Bronwen Evans’s Miss Tiffany has a Secret is available now, and she was kind enough to answer some questions for us.
You can get your copy of this delightful historical romanceHERE!
Did you always know you wanted to be an author? What is the first story you remember writing? How did you get from there to where you are today?
I’ve always had stories in my head, however I have a form of dyslexia and therefore never thought I’d be able to become a writer. But I decided to give it a go because a very dear friend was battling a life threatening illness and he made me promise I would try to follow my dream of becoming a writer. So I joined Romance Writers of NZ and learned my craft for about 3 years. And I’ve dedicated my first book Lord of Wicked to him.
To my surprise, the very first book I finished writing, which was Lord of Wicked, I entered in a RWA competition and one of the judges suggested her editor would love this story and sure enough I submitted it to her and she bought it in a two book deal. That was the start of my career in 2010. I have a lovely agent in New York and with her help I managed to build a lovely career. I have over 45 books published which have now been translated into 5 languages.
What is the most inspiring place you’ve visited, and has it shown up in one of your books?
I lived in England for about 8 years, and I found walking through Hyde Park fun thinking of the carriages and horses and people walking where I was all those years ago.
How much research do you do into the time period and places you write about? Do you have any experience dressing in character or participating in living history situations or are you more a fan of libraries and online resources?
I’m a fan of research. History was one of my favourite subjects at school. I do a lot of research for each of my stories as I usually always put some kind of historical fact of the era into the story. For example in Miss Tiffany Has A Secret it was about women investing in the Regency. What I also find interesting is there are so many society’s or local associations, for example the UK stock market, who can provide you with information just by asking. Everyone is so happy to help once they know that you’re an author and you want to use the information in a story.
What drew you to the era you write in? Is there something about the time period you think most people don’t know about? What do you think would be the most difficult part about living in that period?
I love the Regency era. Historically there is so much going on in such a short period of time. So you can come up with some really good plot lines due to historical occurrences. I was always a history buff especially English history and of course once you start reading Jane Austen the period just becomes one of your favourite. I certainly have no illusions that the Regency was glamorous. If you were wealthy your life would have been very pleasant, but not so much if you had to work, with no holidays, no weekends off, not being able to be with your family etc. In addition, if you are unwell the medical situation was diabolical. Small infections could kill you 9no antibiotics, and there was no surgery to speak of due to lack of anaesthetic.
What are your favorite kind of characters to write? Do you have a specific trope that you’re drawn too?
I love characters who find themselves in tricky situations, but are intelligent enough to find a way out. I always used to write hero centric stories because they used to come to me first. But for my current series, The Season Of Secrets, it was a sisterhood of women who came visiting. I don’t have specific tropes per say, what usually happens is a character comes to me with all their wounds and fears and I immediately think what situation can I put them in, along with their love interests fears and wounds, that would make them face the most emotional growth. Therefore, that information forms what trope the story will become. So it could be second chance or marriage of convenience or best friends brother etc.
Where is your favorite place to write? Does it change depending on where you are in the process?
My favourite place to write is sitting up against my headboard on my bed, using my little lap desk and laptop. The main reason for that is I have two dogs, Cavoodles Duke and Brandy, who have to sit right next to me, so it’s almost impossible for me to sit on a chair without both of them trying to climb on me and then there’s no room for the laptop. LOL
Which comes first for you: the plot or the characters?
Definitely the characters. Then I think about a plot line that will lead them to having to battle to win the greatest prize of all — love.
Do you know where the story is going before you begin, or does it come to you as you write? Do scenes come to you fully formed or are you as surprised as the reader?
That’s a good question. All writers have different processes. My process is, characters come into my head and I normally write a two to three page character outline right from the day they were born, so that I get to know my characters inside and out. Then I start storyboarding plot line ideas. Then I fully plot scene by scene the whole book. Sometimes it might diverge from that as I’m writing the story, and I’ll go and re-plot the rest of the book if that occurs. I find it much faster and easier to write, with less writers block, if I know where the story is going. So I put quite a lot of work into the front end of the writing process. I learned to plot after I sold my first book, because when it came to writing the second book for the contract, I didn’t plot and I had so much rewriting that I think I wrote almost 200,000 words for a 90,000 word book and it took me way longer than it should have. Now that I fully plot out my stories, I can turn a book around much faster. Which is really important when you’re on deadline.
Does your writing process include any kind of ritual? Story specific playlists, tea, or candles, for example?
I hadn’t really thought about it. But I suppose I always start my writing day with a cup of tea and I go over what I wrote the day before while I drink it. I also write by scenes and always take a break at the completion of the scene. I usually take the dogs for a walk which helps me think and plan out the next scene, or I’m naughty and grab something to eat. That’s the worst part of writing and being at home all day, the kitchen is very handy.
Do you write better in the morning or evening? How do you handle the distractions of working from home, especially if you’re sharing the space with others?
I definitely write better in the morning, and often in the afternoon I’ll look at correspondence, marketing or editing, going over what I’ve written already, or do some research. My reading time is a night. The only distractions I usually have to deal with are Brandy and Duke. As long as they get a good walk, sometime in the day, they’re happy.
When it’s difficult to physically travel, how do you find ways to escape?
I play bridge. I’m quite a good bridge player and I play at least twice a week and that’s a really good escape for me. As a writer I also love story. Reading is a favourite pastime because you escape into different worlds. But also TV. Anything where characters can grab my attention and I find those people interesting. I can be happy sitting at an airport, coffee shop or restaurant, watching everyone around me and trying to imagine what their lives are like. I wonder if that’s just the way authors think?
From all your books, who is your favorite hero and why?
Gosh that’s such a hard question as you fall in love with all your heroes. If I had to pick one, I’d select Stephen Hornsby, the Marquess of Clevedon, from Drawn To The Marquis book two in my Imperfect Lord series because he’s going blind And he’s trying to protect his family from the scandal. He’s worried that his sisters may not make good marriages if society learns that this affliction runs in the family. So on top of having to deal with the fact he’s going blind, he’s worried about everyone else.
What do you like to read when you’re not reading in your genre? Did you have a favorite book or series when you were growing up?
Even as a child I have always been a big reader. I think books like Nancy Drew, Enid Blyton’s Secret Seven and Famous Five, the Narnia series, stimulated my imagination. Then as I grew older I started reading romance, Jane Austen and Catherine Cookson are my favourite authors. I originally started to write contemporary romance but they always say you should start writing in the genre that you love to read, and of course Stephanie Lauren’s Cynster series captured me. Devil’s Bride is still one of my favourite books and I re-read it constantly. However, while I’m writing a Regency story I tend to read paranormal romance (Nalini Singh another NZ author a favorite) and also I’m a huge hockey romance fan, with Sawyer Bennet and Toni Aleo my favourite authors.
