Lorraine Heath Interview

Once Upon A Romance Interview
With
Lorraine Heath

www.onceuponaromance.net

December, 2003

It's our pleasure to bring you our interview with Lorraine Heath. She graciously fit us in-between getting a book finished and going over her galley's for her 2004 books.

Thank you for letting us interrupt your busy schedule. Both of us are fans and we’d like to say, we’re glad, not to mention thrilled, to have you with us.

Tina: Can you tell me what you’re working on now? What we can look forward to?

Lorraine: Presently, I'm working on my next historical. This is the story of Lord and Lady Sachse who first appeared in Love With A Scandalous Lord. Although it wasn't evident in the book, Lady Sachse has a heart of gold which she's learned to hide. I think this story will be out sometime in 2005. It's currently
untitled. . .any suggestions are appreciated.

T: At the conception of an idea, of a book, would you tell us what is your process before you begin writing?

L: My process is to simply open a file and begin writing. Usually the characters have been with me for a while, whispering secrets about themselves and I work to capture the essence of the characters before moving onto the entire story.

Connie: You’ve written historical romances, Amelia and the Outlaw, young adult for Avon True Romance, and now, Hard Lovin’ Man, a contemporary novel. What made you decide to expand to the young adult and contemporary romances? What were your thoughts and feelings as you were deciding to try something that was different?

L: Regarding the young adult--I often hear from young readers who are reading my adult romances so I was glad to have an opportunity to write a romance that was geared more toward the younger reader.

I also hoped to give my adult readers a book that they might use to introduce the young ladies in their lives to romance.

For contemporary romances, it was a matter of wanting to stretch my wings. I think it's easy to become complacent and I find the challenge of writing something a little different exciting. Moving my setting from Texas to Victorian England was a challenge that I really enjoyed. The same with writing a story set in today's time rather than a hundred and thirty years ago. It keeps the creative juices flowing.

T: If you could pick one time period to live in, which would it be? Why?

L: Right now--the present because I'm too spoiled. I like having all the modern conveniences, especially TIVO and gas fireplaces that turn on with the touch of a button.

C: I know during the creation of a story the characters come alive, but from your books, is there any one character that you got overly attached to? If so, why? What was it about them that made them so compelling that you didn’t want to let go?

L: I tend to get overly attached to all my heroes, I think because they have imperfections but are trying so hard to hide their true selves. They're fun to get to know, to understand, so they give me a sense of accomplishment when I finally figure them out.

C: What type of atmosphere are you most creative in, where you are able to be most productive? Do you listen to any background music? Light candles?

L: Working late at night in the dark is my best time. I have a CD of rain that I listen to when I write. I also try to have some sort of scent around to keep me in the setting. Like rose or lavender or sandalwood . . . I buy the oddest things on vacation because I always think I can use them to spur creativity.

T: Has there ever been a letter from a fan that has touched you so much; you incorporated any part of it into a character or book? If so, without revealing any confidences, could you tell us what you incorporated, and how you incorporated it? Why did you incorporate it?

L: Probably the most influential letter from a reader came early in my career. In Sweet Lullaby, I killed off a likeable character -- Zach. A reader wrote me, livid that I had dared to kill one of her friends. Didn't I as a writer realize that I could not kill these people off at my whim? As the writer, I was under the mistaken impression that I could — but she made me realize that to her these were not characters. They were people, these were her friends. She cared about them. I still kill off characters, but I strive to do it in such a way that readers will forgive me.

C: Which of your books did you have the most fun writing? Why, what made it so fun?

L: An Invitation to Seduction, which will be out in June 2004, was fun to write because the hero and heroine do a lot of verbal sparring which I enjoyed writing. Here's an example:

"Shall we take a turn about the garden?" she suggested.

"I would be honored."

She glided past him. He quickly excused himself from her mother's presence and joined Kitty where row upon row of red, pink, and orange blossoms added fragrance to the air.

"I thought I made it clear that you were not to call," she said, as soon as he was within hearing distance and her mother was not.

"You did."

"Then why are you here?"

"I couldn't stay away."

"Am I to deduce, then, that you are a man who possesses absolutely no willpower and lacks complete self-control?"

He smiled at her tartly-delivered assessment of him, certain her intent had been to insult him with her sharp barb. "Apparently, that is indeed the case where you're concerned."

Her gaze darted over to him for only a heartbeat before she looked away. "Truly, why are you here?"

"I believe I understood you to say last evening that you and Farthingham have made no formal announcement regarding your betrothal."

"Indeed, we have not. Farthingham, Father, and the lawyers only recently finished haggling over the settlements."

"Then I am here to ask you to marry me."

She came to an abrupt halt and faced him, abject horror clearly etched over her lovely features. He supposed he shouldn't have continued, but he'd gone too far to stop now. From his pocket, he withdrew an envelope that was sealed with wax embossed with his ducal crest and held it toward her. "My formal request. I know it should have been delivered before I voiced my intentions, but time seems to be of the essence."

"Are you mad?"

"Probably. I am not a man who acts impulsively, Miss Robertson. But neither am I a man who easily gives up what he has determined that he wants."

The horror transformed into disbelief. "And you've decided that I am what you want?"

"Precisely."

Her lips curling slightly as though she were suddenly amused, she shook her head and began to walk again. "We are not well suited."

"I disagree."

"You may disagree all you want. I assure you, we are not well suited."

"Give me this Season to prove otherwise."

T: I think you've piqued our interest, Lorraine, with that sneak peek.

T: What is the biggest self-indulgence you allow yourself?

L: Taking off on Friday afternoons to go to the movies with my husband.

C: What is one of your all-time favorite movies, classic or recent? What about it makes it a favorite?

L: I rank Casablanca as my #1 favorite movie. Bogart was such a hero to give up the love of his life for a greater good. I also love Overboard with Goldie Hawn and Kirk Russell. It's such a feel good movie.

T: How did you celebrate your first sale?

L: By taking a family vacation at Disneyworld.

C: That's my favorite place to go!

C: Lorraine, when writing, have you ever asked your husband for advice on a scene if you felt stuck? If so, what was his advice?

L: No, I don't ask my husband for advice. Because he doesn't read romance novels, he doesn't get the concept of how they work. That said, though, he is extremely supportive of my career. When he sees the stress building, he'll take me to dinner or for a weekend away without the computer. He's an essential part of me keeping my sanity in this crazy business.

T: Are there any facts that stand out from your research that you were surprised to learn?

L: I am surprised by a good many things that I learn: a twig snapping will start a stampede; not until 1962 could a man turn aside an English title if he was next in line (this has a bearing on the plot for An Invitation to Seduction); that many men were disfigured during the Civil War and committed suicide as a result (the seed for Texas Destiny). . .

C: I know ideas for plots and characters can be triggered by virtually anything. What has been the most unusual occurrence, or strangest thing, that has triggered an idea you incorporated into a book? What book was it?

L: I don't know that it was really strange or unusual except that the idea for Hard Lovin' Man came from my son. He was 15 and got along exceptionally well with his computer teacher. It was her first year to teach . . . and I thought, mmm, what if he was older telling me all these things about how much he liked his teacher . . . if he'd been held back . . . so he was quite a bit older and nearer her age . . . I could see where a student would get a crush on his teacher . . . but if she's also young . . . I know it's not a subject that a lot of readers might be comfortable with and I walked a fine line with their relationship when Jack was still in high school. . .

T: Which book or character has generated the most reader/fan mail? What did they say it was about the book or character that caused the surge of mail?

L: Always To Remember has generated the most mail . . . I think because of the unusual subject matter--a conscientious objector during the Civil War. Although my recent books haven't carried my address in them, so readers may be less likely to write to me in care of the publisher so that's kind of hard to judge.

C: Before we let you go, is there anything we haven’t asked that you would like your reader’s and fans to know?

L: I love writing, I love having them read my stories, and I love hearing from them. I love talking books. So if someone discovers another book or reader that they think I'd enjoy, I'd appreciate hearing about it.

Lorraine, thank you so much for being a part of our website. We’ve enjoyed this opportunity very much. It's truly been a pleasure to have you here with us.

Hard Lovin' Man is now available.
Smooth Talkin' Stranger will be available April 2004.

For those of you who would like more information about Lorraine Heath, please take a moment to visit her Website.

Comment or respond to Lorraine's interview and we'll post your comments below!

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