Christmas Awards 2011

Monday 23 November 2009

An Interview with Sarah Mallory


Tell us a little about yourself
I am a British writers – born in the West Country but now living in Yorkshire, high on the Pennine moors with my husband. The family have grown up but they are still very much around!

What do you write?
I write Georgian and Regency historical romantic adventures. I am passionate about history, but I like to add a little touch of humour, too. After all, life shouldn’t' be dull.

Why do you write?
It's an obsession. When I finish one book I tell myself I am going to take a break, but there are always fresh stories and characters in my head just begging to be let out!

What are you writing now?
I have just finished writing a Regency romance which starts on the battlefield at Waterloo. The hero returns to carry out a commission for a colleague who died in the battle, but the widow is nothing like the shy, demure little creature he had been expecting! It is a story about new love and old loyalties, strong ties that are very difficult to break.

What kind of clothes do you like to wear?
Black! I love all things black, in fact I have found that the happier I am, the more black I tend to wear! Living up on the moors I wear trousers most of the time, but love to put on a party frock occasionally (especially for attending the Romantic Novelists' Association parties – they are the best!)

Are you in love? Have you ever been?
Yes. I have been in love and married to the same man for over thirty years (I think that's why I like writing romance, lots of chances to fantasize about hunky men and no danger of upsetting a happy marriage!)


Do you have a dream lover – and what does he or she look like?
Oh, my dream lover changes depending upon which book I am writing – he is always the hero. For the Wicked Baron he was dark haired but with a wicked glint in his eyes.


What kind of comfort food do you like best?
Dark Chocolate. Or warming casseroles. I prefer savoury foods to sweet things.

What makes you laugh? Cry?
Witty comedy makes me laugh, but not if it is at someone else's expense. Weepy films or musicals sometimes move me, but I have to be really swept up in the story for that to happen, I don't cry easily.


What do you do to amuse yourself when not working?
When I am not writing (which isn't often) I love theatre, music, walking and all things historical. I also play the piano- very badly (and this isn't in the Elizabeth Bennett "very badly" way, I mean badly. I only play when I am alone. I really, really admire anyone who can perform in front of an audience.

What is it in a man or woman that turns you on? The clean version please!
Intelligence and wit! I find funny, clever men extremely attractive. Of course if they can combine that with a great body and good looks then that's an added bonus! There are a couple of historians who appear on TV occasionally that I could be persuaded to run away with!


What do you hate about life?
Intolerance, injustice, unkindness – all human traits, I am afraid. Thankfully this is balanced out by the good side of humanity – the people who work hard to make life better for others, and little everyday acts of kindness, but these rarely make the headlines.

What do you hope to achieve in life and when will you know that you have been a success?
I still have so many books inside me that I hope I get a chance to write, . I have three wonderful grown up children, so that is my success.

What are you going to write next?
I have just started thinking about my next book – a stage I really love, because I can go anywhere, do anything I like! I am playing with the idea of a northern hero, a product of the Industrial Revolution, He is tall, dark, rugged and a little rough around the edges. It will take a very special woman to tame him!

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