Osiyo~

Welcome one and all! Grab a beverage of choice, something sweet and sinful. No-no, not the men. What’s the matter with you? You know the hands-on rules… The guest gets first pick! 😉 Take a comfy seat for another, or a first, spin in the Round Pen.

I’m thrilled to welcome my wonderfully talented guest today, Suz deMello, who is sharing her book, The Romantical Groom, with us!

Please show ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Suzie some real Ranch love!

Before I get to the nosy 5-3-4 part of this interview, tell us a bit about you.

Okay, I’ll begin with five questions, then follow with three more, and end with four final ones. (Hey, no one liners please. try to answer these with complete responses :-})

My writing area at the moment is a corner of the couch in my living room. What does your writing space look like?

I live with my mother in her nice, large home, and I have an entire room dedicated to my work. I have bookshelves, a desk, and filing cabinets as well as knickknacks and memorabilia scattered about.

For a lot of writers it’s a life-altering event coming up with titles and character names. Others it comes as naturally as breathing. Which is it for you?

Hmm…sometimes a character name springs into existence easily. Other times, I find myself researching names and their meanings. Every book is different.

What advice would you offer aspiring and new writers?

Read a lot, and not only in the genre you’re writing. Read good books, not junk. Find a list on the internet of the best books written in the last fifty years, and read them. Absorb story structure, sentence structure, grammar.

The constant shift of the industry makes me often scratch my head and ask ‘what next?’ So, what do you think it takes to be a successful author at the moment?

(sighing) I wish I knew. I have noticed that the most successful among us often have a background in business or marketing. I think it takes quite a lot of business savvy these days to adapt to a changing market.

Who would you like to meet in the publishing industry- dead or alive- and why?

Gutenberg. I think that meeting someone from centuries ago would be fascinating. I love to write historicals, and doing the research is a big part of that love.

It’s time for 3 in 1! I’ll ask the questions and you answer them in one word. 😆

Favorite animal?

Dogs

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter?

Summer

Favorite food?

peaches

Peaches? 🙂 Haven’t heard that yet. Well done! 🙂

Okay, Flash four. Ready?

What are you working on now?

A story for a spring anthology and my last Highland Vampires novel, set in Victorian England.

What are you sharing today?

The Romantical Groom, Being a Satyre

A gentle send-up of the classic Regency romance by master storyteller Suz deMello, who turns the genre upside down and on its head. Marlene, Earl of Maybegood, subjects gentleboy Georgie Longjohn to her own brand of rough wooing on the eve of his first Season.

Excerpt:

Marlene, Earl of Maybegood, looked down the country lane to the spectacle presenting itself to her interested eyes. “By George,” she exclaimed to her companion, “I do see the most priceless piece of manflesh thither on yon nag!”

            Carolina d’Arvon, her friend from Eton and Oxford, brought her mare alongside Marlene’s. “You name your quarry aright, Maybegood,” she said. “‘Tis Georgie, the gentleboy and heir of the local squire, Longjohn. The laddie is quite admired hereabouts, not only for his form and grace, but for his five thousand pounds per year.”

            Maybegood scowled. “I’ll teach those country bumpkins a lesson!” she declared. “I’ll have him before his first come-out.”

            George, quite unaware of their distant scrutiny, serenely rode on, accompanied by his father and a groom. As befitted a gentleboy, he was securely mounted on his sweet old gelding, Muffin. He rode side-saddle, his skirts gracefully arrayed around him; gentleboys ride side-saddle to protect their tender parts from the chafing of the leathern seat.

   He was eighteen years old and perfect, from the top of his guinea-gold curls to the bottom of his superbly fitted boots. The zephyr blue of his graceful, skirted riding habit complemented his celestial eyes. The low-cut jacket accentuated without revealing his lovely form.

            Marlene turned to d’Arvon. “Caro, introduce me to the laddie,” she wheedled.

            “‘Tis naught to me, Marlene, but you might wish to wait until you are not so rough from riding,” she pointed out. “The gentleboy might want grace and deportment—in short, a dandy.”

            Maybegood snorted. A noted sportswoman, she wore riding breeches and a fitted hacking jacket. Her topboots were muddy.   The raiment was suitable for her current activity but not for a drawing room or even for an informal introduction to a gentleboy. However, Maybegood was known for her carelessness in the matter of fashion, avoiding fancy dress whenever possible and never, ever sullying the Queen’s Court or any ballroom with her graceless presence.

            Nevertheless she was desired, courted, and invited. The Earl of Maybegood owned and managed several estates of prime, productive land; as a very wealthy member of the peerage, Marlene was considered to be a Catch, and scores of scheming daddies dreamed of marrying off their sons to her. From her graduation from Oxford four years earlier, and her entry into the Polite World, Marlene had been the target of considerable masculine interest. The experience had left her somewhat arrogant in regard to the gentler sex.

            “Believe me, Caro, he’ll take me as I am,” Marlene growled.

 ***

I love your hero’s name! Maybegood. 😆 Where can we find you and your books?

Buy here: http://tinyurl.com/RegencySatire

http://www.suzdemello.com

http://www.TheVelvetLair.com (blog)

Where will you be next?

Find me on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/SuzDeMello

Send me a PM and mention this blog for a FREE ebook!

Thank you so much for playing along, Suzie! And you brought a FREEE book! Wishing you much luck with your book and writing. I hope you’ll come visit again one day. Don’t forget to leave Suz a comment here to thank her for your free book! 🙂

Thanks for having me!

Dodadagohvi~