Welcome romance writer, Ginger Hanson!

It's the first time Ginger and I have met today so I am really pleased to be part of her blog tour and gaining the chance to learn a little more about her and her writing.

Let's get started!

1) Who is your favourite author and why?

I have many favorites authors, but Jayne Ann Krentz is one writer whose work I consistently read. I follow Ms. Krentz in all her guises from contemporary to historical to futuristic. She was one of the first authors I read when a friend suggested I write category romance so I got hooked early in her career. She’s also my favorite because she is a true study in perseverance, having reinvented herself several times as the market changed. Now she has the clout to write what she likes and have readers clamor for more. I’ve always loved her futuristic paranormal series and was glad to see the old ones reissued and new ones published.

2) When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I wrote my first short story, “The Magic Tea Tray” when I was eight years old. In truth, I can’t remember when I didn’t think of myself as a writer!

3) Describe your writing space?

My writing space is disorganized chaos with books to the right, books to the left, books behind me. I’m fenced into my actual writing space by a computer, its peripherals, and two desks. One desk is a lovely library desk that has traveled all over the United States with me and the other is a stark utility computer desk. On the wall above my computer monitors (I use two because I used to copyedit and two monitors made life easier) is a bulletin board covered with photos from my current story, writing tips, important passwords, and dusty reminder post-it notes. I also pinned up a photo a friend of mine took of me for a product placement project for her photojournalism class. I’m holding a copy of one of my books and she added the blurb: “Put a little romance in your life!”

A second bulletin board fills the wall to my left. This is where I pin up homemade clip art books covers for my works in progress. And I a favorite quote by Katherine: If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun!

4) What are you reading now? Harriette Wilson's Memoirs, The Greatest Courtesan of Her Age, edited by Leslie Blanch. I hope to complete another Regency this year and needed to brush up on my Regency ambience! Plus, it’s a fun read.

5) How many books have you written? Written? Lots more than have been published! I have five published novels under my belt as well as several short stories, most recently a Tassanoxie Christmas story. I also have an article in an anthology about writing your first book.

What is your favourite? Choosing a favorite book is always difficult, but my first published book, Tennessee Waltz, a Civil War era romance, holds a special place in my heart. During my quest to become published, many women in my hometown read the manuscript, fell in love with it, and asked if they could lend it to a friend or relative.

Their belief in this story led me to enter the manuscript in a national contest where it won its category and was chosen Best in Show. The rights to this book recently reverted to me and I plan to re-title it, create a much prettier cover, and reissue it in ebook format.

6) What comes first, plot or characters? I often think of that as a chicken or an egg type question. The answer depends on the story. Sometimes the idea for a plot comes first, but other times an idea for a character grabs me and won’t let go. I have to be around my characters for a while to get acquainted because I’m not good at filling out lists or making up background lives early in the process. I need to plop the characters into a situation and see how they react. That’s how I get to know therm.

But I also like to plot and I do a lot of preplanning because I like to have a general idea of where I’m going in the story. If it’s a historical, I want to have a good grasp of real world events because I’ll weave them into the story. I need an idea of where I want to go with a plot, but the route I take to reach the end might not match my original outline because of the characters.

7) Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? Not really, but I like to have several projects underway. Writing is a gestation process for me. If things aren’t going right in a story, it may be time to step back, work on another story or take a long walk or a nap and let the story gestate a little longer. Sometimes the brain needs time to weave the elements into a better whole.

8) What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Read! I read all types of books. And I study Taoist Tai Chi. It helps to keep me a lot healthier than I was.

9) Tell us about your latest book? Lady Runaway is my latest historical. A few weeks after it was published, the first book in my sweet contemporary series was published. Then the second. With three books out in 2 years, Lady Runaway hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. I’m hoping to correct that situation in 2012.

Lady Runaway is about a second chance at love, a common theme in most of my books. Usually my heroine and/or hero have been hurt in their early relationships (who hasn’t) and now they have a chance to get it right. In Lady Runaway, both Dev and Riana have been involved in previous relationships and neither ended well. This story not only gives them another chance at a meaningful relationship, but they also both learn how to be true to their inner self.

Here’s the blurb for Lady Runaway:

Fleeing arrest by a spurned suitor, Lady Riana Travistock heads for London where she is knifed in a street brawl when she helps a man attacked by footpads. Luckily for Lady Riana, the victim of the attack is army surgeon Captain Devlin Carrington who takes her home to tend her injury.

When Dev cuts off her blood-soaked chemise to stitch the knife wound, a fortune in jewels spill out. Has he saved a lovely jewel thief only to watch her hang?

10) What’s next for you? Right now, I’m at a crossroads in my career. As I mentioned, I recently received the reversion of rights for my first two historical romances and plan to self-publish them as e-books. I also have a more traditional Regency romance on the back burner I’d like to finish writing this year. And I’d love to write some stories about pioneer female aviators!

So many stories to write, so little time…

Excerpt

Dorking, England 1811

Sir Hector patted her knee. Riana’s heart slammed into a higher pace. The cologne and his proximity crowded her. She wanted to push him over backward so she could breathe.

“Your father approved my suit. In fact, he told me it pleased him greatly to know his daughter would be cared for after he died.”

What a plumper! Her father had ceased caring for her after his sole male heir died in that ridiculous gun accident.

“I could not speak my heart while you were in mourning,” Sir Hector said, “but your father promised me your hand in marriage.”

The words hung in the air, their graveyard stench overlain with the sickly sweet scent of the oppressive Canterbury violet perfume. Her father’s animosity reached out from the grave to clamp a cold hand around her heart. He never forgave her for living while his heir died. Not content to ruin the estate, now he had found a way to ruin her life. A molten flare of anger devoured the pain of betrayal and rejection. Her father was dead; no laws of obedience bound her now.

“My father had no right.”

He waved away the faint words as if they lacked consequence. “It was a gentleman’s agreement. In return for certain financial transactions.”

His statement stole the air from her lungs. Despair overrode anger, welling up to melt her bones and slump her back into the chair. Her father had sold her to Sir Hector!

Bio:

Ginger Hanson is a former college history teacher who found writing historical romance a natural outlet for her love of history. While Lady Runaway is her first foray into the Regency period, her two award-winning Civil War era historical romantic adventures were published in 2004. Ransom's Bride scored success as the winner of the 2005 Gayle Wilson Award Of Excellence and was a finalist in the 2005 Holt Medallion Contest. Tennessee Waltz was a finalist in the 2005 Maggie as well as the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence in the Historical category.

Ginger also has two published contemporary romance novels set in the fictional small town of Tassanoxie, Alabama. The series slid into ebook only format with a 2011 Christmas short story, A Christmas Diamond for Merry.

Links:

http://www.gingerhanson.com

Ginger's publisher, Twilight Times Books running the ebook version of Lady Runaway at a 50% discount from the Twilight Times Books web site, Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook for the week of her blog tour. Here are the buy links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Lady-Runaway-ebook/dp/B003TU2K0Q/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&qid=1328195840&sr=8-2

BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lady-runaway-ginger-hanson/1100242423?ean=2940043310521&itm=1&usri=lady+runaway

Ginger will be giving away a $10 Barnes and Noble GC and the choice of either a print copy of How I Wrote My First Book: The Story Behind the Story which includes “Ten Lessons I Learned from Writing Quest for Vengeance" by Ginger Hanson -or- a new paperback copy of Ransom’s Bride by Ginger Hanson to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/12/virtual-book-tour-lady-runaway-by.html