Interview with historical romance author Jenna Jaxon

Today’s special guest is historical romance author Jenna Jaxon and we’re chatting about her new novel, The Widow Wore Plaid.

During her virtual book tour, Jenna will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too.

Bio:
Jenna Jaxon is a best-selling author of historical romance, writing in a variety of time periods because she believes that passion is timeless. She has been reading and writing historical romance since she was a teenager. A romantic herself, Jenna has always loved a dark side to the genre, a twist, suspense, a surprise. She tries to incorporate all of these elements into her own stories.

She lives in Virginia with her family and a small menagerie of pets–including two vocal cats, one almost silent cat, two curious bunnies, and a Shar-pei mix named Frenchie.

Welcome, Jenna. Please tell us about your current release.
The Widow Wore Plaid is the 6^th and final book of my Widows’ Club series of Regency romances. It’s an adventure romance in which the hero and heroine, after a long rocky road, have agreed to marry, only to then be hunted by an unknown assassin. Jane and Gareth must overcome great adversity both physical and mental if they are to get to their happy ending.

What inspired you to write this book?
The Widows’ Club series was inspired by The Weather Girls’ song “It’s Raining Men.” I heard the song and wondered how Regency women could have it “rain men.” The first thing I thought was it was a shame that women didn’t have clubs they could go to and meet men, then I thought they could meet a lot of men at a house party. But unmarried women of that era were well chaperoned, so what kind of women might have more freedom? The answer is widows. And after the battle of Waterloo there were a lot of war widows. So I took the two ideas and created The Widows’ Club, a group of six friends who were widowed by the battle of Waterloo who are now, a year later, coming out of mourning, and ready to meet men and marry again. They hold a series of house parties in order to do this with each widow meeting her match at the party. In The Widow Wore Plaid, Jane is the last of the friends to marry as she has the most to lose both financially and in regards to her independence. She must choose to marry the love of her life or retain her independence and live without him.

 

Excerpt from The Widow Wore Plaid:
“Good evening again, my love.” The fierce desire in his dark eyes took her aback. He shoved the candle onto a nearby table, wrapped his hands around the back of her head, and sank his mouth onto hers.

No matter how many times he kissed her—hundreds and hundreds of times by now—she never failed to thrill to the touch of his lips, firm, commanding, demanding the kiss as he ravaged her mouth. He pushed her back against the wall, then turned her head ever so slightly, aligning their lips perfectly so they melded together.

Her toes curled in her little blue slippers as her knees went weak. Kinellan had always been greedy about kisses, sometimes peppering her face with tiny fleeting brushes of his lips, sometimes dominating her mouth with an intensity that left her literally breathless, as now. Tonight there seemed a special urgency about him that transferred itself to her. If this was to be their final night together, or the beginning of a life spent with one another, then let their passion shake the mountains down around them.

He thrust his tongue into her oh so willing mouth, plundering here and there as if searching for something. Or was he memorizing every inch so he wouldn’t forget?

No, he’d not forget her. She’d make certain of that.

A sharp push against him caught him off guard. She reversed their positions, slamming his back to the wall. Startled, he withdrew and she seized the advantage, thrusting her tongue into his mouth, her mounting need driving her to frenzy. Lord, but she could not get enough of this man.

Throwing up his hands, he groaned and sagged against the wall, his banyan sliding half off him. “Have your way with me, woman. I surrender myself into your hands. Do with me what you will and I swear I will enjoy it.”

Panting, she stepped back from him, seeing the sculpted muscular form, strong arms, and dark eyes glazed with smoldering desire as if for the first time. Seeing him for the first time. This man wanted her, or had wanted her to be his wife for a long time. No one would ever make her feel this way again, no matter how many lovers she might take. She could look for the rest of her life and not find a man as kind or generous or loving as he. And she had all but thrown his love away with both hands. The revelation devastated her and she hung her head.

“Jane?” Kinellan straightened, peering into her face.

Sobbing, she threw her arms around him, laying her head on his broad chest, the only place she wanted it to be. Tears pricked her eyes. The fast beat of his heart beneath her ear should have given comfort, but did not, for her own heart was tearing asunder. The trickle of tears became a flood.

“Darling.” He slipped his arms around her, cradling her close. “What is wrong?”

“I . . . I don’t want to leave.”

“Sweetheart.” He cupped her chin and turned her face up to his. A thundery frown marred his brow. “Who has asked you to leave? Was it Aunt Prudence? Fiona?”

“N . . . no.” Jane sniffed, trying to blink back the tears and regain her composure.

“Someone else?” His frown grew darker.

She nodded. “You.”

 

What exciting story are you working on next?
My current WIP is for Dragonblade Press, a novella for Katheryn Le Veque’s shared world called The Lyon’s Den. It’s the story of Lord Braeton who finds an innocent young woman in a gambling den and to save her from ruin agrees to marry her. It’s a marriage of convenience, until another man tries to claim her. Then Lord Braeton discovers there may be more to his marriage than convenience. And as authors in the series are allowed to tie their characters into their own indie series, my hero is the descendent of one of the heroes of my medieval romance, Time Enough to Love.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Probably the first time was in the 3^rd grade, when I wrote a 6-page story titled, “Miss Priss Finds a Kitten.” More recently it was when I completed my first full-length romance, Time Enough to Love (in 2009).

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
For the past two years—since I retired–I have been writing full time. When I’m in the middle of a WIP I usually write for 3-4 hours in the morning or in the evening (whenever the house is quieter). This is enough to produce a chapter a day. I shut myself away in my writing room, which is also the bunny room, and work until the chapter is done. With the last work I published, a contemporary Christmas novella called The Present, my muse decided I needed to work at Starbucks. So I’d drive to my favorite store, grab a café latte, and set up shop by the window and write non-stop for several hours each day, until I’d finished a chapter.

Before I retied, however, I worked full-time teaching theater at a local university. I was working there when I first started my writing career. So I had to squeeze the writing in at 6:00 in the morning before work, or late into the night (2-3:00am) after work, plus holidays and breaks. It was basically two full-time jobs. Now I’m still just as busy, but there’s a lot less stress.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I’m the world’s biggest plotter, so I have to have a detailed outline completed before I can start to write. Then once I’m writing, I write a chapter a day, which is ideally 3,000 words. I take the chapter outline and break it into sections—either 3 sections of 1,000 words each or 2 sections of 1,500 words each and write until I get what I consider the proper length for each chapter. This structure helps me immensely to stay on track with my word production and meeting deadlines.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A teacher. I’ve always loved to learn (I have a BA, an MFA, an MA, and a Ph.D) and originally wanted to teach 3^rd grade, then high school, and eventually I ended up teaching college level undergraduates theater and communications for 19 years.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
As you can see above, I have a huge theater background, but I also have degrees in History and English, so my love of historical romance and writing all mesh together. My characters are constantly in my head, and I feel most days like I’m directing them on my own private stage. But, like all actors, sometimes they get feisty and do what they want to do. LOL Those are the times when I have to give them the reins and see what happens. And hope it’s something good.

Links:
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