Around the Fire’s weekly in-depth author interview with award winning Barbara Bettis

Welcome to Around the Fire’s weekly in-depth author interview.  I’m so excited for today’s guest.  I was just telling Pete that Barbara is one of my favorites.  Since becoming a Wild Rose Press author, she has been a stalwart cheerleader, encouraging everyone, not only me.  Her sweet heart is kind and oh-so comforting.  I’ve received personal notes from her that have lifted me out of author doldrums.  Now, I’m eager for you to know more about this lovely lady.  ​

Barbara, thanks for joining us today.  I know you enjoy both coffee and tea.  
Thank you so much for hosting me today, Donna.  I know you love camping and we’re meeting around the fire, so I come bearing spray and citronella candles because I’m a mosquito magnet.  But for you, my friend, I’ll be brave.  Coffee and tea.  It’s really a toss-up, depending on the morning and the mood.  I grew up in the country and each morning Mother fixed tea with loose leaves brewed in a stoneware pot with its own stoneware leaf holder (whatever that’s called.) But my grandmother, who lived in a nearby small town, was a coffee hound and when I was young, I loved to sit at her table with her and her next-door neighbor during their morning coffee time.  My g/mother filled my cup with milk and a splash of coffee, and I felt mighty grown up.  So I’ve always been indecisive!

I have a teapot I’ve been wanting to use, so while I brew, why don’t you introduce yourself to our other visitors?
I’m kind of reserved, quiet, until I know people pretty well.  And I hope I have a sense of humor.  I enjoy outings with my friends—we try to do something every week.  But…in my heart, I’m a Broadway star.  I love the theatre and was active all through high school and undergrad, and then in community theatre.  Trouble is, I can’t sing worth a hoot.  Truly.  As the old saying goes, I can’t carry a tune in a bucket.  But I did act and loved to direct.  These days though I settle for attending productions.  We have an excellent regional theatre here, as well as quite a good opera company and symphony.  And, of course, the movies.  In addition, I love hanging out with my grandchildren.  We manage to catch movies or watch DVDs when they are over.
 
I’m a sit back and observe person myself.  Quiet until you get to know me, or I put on my “stage” persona for public events.  What interests besides writing do you enjoy?  For instance, what do you read or hobbies you have?
I love to read, and I love to research for my books.  I can get on a topic and go right down a rabbit hole for hours.  Crazy, right?  I’m very interested in archeology, ancient civilizations, myths, legends.  But on an average day, I read historical romance, often rereading favorite books.  And I try to keep up with stories published by my friends who write other than historicals too.  I occasionally edit books for indie and hybrid authors.
 
I often go off on a rabbit trail of research.  My book Sea Hunter took me all over the Northeast and Google.  Who is your network or support system?  Who contributes to your writing career?
I am blessed with a wonderful writing network that includes super on-line crit groups, three delightful authors with whom I Zoom every week, and a local author’s group of supportive fellow writers that meets monthly.
 
One of the benefits of the Internet is being able to meet with people around the country and the world.  Good for you for being so active.  Who or what books or authors are your inspiration?
Oh, goodness, I have so many writers whose work I admire now, I hate to name names for fear of leaving someone out.  However—before I ever thought of writing romance, my go-to authors to read included Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Jo Beverley, and Mary Jo Putney—all Regency books.  Then I discovered Anne Stuart’s and Christina Dodd’s medievals.  (In college, I read Jane Austen, Charlotte and Emily Bronte, so that set the stage!)
 
Do you have any fun or outrageous talent?
I have no talent, fun, outrageous or otherwise.  I can’t keep green plants alive, can’t sew a straight line, never learned to knit, can crochet only a single line, always knotted my embroidery thread, can’t sing, can’t play an instrument, my cooking has deteriorated now I live alone.  Good grief, I’m boring.
 
I wouldn’t say boring at all.  I’ll say you have a talent for making people comfortable and smile.  What is your neighborhood like?  Are there any places you frequent?  What makes them special?
I live in a settled, quiet and small neighborhood of patio homes.  Tea rooms, coffee shops—several in a three-mile radius.  Love it here.
 
It sounds lovely.  Does writing energize or exhaust you?
Yes.  (Depends on the day.)
 
What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Comparing yourself to others.  Don’t.  Your writing is unique.  Your voice is unique.
 
Big trap.  You are so right especially about voice. Each writer is unique.  Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
Each books stands on its own, but I grow so attached to characters that I end up writing books about them, so most books are connected in that way.  The Western, of course, is different.
 
If you didn’t write, what would you do for work?
I taught for many years, so that would be it.  Otherwise—I always longed to be an archeologist.  Honestly. But I finally realized I don’t have the patience for it.
 
Somehow, I should have known that with your nurturing spirit.  How long, on average, does it take you to write a book?
Way too long.  I’m a very slow writer.
 
Ugh, me too.  Barbara, before you slap that mosquito, please tell us about your book, where to find it, and more about you.

Last Stop, Wylder
by
Barbara Bettis
 
 A western frontier, historical romance.
Gunman Morgan Dodd is headed to a new life in California, where no one knows his name. Or his reputation. Just one last job to raise money for his fresh start—gunhand for a railroad agent in Wyoming. Easy enough. Until he meets the woman who could change everything. 
After ending her engagement, Emily Martin longs for independence. She sets out for Wylder, Wyoming, to help her brother with his newspaper. But when she arrives, she finds he’s off investigating a story. Well, then. She’ll simply publish the paper herself until he returns. Emily’s prepared to face challenges, but not the dangerous stranger who ambushes her heart. The same man hired to destroy her livelihood. 
When a common enemy threatens, Morgan and Emily must find a way to defeat danger and save their budding love. But a gunman’s word is his bond, and a lady’s trust can shatter
Grab your copy today!
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Stop-Wylder-West-ebook/dp/B0B7KH6D86/
B & N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/last-stop-wylder-barbara-bettis/1141875393

More about the author.
Award winning author Barbara Bettis has always loved history and English. As a college freshman, she briefly considered becoming an archeologist until she realized there likely would be bugs and snakes involved. And math.
She now lives in Missouri, where by day she’s a mild-mannered English teacher, and by night she’s an intrepid plotter of tales featuring heroines to die for—and heroes to live for.
She loves hearing from readers.

Follow the author.
Website/Blog/Newsletter – http://www.barbarabettis.com
BookBub – www.bookbub.com/authors/barbara-bettis
Facebook – www.facebook.com/barbarabettisauthor
Twitter (now X) – www.x.com/barbarabettis

From D. V.
The Wylder West is an exclusive 37 book series by The Wild Rose Press. Standalone stories from many bestselling and award winning authors. 
Check them out here.
www.amazon.com/dp/B08PNT6719

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