Friday, August 31, 2012

INNOVATIVE ONLINE BOOK TOURS: Kieran Kramer Interview




Welcome to this stop on the
Loving Lady Marcia tour, sponsored by
Innovative Online Book Tours!!




Kieran Kramer



Please join me in welcoming historical romance writer Kieran Kramer, author of the wonderfully entertaining new novel, Loving Lady Marcia!  I have recently reviewed the book for Innovative Online Book Tours, and today I'm presenting Kieran so we can get to know her a little better.

Maria: Kieran, I officially welcome you to A NIGHT'S DREAM OF BOOKS! 

Kieran:  Thank you so much for the invitation, Maria!  I'm truly honored to be here!

Maria:  You're more than welcome.  Now on to the interview!  Here are the questions.


1.) What's your background as a writer?

I won the Literary Award in high school—I was my school's newspaper editor.  Years later, in my 20’s, I was an editor and analyst at the CIA and was published in some classified magazines disseminated to the Pentagon and Capitol Hill. In my early 30’s, I was a freelance journalist and weekly health columnist for a regional section of The Charlotte Observer. In between all those things, I always knew I wanted to write fiction, but I didn’t start until my 30’s.


2.)  Have you always wanted to write romance novels?

No, but I knew I always wanted to write stories of hope with happy endings. I knew I always wanted to have a love story present in the tale somehow. But I didn’t know from the very beginning that I would be writing romance novels, LOL!! But you know life works out—you throw your dream out there, and you have to be open to what will happen. I kept following the clues, and it brought me here, to this wonderful place where I write these stories that affirm my most basic belief, which is that Love Changes Everything.

3.)  Was it difficult for you to get your first book published?

My first book never got published! It’s still sitting on a shelf in my bookcase. It took me about five manuscripts to get published. And those were written over a period that lasted longer than a decade. I would have times where I didn’t write at all for a year or two.  When I finally started shopping around the selling manuscript, it went pretty quickly. But there were many long years of rejection, feeling as if I were crazy to think about this dream of becoming a published writer, and years in which I had to set it aside completely. But I always carried that dream in my heart.

4.)  Why are you particularly interested in the Regency period?

Good question! There are several reasons. First, I’m an Anglophile. I grew up with an English person in my household who gave me a real love for that country. She was funny, too, so I always had an appreciation for British humor. As a lifelong reader, an English major in college, and later as a high school English teacher, I always had an appreciation for British literature, too. I especially loved Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. In American literature, I love Mark Twain and Harper Lee. All those authors are excellent at creating memorable characters. So the Regency period seemed a natural fit for me. I could create all sorts of fun, quirky characters if I wanted to—Jane Austen adored poking fun at the people of her time. And it was such an interesting time in history!! There was a lot of sexiness about it—at least, I see it that way as a writer. You had these guys in gorgeous clothes (those buffskin breeches rock!!) and the ladies in dampened dresses….

5.)  What type of research do you do for your novels?

I do a lot of book browsing. I have a shelf of Regency-period research books. And I sometimes look on the internet. Occasionally, I’ll get in touch with people in the U.K. about research. The internet is great—it connects you to the world, and most experts in a subject area are really helpful if you’re polite when you ask. I’ve emailed people about whisky, sheep, baking, and other interesting subjects!!

6.)  Can we expect future books about the other Brady sisters?

Oh, yes. But right now I’m working on Gregory’s book, THE EARL IS MINE. Janice’s book comes next, then Peter’s, Robert’s, and Cynthia’s.

7.)  Do you think that someone like Finn Lattimore has any possibility of redemption?  Why or why not?

I do believe so. But he’s going to need a long time away to think over what he’s done wrong. That would be a fascinating story, in my opinion. I like characters with all sorts of problems going on. It’s a challenge to work with them!!

8.)  If Loving Lady Marcia were being filmed, what actors do you envision playing the main characters?

I like this question!! I would say for Marcia, Amanda Seyfried. Duncan would be Chris Pine (although he would have to wear brown contacts for the role). Finn would be Ryan Kwanten. Lysandra would be Emily Blunt.
 
 

Amanda Seyfried as Lady Marcia Sherwood




Chris Pine as Duncan Lattimore, Lord Chadwick




Ryan Kwanten as Finn Lattimore




Emily Blunt as Lady Lysandra Ennis




9.) Do you participate in and/or teach writing workshops?

Yes, I do. I enjoy sharing my experiences in the world of publishing with anyone who’s interested to find out more about it. I like to encourage people to follow their own dreams, and as a teacher, I’ve always encouraged my students to put the fear aside and WRITE!

10.) What other projects are you currently involved with? 

I have a Brady-related novella coming out soon, probably December. And other than that, I’m hard at work on THE EARL IS MINE!

Kieran: Thanks for these fabulous questions, and I really appreciate the enthusiasm you and your followers have for romance!!!
Maria:  You're more than welcome, Kieran!  And thanks to you for visitng my blog and providing my readers with some very interesting answers to my questions!  Now I'm eagerly looking forward to the publication of The Earl is Mine!! 

Kieran's Tagline: Love changes everything...









 
 
You can access my review of this book



Author Bio
Double Rita® finalist and USA Today bestseller Kieran Kramer is the author of the lighthearted Regency historical romance series, The Impossible Bachelors, published by St. Martin's Press. She has a new six-book contract with St. Martin's for another Regency series called The House of Brady, premiering in August 2012 with LOVING LADY MARCIA. A former CIA employee, journalist, and English teacher, Kieran's also a game show veteran, karaoke enthusiast, and general adventurer. Without doubt her greatest adventure, which she's taken hand-in-hand with her husband of 23 years, a commander in the US Navy Reserves, has been mothering their three children.



 KIERAN KRAMER ONLINE
  











For the complete tour schedule,
please visit Kieran


 



7 comments:

  1. What a fun interview! Thank you for hosting Kieran.

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  2. Thanx so much for the interview and the giveaway. And I have to agree with Chris Pine!!!

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  3. sorry forgot to add my email angelshaw54 @yahoo.com

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  4. I had such fun answering your questions! If you have any more, you know where to find me--at my website, on Facebook, and on Twitter. I do have that cool new app, too, on the Droid and iPhone. That's kind of like Grand Central Station--it links you to everything!!!

    Meanwhile, I hope you and your followers are looking forward to the fall. I always do. And I have SO many books I need to catch up on reading once I turn in THE EARL IS MINE! I read every night, whether I'm writing a manuscript or not, but in the few weeks I have in between, I go a little crazy and read a book a day if I can.

    Have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend, and thanks again for having me here!!!

    Hugs,

    Kieran :>)

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  5. Hey, Kati!

    Thank you! Yes, it was indeed fun!! You're very welcome!! : )

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  6. Hi, angelshaw!

    You're very welcome for the interview and the giveaway! The giveaway is on my 8/28 post, though...

    Thanks for participating in the giveaway, as well as for commenting!! : )

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  7. Hi, Kieran!!

    Oh, I had fun, too, reading your answers! And I think your choice of actors for the main characters is just PERFECT!! Chris Pine really does look like an honest, totally wonderful, one-woman guy, while Ryan Kwanten definitely looks the part of a fun-loving, deceptively charming guy who regularly breaks hearts! (BTW, those eyes of Chris's...so INTENSE!!) As for the ladies, they look their parts, too. GREAT choices!!

    If I have any more questions, you may be sure I'll contact you! I'm also thinking of having you do a future guest post.

    You know, you're SO lucky to be able to read that much...I have TWO jobs, so my reading time is limited...besides, I don't read very fast. But I am looking forward to the fall! Hoping for cooler weather soon, although that's not very easy to find here in Miami...

    Hope your Labor Day weekend is also great! You're very welcome for the hosting!! Come back anytime!! : )

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