Laura Drewry is one of my bestest buds. We met when we both sold to Zebra, since then we have struck up a true friendship the kind that gets you through sick kids, deadlines, and life in general. I am thrilled that her new book is out and I hope you will all check it out!
Basic Facts: Laura Drewry
Author of: Historical Western Romances
Favorite Candy: Licorice Allsorts and Bridge Mixture
Favorite Cartoon Character: Snoopy (is there anything more enjoyable than his letters to his editor? I don’t think so!)
Super Power Most Covets: Speed. Think of how much I could get done if I could move like SuperMan!
Q.) First tell us about your new release, The Devil’s Daughter.
LD.) The devil’s daughter, Lucy Firr, strikes a deal with dear ol’ dad whereby she’ll steal the soul of a newborn and the baby’s uncle, rancher Jed Caine, in return for her freedom, but it’s Jed who ends up stealing Lucy’s heart instead. Theirs is an unusual relationship from start to finish, made more difficult by the facts Jed’s brother is missing, his pregnant sister-in-law is teetering on the edge of madness, and he has a new ranch to run. Lucy’s promises to help are nothing more than lies, but by the time Jed realizes that, it’s too late.
Lucy learns the hard way that she must work for what she wants, and to make that more difficult for her, she soon learns that what she wants has changed. And it’s not a small change, either. What she wants now will either cost her a mortal life without Jed, or an eternity shoveling brimstone, and she must decide which form of hell is the most bearable.
Q.) Your earlier books were also set in the Old West. What’s the appeal of the era for you?
LD.) There is absolutely nothing appealing about the dirty smelly way most people lived back then. LOL But they had a way about them, rules if you will, that made it okay for the men to be hard-headed and stubborn, and for the women to be strong, yet feminine. Each era in history has different qualities that make it fascinating in its own way, but to me, the Old West is the one that average people can relate to. It’s the pioneers of the Old West who helped build North America into what it is today. It’s a time of hard working people who overcame all types of adversity to carve a life for themselves and their families out of the most unforgiving land and wilderness. Loneliness, heartache, poverty. . .it hit every one of them. But they persevered. What’s not to love about that? J
Q.) What can readers expect to find in all your books, besides the Old West setting?
LD.) Characters who are anything but perfect. They’re not super-models, they’re not rocket scientists and they’re not without faults and flaws. And for some reason, at least one of the characters will have a bit of a smart-ass streak. I don’t know where that comes from (ahem), but there you have it.
Q.) What is the smartest thing you’ve done so far as advancing either your writing or your writing career? What is something you wish you had done differently?
LD.) Tough question! There are many things I think are smart at the time, but ten minutes later, I’ll start to second-guess the same idea. One smart thing I’m certain about is the people I’ve surrounded myself with over the last few years. This is a tough business, and it’s very easy to give yourself an “out” when things start to take a dive, but the people I’ve met and become close to won’t give me that chance. They’ll let me whine for a while, but they’ll also give me a kick in the butt if that’s what I need.
If I could go back and do anything differently. . . .hmm. . . .I wish I’d taken a public speaking class at some point! LOL I’ve never been one who like to talk about myself – or anything else – to a group of people I don’t know well. I think that’s something that would have been good to know before I started promotion.
Q.) Are you a plotter or a panster? Character-driven or plot driven? Ever try to be the opposite? Do you have a set method you use when starting a book?
LD.) It’s one of my life goals to learn how to plot. I beg my brain to work things out before hand, to figure out who is who and why the heck they’re doing the things they’re doing, but it has never worked out that way for me. Each book has started out a little bit different. Sometimes I have the main characters’ names, sometimes I have the first scene. Sometimes I have one or both main characters’ goals and motivation, sometimes not. With The Devil’s Daughter, the only thing I had to start with was the title.
Once I have a starting point, I scribble, type, edit, rewrite, scribble, type, edit, and rewrite until things start to make sense. I do a huge amount of rewriting before I finish the first draft because I know, without fail, I’ll come across all sorts of tidbits that need to be sorted out earlier in the book, so back I go, add it in, sort out, and then go back to where I was before I got derailed.
Now do you see why I wish I could plot ahead of time? Surely to God it’s an easier – and less time consuming – way to write! LOL And I’m absolutely certain my editor and agent would prefer it.
Q.) There’s another Devil book in the works, right? Can you tell us about it?
LD.) Dancing with the Devil, the sequel to The Devil’s Daughter, is scheduled for release in the fall of 2008. It’s Deacon’s story (Lucy’s brother) and while I’d love to give you a few insider details about it, I simply can’t, and if you’ll refer back to the last question, you’ll understand why. LOL It’s still very much in the scribble, type, edit, rewrite, scribble, type, edit, rewrite phase. So anything I tell you now could, and will quite possibly, be edited out and completely rewritten by the time the book hits the shelves.
Q.) If someone were to compare your writing to another author’s (besides mine, of course ;-)) whose would you most want to be compared to (most flattered by the comparison)? Why?
LD.) To be honest, I don’t like to compare one author to another. However, if someone were to say I wrote scenes with the same emotional depth as other historical western authors like Jodi Thomas or Linda Lael Miller, I’d certainly enjoy that moment for a while! LOL
Q.) Where can readers go to find out more about you and your books? Where can they buy your books?
LD.) They can always find everything about my book from my website – www.lauradrewry.com and the books will be available at all book stores, including those online, and the Dorchester Publishing website.
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