Multi-Published Author Margaret Tanner

I’m pleased to welcome multi-published Australian author, Margaret Tanner, to my blog today. She loves delving into the pages of history as she carries out research for her historical romance novels, and prides herself on being historically correct. Many of her novels have been inspired by true events, with one being written around the hardships and triumphs of her pioneering ancestors in frontier Australia. She is a member of the Romance Writers of Australia, the Melbourne Romance Writers Group (MRWG) and EPIC. She won the 2007 and 2009 Author of the Year at AussieAuthors.com.

Welcome, Margaret. Can you please give us a synopsis of your newest book, “Wild Oats?”

Margaret: Sure. Here’s a blurb: In the summer of 1914, an aristocratic young Englishman, Phillip Ashfield comes out to Australia to sow some “Wild Oats”. He falls in love with a young girl Allison Waverley, seduces her, then decides to marry an heiress to consolidate the family fortunes. Phillip has made a fatal choice, that will not only ruin his own life, but the repercussions will be felt by the next generation.

Tommy Calvert has loved Allison since childhood. He enlists in the army at the outbreak of World War 1, and returning home on leave finds her on the verge of suicide because she is pregnant. They marry even though he knows she is carrying Phillips’ child, and in due course she gives birth to a son who she names Paul.

Mortally wounded on the battlefields of France, Tommy is found by Phillip who is an officer with the British Army. Phillip finds a photograph of Allison and Paul in Tommy’s pocket, and realizes the baby is his, and he vows to claim the boy when the war is over, because his wife cannot give him an heir.

After the war, Phillip returns to Australia and tries to persuade Allison to become his mistress. When she refuses, he kidnaps Paul and takes him to England.

Distraught at the loss of her son, Allison thinks she will never be happy again, but she does eventually find love and contentment from an unexpected source.

Katie: This historical romance sounds fascinating. Where did you get the idea that inspired you to write it?

Margaret: I have always been interested in the 1^st world War era. I actually wrote the Trouble with Playboys first. And this tells the story of Paul Ashfield’s search for his mother, Allison, who he erroneously believed had abandoned him. Then Allison got inside my head and kept saying. What about my story? Don’t you want to know what happened to me? So, I wrote Allison’s story and called it Wild Oats.

Katie: What kind and how much research did you do for this book? Did you draw on research you’ve done for other books?

Margaret: I did draw on research I had done for other books, as I have previously written two other World War 1 era stories. Shattered Dreams published by The wild Rose Press and Devil’s Ridge published by Whiskey Creek Press. I did a ton of research, scoured the libraries, visited the World War 1 battlefields in France and Belgium, and was even lucky enough to “interview” a couple of elderly, (in their nineties) great uncles who served in the 1^st World War. They were both deaf, but they had a wonderful recall of what happened during their time in the army.

Katie: Why do you write romance, as opposed to other genres?

Margaret: I have always been a romantic at heart (don’t tell hubby), and I adore happy ever after endings.

Katie: How long did it take you to research and write “Wild Oats?”

Margaret: As I said before, I already had the research to hand. The actual writing took a couple of months, but revisions, editing etc took another two or three months, So, I reckon 6 months would be about the right length of time.

Katie: I see that your book is published by The Wild Rose Press in both e-book and print formats. Why did you choose this route; why did it appeal to you as opposed to say, a more traditional route of publishing?

Margaret: Well, I have to say I did try the “large” publisher path, but my stories didn’t seem to fit in with them, or at least that’s what they told me, so I went looking for e-pubs and found Whiskey Creek Press and The Wild Rose Press, and do seem to have a found my niche with them.

Katie: What advice would you give to authors if they are thinking of e-publishing?

Margaret: My advice would be the same for any kind of publishing. Keep trying. Never give up, and send off your very best work.

Katie: Learn more about Margaret and her books at http://www.margarettanner.com, and through her publisher: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/wild-oats-p-3893.html.