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When
is the Regency period set?
The
actual period was 1811 - 1820 -- the period when King George was
mad, and his son acted as Regent. However, in practise, books
set between 1800 and 1830 are loosely classed as Regencies.
Are
Regencies generally funny?
The
author who "created" regencies as a sub-genre was
Georgette Heyer -- and she was a wonderful comic writer, so
since then, humour has been part of many regencies. Not all
regency writers include comedy -- Mary Balogh is one -- hers are
dramatic and absolutely wonderful.
But
I don't think of mine as comedies -- sure there is comedy in
them, but also drama and angst -- I hope.
In
Tallie’s Knight, Magnus comes across as a Mr. Darcy
type hero. Did you model him on Darcy or is he a complete
figment of your imagination?
Thanks.
No, I didn't model him on Darcy or anyone else. I have a
weakness for the strong silent type. I suspect what romance
authors do is to develop their own particular heroes -- and mine
tend to be a little battered by life and a little reticent... at
first. Although the hero in my current work is not at all
reticent. He's strong, yes, but silent -- never!
Can
you tell us how you researched Tallie’s European journey?
I
wanted to set a story on the Grand Tour -- wealthy young men
often did a tour of Europe as part of their coming of age but in
this case it was my heroine who wanted to do it. I'd seen an
engraving of travellers being carried across the Alps in baskets
by the local men, and the picture caught in my imagination.
While
I was researching it, I came across references to letters
written by Catherine Wilmot, a young woman travelling with
aristocratic friends during 1802-3 (the exact time of my story)
and when I tracked down the letters from the rare book
collection at the State Library, they were wonderful.
Entertaining, funny and with a wealth of wonderful detail --
just what I needed for Tallie.
Tallie's
Knight has a rather high degree of er.... sensuality! I
remember reading a Georgette Heyer when I was about 11 and
feeling quite "excited" when the hero kissed the
heroine's hand or something equally tame. Have you broken new
ground in the degree of sensuality in TK (and perhaps your other
regencies) or is this the "new look" Regency style?
No,
I haven't broken new ground at all -- writers like Mary Balogh
paved the way for the sensual regency, and certainly HM&B
have no restrictions on sensuality. Some US regency publishers
do. I'm not known as a particularly sensual writer -- but I
don't shy away from it when the relationship demands it. TK is
probably the most sensual of my books and I think it was
necessary for this particular convenient marriage story.
Do
you see yourself branching out into longer mainstream
historicals? ie. I felt Tallie's Knight could've easily
been a lot longer. I wanted more!
Tallie's
Knight was a lot longer. There are about 20K words of it in
my trash bin <G>. I always write too long and have to cut
but the cutting always improves the manuscript, so I'll live
with the bad habit. As for mainstream or single titles -- one
day, perhaps. But first I have to finish the book I'm working
on. I'm not much of a planner ahead.
How
long have you been writing? ie. as in aiming for publication?
It's
happened in bursts over a number of years. I tried a couple of
manuscripts after I got back from a year travelling, when the
energy to write hadn't been drained by my job, but at that stage
I hadn't read widely enough to know what I really wanted to
write. So I was imitating, rather than writing.
I
had 3 or 4 partials and a full length (extremely baaad)
manuscript rejected. As soon as I realised Harlequin published
historicals, I was on track -- writing the stuff I loved in my
own voice. That first historical manuscript was Gallant Waif.
Then
I read Jennifer Crusie's short contemporary romances -- very
funny -- and said -- oh! you can be funny in romance -- I want
to have a go at that! I wrote that book between historicals, but
that was my Sheriff.
Do
you prefer to write historicals or contemporaries?
I
enjoy writing and reading both. Right now I'm concentrating on
historicals but the contemporaries are still there, waiting in
the wings.
Did
you write much as a child? What did you prefer to read as a
child and do you think this influenced you in what you write
now?
I
read everything I could get my hands on as a kid. We didn't have
TV, and I spent days outdoors with the animals and nights in the
worlds between the covers of books. I was lucky in that we had
lots of books and nobody minded what I read. I have 3 much older
siblings, and got to read all their books, too.
Also
I devoured the contents of school and local libraries. In grade
5 and 6 I entered into a kind of unspoken competition with
Alicia O., another teacher's daughter who had to wait behind
<G>, and we read a book a night --the school librarian
tested us next day to check we weren't cheating. That made me a
fast reader.
I
don't remember writing stories or books when I was a kid. And I
never thought of myself as a writer at school -- I never 'got'
creative writing. Mostly I recall writing letters (since we
moved and travelled a lot) and trying to make them funny and
entertaining.
I
suppose I must have absorbed a lot unconsciously from my reading
but I still had a lot to learn as a fiction writer.
Who
were the early influences in your writing? Who do you like to
read now?
Early
influences -- too many to list but would include Georgette Heyer,
Henry Treece and Mary Stewart. I read very widely -- literary as
well as popular fiction. Favourite historical romance authors
include Mary Balogh, Elizabeth Lowell, Jo Beverley, Carla Kelly
-- & heaps more.
Contemporaries
I read Marion Lennox, Liz Fielding, Barbara Hannay, Anne
McAllister, Sophie Weston, Linda Howard... I could go on.
When
you first started writing, did you realise you had such a comic
"voice"? I loved How the Sheriff was Won and
would love to read more Duets of yours.
No.
I think a writer is the last person who understands their voice.
I suppose all those letters helped. I still find it easiest to
write to a particular audience. And in fact, with my first book,
Gallant Waif, the editor wanted some revisions because
the tone was too dark.
Are
you still working full-time or are you writing part-time /
teaching part-time?
I
still need to eat and pay the bills and my writing doesn't pay
that, alas. So yes, I'm still teaching, though not full time.
Would
you like to give up your day job and stay at home writing in
your jammies full time? <g>
I
don't write in my jammies -- I am dressed to my shoes! As if I'm
going out to work. Not dressed up, but clean and dressed so I
can take my puppy for a walk without looking like the local
baglady <G>.
In
any case, even if I was making heaps from my writing, I'd
probably still keep teaching adults to read -- it's fun, very
rewarding and you meet the nicest people. Plus it keeps me
grounded.
Is
it your fifth book being published in October?
Yes,
The Virtuous Widow comes out in October in the UK and
November in the USA. It's a novella in an anthology, with
different authors and with a different jacket title in each
country. It's a brides anthology in the UK and a Xmas one in the
US.
You’ve
been nominated for and won an extraordinary number of awards
during your short career. Which award has meant the most to you
to receive?
They
each mean a lot for different reasons. The RITA finalist was
pretty special because the RITA is a big deal in the USA and
it's chosen by your peers. Also it was my first award and hit me
out of the blue. It also got me a US release for my books.
The
National Reader's Choice Award and the Francis Award and the
Favorite New Author award are all special because they're chosen
by readers. And the RBOTY is special because it's my hometown
award.
Do
you have any upcoming workshops?
In
September I'm running an all day workshop for the Victorian
Writers Centre at RMIT.
To
read more about Anne, her books or beekeeping, visit her
website http://www.annegracie.com/
Nominations
and awards:
1)
GALLANT WAIF
RITA
2001 Finalist for Best First Book.
Winner,
National Readers Choice Award for best Regency. 2001
Kate
the heroine was nominated for the eHarlequin Favorite heroine
award.
2)
TALLIE'S KNIGHT
Winner,
Australian Romance Book of the Year -- category section. 2001
Winner
Francis Award for Best Regency 2001
Finalist,
National Readers Choice Award for best Regency. 2001
Romance
Readers Anonymous 2001 Awards - second place, Best Regency
Romance (Traditional) section.
Finalist-
All About Romance 2001 Readers Awards - in the following
categories:
Most
Hanky Read
Favorite
Heroine
Best
Cabin or Road Romance
and
Favorite Regency
3)
HOW THE SHERIFF WAS WON
Nominated
for two Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Awards 2001 -- Best
First Series Book and Best Duets
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Anne
Gracie burst onto the publishing scene just
two years ago with her first book Gallant Waif,
which went on to be a finalist in the coveted
Romance Writers of America 2001 RITA Award Best
First Book. Anne has received many accolades and
nominations for each of her novels, among them
being voted Favourite New Author of 2001 on the
All About Romance community boards.