Monday, October 11, 2010
Charting Our Course with Jenny Brown
According to her website, “Jenny Brown writes the kind of historical romance she loves to read: richly emotional stories featuring vibrant characters who must confront their fears and break through their limitations before they can find love.” Sounds like we need to raid her bookshelves. After we’ve devoured her debut novel, of course. This talented author was gracious enough to agree to an interview here on The Revenge, and we’re happy to have her.Bo’sun: Thank you for joining us today, Ms. Brown.
JB: It’s a pleasure to come on board!
Bo’sun: Now that I’ve introduced you, I think it only fair we introduce your Lord Lightning. Would you tell us a bit about the book?
JB: Well, as you might have noticed it’s easy to get carried away when playing a social role that earns you a lot of attention—even if it is negative attention—nothing personal, Captain, so you can put down that cat o’ nine tails! The hero of my novel, Edward Neville, has done just that. He glories in the shocking behavior that has made society nickname him Lord Lightning and takes pride in his reputation for having the coldest of cold hearts. So when a prim, country-bred lady astrologer reads his chart in front of a room full of people and declares that he is a man who desperately needs to give and receive love, it infuriates him.To punish the meddling astrologer he abducts her and threatens to make her his mistress—it’s merely one of his usual outrageous pranks, intended to scare her, but Lord Lightning gets a taste of his own medicine when Eliza shocks him and takes him up on his offer. She’s destitute and the money he will pay her will rescue her priceless astrological books.
Though elderly virgins aren’t at all in Edward’s usual line, he tells himself a few days with him will rid Eliza of any belief that he hides a loving heart and takes her on. But Eliza, too, is not what she appears to be on the surface, and before he knows it, she has dragged him into an adventure that before it is over will force them both to confront their deepest fears and set aside the masks behind which they’ve been hiding.
Bo’sun: It sounds like your hero has some piratical tendencies. Give that man a sash and some knee-boots and he could rule his own ship. We’ll get the craft question out of the way, and I’m sure you’ve been asked it a million times already, but do you pants, plot, or a little of both?
JB: I am constitutionally unable to plot before writing. I wish I could, as it would be nice to know where a story was going while writing it. But the only way I’ve ever been able to write fiction is to find a vibrant scene, learn as much as I can about the characters who show up in it, and let their conflicts lead me to a plot.
Bo’sun: Ah, you’re among friends here. This debut is the first of your Lords of the Seventh House series. Can you tell us where this premise comes from and the meaning behind it?
JB: The Seventh House is the segment of an astrological chart that describes our marriage partner. It’s “lord” is its ruling planet. So this traditional phrase seemed perfect to describe a romance series where each hero would bring to life the conflicts typical of each sign.
Bo’sun: Ah, astrology. Our own Captain Hellion has an interest in this area. And she’s shown me how accurate those charts can be.
JB: I hope Captain Hellion and anyone else with any acquaintance with real astrology will enjoy the fact that the lovers in my stories have real charts that describe real internal conflicts. So Lord Lightning is not only a Leo, he’s a Leo whose Moon is conjunct Mars in Taurus, and who has the newly discovered planet, Uranus at his Midheaven—much to Eliza’s dismay, since her ancient books can tell her nothing about its meaning.Bo’sun: What do you have planned next in the series?
JB: In my next book the hero and heroine are both Scorpios. Captain Trevelyan falls hard for a seductive pickpocket, but because he's on a secret mission, his passion turns into torment when he learns she may have been sent out by his enemies to steal more than just his heart.
Bo’sun: Two Scorpios? That is a level of drama that must be read! When you decided to write fiction, did you always intend to use astrology in your plots?
JB: Not at all. I chose an astrologer heroine for the first book because her ability to read character from a chart gave her a reason to believe there was good in the hero when no one else could see it. It was my agent who convinced me to write a series with an astrological premise.
Bo’sun: Smart agent. LOL! From the looks of the bio on your website, you’ve led an interesting and varied life. From a successful career writing non-fiction to your time as a singer songwriter, do you use your experiences in your fiction writing? Have you found a way to apply them, besides the astrology, to an historical setting?
JB: I hope the broad range of experiences I’ve had over the years give me the ability to tell stories that aren’t the same old, same old. But when I find myself time traveling to the past it’s important to me to bring back stories that could have taken place in the past and turn on the way society worked during a time very different from our own. I hate supposedly historical novels where the characters behave too much like modern people. So while my characters may have conflicts that derive from experiences I’ve had in my own life, the way they play out is quite different from the way they have in mine.
Bo’sun: Be prepared for a big AMEN from this crew on that one. What was the most difficult part of switching from non-fiction to fiction writing? Did you have to change your voice or find a new one?
JB: My nonfiction is very fact-dense and based on laborious research. Most of it has also been written for an audience that is largely male. So it has been a huge shift to write imaginative works read entirely by women. I have to completely turn off the analytical side of my brain and go into an almost trancelike state to write fiction. It’s not easy for me and I’m very proud of myself for having learned how to do it, at last.
Bo’sun: With the book on shelves less than two weeks now, has the big debut been what you expected? Anything you didn’t expect? Anything you’d change?
JB: The best part of the debut has been that Lord Lightning has gotten much better shelf placement than I expected. It has been a thrill to learn that it is in the front of the store in quite a few Barnes & Nobles and Borderses and even on the racks in many Walmarts.
What I didn’t expect was how anxious I’d gets upon seeing those books on the shelves and realizing that unless strangers buy them they will all come back as stripped returns. There are so many other books by well known authors that have come out at the same time as mine competing for the same reader dollar. Now I have a much better understanding of why agents and editors hammer home the message that your first book has to stand out and be different than books by existing authors for it to have any chance at all.
Bo’sun: I’m sure what’s inside the book will create word of mouth and your books will fly high, but that cover is definitely a bonus for getting a reader to pick it up! Any advice for the waning as-yet-unpubbed author struggling to tread water these days?
JB: If you are writing fiction because you think it will make you rich and earn you the admiration of everyone you meet, get help. Most published novelists put in ten times the work for one tenth of the reward they would have earned had they put the same amount of effort into any other field of endeavor. The only reason to write is because you enjoy the actual writing.
Bo’sun: I’m pretty sure none of this crew harbor illusions of grandeur. LOL! But that’s great advice. And finally, we try to create a unique drink for all our guests. Do you have any suggestions for what would best represent your book and you? A Thunder Bolt maybe? Lick a battery then take a drink?
JB: Sounds about right!
Bo’sun: As a bonus today, you all have a mission. You can raise Jenny’s anxiety level by sending her photos of not-yet-sold copies of Lord Lightning you spot on store shelves in your region and enter a drawing for an advanced reading copy of her next book or a custom titanium bead. Find out more about the “Where is Lord Lightning” contest here.
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32 comments:
Jenny, with a contest like that running, sounds like you need a drink to settle the nerves, not singe the tongue!
Here, honey...deep dark chocolate with a splash of Baileys and Irish Mist...
And I love that pantser philosophy! I've hide any plotting I dabble with from my muse. (He'll throw a fit if he thinks were plotting. He much prefers the free-thinking aspect of writing. And free-thinking aspects of everything, come to think of it! Pirate!)
Lovely cover! Will you be including the charts in each of the books, with explanation? I once worked with several astrologers at a metaphysical bookstore and was always amazed at the accuracy!
Hi Jenny, Welcome!
I'm fascinated by the plot of your book and would love to read it if only I could download it. I don't buy paper books any more due to lack of shelf space. My physics books take preference and have already removed any need for wall paper! *grin*
The UK financial Times used to employ an astrologer to predict market movements. I used to religiously follow the predictions, based on 'astro-coefficients', for quite a while.
Though not particularly reliable, the results seemed better than chance to me, and certainly better than 'expert' predictions. Then the FT sacked him following reader complaints that a reputable paper should not be publishing such rubbish. I no longer buy the paper!
I tried to download your book from ebooks.com and found that copyright restrictions excluded the UK. The long list of allowed countries included pretty well every third world country I could think of so I don't understand why poor old England is being picked on like this!
I think it is a stroke of genius to choose your time period as late 18th century, when Uranus was only just discovered and therefor had not been allowed for in the charts. A most intriguing way to include uncertainty into the heroine's astrology!
I think you may be unwise to assume that your writing is 'imaginative work read entirely by women ' :lol:
The males of the species can sometimes recognize a good thing when they see it! :wink:
Lovely to meet you.
And good luck with the sales.
2nd Chance,
Each of my pairs of lovers have charts. I include the birth data but not the actual chart (the size of the pages would make that hard to do properly.) You can cast the charts yourself using the free software at http://alabe.com/freechart/ .
Quantum,
You can download Lord Lightning in Kindle format from the UK Amazon site and read it using Kindle for the PC or Kindle for the Mac (both free downloads).
Arch Crawford is the guy I'd always heard of as being the astrologer who for decades has done a good job predicting the market. Here's his site: http://www.crawfordperspectives.com/ I have the kind of chart where anything I will buy will tank, so I don't attempt to use that kind of tool, but given the record of the so-called experts, you couldn't do worse!
I am completely intrigued (HOOKED, actually!) by this heroine. Okay, I'm hooked by the Leo hero. What astrological sign is the heroine?
Are your characters astrologically compatible? (I.e. she's another fire sign) OR is she just whatever and they learn to deal and understand each other?
I have a book by Linda Goodman called Love Signs, where she doesn't erase the possibility of an Aquarian and a Pisces hooking up, but she does disclose it will take more effort on their part to get along. Mainly because he'll be an insufferable know-it-all and you'll want to stab him repeatedly.
Anyway, I have always been intrigued by the book because although a Pisces might be more compatible with a Cancer or Scorpio, hope is not all lost if she suddenly falls in love with a Capricorn. (I wouldn't know if one would fall in love with a Capricorn. They tend to be rather Puritan and stuffy. It would be a bit like falling for Cotton Mather, if you think about it.)
I'm at work now, but I'll stop off at my favorite bookstore (which is conveniently located near my gym) and look for your book! I have no picture capabilities on my phone though, so I'll just have to buy it and bring it home for pictures, which won't work for this experiment, but you probably won't mind.
Chance - I'm going to need one of those drinks. Can you put all that in a giant pot of coffee?
Good morning! I have had a crazy morning and I've barely been at work thirty minutes. So let me get more coffee in me and I'm sure I'll think of some questions.
BTW, I told you Hellie was going to love this, huh? LOL! I so adore these covers.
Hellie - Don't be dissing the Capricorns!
Well, I wouldn't say you're a Puritan, Bo'sun. But I would say you're sorta stuffy. *dances out of reach*
There is nothing stuffy about being practical and responsible. Responsible has gotten me a long way. LOL!
If you say so, but I have to say, you SOUNDED remarkably stuffy just saying there was nothing stuffy about being practical and responsible.
Just saying.
We can't all be paranoid, moody Pisces.
:)
Perfection IS better accepted in small controlled doses. And you'd know all about "controlled" anything...so you know what I'm talking about. :)
Hellion,
Of course my heroine's chart is compatible with the heros. She's a Sagittarius with an Aries ascendant.
But if you are really interested in astrological matchmaking, it's worth taking the next step and reading books that go far beyond Goodman's so you understand how all the planets and the house placements influence compatibility (and for that matter character.) I recommend Steven Forrest's The Inner Sky and Skymates and Donna Cunningham's How to Read Your Astrological Chart for starters, and then Stephen Arroyo's Relationships and Lifecycles. These will get you started learning how to read a whole chart and judge relationships from what you see on charts. If it's your own relationship, it's best to see a pro. We all tend to see what we want to see when we read charts, as my heroine's story demonstrates.
you understand how all the planets and the house placements influence compatibility
I was emailing Bo'sun about this last night. *LOL* I told her I didn't understand the deeper, below the surface stuff of astrology that can make it truly "spooky".
I'm afraid to see a pro. I don't want to be told basically anyone else I could have picked would have been a better choice. (Not that he's a horrible choice, mind you; I adore him; it's just my fear I'm going to be criticized. See: paranoid and moody.) And I definitely would not want to be told that that idiot I went on a coffee date with and he told me I wrote chick porn was actually my soul mate. (Again, I irrationally fear this is what I'd be told.) *LOL*
There are many aspects of my life about which I should probably consult a professional. But I probably need the most help in the relationship department, so this sounds like really good advice. I'm not as irrational as our Captain, but I'd still hate to have my fears confirmed, that I'm not compatible with anyone.
I’d still hate to have my fears confirmed, that I’m not compatible with anyone.
Second only to being compatible with Jerkface Coffee Guy. (If I recall right we were "compatible" signs. What a JOKE. He must have had some conflicting house or something.)
Hello Jenny! I'm very intrigued by the description of Lord Lightning and hope to get my hands on a copy very soon! It sounds absolutely wonderful!
Jenny, congratulations on your debut! This book sounds great. I like series with a unifying theme.
We all tend to see what we want to see when we read charts, as my heroine’s story demonstrates.
Now I need to find out what your heroine chose to see that wasn't there. Man, you know how to drop good hints.
Hello, Melissa & Nancy! This book definitely stands out from a lot of the historicals out there today. I love to find something original on the shelves.
Congratulations on your debut book, Jenny! The premise sounds interesting, and as a research junkie, I'm fascinated by your research.
Did you find the nonfiction writing you had done of any benefit with your fiction writing?
Welcome aboard, Jenny! I love the idea of astrology as a plot device. Sounds really interesting.
My dad was a Leo. I bet writing about one was interesting.
I'm not sure I believe in astrology (much too practical for that) but there's a part of me that can't help but be fascinated. I'm a Virgo, after all.
Bo'sun, Mostly it isn't that we read things that are wrong so much as that we don't see or rationalize away the stuff we don't want to see.
As far as seeing a pro goes, a good astrologer should make you come away feeling a lot better about the way you are.
One thing you learn reading charts is that what constitutes a "good relationship" is really different from person to person, and this, again is clear on the chart. The planets you have in your 5th and 7th houses, and the planets ruling those houses will describe what you need in a relationship. Sometimes that is conflict, or people who other people might not think ideal, but they're what YOU need.
Astrology done by someone who knows what they are doing should be very reassuring.
Well, that comment alone is very reassuring. It does seem we often forget how unique we are and it's not about finding the perfect person, but the perfect person for us.
Which is the goal when putting these characters together too. They must compliment each other. So when you created these characters and got to know them, did it start with the astrology? Or did that fall into place after they started to come alive in your mind?
I'd totally trust Jenny on this, Hel and Ter. A good astrology isn't going to set down rules... "You can't be with him! You must be with a ...whatever." There's so much more to it! all those houses and rising signs and ascending signs and...
Nope, I don't understand it much, but I grew to respect it while working at the bookstore!
Sometimes that is conflict, or people who other people might not think ideal, but they’re what YOU need.
I think this has been the underlying truth beneath every romance novel I've ever read.
Jenny,thanks for the info that your book is available in the UK on Kindle.
I will definitely download it at the weekend.
Thanks also for the link to Arch Crawford!
Its fascinating that you have real charts for the characters in your book.
As a scientist I love mysteries concerning the Universe and astrology seems to fit neatly with other paranormal experience.
Deepak Chopra has a book out on Quantum theory and astrology I think.
Do you have any thought on mechanisms by which the heavenly bodies could strongly influence individual lives as assumed in astrology? Does your Heroine explore such things?
Physicists are starting to think about complex quantum 'entanglement' issues, where all matter in the universe could be coupled more strongly than the weak gravitational force allows. Thinking along those lines suggests that we may eventually absorb the empirical experience of astrology into main stream science.
Would love to hear any thoughts on mechanisms to explain how it all might work, or is this still firmly in the realm of fiction? 8)
Physicists are starting to think about complex quantum ‘entanglement’ issues, where all matter in the universe could be coupled more strongly than the weak gravitational force allows. Thinking along those lines suggests that we may eventually absorb the empirical experience of astrology into main stream science.
Gods, I love it when he talks science!
*fans self
All kidding aside, I love this idea, Q! Entanglement issues...the idea that the bonds between 'ideas' may be more complex than thought and superstitions/faith/alternate beliefs may actually be part of the biggest picture and the smallest.
Huzzah!
Chance, you're easily impressed!
Come a little closer my dear, and I'll explain it all in detail. *winks to Chancilocks* :wink:
Yep, great minds are thinking holography for how perception works.
Astrology is just one manifestation. :D
I do love science! ;-)
I've been reading up on scotch, Q. I strive to serve you better!
*wicked laugh
Come a little closer my dear, and I’ll explain it all in detail.
I love it when Q is wicked. It's so fun.
Nothing better than a wicked scientist...long as they ain't evil at the same time... ;-)
I'm an engineery-sciency person in real life, but I don't have a clue why astrology works, and tend to avoid looking for scientific explanations because they all sound lame and are usually promulgated by people who don't have much of a grasp of how astrology works and have a pathetic need to have other people validate their beliefs.
My attitude towards astrology is that much of it seems ridiculous, some of the techniques are ridiculously medieval, but crazy as it all seems, it works and the deeper I go into studying the ancient and medieval techniques the better it works.
So to me, whatever it is, it is a very helpful tool. And because I find it so helpful, I don't feel a need to prove works to skeptics any more than I need to prove to them that chocolate tastes good.
Re the question about how helpful nonfiction was in writing fiction, the answer is it's mostly not at all helpful. All the highly organized structured thinking that produces good nonfiction makes for DOA novels. I write nonfiction books by working up detailed outlines out of tons of supporting cites, quotes, interviews, etc. But to write fiction I have to completely turn off the analytical side of my brain (very tough to do) and push off into the unknown and find some people to write about. Once I have a draft some of the analytical stuff comes in helpful, mostly to figure out what so much of it sucks.
But every time I think I can shorten up the process of getting that 250 page first draft done coming up with a clever organizing concept or laboring over an outline--which are the things that make nonfiction work--the baby novel turns blue and has to be rushed to the ICU where surgeons remove any hope I have that I can intellectualize my way towards a story people would pay money to read.
A BEAD? my bead o'meter went off and it took half the day to find where...2nd, you coulda let me know there was a bead at stake here. I love a new book, but a precious little bead, that makes my eyes glaze over. I will have to find a bookstore on the way home...Congrats Jenny, new authors are needed to keep us readers happy, and I love Astrology, must download your book, I plotted my chart by hand years ago, just cause I could, then ordered one to see how I did...nailed it. there are those who find mathematical exercises fun...HI crew!
That is true, Sister Lucky Me is an avid beader. She's made me an incredible beaded bag featuring my two dogs...the beagle's ear was even articulated! You should see her beading room!
Good luck, Lucky Me!
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