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Scholarly Female

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As we do every summer, my son and I are in Minnesota for two weeks visiting relatives and he’s doing sailing school (I almost wrote ‘saline’ school, which would be quite a different thing entirely, wouldn’t it?).

We return home tomorrow, but this morning, my blond (natch!) aunt took me to the local Y for yoga. And introduced me to one of her yoga buddies, who is also an author. She asked me what I wrote, and I told her “historical romance.”
And she then followed up with what people usually ask (when they don’t pop the dreaded bodice ripper question), which is, “Oh, so I guess you’ve done a lot of research.”
“Nope,” I answered.
She proceeded to ask me about the period I wrote in, and I sketched out the details–the dates, why it was a fascinating period, that Queen V. arrived about 17 years later, and so on.
And I realized, as I was talking, that I had gotten so much of my history from romance books that I didn’t *need* to do too much research. I do, of course, as all of us do, because I love history and delving into books that described how people lived.
(Yes, a caveat: I have been wildly historically inaccurate in certain things I’ve written, things that could have been cleared up with research. But this is not, for once, about my failings, but about my triumphs).
It felt kinda cool to be an ‘expert’ on something, even in the few minutes before heading into the class for downward dog and stuff. I don’t usually think I know a lot about anything, except for books and music, so it was neat to talk authoritatively about a different subject.
And, meanwhile, I am writing a book set in Scotland during the Regency period, so I am doing some research on that, since neither Heyer nor Cartland covered the area in their writings.
Megan
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Interview with Katharine Ashe!

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Hello everyone, and hope you are having a terrific Sunday! I first ‘met’ Katharine when she commented on a post. I saw she was a debut author writing historicals, and knew she had to come pay us all a visit. Katharine’s Swept Away By A Kiss is in bookstores now, and Katharine will be giving away a copy to a random commenter. Here’s some more about Katharine:

Katharine Ashe lives in the wonderfully warm Southeast with her husband, son, two dogs, and a garden she likes to call romantic rather than unkempt. A professor of European history, she has made her home in California, Italy, France, and the northern US. RT Book Reviews awarded her debut historical romance, SWEPT AWAY BY A KISS, a “TOP PICK!” review, calling it “a page-turner and a keeper.” Please visit her at www.katharineashe.com.

So, yay! Let the interview begin!

Thanks for inviting me to visit the Riskies, Megan. I’m so happy to be here!

1. Tell us about your debut romance, Swept Away By A Kiss.

After two years of exile in Boston, scandalous Lady Valerie Monroe vows to mend her wicked ways once perfected to win the affection of her cold father, and rejoin London society. But when she meets her fellow passenger aboard ship it’s clear fate is punishing her. Breathtakingly handsome and intoxicatingly mysterious, the amber-eyed god turns her knees to jelly and her resolution to honey. But he appears to be engaged in some nefarious business on board. What’s more, he is a Frenchman, an enemy of England in the midst of war. Most damning of all—he is a priest.

If the road to the nether world is paved in good intentions, Valerie suspects she’s just hailed the fastest carriage there. Nothing could be worse than the delectable torture of her predicament. Except, perhaps…

Pirates.

Lord Steven Ashford, a black-sheep nobleman with a perilous mission, has never regretted his priestly disguise. Until now. Trapped in a cabin aboard a pirate ship with the beguiling Valerie, and bent upon defeating his enemy by any means, Steven cannot let down his guard. But Valerie is temptation incarnate, and both of their resistances are crumbling. A secret identity can be so inconvenient at times, and forbidden love so very alluring.

From swashbuckling ships to sparkling ballrooms, from summer upon the blue ocean to a wintery country house party, SWEPT AWAY BY A KISS is the story of two hearts daring everything for the perfect love.

2. We love debut authors. Tell us about your journey to publication and, especially about “The Call.”

As so many novelists, I’ve written stories my whole life. I couldn’t help myself. The stories came and the characters insisted I pay them homage. Nevertheless, fresh out of college I answered another muse—Clio, the Muse of history. Off I went to graduate school to become (cue History Channel music) a Professional Historian.

Soon enough I found that Clio’s companionship, while invigorating, did not wholly satisfy me. So I grasped the hands of Erato—the Muse of lyric poetry, the poetry of love—and Calliope—the Muse of epic poetry, the poetry of adventure—and invited them to join us.

Together the four of us romped about aimlessly for some time, as new friends will often do.

Eventually I discovered Romance Writers of America and learned about query letters and synopses, market trends and point-of-view. I sent out many letters and chapters. I received many rejections. I continued to write with all my heart, but with less hope of publication. Then, when I was just about ready to tell my Muse friends that we would be going it alone once more—still romping with great joy but no longer with serious aim—I got The Call.

It came in the form of an email message I read while standing up at the kitchen counter, briefcase still slung over my shoulder after walking through the door: “I am IN LOVE with this book. I can’t stop thinking about it!” It was, in truth, a dream. A month later my wonderful agent sold my trilogy at auction to Avon. It still feels like a dream, especially since Avon just bought a second series from me. I wish this dream to come true for every writer.

3. There is so much that is risky about Swept Away By A Kiss! Share some of what makes your book so unusual.

My hero pretends to be a priest! This makes for some— ah— challenging moments of swiftly slipping self-control for both Steven and Valerie. With her fiery will and tender vulnerability, the beauty beguiles Steven to his limits. But if he reveals his true identity, his mission—their very lives—will be forfeit. For her part, Valerie is determined to remain aloof, but her fellow prisoner shows absolutely no signs of a natural inclination toward celibacy. Later in England when Steven takes on the role of a brainless fop to throw off suspicion and keep Valerie safe, she’s no less confused yet still completely in love. Theirs is a tempestuous relationship, to be sure!

I adore secret identity stories, and Steven’s is particularly risky. He does it all to ruin an illegal slave trader. A hero who keeps secret the fact that he rescues people on a daily basis—even makes himself look like a fool to throw off suspicion—is positively, deliciously breathtaking to me. And always the longing, the wishing and yearning to reveal all to the woman he loves, and the steely honor that holds him back… Sigh!

4. Did you come across any interesting research when you were writing the book?

Haiti’s struggle for freedom—a slave society that had had enough and did something about it. It is a powerful, moving, and inspiring story. Imagine a dash of revolution, another of civil war, a greedy emperor with a huge army, a sun-soaked island, and a dream of liberty coming true. Amazing! Haiti plays a small but important part in Steven becoming a hero worthy of his own destiny and his lady’s heart. (I am donating a portion of proceeds from the sale of SWEPT AWAY BY A KISS to reconstruction efforts in Haiti.)

5. What’s next for you?

CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD, the second book in my debut trilogy! I love the good guys—the really good guys—even if they don’t quite realize they’re good! London society knows Lord Alex Savege as a devastatingly rakish earl. In his secret identity as the pirate captain Redstone, Alex seizes the yachts of spoiled nobles and donates the swag to charity. But years ago Alex began his double life with less than noble intentions. Now a lovely minx, Miss Serena Carlyle, is determined to halt a band of smugglers. When she begs Redstone for help, will Alex finally become the real hero she desires?

CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD will be in bookstores April 2011. Before then, I pray you dear readers, name my trilogy! In October I’ll post a contest to my website in search of a stunningly great series title, and I’ll keep it open until I find a winner. Readers who would like first crack at submitting entries can sign up for my newsletter now (via my website), and I’ll send them details a few weeks before the contest goes live online. I cannot wait to see what everyone comes up with!

Gearing up for that, to celebrate International Talk Like A Pirate Day on September 19, I’ll be unveiling on my website the gorgeously hunky cover of CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD (be still my beating heart!). Stop by to catch a peek

I’ll also be posting a free Regency ghost novel to my website beginning September 27. So much fun stuff!

Thanks for visiting, Katharine!

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Interview With Hope Tarr!

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Today, the Riskies are honored to welcome author Hope Tarr, a lovely person and a great writer. Hope lives in New York City, where she always looks fabulous (at least when I see her), is very involved in animal rescue projects and is one of the founders of Lady Jane’s Salon, a monthly romance novel gathering. Read the official deets at the bottom of the interview, and comment to win a signed copy of Hope’s Vanquished. Two commenters will be chosen for the prize!

Hope has two books out for your pleasure; the first is the Victorian-set The Tutor, which is out now, and the other is a reissue of her novel A Rogue’s Pleasure, out in just a few days.
What inspired you to write The Tutor?
When I concluded my “Men of Roxbury House” Victorian trilogy a few years ago, it occurred to me I’d left some loose ends dangling, two loose ends, to be exact. At the end of the final book in the series, UNTAMED, two secondary characters Lady Beatrice—Bea—Lindsey and former East London street rogue turned semi-respectable private secretary, Ralph Sylvester had begun falling for one another, landing squarely in the shadow land between lust and love. Only there hadn’t been time, or in my case, pages for me to devote to unfolding their story. And I thought that was rather a shame.

In THE TUTOR, Bea is all grown up and about to wed a decent but dull fellow whom she knows needs a map when it comes to taking a woman to bed. Determined to have decent sex if not love in her marriage, she turns to her secret crush, Ralph Sylvester for seven sexy nights of private lessons.


What intrigues you about the late Victorian period?

The short answer is: everything! If I had to focus on one aspect, I’d have to say the cultural contrasts, the glorious almost black-and-white differences between public morality and private behavior, the not always easy balance struck between innovation—the telegram, the typewriter, and even the telephone—and centuries’ old standards and conventions, and last but not least, the clothes!

We love risky writing; share some of what makes your book so unusual.
In life as well as fiction I’m a big fan of not only self-made men but also self-made people in general, so even though British set historical romance is my first love, I rarely write heroes who are members of the peerage or even middle class by birth. In THE TUTOR, Ralph has a checkered past, to say the least. He’s the son of a prostitute. After his mother abandons him, he joins a “flash house,” a thieving den for young boys, and earns his keep by picking pockets and running street scams. That he manages to better himself, to become not only respectable but self-sufficient in a society where class distinctions bordered on a caste system, isn’t just laudable to me. It’s damn sexy.
Did you come across any interesting research when you were writing the book?
Always. ☺ In this case, I had a lot of fun perusing The Kama Sutra, the original translated text by Sir Richard Burton (note: not the late actor). In THE TUTOR, Ralph uses the centuries’ old Indian sexual advice manual as a teaching…tool for his seven lessons with Bea. In keeping with that theme, I have each chapter start out by introducing the “lesson” along with a quote from Burton’s text.
You and a couple other authors founded the highly successful Lady Jane’s Salon; tell us about it, and what its purpose is.
Thank you for asking! I’m enormously proud of Lady Jane’s and so any opportunity to brag about m/our brain child is most welcome.

Launched in February 2009, Lady Jane’s Salon is New York City’s first and so far only monthly reading series for romance fiction and like most “firsts” it was born in response to a need. One night in November 2008, I was sitting in Hudson Bar and Books in the West Village with romance authors Leanna Renee Hieber and Maya Rodale and book blogger, Ron Hogan. We’d just returned from a “literary fiction” reading and were lamenting the lack of any literary forum in the city where romance writers and readers could come together and share the books we love. Amidst scotch and cigars, we mapped out the Salon, which in the sober light of the next day still seemed like a really good idea. ☺

Lady Jane’s meets on the first Monday of the month (unless otherwise noted) from 7-9 PM at Madame X (94 West Houston Street, Soho, New York). Admission is $5 or one gently-used paperback romance novel. Net proceeds support an end-of-the-year donation to a New York City women’s charity. With two articles in TIME OUT New York, a feature article in The New York Post, and author bookings through mid-2011, Lady Jane is going strong and ramping up for Her second birthday on Monday, February 7th. It promises to be quite a party.

Please check out our web site at www.LadyJaneSalon.com and chat with us on Twitter and Facebook.

What are you working on next?
My very first novella, Victorian-set, of course! “Tomorrow’s Destiny” is in A HARLEQUIN CHRISTMAS CAROL (November 10, 2010), a Christmas anthology based on the Dickens’ classic, with bestselling authors Betina Krahn and Jacquie D’Alessandro. It’s a very sweet trio of stories that I think readers of the genre as well as anyone who loves the winter holidays will both really enjoy.

Thanks so much for having me as a guest at the Riskies. What an honor! I hope visitors today will enjoy VANQUISHED and perhaps try out my two single-title historical romances out this summer: A ROGUE’S PLEASURE and MY LORD JACK, both originally published with Berkley and reissued as digital-first releases with Carina Press.

Hope Tarr is the award-winning author of thirteen historical and contemporary romance novels, one novella and numerous nonfiction articles on health and relationships, fashion, travel and leisure. Visit Hope online at www.HopeTarr.com where you can read her weekly blog and enter her regular and special contests. Photo by BizUrban.com.

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Working Vacation

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Me and Carolyn (double-nominated for the RITA; boo-ya!) at the RITA Awards:

So by now you are all pretty well aware that most of the Riskies went to Orlando for our National Conference.

This one features me, Carolyn and frequent Risky visitor Keira:

And me and Amanda (also nominated for the RITAs; do Riskies know how to represent, or what?)

Okay, so I cannot format a post to save my life. Whatever.

I am not here to talk about what happened last week, however, but what is about to happen tomorrow: My son and I head off for Minnesota for our annual two-week sojourn. Him to take sailing lessons, me to work and hang out by myself in a super-clean house (thanks, Aunt Mary!). So, of course, the most pressing and interesting part of packing is not what clothes to bring (my colors for this trip are black, brown and pink, if you’re wondering; in Orlando they were black and green), but what books to pack.

Two weeks! Free time! So much to read!

So here is what I’m thinking about:

Last week, Amanda recommended a book called Lulu Meets God and Doubts Him; it’s a contemporary book featuring a New York woman working in an art gallery (the title of the book is a painting the heroine sees). She said the writing reminded her of my writing, and it’s all witty and stuff.

I also heard that Elizabeth Peters‘ Amelia Peabody mystery series was witty and wryly clever (like me!), so I got Crocodile On The Sandbank, the first book in the series.

I’ve got Ann Aguirre‘s Grimspace, a gritty SF/fantasy thingy that kinda defies description. Carolyn and I got to hang out with Ann a bit last week, and that spurs me to pick up her books, long on my bedside table.

Then there’s Loretta Chase‘s Last Night’s Scandal. Sigh. I’ve heard it’s great, and that’s no surprise, since Loretta is just such an incredible writer. Victorian-set (thanks to Myretta Robens for correcting me!), one of the few straight historicals I’m taking with me. I’m finding my taste right now is veering towards urban fantasy and paranormal. Although I also have . . .

Elizabeth Hoyt‘s Wicked Intentions, Georgian-set, I think, so there is another straight historical in the suitcase. I love Hoyt’s delicious prose, her characters are distinctive and spirited, but not annoyingly so.

And I’ve got the 12th book in Jim Butcher‘s Dresden Files series, Changes. I love Harry Dresden. Not only that, Butcher has improved with each book, which is really remarkable, given how long the series has gone on. This one is urban detective fantasy, I guess. There are wizards and witches and vampires and stuff. Set in Chicago.

Meljean Brook‘s Demon Blood is also on the bedside table. Meljean writes complex, compelling books that require your full attention, so are perfect for vacations when you’re not likely to get too distracted.

None of these are definitely going into the bag, I won’t make the Final Decision until tomorrow. Plus, I also have to carry the books with me, since my checked luggage is already quite heavy, since my son and I are packing together. But I know that a few sore muscles are well worth having the perfect book while away, so I’ll likely pack too many and suffer (THREE of these are hardcovers, too! I kinda hate hardcovers). Seven books, two weeks. Think I better visit the TBR pile again; that might not be enough.

What’s been your favorite summer read so far? How many genres do you regularly read in?

Megan

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