Author Interview on Bernard Foong’s blog

Dec 5

Posted by

12/04/2014

A chat with Author Marie Lavender

Young: Today, we are honored to have the bestselling author of UPON YOUR RETURN and 18 other books, Ms. Marie Lavender join us for a chat.
Our distinguished guest is also the 2014 BTS Red Carpet Review Nominee. A Finalist and Runner-up in the MARSocial’s Author of the Year Competition and received Honorable mentions in the January 2014 Reader’s Choice Award and the Liebster Blogger Award for 2013 and 2014. She is one of the Top 50 Authors on AuthorsDB.com and Winner of the Great One Liners Contest on the Directory of Published Authors.
 
With such an impressive resume, I’m delighted to welcome you to share your books and insights with my readers.
Marie Lavender (M.L.): Thank you for inviting me as your guest.
Young: My pleasure. Tell us a little about yourself, Marie.
M.L.: I live in the Midwest with my family and three cats. I’ve been writing for over twenty years. I’ve more works in progress than I can count on two hands.
Young: That’s very impressive, Ms. Lavender.
M.L.: I’ve published nineteen books in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, mystery/thriller, literary fiction and poetry.
This March, I released Magick & Moonlight, a romance with fantasy elements.  In late April my second historical romance Upon Your Honor was released.  My current series are The Heiresses in Love Series, The Magick Series and The Blood at First Sight Series.
Mariepic2 - small1_pe
Young: Tell the readers about Upon Your Honor.
M.L.: Below is the synopsis of the book and here is the book trailer:  http://youtu.be/dLOteuscV04
Upon Your Honor
Deception is a dangerous path…
New York City, August, 1891 – Orphaned after the death of her father, Chloe Waverly stows away on La Voyageur to escape the clutches of her cruel fiancé, Lamonte Beckett. Gabriel Hill, a strange and compelling gentleman, comes upon Chloe and promises to protect her without knowing the true circumstances of why she is running away. During their journey, Gabriel doesn’t bargain on being distracted by her fair beauty or succumbing to her many charms. As their attraction to each other grows, so does the danger and Gabriel suspects things are not as they should be.
Both are determined to get to New Orleans, where she can start a new life. But, once they reach their destination, events spin out of their control and Chloe is captured by the fiancé she escaped. Gabriel is left wondering if he can overlook her betrayal. Soon he finds himself in a race against time, to reach her before Beckett can exact revenge.
Universal links for Upon Your Honor:
Upon Your Honor
Young: Where can readers connect with you and find out more about your books?
M.L.: Please feel free to visit my website at https://marielavender.com/ for further information about my books and my life.

​My Author Links​:

SmartURL (UNIVERSAL):  smarturl.it/UponYourHonor

M.L.: In 2011, my first historical romance, Upon Your Return, which was also the first book of the Heiresses in Love series, was fully edited and ready for agents or publishers. Little did I know that it would take a year to find the right fit. After numerous rejections from agents, I decided to go a different route and go straight to publishers. I eventually found Solstice; they looked at Upon Your Return and loved it!  The book was published in February of 2013. Upon Your Honor is the second book in the series and it came out this April.
Young: Tell us where did your inspiration come from for this book? Was there a character that just had to be heard? Was there an event that inspired you to start writing?
M.L.: Not too long after Upon Your Return was accepted by Solstice, I started thinking about how I really wasn’t done with the characters, that there was so much more to tell.  There had to be something more I could do.  One day, the first scene of Upon Your Honor came to me, that of Chloe Waverly stowing on aboard a ship, and I just knew this girl had a story to tell.  Later, Gabriel (he was a minor character from the first book) showed up and it just exploded from there. From the time that Upon Your Return and Upon Your Honor were published, I have had so many requests from readers to delve into other characters that were mentioned, and I took that to heart.  Soon after I started writing Upon Your Honor, the idea for the next book came to me as well.
Young: Does your background (in terms of job, family, geographic location, etc.) play into your writing? What kind of research went into your story?
M.L.: I wouldn’t say my job or location plays into this story, but the sense of family in these stories really does come out.  I did a lot of historical research on the anatomy of a ship and how sailors behaved then.  I even found journals written by sailors.  I also did a lot of research about each port the characters visited as well as research on the time period in general.  I did everything I could to make the story come to life.
Young: Describe the genres in which you write (paranormal, contemporary, westerns, etc.) If you write in more than one genre or area (poetry, non-fiction), do you have a different process when you’re writing different kinds of fiction or non-fiction?
M.L.: I mainly write fiction, though I have dabbled in poetry and written some articles during my journey as an author.  My focus is the romance genre, but I have tackled its subgenres before:  contemporary, historical, paranormal and suspense. As for my numerous works in progress, I am all over the place, and yes, I have even attempted western and time travel romance.  My process for writing any type of fiction is usually the same; I let the scenes come to me randomly until I’m ready to really focus on that project.  Then I start plotting and researching.
When I write poetry, I don’t try to force it, but a line will come to me and I let it play out the way it wants.  With articles, sometimes I just start with a topic and go from there.  I usually don’t need an outline unless it’s a very complicated subject; with any article, however, I always proof it before anyone sees it.

 Mariepic2 - small1_pe

Young: What is your mind set or process as you sit down to write? Do you have a playlist going? Do you need complete silence? Are you a 6 am writer or an 11 pm writer?

M.L.: I don’t have any specific techniques.  The ideas just come to me, and I write them down wherever I am.  If I’m heavily focused on a project, I will try to commit myself to writing every day, even several times a day if possible (unless that day is specifically meant for research).  Sometimes I do listen to music; I even try to match the music to the genre or subgenre I am writing.  For example, I have listened to Celtic music when I was writing a historical romance/fantasy before. Music can definitely affect your writing.  There are times when I do need complete silence to concentrate, however.  I don’t usually write early in the morning (not a morning person), but I do write anywhere from afternoon to late at night.

Young: How do you balance writing with work and/or personal life?

M.L.: It is hard to balance all of it. I just try to fit promotion and writing in along with work and my personal life if I can. Some days, I have to train myself to say “no” to one or two tasks in order to allow the important things in. Even if I put something off until the next day, it still gets accomplished. I applaud writers who can juggle it all effortlessly.

Young: Do you have any other projects you’re working on?

M.L.: Of course.  I just finished up writing on a children’s fantasy story, titled A Little Magick, which is also the sequel to Magick & Moonlight, a book that was released in March.  I am also working on the third book of the Heiresses in Love Series.  It is titled Upon Your Love.  Additionally, I have one new book, Second Nature, a paranormal romance/urban fantasy, which should be releasing very soon through Solstice Shadows Publishing if it hasn’t already by the time this interview is published.

Young: Marie is giving us a sneak peak of the book cover for Second Nature.

SecondNature-final

M.L.: For readers who are interested to pre-order Second Nature, this is the purchase link: http://www.amazon.com/Second-Nature-Blood-First-Sight-ebook/dp/B00Q7FWIWA/

Young: Last but not least, do you have any words of advice for aspiring writers?

M.L.: Learn everything you can about the business. Don’t get arrogant; everyone has room to learn more. You never know. Someone’s advice might really work for you. Read a lot of books in your genre just to get a feel for how things are done, but don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone from time to time. What else?  Oh!  Just relax.  Never stop writing, but don’t push yourself too hard either. Enjoy the time when writing is just for enjoyment; being an “author” is hard work.

Marie Lavender, Romance Author  

“A true man does not need to romance a different girl every night, a true man romances the same girl for the rest of her life.” 
-Ana Alas
SecondNature-final

About Marie Lavender

Multi-genre author of Victorian maritime romance/family saga, Heiresses in Love, and 18 other books. Reached the Top 10 Authors list on AuthorsDB.com for the last 4 years. Listed as one of TOP 5 Authors Who Write Compelling Romance on Wiki Ezvid. The I Love Romance Blog was listed as one of the Top Novel and Books blogs 2020 on Sparpedia. BLUE VISION made the TOP 10 on the Science Fiction and Fantasy category of the 2019 P&E Readers' Poll, and also reached TOP 10 status in the Romance category. Featured interview in the January 2018 issue of Womelle Magazine. BLOOD INSTINCTS reached TOP 10 status in the Romance category of the 2018 P&E Readers' Poll. DIRECTIONS OF THE HEART reached the semi-finalist round in the 2018 AuthorsDB Book Cover Contest. Voted TOP BLOGGER for 2018 on the Romance Lives Forever Blog. TOP 20 Authors of 2018 on Amy’s Bookshelf Reviews blog. DIRECTIONS OF THE HEART was nominated and made it past the first round in the 2018 Author Academy Awards. UPON YOUR LOVE and THE MISSING PIECE placed in the TOP 10 on the 2017 P&E Readers' Poll. DIRECTIONS OF THE HEART was nominated for the 2017 Reader's Choice Awards. The I Love Romance Blog became a finalist in StartDating DK's Romance Blog Awards of 2017. ILRB landed on Feedspot’s 2017 TOP 100 Novel Blogs and TOP 100 Romance Blogs. DIRECTIONS OF THE HEART placed in the TOP 10 Books of 2017 on Amy’s Bookshelf Reviews blog. TOP 20 Authors of 2017 on Amy’s Bookshelf Reviews blog. Mystery Blogger Award for 2017. A to Z Blog Challenge Survivor in 2016. March 2016 Empress of the Universe title - winner of the "Broken Heart" themed contest and the "I Love You" themed contest on Poetry Universe. SECOND CHANCE HEART and A LITTLE MAGICK placed in the TOP 10 on the 2015 P&E Readers' Poll. Nominated in the TRR Readers' Choice Awards for Winter 2015. Poetry winner of the 2015 PnPAuthors Contest. The Versatile Blogger Award for 2015. Honorable Mention in the 2014 BTS Red Carpet Book Awards. Finalist and Runner-up in the 2014 MARSocial's Author of the Year Competition. Honorable mention in the January 2014 Reader's Choice Award. Liebster Blogger Award for 2013, 2014 and 2016. 2013 and 2014 Amazon Bestseller Ranking for the first edition of UPON YOUR RETURN. Winner of the Great One Liners Contest on the Directory of Published Authors. Marie Lavender lives in the Midwest with her family and two cats. She has been writing for a little over twenty-five years. She has more works in progress than she can count on two hands. Since 2010, Marie has published 21 books in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, romantic comedy, dramatic fiction, fantasy, science fiction, mystery/thriller, literary fiction and poetry. An avid blogger on the side, she writes adult fiction, as well as occasional stories for children, and has recently started some young adult fiction. She also contributed to several anthologies. Though Marie has standalone titles on the market, her current published series are The Eternal Hearts Series, The Magick Series, The Code of Endhivar Series, The Misfits Series and The Blood at First Sight Series, but she has many others planned. Her Victorian maritime romance series is returning, and the second editions of the trilogy will be released soon. Discover more about her and her work at the following links. Universal Links: https://linktr.ee/marielavender1

Posted on December 5, 2014, in Authors, Books, Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Historical Romance, Interview, Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy, Readers, Romance, Romance Novels, Writing and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.

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