Many thanks to Cathy Mansell for inviting me to be a follow-on guest on this blog tour. If you’d like to find out more about Cathy and her work, you’ll do so on

http://cathymansell.com

SO – WHAT AM I WORKING ON?

I’m working on my third book for Choc Lit Lite. My first two, EVIE UNDERCOVER and THE ART OF DECEPTION, are set in modern Umbria. For A WESTERN HEART, however, I’ve returned to the American West of A BARGAIN STRUCK, setting the story in Wyoming, 1880.

Will Hyde and Rose McKinley, the older son and the older daughter of successful neighbouring ranches, have grown up together like brother and sister, knowing that one day they’ll marry and thereby unite their two ranches. Their families and friends know this, too, and are now wondering aloud with increasing frequency why their engagement hasn’t yet been announced.

Rose, too, has started to wonder why. Will loves her and she loves him, so nothing can stop them marrying. Can it?

HOW DOES MY WORK DIFFER FROM OTHERS IN THIS GENRE?

Everyone writes with a voice, and no two voices are the same. My voice and style are a part of me and the way I express myself, just as the subjects I choose reflect my interests. I love strong stories, and I believe in telling the historical truth. My novels, therefore, tell page-turning stories – I hope – that grow from an authentic historical background.

WHY DO I WRITE WHAT I DO?

Because I love a good story, I’ve always been fascinated by history, which is the story of the past. I’m also extremely interested in the way that other cultures live. My novels are born out of these interests.

I have no interest, however, in writing about true people. I prefer to write a fictional story that owes something to a true event, or events, and to set the whole against an authentic background.

HOW DOES MY WRITING PROCESS WORK?

I write every minute that I can.Real life (too) frequently intervenes.There’s nothing I like more than having a whole day ahead of me in which to write.Just me and the laptop.I might research; I might write; I might develop the plan of my story – I always firm up my plan when I’m about a third of the way through the novel.

Well, that’s me.  Following me in this blog tour are Christina Courtenay and Alison Morton.

Christina at an RNA party

CHRISTINA COURTENAYwrites historical romance, time slip and YA contemporary romance, all published by independent publisher Choc Lit.  She is half Swedish and was brought up in Sweden. In her teens, she moved to Japan where she had the opportunity to travel extensively in the Far East.  Christina is the current chairman of the RNA and her third novel Highland Storms won the RoNA for Best Historical Romantic Novel of the year award in 2012.  Her latest novel The Secret Kiss of Darkness is published next week.

Christina’s website is http://www.christinacourtenay.com

Alison at the RNA Conference, 2013

ALISON MORTONwrites Roman themed alternate history thrillers. She holds a bachelor’s degree in French, German and Economics, a masters’ in history and lives in France with her husband.

A ‘Roman nut’ since age 11, she has visited sites throughout Europe including the alma mater, Rome. But it was the mosaics at Ampurias (Spain) that started her wondering what a modern Roman society would be like if run by women…

INCEPTIO was shortlisted for the 2013 International Rubery Book Award and awarded a B.R.A.G. MedallionTM in September 2013. The next in the series, PERFIDITAS, was published October 2013.  Alison is working on the third book SUCCESSIO.

Connect with Alison on her blog  http://alison-morton.com/blog/

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/AlisonMortonAuthor

Twitter https://twitter.com/alison_morton