CONTEST CLOSED

We have a winner with comment #8, Tracey Bryam who said:

I love historical novels. I was never interested in past history until I discovered them.

Congratulations Tracey!  I think you’ll love Linore’s work.  Please respond to my email within 72 hours with your mailing address so this can get on it’s way for you!  Thanks to everyone for entering!

I’m thrilled to be able to host a contest for a copy of Before the Season Ends by Linore Rose Burkard.  I’m not a big romance fan, but Linore’s debut novel was hands-down the most addictive read of 2008 for me.  You can read my full review to learn how late I stayed up reading this novel and read the first chapter here.  Fans don’t have long to wait, Burkard’s second novel The House in Grosvenor Square, is releasing in April 2009 – just in time for my birthday!

Not only is Linore an excellent author, but she’s a fascinating woman (mother of five) as well.  I’d like to take this opportunity to share a question and answer session with her, before getting down to the contest details.

Linore, what drew you to writing Regency Romance novels? 
Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen books gave me a love for the period, and there weren’t any Christian regencies to be found. I wanted to change that.

What do you think we could learn today from how society operated in the Regency period?
England in the 1800s is a world away from the 21st century. Times have changed, but people haven’t. Men and women of the time were concerned with their appearances, their finances, their futures, finding the right spouse, and so on, just as we are, today. How they went about pursuing these ends is where all the difference lies, however, and this is precisely where the interest and adventure opens up for writers. Bringing to life the means and methods of everyday life and timeless concerns from the regency. It is fun and enlightening as a glimpse into the past, but readers can also identify with the basic human need to be genuinely loved for oneself, no matter the setting or time period, and to be certain of one’s convictions concerning life, eternity, and faith. Having said that, it is good to remind modern readers that valuing one’s purity can be mainstream, as it was then; or that the struggle to find a true love and a sense that one’s life has value, has always been a human issue.

What do you hope readers will take away from your books? 
I hope my readers will feel as though they’ve been transported to the Regency for a good, satisfying visit; While they’re visiting, they’ll be reminded that God is involved in their life, and that happy endings are possible for everyone.

Any Regency romance is going to be compared to Jane Austen’s novels ~ how are your books similar / different?
I don’t think most regencies are written with this comparison in mind at all. However, other people say my book is “Austen-like.” That is a huge compliment, and one I would love to live up to.
The sequel, The House in Grosvenor Square, is releasing in 2009.

Do you have more Regency novels planned?
My editor and I are tossing around ideas right now. I do have a few more regencies in mind.

What are you working on at the moment? A sneak peek, please.
I’m exploring whether to do a third book in the Regency Series, which at present is comprised of Before the Season Ends, and The House in Grosvenor Square. Book three would begin about five years later (about 1818) and follow the lives of a number of people who were introduced in the first two books. I would also probably introduce one new couple.

Some authors report writing 5-10 thousand words a day. Do scenes flow freely from your veins, or do you have to tweeze each word out? 
In general, I write more than I need and later have to cut back. I don’t use a word count, but I may set a goal of one chapter a day or two chapters for a busy week. Other times, I don’t think in terms of chapters at all, just events. I may break an event down into four scenes, say, and so my goal for that day will be to get the whole event on paper. In other words, finish the four scenes. Life changes so rapidly with the children, that for me, a hard and fast writing goal just wouldn’t work. And, I focus on results, not time spent. Instead of, “Now I’ll write for three hours,” I say, “Now I’ll have this or that happen to a character, or, ‘I’ll show a different side to this person.” When I have accomplished that goal, no matter how long it took, I feel satisfied, and only then.

Thanks so much for sharing with us Linore – I love learning more about my favourite authors!

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CONTEST DETAILS:

Visit Linore’s official website (it’s a beauty) and tell me something that catches your eye, or why you’d like to read Before the Season Ends.

For additional entries:

1. Subscribe to this blog for updates – see the left hand sidebar. Leave an additional comment letting me know you’ve subscribed (or if you already subscribe).

2. Write a post on your blog promoting and linking to this contest. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

3. Add the Quiverfull Family button (see the code box in the right hand sidebar under BUTTON UP!) to your blog’s sidebar. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

4. Digg, Stumble or otherwise share this post on a social networking site.  Leave an additional comment indicating how you shared this post.

5. Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/quivermamma

Each additional step taken counts for 1 additional entry.  A total of 6 entries are available if you complete all of these steps.

The contest will close at 12 a.m. MST on Wednesday, February 25th, 2009. One winner will be randomly drawn for the book on Thursday, February 26th, 2009 and notified by email. Please fill your email address in the comment form when you are completing your comment so that I can contact you.  The winner must respond with a mailing address within 72 hours of my email, or a new winner will be chosen.  This contest is open to Canadian and US addresses only.

I look forward to seeing God bless a special reader with this book.  Thanks for entering!