Books-n-Kisses is please to welcome Grace Burrowes to the blog today.  

Grace, can you please share with us a little about yourself
GB: I’m a lifelong reader of romances, single mom, child welfare attorney, horse girl, and oh, yeah… historical romance author.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

GB: I am still ambivalent about  being a “published” author—publication changes things, and can reduce the time available for writing—but I’ve always loved to write. Once upon a time, though, one of my keeper authors wrote a book that just did not work for me. I started my first manuscript to exorcise that disappointment, and twenty more manuscripts quickly followed. 

Are you a plotter or a pantser or combo of both? And you explain the difference?
GB: I think everybody is some combination. I tend to have a general sense of what the character and dramatic arcs will be for my protagonists, but that often changes in the course of drafting the book. Mostly, I focus on coming up with a strong opening scene, one that will impel all the characters’ fears, regrets, and mayhem FORWARD.  I think of a pantser as somebody who doesn’t start writing until they have a completed outline. I envy that degree of organization.

What is your most interesting writing quirk?
GB: Hmm. There come times in EVERY book when I stare at the computer and think, “I can’t finish this one. This is tripe. This is never going to work. Who thought up this baloney and why am trying to make a book out of it?” We talk about the romance novel having a big, black moment. What a lovely idea—only one big, black moment per book! For my writing process, there are MANY big black moments.

Can you please tell us about your latest book Once Upon a Tartan?
GB: Once Upon a Tartan is the second book in my Scottish Victorian MacGregor Trilogy, which amounts to a tug of war over a child’s best interests between two people who are reluctantly falling love, though neither is the child’s parent or guardian. Toss in some betrayal, some naughty Latin, and the lovely, long Highland evenings, and much mischief ensues.

How did you come with the idea for this story?
GB: My editor told me early on that part of my job is to torture the hero. One of the best ways to do that is to make him choose between competing demands of honor. In this case, Tiberius Flynn, Earl of Spathfoy, must choose between the father relying on Tye to attend to family duty, and the woman Tye’s falling in love with, Hester Daniels, who hopes he’ll put honor above duty. Tough choice, for a (secretly) tender-hearted man…

Can you share with us your current work(s) in progress?
GB: I’m working on a 2014 Christmas story for Tiberius’s sister, Lady Joan Flynn. Christmas is approaching, and all she wants is a husband—any husband, provided he’s willing to marry her immediately.

Who is the one author that you would love to meet someday and why?

GB:  I have met Joanna Bourne, Mary Balogh, Jennifer Ashely, Loretta Chase, JR Ward, and Julie Anne Long. I guess that leaves Judith Ivory. I’d like to meet her to tell her how very much her books means to me, how many difficulties they got me through, and how I admire her prodigious talent. I’d also like to put a personality with all those wonderful stories.

What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?
GB: WRITE. Write more than you aspire to write, write more than you plan to write, talk about writing, or meet with other writers. Go quietly amid the noise and haste that is the pre-published author’s burden, but mostly, WRITE.

Can you share with us something off your bucket list?
GB: I’ve studied French, German, Spanish, and Latin, but I’ve never been fluent in a foreign language. I’d love to spend an entire summer in Scotland. I want to get my bronze medal as a dressage rider.

What is in your To Read Pile that you are dying to start or upcoming release you can’t wait for?
GB: Eloisa James’s Once Upon a Tower. EJ is one of my original keeper authors, and that book is pure, unalloyed GOLD.

What is one book everyone should read before they die?
GB: Well. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. This very readable little tome busts the myth that scientific progress is rational, and explains why so often truth, particularly a new truth, does not carry the day. In these interesting times, that explanation is a comfort, as is the realization that truth does eventually win out, though it can take a generation or two for the paradigm shift to take hold.

What is your favorite time of year and why?
GB: Autumn. I always perk up when the weather cools off, the light gets sharper, and the days shorter.

Who is your Celebrity crush?  And what would you do if you ever meet him/her?
GB: The Dalai Lama. If I met him, I would thank him for consistently speaking reason and kindness in a world that can be unreasonable and unkind.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

GB: THANKS!!!

ONCE UPON A TARTAN

by GRACE BURROWES

IN STORES AUGUST 2013

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Honor or happiness—he can’t have both.

Tiberius Flynn may be every inch an English lord, but smart, headstrong beauty Hester Daniels has no use for his high-handed ways–no matter how handsome, charming, or beguiling he is. They only see eye to eye in caring about the feisty little girl who is under their protection.

Tiberius’s haughty insistence that his wealthy estate in England is a better place for the child than her beloved, rundown Scotland home sparks Hester’s fierce protectiveness, and the battle lines are drawn.

Praise for Once Upon a Tartan:

“Burrowes creates a powerful story replete with heartfelt emotion and rich characterization… An instant keeper.” —RT Book Reviews, 4 ½ stars, Top Pick of the Month

“Expert prose, likeable characters, realistic relationships, and believable complications create a pleasant and satisfying keeper.” —Publishers Weekly

“Warmth, sensuality, and humor infuse Burrowes’ writing, and fans of Suzanne Enoch and Sarah MacLean should enjoy this series.” —Booklist

“Grace Burrowes weaves her magic with words… a memorable love story—excellent and exquisite.” — A Long and Short Reviews Best Book

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Grace Burrowes is the author of the acclaimed Windham Family Series, The MacGregor Trilogy and The Lonely Lords Series. Her debut novel, The Heir (2010), as well as The Bridegroom Wore Plaid (2012) were both included as Publishers Weekly Best Books of their respective years, in the romance category. A practicing attorney specializing in family law, Grace lives in rural Maryland, where she is working on the final book in the Windham series, Lady Jenny’s Christmas Portrait (October 2013) and third MacGregor story, The MacGregor’s Lady (February 2014), and many more books. Visit her website at www.graceburrowes.com for more information about all of her books, exclusive extras and her lively blog.

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8/1 Book Hounds<http://maryinhb.blogspot.com/>
8/2 RomFan Reviews<http://www.romfanreviews.com/>
8/5 In the Hammock<http://inthehammockblog.blogspot.com/>
8/6 Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell<http://books-forlife.blogspot.com/>
8/7 Manga Maniac Café<http://www.mangamaniaccafe.com/>
8/8 What’s on the Bookshelf<http://whatsonthebookshelf-jen.blogspot.com/>
8/9 The Royal Reviews<http://theroyalreviews.blogspot.com/>
8/12 Joan Swan’s Blog<http://joanswan.com/blog/>
8/13 Cocktails and Books<http://www.cocktailsandbooks.com/>
8/14 Romancing the Book<http://romancing-the-book.com/>
8/15 Ramblings from this Chick<http://ramblingsfromthischick.blogspot.com/>
8/16 Books-n-Kisses<http://www.books-n-kisses.com/>
8/19 Anna’s Book Blog<http://annavivian.blogspot.com/>
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8/22 Seductive Musings<seductivemusings.blogspot.com>
8/23 Peeking Between the Pages<http://www.peekingbetweenthepages.com/>
8/26 Love Romance Passion<http://www.loveromancepassion.com/>
8/27 So Many Precious Books, So Little Time<http://teddyrose.blogspot.com/>
8/28 Thoughts in Progress<http://masoncanyon.blogspot.com/>
8/29 Debbie’s Book Bag<http://debsbookbag.blogspot.com/>
8/30 Linus’ Blanket<http://www.linussblanket.com/>