene:

In October, Jack finished his training and returned to Toronto for a few days leave before going overseas. On the day of departure, Ann and Emily saw him off, walking through the great hall of Union Station, heels clicking on the flecked marble floor. Jack was in uniform, a duffel bag over his right shoulder and a smaller bag in his left hand. Emily’s arm was linked with his. Once in England Jack would begin flying for real; in all likelihood, he would soon be dropping bombs on enemy targets.

The station echoed with footsteps and conversation. Loudspeakers proclaimed the departures of each train with a swoop of place names—North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, Fort William, Port Arthur, Brandon, Winnipeg—conjuring images of stations large and small, where anguished parents met polished caskets and women waved lovers good-bye, where bewildered children watched fathers in unfamiliar garb climb narrow, iron steps then lean from windows with mouths stretched in grotesque smiles.

The hall was crowded. Ann remained with Jack’s bags as he and Emily searched for information about his train to Halifax. She knew they were fond of one another; writing frequently while Jack was at flight school and spending hours together whenever he visited Toronto. She imagined they would find a quiet spot for a last embrace before joining her again.

My mother really was fond of that young Kiwi. But that story will have to wait for another day.

An Interview with Historical Fiction Author – Helen Bryan

20 Monday May 2013

Posted by in Book Club Gals, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Enthusiasts, Researching historical fiction, Writing Process

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The SisterhoodIf you’ve read War Brides, you will already have some sense of Helen Bryan‘s wonderful storytelling skills. Her latest novel is The Sisterhood and I’m delighted that she’s on the blog today talking about her writing. I’m also pleased to announce a two book giveaway of The Sisterhood. To qualify, please leave a comment either here or on my Facebook page.

You’ve written two novels and one biography. What draws you to historical events as the backdrop for your writing?     Aside from the fact history is so interesting, and often a case of truth being much stranger than fiction, it is a rich seam of inspiration for a writer, from cataclysmic events to quirky nuggets of stories. At the same time, it never fails to surprise me how people of different periods are the same- what I call the “human constant” factor. For thousands of years circumstances, and societal and economic pressures have changed, but the human experience, the hopes and fears, search for love, the  biological imperative, the lure of riches and power, the hunger for a spiritual dimension, remain very much the same.  Historical fiction authors put convincing flesh on real historical bones- rather like necromancers I often think.

Context is everything, which is why research is so important. Bridget Jones may have the same desire for love and happiness as a fetching bodice-ripper heroine of the eighteenth century. However, unlike Bridget Jones with her job, flat, boyfriends and chardonnay-fuelled angst, the eighteenth woman’s choices were usually circumscribed by a limited education and material dependence on men. Whether of an independent turn of mind, or more likely, obliged by circumstances to support herself, her employment opportunities were mostly at the lower end of the pecking order – servant, governess or prostitute. Were she to find true love, marriage (and economic support) in the arms of a lusty hero, she better hope he hadn’t perfected those bodice-ripping skills that left her swooning in the brothels. Venereal disease was rife at all levels of society and its treatment -with mercury -was just as likely to lead to disfigurement and death.  Failing that, the heroine faced a very real risk of dying in childbirth. Historical fiction’s happy endings, in their context, are often more precarious than they first appear, with the Angel of Death hovering in the background.

You studied law and worked as a barrister. How do these experiences inform your writing? Are you now writing fulltime?     I write full time, but my background in law has proved invaluable. It teaches a writer to be observant and nit picking about research and period detail and to focus on what is relevant. Also, lawyers are in the persuasion business.  As anyone familiar with courtroom drama will appreciate, presenting a case in court, particularly to a jury, involves putting together a kind of narrative to make evidence and the applicable law fit together. The more entertaining and convincing the narrative, the better the lawyer’s client’s chances are. Writers have to be similarly persuasive.

My late father, also a lawyer, always advised younger colleagues “Know your case well, and then always go over it one more time to see what you’ve missed.”  I still adhere to this piece of advice, rewriting and re-rewriting until the publisher’s deadline forces my hand.

Do you have a particular approach to research and writing?    Research is the easy part. In the main, this consists of burying myself in the British Library, to read about whatever period I plan to write about, and making notes by hand. While I can’t imagine writing on anything but a word processor, handwriting research notes tends to fix information in my brain, and significantly, at this stage the landscape of the novel starts to take shape.

Another good thing about research is that it’s possible to do it almost indefinitely without actually writing anything, while looking impressively busy. However, research isn’t limited to books. Useful information for a writer can crop up anytime, anywhere- newspaper stories, a snatch of conversation overheard in the street, a color, the weather, a landscape, any small detail that will pull a reader into the story. In particular, I am always on red alert for names. Characters must have exactly the right name, and only then do they begin to be real for me.  That’s when I begin writing, fitting them into that landscape.

As for writing itself, the first rule for any writer is the same- show up at the desk. Then write. I prefer to write in my study and I absolutely must begin writing first thing in the morning, having reluctantly woken up with the help of strong coffee known in my family as “mum’s rocket fuel”.

Have other writers of historical fiction or historical non-fiction influenced you and, if so, how have they influenced you?    An early introduction to historical fiction has undoubtedly been my greatest single influence, kicking open as it did the doors of imagination. I grew up in an extended family, with grandparents with houses and attics full of books and many cousins, where a reading child was a quiet child who was not actively getting into trouble and therefore viewed as a Good Thing. Nobody would have been unduly concerned even had they noticed I had bloodthirsty tastes, eschewing fairies and Disney stories for a dusty set of Victorian children’s books by an English historian and educator named Henty, who clearly felt that there was no need to spare any punches when writing for children. There was a particularly gripping volume of his about the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, featuring a delightful family of aristocrats who met a gruesome end on the guillotine. The book gave me nightmares and might not pass the “responsible parent” test today, but Victorian parents- and mine -were made of sterner stuff. The important thing is, it really brought history and the people in it alive. And killed them of course.  I was hooked.

I was also a huge fan of classic comics.  A passing phase, but a usefully visual one, that introduced me to Don Quixote and Prince Valiant and Ivanhoe and from there it was but a short leap to Arthur Rackham’s beautiful illustrations in King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The image of a hand in a jeweled sleeve reaching out of the lake to catch Excalibur when Arthur threw it in was the most romantically dramatic image I had so far encountered. I went through a medieval phase, devouring  TH White’s “Once and Future King”, puzzling over the romantic entanglements of Arthur and Guinevere and Lancelot and Morgan la Fey, before moving on to Anya Seton’s bodice-ripping “Katherine” and the Brontes. At fourteen I instinctively grasped that Heathcliffe was not the sort of person my mother would ever allow me to date, and was riveted by this first glimpse of a dark side that I could not yet comprehend.

Many years later history’s enchantments hold. In fiction, I am partial to Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Larry McMurtry, Charles Frazier, Mrs. Gaskell, Hilary Mantel and hundreds of others. In non fiction  Amanda Foreman’s satisfyingly lengthy and detailed “ World on Fire “the best book ever written on the American Civil War, and Giles Milton’s “Big Chief Elizabeth” pretty much brought life in my house to a standstill.  Happily, there’s always so much more!

How do you select new stories to tell?    Oddly, it often feels as if they select me. A story can begin anywhere- with a color, a time of day, a meal, a view, an event in history, the way a person walks, a character whose back-story I can immediately imagine. I tend to let my imagination roam. To non–authors this looks very much like staring aimlessly into space and doing nothing.

What ingredients do you think make for a successful historical fiction author? Do you deliberately plan for these ingredients in your writing?    A fairly obsessive and disciplined approach to research is necessary if historical fiction is to convince the reader. A writer must look at the world through a character’s eyes, and imagine “what happened next.”  I never exactly plan for this. If my stories are firmly rooted in the period they seem to develop their own dynamic. The only deliberate thing I do is concentrate on writing it.

What techniques do you employ to write productively?    Aside from  lots of coffee and beginning in the morning, I like to be left alone in my study, in what I call peace and quiet and my husband calls lockdown. I won’t answer the telephone or doorbell and turn ratty if someone breaks my train of thought. The bestselling author Nora Roberts famously told her family not to disturb her unless someone was bleeding or the house was on fire. She later amended this to arterial blood and actual flames. I would love a sofa cushion embroidered with her words.

What brand would you like to establish as a writer? How do you plan to reinforce that brand?    I never set out to establish any brand, save as a teller of stories. If I could chose a brand it would be something along the lines of “the thinking woman’s historical fiction” because I think it’s important to give the reader “value” in terms of something to think about when they finish the book.

What do you do to connect with readers?    Just write, mainly.  If someone reads it, that is a very real connection. In addition, I think it is terribly important never to underestimate your readers, so I try to write in such a way that readers feel that I am appealing to their intelligence and sensitivity. I don’t blog because I would be so carried away I would never get anything else done, but I do respond to all readers who contact me.

What do you know about your readers?    Generally, I would say they prize a good story, like a challenge, and expect solid historical detail. As you will know, many fans of historical fiction are already knowledgeable or keen to learn more about a period, so I’m always mindful that I need to  write for the informed reader.

What data do you collect about your readers?    There is no data as such, but I do learn from readers’ feedback. For example, one thing that has surprised me greatly is that at the end of what is already a long book, readers often want more! I tend leave a question or two hanging in the air, but now try to anticipate most if not all the “what happened next” demands and answer them. Another thing that impresses me is how thoughtful many responses are, in a way that goes beyond what I have written. For example, one woman left an online review of  “War Brides” that said it was frustrating to be left with unanswered questions about the eventual fate of characters when the book finished, but she supposed that was what happened in war time. And that had been exactly the point of ending the book the way I did.  She totally got it.

What strategies guide your writing career?    Really, the only strategy I have is to read as much as possible, do the research, stay observant and keep writing. And avoid running out of coffee.

What would you do differently if you were starting again?    Nothing.

Do you have any advice for writers of historical fiction?    Obviously, I am big on research, and research can be a helpful kick-start when the time comes to confront the blank page or computer screen and begin to weave a story. Never be afraid to try ideas- let your imagination rip. Don’t worry if your wonderful idea/prose/poetic description falls flat the first, second or twenty-fifth time.  Just rewrite it better, rewrite it differently or cut it. I usually have to rewrite most “good” ideas out of my system before making any progress, but cutting ruthlessly seems to create the necessary vacuum for something better. If you are lucky enough to have a good editor, ninety nine times out of a hundred you should follow his or her advice.

Is there a question you would like to answer that I haven’t asked?    I sometimes wonder for whom authors write. The obvious answers, of course, are publishers and readers, but writing is such an intense and solitary business that I have begun to think we write, ultimately, to satisfy something in ourselves.

Many thanks, Helen. I wish you great success with Sisterhood. I particularly like your point about ‘the human constant’ across the ages as well as the question you’ve ended with, for who do we writers write? I’ll have to ask that on Facebook and on Twitter and see what comes out!

THE SISTERHOOD

Menina Walker was a child of fortune. Rescued after a hurricane in South America, doomed to a life of poverty with a swallow medal as her only legacy, the orphaned toddler was adopted by an American family and taken to a new life. As a beautiful, intelligent woman of nineteen, she is in love, engaged, and excited about the future—until another traumatic event shatters her dreams. Menina flees to Spain to bury her misery in research for her college thesis about a sixteenth-century artist who signed his works with the image of a swallow—the same image as the one on Menina’s medal.

But a mugging strands Menina in a musty, isolated Spanish convent. Exploring her surroundings, she discovers the epic sagas of five orphan girls who were hidden from the Spanish Inquisition and received help escaping to the New World. Is Menina’s medal a link to them, or to her own past? Did coincidence lead her to the convent, or fate?

Both love story and historical thriller, The Sisterhood is an emotionally charged ride across continents and centuries.

Favourite historical fiction author – Edward Rutherfurd

13 Monday May 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Survey, Top Historical Fiction Authors, Writing Process

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Edward RutherfurdA week ago, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Edward Rutherfurd about his latest novel, PARIS, an absorbing saga focused primarily on La Belle Epoque and the first half of the twentieth century.

Edward answered questions about PARIS as well as a few about historical fiction and his writing process. You can read the interview on the Historical Novel Society’s website.

In the reader survey I conducted last year, Edward Rutherfurd was selected by participants as one of the top historical fiction authors. Rutherfurd’s website includes all sorts of interesting information including one he calls Rules for Writing Historical Novels.

Paris: The NovelParis : City of love. City of revolution.  This thrilling and romantic story opens in La Belle Époque, the golden, hedonistic age of peace and joie de vivre. Moving back and forth in time across centuries, the story unfolds through intimate and vivid tales of self-discovery, divided loyalty, passion, and long-kept secrets both fictional and true, set against the backdrop of the city – from the summit of Montmartre to the gothic towers of Notre Dame to the grand boulevards of Saint-Germain, from the medieval world of saints and scholars to the modern French ideals of liberté, égalité, fraternité. 

Writing a book blurb

07 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by in Author Entrepreneur, Historical Fiction, Writing about WWI, Writing about WWII, Writing Process

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Self-publishing requires a writer to take on all sorts of unfamiliar tasks. One of these is creating the enticing but brief ‘blurb’ that will describe your book to potential readers. You need to promise an exciting read without disclosing too much. Here’s my attempt to describe UNRAVELLED. I’d love to hear what you think.

Edward Jamieson’s memories of war and a passionate love affair resurface when an invitation to a World War I memorial ceremony arrives. Though reluctant to visit the scenes of horror he has spent years trying to forget, he succumbs to the unlikely possibility of discovering what happened to Helene, the woman he once pledged to marry.

In July 1936, travelling through the charming French countryside with his wife Ann, Edward sees nothing but reminders of war. At the dedication ceremony, an encounter with Helene reignites long-buried passion and Edward steps back into his past. The resulting affair puts Ann and Edward’s marriage at risk.

When World War II erupts, Edward is soon caught up in the world of training espionage agents while Ann counsels grieving women and copes with the daily threats facing those she loves. And once again, secrets and war threaten the bonds of marriage.

With events unfolding in Canada, France and England, UNRAVELLED is a poignant novel of love, duty and sacrifice set amongst the turmoil of two world wars.

Would you be tempted?

Historical Fiction Author – Blythe Gifford

18 Thursday Apr 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Researching historical fiction, Writing Process

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Blythe Gifford HeadshotI’m very pleased to have Blythe Gifford appearing today. Blythe is known for creating a wonderful balance between history and romance. She has written medieval romances featuring “characters born on the wrong side of the royal blanket” and is writing a series set on the turbulent Scottish Borders of the Tudor era. 

I see that your tagline is ‘On the Borders of Historical Romance’, what made you choose that as your focus?    My Brunson Clan trilogy is set on the Anglo-Scots border during the early Tudor era, so it refers specifically to the Scottish Borders.  But beyond that, the term “borders” refers to two other characteristics of my work.  First, the time periods I choose tend to be outside the current mainstream of historical romance, which is squarely focused on Regency England.  And second, my work tends to be close to the edge where historical romance becomes historical fiction, so it refers to that border as well.

You have written several historical fiction novels and have been successfully published by Harlequin Historicals. What do you think attracts readers to your books?    To paraphrase an old presidential campaign motto, “It’s the romance, stupid.”  By which I mean that first and foremost, my readers want an emotional love story with a happy ending.  That said, my work is grounded in history and virtually all my books have included a real historical personage as a character, which is a little unusual for historical romance.  Despite this, my stories are very much about the people who lived it and their emotions.  As a result, I hope reading one of my books is like living a slice of history, not just reading about it.  I once had a line on my website, “to them, it wasn’t history, it was life.”  I can only guess that my readers enjoy that experience.

Do you have a particular approach to research and writing?    At the beginning of a project, I’ll read generally about the time period, until I find the “hook” that drags me in.  For example, when I was developing the Brunson Clan trilogy, I read broadly about the Reiver era, in general, across the entire 16th century.  Scottish Border Ballads are a great legacy of this area and the story behind one of them, “The Ballad of Johnnie Armstrong,” caught my attention.  It seems there was a Reiver who was enticed to meet with the Scottish King under safe conduct but was hanged, along with his men, when he arrived.  I wanted Johnnie to have a happy ending, so that started me down the path, though I turned the entire story inside out.  Still, there’s a kernel there, a specific historical event, and that has been the case with nearly all my work.

As I get into the story, I’m always searching for the sensory details that will allow me to walk around in that world and experience it.  I have a map and a calendar at hand to keep me grounded, and in some ways, I find images better research than words.  But the physical sensations, scent, touch, sounds, really put me in touch with my characters.  The “everydayness” of real historical life is, of course, the most difficult thing to pin down, particularly before literacy was wide-spread.

As an example, in the second book of the trilogy, CAPTIVE OF THE BORDER LORD, the Brunson daughter goes to court, where she is out of place as a “country bumpkin.”  During the development phase, I participated in an historic dance workshop at the Romance Writers of America National Convention and experienced the types of dances they would have done at court then.  I consider myself a good dancer, but the first time through, I felt incredibly awkward.  That gave me a great insight into how Bessie Brunson would have felt, tripping over her feet before the king.

Have other writers of historical fiction influenced you and, if so, how have they influenced you?    I heard Philip Roth quoted recently as saying “After the first ten years, the influences fall away.”  Since I’ve been writing seriously for more than twenty, it’s a little hard to say what influences are left, but two books come to mind.  The first was not “historical” when it was written, but JANE EYRE was the first book I remember reading that was about “romance.”  It really gripped my junior high school heart.  I have a theory that romance writers are either about Jane Eyre or Jane Austen (apples and oranges, I know!), and I’m all about the Eyre angst.  While the Regency era is the most popular in historical romance, it never drew me and I blame both Charlotte Bronte and Anya Seton for that.

Seton because around that same time, I read Anya Seton’s KATHERINE.  That book more than any other gave me my profession.  It sparked a lifelong interest in fourteenth century England and the impact that love, and the resulting royal bastards, could have on history.  When I started writing romance, I began in the fourteenth century and my first books usually featured royal bastards, real or imaginary, as main characters.  That was a direct result of my love of the subject and time period sparked by that book.

What ingredients do you think make for a favourite historical fiction author? Do you deliberately plan for these ingredients in your writing?    First of all, any author must tell a good story.  The basics of craft (pacing, character, dialog, plot) must be strong.  I’ve seen writers use the novel as an excuse to drape lengthy descriptions of period food, clothes, and politics around a flimsy story.  Or, conversely, they assume readers already know the history and explain too little, so the reader is left confused and, worse, feeling that historical fiction is only for the already educated.  It’s a real challenge to whisk the reader into the story while sprinkling just the right amount of historical detail and context into the mix.  I try to get that right and hope I succeed.

How do you select new stories to tell?    It’s a delicate balance between writing the stories that call to me and still positioning them in the commercial space.  My decision to write the Brunson Clan trilogy is a good example.  I wanted to write a trilogy, because readers love them, and I thought to move from medieval England across the border into Scotland because Scotland is second only to Regency England in popularity.

However, the Scottish Highlands, where most romance is set, called to me not at all.  The Borders, on the other hand, was in the center of the Anglo-Scottish conflict for three hundred years.  It was a good fit for my interests and, as I explained above, I settled on the early 16th century because of the Ballad of Johnnie Armstrong.

Though I was all set to promote my “Scottish” trilogy, when it came time to market the books, my editor tagged them as “Tudor”, so my description became the Scottish Borders of the early Tudor era.  And, not to my surprise, I’ve had several lovely reviews of my “Highlander” books.

But I have story ideas stacked up like planes on the runway.  I hope I have time to get to them all…

What techniques do you employ to write productively?    Do you have some to share?  Let me know!  A few tips I can suggest.  I write at the same time every day.  I don’t wait for the muse to strike.  I set word count goals and have learned to delay revising hard copy until late in the writing process instead of printing and revising daily.  With the Brunson books, the primary research applied to all three books, although I still had new things to learn for each story.  That, and knowing the characters well by book three, allowed me to write those books in six months each, a schedule I hope never to repeat!

Do you think of yourself as having a brand? If so, how would you describe it and how do you reinforce it?    My background is in marketing, so I’ve been very conscious of branding.  This business favors the predictably prolific writer, so I’ve tried to establish the hook of my brand in several books before moving on to something new.  First, I wrote about English royal bastards (literally), both real and imagined.  My last “royal bastard” book was set on the Borders, so to write a Borders trilogy, even though in a different time period, was a natural transition.  Next, while I might have been wiser to stay on the Borders, I’m going back to fourteenth century England and the court of Edward III.

There are other time periods I would like to write, but have postponed in order to establish myself in the reader’s mind.  Ultimately, I think a writer’s voice is her brand.  And there, I’d describe myself as a writer of angsty historicals set in time periods of change and disruption.  There’s a lot of competition, however, and “royal bastards” or “early Tudor Scotland” may be easier for readers to relate to as an introduction.

What do you do to connect with readers?    A website, newsletter, Facebook page, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads.  I blog with the Unusual Historicals group and I did extensive guest blogging to promote the trilogy.  But I’m most consistent on Facebook.

What do you know about your readers?    Romance readers as a whole are voracious readers and they read across many genres.  Most are women, yes.  My readers tell me they read in multiple formats – as many in e-book as in print and many read both.  Libraries are still important sources of books for them, too.  I’ve been honored to hear from readers in many countries, since Harlequin has made my work available around the world.  I must admit, I’m still really amazed when I receive a fan note from someone I don’t know personally!

What data do you collect about your readers?    Their email addresses if they will share them.  I occasionally ask questions on Facebook about what/how they are reading, but I don’t have ZIP codes or mailing addresses.

What strategies guide your writing career?    Strategy is too grand a word!  Just a few guidelines.  Don’t chase trends.  Keep showing up at the page.  Stay true to your muse.  Have faith.  Don’t worry about what you can’t control.

What would you do differently if you were starting again?    Two things.  I would have started earlier and I would NOT have spent six years writing my first book.  Such a rookie mistake!  Finish it and move on!

Do you have any advice for writers of historical fiction?    Remember that the book is not about history.  It’s about the character.  The history in the book should only be included to the extent that it touches the character and brings him or her to life.

Is there a question you would like to answer that I haven’t asked?    A final comment, perhaps.  As writers of historical fiction, we face the particular challenge of making our characters authentic yet accessible to the modern reader.  If we were to faithfully present the world view for our time periods, it is likely that the modern reader would not understand, nor sympathize with the characters.  On the other hand, to imbue an historical character with modern attitudes is as grating as anachronistic dialog.  This is a tug-of-war particular to our genre, I think, piled atop the usual authorial angst.  That said, I love the journey of discovery that awaits me with each book.

Thanks for having me.

And thanks for participating, Blythe. I love your down-to-earth views on the business of writing. A few items spoke to me: don’t spend six years on your first novel (wish I’d heard that before the six years spent); the balance of historical accuracy and accessibility to a modern day reader; “story ideas stacked up like planes on a runway” is such a great image which probably resonates for many writers. You’re the first author who has considered the notion of brand – congratulations on that!

 

Cover_ROTBW_lgBlythe Gifford has been known for medieval romances featuring characters born on the wrong side of the royal blanket. Now, she’s published a Harlequin Historical trilogy set on the turbulent Scottish Borders of the early Tudor era. The books are RETURN OF THE BORDER WARRIOR, November 2012, CAPTIVE OF THE BORDER LORD, January 2013, and TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL in March 2013. The Chicago Tribune has called her work “the perfect balance between history and romance.” Visit her at www.blythegifford.com, www.facebook.com/BlytheGifford, www.pinterest.com/BlytheGifford or on Twitter @BlytheGifford. Author photo by Jennifer Girard.

 

Top Historical Fiction Author – Philippa Carr, Victoria Holt, Jean Plaidy

15 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Enthusiasts, Historical Fiction Survey, Top Historical Fiction Authors, Writing Process

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Source: Open Road Media

Source: Open Road Media

You probably won’t know her as Eleanor Hibbert, instead you’ll know her as Philippa Carr, Victoria Holt or Jean Plaidy or one of the other pseudonyms she used, including her maiden name Eleanor Burford. As Jean Plaidy, she was selected as one the top 20 favourite historical fiction authors in last year’s survey.

Recently, Open Road Media announced the digital reissuing of Daughters of England series, written under Eleanor Hibbert’s final pen name Philippa Carr. Maggie Crawford, an editor and advisor at Open Road, has graciously provided information about Hibbert’s writing, researching and her very successful career.

How did Eleanor Hibbert begin her writing career? Did it take off immediately or did she experience a difficult start with rejections from agents and publishers?    Eleanor Hibbert started her literary career in the 1930s by emulating her literary heroes—Charles Dickens, George Eliot, and the Brontë sisters. She wrote nine long novels that were psychological studies of contemporary life. Publishers rejected all nine, so she turned to writing stories for London newspapers. It was the literary editor of the Daily Mail who advised Hibbert to forget about “serious fiction” and write something sellable, such as romantic fiction. Unfamiliar with the genre, Hibbert proceeded to read fifty romance novels! Daughter of Anna, her first published novel, came out in 1941 under the name Eleanor Burford, her maiden name. She continued to use this pseudonym into the 1960s as she wrote thirty more contemporary romance novels.

Hibbert loved history, and during the Second World War, when she and her husband were living in Cornwall near a scenic beach named Plaidy, she wrote her first historical novel under the pen name Jean Plaidy. Her first attempt at historical fiction was not a success, but once again she persisted, writing four crime novels under the pen name Elbur Ford, historical-crime novels under the pseudonym Kathleen Kellow, and five historical novels as Ellalice Tate. (The five Tate novels were later republished under the Plaidy pseudonym.) But in 1958, she published the second Jean Plaidy novel, and after that she was unstoppable, writing over one hundred more historical novels about the crowned heads of Europe.

While the Jean Plaidy novels made Hibbert a bestselling author in Great Britain, it wasn’t until 1960 that she became an international bestselling author with her first Gothic romance, Mistress of Mellyn, written under a new pseudonym, Victoria Holt. Readers thought Victoria Holt was a pseudonym for Daphne du Maurier because the novel’s atmosphere was so similar to that of Rebecca. Hibbert had shrewdly studied the market and determined that there was a wide readership for historical romantic suspense stories set in gloomy manor houses. She was right. Victoria Holt proved to be the most financially rewarding of her pseudonyms, and the one for which she was best known in the United States.

In 1972, Hibbert created her last pseudonym, Philippa Carr, returning to the subject she seemed to love best, English history, with her ambitious Daughters of England series. Beginning at the time of the Reformation with The Miracle at St. Bruno’s and ending in the final years of the Second World War with We’ll Meet Again, the series leads readers through the pageant of English history with fast-paced, suspenseful novels that also feature romance and dramatic historical episodes.

How many books did she write in total?    Eleanor Hibbert wrote over 200 novels and sold more than 100 million copies of her novels by the time she died in 1993.

Hibbert was clearly very skilled at writing historical fiction. What ingredients made her so successful?    Born and raised in London, Eleanor Hibbert grew up fascinated with the city and its 2000 years of history. She loved to explore London and she seemed to love to read as much as she loved to write. From the bibliographies in her Plaidy novels, we see that she researched her subjects extensively. She was well read in English and French political and social history as well as in biographies of prominent historical figures. I think she was so skillful at writing historical fiction because she studied a particular historical period and the major players of the time and formed her own opinions of their motivations, which she then conveyed in a realistic, dramatic narrative imbued with the colorful atmosphere of the era. The Jean Plaidy historical novels were popular among readers, yet they also received critical acclaim for their historical accuracy, authentic detail, and quality of writing.

What techniques did Eleanor Hibbert employ to write productively?    Hibbert was a force of nature. She wrote for five hours a day seven days a week, starting at 7:30 A.M. and completing approximately 5,000 words by lunchtime! She enjoyed taking two-month cruises in the winter, but she never left home without her typewriter because she said she felt miserable if she took so much as a week’s break from writing.

Hibbert wrote under different pseudonyms because she wrote different types of fiction for different audiences. Although she was a versatile writer, perhaps she suspected that readers of her Jean Plaidy novels, whose plots rarely strayed beyond historical facts and which were written in third person narration, wouldn’t enjoy her more heavily plotted, romantic, and suspenseful Victoria Holt and Philippa Carr novels, which were written in the more intimate first-person narrative voice. And no doubt her publishers wanted to market her novels to clearly defined audiences. Many of her readers never suspected her multiple identities. 

What strategies guided Hibberts’ writing career?    Persistence, paying attention to the market, writing about what fascinated her—English and European history—and consistently delivering high-quality novels to her legion of fans. I suspect that Eleanor Hibbert would advise writers of historical fiction to write about the period or periods they wish they could have lived in and to understand their characters’ motives. This type of insight enables a writer to make the characters come alive on the page.

Source: Open Road Media

Source: Open Road Media

Why has Open Road Media chosen Hibbert’s Daughters of England series for digital publication?    It is such an outstanding series of historical novels with an irresistible premise. With the Daughters of England novels, a reader can easily absorb the major currents of four hundred years of English history and experience the exciting dramas and conflicts of a significant period through the eyes of a woman of the time, one of the descendants of Damask Farland, the charismatic heroine of The Miracle of St. Bruno’s. The novels simultaneously entertain and educate, offering the reader the authoritative, authentic historical detail of a Jean Plaidy novel coupled with the suspenseful story line and intimate tone of a Victoria Holt novel. No doubt with her great love of history, Eleanor Hibbert was gratified to learn, shortly before her death in 1993, that each of the Daughters of England novels was borrowed approximately 300,000 times a year at British libraries, making Philippa Carr one of the 100 most requested authors.

Many thanks, Maggie Crawford, for providing these interesting insights into Eleanor Hibbert’s life. Like many others, I spent hours curled up with her stories being immersed in time and place as great historical events unfolded. I wish Open Road great success with the digital release of Daughters of England.

Historical Fiction Author … R.N. Morris

01 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Historical Fiction, Researching historical fiction, Writing Process

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Roger MorrisI’m very pleased to have Roger Morris here today talking about his writing. When I saw his Twitter banner — “I’m a novelist. I make stuff up. You have been warned.” — I had to click the follow button! Since then we’ve interacted from time to time, usually when he rants about writing or announces that it’s beer o’clock. Writing as R. N. Morris, he’s the author of a series of historical crime novels set in St Petersburg and featuring Porfiry Petrovich, the detective from Dostoevsky’s great novel Crime and Punishment. He also writes stories about Scotland Yard’s Detective Inspector Silas Quinn, a series set in 1914 London.

Why do you write historical mysteries?    Good question! I suppose there are two parts to it. Why mysteries, and why historical ones. I think there is some element of mystery, something to be discovered, in every story. It’s the thing that keeps us reading, the engine that drives the story. For me, mystery is inherently about the past. The thing that is to be discovered is something that took place in the story’s past, something which has cast a shadow on the present, and it is that shadow that comprises the story. So I think, perhaps, that to write an explicit mystery story is just to embrace the essential nature of story in a very honest way. I’m drawn to writing about the past because it’s a great imaginative challenge, and again it seems to come out of the nature of story itself. I think it’s natural to be fascinated about things that happened before we were born, for example to think what life was like for our parents before we came along. Our own past and that of our ancestors is what makes us what we are.

Other writers have followed the path of setting mysteries or detective series in historical periods like Ancient Rome (Lindsay Davis, Steven Saylor), Elizabethan England (C.J. Sansom, C.W. Gortner), what do you think attracts readers to this genre?     Part of the attraction is definitely escapism. It’s very enjoyable to immerse yourself in another world, a setting and period that’s far removed from our own. Perhaps there’s an element of nostalgia involved in that, but I’m not sure that’s really it. It would only really be nostalgia if people were reading stories set in the era of their own youth. The periods you mention, and the ones that are popular, are way before any of the readers were born. I wonder if part of it is a kind of schadenfreude – that’s to say taking pleasure in someone else’s misery and misfortune. I mean the past was, in general, pretty grim. And people seem to like all the stuff about how bad things smelled and how primitive health care was and how grinding the poverty. One of my novels, A Vengeful Longing, is set in a hot summer in St Petersburg and there’s a fair amount of texture about the open sewers stinking to high heaven and the flies buzzing around them and a cholera outbreak. Readers and critics seemed to lap all that up!

What ingredients do you think make for a top historical fiction author?    I think you have to convince people that you have actually been there, into the past in a time machine, and that you’re writing from direct observation. That’s not the same as showing that you’ve done the research. You have to do the research, of course, but you have to process it and write it as though it’s from first hand observation. It’s very difficult to do, of course. And actually what you’re trying to do is convince people of the reality of the universe you’re conjuring up. So it’s all about the authority of your voice. Which is not the same as being the world’s leading authority on your period.

Have other writers of historical fiction influenced you and, if so, how have they influenced you?    This is a hard one, because I think a lot of the time we’re influenced subconsciously, and also I think it’s true to say that my influences haven’t just come from historical fiction. Umberto Eco’s The Name of The Rose was, I think, a key book for me when I was thinking about writing in this genre, in terms of what you could achieve with the genre, and how you might go about it. It’s that marriage of detail, texture, story, ideas – and the incredibly authoritative sense of the past being conjured up. In a similar vein, I was very impressed by Michel Faber’s The Crimson Petal and the White. The only time I’ve been aware of being consciously influenced by a writer, or writers, is when I was reading a Michael Gregorio novel. Michael Gregorio is actually two writers, the husband and wife team of Michael Jacob and Daniela de Gregorio. I was reading their novel Days of Atonement and I was struck by their handling of the macabre. I think I had an insight into what you might call ‘the gruesome aesthetic’.

Do you have a particular approach to research and writing?    There are two phases of research. The first is the background reading I have to do to give myself the confidence to begin writing a story in a particular setting. I’m not looking for anything specific, just a sense of what it might have been like to live in a certain period, as well as a broad understanding of the main issues. Then when I’ve actually started writing a novel, there may be things that I come up against in the writing which I need to get to the bottom of. A particular description or detail, so then I will do very specific research designed just to discover that one detail. The detail itself may seem very insignificant, but I need to be able to see it before I can write the scene. When it comes to the actual writing, these days I’m fairly disciplined. I plan things out in advance to a fairly high degree, though there is still scope for things to diverge from that plan. I set myself a target of 2,000 words a day (on a writing day). If I can do more than that, then great. If I do less, I feel very dissatisfied and try to catch up on future days.

You’ve created two series: (1) Silas Quinn set in early twentieth century England and (2) Porfiry Petrovich mysteries set in late Tsarist Russia and based on a Dostoevsky character. How do you balance these different series?    This is just a question of concentrating on the book I’m writing at the time. Right now I’m writing a Silas Quinn novel, so that’s all I’m thinking about. When I wrote the Porfiry Petrovich novels, I hadn’t thought of Silas Quinn, so that wasn’t a problem. To be honest, it hasn’t been an issue so far. If I was working on both series concurrently, then that might be a problem, but I try not to look too far ahead.

What advantages do you think will come from writing a series? Any disadvantages?     From a writing point of view, there’s a real pleasure in coming back to a character you’ve already established – I hope it’s a pleasure that readers will share! A lot of the groundwork has been done in earlier books, so you can hit the ground running, in a sense. Though you always have to bear in mind that people may read books out of sequence. They are designed to work as standalone books, so if I have to do any recapping of the main character’s backstory, I try to ring the changes in the way I present material. If you’re thinking about marketing and sales, well, I suppose the advantage of a series is that it may enable you to build up a readership over a number of books. People who liked one Silas Quinn novel might be encouraged to try another. To a certain degree, they know what they are getting – in terms of the style and approach, though hopefully not in terms of the story itself! The potential disadvantage, for the writer, is that you may feel trapped into continuing a series when you’d rather be writing something different. That hasn’t happened yet. For me, the solution would be to just stop. If that meant I didn’t get published any more, then so be it.

What brand are you trying to create for yourself?    I’m not consciously trying to create a brand. I’m just trying to write the best books I can. If that translates into a brand, then it would be one in which the main brand value is quality.

What do you do to connect with readers?    I tweet. I’m also on Facebook. I have a blog, which is connected to my website. If I’m invited to take part in a panel or a festival I generally say yes, unless I can’t make it for some reason. I occasionally write articles and guest blogs. I offer a certain number of free copies of my books for bloggers to review. But whatever you do, you always feel that you could – or should – be doing more.

What do you know about your readers?    They have great taste.

What data do you collect about your readers?    I don’t really collect any data. I mean not systematically. I find it frustrating that more people don’t leave comments on my blog – purely because I would love to get some sense of who’s visiting. I really don’t want to send out mass emails. I think this can backfire. At the same time, I have had people say, “I didn’t know you had a new book out! Why didn’t you tell me?” So maybe I should do more.

What strategies guide your writing career?    This is an interesting question. If only because I’m not sure I have a strategy. It would be possible to post-rationalise my erratic behavior and discern some kind of strategy behind the chaos. Essentially, though, I see my writing career – such as it is – as being out of my control. The only thing I can do is write books, one by one, and try and make them as good as I can. And then hope that they will find a publisher and beyond that a readership.

What would you do differently if you were starting again?    I think I wasted a lot of time because I never knew what the ending of a book was going to be before I started writing it. I used to be a ‘pantser’, that is to say I wrote by the seat of the pants. Now this approach works for some people, but it took me possibly twenty years to realize that it didn’t work for me. Once I sat down and plotted through a book, working out the end point before I started writing, I finally managed to write a book that got published. (Taking Comfort, 2006 – not a historical novel, by the way.) I think the two things are connected.

Do you have any advice for writers of historical fiction?    Do the research, then put the research to one side. You’re not writing history, you’re telling a story. Concentrate on the story, and trust that your sense of the period will percolate through and inform that story.

Many thanks, Roger. I was particularly struck by your comment on the ingredients required to be successful as an author of historical fiction. You said we have to “process it and write it as though it’s from first hand observation” which implies such a visceral depth of immersion for the writer. No wonder you’ve been honoured by so many crime and thriller award teams.

Roger Morris is currently writing The Dark Palace, the third book in his Silas Quinn series.

Writing Military Fiction … an interview with Judith Sanders

28 Thursday Mar 2013

Posted by in Connecting Readers & Writers, Writing Process

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In His SteadAs readers of A Writer of History know, this blog is focused on historical fiction. And yet, Judith Sanders’ novels about war resonated with my own interest in WWI and WWII and the men and women affected by those shattering events, so I asked her to talk about her passion for military stories.

Why did you choose to write stories about war?    First, the idea for this story came from my nephew.  He was concerned about his son who was thinking of joining the military. Second, there’s a long history of military service in my family and I was a civilian nurse. In all of that I saw the hard, sometimes thankless, work our soldiers perform every day in keeping our country safe. Third, less than 1% of Americans today are connected to the military compared to 9% after World War II. And, today there are fewer leaders in government with a military background. So, I worry about troops being improperly respected by those who don’t know what sacrifices our soldiers and their families make for a government that leads from the rear.

Why this particular book ­ In His Stead?    I was in the middle of writing the sequel to my first novel Crescent Veil when my nephew came to me. His son wanted to join the Army right out of high school. He was concerned about his son’s safety. This was particularly alarming to him since just a few years earlier his daughter was involved in a near fatal car crash. He had been losing sleep.

His worry touched my heart. Especially when he said he would do anything to protect his children even if it meant taking their place. He had a point. After all isn’t it our job as parents to protect our children? Isn’t that what we do? We discussed this scenario. Once I validated that the premise was possible, I began writing.

What do you think attracts readers to In His Stead?    Readers have told me that the reality in my novel attracts them; the action, the accuracy of the scenes, the down-to-earth characters they can relate to and the ability to feel and see the scenes unfold in my writing made it hard to put the book down. Some wonder could this novel’s scenario happen, while others wonder why it hasn’t. Others like the historical background from our military history. Some have military serving and see this as a way to support them as the sales proceeds benefit the military charity HeartsApart.org. Still others have said the cover drew them to the book. It’s a powerful image.

What kind of research was required for this book?    Before taking on this project I had to be sure the plot was feasible. So I researched the history of our laws around military service, including conversations with retired Judge Advocate General of the Army who validated the premise. For the Army training and battle scenes I had extensive conversations with military and former military and used Internet websites about equipment.

Have you developed a particular approach to research and writing?    I started my adult life as a mom and when I became a single mom, I was working and studying to be a nurse.  Organization was my key to accomplishment.  As a professional I loved research but I also had my jobs to do.

Now that I’m writing, I have not only let my right brain loose but I indulge in serendipitous research, meaning I allow my research to wander from time to time. So my research is not as disciplined as it might be, but I’m making up for lost time, enjoying the ride.

Have other writers influenced you and, if so, how have they influenced you?    Absolutely. My one joy while working is reading. I love to read. So many authors have influenced me in positive and negative ways. I like to keep readers wondering about outcomes because predictable plots bore me. I like twists in plots but don’t think that it’s fair to bring in surprises. I love strong female characters (I know that’s redundant because all women are strong and their characters should be also, especially in fiction).

What ingredients do you think make for a successful author in this sort of genre? Did you deliberately plan for these ingredients in your writing?    There is no doubt that many people have characterized “In His Stead” as military fiction and this is one theme of the book. As such, the accuracy and believability of the plot is important and I did extensive research to ensure that the military aspects and scenes were as accurate as possible.

But, like life, my writing is not one dimensional and other themes, such as a parent’s love for their children, the importance of family in nurturing our children, the influences of community on our children’s development, all have a role to play in making “In His Stead” a success.

How do you select new stories to tell?    I look at writing the way I look at painting watercolors (which I also do from time to time). In both I need a personal motive to invest my time and myself. So my nephew’s worries about his son touched my heart and I found that I wanted to help him through my writing. I also like challenges. I wrote the initial draft of “In His Stead” in first person and then moved to third person in the second version. In both, the challenge was to capture a man’s perspective. I believe I’ve done that with “In His Stead”.

Another story I have in development is about the misfits of the world, an adult Willy Wonka, because I have seen too many of the less fortunate of our society trampled by the “cosmetically correct ” shallowness of modern times. I’m also working on a  “green” book to educate our grandkids about preserving our crumbling earth.

What techniques do you employ to write productively?    I need my own space to write, without interruptions. This doesn’t mean I need to work in a monastery, just don’t ask me where the peanut butter is when I’m writing.  I turn on my lava lamps and sip on a cup of tea. I also read a great deal to understand “show, don’t tell.”  And, for inspiration, give me a place where I can drop a fishing line in the water and enjoy nature.

Do you think of yourself as building a brand? If so, how would you describe it and how do you plan to reinforce it?    If you look around my work area and my home you’d say it (and I) are quite eclectic. As such I’m not sure there is a brand to my writing that would define me like Evanovich, Brown, or Roberts. So it is a bit of a challenge to build “my” brand but I prefer that challenge to putting myself in a box.

I would like to think that my readers and followers would see each book for its connection to life and life’s experiences, both happy and sad and would walk away from each book as they would a fine glass of wine — enriched, invigorated, and with just the right buzz about life.

What do you do to connect with readers?    I’m still learning about the most efficient way to engage through social media, but I have embraced FB, Twitter and the like. Having said that, I get the most joy from talking with folks, hearing their comments and their own experiences/stories. To that end I have been engaging with book clubs more and more, not only in person, but also through Skype. I also take copies of my books on vacation and sign copies there.  By the end of the vacation I have folks come up to me and we discuss the book, their impressions, and writing. That is a blast!

What do you know about your readers?    I really only know what they tell me about their experiences with my books and I love hearing the good and the bad. As with books, I know not to judge a reader by their cover. Clearly there are more women reading than men (at least in fiction), but that’s changing. And as with horses, you can lead a reader to your book, but you can’t make them open the pages.

Many of the readers of “In His Stead” have military connections but others readers like the book for the family elements. There are a few “proofreaders” out there who have helped me find a few spelling errors that my proof team and I missed and there are those who won’t connect with my themes but they are in the minority and I respect that.

What data do you collect about your readers?    I collect their comments. Those motivated to write reviews or send me a note get my attention. Through goodreads.com I’ve found out where in the US some of my readers live.

What strategies guide your writing career?    I started my writing career simply trying to be different than other writers, choosing a unique theme and unpredictable (or nearly unpredictable) plots. Over time I’ve come to concentrate on making my stories sharp and crisp. I love action and see a movie scene in my mind before I write. This adds pace to my books. There are places where I take positions on issues and I expect readers to react to those messages, whether overtly or subliminally.

What would you do differently if you were starting again?    If I was rebooting my writing career I would love to have spent time talking to more readers. And there is always room in my brain for a few more creative writing courses. But as far as starting again with “In His Stead” I might add some of the comments from my taped interviews with soldiers returning from deployments in the Middle East.

Do you have any advice for other writers of fiction?    My best, but not unique, advice is that to write fiction you have to first love fiction, read as much fiction as possible, and then define what you like, what you know (or can learn), organize your plot, characters, setting, and then be aware that as you write your ideas come to life and, as with all life, you need to feed, care, and nourish your stories if they are to live on in the hands and minds of readers.

Is there a question you would like to answer that I haven’t asked?    Yes. You may have noticed the logo for HeartsApart.org on the cover. Proceeds of my novel support this charity for military families. HeartsApart.org was a runner up in the Michelle Obama/Dr. Jill Bidden ‘Joining Forces’ Challenge and was started in Wilmington North Carolina. Professional photographers take a series of photos of a family with a member deploying. The family receives a set of professional photos and the deploying soldier receives a trifold card with the same set of pictures. The trifold card is made of a substance that is rain, mud, and war proof. It can be put in a helmet or pocket. These pictures are a great connection between families at home and our soldiers overseas. The charity has spread all over the United States and there are now over three hundred and fifty photographers who volunteer to provide this free service to our military families with members about to deploy.

Many thanks, Judith, for your interesting perspective on writing about war and the military. I’m sure your stories will touch families throughout North America and beyond.

Judith Sanders’ second novel In His Stead tells the compelling and gritty story of Retired Army Ranger Thomas Lane whose youngest son is called up from the National Guard to serve. Having already lost one son in Afghanistan, Lane knows he will do anything to save his child–even if it means going in his place, a pursuit unheard of since the Civil War when slaves were sent to war in place of their masters.

For more information on Judith Sanders’ novel, In His Stead: A Father’s War please visit http://www.amazon.com/His-Stead-Fathers-War/dp/193857382X.