Trevino, Dalia
A writer for over eight years of historical romances, I have nine completed novels and another in the works. Though I live and love my life in the US, I visit England as often as possible for research and for pleasure.
1) Your new novel, Love's Challenge is set in Georgian England, and I noticed that all of your previous works have also been historical romances. Have you always been interested in history, or was it something you 'discovered' at some point?
I have been captivated by history since a fairly young age. It is fascinating to me how people lived before us. Their every day life, celebrations, and troubles are in many ways unlike what we face today. And yet there are infinite similarities. It is the differences in how we live now, in the 21st century, and the people who lived so many years ago, deal with every aspect of life that intrigues me.
2) How much research did you have to do in the process of writing Love's Challenge?
Research, for me, is an ongoing enjoyable task that can lead to endless discoveries. Gathering information for Love’s Challenge was done over the course of my writing career and even before I decided to write. It takes some time to garner the knowledge of the every day life as well as major events in and around the year you choose to place your characters, and even then there is so much more that can be learned.
3) What made you choose Georgian England as the setting for your novel?
Love’ Challenge started out as a Regency romance. It was only when I put my hero in the Napoleonic/Peninsular War that I moved it back a few years to the Georgian Era. The conflict between France and England served as both a means for the joining of the hero and heroine as well as a wrench in their romance.
4) The role of women in society was so much different in the 18th century than it is today. What is it about your heroine, Lady Burrard, that modern readers can relate to?
Women today are independent and unafraid to speak out. In the aristocratic society of 19th century England that was not the case. The heroine of Love’s Challenge, Lady Diana Burrard, knows her place, but still manages to show the strengths of her character by not standing idly by and letting events maneuver her. Contemporary readers will recognize her spirit, determination, and strength of will.
5) The hero in your story, Lord Aubrey, is a man of unwavering conviction and loyalty. Is it this that earns him Lady Burrard’s love, or do you see that as stemming from some more subtle aspect of his character?
Lord Aubrey’s loyalty and conviction do set him apart from many men of his and Diana’s sphere of contemporaries. Though there are many soldiers who are dedicated to King and country there are enough that are not to help Anthony’s trustworthiness begin to make Diana fall in love with him. His kindness beneath a rougher exterior, his ability to admit when he is wrong, and the fact that he can care for her when he so obviously believes her guilty also contribute to her eventual falling in love in with him.
6) Of the minor characters in your book, are they any that stand out at being your favorites?
Jean Jordan, though a lesser character in Love’s Challenge and one of the villain’s, has become one of my favorites. His attempts to gain favor with Napoleon and enrich his coffers never worked for him as he was unfortunate enough to have to deal directly with Diana.
7) What do you think are the key differences between romance in our age, and the way it was during the time period in your novel?
Marriage’s in the time of Love’s Challenge were, for the most part, arranged and/or the result of a scandal. Today there are not many situations that could be construed as compromising and certainly none that would almost automatically lead to marriage. For many people who lived and loved in the Georgian/Regency era, romance had to come after marriage. Today it is the rare case that marriage will come before romance.
8) Regency romances make up such a significant portion of the literary market. What do you think it is that draws readers so strongly to your class of fiction?
I believe Regency romances have the draw that they do because romance readers want to escape from the everyday life. They want to travel back to a time where men were gentlemen and treated women like ladies. They want to get way from a dreary work day and live vicariously a different life that was assured to have a happy ending.
9) Which writers have inspired you the most?
Catharine Coulter, Johanna Lindsey, Victoria Henley, Jane Austen, and Fanny Burney have all inspired to me write. They each have a way of drawing the reader into intricate stories of romance where the Hero always gets the Heroine.
10) No doubt you've learned a great deal in the course of writing your novel. What would be your advice for someone interested in getting started writing historical romance?
I would advise anyone thinking of writing to write first what you love to read. If you don’t like the subject matter and are just writing to fit a certain market, your book will lack the fire that will make the reader keep turning that page.
1) Dalia, you seem to be as fascinated by the past as I am. Can you tell us when this interest began to show itself?
I think it began when I started reading the romances my mother was finished with. Though her taste didn’t always lead to the historical she would purchase one every once in a while. After reading a couple I started buying them myself and eventually found Jane Austen. From there I started to want to find out what was true and what was fiction so I began my odyssey into British history.
2) Writing historicals takes a lot of research. Where do you carry out most of this research, the internet, local library, elsewhere?
All of the above. I get my research done anywhere I can, but I find travel and biographies invaluable.
3) Are you a plotter? Do you spend a lot of time on your plot before you start writing?
I do plot out a basic story line but invariably find my characters change the story when they do something I hadn’t planned. These variations always tend to lead to a more interesting tale.
4) Are you happy living in the present or do you often yearn for days gone by?
As much as I would like to live in 18th or 19th century England I have to ask myself, upon occasion, how well I would do without all the modern conveniences we have now. I think I would like to try it though.
5) When you start a new book do you work from an idea, then decide on the time period, or the other way around?
I know generally the time period I want to write in, but if something my characters need to do happens better around an event, and it will not disrupt the rest of my plot, I will move the time period.
6) How does your writing day go? Do you spend as much time writing as you would like?
I have yet to have a day when I have been able to spend as much time as I would like writing. I try to get in as much writing as I can, when I can, and am fairly happy when I can do six to eight pages in a day.
7) Dalia, please tell us about your characters in Love Wins. How did the Duke of Alderburgh and Lady Georgiana Hazeldon come to life?
I wanted to do a story around the ostentatious Prince Regent and his world. Gambling was a prevalent pastime in that era and the two characters evolved from there.
8) Have you any other interests apart from writing?
I love to read a good book; I enjoy traveling to Europe, and spending time with my family.
9) Who would be your keenest fan? Your most honest and trusted critic?
My mother is my greatest fan, but since she likes anything I do, I don’t think I could trust her as critic. I rely on critique partners for an honest evaluation on my work.
10) If you could time-travel, what would be your chosen period to return (or go forward) to?
I would love to spend a month in 1805 London, a month in 1067 London, and a month in 1560 London.
11) I see on your web site that you have a lot of other books coming up. Please tell us what you are currently working on.
I am in the midst of a love story set in the French Revolution and the marriage of the Prince Regent to his soon to be estranged wife Caroline of Brunswick.
12) And, what is the next book that your readers can look forward to in the near future?
I am hoping Voyage Of The Heart will by my next release.
Interview Dalia Trevino
by
Jayme Evans
Greeting Dalia. I'm pleased to send the interview questions for your upcoming book, Voyage Of The Heart.
Voyage of the Heart is your third book with wings. Is it a stand-alone or is it related to the first two?
Though this story takes place around the same time period and area, Georgian England, it is a stand alone novel that can be enjoyed without reading my other two novels. However I highly recommend both my previous novels, Love’s Challenge and Love Wins to anyone who loves a historical romance.
What brought you to Wings?
I’ve purchased novels from many epublishers including Wings in the past and found the Wings novels authors imagination, diversity, and quality of work far surpassed any others so I knew when my work was completed I wanted it published by Wings.
Tell us about yourself.
I am a devout reader. I love historicals and romances. I never thought anything would be more enjoyable than reading a historical romance until I began writing them.
How long you've been writing and what inspires you?
I have been writing for almost ten years and am inspired by the excellent novels of Catherine Coulter and Johanna Lindsey.
When do you write? How long does it normally take you? Are you a mood setter?
I write whenever I can, I have a full time job so it doesn’t always leave me a lot of time to move my characters and their plot along, but when I finally get the chance I can write for hours. I don’t necessarily need to set a mood, all I require is a computer and my wall of research books.
Are you a by-the-seat-of-your-pants type of person or are you a plotter?
I have a general plot before I start out but invariably it will change as my characters actions affect my outline.
Interview Dalia Trevino
by
Jayme Evans
Greeting Dalia. I'm pleased to send the interview questions for your upcoming book, Voyage Of The Heart.
Voyage of the Heart is your third book with wings. Is it a stand-alone or is it related to the first two?
Though this story takes place around the same time period and area, Georgian England, it is a stand alone novel that can be enjoyed without reading my other two novels. However I highly recommend both my previous novels, Love’s Challenge and Love Wins to anyone who loves a historical romance.
What brought you to Wings?
I’ve purchased novels from many epublishers including Wings in the past and found the Wings novels authors imagination, diversity, and quality of work far surpassed any others so I knew when my work was completed I wanted it published by Wings.
Tell us about yourself.
I am a devout reader. I love historicals and romances. I never thought anything would be more enjoyable than reading a historical romance until I began writing them.
How long you've been writing and what inspires you?
I have been writing for almost ten years and am inspired by the excellent novels of Catherine Coulter and Johanna Lindsey.
When do you write? How long does it normally take you? Are you a mood setter?
I write whenever I can, I have a full time job so it doesn’t always leave me a lot of time to move my characters and their plot along, but when I finally get the chance I can write for hours. I don’t necessarily need to set a mood, all I require is a computer and my wall of research books.
Are you a by-the-seat-of-your-pants type of person or are you a plotter?
I have a general plot before I start out but invariably it will change as my characters actions affect my outline.
You normally write Historical Romance. Have you ever tried any other genres?
I have written a contemporary romance but didn’t find it as satisfying as the historicals so it will remain filed indefinitely.
What do you do to research your books?
A large part of the enjoyment in historical writing is the research. I read as many biographies and autobiographies as I can from well-known people to the not so important people of the time period I am writing. I travel to England so I can see and feel what my characters would have and hope to interject that realism into my novels. The Internet supplies some information, though it is not always accurate and there are of course period movies that help give me a sense of what it was like.
What is your next project?
I am currently working on a historical set in the beginning of the French Revolution.
What advice to give to writers just starting out?
If you can’t or don’t want to write about what you know, write about what you love. That passion will come through in the writing and no matter what genre it is, your work will be the next can’t put it down, can’t wait to turn the page, stay up all night to read, best seller.
You normally write Historical Romance. Have you ever tried any other genres?
I have written a contemporary romance but didn’t find it as satisfying as the historicals so it will remain filed indefinitely.
What do you do to research your books?
A large part of the enjoyment in historical writing is the research. I read as many biographies and autobiographies as I can from well-known people to the not so important people of the time period I am writing. I travel to England so I can see and feel what my characters would have and hope to interject that realism into my novels. The Internet supplies some information, though it is not always accurate and there are of course period movies that help give me a sense of what it was like.
What is your next project?
I am currently working on a historical set in the beginning of the French Revolution.
What advice to give to writers just starting out?
If you can’t or don’t want to write about what you know, write about what you love. That passion will come through in the writing and no matter what genre it is, your work will be the next can’t put it down, can’t wait to turn the page, stay up all night to read, best seller.