THE ARISTOCRAT'S LADY - Mary Moore - Free Book

I'm always thrilled to introduce a debut author. Welcome to my blog, Mary. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

The characters become individuals of their own.  But I sometimes put one of my own life experiences into them.  For example, in The Aristocrat’s Lady, the heroine has a disability and there is a scene where she is meeting with a renowned London doctor.  She expresses her frustration at what seems to be the futility of seeing yet one more doctor who won’t be able to help her.  I faced a similar situation and was able to draw on that to make her a little more vulnerable.

When did you first discover that you were a writer?

Actually, it was about fifteen years ago.  I have always been a voracious reader especially of the Regency genre.  I guess all that reading put characters and plots in my head, but it was completely subconsciously!  I must have been in between books so I got out a spiral notebook and decided to start a story with a premise I had been thinking would make a great plot.  I also wanted to create an inspirational aspect in the story.  (There were no Regencies in the Christian bookstores in those days!)  I still did not know I was a writer, however!  It was strictly for my own pleasure, at the time, but is now my debut novel, The Aristocrat’s Lady.

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.

I’m kind of a picky reader, I guess.  British fiction from the Ewardian to the Victorian eras would be my top choice.   (From Jane Austen to Georgette Heyer to Elizabeth Gaskell to the Bronte sisters, Dickens and so on…)  If I discover when seeing a movie that it is based on a book, I have to read the book.  That started back with Gone With The Wind in high school right through to P.S. I Love You currently.  I also really like biographies.

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

I haven’t…yet!  Since this is my first book, I have so much to learn.  It has added a considerable amount of juggling to keep up with the “information” loops I’m on, as well as the specific Love Inspired information I need to be aware of.  I only work part-time, but my husband and I are very active in our church.  Fortunately, I’m a night owl, but even that is catching up with me.  I’m hoping that getting through the process of this first book, from beginning to end, will prepare me for better time management should I be blessed with others.  Otherwise, I think my husband and dog might disown me!

How do you choose your characters’ names?

That’s a really good question!  And one I don’t have a good answer to!  I know with The Aristocrat’s Lady, I always thought if I had a son I would like to name him Jared.  So that was an easy choice there.  But with Nicole, I just knew I needed a name that could be shortened and when it was shortened would make it be a sort of tomboy’s nickname.  There are lots of websites you can go just to see a sampling of names, and I might do that just to see how a last name would fit with the first name I picked.  In other words, there is absolutely no rhyme or reason to picking character names for me!

If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?

I would be a pet in my house!  My husband and I are dog lovers.  Right now we have a black lab we love, but she is the most spoiled animal on the planet.  I have to cover couches with pillows, or she’ll sleep there.   So she loves to sleep in our bed, and I have to cover our spread with a sheet or dog hair is everywhere.  She’s older now, and when she started losing some of the use of her back legs, my husband built a step so she could still get up in our bed when she wants to!

What is your favorite food?

Almost anything chocolate AND Arby’s roast beef sandwiches!  I’m a cheap date!

What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?

I think it would be what most writers would say…patience.  I wrote this book 15 years ago.  I dabbled with getting it published…you know… “Dear sir, here is your next #1 on the NY Times bestsellers list.  I’ll be waiting for your call.”  As you can imagine, I waited a long time!  Gave it a little time and sent in another manuscript with no response and I gave up the fantasy.   But when I found the manuscripts in an old box, I began to rewrite it with real experiences and emotions.  I queried a Christian Agency, and God blessed me with my agent, Jenny Burke, who has been behind me 100%.  Looking back, I can see God in the entire process.  It is being published in His time and in His way, that makes all of the waiting worth it.

Tell us about the featured book.

It’s inspirational Regency about a woman with a disability.  Her malady is not visible; that’s the hook-neither the reader nor the hero knows what it is until the right moment.  She goes to London and decides to keep it a secret to spare others any awkwardness they might feel, but in her heart there is the deeper fear of rejection.  She meets the Earl and they like each other immediately.  He does not wish to marry and she knows her disability makes her ineligible, so she keeps it a secret, even from him, and they become fast friends; a very unusual occurrence in that time period.  The heartbreak and conflict that erupts when he learns of her disability has us wondering how it could all work out.  But with God anything is possible!

I just love Love Inspired Historical books, and this one sounds like one I'll really enjoy. Please give us the first page of the book.

Lady Nicole Beaumont sighed as she walked along the terrace of the Elizabethan mansion.  The air was surprisingly cool and lightly blowing over the palatial gardens behind the house.  It was an immediate remedy to the stifling heat of the ballroom behind her.  Tracing her hand along the marble railing, she reached the landing that led down into the meticulously patterned walkways.  However, Nicole did not descend.  She only listened to the sounds coming from the lake, the focal point of the famed park.  She could hear the soft gliding of ducks as they floated across the smooth water.  She smiled when she perceived one quacking truant dip its head into the cool pool only to bring it up again in a flurry of feathers.

The smell of roses was strong where she stood and it took Nicole’s thoughts back to her own home in Gloucester.  Roses had always been her favorite.  In fact, she grew the most beautiful and unusual varieties.

     

She sighed again as she stood against the sculpted balustrade.  London had been so much worse than she had imagined.  Why had she allowed her mother to convince her it would be good for her to visit Town during the Season?  Everything was at a faster pace and her problems seemed magnified in the unending bustle of the city.  Her incapacities only reminded her of her endless limitations.

I can hardly wait to read it. How can readers find you on the Internet?

My website is www.marymooreauthor.com and I love for people to visit and leave me messages!  You can find my author page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/marymooreauthor  and I love people to check it out and “Like” it (if they do! :0)  Finally, readers can feel free to email me at mmooreauthor@swva.net.

Lena, thanks so much for this opportunity!  I hope your fans will try The Aristocrat’s Lady and let me know what they think!

My pleasure, Mary. My readers will visit your sites.

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