The Romance Writers of America conference has lots of good stuff, like workshops and free books. Another great perk for me is seeing my friend, Michelle Beattie, each year. Michelle appeared previously on my blog here.
Thanks to the internet, I’m pleased to welcome my Canadian friend back for a visit.
1. Welcome Michelle! Your first 3 novels were historical romances about pirates (fabulous stories with fabulous covers!). Your latest book Love by Accident is a contemporary. Why did you decide to switch from historical to contemporary? Or will we be seeing more historicals from you?
To me it’s not a switch so much as an extension. It’s still my voice, my style of writing. Love By Accident has been in my head almost from the time I started writing, but I wasn’t ready to write it. By the time I was, I had written What A Pirate Desires and was in the process of shopping it around. This book was nearly finished when What A Pirate Desires sold. After that, I set it aside to write the pirate series.
Now, the timing was right to finish it and get it out there. Will you be seeing more historicals? Absolutely. I will be releasing a historical western, Another Chance, on November 25th. I am part of a group of writers writing a series of novellas called Bandit Creek Books. My novella, a historical western entitled Heart of Mine, will be released April 15th, 2012. After that I will finish the last two books of the pirate series. Will you see another contemporary? Yes, once those other projects are complete.
2. What is the main difference between writing historical novels and contemporary?
Less research. While you still have to ensure location, job duties and such are accurate, writing a contemporary you don’t have to worry about what clothes the characters would wear, what expressions were used in that time, what gadgets would be invented. You just picture modern day and go with it.
3. Your contemporary novel is self-published. How did you decide to self-publish this novel?
I decided to self publish for two reasons: 1) I couldn’t get any big publisher interested in a Canadian setting and 2) most publishers didn’t want me to switch genres. I had this manuscript that I believe deserved to be read and I wouldn’t accept it sitting on my computer when I could give it legs and watch it run.
4. This story deals with very serious issues. While your third pirate novel, A Pirate’s Possession, also dealt with death. I wonder if perhaps you drew on personal experience for this book.
Good observation, Rae Ann. This book is, by far, the most personal of all my writing. Unfortunately I’ve had to deal with a lot of loss in my life. Both my parents have passed away as well as one of my brothers. While I didn’t have to live through the exact experience my heroine did, some aspects are the same. My mom and I didn’t part on the best of terms and so, like Lauren, I know what’s it like to have those final words haunt you, to wish you could take them back. And like everyone who has dealt with losing a loved one, you have to find “your new normal”, so I could relate to both my characters on that one. In Love By Accident my hero, Matt, gets a chance to say a final goodbye when his best friend’s ghost comes for a visit. I’ve never had that happen, but how I envy Matt that chance. And so when I wrote those scenes, I just imagined what I’d feel like, what I’d want to say.
So, my question to the readers is, if someone you loved could come back one last time, who would you want it to be and what would you say?
Michelle is giving away a free download of her book, Love By Accident, to two lucky commenters. The contest ends at 11:00 p.m. CDT, Thursday, November 10th.
To learn more about Michelle and her books, visit her website, here.
Thank you Michelle!
