Today I’m thrilled to have Laura Strickland author of Champion of Sherwood with me in the Blue Rose Writing Room. Laura will be awarding a $25 Gift Certificate to The Wild Rose Press to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour (US only).
Welcome Laura!
Welcome Laura!
Tell us, do you use a pen name/pseudo name? If so, why. If not, why did you decide to write under your own name?
I do use a pen name, mainly because my actual married name is unpronounceable. I figured if I used that name, no one would ever be able to walk into a book store and successfully order my books! My husband assures me he is Transylvanian and, in fact, a direct descendant of Vlad the Impaler. Yes, I married him anyway. It does worry me a bit that he can’t see his reflection in mirrors, and garlic tends to make him violently ill.
What’s one thing you absolutely can’t tolerate during your writing? One thing you can’t write without?
Over the years, I seem to have developed the capacity to tolerate almost anything and still keep writing. I suppose the ability comes from countless hours spent scribbling in spiral notebooks while members of my family, disregarding the fact that I’m obviously concentrating on something, interrupt me on a regular basis. It’s as if they can’t see the pen in my hand and the crazed, far-away look in my eyes. Though come to think of it, if a person spends countless hours scribbling in a spiral notebook I suppose the only way to communicate with her would be to interrupt …
As for what I can’t write without … Well, it’s the spiral notebook, which must be college ruled, and a pen, preferably with blue ink.
What’s the funniest thing anyone has ever said to you about your writing? Or the unkindest? Or the oddest?
Well, I work for a library system in Western New York, and when Devil Black, my first book for The Wild Rose Press came out, a member of the board told me quite sincerely she would buy a copy and read it, and “if it was any good” she would donate it to her library branch. I didn’t know how to respond. It was both a little bit funny and a little unkind. But she did end up donating Devil Black to her branch, so I guess she must have deemed it worthy after all! We definitely need to keep a sense of humor when people speak about our books. Most folks have no idea our books are actually our children and that slighting them is tantamount to declaring our little boy or girl is ugly.
What is one place you absolutely want to visit before you die?
I’ve already been to both places I always said I wanted to visit before I died: Newfoundland and Scotland. That doesn’t mean I’m ready to check out and go on to the next life, or anything. I mean, if I can have a few more decades, I’m willing to plan return trips. It’s funny, but while at both places, Newfoundland and Scotland, I felt completely at ease and utterly at home. So I believe there’s much value in journeying to these places of our heart.
Anyway, after writing three books based on the legend of Robin Hood – Daughter of Sherwood, Champion of Sherwood and Lord of Sherwood, (coming soon) – I do think I should set foot in Sherwood Forest and breathe that enchanted air, before I breathe my last!
Why did you choose to write in this genre? Have you ever written any other genre? Do you plan on doing so in the future?
Is there any genre you won’t read? Write? Can you tell us why?
Is there any genre you won’t read? Write? Can you tell us why?
I’ve always been a voracious reader and since I have the great good fortune to work for a library system, I have access to a wide variety of books. The genre I choose to read tends to depend very much on what mood I happen to be in. Of course I love Romance, but when the spirit moves me I’ll also reach for Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Sci Fi – even Westerns. When a book catches my eye, I read the opening line, and if that snags my interest the book goes home with me! I’ve cuddled up at night with a wide array of authors, from Louisa May Alcott to Terry Pratchett (a particular favorite of mine), and enjoyed the vast majority of them.
As might be expected, I’ve also challenged my mind by writing stories in a variety of genres. It’s fun to think outside the box, and jump out of the literary rut. Some of my most rewarding work has come when I’ve challenged myself with the question, “I wonder if I could write that?” I’ll basically try my hand at just about any genre, and have lately penned my first Steampunk Romance.
What historical figure do you wish you could have met?
What historical figure do you wish you could have met?
After writing three Historical Romances about his descendants, I have to confess I would like to have met Robin Hood, if only to see if I got it right. I have such a clear picture of Robin in my mind – kind, clever, courageous, compassionate and very wise. Who wouldn’t want to meet such a man? And only imagine walking with him for an hour or two in Sherwood, where he lived and died! If they ever successfully invent time travel, you can bet I’ll be in line for my ticket back to Nottingham.
Tell us one unusual, weird, or curious fact you discovered while researching this book.
When I read the old Robin Hood legends and watched Robin Hood movies, it always seemed as if the dreaded Sheriff of Nottingham was very much entrenched in his position – an immovable force against whom Robin and his men battled for many years. But while researching Champion of Sherwood, I located an accurate list of those men who had held the post of Sheriff of Nottingham, arranged by year. (My hero, Gareth de Vavasour – nephew to the Sheriff of Nottingham – gets his surname from the actual man who held the post at that time). I was surprised to discover that apparently the post changed hands frequently. Rarely was the same man listed as Sheriff of Nottingham for more than two years in a row, though sometimes the same name did make a return appearance later. It seems politics must have been very much a factor even in the thirteenth century. Whoever happened to be in favor got the plum position!
Do you have a favorite quote?
I love quotes and enjoy memorizing them – they’re like little gems of wisdom we can carry around with us. Some of my very favorites come from the lyrics of songs. It would be difficult to choose just one, but if I did it would probably come from the mind of Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame. There’s a line I love from his song. Skating Away on the Thin Ice of a New Day: “Do you ever get the feeling that the story’s too damn real and in the present tense?” As a writer, I get that feeling quite often!
Tell us something unusual, quirky, or odd about yourself.
Well, I tend to live a very simple lifestyle, not unlike that of the characters about whom I write in my Guardians of Sherwood Trilogy. I think I would have been pretty happy living as did the Saxons of Nottinghamshire back in the thirteenth century (without the deprivations imposed by their Norman overlords, that is!) For instance, my husband and I have heated our home with wood for the last thirty years – we don’t even have a working furnace in the house, and we live in a very cold climate. Not only that, but we cut and harvest most of our firewood from our own property. We also grow much of our food in season. Actually, my husband, Paul, gets most the credit for that though I do enjoy gathering a basket full of fresh spinach, chard and beet greens in summer and making a big, beautiful salad! Not sure if that’s quirky, but at least if the grid ever goes down, I’m pretty sure we’ll survive!
Okay, now for the quickie questions: Answer in three words or less. Ready? Go!
Favorite Disney Character? Beauty’s Beast
Favorite Fruit? Grilled pineapple – yum!
Favorite Hero? Bullwinkle J. Moose
Favorite Eye Color? Gray
Best Vacation Destination? Scotland
Food you can’t stand? Chick peas – yuck!
What annoys you? Senseless Facebook posts
Coffee, tea, or something else? Water, definitely
Nightgown or Jammies? Nightgown
Prefer dogs or cats? Dogs (sorry, cats!)
When Gareth de Vavasour, nephew of the Sheriff of Nottingham, is captured by the outlaws of Sherwood Forest and held for ransom, he knows he will be fortunate to escape with his life. Amid the magic and danger that surround him, he soon realizes his true peril lies in the beautiful dark eyes of Linnet, the Saxon healer sent to tend his wounds.
Granddaughter of Robin Hood, Linnet has always known she is destined to become a guardian of Sherwood Forest, along with her sister and a close childhood companion. She believes her life well settled until the arrival of Gareth. Then all her loyalties are tested even as her heart is forced to choose between love and the ties of duty, while Sherwood declares its own champion.
ENJOY AN EXCERPT:
Her face floated above him, a pure, almost perfect oval. Most of her dark brown hair lay gathered under a head covering, but her brows soared like two dark wings over eyes so beautiful and unusual he scarcely dared look into them. Fringed by the longest lashes he had ever seen, they appeared liquid dark, bottomless and wild. In truth, she felt wild withal, despite her neat clothing, a foreign creature not meant for this place. Yet her hands remained kind and calm, her face serene—an intriguing contrast.
Gareth shook his head.
A slight frown marred her smooth brow. “A word of advice—you will tell them, sooner or later. Spare yourself their persuasion.”
“Torture, is it? As might be expected of cowards.”
She withdrew slightly. “If you think those people out there cowards, you know nothing about them.” In defiance of her hard words, her fingers slid over his skin, applying some sort of unguent before pressing a cloth bandage in place.
To Gareth’s surprise, he felt a prick of arousal.
This was not the time, the place, nor the woman—beautiful as she might be.
ABOUT LAURA
Born and raised in Western New York, Laura Strickland has pursued lifelong interests in lore, legend, magic and music, all reflected in her writing. Though her imagination often takes her to far off places, she is usually happiest at home not far from Lake Ontario, with her husband and her “fur” child, a rescue dog. Currently she is at work on the third book of the Guardians of Sherwood series.
Publisher: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=1042
