Author Interview Karlene Blakemore-Mowle

I would like to extend a warm welcome to Aussie author Karlene Blakemore-Mowle. She is celebrating her July release of The Cattleman's Runaway Bride, Australian rural romance theme set in central NSW.


I am a fly on your wall today, what would I see in the day of Karlene Blakemore-Mowle?
Between 5.30-6am you'd find me typing away happily in a quiet house in absolute bliss! After that it's utter ciaos!! Getting breakfast and kids off to school, husband to work, depending on the day-- me off to work as well. The days I don't work, I set my youngest up with Play school (every Aussie mothers sanity saver!) and get a half hour of writing in (on a good day). Then it depends on the day, if my three year old is happy to play inside I write or edit or plan out my WIP or the next one. I'm lucky to have my "office" which is really just a desk!! in a small corner of the family room in the very centre of the house- it's kind of like the control centre of our house! I've learnt to write amongst the bedlam of kids and TV and the occasional fight. Then depending on dead lines- PMT, or a difficult plot point that desperately needs sorting out!!! I will decide to write for anywhere between one and four hours at night. I do a lot of ten minute snatches of time here and there some days, but it really just depends on what I'm working on. At the moment I'm DEEP into edits and so I'm pretty much glued to my computer between making dinner, taking a genuine amount of time off to actually look at my children (and make sure I picked the right ones up from school!) and work.


Can you tell us a little about your newest release The Cattleman's Runaway Bride?
Cattleman's was a bit of a change of pace for me. I wanted to try writing a 'sweet' romance, at the time I was unsure as to where my writing really fitted best. It's set in a part of Australia that I've spent some of my childhood and still regularly visit, in the New England region of New South Wales. Land and life on the land, has always struck a chord in me and this story is about a young woman, who has a dream of one day reclaiming her family farm, that was sold when she was a teenager. Having lost her mother, then watching her father drink himself into debt and eventually dying in a tragic accident, Rilee Henderson promises herself that one day she will be in a position to buy back her land. As an adult, she meets Trey Delacourt, but Trey has a secret that will ultimately destroy their fragile relationship if he dares expose it.



What's your favorite scene in the book to write?
I loved writing a later scene in the book, where Rilee has matured as a woman and is now strong, capable, and has her eyes set firmly on her goal. I really like Rilee's quiet strength, because despite her tough life on the land, she hasn't lost her gentle side. The tragedies in her life have not made her bitter and hardened-- simply determined. I really like that softness in her as well as the underlying strength.

How do you come up with your ideas for writing your story?
Usually a scene will just come to me and I have to figure out who the people are in the scene and what their story is. It can be tricky-- sometimes it's a later scene in a story and I have no idea who they are, where they came from, or how they reached that particular point!

What is the most interesting thing you’ve done in the name of research?
I delved deep into the world of US marines for quite some time to write my upcoming romantic suspense.

Are any of your personality and life experiences in your writing?
Quite a few actually-- the more I look back at what I've written, the more I see it. At the time I don't think I sit down to write something that way, but I think it's only natural that life experiences will tend to come out in what you write, especially if you're trying to put your character in a difficult situation-- you automatically think of how you'd react to it...but then if the situation is dangerous, I have to pretend I'd do the brave thing and not bury my head in the sand as I'd probably really do in a crisis!!! It wouldn't make a very exciting story!

What was the first romance book you read and how did it effect you?
I don't recall the actual book, but my Nanna gave me a Mills and Boon to read and after that one book, I then spend years devouring them by the bag full, until I decided to try writing my own. That was where I discovered my love of romances.

Have you written a book you love that you have not been able to get published?
Actually, the next book that is going to be released in October, was that book! I wrote it eleven years ago and spent countless time doing re-writes and submitting it a number of times, until I finally got it right. It was the first novel I'd written and completed and many times I'd put it away thinking it was never going to get published, but I always came back to it and tried again-- there was just something about the story that no matter how many times I read it, I came away with the burning desire to see this book published. The characters have become like family members to me, because I've written them inside out, up and down, and sideways!

What are you currently working on?
At the moment I'm doing major edits on my new line of Australian rural romances with a big Australian publisher. I'm very excited about it and can't wait until it's released early 2011.

If you could ask readers any one question, what would it be?
Would you follow an author into a different category if you enjoyed their style of writing, and do you think their style of writing would still shine through even if the genre's sometimes changed-- say between romantic suspense and contemporary romance?

How can readers follow/find you online?
I have two blogs http://karlybm.blogspot.com/ & http://karlenelane.blogspot.com/ You can find more information and links to other places where you can find me there.

Thank you so much for having me here and I hope you enjoy reading The Cattleman's Runaway Bride as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Karly.