Interview With Adventure Romance Novelist, Marcia Lynn Mcclu

By Author: Alanna Webb
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Adventure romance novelist, Marcia McClure discusses self-publishing, cover design and the inspiration for her work. The following interview was conducted by Alanna Webb, founder of LoveStories.com, with adventure romance novelist, Marcia Lynn McClure. In this exclusive interview, Marcia discusses self-publishing, cover design and the inspiration for her work. LS: Your books are known for being old-fashioned romantic instead of being explicit. What kind of response have you seen (from readers, romance writers, and industry people) to taking this approach? Marcia: I have seen exactly the kind of response that I hoped for...that I was certain existed; Elation from readers who were looking for just the sort of books I write--incredibly romantic and yet safe! Something to share with your teenage daughter or your mother or your best friends! People (especially women) need moments of escape...distraction that leaves them feeling happy, positive, uplifted. That's what I always look for in reading material...so, that's what I write! As far as other romance writers...none have approached me with an opinion...but ...
... I am doing a signing in June with three other romance novelists! We'll see what happens. Those who work in the industry seem surprised at my success. It's hard for me to imagine that so few people think a book in this genre can succeed without explicit intimacy content. But it can! LS: We noticed that your husband is your inspiration, how wonderful that is! I'm so curious how you met and how long after before you married? (Ladies, you MUST see her husband's pic click here! ) Marcia: Yes, Kevin IS my inspiration! He's even coined romantic phrases that appear in my books! How we met? Hmmm....long story. I'll do my best! I was a senior in High School in Albuquerque and Kevin was serving a full-time mission for our church. One day I arrived at a building for a play practice and there was the handsomest young man I had ever seen! Now, being that Kevin was a missionary at the time...we were not able to date! However, I left for college in Idaho not too long after we met, and we wrote letters for an entire year until he returned home to New Orleans, Louisiana in August of 1984. We were married four months later on December 15th! He is my perfect dream-come-true! And such a sincere romantic man! For example...during the year we were corresponding, he once gave blood plasma each week for a month and saved up the money to send me flowers on Valentine's Day! (Heavy sigh!) He's a fabulous friend and husband and a fantastic father! Whew! Boy! Did my mother steer me right when she taught me to be selective about who I married! Thank Heaven! LS: Do you have any advice for today's frustrated single ladies who would love to find someone like your husband? Marcia: Advice? Wow! Well...anytime I'm asked that...and it seems to be quite frequently...I say this; set a standard, think about what you need and want in a companion. Don't look for perfection...just the perfect person for you! If you're a laugher...don't be afraid to laugh and look for someone who laughs with you! Above all...stay in tune with your self-esteem! A great companion will make you feel good about yourself...and you should return that! Keep your eyes peeled...with wisdom! LS: My grandmother's favorite flower was a pansy, so I always think of it as such a nice, old-fashioned flower. Is there a story behind why you chose it for your site? (Marcia's website is one of the nicest author's website that I've seen yet) Marcia: The pansy/violet theme on my web site is taken from some photographs I took. I LOVE violets and pansies! LOVE them! Love to photograph them! Love to float them in crystal bowls filled with water and floating candles! Love to press them and make little framed art thingys with them! In fact, in a book I've just finished rough drafting...there are quite a few scenes that involve pansies! So...yes! There is a story there! I bought those particular violets (the ones featured on my site) at a gas station! Can you believe it? LS: It appears that you self-publish your books. Why did you chose that route? Marcia: The main reason is content control, I guess. I didn't want to have someone force me to change my stories! They come from my heart and I wrote them with good friends in mind and to express myself. I wanted to choose the cover, wanted to make sure they weren't tainted. That's really why it took me so many years to decide to publish at all! It took someone with a great business sense, proven success and a good eye to talk me into doing it! But...now I'm glad he did! LS: Your book covers are just beautiful! How much of the process did you do when you self-published your books? Marcia: The covers of the first two books, The Heavenly Surrender and The Visions of Ransom Lake were created incorporating photographs that I had taken. I knew what I wanted and tried to create it the best I could. Then a graphics artist added the watercolor effects, etc. The third book, Shackles of Honor and the book in line to be printed this summer, Dusty Britches....well, there are many, many folks out there who take better pictures than me! And have more time and opportunity! And so...the covers from those two books originate from my searching through photographs until I found what I wanted! It's great! LS: Do you have any advice for aspiring romance writers, as far as actually getting a book manuscript written? Marcia: I wrote my first stories when my children were little. Ten minutes here, twenty minutes there. I bet I never wrote for an hour straight up until about three years ago! My advice is....don't get discouraged if you can't write for hours at a time! Just write! Write whenever you can steal a few moments! LS: Is there any advice you would give authors who would like to consider self-publishing? Marcia: Yes! Find a book printer that does exactly what you want! One that will give you advice, too...but not try to spoil your vision! AND be prepared for a ton of chaos and work! Printing the book is the easy part! Marketing, merchandising, etc. is the part that will drive you crazy! LS: How much writing do you do each day? Marcia: This past year...not as much as I'd like to. In fact, my assistant has finally convinced me that I need to set aside the time to write! And I have recently. But my life is still very busy! I'm lucky if I get my e-mail answered some days. However....writing is writing! And my new goal is to write, at least, an hour a day! LS: What authors do you enjoy reading when you're not writing? Marcia: Well, I really adore children's books. I read one every night before I go to bed. But when it comes to other authors...I love the humor of Pat McManus! L.M. Montgomery is a favorite...um...let's see...Charlotte Bronte and Jane Austen, Victoria Holt, Jill Tattersall, Elizabeth Peters, Phyllis Whitney, Georgette Hayer. I like the older authors best. LS: Do you belong to any writers' associations or groups that you'd recommend to others? Marcia: You know...I don't. I've been encouraged to look into that...time is tight! LS: Is there *something* about you (your likes, your hobbies, your talents, your favorite foods or TV, etc.) that you think would surprise your fans? Marcia: Hmmm. I love to mail stuff! When I'm stressed out I make up clubs for my good friends to cheer them up, too! I do "The Dishtowel of the Month Club" for some friends, "Auntie's Book and Snack Club" for my nephews, etc. I like to send cards, letters, pictures with funny captions. Stuff like that! I collect postcards and love to meet people on airplanes and in stores that are willing to be postcard pen-pals! I met a girl from Ireland in a photo lab once...met her once...and she sends me postcards from everywhere she goes! A reader sent me some postcards from Africa! Every trip I take, I spend a couple of hours writing out postcards to people! It's great! LS: What are your future plans for more books? Marcia: Well...if I can keep up the pace...Dusty Britches is due out any day! It's the favorite, so far, of every proofreader that has read it! After that I'm planning to release three shorter stories in one book, The Foundling, Divine Deception and Born for Thorton's Sake. The Fragrance of Her Name is slated for publication after that! That should take us through next year! To read more about Marcia Lynn McClure and an excerpt from her forthcoming book, Dusty Britches, click here. About the Author Alanna Webb is an internet developer and creator of many well-known Web sites. You can easily and economically implement her efficient and professional Web designs into your own site using http://www.onetemplate.com. Alanna also helps people have their own work-at-home businesses. Click here to learn more.