Interview and Giveaway (Open Worldwide) with Jacquie Rogers, Author

Hello Jacquie! Thank you for sharing at Reviews by Martha’s Bookshelf.

Questions for Jacquie:

Q1  What inspired you to write western romance?

JR: Thanks so much for inviting me today, Martha!  Ah, western romance—I have a contemporary out although right now I’m peddling my western historical series, ♥ Hearts of Owyhee ♥, so I can apply the answer to both.  Mostly it has to do with where I grew up, which is in Owyhee County in the southwest corner of Idaho. 

Time sorta passed us by out there, although we were blissfully unaware of it.  Our family went to Grange dances on Saturday nights where they played Little Brown Jug and old songs of that ilk.  Not a week went by but what there would be some sort of community event—a farmer might be laid up and need his fields plowed, disked, harrowed, and planted; or maybe someone was building a house.  We’d pack up food and tools, then make a day of it.  I had no idea that people didn’t do this everywhere.

Then there’s the history of the place.  Drive south and you can visit a mining town, Silver City, that never knew it was supposed to be a ghost town.  Many of the buildings have be preserved and made into residences.  The Idaho Hotel is still in operation.  And it still doesn’t have electricity.  It’s a wonderful place to spend a day.

Not too far from our farm is an old stage stop.  We explored every inch of it as kids, played cowboys and robbers, and had a ball.  Oh, and we rode our horses all over everywhere.  In the other direction from the stage stop is Graveyard Point, which is well-known in rockhound circles for its geodes.  We didn’t much care about that but we sure had a lot of fun riding there and swimming in the canal below.  Some of these features are in the third book in the series, Much Ado About Mavericks, which will be released in a couple weeks.

What specifically inspired me?  Maybe it was those Holsteins—I wanted them to be Texas Longhorns.  Or it could’ve been Dad’s Buick, which I thought of as a stagecoach under attack.  As a kid, my mind kept thinking up all these stories and, well, I guess I just never grew up!

Q2  I just reviewed Much Ado About Marshals and I see that you have a new title out called Much Ado About Madams. Are your books stand alone or part of a series and if series did you have each book plotted out before you started the first one or did the subsequent book(s) flow from the first?

JR: The series, ♥ Hearts of Owyhee ♥, is actually a set of books connected by time, location, and a few peripheral characters.  It’s not a true series with an overall story arc, or any cliffhanger endings.  The books can be standalone and read in any order.  In fact, the second book, Much Ado About Madams, actually takes place a couple years before MuchAdo About Marshals, which was released first.  I’m currently writing Daisy’s sister’s story in the fourth book, Much Ado About Miners.  I’m not very far into that book yet so it will be at least six months before it sees the light of day. 

Q3  Please share with us one surprising thing about your experience writing Much Ado About Marshals, or about something else related to your career as a writer.

JR: I had to do quite a bit of research into patent medicines and I, in my naïveté, had no idea that heroine and cocaine were common ingredients in them.  Anyone could get these medicines and many substances that are illegal or regulated now were as common as aspirin.  (Side note: In 1900, Bayer trademarked both Aspirin and Heroin, but lost the trademarks in 1919 as part of the Treaty of Versailles.) 

I used Hoffstetter’s Stomach Bitters, which contained heroine, so the widows, who both took it for “nervousness,” displayed signs of heroin addiction, which I also had to research.  Of course, addiction wasn’t common knowledge so my characters’ perspective was mostly that the widows were a little crazy.  Another patent medicine, Dr. Liebig’s Lost Manhood Restorer, well, I’ll just let everyone wonder how I used that. Hahaha.

Q4  How do find your characters and personalities?  Is there any special inspiration?

JR: Cole Richards came from several sources.  His pure heart and altruism come from a man who owned a farm near ours.  His dilemma came from a song about a woman who was in love with two men, and I wondered what that would be like if the two men were brothers, from the “losing” brother’s point of view.  And the identity issues come straight from Shakespeare, who loved to write romantic comedies where no one was who anyone else thought they were.  I find that concept irresistible!

Daisy was one of the most stubborn characters I ever worked with.  I knew the moment I imagined her bounding up the steps of the Oreana general store (now a church)  carrying a package, that this was a fireball of a woman who knew what she wanted and was absolutely determined to get it, whether it was appropriate or not.  But I didn’t know exactly what she did want, and she simply wouldn’t tell me.  She taunted me and refused to cooperate until I guessed her secret.  She’d let me write about two chapters, then slam on the brakes.  Finally, after many iterations, there she was pouring her heart out to me, but still laughing at me because she’d given me a rocky ride. 

Q5  Which word would you use to describe yourself and your personality?

JR: Happy.

Q6  What gave you the idea to create the smart, loveable character of Katie, the mule?

JR: Her owner was rather eccentric—he over-compensated for his small stature by learning Kung Fu, and he certainly didn’t follow any trends.  Others thought they had it made when they could buy a blooded horse, so he bought a blooded mule.  Then I did quite a bit if research on mules because I’ve never owned one.  I always thought they were like horses only more stubborn.  Come to find out, mules that come from superior horse and donkey stock are far smarter, stronger, and have completely different personalities than horses do.  In one training manual, the author equates mule personality more to that of a dog only more intelligent.  Add in the current passion for mule racing, and Katie the racing mule was born. 

She doesn’t play a large part in the book, but a strong one.  And even more importantly, she spawned the idea for Socrates in Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues and Merlin in Willow, Wish For Me.

Questions for Daisy:

Q1  Which word would you use to describe yourself and your personality?

Daisy: Determined.

Q2  What is something you would never be caught dead doing/saying?

Daisy: I’d never be stuck out on a farm raising chickens and children while my husband had all the fun.

Q3  Do you have any pet peeves?

Daisy: I simply cannot abide dishonesty.  If a man can’t tell the truth, I won’t be giving him the time of day.

Q4  When did you first become interested in crime investigation?

Daisy: I’m not sure whether my interest in forensic criminology came from the dime novel heroine, Honey Beaulieu, Lady Detective, or whether she triggered my latent interest.  Have you read Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi?  Fascinating book, and in that story, fingerprints were used to identify the murderer.  And in real life, there was Kate Warne who worked as a Pinkerton detective before the War Between the States.  I always admired her.

Q5  What is the one thing your readers would be surprised to know about you?

Daisy: I can track clues, sort out what’s real and what’s bogus, and spend hours examining whorls in a fingerprint, but those organizational skills don’t transfer to, um, (whispers) housekeeping.

Find Jacquie and her books at these links:

Much Ado About Marshals (Print): http://amzn.com/146639952X

Much Ado About Marshals (Kindle): http://amzn.com/B0058ON1LS

Much Ado About Madams (Kindle): http://amzn.com/B007HRTQ0O

Website: http://www.JacquieRogers.com

Romancing The West: http://romancingthewest.blogspot.com

Jacquie’s blog: http://jacquierogers.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JacquieRogersAuthor

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JacquieRogers

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/jacquierogers

 

Thank you to Jacquie for offering a GIVEAWAY for one lucky commenter:

US Only: Autographed print copy of MuchAdo About Marshals 
Canada or International: Kindle copy of Much Ado About Marshals and a $10 Amazon gift certificate.

Daisy's Final Question for the giveaway: 

Daisy: If faced with the dilemma where being honest and true to the person you love would place your closest friend in danger of losing his life, you’d __________.

TO ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY:
1. Make a meaningful comment on the Interview or Review -  something more specific please than "nice review", "good interview" - note some detail. :-).
2.  For an extra 2 entries, answer Daisy's Final Question.
3.  For an extra entry, become a follower or tell me if you are already a follower.
(Four total entries possible.)

THERE WILL BE ONE WINNER - either print or kindle + GC!

* This contest will close 10 PM (Central) on June 1, 2012.
The winners will be randomly selected from all entries and announced on June 2 with 72 hours to complete the winners form.