is meredith duran still writing is meredith duran still writing

I loved her work. Im always grateful that I find new authors every year. She is also known for her atypical and complex story lines. I seem to recollect a family tragedy set her back several years ago. Shes amazing. I have also heard that editors all also asking authors to rewrite entire characters to make them more acceptable in some way and other things that seemed to be less about making the book stronger and more about making sure it fit into the mold they wanted. Bound by Your Touchhas one of my favorite set ups of therake hero and the spinster heroine. The skill they bring, or not, to writing about 2 men is what will be the determining factor for me. She is not a fast writer but her books are well worth waiting for! Elsewhere in the comments of this post, Piper mentioned that Duran, Kinsale and Ivorys books feel grown up and I took that to mean that the stories and writing are matured, rather than the authors were a particular age or they were writing for a specific audience age. I wrote Meredith Duran an embarrassingly gushy fan letter, probably years ago (I'm a run-out-on-release-day-and-buy-it sort of fan). A self-publisher getting into a brick and mortar store would be extremely rare, which means non-internet shoppers have a limited selection of popular tropes, themes, and so forth. Your path to publication was quite different than most since you won an online competition so this may not be the fairest question in the world but, gee, who said life is fair? Like others have mentioned, her books, along with Judith Ivory and Laura Kinsale, are so grown up, I suppose. Thank you for the updates. Anne Calhoun and Jill Sorensonneither of whom has published anything new in several years and both of whom left secondary characters (who seemed to be getting set up for their own stories) hanging at the end of their last published books. . , Yes, agree about Judith Duncan; I loved her books set in the Canadian wide open spaces. Also Julie James . MEREDITH DURAN grew up enamored of British history. } else { I think a lot of books would not be published as easily today. Publishing a disproportionate number of Regencies probably keeps them afloat. I imagine that there are people in their teens or 20s who want deep, lyrical, meaty romances and people in their 70s or 80s who prefer fluffier wallpaper historicals. is meredith duran still writing. Perhaps next you will introduce me to myself. In exchange, Phin promises to help her if ever he is able. And if lighter romances focus on sarcastic and fluffy heroines as youve noted, what is going on in our culture to make them suddenly popular and profitable? Fool Me Twice (Rules for the Reckless, #2) By: Meredith Duran | Published: 2014. The Duke Of Shadows was an absolutely wonderful book and is one that I have re-read several times. Im also a huge fan of Cecilia Grant and Joanna Bourne, who Id group in the same category. Meredith Duran is the best selling author of over a dozen historical romances. If done correctly, it could be a wonderful period mystery series. }); Id love to ask a publisher about your theory. ghurt110 AT bellsouth DOT net. I hope they finally get their story because I found them interesting. I also miss the days of really digging into a long, meaty read. Crazy for publishers to expect and crazy for the authors who manage it. I suppose I just dont frame my preferences in historical romance through the lens of age. I miss Lynn Viehl, too. 2010 That Scandalous Summer. Are you basing your views though on any data or scholarship, or is this just your general sense? Yes, its true feminist activism could be behind the trend, but it could also be completely inexplicable as popularity so often is. P.S: Sandy, I dont live in the U.S. so please do not enter me into the ARC contest. This is not a comfortable experience for either of them. And, even if books are shorter, I wouldnt necessarily agree that lack of depth is the result, as in a cause and effect relationship. There are too many variables to make that claim, not to mention Amazon isnt the only game out there (believe it or not). Sigh. Ill be honest once again. They didnt work for me in either format, which is a shame. Sourcebooks allows up to 100,000 words. Thanks for the very informative interview and hope all goes well with the defense. To write things as emotionally powerful as her books must take a lot out of you. Then again, if we exclusively bucked the trends in favor of our own fantasies, wed be even poorer as a profession than we already are. When a certain fraudulent antiquity sets these two onto a collision course, Lydia is horrified to discover that she might be wrong about herself, because Jamesflashy and bottomless as a butterflyis nevertheless frighteningly attractive to her. Also Laura Kinsale. We appreciate it! Over the years, AAR has had many a guest reviewer. Deborah Smith has written some books I loved (Gentle Rain and When Venus Fell are my absolute favorites!) I suspect theres lots of push back out there dark romances, nostalgia for traditional masculinity, etc., all from books I avoid when reading for pleasure. Like you, I am pleased there are more books centering female agency. But at the same time, I wouldnt necessarily regard traditional masculinity as a form of push back. It could very well be an act of nostalgia as you say, but it could also be because the women who write these stories simply prefer those types of characters. She does still write essays and things at Word Wenches that I like to read for a taste of her writing. Im finding heroines today from a wide range of authors to be quite interesting and complex. I also think its a sign of a talented writer when they can overcome individual considerations like that and I find myself relating to a character far outside my own experience. But when I tried one of her contemporaries, it just didnt work for me. Meredith was born and raised enamored of British history. Jacquie DAlessandro (8 years) Plots that have kept fans on their toes, wondering what this sly author has in store for them next! At thirteen years old, she made a list of life goals that included writing romance novels, trying sushi, and going to London to see Holbein's portrait of Anne Boleyn. MEREDITH DURAN blames Anne Boleyn for sparking her lifelong obsession with British history. The covers not bad either :) Congratulations and thanks! She is the author of twelve novels, all published by Pocket Books. $j("#connectPrompt").show(); And these are my go-to historical romance authors when I need that shot in the arm: Laura Kinsale, Judith Ivory, Loretta Chase, Sherry Thomas, Connie Brockway, Joanna Bourne, Marsha Canham, Jo Goodman. It seems that these days most single titles are arround 80k and that means that you can not do as much with the plot as you used be able to do. She wrote a couple of SF romances that I loved and it seemed she planned for more that universe that just never materialized. I believe its Return To Christmas. I had been waiting and hoping for years that Judith Merkle Riley would publish again and was so saddened years ago when it was announced she had passed on. } One thing I dislike is a jarring, overly modern voice in historical fiction. Games of Command was such a good book. They seem to be! But looking at Avons recent catalog, I can see youre point about endless Regency. The first 10 pages of their catalog is mostly Regency, some Westerns, some contemporary, and a smattering of other options. One perk about being waaaay behind is that theres a backlist to glom! I know that is one of the big reasons why a lot of authors dont want anything to do with someones unpublished manuscript and I dont blame them. The hero is one of the sexiest and most seductive Ive ever come across and the heroine forthright, likable, sympathetic, and believably damaged. One writer I miss is Lauren Blakely. What he doesnt anticipate is that shell choose to collect on that promise at the exact moment he finally wins his freedom or that his salvation from a very dark past might lie in the arms of a woman whos even better at deception than he is. The same way I have noticed an over abundance of fluffy mystery series in the mystery section that are based around crafts, benign witchcraft or catering, bakeries and other cozy small businesses. And I miss authors who may be an image of my youth, they might not work for me anymore, maybe: Iris Johansson (I do not like her crime books, same for others that come up), Judith mcNaught, Catherine Coulter, Tami Hoag, Elizabeth Lowell, Suzanne Brockmann, I just remember my enchantment when a new book came out . Were they ever in large numbers? James is also glamorous and sexy and flawed and broken and one of the hottest heroes Ive come across in a while. And my name is Lydia so how could I not reply! How can the romance community be improved or changed for you? My phone is being annoying.). As you mention, Im a relative newcomer to the publishing scene, so I have very little inside information. I also suspect the fact that the narrators have a long-running, frenemies bromance going on on Twitter has a lot to do with the reasoning behind this book. I read historical romance because I like history. Im finishing up the revisions on THE ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY WORST MAN IN ENGLAND, SCOTLAND AND WALES and Im feeling delicious. Its been several years since Ive read a book this long and I realize now I miss them! I havent been reading romance long enough to miss a particular author, but I can definitely understand why a number of them disappear. I wonder, am I too old for the current style or do I have older sensibilities? Gosh, that seems crazy to me. Thered probably be a lot more originality in writing if authors quit chasing after trends and just told the stories itching to burst out of their imaginations. She has a stable of narrators that she rotates through her books, bringing in new ones on a regular basis. (What can I say? Hannah Howell NOT finishing her Wherelock series with a story on Mordred. Last year one of my favorite writers, Kati Wilde, published a new book that was being released on audio first. The author gets all the blame, none of the credit, and the publishing house can look virtuous by dropping the author like a hot potato when internet riots break out. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()), document.getElementById("ak_js_2").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()). I absolutely love her writing and am beyond curious to read her take on a Medieval setting. As for Rachelwell, youll just have to wait for her upcoming review. I used to look more at e-publisher but many of largest romance geared ones have gone out of bussiness and what is in the bookstores are a sea of ballgowns and simple plots that I can predict what is going to happen before I even open the book and it drives me crazy because I want to read a book and it seems that I can not get one that I can sink my teeth into. I agree with the literary sensibility you mention to characterize authors like Duran, Ivory, Bourne, Grant, etc. Amazon scam authors are those who crank out a book a month, sometimes plagiarizing from others. Yes. And, in the meantime, Ill console myself with all the wonderful contemporaries that have come out recently and hunt down every obscure, out-of-print historical I can get my hands on. Audios are expensive, and I dont like being asked to pay full price for a 4 hour book when most books are 8 hours plus. "How kind of you to confirm what I already know. showBlogFormLink.click(); Many thanks to Meredith Duran for taking the time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions. The more books the better! Now a doctoral student in anthropology, she is happy to report that all three goals have become her favorite things to do. Just looking at the first 10 pages of their most recent HR releases, I see a ton of Regency, titled heroes and/or heroines, some Vikings and Medieval, and a smattering of Victorian. Haunted my local Barnes and Noble until they ordered it for me. Ho-hum. are being marketed more and given more of a PR push. Im looking forward to yours! But to his surprise, he cant quite give up on the will to survive. Have you considered submitting it to Carina Press? But, clearly, this is your own voice and your own style and your own story. I dont mind it in contemporary romance or even a time travel, but I really dislike 19th century bluestocking heroines that write like modern bloggers. I reread The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown a few years ago and was, again, agog at their greatness. Congrats Meredith. This theme wasn't crafted with conscious intention. I think its Jennifer Crusie the one I miss most. He smiled. To be honest, I only wish that I could think in terms of goals or themes when writing! I dont even believe that women are beating up men in romances as a trend today, which was recently posited in a blog here. Many of my favorite and much missed authors have already been mentioned (Laura Kinsale, Jennifer Crusie, Cecilia Grant, Connie Brockway). I love her Darkyn series (among others) and long for the featured stories of some of the characters appearing in the series. The society beauty who saved his life. Science of Reading: The Podcast will deliver the latest insights from researchers and practitioners in early reading. ELIZABETH DIE AND LEAVE US WITH NO MORE Sometimes a very short book (usually under 2 hours) will be priced at less than $5. I even corresponded with her back in the day. I miss Judith Duncan the most, closely followed by Paula Detmer Riggs, Helen Bianchin, and Laura Moore. I bought it and didnt get a chance to read it during the Christmas season so I kind of forgot about it. Bound by Your Touch sounds great! Is too much to ask that I can a book that I want to read and yes even write because I am trying to be a part of the solution. Ti Ph Printing l n v hng u v dch v cung cp my in vn phng, mc my in. Im planning to read her upcoming book. Shes on Twitter and never mentions writing. It is so wonderful. I loved her humor. The entire time I was reading Bringing Down the Duke, I kept thinking, Yeah, this is exactly what I want more of in historical romance! but ultimately, that story hit me more in the head than the heart so Im excited to try the second book in the series. She posts the most delightful vignettes weekly. Like anything else, authors come and go for untold reasons (much to my dismay), but life goes on. And now Ive found Meredith Duran and SHE IS GONNA QUIT AND NOT TELL US STELLAS STORY!!! I think something similar happened to Rett MacPherson with her Torie OShea mystery series and Ive only seen one novel that she self-published recently. Ive read some of their historicals, including some by Beverly Jenkins, and thought they covered more time periods and places than Harlequin. I cant remember if anyone mentioned Connie Brockway but she was an author I used to enjoy reading. Meredith Duran is the USA TODAY bestselling author of thirteen novels. I hope shes well, but its been several years since shes published and I no longer get newslettersso its not looking good. She has one left to go in that series. Oh yes, I can imagine the criticisms that would be leveled at Mrs. Morsi for writing that.