Guest Author: Sarah Mayberry

I

I’ve read many wonderful romances by today’s guest author, however I wasn’t aware until recently that once she obtained a BA in professional writing, she worked in trade journalism, undertook corporate communication and launched a consumer magazine for a major retailer, and not only works as a story consultant on Australia’s longest running TV serial drama, Neighbours, but also co-created a teen television drama series, Karaoke High. Wow.

Welcome to superstar, NY Times Bestselling author, Sarah Mayberry, who joins me from Melbourne.

Sarah, you’ve written for Harlequin Super romance, Blaze, Montana born books and have some independently released titles. Temporary was a title you released in September which you co-wrote with Sarina Bowen. Can you tell us about your latest release and whether it posed any particular challenges?

My most recent release is The Cowboy Meets His Match, the story of a professional rodeo cowboy who meets an awesome, challenging woman who rocks his world. This was a book I wrote with the Me Too movement in its ascendency and I found I didn’t want to play with some of the more traditional tropes of romance. I made my heroine a woman following her dreams in a male-dominated sport, and I had other women pitching in to help bolster her when she needed it. It was a lot of fun writing a woman who was forging a path. I wish I was that tough and determined in real life!

I think you're doing pretty well!!
Are you a pantser or a plotter?

Plotter. My other job is TV writing, and there’s a lot of preplanning and plotting that goes into creating a TV or film. So I like to think about the shape of things before I write. I don’t stick to my outline slavishly, however - I give myself room to have flights of fantasy if they strike.

Is there a particular heroine you’ve written who you strongly identify with, or a particular hero who you’d love to introduce to a close, single girlfriend?

I have a real soft sport for Charlie from More Than One Night, because her doubt about her place in the world really resonated for me as I was writing it. I have a completely different background than the one I’ve given her, but her self esteem issues I could definitely relate to. As for the hero I’d like to introduce to a friend…You know, I love most of my guys, but I think both Oliver from The Other Side of Us and Flynn from All They Need are both particularly kind, understanding heroes, and I think kindness is a hugely underrated characteristic in both men and women. Kindness makes the world go round and it’s so important in a long term relationship!

I think kindness is being recognised more as a fabulous quality in our romance characters. There's definitely a shift from the early romance types. I think heroines are feistier and more independent on the whole and heroes are far more often fitting the "sensitive new-age guy" mould.

When Marie Force was my guest author, she mentioned that you are very good friends and that you’ve visited her in the States. How did you two meet? 

Marie wrote to let me know she had enjoyed some of my books, and then we just kept chatting. When I was thinking of self publishing, she strongly, enthusiastically encouraged me and helped me through the process. She’s an incredibly generous, hard working, big hearted person, with a wonderfully filthy, salty vocabulary!! We love swearing together! 

Would love to see you two in action!

What’s next for you as an author? 

At the moment I’m working on the second book in my Carmody family series, the younger brother Casey Carmody’s story. It’s called The Rebel and the Cowboy and I’m having a lot of fun with it. My husband and I also wrote a romantic comedy feature film script recently and are in the process of shopping it around, trying to find a home for it. Fingers crossed we can find someone who loves it as much as we do.


How fabulous to be able to write with your husband. I have got everything crossed for you that'll be snapped up and we'll all be able to enjoy it on our screens. Awesome!!

Thank you so much for joining me on the blog today, Sarah. I’ll look forward to your next release, but I'm going to add in that if readers are after a festive season romance, they may like to try one of your Christmas titles. I've always loved His Christmas Gift. I have to confess I haven't read Home for the Holidays, so I'll have to look that one up for my Christmas reading!

For more information about Sarah, visit her website at: www.sarahmayberry.com/

Thanks for visiting the blog today. I hope you'll join me next Saturday for when Brenda Novak joins me as my guest author and answers the quick author quizzing! Until then, Happy Reading!

Best Wishes,
Alyssa J. Montgomery

________________________________________________________________________________

About the Blogger:

Alyssa J. Montgomery is an Australian contemporary romance author who is published by Escape Publishing (Harlequin Enterprises, Australia). She also 

writes medieval romance as Alyssa James,

 

http://www.alyssajmontgomery.com/