A New Year -- A New Series

Well, I recently went through all my blog posts to see if I could find any mention of the new series. Here is the first post. http://annegallagherwriter.blogspot.com/2013/11/i-have-new-series.html  And the only other accounting was a small blurb on this post.
http://annegallagherwriter.blogspot.com/2015/05/im-back-writing-new-series.html

So, all I can say is WOW. I thought of this idea over two years ago. Unfortunately, other creative endeavors have gotten in my way and I haven't really been able to write more than a handful of words since last May.

I'm sure you're all wondering what it's about and who's in it. Well, it's about Henry Wade, 6th Marquess of Dunbury after thirty-odd years in the Army. He made his appearance in LADY OLIVIA'S UNDOING as Lady Olivia's lost love. We find out that Henry lost a duel to Reginald Leighton to win Olivia's hand, and instead of killing him, Reginald made him leave the country. Olivia never got over him. I'll spare you the details of what happens when Henry and Olivia meet up again.

This new series begins in 1807, three years prior to THE LADY'S MASQUERADE, the first book in The Reluctant Grooms series, where we first encounter Lady Olivia.

Henry Wade, Marquess of Dunbury

Henry Wade, a Lieutenant Colonel is His Majesty's Army, has finally come home after serving King and Country for thirty-four years. What he finds at Dunbury Manor are his six nieces all of whom have lost their parents. They are of "handsome countenance, beautiful manners, well versed in etiquette and deportment, and will make some lucky swain a wonderful wife." Henry's problem is that they're all poor as church mice. Yes, Henry does have some little money, but that was his to retire on and pen his memoirs.


 Henry's best friend is Steven Carlton, the Duke of Cantin. (Robert's deceased father in THE DUKE'S

Steven Carlton, Duke of Cantin

DIVORCE.) Steven is still very much alive in the Dunbury series (for a few years anyway), and we get a glimpse into Robert's past.

King George is still on the throne and the country is in the hands of the Duke of Portland. Lots of political intrigue and drama I have yet to research. It should be interesting. The Slave Trade Act has been successful, yet Catholic Emancipation has not.

Catherine Gantry

Henry's nieces are in the charge of Lady Catherine Gantry, a mysterious forty-something woman whose late husband left her without funds, so she became a governess to the wealthy beauties on the marriage mart. She is cousin to Steven and Olivia, a member of the Spencer-Churchill clan. Olivia was the one who placed Catherine at Dunbury Manor when it became clear the Dunbury ladies needed supervision.

Lady Gantry is a bit of an enigma to Henry. When he first encounters her, he believes she is Olivia all grown up. His attraction to her is brief when he finds she is a termagant with the temper of a virago.

The ladies, on the other hand, are quite delightful, and Henry enjoys his time getting to know each of his nieces before he marries them off.



Lady Mercy Wade -- Daughter of Harold Wade, the 5th Marquess of Dunbury. Harold's wife died in childbirth along with the heir to the Marquisate, when Mercy was a child. Mercy is the eldest of the six girls and is 20 when Henry arrives home. She is the only niece Henry has ever met.

Faith

Charity

Hope

 













Lady Faith, Lady Hope, Lady Charity -- Daughters of the late Duke and Duchess of Trowbridge. Esme, the Duchess of Trowbridge was Henry's eldest sister. Her death is the reason Henry has finally come home.

Patience

Prudence

Lady Patience, and Lady Prudence -- Daughters of the Earl and Countess of March. who are presumed drowned in an accident at sea. Elspeth was Henry's second eldest sister.

Each girl has their own distinctive personality and their own idea of what love is. They are also known for wearing certain colors (which will reflect in the covers of the books).

Penny

They are friends with Penny (THE LADY'S MASQUERADE) Arabella and Arianna (THE SEDUCTION OF MR. SUMMERVILLE) Dorcas (LADY CADORET'S LONGING), Rosamund (THE EARL'S ENGAGEMENT) and Violet (THE LADY'S FATE).

Dorcas

Rosamund

Arabella

Arianna

VIolet

These are a few of the men who fall in love with the ladies. Only three have a name, and of course I'm always on the hunt for new love interests. We'll see who I come up with.

 So, there you have it. The new series -- I'm calling it THE LADIES OF DUNBURY. I'm not sure what each of the individual novels will be called. I think I've used up all the Duke's Earl's and Lady's.
I'm opting for Shakespeare or Jane Austen depending on what I can cull from the tomes of the past. I hope you'll join me as I hope to keep up with this blog better than I have been.
Anne Gallagher (c) 2016

Writing Romantic Women's Fiction

Well, it's certainly been a while since I've been on this blog. I have a good excuse. I've been writing. Unfortunately, not Regency romance. I'm afraid I've had to put the new series on the back burner.

However, I do have some exciting news. I've just finished a new book, romantic women's fiction I've written under my pen name, Robynne Rand. Without further ado...

After losing her job, apartment, and latest friend-with-benefits, prize-winning newspaper journalist Cathryn Parker returns home to Rhode Island and her domineering mother Rita, six Chihuahuas, and the old bedroom she slept in as a kid. Blacklisted for writing an expose on a philandering Senator, Cathryn takes the only job offered her at Providence Woman Monthly, if only to escape her mother's constant disapproval.

When asked to write a piece on the lack of love in the lives of women over a certain age, Cathryn is appalled, as she's part of that demography. To make things worse, the only way to ensure the magazine stays afloat and Cathryn keeps her job is if the article is a hit.

A chance meeting with her brother's best friend, Steve, finds Cathryn battling an emotional roller-coaster. Living under the Disney delusion that someday her prince would come—Steve is the perfect man, everything she's ever wanted—but he carries the physical scars of a bomb blast from Afghanistan and the emotional scars from a fiancée who left him because of it. 

 However, when she discovers the secret that her perfect Prince Charming has been hiding, Cathryn makes a life-changing decision, especially as she has her own secret to keep.

*****

Also, in my other contemporary romance REMEMBERING YOU you'll find characters in WOMEN OF A CERTAIN DEMOGRAPHIC. 

                                                  

When Genna goes home to Rhode Island to spend a long-awaited vacation, she finds that her family is falling apart and she has only twenty-one days to put them back together. 

Her new promotion as Executive Chef at the posh Littlefield Country Club in Delaware is a dream job. It’s more than the pay and benefits; she has the chance to achieve what she’s always wanted – her own kitchen – and Genna can’t wait to get started when she returns after the Fourth of July holiday. 

However, her vacation is far from relaxing. Two men are vying for her attention – an ex-fiancé who wants to fix the mistakes of the past, and an old school chum who finds her irresistible, and inspires mutual feelings in Genna. Her aunt’s forgetfulness is also causing concern. However, the family is in denial; her cousins are unable to cope with their mother’s changing behavior and her beloved uncle, dealing with all the stress, has a heart attack. 

Genna steps in to keep his diner open and the family together while he recuperates, and she questions what’s more important – breaking the glass ceiling or remaining with her family. The clock runs out and Genna finds she is needed at her new job, needed by her family, and by lovers old and new. Now Genna must search her soul to find out what she needs.

*****

Both are available on Amazon. WOMEN OF A CERTAIN DEMOGRAPHIC is available for a limited time at .99 cents. Get your copy now.

Anne Gallagher (c) 2015

The Business Side of Writing

Good Morning. Writing is my job. It's what I do for a living. For those of you who don't write, it's not just sitting down at the computer and pouring my guts out on the page. I have a business plan, and pretty much it's laid out for the next five years. When I first started publishing five years ago, I had a plan and achieved everything that was on it. That being said, in March I wrote a new one.

We've all heard that traditional publishing moves at a snail's pace. It's true. It could be three years from the time you write a book to the time it gets published. (And that's with an agent and publishing house.)

In self-publishing, you're only as limited with time as it takes you to write, edit, proof, and upload your book. With some caveats. If you can write a book in three weeks, hey more power to you. Unfortunately, I can't (unless I'm totally engaged in the story). For me, it's more like three months, barring any unforeseen circumstances, illness, prior commitments, and the weather. (Yes, the weather.)


However, having said that, there's also the business side to writing you can't ignore. Foreign translations, paperbacks, audio versions, marketing, publicity. That cuts into writing time. Just THINKING about all those things takes away from writing time. I spent two hours on Friday researching translation companies for the Reluctant Grooms.Foreign Translation means I'd be reaching readers who wouldn't know about my books in the first place. I'm a storyteller first and foremost. What good is a story if someone wants to read it and can't?

Also, because I write and publish in other genres, I need to develop those stories as well. I have a detective series I'm working on, as well as two more books in the contemporary romance series I started in 2012, and another woman's fiction I started last year.

Regency romance is only one facet of Shore Road Publishing, (my company)  and for the last several years I've pushed all the other work aside to finish the Reluctant Grooms series. Now that's it's done, I need to concentrate on everything else.

Which is not to say I'm giving up on the Dunbury series. I'm not. I just need to set it aside for a little while. Until I can give it the time it deserves. The Dunbury series is a lot more involved than I thought it was going to be, which I knew a long time ago, and more recently when I put all the notes and outlines together. However, after looking at it again, I will need to immerse myself in that world for a long time, and right now I just don't have that time. Also,  One thing I learned about writing a series is that readers don't really want to read books in a series until the entire series is complete. Or at least there are several books on the market. I know that's how I feel. Why bother investing time, energy, and money in something if it's not finished. I hate waiting for the resolution.

And you may be wondering why I'm telling you this. Partly because for those of you who receive this in your inbox, and partly because of new readers who may stop here after reading one of my books. This blog was never meant to be a "writing" blog. My writing blog is at Piedmont Writer. That's where I discuss writing on a personal level. This blog was supposed to cater to my readers. However, if I'm not writing Regency romance, why bother filling you in on what I'm doing. You don't care.

Therefore, this blog is taking a hiatus. Again. Yes, I know. For those of my fans who want to know when the new series will be out, I can't say right now. I'd like to think my schedule will permit by Christmas with at least two or three books in the new series. But maybe not. It all depends on my daughter and my commitment to her school. (I'm very active there.)

However, if you've read to here on this post, I can tell you, I will be hosting a Goodreads Giveaway for the paperbacks that have just come out. It will take a few weeks to get all the components ready for it, but I will be doing that. I'm hoping by September.  I'll let you know through Twitter @gallagher_anne and this blog with a quick blast. If you're not signed up to Goodreads, please do.

Also, if  you've read my books, I would appreciate a review for any of the books you've read. I've never asked for reviews in the back of my books like some authors do. I've always felt icky about that, but as a writer, we all appreciate a good review. Reviews are the glue that hold the author together. It makes us feel all the hard work writing it was worth it.  So, thanks in advance if you care to write one.

So yes, there's more to writing books than meets the eye. There's a business behind it that most readers don't get. I know when I want to read a book, I just find it, buy it, and read it. I don't care how long it takes to write or format or publish. I don't care if it's traditional or indie pubbed. I just want my "fix" from that particular author. But for those of you who read this blog who are my readers/fans, I thought you deserved  an explanation for my absence over the next few months.

I didn't want you to wait for the new series and find out it wasn't happening as quickly as you wanted it. That wouldn't be fair to you.

Thanks for reading.

Anne Gallagher (c) 2015

The Paperback Versions of The Reluctant Grooms are Finally Published

I know I said I would have them ready by the end of June, but I lost two, count them, 2 laptops within a week of each other. Yes, I went into a blind panic. Yes, I hyperventilated until I passed out. Yes, I speed dialed my cousin who's a computer genius, and yes, he fixed them. Whew. ( I had to take the unexpected trip to Charlotte, but it was totally worth it.)

I had forgotten how much I hated formatting for paperback. (Which is the true reason why I put it off for as long as I did.) Yes, I do all my own formatting, which is why there are no fancy goo-ga's, or special effects contained amidst the pages. It's not that I can't do them, I can, however, if I make a simple mistake, it could cost me several hours of frustration. Let me tell you how much trouble I had just inserting page numbers. Yes, there is a simple button you click and voila, there they are. Yet, the computer gods laughed at me and turned the task into a nightmare. I kid you not. Click, Center, Insert. Yeah, not so much.

And you would think by doing all 5 books in the same day that each would get easier as the day wore on. Again, no, not so much.

I also updated the books that were already for sale, so in the space of two days, I actually formatted 10 books. And let me tell you, I'm done. Done with formatting for quite awhile.

Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to format WHEN ALL HOPE IS LOST. That will have to wait.


I will have the links on my header bar as soon as I can. Sorry for the delay.

*****

In other news, I've not written anything on the new series in quite a while. Not because I haven't wanted to, but I was sidetracked by a shiny new idea and wrote that story instead. A mystery detective novel, not something I've ever done before, but the characters wouldn't get out of my head and just to shut them up, I wrote it down. 17 days from start to finish.

And then I painted my office. I'll have pics soon. (As soon as I get them off my phone.) The office seriously needed help, and I'm glad I did it. That took 6 days, So there went the month of June.

However, I also want to say I did finally get the covers for the new Regency series and I am totally in love with them. I wanted something different this time. And different they are. I scrolled through Amazon and Smashwords looking at the covers of Regency romance novels, and I can honestly say, none of them look like mine. So for that I am particularly proud. My cover designer is on vacation, but once she returns, I'll have her do her magic and make them spectacular. (I'd show you the ones I did, but I'm superstitious about things like that. I have to at least have the first book finished.)

Also, I'm sure you noticed, I changed this blog's tone from green to red. I don't know why. I've wanted to do something different with it for awhile now, but just didn't know what. I took some time this morning and just did it. Funny, I didn't notice it until the 7th time I adjusted it, but the background is exactly the same color and texture as the chaise the lady is reclining on. Lucky me.

That's all the news I have thus far.

What do you think of the new color scheme?

Anne Gallagher (c) 2015