Ask the Author: Alyssa Everett
Answered Questions (10)
Alyssa Everett
A few from my reading pile: We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson; Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman; and Uncrowned King: The LIfe of Prince Albert by Stanley Weintraub.
Alyssa Everett
I have a soft spot for Erienne and Lord Saxton from Kathleen Woodiwiss's "A Rose in Winter." It was the first mass market historical romance I ever read, and I fell in love with both the story and the genre.
Alyssa Everett
I would love to, if inspiration strikes. I have a feeling Freddie might make a better secondary character in someone else's love story--perhaps Dr. Strickland might meet an intelligent young woman to take Cassandra's place, and at the same time Freddie might take an interest in her eccentric cousin. But if the right plot occurs to me, I could always do it the other way around, with Dr. Strickland as the supporting character while Freddie takes the spotlight. Thanks for asking!
Alyssa Everett
HI, Elaine! I'm not sure where you're trying to buy them, but I have four titles out so far, and they should all be available. You can use the links on my Author Central page at Amazon:
http://amazon.com/author/alyssaeverett
My newest title, THE MARRIAGE ACT, won't be released until 7/27, but it's available for pre-order now. Only one of my titles, RUINED BY RUMOR, has been released in paperback, but RUINED BY RUMOR, A TRYST WITH TROUBLE, LORD OF SECRETS and AN HEIR OF UNCERTAINTY are all currently available both as ebooks and as audiobooks. I hope this helps, and thanks for reading!
http://amazon.com/author/alyssaeverett
My newest title, THE MARRIAGE ACT, won't be released until 7/27, but it's available for pre-order now. Only one of my titles, RUINED BY RUMOR, has been released in paperback, but RUINED BY RUMOR, A TRYST WITH TROUBLE, LORD OF SECRETS and AN HEIR OF UNCERTAINTY are all currently available both as ebooks and as audiobooks. I hope this helps, and thanks for reading!
Alyssa Everett
I tend to find inspiration in characters, so often I'll have an idea while I'm reading a book or watching a movie and I wonder what the story would have been like if the characters lived in another time period, or were faced with a different dilemma, or had made a different choice along the way. For example, years ago I saw an old melodrama with James Mason called "The Seventh Veil" in which he plays a bitter, brooding, repressed character, though the reason for his unhappiness is only hinted at (a terrible relationship with his mother). That story was mostly about the heroine, a concert pianist, and Mason's character went beyond fascinatingly moody, to the point of violence. Still, James Mason was so compelling he made me want to write a story that was more hero-centric, in which the hero has the same kind of aloof, complicated personality (minus the cruelty), and the story explores the reasons he's so tortured and difficult to understand. I ended up writing "Lord of Secrets," so that's one example of how coming across an interesting character can inspire a very different kind of story.
Alyssa Everett
Enter your writing in contests! It's a great way to get feedback that will tell you what you're doing right and what you might need to change. Take judges' comments with a grain of salt, because some criticism is purely a matter of taste--but if judge after judge is telling you the same thing, do your best to listen and grow from their advice. Contests can also be a great way to get your writing in front of publishing pros, since agents and editors often judge the finalists.
Alyssa Everett
I wish I were better at dealing with it! But I've discovered that when I run into writer's block, it's usually my subconscious telling me I'm trying to take the story down the wrong track. Either the plot has taken an implausible turn, or (more likely) I've made my hero and heroine do something that's not true to their characters. I try to figure out what that thing is, then go back and tear out everything I've written since that point. It can be painful to cut pages I've already written, but it usually gets me past my writer's block.
Alyssa Everett
When a story takes on a life of its own, and suddenly fictional characters are having heated conversations in my head. It sounds like a form of mental illness but it's actually more like lucid dreaming, since I can make them do and say whatever I want.
Alyssa Everett
I'm writing a regency that's both a "reigniting the marriage" story and a road story, with the hero and heroine an estranged couple forced to undertake a journey together. The heroine only accepted the hero's marriage proposal in order to make another man jealous, and five years later the hero still hasn't forgiven her.
Alyssa Everett
I was talking to a friend about legitimacy and sexual mores during the regency, and how it was impossible in that day and age, before DNA testing and so forth, for a father to know with certainty that a baby was his. That got me thinking about how there were also no ultrasounds or amniocentesis, and it was impossible to know the sex of a baby until it was born. That made me want to write a story in which the heroine is a widow and pregnant with the possible next heir to her late husband's title--but only if the baby is a boy. The result was AN HEIR OF UNCERTAINTY.
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