I’m a
really low maintenance writer, Lena . So
anywhere is fine. I’ve written in a restaurant, a library, an airport, a hotel
room, besides in my office at home. I can tune out the whole world, which isn’t
really very nice of me.
When
deciding on how to publish, what directed you to the route you took?
I got
published before there were so many options, or at least the other options has
some serious drawbacks. So I just took the direct route, pitching to agents and
editors until I finally found one who took a chance on me.
Me, too,
Mary. What kinds of things do you like to do outside of writing?
Um….reading.
My family likes to boat on the Missouri River
and they ski and ride on tubes and swim.
I like to
go but mainly I just sit and watch them and enjoy the show.
What kinds
of advice would you give to someone who wants to start writing?
I’d say write. Whatever else you do, write. Get a
book finished. If you can’t finish a book, you just aren’t ever going to get a
book published so that’s the first test. Finish.
What is
your favorite book? Favorite author? Do you have an author that
inspired/inspires you to write?
Favorite
book of all time is To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee. Second is A Lantern in her
Hand by Bess Streeter Aldrich. Favorite author? That’s tough because I love
so many authors, both their work and them personally. Let’s just go ahead and
pick YOU Lena . There I’ve done well, I think.
You inspire me, too, darlin’.
Thanks,
Mary. You inspire me, too, and we have fun when we get together. Where did you
get the idea for Tried and True?
I have
completely handed the job of titles over to Bethany House. They always just
delight me with what they choose so I trust them completely and just help all I
can and wait to be charmed.
From idea to final revision, how long did it
take to write?
I’d say
four months. I revise as I write so when I am finished it’s by no means a rough
draft. But I still go through it a couple of times to sharpen it up. But I’ve
been doing that all along.
Are you
working on anything now?
I have a
second book coming in this new series. Tried and True is book #1 of the
Wild at Heart series. Book #2 is Now and
Forever. More love, more laughs, more fun in the Wild West.
Please tell us about the story.
Kylie
Wilde is the youngest sister—and the most civilized. Her older sisters might be
happy dressing in trousers and posing as men, but Kylie has grown her hair long
and wears skirts every chance she gets. It's a risk—they are homesteading using
the special exemptions they earned serving in the Civil War as boys—but Kylie plans to make the most of
the years before she can sell her property and return to the luxuries of life
back East.
Local land agent Aaron Masterson is fascinated with Kylie from the moment her long hair falls from her cap. But now that he knows her secret, can he in good conscience defraud theU.S.
government? And when someone tries to force Kylie off her land, does he have
any hope of convincing her that marrying him and settling on the frontier is
the better option for her future?
Local land agent Aaron Masterson is fascinated with Kylie from the moment her long hair falls from her cap. But now that he knows her secret, can he in good conscience defraud the
Please give us a peek at the first page of the
book.
Aspen Ridge
July 1866
Kylie
Wilde’s right hand tightened on the hammer as she stared at her roof. A shingle
flapped in the endless summer wind. A storm was blowing in over the Rocky Mountains , blast it. She was going to have to go up
there and nail that board down or sleep under a downpour.
She’d
slept in the rain before. Nasty. About as nasty as crawling across a steeply
pitched roof. Her hand clenched. The hammer rose and her attitude fell.
The sky
was as sullen as her mood with its scudding gray clouds. Rain was coming. She
had to fix that roof.
It was a
fight to keep from saddling her gray mustang and riding to Shannon ’s
house. Shannon , a year older and soft-hearted,
would help—probably. Kylie had just coaxed her into building a corral around
the barn, and a week earlier she’d built the porch. And that was after Shannon and Bailey, the oldest of the three Wilde
sisters, built the whole house.
Carpentry
wasn’t Kylie’s greatest gift.
Truth be
told, the roof was about the only thing Kylie had done herself—which explained
why it wasn’t holding together.
Her
sisters had hoped she couldn’t get in much trouble just nailing boards in
place.
Of course
Kylie’s nailing was more like trying to scare the nails into the wood than
pound them in. Her sisters were just plain better at it, and Kylie didn’t mind
admitting that.
Since the
house and barn were done, and with her own homestead to run, kindhearted Shannon had started showing signs of botheration when
Kylie tried to wheedle help out of her.
And
Bailey, the oldest of the Wilde women, wasn’t a tractable woman on her best
day. Kylie shuddered at the thought of going to her for something this simple.
The
shudder flapped and Kylie could swear the clatter sounded like mockery. Her
cabin was laughing at her. The wind was blowing for the very purpose of
tormenting her. The branches in the forest around her seemed to clap, jeering
at the trouble she faced. The mountains stood in judgment and that judgment
was, Kylie Wilde was a miserable failure as a homesteader. Kylie could hear all
of that as she stood, hammer in hand, scowling at her roof.
It would
be fair to say Kylie Wilde wasn’t a woman happy with the life that had been
shoved like an anvil onto her shoulders.
But
whether she was happy or not didn’t matter one whit. That flapping board had to
be nailed. Not only was the wind going to rip it all the way off, but it was
right over Kylie’s bed. She was in for a miserable, soggy night if she didn’t
act fast.
She could
just drag the bed to the side and put a bucket under that hole, but if she
didn’t go up and fix it now, she’d have it to do tomorrow. Putting it off did
no good.
Gritting
her teeth, Kylie tried to think of all the ridiculous manly skills her sisters
had taught her. Of course mostly, Kylie could think of the manly skills they’d
tried to teach her and how good she’d always been at avoiding their lessons.
And now
she needed to dredge up a few of them or sleep under a deluge.
Ladder.
She needed
a ladder. Except the one they’d used to build had been borrowed from cranky old
pa. Talk about someone Kylie didn’t want to ask for help! Cudgel Wilde would
scold and snarl and in the end make Kylie want to jump on her horse and ride
off and never come back.
Thunder
sounded in the distance. She had to get on with this.
“How do I
get up there without a ladder?” Kylie studied the house, the porch roof wasn’t
real high but it was steep. Bailey said the Rockies
had heavy snow and the roof needed a steep pitch or it would collapse under the
weight.
There was
a chimney on the south, but it climbed up the outside wall right to the peak of
the house.
Her gaze
slid down to the stovepipe. She’d managed to fetch a real pot-bellied stove out
to her house. Her family thought that was foolishness but Kylie hated cooking
in a fire place.
That
stovepipe was fairly solid. It came out of the house through the wall, then curved
up through the porch roof. Bailey had done it in that strange way instead of
having it go straight up. She’d said something about retaining heat and
preventing sparks and keeping rain out of the stove.
Kylie
hadn’t really been listening.
Where can
my readers find you on the Internet?
SeekervillePetticoats and Pistols
My Blog
My Website
My Newsletter
And I’m on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maryconnealy
And Twitter: http://twitter.com/maryconnealy
Thank you for stopping by, Mary. It's always fun to visit with you.
Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
Tried and True - Christianbook.com
Tried and True (Wild at Heart) - Amazon
Tried and True (Wild at Heart Book #1) - Kindle
Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)
Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.
The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.
If you’re reading this on Goodreads, Google+, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link:
Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com
42 comments:
This sounds fantastic!!
Mary P
QLD AUSTRALIA
It's interesting that you let the publisher pick the title. I am wondering if this is common or just your preference?
Oregon
Hi Mary! I think Tried and True is a lot of fun. I'm excited for the new series.
Rebecca I help all I can and they consult with me and we toss ideas around. But honestly they're really good at it and I usually like their ideas better than mine.
I love Mary and her books. Both are so much fun! :)
Amy C
VA
Portsmouth, VA
Tried and True looks like a very good book.
Beth from IA
I am so excited about this series and eager to read TRIED AND TRUE! Thank you for sharing the great interview and giveaway.
Britney Adams, TX
I love westerns - one of my favorite genres. Enjoyed the interview - we're huge boaters as well
cheryl in IL
I have read all your books, but this one! Would love to win a copy! Rebecca Maney, North Carolina
I'm a big western fan myself (obviously) :D
Rebecca you sweet thing. Good luck in the drawing.
I've been eager to check out this series! Thanks for the giveaway.
Dana, Michigan
I would love to win. Angela in Ky
Love to win Mary's book! Shelia from Mississippi
I think Tried and True sounds great! I want to snatch up the whole series and read them all. I love the interview, Lena! Mary is such a fun person to read about....I hope we get the chance to meet one day!
Melanie Backus, TX
I so enjoy westerns! Especially with strong women... would love to win a copy :)
DKStevens from SE NE
I am from Nebraska--same as Mary! I would love to be entered to win her book.
Hi Dana. Eager, huh? Cool. :D
Hi Angela and Sheila, good luck in the drawing
Melanie! I'm writing as fast as I can!!! :)
Deanna am I reading your address right? You say you're from SE NE is that South East Nebraska?
AND SANDY another Nebraska girl.
We are ruling Lena's blog today!
Mary, Yes, Just south of Lincoln :) I read you were from E Nebr. Great place to live ! ! Deanna from SE NE
This sounds like another great book by Mary. I love her style of writing. Thanks for the chance to win TRIED AND TRUE.
pmkellogg56[at]gmail[dot]com
Kansas
Love Mary's writing! Four months to write a book sounds great to me!
From MS
plhouston(at)bellsouth(dot)net
I love Mary's books. They always make me laugh! It's been a while since I read one, would love to start this new series.
Patty in SC
Sounds like such a fun read!
Anna In FL
Just the fact that Mary Connealy is the author is enough for me to want to read it! She is one of my favs!!!
I live in Lancaster County, Pa.
Doreen
PriviesAndPrimsAtYahooDotCom
Would love to read and review Mary's book!
Jean K
West Palm, FL
This book is going to be SO great Mary!! I can tell!! I just found your book "Out of Control" a month ago and I'm now a big fan!! Very cool and trusting of you to let the publisher choose the title. I need a bigger bookcase...I'm running out of room!! Love these books and their small town feel...especially since I live in Appomattox, VA!
This book looks really good. I have loved the books of your that I have read.
Susan in Texas
My sister has read all of Mary Connealy's books and loves them! She'd love to read this I'm sure.
J.C. -Indiana-
Love Mary Connealy!!
Indiana
I love Mary's books. I'd love to win a copy of, Tried & True!
Blessings!
Judy B from Indiana
Enter me this book looks great!!
Conway, SC.
I enjoy your books and would love to read this one. sharon, CA wileygreen1(at)yahoo(dot)com
I love Mary's writing and this book sounds like another great one!
marypopmom (at) yahoo (dot) com
Maryann in NY
I think meeting Dolly Parton would be a fun day. I hope you some day get to. DKStevens from SE NEBRASKA
So excited about your new book, sounds fantastic and would love to win!
~Holly I. in Morehead, KY
Sounds like another great novel. I love Mary's sense of humor. Ü
Can't wait to read this book.
Cindi Altman from Pennsylvania
Sounds like a great book! Thanks for the giveaway!
Sydney Harries GA
I love mary and her books. She always makes me laugh. I think she would be a great neighbor. I sure would love to win her book. Maxie from Texas
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