Romancing Olive by Holly Bush Genre: Historical Romance
Synopsis: In 1891, spinster librarian, Olive Wilkins, is shocked to learn of
her brother’s violent death at a saloon gaming table and her
sister-in-law’s subsequent murder, traveling far from her staid life to
rescue her niece and nephew, now orphans. She arrives to find the circumstances of her brother’s life
deplorable and her long held beliefs of family and tradition, shaken.
Accustomed to the sophistication of Philadelphia, Olive arrives in
Spencer, Ohio, a rough and tumble world she is not familiar with, facing
two traumatized children. Her niece and nephew, Mary and John, have been living with a
neighboring farmer, widower Jacob Butler, the father of three young
children of his own and a man still in pain from the recent loss of his
wife. Real danger threatens Olive and Mary and John while Jacob and his own brood battle the day-to-day struggles for survival. Will Olive and Jacob find the strength to fight their battles alone
or together? Will love conquer the bitterness of loss and broken dreams?
How did you come up with the
title(s)? Romancing Olive
implies a past, a present and a future and Olive's journey is the crux of the
story. Train Station Bride sets up the whole story and begs a question - Who
gets married at a train station and why?
What books have influences your life the most? To Kill a Mockingbird, Pride and Prejudice, Slightly Married and A Prayer for Owen Meany are my top all-time and yes, it's a bit of an odd group.
About how many tries did it take to get your book published? I always tell my students many writers have great difficulty in this part but never give up! Both of my books are self-published through a company called BookBaby. I have 5 historical romances and 1 and a half women's fiction books written. I started writing fifteen years ago and have an Excel Spread Sheet for the books I've queried. I've sent as many as 300 letters or emails to mostly agents and some publishers for my books. Traditional publishing can be very frustrating and hard to break into especially as there are requirements that you don't always know when you begin writing, especially concerning word count. Writing a good query can be more difficult than writing your book. It's a different kind of writing and the preferred style can change from agent to agent.
As frustrating as this has been, my family has been very supportive of my writing and I've always belonged to a writer's group. I tell all writers starting out, or at any stage of their career for that matter, to join a writer's group. Reading your own work aloud and hearing comments can be some of the most useful feedback you will ever get and hearing other writers read their work and working out in your head why it did or didn't sound or feel right is tremendously helpful to any writer.
The changes in publishing will offer new writers a foothold that hasn't been available for a decade because traditional publishers eliminated or vastly reduced their mid-list author list. The new formula, I think, will be to do all the basic marketing and build a fan base through self-publishing and then begin to query agents and editors. In fact, from what I'm reading, some agents are scouring Amazon and Goodreads and Shelfari and other sites like those for writers without contracts that are already reaching a fan base rather than looking for writers from query letters only. Bottom line is - keep writing and editing.
What books have influences your life the most? To Kill a Mockingbird, Pride and Prejudice, Slightly Married and A Prayer for Owen Meany are my top all-time and yes, it's a bit of an odd group.
About how many tries did it take to get your book published? I always tell my students many writers have great difficulty in this part but never give up! Both of my books are self-published through a company called BookBaby. I have 5 historical romances and 1 and a half women's fiction books written. I started writing fifteen years ago and have an Excel Spread Sheet for the books I've queried. I've sent as many as 300 letters or emails to mostly agents and some publishers for my books. Traditional publishing can be very frustrating and hard to break into especially as there are requirements that you don't always know when you begin writing, especially concerning word count. Writing a good query can be more difficult than writing your book. It's a different kind of writing and the preferred style can change from agent to agent.
As frustrating as this has been, my family has been very supportive of my writing and I've always belonged to a writer's group. I tell all writers starting out, or at any stage of their career for that matter, to join a writer's group. Reading your own work aloud and hearing comments can be some of the most useful feedback you will ever get and hearing other writers read their work and working out in your head why it did or didn't sound or feel right is tremendously helpful to any writer.
The changes in publishing will offer new writers a foothold that hasn't been available for a decade because traditional publishers eliminated or vastly reduced their mid-list author list. The new formula, I think, will be to do all the basic marketing and build a fan base through self-publishing and then begin to query agents and editors. In fact, from what I'm reading, some agents are scouring Amazon and Goodreads and Shelfari and other sites like those for writers without contracts that are already reaching a fan base rather than looking for writers from query letters only. Bottom line is - keep writing and editing.
Is there a specific teacher or teachers whom you gained a love for reading and writing from? Mrs. Cavanaugh and Mrs. Dillon of the Greater Latrobe High School English Department were both great influences on me. My parents were the most influential, though. Everyone in my house was always reading a book or two. Growing up we didn't watch much TV, and my father didn't care what I read, even if it was a Jughead comic book, as long as I was reading.
Thank you so much Holly! We all enjoyed your responses :)
"This book review is brought to you by Charisma Media Network"
"This book review is brought to you by Charisma Media Network"
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