An Interview with Historical Romance Author Elaine Manders

 

 

It’s my great pleasure to introduce one of Stitches Thru Time’s own crew today--Elaine Manders. Elaine writes historical romance to inspire and intrigue. Elaine began her writing journey with feature articles for a Christian newspaper and turned to fiction in 1992. Her debut novella series, the Annex Mail-Order Brides, was published Jul, 2015, and serves as prequels to her long historical novel series, Intrigue under Western Skies. The first of this series was published in Jan 2016 and the second, Surrendered, will be out Aug 2016. She has two other novellas out with several more full-length novels in the works. Her greatest joy is to create endearing characters and intriguing plots with humor and faith woven throughout, and her fondest hope is that these books will entertain the reader and bring glory to God. She lives in Central Georgia with her college going grandson and a happy bichon who guards her office.

 

Elaine has agreed to answer some questions about herself, and tell us a little bit about the newest book, Cloaked in Love, which is part of the Threads of Love Anthology featuring several of this blog's authors. Be sure to read to the end, since we have a couple of great giveaways you can qualify for by leaving a comment.

 

Let’s get started. Elaine, Please tell the readers about the release that is being showcased today.

 

Cloaked in Love is a historical western romance with a Christian theme about a young woman held captive in her isolated Wyoming ranch home by a ruthless outlaw gang. She’s forced into a pretend marriage to the youngest gang member, a handsome cowboy who must use his wits more than his six-shooter to help his “bride” escape.

 How did you come up with the concept for this book?

 I grew up in the era of TV westerns and have always wanted to write a series about women in peril. When Crystal Barnes asked for volunteers to do a STT boxset with a craft theme, the plot for Cloaked in Love crystalized, (pun intended) since a cloak the heroine is crocheting plays a major part in the story’s resolution. I looked upon it as a God thing, an opportunity to work with three other talented authors, something I rarely get to do.

 

I love westerns, too, and do some crocheting, so this sounds very interesting. What’s your favorite scene in your book and why?

 

My very favorite scene comes at the end, and I don’t want to give it away, so I’ll tell about my second best. The heroine, Jeannie, is forced to marry Zak, one of the outlaws who’ve taken her captive. Rather than docilely accepting her fate, Jeannie lights into him like a cornered wildcat and manages to do some serious damage before he’s able to convince her he means her no harm. As a writer, I didn’t see that coming—that Jeannie turned out to be such a tough little wrangler. She showed her strength and faith, believing if she resisted evil, God would deliver her. And He did in the end in a way she could never have imagined.  

 

Don’t you love it when your characters go off script? It makes for interesting writing. Speaking of characters, who is your favorite character in the book and why?

 

Jeannie. She questions her faith, but when faced with this nightmare, she faces the evil with courage and love, a love that even extends to her enemies.

 

You have several full length books and novellas out. Which do you prefer and why?

 

I’ve actually written more full length novels than novellas, but only one novel is published yet. The second is coming out next month. It takes much longer to edit and polish a 100K book than one at 25K. When I first decided to become an independent writer, I felt it was best to publish the most popular genres at a low price as a way to attract readers to take a chance on an unknown author. The novella isn’t my first love, though. It doesn’t allow you to delve into the characters as much as I’d like.

 

What is your next project?

 

The book I’m preparing for release in August is the second in my Intrigue under Western Skies series, entitled Surrendered. It’s the conclusion of the love story of an idealistic librarian and a handsome, but troubled cattle baron in 1884 Nebraska. It’s another of my God inspired premises, and very difficult to write, because it follows a man fighting against his own beliefs from atheist to redemption, and in the process, delves into those basic, bone-deep theological questions most people don’t want to even think about. There’s plenty of conflict in the series, though, as the series title suggests, so it moves as a fast clip for long novels.

 

Thanks for being with us today, Elaine. It’s been a pleasure interviewing you.

 

 Cloaked in Love

 

With Pa off on a cattle drive, Jeannie Baylor is alone on their isolated Wyoming ranch. When she’s taken captive by a gang of ruthless outlaws, she realizes her virtue is in imminent danger, and her life is safe only as long as they need her house for a hideout.

 

Unexpectedly, one of the men, Zak Collins, a handsome man with bitterness evident in his stone gray-green eyes, proposes a fantastic scheme to save her life. Having no other choice, she has to trust Zak. But God gives her another way, and its success depends on the cloak she’s crocheting for a friend.

 

 

 

 

Threads of Love

 

Four heartwarming historical romance novellas woven together with faith and love. From a mail-order bride seeking revenge, to a woman captured by an outlaw gang in the old west, to a young widow who follows her mother-in-law into a war-torn country, and sisters who make a pact to never marry, each one of these stories will satisfy the romance lover’s heart.

 

***Special Giveaway for today only. Up to 3 lucky commenters will win the boxset of Threads of Love, which includes Cloaked in Love.***

 

Don’t forget to leave a comment to get your name in the drawing for Cloaked in Love by Elaine Manders! Winner announced in the Weekly Windup on August 1^st. Check out all our great prizes on the Prizes Galore page.