Interview With Lynne Connolly

Lynne Connolly writes several different genres and is the author of the Richard and Rose series - historical mysteries set in the Georgian era.

Hello Lynne and thank you for agreeing to do this interview for Historical Tapestry!

It's my pleasure!



We have already reviewed two of your books here at the blog. The first two books in the Richard and Rose series. The books have been very hard to find but now Samhain is going to publish them with the first one coming out Dec 5th.Would you like to tell us how you decided to tell Richard and Rose's story? I believe these were among the first books you've written, had you planned them for long?

Yes, I had the first two in my head for a long time, but when my children were little, I didn't have the time to write them down! I've always written, but when I learned about Richard and Rose, I knew this was the one I should try to get published.
Richard appeared to me on the page. I originally planned a mild-mannered minor nobleman who everybody overlooked, but in the first scene of Yorkshire, he appeared, and I had to stop and rethink!



They are written in the first person from Rose’s point of view. Was that something you planned ahead?

I tried it in the third person, but they didn't work, and I didn't know if I could write the books. But I started again in Rose's point of view and they just came alive. It's the only series I've ever written in the first person.



I see they are labeled by the publisher as Historical Romance which is interesting because I usually think of them as Historical Mysteries with some romance. How do you think of them?

Historical romantic suspense, I always thought. Their love story intruded on what I originally planned as a series of mysteries. The more the series progressed, the more it became about Richard and Rose and the way they coped with each other and fell more deeply in love.



Why did you decide to set them during the Georgian period? The reason I ask is because the Regency seems to be all the rage for a number of years now.

My love affair with the Georgian era is the longest of my life. At school, when I was 9, we did a project on tea and coffee, and we had a talk on Georgian coffee houses. Right then and there I fell in love. So I've read the period all my life and it was natural to set stories there.



How important is historical accuracy for you? Was it hard to research that period?

Extremely important. If something isn't right, it pulls me straight out of the story. I also think it's a bit of an insult to readers, to assume that they won't notice, or that it doesn't matter.
Not hard at all, because I love the period so much. Some literary giants inhabited the era (Pope, Swift, Defoe, Jane Austen), and there is lots of information. Since I've been reading it for a very long time, and I would read it anyway, my only problem is knowing when to stop researching and start writing!



Were you planning on a series of books from the start? Or was just a natural evolution? How many books does the series have now?

I originally thought of "Yorkshire" and "Devonshire" as one book, leading up to their wedding, but the stories grew too long, and then I got the idea. So many romances end at the wedding but isn't that just the beginning? And I used to watch soap operas (I gave them up) where couples never had a happy ending. When the writers wanted to stir things up, they'd split a couple up, just for the story. I wanted to show a love affair that grows and matures.



Do real people appear in the books? We know the main characters are fictional, did you based them on someone or did they just "appear" in your head?

The more I wrote them, the more I got to know them. It usually happens that way. I do plan my books before I write them, but they still take me by surprise, sometimes!
There are quite a few real people in the books, the Fielding brothers of Bow Street, and several of the nobility, but I try to stick to accepted historical facts, and I don't distort them for my own purposes.



Were there any authors who influenced you in your writing? Any authors you admire?

None that influenced me, really. I discovered the US historical romance market after I wrote Richard and Rose! But I've since discovered authors in many genres that I love reading. Laura Kinsale, for historicals, also Loretta Chase and Liz Carlyle. And, of course, Georgette Heyer, who probably started me on the journey in the first place. I was so broken up when she died, I wanted to read more, but the only way was to write them for myself!



Last but not the least we know you are a versatile author and write in several different genres. Would you like to tell us about your other books and how can people find them?

I write paranormal romantic suspense, also known as urban gothic and urban fantasy. Ellora's Cave publishes the Pure Wildfire series, and the upcoming S.T.O.R.M. books, and Loose-Id publishes the Department 57 books. I love writing in different genres, I think it keeps me fresh! I did write a Harlequin book last year, I know it's with an editor, but it's a long wait to hear about it!


Thank you so much Lynne!

The publishing dates for the series are:

Yorkshire - December 5th 2008
Devonshire - Jan 2nd 2009
Venice - May 1st 2009
Harley Street - August 7th 2009
Eyton - November 3rd 2009
Darkwater - January 5th 2010

After that, there will be at least two more stories featuring Richard and Rose.