Marie Patrick's Blog - Posts Tagged "westerns"
Interview with Marie Patrick 1/27/13
I’m very excited to have Happily Ever After Thoughts’ very own Marie Patrick with me. She was so sweet in her introduction of me. I am thrilled to return the favor :-) Plus, she is giving away a copy of her latest release A SCANDALOUS WOMAN.
Lexi: Hi Marie, I can’t believe it, but your fourth book, A SCANDALOUS WOMAN, is coming out Friday! I got a sneak peek of this story and absolutely loved it! It was so much fun. You must tell our fans what this story is about before I spoil it all.
Marie: I know! I can hardly believe it myself. My fourth book! Wow! And I’m so glad you liked it, Lexi. As you found out in your sneak peek, Jovanna “Joey” Darling, is a rather unconventional woman….some might even say scandalous. Joey doesn’t believe she should conform to the rules of 1898 Galveston polite society and find a husband simply because she is told she must. She’d rather work for her brother who runs the Darling Security Agency, but not as a bookkeeper as her father believes. With her flair for disguises and accents, Jovanna is one of Darling Security’s best operatives, although her involvement in solving crimes is kept secret.
To Braeden MacAllister, love not only hurts, sometimes it can kill, a fact he learned at a young age with the death of his parents. He keeps his heart under lock and key, so to speak. Raised by his aunt and uncle, he has been groomed to take the reins of MacAllister Enterprises and when his uncle passes unexpectedly, he is named president, but he has a problem – someone is out to ruin him. Or kill him. Or both. When he seeks the services of Darling Security to stop the robberies on his newly purchased and renovated railroad, he has no idea exactly what he will be getting. In fact, it is quite more than he bargained for.
Lexi: I love that Jovanna is so good at her job, especially when women were just beginning to assert their independence. Wherever did you come up with this story?
Marie: The honest truth? I have no clue. Usually, I remember exactly how the idea came to me….witnessing a beautiful sunset, visiting a museum, seeing the shimmering of the pavement on a hot summer day or seeing something on the History Channel that sparked my imagination. For A Scandalous Woman, I cannot, for the life of me, pinpoint when the idea hit me or what I was doing. I knew I was in the mood to write something fun and light and A Scandalous Woman, I think, captures that, but it’s not all fun and light. There’s some serious tones in there too.
Lexi: I’ve been reading your posts for awhile now and I noticed that you have a rather large To Be Read pile. How do you find time to write, read other books and work your fulltime job? Basically, when do you fit it all in?
Marie: Since I don’t have a magic wand and the shoemaker’s elves don’t visit me, it can be difficult sometimes “to get it all done”. Actually, hanging onto my sanity can be difficult, but I manage (I think). I very carefully schedule, allotting so much time for this, so much time for that. For the writing part, because I’m better in the morning, I get up at 4:30 and write for an hour and a half each workday morning (longer if I can squeeze it in). Yup, just me and the dogs stirring at that hour. For the pleasure of reading? I read before I begin work. Because I hate to be late for anything, I’m generally fifteen minutes early so I read (and there’s always a book or my Kindle in my purse as well as a notebook because one never knows when inspiration will strike). Oh, and I read during my lunch break too, and just before bed…actually, any time I have a few minutes. Somehow, all the things I need to get done, do.
Lexi: I get the feeling that you may have a lot more energy than me :-) What do you like the most about being a romance writer?
Marie: This is going to sound like a contradiction and it is but….I like the fact that I can control my characters or the situation. As we know, sometimes, there is very little control in our lives. On the other hand, I absolutely love it when my characters surprise me and go full steam ahead, usually in the opposite direction of where I wanted them to go. Believe it or not, they have done this quite often over the past couple years. And I love the happily ever after, especially when it makes me cry.
Lexi: A little birdie told me that you just celebrated your 32nd anniversary. What do you think makes true love work?
Marie: Oh, that’s such a difficult question as it’s different for everyone, Lexi. What works for one couple may not work for another. Personally speaking, it’s a combination of things. Compromise is big on my list, so is accepting each other for who and what they are (yes, this is one of the more difficult things to do). Trust and respect are also on my list. And laughter. My husband makes me laugh, even on those occasions when I don’t want to or have nothing at all to laugh about. Lastly, and in my opinion only, one should be friends with their spouse. Even if I wasn’t married to him, we’d still be best friends because he’s funny and sweet and generous but above all else, he’s a good man….and I think I just came up with another idea…..
Lexi: Excellent! We want more stories from you. What can we expect next? Do you have any works in progress?
Marie: Do I have any works in progress? You’re just joking with me, aren’t you? At last count, I had thirteen works in progress. All in various stages from a simple two or three line blurb/idea to several chapters written (I know, I’m a little nuts, but when something comes to me, I have to write it down or I may lose it). Right now, I’m trying to finish a Civil War story I’ve been working on. I do have a completed manuscript that recently came in first place in the historical category for the Hot Prospects Contest. I’m very excited and happy about that!
Lexi: Congratulations on your contest win! Hopefully, we will see that story in print soon. It has been awesome to be able to chat with you. A SCANDALOUS WOMAN was so much fun, I can’t wait until your next release. Thank you for being my guest.
Marie: And thank you for having me. It’s always a pleasure! Welcome to HEAT, Lexi!
Lexi: For a chance to win Marie’s A SCANDALOUS WOMAN, be sure to leave a comment for her. And don’t forget to include contact info in your comment in case you win.
For more information on Marie’s Romances go to http://mariepatrick.com/
Lexi: Hi Marie, I can’t believe it, but your fourth book, A SCANDALOUS WOMAN, is coming out Friday! I got a sneak peek of this story and absolutely loved it! It was so much fun. You must tell our fans what this story is about before I spoil it all.
Marie: I know! I can hardly believe it myself. My fourth book! Wow! And I’m so glad you liked it, Lexi. As you found out in your sneak peek, Jovanna “Joey” Darling, is a rather unconventional woman….some might even say scandalous. Joey doesn’t believe she should conform to the rules of 1898 Galveston polite society and find a husband simply because she is told she must. She’d rather work for her brother who runs the Darling Security Agency, but not as a bookkeeper as her father believes. With her flair for disguises and accents, Jovanna is one of Darling Security’s best operatives, although her involvement in solving crimes is kept secret.
To Braeden MacAllister, love not only hurts, sometimes it can kill, a fact he learned at a young age with the death of his parents. He keeps his heart under lock and key, so to speak. Raised by his aunt and uncle, he has been groomed to take the reins of MacAllister Enterprises and when his uncle passes unexpectedly, he is named president, but he has a problem – someone is out to ruin him. Or kill him. Or both. When he seeks the services of Darling Security to stop the robberies on his newly purchased and renovated railroad, he has no idea exactly what he will be getting. In fact, it is quite more than he bargained for.
Lexi: I love that Jovanna is so good at her job, especially when women were just beginning to assert their independence. Wherever did you come up with this story?
Marie: The honest truth? I have no clue. Usually, I remember exactly how the idea came to me….witnessing a beautiful sunset, visiting a museum, seeing the shimmering of the pavement on a hot summer day or seeing something on the History Channel that sparked my imagination. For A Scandalous Woman, I cannot, for the life of me, pinpoint when the idea hit me or what I was doing. I knew I was in the mood to write something fun and light and A Scandalous Woman, I think, captures that, but it’s not all fun and light. There’s some serious tones in there too.
Lexi: I’ve been reading your posts for awhile now and I noticed that you have a rather large To Be Read pile. How do you find time to write, read other books and work your fulltime job? Basically, when do you fit it all in?
Marie: Since I don’t have a magic wand and the shoemaker’s elves don’t visit me, it can be difficult sometimes “to get it all done”. Actually, hanging onto my sanity can be difficult, but I manage (I think). I very carefully schedule, allotting so much time for this, so much time for that. For the writing part, because I’m better in the morning, I get up at 4:30 and write for an hour and a half each workday morning (longer if I can squeeze it in). Yup, just me and the dogs stirring at that hour. For the pleasure of reading? I read before I begin work. Because I hate to be late for anything, I’m generally fifteen minutes early so I read (and there’s always a book or my Kindle in my purse as well as a notebook because one never knows when inspiration will strike). Oh, and I read during my lunch break too, and just before bed…actually, any time I have a few minutes. Somehow, all the things I need to get done, do.
Lexi: I get the feeling that you may have a lot more energy than me :-) What do you like the most about being a romance writer?
Marie: This is going to sound like a contradiction and it is but….I like the fact that I can control my characters or the situation. As we know, sometimes, there is very little control in our lives. On the other hand, I absolutely love it when my characters surprise me and go full steam ahead, usually in the opposite direction of where I wanted them to go. Believe it or not, they have done this quite often over the past couple years. And I love the happily ever after, especially when it makes me cry.
Lexi: A little birdie told me that you just celebrated your 32nd anniversary. What do you think makes true love work?
Marie: Oh, that’s such a difficult question as it’s different for everyone, Lexi. What works for one couple may not work for another. Personally speaking, it’s a combination of things. Compromise is big on my list, so is accepting each other for who and what they are (yes, this is one of the more difficult things to do). Trust and respect are also on my list. And laughter. My husband makes me laugh, even on those occasions when I don’t want to or have nothing at all to laugh about. Lastly, and in my opinion only, one should be friends with their spouse. Even if I wasn’t married to him, we’d still be best friends because he’s funny and sweet and generous but above all else, he’s a good man….and I think I just came up with another idea…..
Lexi: Excellent! We want more stories from you. What can we expect next? Do you have any works in progress?
Marie: Do I have any works in progress? You’re just joking with me, aren’t you? At last count, I had thirteen works in progress. All in various stages from a simple two or three line blurb/idea to several chapters written (I know, I’m a little nuts, but when something comes to me, I have to write it down or I may lose it). Right now, I’m trying to finish a Civil War story I’ve been working on. I do have a completed manuscript that recently came in first place in the historical category for the Hot Prospects Contest. I’m very excited and happy about that!
Lexi: Congratulations on your contest win! Hopefully, we will see that story in print soon. It has been awesome to be able to chat with you. A SCANDALOUS WOMAN was so much fun, I can’t wait until your next release. Thank you for being my guest.
Marie: And thank you for having me. It’s always a pleasure! Welcome to HEAT, Lexi!
Lexi: For a chance to win Marie’s A SCANDALOUS WOMAN, be sure to leave a comment for her. And don’t forget to include contact info in your comment in case you win.
For more information on Marie’s Romances go to http://mariepatrick.com/
