Interview with historical novelist Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard

Historical novelist Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard joins me today. We’re talking about her new suspense, The Beauty Doctor.

**The Beauty Doctor was just named one of six finalists in the Published Fiction category, 2017 Arizona Literary Contest. Winner to be announced in November!**

Bio: 
Elizabeth began writing her first mystery novel during the summer between fifth and sixth grade. She always knew writing was in her DNA, but she also had a passion for music which ultimately set her on a different course. For most of her twenties, she toured the country as a featured vocalist and flutist. But after nearly a decade of life on the road, she again changed direction.
 
She earned a Communications degree from Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois), settled in California, and promoted international expositions for the music trade. Later, in 1997, she moved to New York City where she was Communications and Marketing Director for the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) and Executive Editor of the internationally subscribed Aesthetic Surgery Journal. 

Her in-depth knowledge of plastic surgery lends a unique perspective to her historical novel, The Beauty Doctor, set in New York City in 1907.
 
Elizabeth currently lives in Arizona with her husband, Bob, and their black Labrador retriever, Pearly Mae.

Welcolme, Elizabeth. Please tell us about your current release.

The Beauty Doctor is the story of Abigail Platford, a young woman of the Edwardian era, whose fascination with the world of medicine leads her down an unexpectedly dark path. Abigail's father was a physician, and it had always been her dream to follow in his footsteps---to become a doctor and devote her life to serving New York City's poorest. But his sudden death, for which she feels responsible, changes everything. Penniless and adrift, she happens to meet the flamboyant Dr. Franklin Rome and is persuaded to accept a position as his office assistant, never imagining the bizarre world she is about to enter and the web of treachery in which she soon will become entangled. The plot is full of suspense, with many twists and turns, as Abigail searches for the true meaning of beauty and the answer to a haunting mystery.

What inspired you to write this book?

I've always heard that you should write about what you know. Having worked for many years in the plastic surgery field, and being fascinated with the early history of cosmetic surgery, I thought it would be a great idea to weave a suspenseful tale around the concept of the old-time "beauty doctor" who, even back in 1907 when my story takes place, was straightening noses, trimming eyelids, and injecting faces with paraffin to smooth out wrinkles. Being a bit of a philosopher at heart, I also wanted to delve deeper into the meaning of beauty, how people see themselves and others, and how each of us needs to feel comfortable with who and what we are. Of course, at the turn of the century, outward beauty was equated with inward goodness, so physical attractiveness had not only social implications but moral ones. To show you what I mean, here's an exchange between the beauty doctor Franklin Rome and Abigail which takes place after she first learns that he is not the kind of doctor she imagined him to be and that he wants her as a "foil" to help promote his new practice of transformative surgery.

Excerpt from Chapter 2 of The Beauty Doctor:

"Oh---you're a beauty doctor." The inflection in her voice no doubt came across as somewhat disparaging. She dipped her head in an effort to obscure the visual evidence of her skepticism beneath the plethora of ostrich feathers emanating from the brim of her blue velvet hat.

"Just imagine it for a moment, Miss Platford," he said, seeming not to have noticed anything disturbing in her reaction. "Your mere presence by my side would stimulate in any average woman an intense longing for beauty; then, arising quite naturally from that, an urgent curiosity. With just a hint, she would be eager to learn what I offer in the way of beautifying procedures. That's how one goes about building a thriving beauty practice. Stimulate the need, offer the solution. Or, if you prefer, think of it this way---you would be helping to enlighten women about advances that can greatly enhance their lives. It's no different than selling a product---a product that people would certainly buy if they only knew its benefits."

So he wanted her to help him sell the concept of beauty surgery to other women? That was not what a doctor does! To participate in such activities would be a compromise of everything she believed in. "So your idea is to use me as a sort of walking advertisement?"

"I wouldn't put it exactly like that."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but are you really a doctor?"

He gave her a scorchingly indignant look, shoving aside his coffee cup, nearly knocking it over in the process. "Would I call myself a doctor if I wasn't one?"

"I don't mean to offend you," she said, again regretting her lack of decorum. "It's just that I don't know of any other doctors who are engaged in your kind of work."

"That's because no medical school in this country has yet had the foresight to embrace transformative surgery. That's why it was necessary for me to receive advanced training in Europe. As a matter of fact, I returned from Paris only recently."

"But you did train in medicine? Here in America?"

"Certainly, though that doesn't make me any more enamored of our system. The medical establishment is very set in its ways, I'm afraid. It resists anything that might challenge the status quo. And that is exactly what transformative surgery does. The social implications are immense. It represents, in fact, possibly the greatest force for the empowerment of women in all of human history."

"Empowerment of women!" Despite her disappointment, she had to smile. "I'm sorry, but I don't see what your transformative surgery could possibly have to do with the movement for women's rights."

"Maybe you've never thought of it this way but, simply put, beauty is power," said Dr. Rome, with the calm certainty of a man who knows he speaks the truth. "And with enough power, Miss Platford, one can achieve anything."

She remembered what her father had always told her: As a woman, her looks meant she would need to work doubly hard to convince others that she had a brain. “I’m afraid I can't agree. Besides, I wouldn't feel comfortable encouraging vanity. It's not a trait that I find admirable."

"Rubbish!" He leaned back in his chair with an exasperated sigh, as if weary of confronting attitudes like hers. But when he spoke, his tone and manner were conciliatory. "That's fine for a Sunday school lesson, but in the real world, appearances are everything. Beauty is a woman's greatest asset and the most reliable predictor of her future happiness. What you naturally possess, my dear, many others covet and believe impossible to attain. But what do you think they would give if they could achieve it? Not entirely, of course. But maybe half your beauty? A third? Maybe just enough to feel there was, after all, hope?"

"So your patients will be paying you for hope. If that's all they stand to gain, I doubt they'd feel it money well spent."

"Hope is only the beginning. Ultimately, what I offer is happiness. They say money can't buy it, but I'm here to prove them wrong."

What exciting story are you working on next?

My next historical novel, set for release in 2018, is called Temptation Rag. It's the fictionalized story of the famous ragtime pianist Mike Bernard---his brutal battle to become Ragtime King of the World, the amazing women in his life, and those he trampled over to make his way to the top. It's a fascinating time in history, and everybody loves ragtime! But there's a personal angle to this story as well. Mike Bernard is my husband's grandfather. So you might say I have a bit of an "inside scoop" on a legendary figure whose life and career at the turn of the century remains mired in mystery and contradiction.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

All my working life, after my music career, was based on writing---but not the kind of writing that I aspired, in my heart of hearts, to do. It was public relations, marketing, speech writing, proposal writing, newsletter and journal writing, and so on. I was a professional making a living with words, and so I knew I had a certain gift. But I still needed to dig deeper to discover the stories I felt passionate about telling---and that took me some time. Even though I've devoted myself almost entirely to fiction writing over the past six years, it wasn't until I held the first copy of The Beauty Doctor in my hand that I felt truly entitled to call myself a writer.

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?

Yes, I do write full time now. It's a real luxury, and I am grateful every day for that opportunity. I like to get up early and start writing after I've taken my black Lab, Pearly Mae, for her desert walk. I'm definitely a "day" person when it comes to writing. I seldom write at night. Probably my greatest asset, and maybe my greatest curse as well, is that I am extremely focused. My husband is astounded at the way I can write for hours and hours, barely looking up from my computer. Where I have to exert discipline is in making sure I do other things---like go to the gym, get outside and enjoy all the beauty of the Sonoran desert. Just take a break! Even for an obsessive writer, there has to be balance.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I like to write standing up. I had a standing computer built into a bookcase in our library, with a shelf that pulls out for my keyboard. It's very discreet and works like a charm! That monitor is attached to the same computer as the monitor on my desk, so I can easily switch from sitting to standing and back again. The other "quirk" I have is that at the end of every writing day, I email myself the updated manuscript, open it on my iPad in Kindle or iBooks, and review what I've done. Reading it on a tablet, as I would read an actual book, really helps me get a better feel for how I've done with my writing.

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

I remember very distinctly telling my mother that I couldn't decide whether I wanted to be a nun or a Spanish dancer. I am neither Catholic nor Spanish---so I'm not sure where this came from! But it does speak to a certain dichotomy in my personality, one that exists to this day!

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

Getting the word out about a book is challenging, which is why opportunities like this are so important, especially to a new author. Lisa really does a great job with her blog. It is a tremendous service to readers and authors, and I am so grateful to her for bringing The Beauty Doctor to your attention. If you read my book and like it, I hope you'll dash off a quick review on Amazon or iBooks or wherever you purchased it. It really helps! Thanks so much for sharing some of your time with me today.

Links:

Website | Amazon | Facebook

Thank you for joining me today, Elizabeth!

Interview with novelist Ellen Butler

Author Ellen Butler joins me today and we’re chatting about her new historical suspense, The Brass Compass.

Bio:

Ellen Butler is an award-winning novelist writing critically acclaimed suspense thrillers, and sassy romance. The Brass Compass was inspired by the brave women who served in the OSS, British Special Operations Executive and French Resistance. Ellen is a member of The OSS Society and her fascination with WWII history originally piqued when her grandfather revealed his role as a cryptographer during the war. The Brass Compass is her debut into the historical fiction genre. She also holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration and Policy, and her history includes a long list of writing for dry, but illuminating, professional newsletters and windy papers on public policy. She lives in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. with her husband and two children.

Welcome, Ellen. Please tell us about your current release.

Thanks for having me, Lisa. I’m excited to share my new book, The Brass Compass, with your readers. The story is a suspenseful spy novel against the backdrop of World War II. Our protagonist, Lily, is an Office of Strategic Services (OSS) agent, on the run, behind enemy lines. She must rely on her training and resourcefulness to outwit the Nazi’s, and to reach Allied territory before they catch her. While on the run, Lily uses a compass, given to her by a soldier, to navigate the forest in hopes that it will guide her back to the man she loves.

What inspired you to write this book?

My fascination with WWII began about a dozen years ago after watching the HBO miniseries, Band of Brothers. The idea of an Allied spy behind enemy lines spun around in my head for about ten years before I began seriously researching and writing the novel I outlined a decade earlier.

Excerpt from The Brass Compass:

Into the Night

February 1945

Germany

“Was ist sein Name?” What is his name? The SS officer’s backlit shadow loomed over his victim as he yelled into the face of the shrinking man on the third-story balcony. “We know you’ve been passing messages. Tell us, who is your contact?” he continued in German.

Lenz’s gray-haired head shook like a frightened mouse. With his back to me, I was too far away to hear the mumbled response or the Nazi’s next question. I pulled my dark wool coat tighter and sank deeper into the shadow of the apartment building’s doorway across the street from where my contact underwent interrogation. The pounding of my heart pulsated in my ears, and I held my breath as I strained to listen to the conversation. In front of Lenz’s building stood a black Mercedes-Benz with its running lights aglow, no doubt the vehicle that brought the SS troops. None of the neighboring buildings showed any light, as residents cowered behind locked doors praying the SS wouldn’t come knocking. This was a working-class neighborhood, and everyone knew it was best to keep your mouth shut and not stick your nose in the business of the Schutzstaffel.

Their presence at Lenz’s home explained why my contact at the bakery was absent from our assignation earlier today. I dreaded to imagine what they had done to Otto for him to give up Lenz’s name … or worse, mine. Even though I’d never told Otto my name, a description of me could easily lead the SS to their target.

“Lügner!” Liar!

I flinched as the officer’s ringing accusation bounced off the brick buildings. A young SS Stormtrooper stepped out onto the balcony and requested his superior look at something in his hand. I should have taken their distraction to slip away into the darkness and run; instead I stayed, anxiously listening, to hear if Lenz would break under the SS grilling and reveal my identity. Clearly, they suspected he was involved in spying and would take him away. They probably also knew he had information to spill and would eventually torture it out of him, which was the only reason he hadn’t been shot on sight. It was only a matter of time before he gave me away. My friends in the French Resistance had been directed to hold out for two days before releasing names to allow the spies to disband and disappear. I wasn’t sure if the German network applied the same rules, so I remained to see if he would break before they took him.

“Where did you find this?” the officer asked.

The trooper indicated inside the apartment.

“Zeig es mir.” Show me. He followed his subordinate through the doorway into the building.

Lenz turned and braced himself against the balcony. I watched in horror as he climbed atop the railing.

“Halt!” a bellow from inside rang out.

Lenz didn’t hesitate, and I averted my eyes, biting down hard on my cold knuckles, as he took his final moments out of the hands of the Nazis. Sounds of shattering glass and buckling metal ripped through the darkness as his body slammed into the SS vehicle. In my periphery, a neighboring blackout curtain shifted.

The SS officer swore as he and his subordinate leaned over the railing to see Lenz’s body sprawled across their car. “Search the apartment. Tear it apart!”

The moment they crossed the threshold, I sprinted into the night.

What exciting story are you working on next?

I’m going back to my contemporary roots. I’m working on an art heist novel that takes place in Washington, DC.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When my first novel was published in 2013.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

When I have writer’s block I have to step away from the computer and do something else. Invariably, I clean and do other mundane tasks, while my brain works in the background to solve the problem.

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

Wonder Woman! Didn’t every little girl?

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

Ellen Butler twitter style, 140 characters or less: author, mother, wife, shoe lover, chocoholic, fashion fan, sarcastic wit, autumn enthusiast, dancer, book worm, and good-time devotee.

Links:

Facebook | Website | Twitter | Book trailer | YouTube

Thanks for being here today, Ellen!

Interview with historical suspense author Linda Bennett Pennell

The historical suspense with romantic elements novel Al Capone at the Blanche Hotel is the focus of today's interview with the author, Linda Bennett Pennell.

Linda will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. To be entered to win, leave a comment below. And to increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit other tour stops and leave comments there, too!

Welcome, Linda. Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I have been in love with the past for as long as I can remember. Anything with a history, whether shabby or majestic, recent or ancient, instantly draws me in. I suppose it comes from being part of a large extended family that spanned several generations. Long summer afternoons on my grandmother's porch or winter evenings gathered around her fireplace were filled with stories both entertaining and poignant. Of course being set in the South, those stories were also peopled by some very interesting characters, some of whom have found their way into my work.

As for my venture in writing, it has allowed me to reinvent myself. We humans are truly multifaceted creatures, but unfortunately we tend to sort and categorize each other into neat, easily understood packages that rarely reveal the whole person. Perhaps you, too, want to step out of the box in which you find yourself. I encourage you to look at the possibilities and imagine. Be filled with childlike wonder in your mental wanderings. Envision what might be, not simply what is. Let us never forget, all good fiction begins when someone says to herself or himself, "Let's pretend." 

I reside in the Houston area with one sweet husband, one German Shorthaired Pointer who thinks she’s a little girl, and one striped yellow cat who knows she’s queen of the house.

Favorite quote regarding my professional passion:  "History is filled with the sound of silken slippers going downstairs and wooden shoes coming up." Voltaire  

Please tell us about your current release.

Al Capone at the Blanche Hotel tells a story of lives unfolding in different centuries, but linked and irrevocably altered by a series of murders in 1930.  

Lake City, Florida, June, 1930: Al Capone checks in for an unusually long stay at the Blanche Hotel, a nice enough joint for an insignificant little whistle stop. The following night, young Jack Blevins witnesses a body being dumped heralding the summer of violence to come. One-by-one, people controlling county vice activities swing from KKK ropes. No moonshine distributor, gaming operator, or brothel madam, black or white, is safe from the Klan's self-righteous vigilantism. Jack's older sister Meg, a waitress at the Blanche, and her fiancé, a sheriff’s deputy, discover reasons to believe the lynchings are cover for a much larger ambition than simply ridding the county of vice. Someone, possibly backed by Capone, has secret plans for filling the voids created by the killings. But as the body count grows and crosses burn, they come to realize this knowledge may get all of them killed.  

Gainesville, Florida, August, 2011: Liz Reams, an up and coming young academic specializing in the history of American crime, impulsively moves across the continent to follow a man who convinces her of his devotion yet refuses to say the three simple words I love you. Despite entreaties of friends and family, she is attracted to edginess and a certain type of glamour in her men, both living and historical. Her personal life is an emotional roller coaster, but her career options suddenly blossom beyond all expectation, creating a very different type of stress. To deal with it all, Liz loses herself in her professional passion, original research into the life and times of her favorite bad boy, Al Capone. What she discovers about 1930’s summer of violence, and herself in the process, leaves her reeling at first and then changed forever.

What inspired you to write this book?

When my parents and I moved to Lake City, we stayed at the Blanche Hotel for a few nights waiting for our furniture to arrive. Later I learned about its history. Al Capone really did stay there at least once in transit between Chicago and Miami. The hotel is also supposed to be haunted by a woman who killed herself over love gone wrong and children who died there for reasons that I don’t know. Very credible people have reported hearing a woman crying and the sounds of children running and playing when there was no one else in the place at the time. The county has had its share of difficulties with moonshining, prostitution, and gambling. Knowing these tidbits of history drew me to write the novel.

Excerpt:

(from Chapter Three)

  

“Jack Blevins, where have you been? It’s after midnight.” Meg grabbed her little brother’s arm and pulled him through her bedroom window. “If Daddy finds out, he’ll skin you alive.”

    

“Well, he ain’t gonna lests you tell him.” Jack hit the floor with a thump. “Man, I’m glad to be home.”

    

Meg’s eyebrows rose. “That’s sure new. Mama says you stay gone as much as you can get away with these days.”

   

“Yeah, I guess.” Jack kicked at the edge of the rag rug beside his sister’s bed. “If I’d known you was coming home, I’d of stayed around.”

   

“Nice to know you haven’t gone completely wild.”

    

Jack grinned at Meg and winked. “Not yet, but you never know. It could happen any day now. At least that’s what Mama says.” As he picked a thorn out of his elbow, he became quietly thoughtful. His words turned halting when he spoke again. “Meg, you ain’t gonna believe what me and Zeke seen at the sinkhole.”

What exciting story are you working on next?

Here is the blurb for my WWII work in progress tentatively entitled Assignment: Casablanca.

Casablanca, 1943. The city is a viper’s nest of double agents and spies. Nonetheless, preparations are underway at the Anfa Hotel for the first Allied conference of the war. The success of the conference, moreover the outcome of the war itself, may hang on OSS Officer Kurt Heinz completing his next mission, but he is increasingly torn between duty and the army nurse who needs his help. Lieutenant Sarah Barrett, R.N. is given a coded message by a mysterious patient who dies with Kurt’s name on his lips, sucking her into a vortex of danger and intrigue. When Sarah’s apartment is ransacked and her roommate disappears, the one person who can help is Kurt, a man with too many secrets to be trusted.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When I was about halfway through my first, and as yet unpublished, work of historical fiction, I began to feel like publication might be possible. No real reason for such optimism other than I was enjoying the act of creating so much. History has always been a passion of mine, but writing fiction is so much more fun and freeing than writing academic papers!

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?

I am lucky enough to be able to organize my time as I wish and as family needs allow. In addition to writing, I volunteer in our arts community and with my church. At times, I work for the school district. I also sing with the Texas Master Chorale. I manage to stay busier than I sometimes want.

On days when I’m writing, I usually start as soon as I’ve cleared emails and other business, then I write until I get to a logical stopping place. Sometimes it’s noon, sometimes it’s midnight.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

This is more of a life quirk because it applies to more than writing. I seem to have a major case of ADD, but not of the type that prevents concentration. My situation is just the opposite. When I am focused on something, you could set off a bomb and I wouldn’t notice. Great for getting writing done in any environment, but not so great when the hubby wants attention!

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

Oh my, so many things: cowboy (I was a major tomboy), singer (now my avocation), architect (still love to play with house plans), archeologist (cave paintings, yes!), historian (earned a BA in it), park ranger (national parks are my fav vacation spots) - sort of ran the gamut.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

I would like to offer aspiring authors some advice that I had to learn the hard way: be kind to yourself. We writers face a lot of rejection. It comes in many forms. This can create in us an internal critic that spews forth a constant stream of negative self-talk. Do yourself a favor. As long as you have done everything possible to be the best writer you are capable of being, then get rid of the internal critic and its negative self-talk. Turn it off; kill it off; do what you must. You are being kind to yourself and that is great for the creativity.

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Thanks, Linda! Readers, don't forget to comment if you'd like a chance at the gift card!