Welcome book fiends and coffee aficionados! Today we are lucky enough to be chatting with, and learning more about, talented author Kate Noble. Thanks for taking the time to be with us today, Kate! To start, could you tell us something about your recent release, Follow My Lead?
Thank you for having me at Coffee Time Romance, and certainly! Follow My Lead is the story of Winnifred Crane, an aspiring art historian in Regency England who thinks that if she proves a certain painting’s authenticity, she will gain admission to the renowned Historical Society – but that proof she needs is all the way across Europe. Jason Cummings, Duke of Rayne is a member of the Society and is charged with taking her as far as Dover, where she will catch a ship. Of course, not all goes as planned, and Jason ends up having to stick close to Winnifred’s side as she treks her way across Germany and Austria.
Winnifred has very modern notions for a historical character. Was it hard to work such a forward thinking character so seamlessly into a historical novel?
Actually, you’d be surprised by the number of women from that time period who sought knowledge and education for themselves. Elizabeth Montagu, along with Elizabeth Vesey and Frances Boscawen founded the original Bluestocking Circle in the 1750s, a group dedicated to promoting intellectual community amongst women. From their group came women poets like Hannah More and writers like Fanny Burney and Mary Wollstonecraft. Madame Du Pompadour was known for her love of books. And Mary Moser was herself an artist, known for her flower paintings, and was a member of the Royal Academy.
While Winn may seem modern in her thinking, the women that inspired her were from the Regency time period, and previous.
Not just in this book, but out of any that you have written previously or are working on, who is your favorite character and why?
Oh goodness, that’s hard. I fall in love with almost every character I write while I’m writing them. I have great affection for Jason and Winn and their mad cap journey through Germany. But I have to say, the one who has stuck with me longest is Phillippa Benning from Revealed. She just so easy and wonderful to write, she says exactly what she’s thinking… hence why I keep putting her in my books for a scene or two!
Who is your favorite author to read for pleasure? Do you stick with historical romance or do you read things that are nothing like you write?
I write historical romance because it’s what I love to read. I dig into Eloisa James and Julia Quinn of course, I think Julia Anne Long is superb and Sarah MacLean is a rare new talent. But I’m a whole lot more eclectic than that. I adore Jhumpa Lahiri’s short stories and Mark Waid’s Irreedemable comic book series.
Jason was not your average hero. He spent a portion of the book not sure why he was still being dragged along on the adventure and yet he was very easy for the reader to fall in love with. How did you come up with such an irresistible hero?
Jason was heavily featured in my previous book The Summer of You – he was Jane, the heroine’s irresponsible brother. While I wanted to smack him half the time, writing The Summer of You, I still loved him, but knew he had to be matured a bit for his own story. Hence, in Follow My Lead, he is five years older, and realizing his past mistakes, trying very hard to act responsibly, which is why he ends up following Winn around, trying to keep her out of trouble.
What was the strangest inspiration for one of your books?
Um, probably Paris Hilton.
Do you plot your stories out prior to beginning or do you wing it as you sit down in front of a blank document?
I write an outline before I begin, but that is about as far as I do plotting wise. No graphs or charts or beat by beat layout.
What do you do when the characters stop ‘talking’ to you while you are writing?
That’s where the outline comes in handy! If they spoke to me once, I just follow what was laid out before, and ultimately it will get me back on track.
Any hobbies besides creating luscious historical fiction with a fresh voice?
I would have any number of hobbies if I had more free time. When I do get an hour or two to myself, I tend to ride my bike along the beach (I live in Southern California).
Do you have anything else you would like to add/say to our readers? Like teasing us with any details of your upcoming release, If I Fall? *waggles eyebrows hopefully*
Hee! Well, for readers of Follow My Lead, If I Fall features a wonderful heroine introduced in that book… as well as another wonderful heroine featured in another book of mine (read up and see if you can guess which one.) This book features all the glitter and glamour of the London Season, not to mention a surprising amount of scaling buildings (hence the title).
That’s really all I can offer just now, but I’ll have sneak peeks and excerpts up on the website all too soon, so keep your eyes open!
Lastly, where can we readers find you on the internet?
The aforementioned website where you can find excerpts, extras, contests and more. I’m also an active facebooker, and tweeter (@katenoblewriter)
Thank you so much for having me at Coffee Time Romance!
Well, fellow book addicts and coffee lovers, it was truly a pleasure to get to know a new author and thank you for stopping in to read with us today. I also want to make sure to thank the author for the worlds you create and transport us to with your words and mention that we look forward to more great reads in the future!
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