Interview with contemporary romance author Annette Bower

Today's guest is contemporary romance author Annette Bower who is here to talk about her new novel Moving On-A Prairie Romance.

Annette is giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to a lucky commentor during the tour. Details follow the interview.

Bio:
Annette Bower lives and writes in Regina, SK Canada. She is an author of many short stories published in anthologies and magazines in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. She explores women in families, women in communities and women at the beginning and end of love and their quest for love. She pursues the writing craft in workshops, conferences, Writing with Style, Banff Centre for the Arts, Victoria School of Writing, Sage Hill Writing Experience, the Surrey International Writing Conferences and the Romance Writing of America Conferences. 

When she isn’t writing she walks or bikes around the streets and parks in her neighborhood imagining complex worlds behind seemingly ordinary events.

Her first contemporary romance, Moving On-A Prairie Romance is published by XoXo Publishing a division of Ninni Group Inc. 

Welcome to Reviews and Interviews, Annette. Please tell us about your current release.

Moving On-A Prairie Romance is a sweet contemporary romance novel in most ways and in others it is a relationship novel. One reader suggests that the novel explores the redemptive power of affection where Nick and Anna learn to trust and hope after their separate tragedies.

This story is set in the resort community of Regina Beach, Saskatchewan, Canada. It is small town in the fall, winter and spring but in the summer it grows to at least ten times the population with part time residents and visitors. Anna arrives in the spring and Nick is back in the community in the spring, the time for new growth. 

Because Anna has lived in a large city she needs to learn to live in a community where people notice where your vehicle is parked at night, what kind of bread you purchase, and when your lights turn out. Nick is familiar with the pros and cons of a small community. He left for the adventure of the armed forces but while in the war zone he remembered the deep rich earth he had left behind. With Anna he begins to dream of a life he thought he didn’t want in a small community close to the earth.

We follow Nick and Anna on their emotional journey in the town with Margaret and Herman Lamb Anna’s neighbors and Nick’s good friends.    

What inspired you to write this book?

I have been interested in the state of being a widow ever since I met my mother-in-law. She was widowed young as was her sister. I wanted to understand them so I read about the grieving process. Also when I was a nurse, I worked in rehabilitation units and with patients who lost limbs who grieved the life that changed when a prosthetic device or mobility aid was introduced into their lives.

What exciting story are you working on next?

I’m gathering visual clues for my next novel. I’m noticing pictures and articles. I have a real image of a limousine pulling up to the curve outside my condo building and a stiletto emerged followed by a leg covered in nylon. I stopped and waited to see who this might be. I would like to use this image in my next story.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

To be absolutely honest the first time I really considered that I was becoming a writer was when Colleen Sell from Cup of Comfort for Mother’s and Sons accepted my short story. Up until that time I had short stories published in smaller magazines and anthologies but this was a book that was going to be available on book shelves in many cities across Canada and the United States and perhaps beyond.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like?  If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

Writing is what I do and many days it is an eight hour day. But those hours are broken up. I may write in the morning, break for appointments or lunch or a walk. Then I write in the afternoon and sometimes it is the hours after dinner that are the most productive.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

When I’m beginning a story I still like to use my fountain pen and paper to do the opening page or two. I like feeling connected between my hand rhythm and the paper as my hand slides across the page. If I’m stuck, I will bring out the pen and paper again.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

When I was in grade 3, my friends and I would go to the convent and call on our teacher after lunch. Then we’d all walk back to the school together. I remember one day my friends all seemed to be saying, “I want to be a nun when I grow up.” I thought about it for a minute and said, “I want to be a nurse, isn’t that great that they both start with ‘n’.”

I became the nurse but I also wrote. I took creative writing courses whenever I could.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

Even though writing is my passion it is also hard work for me. I admire writers who make their writing look effortless because they are very good at what they do. I’m still working very hard at making my writing appear effortless but some days it is a real grind. 

I enjoy chatting with readers and can be found on Twitter and Facebook.

Thanks, Annette.

Readers, don't forget, Annette is awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to All Romance eBooks to one randomly drawn commentor. So leave your e-mail address with your comment if you'd like a chance to win. Also, you can follow the tour and comment on other stops to increase your chances of winning.