Mysteries and My Musings

This week we have a wonderful guest post from the author of the Lady Darby historical mystery series.  Ms. Anna Lee Huber graduated summa cum laude from Lipscomb University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and a minor in Psychology, but she had been interested in writing since she wrote her first story at ten years old.  She shares an interesting post with us today.

Plus, we have two books for a giveaway. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

An Interview with Lady Darby
 
For this post, I turned to my readers, asking them what questions they would pose to my heroine—Kiera, Lady Darby—if they had the opportunity to interview her. So without further ado, let’s settle down for a cozy chat.

Anna Lee Huber: Thank you for joining us today, Lady Darby. I know you were hesitant to speak with us.

Lady Darby: Yes. I’m not really accustomed to such things. (She fidgets in her chair.) Perhaps it would be best if you spoke with Mr. Gage instead.

ALH: Maybe later. But we really want to hear from you.

LD: I see.

ALH: The last time we heard from you (in Mortal Arts), you were leaving Edinburgh to stay with your brother at your childhood home in the Borders region of Scotland. You were quite distressed. Did you find what you were looking for?

LD: (She hesitates.) Yes and no. I was glad to escape the bustle of the city and the meddling of certain loved ones. (Her eyebrows lift significantly and I nod, understanding she refers to her sister.) But I’m afraid the peace I sought has eluded me.

ALH: You’ve dealt with and survived a significant amount of turmoil in the recent past, which has somewhat freed you from the traditional path and expectations of an aristocratic lady. Where do you hope to find yourself a year from now? Five years from now?

LD: (She glances down at her lap.) I’m not sure. I suppose comfortably situated, painting portraits. Maybe sharing my life with someone. (She blushes.) Really I just hope to be content, happy.

ALH: Considering the harsh judgments and gossip that have surrounded you since your husband’s death, I must say you’re admirably optimistic. What advice do you have for women who fall from society’s good graces? How does a lady rise above it?

LD: I’m not certain you truly can. I think perhaps the key is to accept responsibility for your actions, but not those of other people (she stresses), and then forgive yourself and try to build a life that makes you happy and fulfilled. Perhaps you will never have society’s approval—they can be appallingly hypocritical—but the people who really matter will never abandon you.

ALH: If you had to do your life over again, where would you start? What is the pivotal moment or choice?

LD: (She considers the question carefully.) I would like to say that I wouldn’t marry Sir Anthony (her deceased husband). But had I not, then certain people might never have entered my life. (She contemplates the question further.) I do wish I had stood up for myself sooner instead of cowering in fear and hiding away at my brother-in-law’s castle.

ALH: Do you regret asking your father to find a husband for you? Do you feel that he failed you?

LD: (Her face closes off.) It’s complicated.

I realize I’ve miss-stepped, so I end with a lighter question.

ALH: You are a gifted portrait painter. Why do you choose to paint portraits instead of, say landscapes, especially when so many in society still treat you with disdain?
 
LD: It’s what I’m drawn to. Capturing that essence of what makes a person unique, be it in the twinkle in their eye or the quirk of their lip. I can’t help it really. I just seem to see more than others do. Landscapes and still lifes simply don’t hold the same

THANK You Ms. Huber for this delightful visit with the heroine of your series!

This week we have a wonderful guest post from the author of the Lady Darby historical mystery series.  Ms. Anna Lee Huber graduated summa cum laude from Lipscomb University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and a minor in Psychology, but she had been interested in writing since she wrote her first story at ten years old.  She shares an interesting post with us today.


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

An Interview with Lady Darby
 
For this post, I turned to my readers, asking them what questions they would pose to my heroine—Kiera, Lady Darby—if they had the opportunity to interview her. So without further ado, let’s settle down for a cozy chat.

Anna Lee Huber: Thank you for joining us today, Lady Darby. I know you were hesitant to speak with us.

Lady Darby: Yes. I’m not really accustomed to such things. (She fidgets in her chair.) Perhaps it would be best if you spoke with Mr. Gage instead.

ALH: Maybe later. But we really want to hear from you.

LD: I see.

ALH: The last time we heard from you (in Mortal Arts), you were leaving Edinburgh to stay with your brother at your childhood home in the Borders region of Scotland. You were quite distressed. Did you find what you were looking for?

LD: (She hesitates.) Yes and no. I was glad to escape the bustle of the city and the meddling of certain loved ones. (Her eyebrows lift significantly and I nod, understanding she refers to her sister.) But I’m afraid the peace I sought has eluded me.

ALH: You’ve dealt with and survived a significant amount of turmoil in the recent past, which has somewhat freed you from the traditional path and expectations of an aristocratic lady. Where do you hope to find yourself a year from now? Five years from now?

LD: (She glances down at her lap.) I’m not sure. I suppose comfortably situated, painting portraits. Maybe sharing my life with someone. (She blushes.) Really I just hope to be content, happy.

ALH: Considering the harsh judgments and gossip that have surrounded you since your husband’s death, I must say you’re admirably optimistic. What advice do you have for women who fall from society’s good graces? How does a lady rise above it?

LD: I’m not certain you truly can. I think perhaps the key is to accept responsibility for your actions, but not those of other people (she stresses), and then forgive yourself and try to build a life that makes you happy and fulfilled. Perhaps you will never have society’s approval—they can be appallingly hypocritical—but the people who really matter will never abandon you.

ALH: If you had to do your life over again, where would you start? What is the pivotal moment or choice?

LD: (She considers the question carefully.) I would like to say that I wouldn’t marry Sir Anthony (her deceased husband). But had I not, then certain people might never have entered my life. (She contemplates the question further.) I do wish I had stood up for myself sooner instead of cowering in fear and hiding away at my brother-in-law’s castle.

ALH: Do you regret asking your father to find a husband for you? Do you feel that he failed you?

LD: (Her face closes off.) It’s complicated.

I realize I’ve miss-stepped, so I end with a lighter question.

ALH: You are a gifted portrait painter. Why do you choose to paint portraits instead of, say landscapes, especially when so many in society still treat you with disdain?
 
LD: It’s what I’m drawn to. Capturing that essence of what makes a person unique, be it in the twinkle in their eye or the quirk of their lip. I can’t help it really. I just seem to see more than others do. Landscapes and still lifes simply don’t hold the same

THANK You Ms. Huber for this delightful visit with the heroine of your series!

I reviewed the first book in this series, Blood, Bath and Beyond (click here) and the second book: Bled and Breakfast (click here), and the newest release From Fear to Eternity (click here).  The backstory to the mystery series began in a paranormal romance that I felt compelled to read after this latest book.  

So I read the 2008 book Bitten and Smitten, which takes us to Sarah Dearly and Thierry de Bennicoeur's meeting.  It was called Immortality Bites series as a romance and has kept that series name so fans can follow their favorite vampires from their early romance to their mystery solving adventures.  I am really not into romance novels at all, but I have to say I really enjoyed it and particularly loved understanding how a 600 year old master vampire came to be with a newbie vamp. 

Ms Rowen writes paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and young adult fantasy. She was the winner of the 2007 Holt Medallion for Best First Book and the 2009 Romantic Times Reviewers Choice award for Vampire Romance. Michelle also writes YA high fantasy as Morgan Rhodes.  Michelle lives in Southern Ontario.  Besides the Immortality Bites series, she writes the Falling Kingdom series, Nightwatcher series, Demon Princess series, Nightshade series, and Living in Eden series.  She is a busy, busy writer.

This interview is provided by the publisher and is an abbreviated version of my full interview with Michelle (click here).  Ms. Rowen gives us a little insight into her writing process, so please enjoy.

Do you start your next mystery with the killer, the victim, or the plot? 
The heart of my mystery series is my main character, Sarah Dearly, fledgling vampire. Everything that happens plot-wise in the books stems from her, so she’s where I start. What hasn’t she experienced? What does she need to learn? What “creature” do I want to focus on? In BLOOD BATH & BEYOND I stuck with vampires to establish the series. In book 2, BLED & BREAKFAST, I shifted over to ghosts and witches. In book 3, FROM FEAR TO ETERNITY, there’s a djinn on the loose, and enchanted objects up for sale at an exclusive auction. The mystery and the plot seem to evolve organically from there.

Do you outline a book before sitting down and writing?
I do outline before I write, and I usually gravitate to the three act structure. I like to know generally what’s going to happen and especially how everything is going to end (key in writing a mystery), so I spend a lot of time brainstorming and working on essential plot points before I even think about starting to write.

What is your process for developing a character like Sarah Dearly? I’ve been working with Sarah for ten years now and she was the star of my original non-mystery paranormal romance series Immortality Bites, so I know her pretty well by now. She is unique to any character I’ve ever written since she developed herself without much input from me. My original notes on her wanted her to be a bookworm who hadn’t experienced much from life until her transition to vampire. As soon as I started writing her, however, she turned into a sarcastic trouble-magnet who’s led by her heart and gut (sometimes, unfortunately for her, more so than her brain). This is a bit more Urban Fantasy than a typical paranormal cozy. What attracted you to this middle ground for a mystery series? I like to think that the Immortality Bites Mysteries defy categorization. It’s a bit mystery, a bit paranormal romance, a bit chick lit, a smidge of horror, and a whole lot of urban fantasy. “Cozy Mystery,” to me, means that it’s an amateur sleuth who’s doing the mystery-solving. Sarah definitely fits that bill. A cozy will also have a dead body early in the story. Everything else is up to my imagination and I sometimes do like to paint outside the lines and let my characters do whatever they like without being overly defined by genre.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing and how long does it take you to write a book? 
When I’m writing first drafts, I like to immerse myself in the book and characters. They are constantly in my thoughts as I work out scenes and pesky plot points. I would describe myself as a binge writer, since when I write first drafts I like to do between 10-20 pages a day consistently until I’m done. If I have time, I let the first draft sit for a few days, then I’ll read it over and start my second draft, which usually takes me longer to write than the first one since I’m going slower and looking closely at the details. On my current schedule, I can finish a book (not including the initial brainstorming or the copy edits, etc.) in 3-4 months.

In literature, who is your favorite mystery/suspense character and who is your favorite paranormal character? Tough question… so many I love – Victoria Laurie’s Abby and M.J. J.D. Robb’s Eve. Evanovich’s Stephanie, Jim Butcher’s Harry, Karen Marie Moning’s Mac and Barrons. They’re all so much fun to read… I can’t pick a favorite!

Are paranormal mysteries here to stay or are they a current fad in publishing?
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my years of being a published author, it’s that I have absolutely no idea what’s the future of publishing. For me, I absolutely LOVE paranormal mystery and the freedom it gives authors to write whatever their imaginations offer up. I love the fun, the romance, and the whimsy that’s accepted in this sub-genre. And I hope very much that it’s something that’s here to stay! 

For more info about Michelle and her books, follow her on: