Awesome Romance Author Luanna Stewart
My awesome author this week is Luanna Stewart. Writing under the pen name Grace Hood, she has two novellas published with The Wild Rose Press. Now she is super excited to have a book published under her own name. Luanna talks about her influences, her travels, her next book, and why she loves to cook.
How did you choose the genre you write in?
I fell in love with reading romance at an early age. As a pre-teen I read and adored everything I could find by Jean Plaidy, Mary Stewart, and Barbara Tuchman. Not all strictly romance, but the stories dealt with the relationships between the lead characters. I wanted more of that – the secrets, the dreams, the emotions, so I stripped the library shelves of every Harlequin I could find. Discovering my Grammy Stewart’s collection of Harlequin Medical romances was like Christmas, LOL. (Grammy was a nurse.) When the itch to write my own stories of secrets, dreams, and emotions nagged at me, writing romance was the logical choice.
What do you do when you are not writing?
I love to bake. I have a monstrously enormous sweet tooth that must be satisfied. Growing up, we always had home-baked goodies in the house, so I come by it honestly. We have dessert after every supper – cookies, or cake, or pie, or homemade ice cream in the summer. For me, supper isn’t over until I’ve cleaned my dessert plate. I also like to bake bread – it’s so much better than what you get in the grocery store. And artisanal bread is really, really, really expensive! Cheaper for me to bake it.
What was the most interesting place you ever visited?
An impossible question to give a definitive answer because every location has its own interesting bits. But, having said that, I recently returned from a trip-of-a-lifetime, cruising the Rhine River from Switzerland to Amsterdam, and I must say Amsterdam is an amazing city. The location itself is fascinating, being below sea level. All the canals, and bridges, and tall, skinny houses. And the bicycles!! Oh my goodness, you risk your life crossing the street.
Where is your favorite place to write?
During the summer I love to sit on the back deck in a comfy chair with a small folding table to serve as my desk. I need to move my seat throughout the day to stay in the shade, but I love the fresh air, the bird song, and the flowers. This time of year I’m either huddled in my office (a corner of eldest son’s bedroom – he’s moved out but it’s still his room, cuz he’s my baby), or sitting in “my chair” in the living room. Not sure how it became “my chair”, except that no one else thinks it’s very comfortable. I think it’s a lovely chair.
How much research do you do for each book you write?
I love doing research for a new book. If it’s an historical romance, I immerse myself in the time period – study the fashion, maps, food, modes of travel. Everything I can think of to add realism to my story. I might not use it all on the page, but having those bits and pieces in my head certainly aids me in creating characters and locations. If it’s a contemporary romance I often have to research a career or a modern location. And if I’m writing a romantic suspense, I might need to do all the above as well as a new way to kill, LOL.
What project are you working on now or what book will be next?
I’m currently polishing the first in a series of Victorian set historical romances. In the first book, Sybil is resigned to remaining unwed but she longs to experience the ardent embrace of a man. When her long-lost fiancé returns, she decides he’s the perfect man for the job. If only she can convince him to stop being so darned honorable!
If Wishes Were Earls By Luanna Stewart
Edward Penhallion, the 12th Earl of Claverlock, is not in the mood to start his search for wife number four. He wants to be left alone with his books, and his dreams of revenge. But the arrival of a headstrong, sharp-tongued spinster forces him to play the charming host. Not a difficult task, given her intelligence and beauty, and soon he’s not terribly eager for her to leave.
Miss Miranda Large made a wish. When a mysterious note directs her to a tiny village in Cornwall, there to find her heart’s desire, she has no choice but to go. A snowstorm forces her to stay in the gloomy manor house of a gloomy earl. But, oh, he is a handsome devil. And he has a title – exactly what she’s always desired.
But as the snow falls and the winds blow, Edward discovers there’s more to Miranda than a lively wit and a lovely face. And Miranda wonders if the trappings of wealth are enough for true happiness.
Buy Links
Amazon | Draft2Digital
Learn more about Luanna Stewart 
Website: http://www.luannastewart.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Luanna_Stewart
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Luanna.Stewart.nau
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/luannastewart/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14104212.Luanna_Stewart
Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/author/luanna_stewart
Great interview ladies! I love baking too—although I never get bread quite right. This book looks intriguing! I’m pre-ordering it now. 🙂
Hi Meg, thanks for dropping by! Not all my loaves of bread are things of beauty, but they taste good, hehe.
Great blog, Lu! I can’t wait to read this book. I love the characters already!
With all this talk of baking, I’m bummed I’m working right now or I’d be whipping up something magical in the kitchen. We should really start a “Writers Baking Challenge”. 🙂 It would be fun to sample all the wonderful goodies when it was over!
Gosh, Teri, you are full of great ideas! I would love a “Writers Baking Challenge”, sort of like The Great British Bake-off, but with writers. Thanks for stopping by!
Congratulations, Lu!! May that Earl of yours go out and gather all kinds of new readers for you!
Hi Nina, thank you for dropping by. I’ll pass along the suggestion to my earl, but he’s a bit of a homebody, being all dark and brooding in his manor house, hehe.
What a wonderful post. I can’t wait to read If Wishes Were Earls. I’ll bet there are some tasty treats in that!
Hi Susan, lovely to see you here. There are a few treats mentioned in If Wishes Were Earls, my sweet tooth seems to invade all my stories, LOL.
Hi Kat, thank you for stopping by! Happy Holidays to you and yours.
Great interview, ladies
lovely blog. I envy you greatly
best wishes for a fabulous 017
Kat Henry Doran
Lu, I cannot wait to read this book – having been honored to read the first few chapters. Now I’ve been left hanging 🙂 Just pre-ordered. Love the cover and the premise of this series. Happy baking. I thought I caught the scent of cookies drifting around my house today 🙂
Hi Delsora, I’m so happy to see you here! Thanks for the pre-order – you may have been my first, hehe. The premise was fun to work with, and all the Sexy Scribblers went in different directions. I can’t wait to read the other books in the series!
Yesterday’s baking was sourdough bread and sugar cookies. Today will be shortbread cookies and peanut butter blossoms. “‘Tis the season to get fatter, fa la la la la, la la, la la.
What prompted you to start writing historicals?
Congratulations on the new release!
Hi Alannah, thank you for stopping by! History was my favourite subject in school. I love the research, the maps, the costumes. The world was so much smaller a few hundred years ago. People often lived and died never having ventured outside their town or village. I find that comforting for some reason.
Hi there!!!! I can’t wait to read If Wishes Were Earls. I must confess, though, my brain is still thinking about the bread you were talking about. I’ve never met a loaf I didn’t love. Grace, are there any historical settings you haven’t written in that you’d like to?
Congrats on the new book!!!
Hi Cara!! *waves* Haven’t tried the bread yet, but the cookies are delicious, hehe. As far as historical settings I’ve not written in yet, I’d love to try my hand at the Dark Ages. But my hero and heroine would take regular baths .
Good morning, ladies, and Happy Holidays! I broke into reading romances with Mary Stewart as well, although they weren’t called that back then, and I still think of them more as romantic suspense. Madam, Will You Talk? is one of my all-time favorites and should be a movie. Hugs!
Hi Vicki! I’ll have to re-read “Madam, Will You Talk”. In fact, I think I’ll re-read all of Mary Stewart’s novels. I loved her feisty heroines, and her mastery of danger and intrigue. Thanks for stopping by.
Great interview, Ladies. Tasting of dough is required, Luanna 🙂 congratulations on the new book. May you have many happy sales.
The dough was mighty tasty, Barbara, as it is every time I bake these sugar cookies. But I feel compelled to check anyway, just in case, hehe. Thank you for stopping by!
Good morning, Zara! And good morning as well to all your readers and fans. I’ll be hanging out in my kitchen for most of the day baking cookies. Tasting of the dough may or may not occur, hehe.