Here Comes the Bride: An Interview with Author Laura Drewry (and a free book)

My favorite blog days are those when authors stop by for a visit and today, it's a pleasure to welcome Laura Drewry, author of Here Comes the Bride and three other books currently available.

MK:  So tell us Laura, what led you to write western romances, and has anywhere you’ve lived had an influence on what you write?

LD: When I was 6 or 7, I won a copy of On the Banks of Plum Creek at a neighbour’s birthday party and I was instantly hooked on Laura Ingalls Wilder and the life her family lived. Fast forward a couple decades, when a friend sent me her copies of the Orphan Train series by Linda Lael Miller, with a note that I needed to stop what I was doing and read them. Well. . .anyone who’s read them knows what I mean when I say “wow.”  Just wow.  And don’t even get me started on Gone With the Wind or North and South or Rio Bravo or 310 to Yuma or any of the other western movies out there.  What’s not love about them?

We spent three years living in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, and while its history isn’t full of cowboys, the Klondike Gold Rush was full of the same types of people; those looking for a better life, hoping to strike it rich in the unknown. The whole idea of it, of just packing up and taking off to a place they had no idea about, fascinates me.

MK: Do you have a favorite character you’ve written and why? 

LD: I do have favourite characters, but they change every time I write a new book.  And it’s not that my previous favourites aren’t still right up there, it’s more that I’m now completely invested in the new ones, so it’s different all the time. I will say though, that side-kicks are a personal favourite of mine; I love writing them, and I love reading and/or watching them. While my kids were firmly planted behind Harry Potter and Frodo Baggins, I set up camp behind Ron Weasley and Samwise Gamgee.  In Here Comes the Bride, I had a lot of fun writing Bart’s character because he got to say fun things and do what he wanted without concerning himself with what anyone else thought.

MK:  What is your favorite scene in Here Comes the Bride?

LD: There are a few, but the first one that came to mind was in the restaurant when Gabe goes to get Tess.  I love that scene – it was fun to write and it still makes me smile when I think about it.

MK:  What do you enjoy most about writing westerns?

LD: There are a few things that keep me going back to westerns. I’m continually amazed at the strength and determination of people who would load up their wagons and head west without the first clue of what they were getting into. They had no idea what or who they’d find, all they knew was that there was land out west and they wanted to build a life there.  I like that these characters are basically thrown into situations where they have no choice but to work together, otherwise they all lose.

I love that a man’s word was all he needed to seal a deal, that he could build an entire spread with his own two hands, survive drought, floods and scarlet fever, yet be brought to his knees by the touch of a good woman. 

MK: Your characters make their homes in Kansas, Texas and Montana. Have you been to all three and if not, if you had to pick just one to visit, which would it be and why?

LD: I was lucky enough to be able to drive through Northern Montana several years back. It was mid-September, the trees had begun to change and the colours were spectacular. Sadly, we didn’t have much time to spend there, but if I hadn’t already loved the idea of Montana, then that sealed it for me. I have never been to Kansas and the only part of Texas I’ve ever visited is the immediate area around the hotel I stayed at for a conference in Dallas. 

Thankfully, most places have great tourist information centres and are extremely helpful when they get my desperate emails and letters begging for information and photos.

If I had to pick one of the three states to visit. . . .ooooh, that’s hard, because I’d love to spend time wandering through all of them. 

And I’ve now just spent the last fifteen minutes choosing one, then deleting what I wrote, choosing another and deleting that. Please don’t make me choose. Let me choose all three. And throw in Wyoming, Colorado, the Dakotas and New Mexico, too.  

MK: Don't worry, we won't make you choose. So, is there anything you do to keep yourself motivated to write?

LD: I don’t have anything specific that I do, but knowing I have another story waiting to be told is pretty good motivation to keep writing the one I’m working on now. There are days, as I’m sure you know, when every word is like an ice pick to the brain, when I know I’m writing complete crap, but I also know if I can just vomit all that out, then I can clean it up later.  It’s easier to clean up than it is to stare at an empty page, and that is why I love the delete key so much.

I’ve been incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by a group of amazing writers who inspire me and motivate me every single day. Let’s face it, writing can be a lonely job, so we need people around us who will encourage, support, and kick us in the butt when we need it. More often than not, the kick is more effective than anything else!

MK: What do you have in store next for your readers?

LD: I have two new series underway at the moment; one is contemporary and the other is historical western. I’m a little superstitious about discussing works in progress, so I won’t say much more than that, but I’m really excited about both series. The westerns are different than the ones I’ve written before and the contemporaries are a whole new world for me, so both series have been a lot of fun to write.

Well that about sums it up! Head on over to Smashwords for your free copy of Here Comes the Bride (see below) or pick up one of Laura's other great books. 

Visit Laura: 

http://www.lauradrewry.com

Giveaways:

Here Comes the Bride is available through Smashwords for free until March 23^rd!  Simply enter this code at check out:  JZ83K

Bookmarks are always free! Just email freestufffromlaura (at) gmail (dot) com