laurinwittig

Laurin: Im a full time writer, mom, wife and daughter, (and bill payer, grocery shopper, laundress, homework helper, cook … the magic published book fairy never showed up to take over that stuff!). I've lived in lovely Williamsburg, VA, for the past five years after spending most of my adult life in the DC area. I grew up in northwestern Mississippi and have spent time in Rhode Island, California, Louisiana and Maryland over the years. Two kids, one husband (he's a keeper) and a tank full of tropical fish round out my family.

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

Laurin: I didn't set out to write historical romances, but that's what I preferred to read so naturally, that's where my muse dragged me. I was terrified of the research required, especially since I went to a "progressive" college that had no distribution requirements so I'd been able to duck all history classes in favor of anthropology, English lit, and just about anything else that looked interesting. Once I realized that I could look at the history from an anthropology perspective, the terror went away and fascination set in. I don't know that any author specifically influenced me, but I did love to read Arnette Lamb's books, and Jude Devereaux's Velvet series. I've always had a passion for 19th century British literature (Dickens, particularly) along with books like Little Women, so the historical setting was probably inevitable.

Linda: Both of your books, The Devil of Kilmartin and Charming the Shrew, are set in Medieval Scotland. What fascinates you and/or made you decide to write about this period of history?

Laurin: My grandparents took me to my first Scottish event when I was ten. It was the annual American Clan Gregor Society gathering - that's the American branch of the MacGregor clan. I don't think I'd ever seen men in kilts before, including my grandfather with his pasty white, knobby knees. I fell in love with everything, the clothes, the music, the stories. The next year I went to Scotland for the first time and I've been fascinated by the place and its people ever since. The medieval time period drew me because there was so much inherent conflict given the upheaval around the time of William Wallace (of Braveheart fame) and Robert the Bruce, plus, there is relatively little actually known about the day-to-day life in the Highlands during that time period, which means less research and more imagination for me. My anthropology training actually helps me find credible solutions when the research materials are hard to find.

Linda: What do you like best, and least, about writing?

Laurin: I love the planning stage, where everything is possible. It's like a puzzle, only you have to pull the pieces out of your head before you can put them together to make the pretty picture. I'm not fond of drafting new chapters. They never live up to the story in my head.

Linda: Aside from actually selling your books, what has been the most rewarding moment in your writing career?

Laurin: My first fan letter, for sure. It's an act of faith to send your story out into the world to stand on its own merit. To have a stranger write me and tell me the story touched her is really special.

Linda: What are some of the hardest obstacles that you as a writer have had to overcome?

Laurin: Self-discipline. Im a born procrastinator. It took me years to get around to writing my first book and it's taken me still more years to learn to use my time wisely. It's hard working at home because there's all that other life stuff that needs to be taken care of and it's staring me in the face every time I walk out of my office. But I've gotten pretty good at self-discipline, with the occasional lapse.

Linda: Do you edit as you write or write and then edit? What about researching? Do it all first, or as you go along?

Laurin: I tend to write a few chapters, then revise, then revise some more, then write some new chapters, then revise the whole thing, until, eventually, I have a whole manuscript. My "drafts" are never complete until the book is done. My first draft might be 6 or 7 chapters long, then I go back to the beginning and revise and add a few more chapters. That's draft two. Draft three begins when I go back to the beginning again and revise, then add a few more chapters. The beginning of the book gets revised many times, but the end of the book will only get revised once or twice. It's slow but it seems to be the only way I can do it so far. As for researching, I spent about a year doing research before I got serious about writing The Devil of Kilmartin (9/02). To save myself that kind of time, I've kept Charming the Shrew (5/04), and next year's Daring the Highlander (5/05) in the same time period and also in the Scottish Highlands. Now I only have to research specific details, and I tend to do that very late in the process and only as needed.

Linda: You're a member of Washington Romance Writers, the D.C. Chapter of Romance Writers of America and Virginia Romance Writers). How do you feel these organizations have helped you in your writing career?

Laurin: I have to credit the local chapters and the national organization with educating me in both the craft of writing a romance and the business of romance publishing. When I was first starting out I never missed a chapter meeting, no matter what the topic. Gradually my writing improved. Years later when I finally sold, my husband was amazed at how prepared I was in terms of the business side of the sale, too. The other huge advantage to belonging to these organizations is the friends I've made over the years. Being a writer is a strange thing to most people and nobody understands the ups and downs of creating a story or navigating the mine fields of publication as well as my fellow writers.

Linda: What event led up to your getting published?

Laurin: I entered several writing contests when I finished The Devil of Kilmartin and one of those was the Washington Romance Writers Marlene Award, which happened to be sponsored by my home chapter. At the chapter's retreat that spring the winners were announced and I took first place in the historical category. Gail Fortune, senior editor at Berkley, was a guest at the retreat. She had judged the final round and asked to see the complete manuscript. Six months later my agent called to say Berkley had made an offer.

Linda: That's great! How did it feel the day you got "the call?"

Laurin: Wonderful, excited, stunned. It was the culmination of a dream I'd had for fifteen years or more. I remember jumping around my kitchen, trying not to squeal too loudly into the phone. Of course, when I got off the phone with my agent I tried to call my husband, my mother, my two best friends and not a single one of them was home. Even my children were off at school. It didn't stop me from doing the happy dance all over my house though!

Linda: Have you ever been in the position of having an editor ask you to cut out or significantly change something in a story that you strongly felt you should not compromise on? If so, how did you handle the situation?

Laurin: So far I haven't. I was asked to make some fairly substantial changes to Daring the Highlander, but after thinking about what the editor had asked for, and why, I agreed that the book would be better, so I made the changes.

Linda: Are there certain things that you have to have to write; for example, music in the background, a favorite drink by your side, a preferred delaying tactic before getting down to work? Do you have a set time of day that you feel your writing is more creative?

Laurin: I'm not a morning person so I have to ease into writing a bit. I do try to get to work soon after my kids go off to school. I don't know if it's my most creative time of day, but it's the time I have, so I work. I have to have my cup of decaf coffee by my side when I start (replaced later by ginger/lemon tea), and I usually have on either classical music - if I'm in serious drafting mode it's always The Brandenburg Concertos by Bach - or whatever my favorite movie soundtrack is at the time. Lately I've been writing a lot to the soundtracks from Pirates of the Caribbean (awesome music!), Master and Commander and The Last Samurai. Sometimes, if I need mood music, I'll throw on Enya or Clannad or some Scottish CDs I have. I do spend some time reading, but not always replying to, email, sorting through my spam filter to check for messages that get mistakenly caught, and then (sigh - guilty pleasure here) I play two games of Spider Solitaire, but no more. Generally it's about an hour after my kids get on the bus before I'm actually writing.

Linda: What do you like to do in your spare time? Any hobbies or collections you are passionate about?

Laurin: I love to read and seem to have less and less time to spend on it, so that's something I try to fit in every day, even if it's just fifteen minutes or so. I'm a TV-aholic - West Wing, CSI, Buffy, Angel, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and What Not to Wear being my favorites. I love to go to movies, but don't get to more than about once a month, if I'm lucky. Occasionally I go on a movie binge and rent DVDs. I do have a nice sized collection of dragons though it's been a long time since I found a new dragon I had to have. I guess my real, life-long collection is my books. I have a few books from when I was a small child and I've added books to the collection all through my life. Now if only I had more bookcases. <g>

Linda: What personality trait of yours do you think creeps into every book?

Laurin: Hmm, this is a tough one. I suppose that my heroines always keep going in spite of any obstacles in front of them. They don't always think they can overcome the obstacles, but they call on a hidden reserve of strength and persevere. It's kind of the way I see the world. My mother is always saying "That which does not kill me makes me stronger." In my experience, that's true.

Linda: A new writer comes to you and says: What is the one thing I need to do to get published? How do you answer this question?

Laurin: Write. Write, write, and write some more. If you don't write, you don't have anything to market and thus, you can't get published. There are lots of other things you can do while you are writing that also help, like learning about the business, and honing your craft, but mostly you just have to put your butt in the chair and write.

Linda: You've won lots of awards for The Devil of Kilmartin. To what do you attribute this success?

Laurin: I have to say my critique group gets lots of kudos for the success of The Devil of Kilmartin. They helped me find the story in the mess and they taught me a lot about crafting a story, both by critiquing my work and by letting me critique theirs. It's often easier to see mistakes and moments of brilliance in other people's work, then you can apply that new understanding to your own work.

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

Laurin: Charming the Shrew, my second Scottish historical, came out last May (2004) to wonderful reviews. The sequel, Daring the Highlander, will be released next May (2005). Both books are published by Berkley.

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

Laurin: Write, go to workshops, meet other writers and read. Read a lot, especially in whatever subgenre you are trying to write in. Oh, and never be afraid to revise. Most of the work, at least for me, comes when revising. That's also when the magic happens.

Thanks so much, Laurin, for a great interview! And dear readers, don't forget to stop by Laurins site to read chapter excerpts, check out her wonderful Scottish links and learn how to Get Kilted. Excerpts of all her books at her website: www.Wittig.com/Laurin

Linda Morelli
Award-winning author of FIERY SURRENDER and SHADOW OF DOUBT
RomRiter@aol.com
www.lindamorelli.us