I’m delighted to be chatting with Australian author, Carolyn Miller, once again here on the blog. Carolyn is the author of nine Regency romances, all published in under three years – that’s pretty impressive by anyone’s standards. Despite living in the same country, we have yet to meet, but I’m sure it will happen one day. Carolyn lives in a beautiful part of Australia, even if it isn’t in my home state. Today she’s chatting all things Miss Verity, haggis, and some fun future writing plans.

Enjoy getting to know Carolyn and her stories a little more…

Bookchat with Carolyn

Please share a little about your characters, Verity and Anthony

Verity Hatherleigh is the youngest of Lord Aynsley’s three daughters, an intelligent, compassionate, feisty young lady who really doesn’t like the social trappings of her father’s title, which leads her to adventures ‘further north.’

Anthony Jardine’s desire to serve God has led him far from family and his Scottish home – to the opposite side of the world, no less. His practical common-sense means he’s focused on getting the job done, regardless of the rules or the consequences, a trait that endears him to others and proves valuable for what God has planned for his future.

Describe your book in 5 adjectives

Adventurous, witty, romantic, faith-filled, Scottish-flavoured 🙂

Misleading Miss Verity is set in Scotland – what differences did you find writing about Scotland as opposed to England?

The language is a little more fun to play with – I had to be careful not to overwhelm readers with too much Scottish dialect (and as this is set in the Lowlands, not the usual Scottish Highlands, I couldn’t use Highlands Gaelic). I wanted to steer clear of too many clichés (so I don’t think there is mention of tartan or bagpipes here!) because this was set in the time before Scotland was generally accepted by the English, and for many years it had suffered under English rule and with English disdain. But it was also a great deal of fun to write about as I have actually visited many of the places I wrote about, and incorporating those qualities brought back lots of memories of visiting castles, enjoying haggis 🙂 and the sights and sounds of Scotland.

How does a curate come to terms with becoming a laird?

Ah, the wonderful world of family and inheritance and interesting Scottish laws that mean it’s possible to inherit through the mother’s side as well as the father’s! For someone who never expected to inherit, dealing with his new-found authority, the legacy of his forebears, estate financial difficulties, and struggling with a village’s misconception of him, certainly proves a challenge. Of course, as a faith-filled man he’s trusting that God will give him wisdom and enable him to meet the challenges. But perhaps he might also need to meet someone who has grown up on an estate, and who knows how things are ‘supposed’ to be done (even if she doesn’t really want to do them!) and who might be able (and willing) to partner with him for better or for worse…

What are the major themes in this story?

Personal identity is definitely something both Verity and Anthony struggle with, something that stems from their varying family backgrounds and experiences. How do you deal with things when you believe yourself to be a mistake?

Linked with this is the idea of personal responsibility, and what is owed to family and rank and the history of those who have come before. Do we focus on meeting family and societal expectations, or do we seek to follow God’s leading into the unknown?

My writing space

Which character did you enjoy writing most?

I loved writing about Verity – she’s so much fun, and very witty – but I really loved writing about her grandmother, the Dowager Viscountess of Aynsley. Readers have met this sharp-tongued lady in my previous books, A Hero for Miss Hatherleigh and Underestimating Miss Cecilia, but it’s in Misleading Miss Verity that she’s truly given the chance to shine. I love how older people can get away with saying what they really feel, à la the irascible Dowager Countess from Downton Abbey (which I may have watched a few times for inspiration) and it was fun to not have to express things with the veneer of politeness, and yet still ultimately show this woman has a heart of gold.

Which character gave you the most grief?

I wrote this story years ago, so I honestly can’t remember. I do recall needing to balance Verity’s parental issues with the gains seen in their relationship in the previous novels, but that was fairly minor. Honestly, this was just a really fun story to write – and that must have come across, as early readers are saying it’s their favourite of the entire Regency Brides series! J

How does an Australian girl come to write 9 historical novels set in the United Kingdom?

My first stories were contemporaries, set mostly in Australia with Aussie characters. When my agent told me US publishers were unlikely to be interested in Australian-set stories so I’d need to change the settings and characters to be American, I balked, and instead offered her my Pride and Prejudice-inspired story, The Elusive Miss Ellison. I knew there was a market for these types of stories (hello, Mr. Darcy!) and I LOVE writing about the Regency time period, as it’s such an interesting time with wars, technological and social change, exploration, political upheaval, all of which make for intriguing storyline and things I’ve referenced in my novels. Misleading Miss Verity was actually my second historical, after The Elusive Miss Ellison, so when I first signed my contract with Kregel I had what I considered books 1, 9, 4 & 5 written, which meant I had to backtrack to write new storylines in order to ‘fill the gaps’ between these books. That was a fun process, trying to remember how different characters link up, but I think it’s worked. I haven’t used giant master sheets as it’s all locked in my brain, so it’s nice to be at the end and have those readers who read through EVERY book in the series prior to each new release tell me I haven’t erred. Such readers are gold!

What parts of the writing process become easier with each new story? What becomes more challenging?

I think I’m learning more about the power of a strong introduction and conclusion – it’s the middle that can be a little bit fun to negotiate! One of the challenging things with having multiple stories published is to try to make the plots and characters different each time. Having written these books the way I have (having Verity written before Miss Hatherleigh and Cecilia’s stories), I was very deliberate in making their characters different in personality, faith, and experience. Verity is far more outspoken and inclined to hoydenish activity; her eldest sister, Caroline, is more complacent and entitled; and Cecilia, the middle sister who is often overlooked, is far more shy. Different personalities and storylines appeal to different readers, and help them connect with the stories in different ways. I hope people will enjoy Verity’s good-hearted qualities that probably most resemble Lavinia in The Elusive Miss Ellison all those books ago. I think the humour and style of Misleading Miss Verity is the perfect way to ‘bookend’ the series.

Did you come up with your titles for this series, or did your publishing team?

I came up with most of the titles, although by this final series I really only had Misleading Miss Verity as my one ‘locked-in’ title, so needed my publishers to help with the other two. I love the pun and irony flavouring this latest title, so I was very happy the publishers agreed it should stay as Misleading Miss Verity!

Don’t miss your chance to get your hands on the first two ebooks in this series for a bargain price – limited time!

What is in your writing pipeline now?

I am editing the draft of the first book in my new historical series, a book (as yet untitled) that is set in the Lake District of England that returns to the start of the Regency period in 1811 and deals with the return of an injured soldier and how this impacts the villagers. This new series (‘The Wallflowers’) will deal more specifically with the stories of those women who were older, less pretty, who had basically been left on the shelf and overlooked for marriage. I wanted to steer away from the more conventional Regency story involving grand estates, dowries and pretty (and handsome) young things and write stories with a bit more grit to them – but don’t worry, there will still be humor and faith elements and the happily-ever-after!

I’ve also got a Regency Christmas novella that will be releasing as part of the Joy to the World: A Regency Christmas collection next year. It was a lot of fun to write a much shorter story (only a third of my usual writing length), and Regency-era Christmas traditions were a lot of fun to research. After all, ‘tis the season to be preparing for Christmas, right?

I’m also dipping my toe back into contemporary fiction, both tweaking previous stories I’ve written, and exploring new opportunities for publication. There are so many stories out there to be written! But I endeavour to always keep writing historicals – though probably not at the current pace of three full-length books a year!

Thanks Carolyn!

Carolyn Miller lives in the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, with her husband and four children, and loves drawing readers into fictional worlds that show the truth of God’s grace in our lives. Her Regency novels include The Elusive Miss Ellison, The Captivating Lady Charlotte, The Dishonorable Miss DeLancey, Winning Miss Winthrop, Miss Serena’s Secret, The Making of Mrs. Hale, A Hero for Miss Hatherleigh, and Underestimating Miss Cecilia, all available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Koorong, etc

Connect with her: website | facebook | pinterest | twitter | instagram

Relz Reviewz Extras
All Things Miller @ Relz Reviewz
Visit Carolyn’s website and blog
Buy at Amazon: Misleading Miss Verity or Koorong