Deanna and Louise are visiting Author Shanna Hatfield at the Rockin’ R Ranch located near Burns, Oregon, in the sagebrush covered hills of the Eastern Oregon High
Desert.
Our
hero Ty, from Learnin' The Ropes, is from Portland
and has never been anywhere rural before, let alone somewhere so far removed
from his idea of civilization. The ranch setting
includes a yellow Victorian house
complete with gingerbread trim and a picket fence, a bunkhouse, the usual barns
and outbuildings, and a zealous Kuvasz dog named Baby who basically decides who
stays or goes on the place.
Come join us as we don our chaps, slap saddles on the horses and rides some trails in this beautiful country with Shanna.
Reader’s
Haven: Hi Shanna! Boy, it's pretty out this way. Tell us a bit about
yourself that our readers might not
know.
Shanna: Although
I grew up on a farm as a tomboy, somewhere along the way I morphed into a real
girly-girl. I’m a completely hopeless romantic and my husband, lovingly
referred to as Captain Cavedweller, would tell you I’m one of the sappiest
people on the planet. When I’m not working or writing, I enjoy baking way more
than I should and plan themed parties that generally never make it further than
as ideas I share on my blog.
Reader’s Haven:
What made you want to become a writer?
Shanna:
I grew up with a love of books and reading. My imagination has always been very
active and I used to make up all kinds of stories when I was young. After
getting my degree in communications, I spent almost ten years as a newspaper
journalist before I switched gears to marketing, but even then I kept dabbling
with writing, doing some freelance articles. In January 2010, I read a book
that was just awful. There wasn’t anything redeeming about it and I decided if
it could get published, I should really give writing a novel a try. It was something
I often thought about doing “someday.” Someday finally arrived.
Reader’s
Haven: Please share a bit about
your new release, The Christmas Bargain, without giving away any spoilers.
Shanna: I
have two new releases that came out in the fall. The Christmas Bargain was my first attempt in writing historical
fiction. Set in Eastern Oregon, it tells the
story of a well-to-do banker and the woman he accepts in lieu of payment from
her deadbeat father. It was a lot of fun to do the research for this story and
I quickly fell in love with the characters. They are strong, loving and
likeable. Filly (the heroine) can be quite plucky! The Cowboy’s Autumn Fall is the fourth installment in the Grass Valley
Cowboys series. Set in the rural community of Grass Valley, Oregon,
the contemporary western series highlights the adventures of the Thompson
family. This book tells the story of fun-loving, good-looking Brice Morgan, a
friend of the youngest Thompson brother, and his fascination with Bailey
Bishop, a cousin to the Thompsons. She’s a paleontologist with a laser focus on
her career and no interest in romance, especially with a cowboy.
Reader’s Haven:
Do you write under a pen name?
Shanna: Nope.
As different as it might be, the name I write under is my very own.
Reader’s Haven:
What types of hero or heroine do you like best?
Shanna: Strong,
kind, flawed – the ones that seem more realistic.
Reader’s
Haven: Tell us about a typical
day in your life as a writer.
Shanna: I
work full-time as a marketing director at a boutique hotel, so a typical day
for me is putting in a nine to ten hour day at the office. Captain Cavedweller
and I carpool most days, so I bounce ideas off him on our drive to and from
work. As soon as we get home, we make dinner then I bury myself in my home
office for the rest of the evening. He checks on me periodically to make sure
I’m still alive and restock my supply of chocolate, a critical ingredient to
the creative process. I do a lot of writing on the weekends when I can hole up
in my office for long, uninterrupted stretches of time.
Reader’s
Haven: LOL If he keeps you in chocolate, then he's a keeper! Do your books have a
common theme or are they all different?
Shanna: Although
I like to think they are all different, it’s important to me they all have
happy endings. In some way, all of my books carry a theme of overcoming –
challenges, fears, obstacles. I think most people have something they are
working to overcome or conquer. My characters are no different, which I hope
helps make them real to my readers.
Reader’s
Haven: How long does it
take you to write and then edit a story?
Shanna: Depending
on what else is going on in my world to distract me, I can typically hammer out
a first draft of a story in about three weeks. The next five to six weeks are
spent editing and re-writing. I have three proofreaders who go through each
story for me during that editing time frame. My goal is to spend about two months
on a book from start to finish.
Reader’s Haven:
Do you have to be alone to write?
Shanna: I
don’t have to be alone, but it certainly helps cut down on the distractions. If
Captain Cavedweller and I are on a car trip, I pop in my earbuds and type away
on my laptop. I can sit and write almost anywhere, but I know I do a better job
of writing when I’m in my office by myself, completely immersed in the “writing
zone.”
Reader’s Haven:
How do you go about naming characters?
Shanna: This
is such a fun part of the writing process and one I love. If I had kids, they
would all have oddball monikers because I like names that are out of the
ordinary. I actually keep a list of names that I like. If I come across one
that strikes my fancy or I hear one that sounds like a great character name, I
add it to the list. When I start thinking about characters, I go to the list
and see if any names would be a good fit. I’ve also been known to go to
websites like babynames.com and browse
through their lists. I usually have an idea of what letter of the alphabet I
want the name to start with, even if I’m still searching for the right name.
Reader’s
Haven: Is it easier to write
about the characters if you find pictures of them before you write or do you
write then find character pictures?
Shanna: As
a very visual person, I need to see in full-color what my character looks like
while I’m writing. The process I’ve been using that works well for me is to
first come up with a basic character idea. Once I know the character is tall
with dark hair and blue eyes (for example), I find a picture that fits the
basic description and I build on the character from there. It is such a big
help to have that visual to draw from when I need some inspiration.
Reader’s Haven: How
do you pick locations for your stories?
Shanna: So
far, my stories have all taken place either in Oregon
or Washington because I grew up and live in
the Pacific Northwest. The Grass Valley
Cowboys series came about because I was on a weekend road trip and drove
through the town and thought “Wow! This would make a great setting for a
story.” By the time I got home from the trip, I had the first few chapters of
the first book sketched out in my head. The
Christmas Bargain takes place in a town that was a bustling stop along the
stage route through Eastern Oregon, but is now
a ghost town. I wanted a town that wasn’t close to a big city, one that had
something to offer the residents who lived there, one that had some interesting
history. Hardman fit the bill. Other locations were chosen because I was
familiar with the area and thought it would work well with the story line I was
developing. The Women of Tenacity series is set in the fictional town of Tenacity that only exists
in the sparkly recesses of my brain.
Reader’s
Haven: What are you working on now and what should
readers be looking forward to from you in the future?
Shanna:
The fifth and final book in the Grass Valley Cowboys series, The Cowboy’s New Heart, is my current
project. Readers can look for it around the first of April. When it’s finished,
I’ll delve back into some historical romance writing, and I’ve already got
plans for another holiday book or two.
Reader’s Haven:
Where can readers find out more about you and your books?
Shanna: My
blog is a great place to keep tabs on my latest projects and book release
dates.
My books
are available on:
Reader’s Haven: Where
can readers find additional details about your books or characters?
Shanna: I’m
a Pinterest junkie. Readers can find boards for each of my books with all sorts
of fun and crazy pins. If you’re a fan of the Grass Valley series, check out
the pictures I used to create the characters, ogle pins of Wranglers, see what
the Triple T Ranch house looks like, find recipes, and even some pins with
fashions the characters wore in the stories.
Web
links:
Also, I’d like to give away copies of "Learnin’ The Ropes" to two lucky winners. One e-book and one printed/signed copy. Enter through the Rafflecopter below and good luck!
Learnin’ The Ropes
Out of work mechanic Ty Lewis is
homeless and desperate to find work. Answering a classified ad for a job in Harney County, Oregon,
Ty accepts when he is offered the position. Saying goodbye to his sister and his
life in Portland,
he heads off to the tiny community of Riley to begin a new adventure, unsure
about his boss Lex Ryan, a man he has yet to speak with or meet.
Lexi Ryan, known to her ranch
hands and neighbors as Lex Jr., leaves a successful career in Portland to keep the Rockin’ R Ranch running
smoothly after the untimely death of her father. It doesn’t take long to
discover her father did a lot of crazy things during the last few months before
he died, like hiding half a million dollars that Lexi can’t find.
Ty and Lexi are both in for a few
surprises as he arrives at the Rockin’ R Ranch and begins learnin’ the ropes.
Excerpt
“I haven’t been sulking,” Ty said. “And I can’t date you
anymore.”
“Why not? Do you find me that disgusting? Unappealing?
Annoying? What is it about me that’s driving you away?” Lexi yelled, slapping
at Ty’s chest. She’d been down this road with men before. Eventually something
turned them away from her, usually her heritage, although she wouldn’t expect
that from Ty. “What, Ty? Just tell me!”
“Nothing, babe,” Ty said, gathering her into his arms and
giving in to his desire to kiss her, just one more time. He devoured her lips,
drank deeply from the honeyed sweetness that was all Lexi, and felt drunk from
the experience. Finally breaking the contact, he put a hand to the back of her
head and pulled her against his chest, holding her close. “There isn’t a single
thing about you that I don’t find appealing. You drive me wild, Lexi Jo Ryan.
Every laugh, every smile, every toss of your raven hair, every swing of that
perfect posterior, every touch from your hand, and definitely every kiss. You
make me forget anything else exists.”
Surprise! An additional excerpt from Learnin' The Ropes. Thanks Shanna!
“I
overheard a couple of guys talking outside the café. What they were saying
wasn’t very nice about you and me…us,” Ty said, trying to keep from getting
angry all over again. “I don’t want people to think I’m dating you because of
who your dad was or how much money you have. The rumor seems to be that I
charmed my way into your good graces just to get an easy ride. That isn’t true,
Lexi. I don’t care if you’re penniless. I …”
“You
what?” Lexi asked.
“I
wouldn’t do that,” Ty said, still trying to keep from revealing his heart to
Lexi. If he did, he was afraid there’d be no turning back and he just couldn’t
do that to her. He didn’t want her to feel obligated to him in any way.
“I know
you wouldn’t,” Lexi said, hugging him and resting her head against his chest.
She could feel his heart pounding fast beneath her ear. “I never thought you
would, Ty. Why are you wasting so much time and effort in worrying about what
other people think? It isn’t any of your business, anyway. The only person you
need to worry about is you.”
“I know
that, but what other people think can sure make things hard or easy on a person
and I don’t want things to be hard for you.”
Lexi took
Ty’s face in her hands and breathed in his scent. “Look, buckaroo, if I’m
hearing you correctly, you’ve spent the last month making us both miserable in
some gallant, though completely idiotic effort to protect me from gossiping
nitwits?”
“When you
say it like that it sounds stupid,” Ty said, growing agitated. He needed out of
this shed. He needed Lexi out of his arms. He needed… to kiss her so very
badly.
“What’s
stupid is you letting this go on for a month when we could have had this
conversation the day you got upset. So, now that I have assured you the
gossiping doesn’t bother me at all, are you done sulking?”
“I
haven’t been sulking,” Ty argued, turning around and knocking a shovel and rake
off the wall. He caught the handles before they smacked into Lexi. It was
dangerous to be in the shed locked up in close proximity and that danger had
little to do with garden tools and much more to do with his ability to maintain
his control with Lexi. “And I can’t date you anymore.”
“Why not?
Do you find me that disgusting? Unappealing? Annoying? What is it about me
that’s driving you away?” Lexi yelled, slapping at Ty’s chest. She’d been down
this road with men before. Eventually something turned them away from her,
usually her heritage, although she wouldn’t expect that from Ty. “What, Ty?
Just tell me!”
“Nothing,
babe,” Ty said, gathering her into his arms and giving in to his desire to kiss
her, just one more time. He devoured her lips, drank deeply from the honeyed
sweetness that was all Lexi, and felt drunk from the experience. Finally
breaking the contact, he put a hand to the back of her head and pulled her
against his chest, holding her close. “There isn’t a single thing about you
that I don’t find appealing. You drive me wild, Lexi Jo Ryan. Every laugh,
every smile, every toss of your raven hair, every swing of that perfect
posterior, every touch from your hand, and definitely every kiss. You make me
forget anything else exists.”
“Ty,”
Lexi breathed his name on a whisper, on a prayer. “Then what’s the problem?”
“Me. The
problem is me,” Ty said, letting out long sigh. “There isn’t a single thing,
not one, that I can ever give you that you don’t already have or can’t buy
yourself. I can’t provide for you. I can’t offer you anything. Except me.”
“That is
the only thing I’m ever going to want from you, Ty. Just you. I don’t care
about that other stuff. All I want is you.”
“Lexi,”
Ty said, lowering his head to hers again, nearing the point of surrender.
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