*This originally posted
here, but I will post it below as well.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW:
MARIE LAVENDER
Featuring: Upon Your Return book
Fara
Bellamont has been back in society for a year after leaving Cluny
Abbey, where her uncle sent her long ago. When he chooses a suitor for
her for marriage, she fears that she will be forced to marry a stranger
and live a miserable life. But, Fara finds herself thrust into an
adventure of a lifetime when unforeseen circumstances cause her to place
her trust in a strange man for protection. His intervention not only
saves her, but puts her in an even more compromising position. Grant
Hill, a trading captain, is enchanted by the young heiress not only
because of her beauty, but because she is hardly conventional.
Underneath her ladylike exterior lies a tigress. Grant cannot help but
offer his protection as she is in need and he is far from immune from
her charms. Fara just never bargained on the passion that she feels for
Grant Hill. As events unfold, she must decide whether her desires and
the dictates of her heart should trump the rules of society…
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I am a romance author. I have published contemporary
romances, historical romance, romantic suspense and paranormal romance.
I have been writing since I was a kid. I have 16 books published.
2. Do you have a day job as well?
Yes. Right now, I am working as an appointment setter for an entertainment company. I book auditions.
3. When did you first start writing and when did you finish your first book?
I started writing at the age of nine. I finished my
first book in the third grade. We had to do an assignment for class.
So, that was technically my first book. Would I ever publish it? No. I
did officially publish a book for the first time in 2010. It was an
anthology titled Express Café and Other Ramblings. I released many
books after that. My current release, a historical romance titled Upon
Your Return, was a very long project that started in 2002 and was
completely finished in 2011.
4. How did you choose the genre you write in?
I believe it chose me. I was always fascinated with
love stories, whether they were in books or films. I started really
reading the genre when I was a teenager and haven’t stopped since. I
have branched to a lot of different subgenres since then, but my love of
romance has never faltered.
5. Do you work with an outline, or just write?
A bit of both, actually. When I first have an idea, I
just write as much as I can. At some point, I realize I need to focus
on a single project. So, I start writing a basic outline. The outline
becomes more detailed, of course, as I go along. When I start my
research, I keep myself organized with that as well. Having that
outline really helps when you not only need to keep focused, but also
when you’re writing a synopsis.
6. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult?
There are many books I was influenced by. Catherine
Coulter’s Devil’s Embrace, Shirlee Busbee’s While Passion Sleeps and
Rosemary Rogers’ Sweet Savage Love made me fall in love with historical
romance.
7. Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?
Fifteen of my books are self-published. Perfecting
them was the hard part. With my current release Upon Your Return, which
is traditionally published, I had a lot more hurdles to jump. It took
me awhile to polish that as well. Then I spent a year sending it to
literary agents and publishers, but to no avail. It is a competitive
industry. Finally, I was accepted by a publisher and here I am.
8. Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?
I would say Upon Your Return is based heavily on my
own romantic experiences. The dating world is treacherous. Sometimes
you have to go through some bad eggs before you find the one that is
right for you.
9. What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?
*Blush. The love scenes were pretty fun to write. Everything seemed to come to me naturally.
10. Will you have a new book coming out soon?
I have an anthology I hope to release before the end
of the year. It will be titled Miss Lavender’s Anthology of Ramblings.
I am also polishing the sequel to Upon Your Return so I hope to have
that out sometime next year.
No comments:
Post a Comment