INTERVIEW: 10 Questions With…New York Times Bestselling Author Linda Lael Miller

With a great deal of graititude and respect, we would like to say Thank You, to New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author, Linda Lael Miller for participating in Novels Alive, in association with our sister site, Be My Bard’s “10 Questions With…”

When creating the perfect hero and heroine, do you rely solely on your imagination or do you draw inspiration from other sources (family and friends, actors/actresses etc.) or a combination of both?

I would definitely say it’s a combination of both.  For instance, the hero of the book I’m working on now—THE MARRIAGE PACT—definitely reminds me of Leonardo deCaprio, gone cowboy!

Which character from your own work would you most like to meet in the real world and why?

That would have to be Sam O’Ballivan, THE MAN FROM STONE CREEK.  He is exactly the kind of man I would love to meet and fall in love with—strong, honorable, and smart.

Which character from another authors work would you also like to meet?

There are several—Rhett Butler, of course.  And Francis Crawford from Dorothy Dunnett’s beyond-wonderful Lymond Chronicles.

If you had to choose between writing a story that would leave your readers LAUGHING out Loud, CRYING from all the intense emotions or with a pressing need for a COLD SHOWER, which response would you prefer?

I would love to leave them laughing.

Living and breathing a cast of characters for months/years while writing a story must make it hard to set that character aside when the story is finished. Which character did you most have the trouble with saying “Goodbye” to?

It’s never easy, but I certainly didn’t like parting with any one of the McKettricks, or with Sam O’Ballivan.

A lot of authors are now using social media websites like FACEBOOK and TWITTER to connect with their fans and promote their new and upcoming work. How much of a difference do you believe that these interactions help in engaging new readers/fans to your work?

I’m not sure, but I certainly believe in connecting with readers.  Where would I be without them???

Now that self-publishing is growing in popularity and even established “Print” authors are choosing to release some of their work outside the traditional norm of a publishing house, do you believe that the added level of control given to the author will ultimately see a rise in the quality of the works available or just the quantity?

It’s an exciting phenomenon, but I think the results remain to be seen.  My publisher, Harlequin, has been extraordinarily proactive in promoting my books, and I’m very pleased with the growth in sales.

Speaking of control…when it comes to the cover art, when a character or couple are portrayed it’s not uncommon for them to be shown as a perfect model of themselves without any of the descriptive flaws found inside the pages of the story. Do you think that readers prefer the more romanticized version or would they rather see a truer version of the characters being portrayed? AND, which would you prefer?

That’s a hard one.  I don’t think readers buy a romance for realism so much as—wait for it—romance.  So far, I’ve been very happy with the covers on my books.

The NEWS is always doing stories on pirate and file sharing websites that illegally make copies of music, movies and television freely available online, but they rarely if ever include mention of eBooks in these reports. What are your thoughts on the lack of attention being given to this issue?

I’m not sure it’s so much a lack of attention as the fact that authors and publishers are vigilant.  It’s easy enough to track any mention of an author’s name through sites like Google Alert.

Would you care to share something about your latest release or a story that you are working on now?

I’ll have a new book, BIG SKY SECRETS, the sixth and final book in the Big Sky series, out on December 31.  I’m working on the beginning of a new Marriage series, THE MARRIAGE PACT, set in Wyoming.  The stories focus, as usual, on strong, sexy cowboys and their equally strong, sexy ladies, along with the things that keep them apart and the things that will bring them together.

As the daughter of a town marshal, Linda has come home to the western lifestyle that gave birth to one of today’s most successful authors. She left Washington years ago and pursued her wanderlust, living in Arizona and London and traveling the world. Now the author of more than 100 novels, the “First Lady of the West” is glad to be back home, writing contemporary and historical stories that have earned her awards and placements on all the national bestsellers lists.