Subj:

Art, Storytelling and Long Historicals:

An Interview with Susan King

by Linda Morelli, GWN Historical Editor

Susan King is a marvelous author whose powerful works have justifiably earned the praise of “brilliant storytelling” from Publisher’s Weekly. Romantic Times has praised Susan’s works as, “Powerful, magical and delightful…” and Publisher’s Weekly has called Susan “...a consummate storyteller.” Susan was recently nominated for the Romance Writers of America RITA Award for Best Long Historical, has received the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice for Best Medieval Novel, as well as Romantic Times’ Career Achievement in Medieval Historical Romance. Susan is a member of Romance Writers of America, Novelists, Inc. and Washington Romance Writers.

I first met Susan during a Washington Romance Writers’ meeting, where she lectured on art history and writing romances. Since I also majored in art in college and studied art history, I thoroughly enjoyed her slides and fascinating information, not to mention all of her wonderful books. Now, on to the interview…

Linda: Please tell us something about yourself.

Susan: Originally I'm from upstate New York, and have lived in Maryland since I was a teenager. I went to University of Maryland, where I earned a bachelor's in studio art, and a master's degree and most of a PhD in art history. I taught art history on the college level for years, and now I'm a full-time writer, living and working in a busy household that includes a husband, three sons, and a Westie puppy. Our oldest son is in medical school, the middle guy is a black belt who plans on entering the medical field also, and the youngest, seeing this tendency in his brothers, has decided to head for the computer field someday.

Linda: Please tell us why and when you wanted to write romance novels. Did any authors influence you and, if so, why?

Susan: I wanted to be a writer long before I knew romance fiction existed, so I wrote poems, stories, and two novels, filling notebooks that I crammed under my mattress. Unfortunately I had a fit of intellectualism in college and tossed them out. As a kid, I devoured any sort of reading material, and by age twelve settled happily into reading Holt, Stewart, Whitney and others, along with historical fiction and literature classics. I discovered the historical romance genre when I was in graduate school studying art history, and was confined to bed with complicated pregnancies. Paperbacks were easier to hold than art history books, and reading romance fiction was a lot easier on my stress levels than scribbling notes for my dissertation.

I loved reading romance novels, and I loved writing. Although I was using lots of writing muscles in graduate school, the bug to try writing romance fiction grew stronger. Finally I had a window of time to try my hand at it when my youngest was in nursery school. I had a two-and-a-half hour break two days a week, and I was determined to avoid housework and try my hand at a romance novel.

Linda: How long have you been writing?

Susan: Since I first figured out how to write my name and labor over a story in a few sentences. I've been writing romance fiction for about 12 years, since my youngest went off to nursery school. He's now in high school, and I've been published for about 10 years.

Linda: Did you belong to any critique groups when you started? If so, did (or do) you find them helpful?

Susan: I tend to keep my actual writing to myself until the thing is done, though I will sometimes plead with friends for help in plotting, and I'm always happy to return the favor. I joined a critique group briefly when I was first published, and made some wonderful friends there, though I dropped out of the group, finding I was happier going at my own pace.

Linda: You belong to RWA and the local chapter, Washington Romance Writers. How did they help you on the road to getting published?

Susan: When I started writing romances, I had no clue how to get published, and knew very little about the publishing industry or the romance genre. Both RWA and WRW were enormously helpful in educating me, providing support and helping me make connections I might never have made otherwise. And I have found some close friends who will always be a part of my life.

Linda: You've written tons of wonderful historical romances, such as THE RAVEN'S WISH and THE BLACK THORNE'S ROSE and, more recently, THE SWORD MAIDEN, THE STONE MAIDEN and THE SWAN MAIDEN, to name a few. Could you please tell us how you got that all-important contract for your first book?

Susan: I saw an ad in Romantic Times Magazine for a writing contest which only required a synopsis and about 25 pages of the book. I had that much polished, so I made myself enter, hoping to get some feedback from the judges' critiques. I was astonished to win that contest. A critique from a literary agent was the first prize. She became my first agent. I finished the manuscript a few months later, and it was published as THE BLACK THORNE'S ROSE.

Linda: That’s great, Susan. Your success proves that entering contests is one way of gaining recognition, and a possible contract as well. Did you have an agent at that time and, if not, do you have one now?

Susan: I've always had an agent. I could never figure all of this out on my own! I admire those who can do that. I love my agent and depend on her for wise advice and level-headed support.

Linda: How do you go about developing your characters, plots and settings?

Susan: I start with the germ of an idea, either a set of characters who interest me, or a historical situation that interests me. Then there's thinking, thinking, thinking, along with research, scribbling in notebooks and legal pads, and lots of long walks, until finally all the elements begin to come together. After the initial proposal, when the basic bits get pulled together, I layer in lots of research, and find more inspiration there. The stories grow sort of organically. I have no real system. I have an intuitive, spontaneous approach that somehow produces a book, and each time is a different experience.

Linda: Do you use an outline when writing and, if so, do your characters ever surprise you?

Susan: I do attempt outlines, though I don't usually complete them. Generally I change my mind after going through the process anyway, and I get very impatient to get to the writing. My characters often surprise me, and I love it when they do. It makes everything so much easier when they take over and drag the book along with them!

Linda: Who has been your favorite hero so far, and why? Favorite heroine? Favorite couple?

Susan: That's so hard to say! I love each hero and heroine for different reasons, and each is special to me. The most recent characters are always favorites because the bond with them is still fresh and strong. If I had to choose an earlier couple, I'd say Rowan and Mhairi from Raven's Moon, or Alainna and Sebastien from The Stone Maiden. But now that I've said that, I'm starting to think about all the others I love too....

Linda: You have children and I know they can keep you busy. When do you find the time to write and, on average, how long does it take to complete a book? Also, have you ever suffered from Writer's Block and, if so, what do you do?

Susan: I'm an owl by inclination--the best ideas and writing energy comes to me late at night. I keep regular work hours when the house is quiet during school days, but I prefer evenings when I can get them. It takes me anywhere from five to ten months to finish a manuscript, depending on the book and the contract.

I do get occasional short bursts of writer's block, and then I look for the cause and the cure. It could be something within the book that's stopped my progress, like a wrong turn in the plot or a tangling of threads--then I backtrack to see where the knot lies and undo it. Or it could be something within myself, like lack of sleep--that's a big one in a house full of teenagers. Also, writing is a more physically demanding job than it might seem, and writers have to take care of themselves. If I'm not good about that, I will feel the lag in the writing output.

Linda: Your books are rich in historical detail, with wonderful, true-to-life characters. How do you go about researching your books? How much time do you spend on research before you begin writing the story?

Susan: I love researching, and I can spend a few weeks going through sources, though research and writing are really integrated activities, one sparking the other, back and forth. I'll do preliminary research while doing preliminary plotting and writing, and once I have a foundation of knowledge for the story, I'll get more specialized as it develops. The time and effort really depend on the story. I often go beyond books and written sources. I love talking to experts and trying things out for myself so I'll understand them as completely as I can--it's often the unique, unexpected details that can make the story and characters seem credible and real. I've gotten wonderful advice and information for my books from a stone carver, a swordsmith, a falconer, a Celtic harpist, an archer, and so on. And I've tried falconry, harp playing, sword fighting, arrow-catching, archery, and so on myself.

Linda: Now that’s really getting into research! I understand you have a Ph.D. in medieval art history from the University of Maryland, and you have many references (photographs, drawings) on your website which refer to items mentioned in your books, such as the harp (clarsach) that Lady Christian used in THE ANGEL KNIGHT. Obviously, you use your art history background in your novels. Can you tell us a little bit more about this?

Susan: I'm an "ABD," All-But-Dissertation. I took a leave of absence from graduate school when my youngest was little. I completed my oral exams and have most of a very long, heavily footnoted dissertation sitting in a drawer, but I'm still on "leave." I may finish it someday, but I've been happily sidetracked into writing romance fiction. The art history background has been invaluable to me in writing fiction--I learned a great deal about writing in graduate school, and developed my ability to write historical detail and visually descriptive passages. I still love art, and I use it sometimes in my stories.

Linda: What type of promotion do you do for your books?

Susan: I'm not an enthusiastic promoter--I'd far rather be writing--and I do what I can, within reason. I'm fortunate to have a publisher who promotes my books, and I supplement that with additional ads, bookmarks, newsletters, and contests on my website. I also promote the books through Writerspace.com. The best promotion, I think, is word of mouth, and so I put my energies into writing the best stories that I can, so that readers (and reviewers and booksellers) will be happy.

Linda: What do you like most and/or least about writing?

Susan: I love the freedom of working at home, being here for my kids, making my own schedule, and I particularly love not having to drive somewhere on snow days! On the other hand, I don't like having to stick to that schedule, I often work all day, at night, and on weekends, too--and I'd like a day off on a snow day, but I don't have a good excuse, since all I have to do is walk down the hall in my pj's and I'm there.

Linda: LOL. That’s one of the great parts about being an author. Your family must be very proud of you being a romance writer. What did they say when you got the call that you sold your first book?

Susan: They're guys. Probably something like, "That's great, what's for dinner?" Really, my husband and kids are very supportive of what I do, if a little mystified by it sometimes. As my sons have grown older, they've discovered that girls are often very interested to know that their mom writes romance novels!

Linda: You have a new trilogy scheduled for release this summer and fall: TAMING THE HEIRESS (June 2003), WAKING THE PRINCESS (September 2003), and KISSING THE COUNTESS (November 2003). They are wonderful, intriguing titles. Can you tell the readers a little more about these books?

Susan: The books are set in Victorian Scotland, my first foray into the 19th century, and I had a wonderful time writing them. NAL Signet gave the books gorgeous covers and are releasing them within a few months of each other (July, September, and November '03) so readers won't have to wait long for the next book in the trilogy once they've started reading the series.

TAMING THE HEIRESS, WAKING THE PRINCESS, and KISSING THE COUNTESS all involve three heroes who are friends (two are cousins), and all are engineers at a time when the fervor for Victorian "improvement" was high. The hero of TAMING THE HEIRESS, Dougal Stewart, is a lighthouse engineer, and the story revolves around the challenges of building a lighthouse, despite the efforts of the heroine, who owns that island, to stop the construction. The hero of WAKING THE PRINCESS, Sir Aedan MacBride, is a civil engineer who is building a road through a part of the Highlands when his project is halted by a beautiful museum antiquarian who must investigate an ancient find. And the hero of KISSING THE COUNTESS, Evan Mackenzie, Earl of Kildonan, is a bridge engineer who is haunted by a tragedy and escapes to the remote northern Highlands of his childhood home, only to be stranded on a mountaintop with the minister's daughter--who greatly disapproves of the Earl of Kildonan and the changes that "improvements" have brought to her beloved Highlands.

As with my medievals, I wove legends and traditions into the fabric of the three stories, and I found that they blended quite well with a Victorian setting and Victorian characters. These stories were a lot of fun to write, and I hope readers will love them.

Linda: What advice do you have for new romance authors?

Susan: Listen to your instincts and love what you're doing, and the rest will fall into place.

Linda: Where do you see the romance genre going in the future?

Susan: It's definitely here to stay, and I think the genre can only gain in quality and reputation. The writing standard in romance fiction is high right now, and the genre continues to grow and expand. It's exciting to watch the changes.

Linda: Is there anything else you're working on that you would like your readers to know about?

Susan: Currently I'm working on a new series of historical romances that I hope will surprise and please my readers. When I have more details, such as titles (and nailed-down plots!), I'll post the info on my website at: www.susanking.net.

Linda: Thank you so much, Susan, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview for Gotta Write Network online. We will all be eagerly awaiting your next release!

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