LIZ CARLYLE
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I was introduced to Liz Carlyle's work last winter with her first book, MY FALSE HEART. I fell in love with not only her charaters but her writing. She visited RBL and introduced herself and fit in from the beginning. With her second book, A WOMAN SCORNED, she has proved that she is going to be around for a long time. She has climbed to "Auto Buy" status for many of us, and I'm sure that if you haven't read her yet, you will agree when you do. Liz is a new author you won't want to miss! She is talented and, to top it off, she takes time for her fans. Without further ado, here's my interview with her.
Linda: Liz, please tell us a little about yourself - where you live, family?
Liz: Well, first of all, Linda, I would just like to begin by saying thanks for the opportunity to be interviewed. I have certainly enjoyed being a part of RBL! It is truly a unique place to be, and I wish I could participate more.
Now, about me - unfortunately, I'm not nearly as exciting as RBL! I was born in Suffolk - the one in Virginia, not England, though I do occasionally get to travel there. But I grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where my husband and I still keep a home. During the week, however, we live in Cary, North Carolina, which is a bedroom community for Raleigh and Research Triangle Park. I have a wonderful husband, two great step-kids, two elderly tabby cats whom I worship, and a huge extended family with three great sisters.
Linda: What is your "Grand Passion?" What do you LOVE to do that just makes your heart sing?
Liz: Gosh, this makes me feel so boring! Honestly, writing makes my heart sing. (I hate to quote Dave Barry here, but "I'm not making that up!") And then, there are my wonderful husband and my very supportive family. Just hanging out with them is as good as it gets. Also, I travel a lot, but I don't enjoy that as much as I used to. I'm a homebody, totally.
Linda: Liz, are you an avid reader like the rest of us? If so, what do you enjoy reading for fun and relaxation?
Liz: Yes, I do read whenever time permits. Unfortunately, that simply isn't often enough. I love Georgette Heyer and Mary Balogh. I also read a great deal of Ken Follett and James Lee Burke. And right now, I'm trying to find time to read Nicole Jordan's THE SEDUCTION and Jo Goodman's MORE THAN YOU KNOW, and Sabrina Jeffries' THE DANGEROUS LORD. The rest of my TBR pile ... well, we just won't talk about that!
Linda: Have you always been an "author extraordinaire," or did/do you have another occupation besides writing? And what made you decide to writer romance?
Liz: Ha ha ha! Extraordinaire? You're putting me on, right? Seriously, I spent about eighteen years in corporate life, and occasionally, I still do some consulting, primarily for new business start-ups - and only if the person asking is a friend! I do sometimes get job offers, and after a spate of economic guilt, manage to turn them down. So these days, I write full-time. It's a gamble which I hope I won't regret, but it's too soon to tell. Financially, this is a hard business, and if you're honest with your bookkeeping, it's a flat-out money loser for several years, just like any other small business. But I was burned out in my old job. I'll answer the second question below, if I may.
Linda: Were you ever a "struggling" author? How long did it take you to get published and what was your reaction when you got that first "good news?" And maybe you could give a few "words of wisdom" to our up-and-coming authors at RBL.
Liz: Oh, Linda, you silly girl! I am still a "struggling" author! I probably always will be! And I rather doubt I'm wise enough to offer up any words of wisdom. Unfortunately (or perhaps I should say fortunately?) I was beyond ignorant when I jumped into writing. I had no clue as to how tough the market was, in terms of being over-sold and constantly changing. So although I had taken my degree in Journalism many years ago, I only began writing on a dare from a friend in December of 1996, when I found myself between jobs. I was awaiting a new assignment which was to begin around March, and after two weeks, I was climbing the walls. So I started writing. I cannot tell you how mesmerizing and cathartic the process was! I was utterly absorbed. It was like being possessed by some benevolent spirit, and when I woke up in late January, I had written a book!
If that sounds crazy, well ... it felt crazy. But there it was, just lying on my desk, finished. And so I said to my husband, "What do I do with it?" And he said, "Try to sell it!" Supportively, he dragged out his old copy of The Writer's Market, and thus began about two days worth of research. Afterward, I queried around eight publishers, but I really had my heart set on Pocket. I was so thrilled when Caroline Tolley wrote to request the full manuscript a few weeks later. Eventually, of course, they rejected me! But they did express an interest in seeing anything else that I might write. So I just kept writing. (Okay - there are my words of wisdom: keep writing no matter what!) Finally, in late 1998, Pocket bought two of my books, one of which was MY FALSE HEART, released in November of 1999.
Linda: What is your "creative process" like? Where do you get your ideas?
Liz: My ideas? I honestly have no clue! Sometimes it's nothing more than a word, or a quote, or perhaps just a name, but it will drive me mad until I write it down somewhere. Once it was a Bob Dylan song. And in BEAUTY LIKE THE NIGHT, it was a house in the Cotswolds - the same house, incidentally, that inspired Dickens to write BLEAK HOUSE! But I did not find it bleak at all. I found it utterly captivating and very romantic. Anyway, around these little nuggets, a plot will begin to build somehow. Sometimes I will literally awaken in the middle of the night with a full-blown scene in my head, and I have learned to keep a micro-cassette recorder on my nightstand.
As to my creative process, I tend to work in spurts, but they are long, hard spurts! When I really get into the process, I will work nine to fifteen hours a day, usually six days a week - and of course, I don't sleep well because of the micro-cassette thing! I try never to work on Sundays.
Linda: Do you ever use personal experiences or people you know when writing your books?
Liz: No, never. I am, however, a devoted student of human nature, and I think this helps me in terms of character development and character motivation.
Linda: In MY FALSE HEART, you described Evie's painting to such a degree the I could actually SEE it. Do you have any kind of art background?
Liz: No, not at all! But I do love European history, and I have always studied it in my spare time, so the Hapsburg battle was familiar to me. As to art, I greatly admire the work of the old Flemish and Dutch masters. I think that's why I wanted Evangeline to be Flemish! But other than this period, art pretty much makes me feel stupid. Like Picasso - what's it all about? And what's with all those upside-down body parts? And why aren't they ever the GOOD parts? RBLers will know what I mean here.
Linda: In your current book, A WOMAN SCORNED, your heroine is again an independent woman and very spunky. Are you like this, or is this the kind of woman you'd like to be?
Liz: Confession time, huh? Honestly, I used to use a good bit of personality profiling in my former career, and so one day I gave myself a version of the Myers-Briggs test. It basically said I was a rigid, controlling introvert who was masquerading as an extrovert. I think that about sums it up! I will say this - if you want to know my innermost personality, read my November release BEAUTY LIKE THE NIGHT, because the hero in that book, Camden Rutledge - oh boy! That's me! All bound up duties and ought-tos and shouldn'ts, and busy trying to suppress that inner self! However, if I could choose - oh, yes - I would choose to be Jonet from A WOMAN SCORNED!
Linda: The hero in AWS was, to me, completely different from Elliot in MFH. (By the way, I find this completely refreshing.) Do you consciously change the types of your characters or do they just form as you write them?
Liz: I am so glad you noticed! Yes, Cole Amherst and Elliot Armstrong could not be more different, could they? But I hope you will agree that they are both incredibly sexy and ruggedly masculine, but in their own unique ways. Again, the characters more or less just come to me. I don't make any conscious decisions, other than to rough out the plot. Do you think perhaps I'm not really writing, but just channeling someone from a spirit world? Hmm ...
Linda: What are your favorite settings for books? Are they always going to be in England, and will you always write historicals?
Liz: Yes, I think so. And to take that further, I doubt I will ever stray from the Georgian through the mid-Victorian periods. This is the era I most enjoy, and the one which I know the most about. Also, the outpouring of mail from fans of historical romance has been extremely gratifying. As a new author, I really hope to continue to please them, and I think I can best do it with historicals set in either England, Scotland, or maybe Ireland. I also have a deep-seated urge to write about the Isle of Mann or the Channel Islands, but I would want to visit them first, and so far, I've not have the opportunity.
Linda: What can we look forward to in your coming books and when we can expect them?
Liz: Well, as I mentioned earlier, my next book,
BEAUTY LIKE THE NIGHT, will be out in November. It is the story of a French governess,
Helene de Severs, who, quite by accident, ends up in the employment of her childhood
sweetheart, Camden Rutledge, who is now the complicated, withdrawn, and rather grim Earl of
Treyhern. I just got the cover art (which I really do not like, alas!) and here is Pocket's
back blurb - sort of an RBL sneak preview:
Beauty is like the night, fleeting and hard to hold, a truth the
forbidding Lord Treyhern is about to discover. Let the opulence of Liz Carlyle's prose
immerse you in the beauty of England while plunging you into the midst of the outrageous
Rutledge family, where scandal is served up like a soup course, and dangerous secrets are
everywhere.
The daughter of London's wickedest widow, Helene de Severs has
struggled to overcome her heritage. Renowned within Europe's emerging psychiatric field,
Helene has a gift for healing children. When fate sends her back to England, the country
she left in disgrace, Helene is confident she's learned to govern her own reckless emotions.
Ruthlessly, Treyhern has dragged his notorious family from the
brink of ruin. But a disastrous marriage has left him with a traumatized child, and his
rebellious brother is just one step ahead of the bailiffs. When his dissolute father drops
dead while debauching the governess, Treyhern's infamous temper is truly tested. But the
forceful earl means to straighten everyone out - as soon as he's hired a reputable governess.
Yet the moment she steps from his carriage, Treyhern's cold reserve is melted by a rush
of desire he'd long thought dead. With her elegant clothing and mountain of luggage, the
woman is not who he had expected. Or is she? Sometimes the workings of the mind are as
dangerous as those of the heart. And soon, danger is truly everywhere.
OK, you RBLers - what do you think of poor old Cam and his plight? Trust me - he'll have
his hands full with this spicy Frenchwoman!
After Helene and Cam comes the sequel to A WOMAN SCORNED! Right now, it is scheduled for March 2001, and the working title is A PRICE ABOVE RUBIES. But that will probably change.
Linda: As you know, RBL has a lot of readers who like EXTREMELY HOT sex scenes or erotica.
Liz: Do they really? I'm shocked! Shocked! (Y'all think I've been watching too much Casablanca?)
Linda: What is your opinion of this type of book?
Liz: Seriously, I love it, and I think variety in the romance market will keep it fresh and strong. And while MY FALSE HEART was not especially erotic, A WOMAN SCORNED dances around the edges pretty precariously! I'm already catching a little flak from it. BEAUTY tones it back down a bit. I try to do what's right for each book; however, I probably will never write erotica, per se. I just don't think I've quite got the knack.
Linda: Your love scenes are very explicit and sensual. Is this easy or hard for you to write? And in the future, can we look forward to them starting earlier in the book? *G*
Liz: They are very easy for me to write. I enjoy crafting them, and I am not all uncomfortable with a high degree of eroticism. That said, however, I try to write a level of sensuality which is appropriate to each character's personality. In MY FALSE HEART, Evangeline van Artevalde was a virgin despite her Continental sophistication. And Elliot would not, I think, have made a very good reforming rake had he taken advantage of that. Now, in A WOMAN SCORNED, Jonet Cameron is a very different sort of woman! In truth, I hope this gal doesn't get me into trouble with my readers! As my old Scottish granny used to say, it's "Katie, bar the door!" when it comes to Jonet. She is highly sophisticated; a very sensual creature who is sexually experienced. On top of that, she knows exactly what she wants. And what she wants is Cole Amherst. But getting him - ah ha! That is the challenge!
Linda: (Drum roll here!!) Now here is the "fun" part! A WOMAN SCORNED just hit the shelves and, from what I read, it looks like a "blockbuster!" Please take this opportunity to tell us about your newest treasure, and especially about Captain Cole Amherst, your blonde hero "to die for!" (And he IS!)
Liz: Oh, Linda, where do I begin? I absolutely adore this man, even if I did dream him up! He's quiet, blonde, hunky, and always in control. (Or at least he was until he met Jonet.) To me, he is the perfect hero. But unlike many romance heroes, he is "heroic" from the beginning of the book, all the way through to the end. Cole Amherst does not have any fatal flaws, bad habits, or rake-hell inclinations to overcome. He doesn't drink, gamble, or even have sex very often - but of course, he's good at it when he gets the chance! And trust me when I say that all this goodness does not make him boring! At least, I hope not. Honestly, Linda, you read the ARC of this book. Why don't you answer this question? Tell us what you thought of Cole. See, I've turned the tables, haven't I?
I'd like to add my thanks, RBLers, for all your support this past year!
I want to thank Liz for the chance to do this interview, and for her open and honest answers. Can't wait for your next one this fall!!!
May 2003
Along with what's coming up, Lizzie also took the time in this feature to share an adventure with us on a research trip she took to England to find the PERFECT castle for her next single title (as yet to be named), about Giles, Lord Walrafen (Pocket Books, Spring 2004). And what a beautiful adventure it is! Do take the "tour" - it's a GRAND one! But right now, let's take a look at the exciting things Liz has coming up for us.
First of all, something very different from Liz as she joins the Queen of Spice, Sherrilyn Kenyon, and rising star Deirdre Dore to bring you an anthology tentatively titled OUT OF UNIFORM (Pocket Books, November 2003). Three sizzling stories about sexy, steely-eyed cops and the women who tame them. (Use red ink when you jot this one down on your TBR list!)
Then, in Spring (or thereabouts) of 2004 we can look forward to another GREAT anthology (Avon Harper-Collins) from Liz, as well as Cathy Maxwell, Eloisa James, and Victoria Alexander. This is a collection of romantic, regency-era tales of regret, forgiveness, and yes, the one that got away.
Yep, it's been a BUSY year for OUR Ms. Liz, and LOTS of GREAT things are coming our way from one GREAT author! (And I hear she still hasn't come up for air!!). So "THANK YOU" Liz, soooo much for taking the time from your VERY busy schedule to give us this "Ketchup." Visit us as often as you can at the message board (so we know you haven't disappeared into the black hole of work!!).
And now ladies, please join Liz as she takes us on her research tour (complete with PICTURES!) of English castles to find the PERFECT castle for her Spring 2004 release, and for Giles, Lord Walrafen!
During my so-called "research" trips in England, my hubby and I always spend a lot of time in Gloucestershire, where most of my books are set, because we have family there. But I was eager to find a much more exotic setting for my upcoming book about Giles, Lord Walrafen, and this time, I was envisioning a rugged coastline. (Readers may remember Giles as Cecilia's stepson - who was actually older than she - in A WOMAN OF VIRTUE.)
It is a weird quirk of mine that I cannot start a book until I can strongly visualize where it will be set. I literally need to walk over the ground, go inside the local churches, read the tombstones, drink a pint in the seediest pub, that sort of thing. If I don't do this, I think it shows in the book. And since the haughty Giles is going to fall in love with his housekeeper Aubrey in this book, I wanted to tour as many 18th and 19th century kitchens and servants' quarters as I could. So, the dh and I set off in our trusty Hertz car in search of Giles's perfect house and village. And I'd love to share this current "research" adventure with you! Join me!
Our first inn, The George and Dragon, in West Wycombe is a really, really old inn in a village which the Dashwood family (I believe) gave to the National Trust. Yep, the whole village. They owned it. Now the NT does. It is a favorite place of ours. This trip, we particularly wished to see West Wycombe Park, where "The Importance of Being Earnest" was filmed. We also went to see Dashwood's Hellfire Caves, which my husband had not seen before. (Yuck.)
The first photo is of our room - notice those rumpled sheets on that ROMANTIC bed, ladies! And the second picture is the hotel's sign, which hung outside one of our bedroom windows - so I just crawled out and took a picture. I needed to know how the thing was put together. Details, details! The author's stock in trade.
Location was especially critical for this book (which does not, by the way, even have a title yet!) because the house, and Giles's feelings about it, are going to be such integral parts of the plot. I had my heart set not just on a dramatic coastline, but on A CASTLE. I'd never done a castle, and I wanted it to be realistic. The house needed to be very remote, haunting, and ancient. To find all this, I decided to drive through an often overlooked part of England, along the waterway of the River Severn, which sort of divides England and Wales, then becomes the Bristol Channel, and eventually the Irish Sea.
So we started below the port of Gloucester and just drove along the water toward Devonshire, stopping at every fortified castle we could find, and there were some fine ones, since this waterway was a key security area back in the good old days. The first we saw was BERKELEY CASTLE, right on the edge of Gloucestershire and the Severn.
Unlike most of England's castles, the original family still owns this one, though they do open it to the public on most days. The Berkeley family (pronounced BARK-LEE, just like Berkeley Square in Mayfair) has owned the castle for 850 years, and it hasn't been modernized a whole lot! It is a huge, rough, very medieval feeling place. The atmosphere and some of the layout were perfect for Giles's book.
Berkeley is cool, too, because Shakespeare wrote about the house in one of his plays, and Queen Isabella (often called the She-Wolf of France) had her husband, King Edward II, imprisoned and eventually murdered there. I won't mention how she had it done. You can email me privately if you want to know. Let's just say it was rough. You can still see his little room through a grate in the castle.
On a more cheerful note, that night, we actually spent the night in a castle! It is called THORNBURY CASTLE, and it is a little further along the River Severn. This castle was begun during the reign of Henry VIII by the third Duke of Buckingham, and was then the second most magnificent home in England. Henry's daughter, Bloody Mary, lived here for several years as Princess, but I can't quite remember why. Tragically, the duke was executed for treason in 1521, and the castle was abandoned. It remained more or less in ruins until the mid-19th century, which is remarkable when you consider it. Now, it has been fully restored, and it is magnificent beyond words.
Click here for more wonderful pictures and information about Thornbury Castle - it's magnificent!
Thornbury is a romantic splurge honeymoon-kind of spot, so take note! And because I know RBLers appreciate fine, romantic BEDS I'm including a photograph of ours! Isn't it fabulous?
Sorry, folks, the dh is a hottie but kind of shy, so no more details are forthcoming. Our room overlooked the courtyard garden and a part of the castle which is still in "romantic ruins." Unfortunately, Thornbury had a slew of French chefs ensconced in their kitchens cooking up five star cuisine, and I was not able to poke around inside the service areas, but the exterior and grounds gave me some remarkable ideas for Giles and Catriona!
After Thornbury, we drove along the Severn until it became the Bristol Channel. The stretch of coastline along Somerset and Devonshire is just amazingly beautiful. Rugged, rocky - and then out of nowhere, a pretty village or a sweeping cove will peep out at you. There we saw our last, and in my opinion, most magnificent castle - Dunster Castle.
Dunster Castle is not nearly as well known as Thornbury or Berkeley, and I almost didn't bother going. But since is now owned by the National Trust, and we get in free as members, I snapped open the map and, like the good Scot I am, hollered, "Honey, turn left here! This one's free!" After paying the tab at Thornbury, he thought that was a Real Good Idea.
Well, instead, it soon felt like a Real Big Mistake. Ten minutes later, we stood in the NT parking lot, staring up at the highest, roughest hill I'd ever seen along the English coast, and my middle-aged tourist-toes were screaming "No! No! No!" Click here
to see a series of photos taken by a very good photographer at Dunster. The first shot, looking up at the castle, will tell you why I was whining. But did I get any sympathy??? Noooo. My husband the hottie (and also a marathon runner) poked me in the ribs and said, "Get moving, girl! This is no time to be faint hearted! This might be Giles's perfect castle!" And oh, was he right! I've had the good fortune to see many of England's treasures, and I now begin to suspect they've been hiding the really fine stuff from us Americans.
Dunster Castle is worth a trip in and of itself. The original structure was built in the 1200's by a Norman named de Mohun, and it is a true hunk of medieval-looking masonry complete with towers, turrets, ivy, old walls - you name it, and Dunster has it.
At the foot of the hill is a picture-perfect English village, too.
The castle, a Royalist stronghold, was besieged during the English Civil War. And unlike Berkeley, the owners of Dunster modernized the castle so that it is now the picture of gracious 19th century living. But parts of the ancient structure remain, especially the gatehouse, and a dramatic fireplace. The magnificent staircases are breathtaking. Dunster really makes an author start to dream. It was just the jump-start I needed.
Click here for more pictures and information about this incredible castle:
So, come next spring, if you read Giles and Aubrey's as yet untitled book, think about these three beautiful castles. I've stolen just a little from each, changed it around a tad, tumbled it together in my imagination, and the result is ... well, there's another problem. I haven't yet named my magical castle, either! Right now, it's either Castle Cardow, or Ravenwood ... I'm still ironing out all the details. And if anybody has an idea for a really hot, evocative, intriguing, sexy title for this book - one that my picky, picky, picky editor will buy, mind you - then there is a free autographed copy of it - PLUS MY ENTIRE BACKLIST - in the mail for you come next May. Yes, ladies, I am desperate. I have the perfect castle, the perfect hero, the perfect woman to put him in his place, and now I need the perfect title. Help !!!!
~Lizzie~
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