LOVE'S DEBT by Rachel Brimble

 

My guest today, Rachel Brimble, is here from England to talk about her latest release and all the other exciting things going on in her life.

 

Rachel lives with her husband and two young daughters in a small town near Bath in the UK. She started writing short stories about eight years ago but once her children were at school, embarked on her first novel. It was published in 2007. Since then, she’s had several books published with small presses as well as securing her first contract with Harlequin Superromance in May 2012 and a two book Victorian romance contract with Kensington in August. She was just offered her second contract with Harlequin this week.

Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and Romance Writers of America, When she isn’t writing, you’ll find Rachel with her head in a book or walking the beautiful English countryside with her family. Her dream place to live is Bourton-on-the-Water in South West England. And in the evening? Well, a well-deserved glass of wine is never, ever refused…

Rachel, what is your writing schedule like?

I am a stay at home mom so I work when the kids are at school – I have a very strict schedule of 8.30 to 3.30pm during the week and whenever I have a spare hour during the weekend.

Evenings are strictly for family time…or I might find they’ve abandoned me altogether, lol!

Do you ever dream of writing in a different genre?

I often feel the urge to write a crime novel but worry about getting the forensics and police procedures right. I have considered setting it in history so that the forensics don’t have to be so in-depth but it still feels too complicated, lol!

I write romantic suspense so I can see me getting to crime eventually – although goodness knows when. I fantasize about following in Tess Gerritsen’s footsteps who wrote for Harlequin many years ago.

How do you research your storylines or locations?

I tend to set my historicals where I grew up or able to drive to so I can ‘see’ the details for myself. I live in South West England, just thirty minutes drive from the famous Georgian city of Bath. It’s beautiful and rich in historical detail. Another thirty minutes drive in the opposite direction takes me to the Cotswolds, which is a cluster of gorgeous, picturesque villages with houses built in the 1800s.

For my contemporaries, I use the town where I live but use fictional names and a touch of artistic license, lol!

What part of the writing process brings you the most pleasure? The most angst?

The most pleasure is the second draft – I write the first draft from start to finish without stopping so draft two is playing with the words, polishing and deleting. I love it!

The most pain is the plotting – it never EVER gets easier!!

How do you see your career in five years?

I hope it keeps going the way it has for the last five – each year I’ve made a step forward with 2012 being my most successful so far. This year I signed with Harlequin and Kensington, I love to think I will still be writing for these publishers five years from now but maybe writing bigger books with more complex storylines.

Tell us, has your road to publication been a walk in the park or a steep mountain climb? Give us some details?

Both! I am proud to say The Wild Rose Press published my first novel and I’ve had a book or more published every year since. I’ve managed to contract everything I’ve written, HOWEVER, each of those books was a steep mountain climb to get from page 1 to the end, LOL! Writing is NOT easy and with each book I write, I wait for some big breakthrough, a formula that will make the next one a breeze – got a funny feeling that ain’t never gonna happen!

 

Tell us about this week's release. LOVE'S DEBT, right? 

Yes. “Love’s Debt” is available now from The Wild Rose Press. Here’s the blurb, excerpt and buy link.

 

Blurb:

To keep herself from the depths of poverty, Milly Shepherd needs to be appointed manager of the Red Lion Tavern.  The elderly owner is in failing health and has promised her the job permanently if no one more suitable applies.  Milly will fight with her entire being to make the job her own.

 

Joseph Jacobs needs to supplement his income to pay off his father’s creditors and save him from debtor’s prison.  Though the job as manager of the local tavern looks promising, Milly is favored by both the owner and customers.  Instead, Joseph swallows his pride and agrees to tend bar.

 

As they work together, their attraction grows, their goals cross, and both Millie and Joseph find they must face their fears …the question is whether they face them alone or together?

 

Excerpt:

            “No, I take it from here.” His jaw tightened. “I mean it, Milly. I don’t want you in there.”

            “Why are we arguing about this? I thought we’d built a trust between us.”
            His gaze darted over her face, lingered at her lips. “This has nothing to do with trust.”

            “Then what?”
            “Pride. If I haven’t got that…if I’ve stooped so low as to put a woman at risk, then there’s no point in going on at all. I won’t do it, Milly. I won’t expose you to whatever is behind that door. If you can’t stay here, then go back to the tavern. I’ll see you there shortly.”

            His face was set, his shoulders stiff and Milly’s irritation grew. She poked a finger into his chest. It was like iron. She swallowed. “Have you heard the saying, pride before a fall?” He nodded. “Good, because if people don’t reach out to other people, Joseph Jacobs, they fall further than ever with nobody there to catch them.”

            “Milly--”

            She raised her hand. “Go. Do what you want. I’ve got more important things to worry about that a man full of so much pride, he looks fit to burst.”

            Turning, Milly gripped her bag tightly in her hand and strode away. She did not look back, and she didn’t stop walking. Her stupid heart had let her down. Made her get involved in a man’s life and begin to care about him. Well, the buck stopped there. No more. If Joseph Jacobs ever needed her help again, he could take a long walk off the dock.

                        Buy Link:

http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=195&products_id=4967

 

Rachel can be found here:

http://www.rachelbrimble.com/

http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rachel-Brimble/181873201887441

https://twitter.com/RachelBrimble