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My guest is historical and romance author, Christy English. She's been in love with writing stories since the tender age of 8 when she concluded that writing was a whole lot harder than she first thought. Still, her love affair with words kept her at it until she finally got it right--years later. I, for one, am glad she persevered!
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When I was four
years old, I asked for a typewriter for my birthday. And due to the
love and devotion of my parents, I got one: a bright, shiny yellow one.
At this point
in my life, I knew the alphabet and had begun to learn to read, but writing was
a far distant goal...something that at that point had never consciously
occurred to me. I did think it odd that the letters were all out of order on
the key board. To be honest, I still don't know why the keyboard is like that.
I am not even sure why i wanted that typewriter. I just knew that I did.
When I was 8
years old, I finished reading one of my library books and for the first time in
my life, I thought: "I can do that." I got about five chapters into
my novel, handwritten in poor, painstaking script, one page per
"chapter", and then I gave up. It seemed that writing was much harder
than it looked.
From the time I
was 12, I began to have characters show up with stories to tell,
dancing in my head. I know that sounds a little nuts, probably because it
is, but those of you who are writers will know what I mean. And when these
characters showed up, I started writing their stories down. I never
foisted these hideous works of "art" off on other people, except
for a couple of devoted friends (LaDonna and Laura, you know who you are.)
Those two patiently read and praised stories that were so bad, they would
peel paint of the walls. Trust me when I say that telling a good story is
a skill that takes YEARS to learn. Or at least, it took me years to
learn how to do it.
So now, when I
look at MUCH ADO ABOUT JACK, my fifth novel, and my third romance, I think of
all the truly terrible writing I used to do, and I am amazed that I finally got
better. Amazed and grateful.
If we focus and work hard, we can produce good
writing. Storytelling is a joy, for the teller and, hopefully, for the
reader.
Good luck and many blessings on all of you who are writers, too,
published and yet-to-be-published. Hang in there. If I can do it, so can you.
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MUCH ADO ABOUT JACK
How
to Become London's Most Notorious Widow:
1. Vow to NEVER remarry2. Own a ship and become fabulously wealthy
3. Wear the latest risqué fashions in your signature color4. Do NOT have a liaison at the Prince Regent's palace with a naval captain whose broad shoulders and green eyes make you forget Rule #1
Angelique Beauchamp, the
widowed Countess of Devonshire, has been twice burned by love, and she is
certain that no man will ever touch her heart again. But that doesn't mean she
can't indulge a little—and it would be hard to find a more perfect dalliance
than one with the dashing Captain James Montgomery.
After a brief torrid
affair, James tries to forget Angelique and his undeniable thirst for more. The
luscious lady was quite clear that their liaison was temporary. But for the
first time, the lure of the sea isn't powerful enough to keep him away...
Christy English is happiest
when she is dreaming. Her dreams have taken her to the royal court of Henry II
in THE QUEEN’S PAWN, to medieval Paris in TO BE QUEEN, and now to Regency
England in MUCH ADO ABOUT JACK, LOVE ON A MIDSUMMER NIGHT, and HOW TO TAME A
WILFULL WIFE, where she loves to watch her characters find true love, often in
spite of themselves. 
