I'm really excited to be able to welcome author Lauren Smith back onto the blog! I talked to her last year about historical romances, and I've shared my thoughts on her her historical romance novels Wicked Designs and His Wicked Seduction, as well as her historical romance novella Tempted by a Rogue. Together with my friends Rachel of Hello Chelly and Kelly of Belle of the Literati, I'm asking Lauren a couple of questions about historical romance! Without further ado, please welcome Lauren back onto the blog.
Alexa: Hi Lauren! First question - what's in a name? And by that, I mean, does the historical setting or plot of your historical romance influence your name choices for your characters? You can get really specific and talk about the character from Tempted By a Rogue, if you'd like. (And bonus question - what historical romance name would you want to have if you were going to be in a romance novel?)
Lauren: Oh names! I love and hate picking names. I like to let the characters tell me their names. I typically pick the names right off the bat because I want to feel like I can hear them in my head talking to me. Does that sound crazy? I hope not. But seriously, I do make sure that the names I pick are relevant and correct for the time period. You'll see more Emmas than say, Stephanies, in the Regency era and less Horatias in the modern day than say, Katies.
In Tempted by a Rogue, I have Gemma because I wanted her name to be like Emma, only different. Plus, her hero Jasper secretly thinks of her as his precious diamond, so it's a very subtle tribute to her worth to the hero. As for the hero, I always loved the name Jasper. I needed him to have a J name like his best friend James because the two boys would be swapping places when Jasper started to write Gemma letters.

Lauren: Weirdly, Regency is my comfort zone, but I DEFINITELY (bounces on my desk chair) want to write other eras. My next most comfortable era is Victorian and I'm dying to sink my teeth into a vampire/gothic romance set in the Victorian age. (Alexa's Note: You write it, and I think I'm going to have to read it! I love the Victorian age too.) And I also want to try my hand at writing some Scottish Highlander (Alexa's note: !!!!!) books and medieval ones too. It comes down to research mainly, and at the moment, I haven't had the time to sit down and do the research for those other eras. But it's certainly in my long-term writing plan.
Alexa: And when it comes to character behavior, their clothing choices, and the setting, there must be an awful lot of research involved in making sure it's as close to accurate as possible (even with fictional liberties). Do you do research for your historical romances? What's the most interesting thing you've learned about and incorporated in your books?

Alexa: I'm with you on the fashion. I love looking at ball gowns and older fashions too! Thank you, once again, for being with us on the blog today, Lauren.
If you haven't checked out Lauren's books yet, I suggest you do! They're such fun historical romance reads, and if I had to choose a favorite, I'd pick Wicked Designs. But you won't regret giving these stories a read! Thanks to Lauren's generosity, we have three (3) paperback copies of Wicked Designs to give away to our readers. Please note that the giveaway is US ONLY.
What is next for you . Any plans for a paranormal series
ReplyDeleteAfter you legue of Rogues finishes will there be another historical series
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