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Welcome to our New Faces column, where we are delighted to introduce new romance authors to our readers. This time we're visiting with Vanessa Kelly, whose debut book is Mastering the Marquess from Kensington.
Vanessa, welcome to TRR! Tell us about yourself. I'm a Jersey girl, born and raised. South Jersey, near Philadelphia. As anyone from New Jersey knows, we're a different breed from our cousins on the northern end of the turnpike. We say hoagie instead of sub, and in the summer we go down the shore instead of to the beach. But we all love The Boss. I eventually abandoned the sunny climes of the Jersey shore for the cold winters of Canada. After completing my M.A. in English at Rutgers University, I migrated north to work on my Ph.D. at the University of Toronto. Alas, I never finished my degree, but I had a great time studying the works of 18th Century British authors and writing about the madness of King George III. My area of focus was the novels of Fanny Burney, who wrote during the Georgian period and was much admired by Jane Austen. After grad school, I spent several years as a researcher and writer in the public sector before I began writing historical romance. I also write contemporary romance with my husband - as yet unpublished, but we're hopeful! I have two great step-sons and a wonderful step-daughter-in-law, and lots of family and friends who keep me busy when I'm not writing. Are you coming to romance from another job? As I mentioned, I spent several years in grad school, teaching and working on my thesis. From there, I moved to public sector organizations, also doing research and writing. I've been out of the workforce for some time, which allows me to focus on my writing. What lead you to write romance? I'm a long-time romance reader, starting with the novels of Georgette Heyer when I was a teenager. I'm sure that's where my love for Regency-set historicals began. But I started reading novels in elementary school. I still remember Gone With The Wind, The Robe, and Forever Amber, so I guess you could say I started early. I wandered away from romance novels in my twenties - heresy, I know! I read a lot of mysteries and some science fiction into my thirties, and then came back to romance with a vengeance. After inhaling the novels of Amanda Quick, I fell in love with regencies all over again. About three years ago I read Eloisa James' article in the New York Times about her double life as a romance writer and a university professor. I was so inspired that I went out and bought all her books. Shortly thereafter, I began to work on my first novel. Tell us about your road to publication. I started writing two and a half years ago. I had some ideas for a Regency-set historical that grew out of my work in grad school. At the same time as I was developing the first draft of MASTERING THE MARQUESS, I began writing a contemporary category with my husband. As you would expect from a first book, the contemporary was pretty mediocre, but it helped me to develop my craft and learn lots about the business. I also joined Romance Writers of America, and began taking on-line courses and attending conferences and workshops. I did enter MASTERING THE MARQUESS in contests, but with very mixed results. Some I finaled in and got great scores, others, not so much! But I happened to place second in my local chapter contest, which resulted in a fabulous prize - a critique by the incredibly talented USA Today best-selling author, Julianne MacLean. Julianne gave me fantastic advice and, trust me, I followed every word. I began submitting to agents, and was fortunate enough to sign with a great agent who sold the book two months later to John Scognamiglio at Kensington Publishing. I count myself as incredibly fortunate to have signed with the Zebra Debut program at Kensington. It's a great place for authors to begin their careers. Along the way I've received invaluable help and support from Sharon Page and Opal Carew, both multi-published and multi-talented authors. My critique partner, Teresa, and my husband, Randy, are also instrumental in keeping me on a good path. What kind of research was involved for your first book? There's a sub-plot in my book about insanity and lunatic asylums. Coincidentally, I just happened to specialize in literary depictions of insanity in grad school! So I had lots of material and background on that. But I had to immerse myself in the Regency setting by reading histories of the period - both traditional and social histories - and researching everything from clothing, to furniture, to how long it took for a carriage with three occupants to go from London to Bath. Fortunately, there are many wonderful groups and websites to go to for help, including the RWA chapter The Beau Monde, and Candice Hern's incredible website, which provided me with great information on Regency society. Mostly, though, it was a hard slog through secondary and primary source material, and searching various website for just the right bit of information that would make one of my scenes come alive. But doing the research is truly half the fun of writing a historical romance. And just this past October I was in England doing research for my next book. How sweet is that? Tell us about your book. Meredith Burnley will do anything to save her half-sister Annabel's life. When Annabel's guardian threatens to lock her up in a lunatic asylum, Meredith vows to find a husband to protect her, and the sophisticated and arrogant Marquess of Silverton seems like the perfect man to keep her safe. Although Silverton agrees to court Annabel, he is stunned by his fierce attraction to the country-bred Meredith. Meredith knows she must never succumb to Silverton's powerful masculinity, but her willpower is no match for his relentless and skillful seduction. But her surrender to love throws Meredith and her sister into danger, and only Silverton can rescue them. The arrogant marquess must be willing to risk everything, or lose Meredith and his last chance for love. Deeply emotional and highly sensual, Mastering the Marquess combines the elegance of the regency novel with the dark romanticism of the gothic. Who are your influences as a writer? Where do I begin? For historical romance, I absolutely worship at the feet of Loretta Chase, Eloisa James, Lisa Kleypas, and Julianne MacLean. Chase's Lord of Scoundrels is one of the best books I've ever read - period. I also love Angela Knight, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Jane Ann Krentz, and Karen Robards. Knight's Jane's Warlord is an absolute masterpiece of romance writing, IMHO. I also love the books of Alexander McCall Smith. His Number One Ladies Detective Agency series has given me tremendous pleasure. They're incredibly accomplished books with a fantastic voice, and nary a black moment anywhere in sight. From my grad school days, Jane Austen, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Samuel Richardson, and Charles Dickens always turned my crank. And I love the Southern Gothic, particularly Flannery O'Conner. What does your family think of having a romance author in their midst? They love it! All my family and friends have been incredibly supportive. Although one of my step-sons swears he's going to put police tape around the sex scenes in my book. Tell us about your future books. I signed a two-book deal with Kensington, so my next book will be out sometime in 2010. Two of the characters in MASTERING THE MARQUESS are the hero and heroine of Book Two. I'm beginning to work out the plot for the subsequent book, which will be the story of characters introduced in the second book. And my husband and I are still hard at work on another contemporary, which has been so much fun to write. How can readers get in touch with you? Through my website at www.vanessakellyauthor.com Vanessa, thank you for joining us, and best of luck!
May 16, 2009 |
