~ Telling Stories ~

Today, I am interviewing fellow romance writer, Elf Ahearn. She has stories, animals, hobbies, and a fascinating career path to entertain us with.

So take it away, Elf…

---

I’m going to start by telling a creepy ghost story, and sorry, Zara, but it has to do with your name.

So when I was 14, a friend told me she heard this from her cousin, who she swore is a credible source.

According to this cousin, she and a pal were in her bedroom toodling around with the Ouija Board on a sunny, cloudless afternoon. They were laughing and joking and asking it all sorts of silly questions: Does Brad like me? Will I become a rock star? Stuff like that, and the pointer was moving to Yes and No, in a way that each of the girls suspected the other was pushing it. And then the pointer sort of took over and spelled out, “My name is Zara.”

The cousin tossed her friend a dirty look, but she mouthed back, “I’m not moving it.”

Still skeptical, the cousin asked, “How old are you, Zara?”

“Twelve.”

“Are you in this room?”

“Yes.”

The cousin froze, but afraid to look like an idiot, she asked, “Where do you live?”

The pointer didn’t stir.

“Come on Zara,” laughed the friend, “where do you live—Heaven or Hell?”

Again, the pointer didn’t budge.

“Okay, if you’re in the room, show us a sign,” the friend demanded.

Suddenly a streak of light flashed across the street and an electrical transformer exploded into flames.

Without touching it, the girls watched as the pointer spelled out, “Zara is dead.”

I still get goosebumps from that story.

Is there an event in your life that affected you as a writer?

I hit the streets of Manhattan as an eager young actress with klieg lights in her eyes, and then the streets of Manhattan hit back—hard. Despite accolades from teachers and sterling reviews, I auditioned 10 million times and rarely booked a gig. Standing in front of casting directors made me so nervous the muscles in the back of my legs would contract so tight I could barely limp out. The result was, the paying jobs went to other blonds; the volunteer stuff went to me.

People who saw my acting hired me, so I was on the stage all the time (I did about 75 plays in the city), but gals cannot live on art alone.

As I neared the 19th year of this not-for-profit life, I read Somerset Maugham’s novel Of Human Bondage. There is a young artist in the book named Fanny Price who is untalented, starving, and so determined to paint, she kills herself when she realizes her ambition is impossible. In Fanny Price, I saw myself and it scared the bejesus out of me. What I had was a boatload of skill, but I couldn’t audition my way out of a paper bag. Ergo, when my ex-husband suggested we move out of the city, I leaped happily into a job as a small town reporter.

Now that he’s gone and I’ve met the love of my life, I write Regency romance.

Do you have an unusual hobby?

Yes, my hobby is collecting wild animals. By this, I do not mean I herd them into cages and stow them in the living-room. No, my collection roams the outskirts of my house eating bird seed that is not meant for them, or cat food they are not entitled to. Lately, Turkministan has been visiting. She is a persistent turkey who poops all over the driveway.

Also, there is Tiger Woods, a feral cat that I feed nightly, but who has to compete with invisible raccoons, a fox, and an opossum named Paunchy.

Furthermore, I have Fatty McFatfat, an obnoxious gopher who has stripped my phlox of every last leaf, and then there is Baghira… my arch enemy. Baghira is a three-and-a-half foot-long black snake who is not content to stay in the massive park flanking my home. No, each fall Baghira sneaks into my basement and leaves her disgusting skin draped down the concrete wall. Last year, I plugged all the holes in the foundation, so to get back at me, she slithered and slinked her way into the attic where she defiantly left that damn skin again. What’s worse, before she busted through my basement defenses this year, she disappeared a sweet little family of chipmunks who lived in the cracks and crevasses of the house’s substructure. I loathe Baghira.

In addition to the regulars, I have a gazillion deer, four bears, a coyote, a rattlesnake, and a mountain lion who visited three years ago. Oh, and this weekend we found a wasp’s nest the size of a Chinese lantern hanging over my husband’s car. Glad you asked about my hobby?

What interesting jobs have you had?

While I was striving to become a paid actress, I took a job in the insurance industry. That’s interesting? you might ask. It was for me, but perhaps more so for my employers. You see, I have zero math skills—zero. In fact, I was so unsuited for that job that on an insurance exam, when a question asked to use “illustrations” I drew pictures: stick figures with little signs on their chests indicating what bad risks they were. Insurance was a fascinating experience.

What project are you working on now?

I’ve already written the first two books in a series titled Scandals by the Ton. A Duke in the Rough is about a drunken boxer the heroine has to mold into a duke: think Rocky meets the Regency.

Book two is The Baron of Bad Behavior. It’s about an untamable miss who decides to marry the one man her father despises. Think Mylie Cyrus pursues Cary Grant… during the Regency.

Wish me luck! I’m as bad at submitting my novels as I was at auditioning. However, if you’re looking for something of mine to read as you wait for Scandals by the Ton to be published, check out A Rogue in Sheep’s Clothing (#1 on Amazon for a brief shining moment) and The Secret Life of Lords.

---

A Rogue in Sheep’s Clothing by Elf Ahearn

In Lord Hugh Davenport’s opinion, women of the ton perpetually hide behind a mask of deception. That’s hard for Ellie Albright, the daughter of an earl, to swallow—especially since she’s disguised herself as a stable hand to get back the prized stallion her father sold to Hugh to pay a debt. If Hugh learns her true identity she’ll lose the horse and her family will go bankrupt. Somehow, though, losing Hugh’s affection is beginning to seem even worse…

Buy Links

Amazon  $2.99

Barnes & Noble  $0.99

Kobo  $0.99

---

---

The Secret Life of Lords by Elf Ahearn

If Lady Claire Albright had one wish, it would be to forget brooding, powerful Lord Flavian Monroe. But even after two years of bewildering silence, she yearns to touch his sinuous arms and feel his calloused hands upon her cheeks. Then, on the brink of her come out, they accidently meet. His ward is ill, and he begs her to use her knowledge of healing to help the girl. But this patient is sick in a way that’s far different from what Claire expected—dangerously different. And, as she struggles to find a cure, Flavian resists rekindling their love. Is it the ward’s illness that keeps him cold and distant, or a dark and terrible secret?

Buy links:

Amazon

Kobo

Barnes & Noble

---

Learn more about Elf Ahearn

Website: www.elfahearn.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elf.ahearn?fref=ts

The Writer’s Cat Newsletter: email elfahearn@hotmail.com to subscribe

---

---

Love romances about strong women during the Regency period?

Let us know. Elf is waiting for your thoughts and comments.

---