Thursday, May 11, 2017

Q&A with Cheryl R. Lane, author of Wellington Beaus



Now available is the historical romance Wellington Beaus, book five in the Wellington Cross series, by Cheryl R. Lane.


The author has taken a few minutes out of her busy schedule for a Q&A about her newest novel.


When did you become interested in storytelling?

Probably when I was a little girl. I used to listen to my favorite aunt tell endless stories about things that happened to her. She’s the one who should write books; she’d be a best-seller. I started writing for fun after high school one summer when I took my manual typewriter outside to our picnic table under the trees and wrote a Civil War love story.

What was your first book/story published?

The first book I published was Wellington Cross, the first book in my historical romance series. I self-published this book after many rejections from literary agents and after revamping the book probably four times till I finally got it the way I wanted it. One of those literary agents did give me some good advice about the beginning of the book, developing a character more, and I took that advice and she was right; it made the story better.

What inspired you to write Wellington Beaus?

Wellington Beaus is book five in my Wellington Cross series. Originally, I wrote three books in the series plus a little Christmas novella, and that was all I wanted to do at the time. I then wrote two paranormal romance books, and then decided I wanted to come back to the Wellington series and add a few more books. I had new stories that came to my mind. Wellington Beaus picks up right where book four ends. This book focuses on the two Wellington brothers, Bertie and Godfrey. Godfrey, the older one, is married and expecting his firstborn child, but when tragedy strikes, his whole life is turned upside-down. Meanwhile, Bertie proposes to Amanda Adams, but when an old flame comes to live and work at the boarding house, trouble follows her and being the deputy, Bertie gets involved.

What character in Wellington Beau is the most/least like you, and in what ways?

I am a lot like the character Amanda in that she is the jealous type. She doesn’t like to see her fiancé talk to his old girlfriend, and when she discovers a secret between the two of them, she gets mad enough to give Bertie the engagement ring back. I would be the same way. She gets pretty sassy too, and my good friend, also an author, gave me the new nickname of sassy, ha ha.




What is your favorite part in Wellington Beaus?

Well, being a romance writer, I always love the romantic parts. So one of my favorite parts is when a couple have their first night of intimacy, and the next morning, they talk about their future. I am also a mystery fan, so one of my other favorite parts of the book is when the guns come out towards the end of the book and there’s a chase through the woods, and one of them gets shot. I also love the argument that ensues afterwards between a man and woman who care for each other.

What was the hardest part to write?

The hardest part when writing historical fiction is having to look up what they had or used back then. This book takes place in 1895, so I had to look up what kind of bathrooms or privies did they have? What kind of stove did they use? Did they have running water? What kinds of guns did they use? Everything takes a lot of research.

What would your ideal career be, if you couldn't be an author?

I can’t think of another career that fulfills me as much as being an author. I do have another job as a medical transcriptionist, but every day, I can’t wait till I finish that work so I can get back to writing. Maybe another option could be being an actress. I used to dream of that when I was young. I wanted to be one of Charlie’s Angels pretty bad, ha ha. I had a book written about them and learned that Jaclyn Smith was incredibly shy, but she overcame that in her acting. I admire that because some people say I am shy. I’m not shy; I just can’t think of things to say sometimes. When I do think of something to say, I usually say it. My son is the one who is into acting instead. He has been in several TV shows, commercials, and movies already. I’m very proud of him.

Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?

I read them occasionally. The bad/poor ones, I try to ignore. The good ones, I share on social media sometimes. They inspire me to keep going. The ones in the middle can be learning suggestions, and some I take and others I leave. The bad ones were hard to take in the beginning, but it’s all part of the process of growing as an author and getting better at the craft.

What well-known writers do you admire most?

That’s a hard one; I like so many. I really enjoy Debbie Macomber’s books, all her series books and her standalone Christmas books. They are usually funny, heart-warming, and have a happy ending, like a Hallmark movie. I also enjoy grittier books with more things going on than just romance, like Richard Paul Evans and Jude Deveraux. I am also a big fan of the Twilight books and the Harry Potter series. I especially admire J. K. Rowling for keeping all those make-believe stories in check throughout her series. Those books are very intricate with complicated plots she has to keep straight. It’s really amazing to me.

Do you have any other books/stories in the works?

I'm currently working on book 6 in the Wellington Cross series. This one follows Liam to Cuba where he has joined Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. As a field doctor, he will help many, see some die, and also surprisingly fall in love. Meanwhile back at home at The Forest Plantation, his father Dr. William Brown reads Liam's letters and is reminded of a story from the Civil War involving his cousin Judy, which he tells his family. This is a secret even Ginny doesn't know about. I hope to have this book finished by the fall of 2017.


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About the Author:

Cheryl R. Lane was born and raised in Tennessee and went to college at East Tennessee State
University before marrying her high school sweetheart and moving to Virginia Beach, Virginia.

She started writing as a hobby while in college after purchasing Southern Heritage cookbooks, which were filled with pages of old plantation homes. She wrote more after moving to Virginia Beach and visiting beautifully restored homes in Williamsburg as well as plantations on the James River.

She has been working as a medical transcriptionist for over 20 years while writing on the side, and finally decided to self-publish her first book, "Wellington Cross", on Amazon through Kindle Direct Publishing as well as in print through CreateSpace. She has since published four more books and a novella in that series as well as starting a modern-day fantasy Angel series and has two books in that series so far.

She is currently working on her next novel, book six in the Wellington Cross series.

She is still married to her sweetheart after 28 years and they have one son and a Havanese bichon.

Learn more about Cheryl on her website at: www.cheryllaneauthor.com

Follow the author on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

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