Welcome Romance Author Ruth A. Casie

Today I thrilled to be interviewing USA best-selling author, Ruth A. Casie. I met Ruth at the New Jersey Romance Writers Conference last October. I am so glad she is here to answer my questions today.  (She even shares 7 things nobody know about her.)

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Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Zara, thank you for having me on your blog.

Hi Everyone. I’m Ruth A. Casie. I write historical and contemporary romance. Tara asked me to tell you about myself, so get something to drink and sit back.

I’m happiest when I’m telling stories either chatting in a group or writing them down. I love to put my hero and heroine in tough situations and dare them to work it out—together, always together. They haven’t disappointed.  Oh, they complain but in the end their love and relationships are stronger than ever.

Here are seven things even Zara doesn’t know about me.

1. I filled my passport up in one year.
2. I have three series.  The Druid Knight stories are a historical time travel series. The Stelton Legacy is historical fantasy about the seven sons of a seventh son. Havenport Romances are stories set in a small coast Rhode Island town.  I also write stories in the Pirates of Britannia Connected World that cross-over to my Stelton Legacy series.
3. I did a rap to “How Many Trucks Can a Tow Truck Tow If a Tow Truck Could Tow Trucks.”
4. When I cook I dance.
5. My Sudoku book is in the bathroom. I’m not saying anything else about that.
6. My stories feature strong women and the men who deserve them, endearing flaws and all. Their stories will keep you turning the pages until the end. I hope my stories become your favorite adventures.
7. I’m a USA Today bestselling author.

My hobbies:

• counted cross stitch
• ballroom dancing – not just between the fridge and stove
• reading almost anything
• Sudoko – I’m still staying quiet about that

Where is your favorite place to write?

The quick answer is, at home. I have two places in the house where I write. With our three kids on their own, I’ve commandeered a bedroom and made it into an executive office. I have space for resource books, my to-be-read pile, and marketing stuff and supplies. I also have a desk in the living room which is only for writing. I love it especially in the winter. I can put on the fireplace, listen to music, and I’m off. The only drawback is it’s closer to the kitchen!

What other genres of novel would you love to write?

I write in two time periods/genres. My Havenport romances are all contemporary romantic suspense stories. I thoroughly enjoy writing them. Lots of times the story ideas come from family situations that I embellish. Heart of the Matter is based on a love letter I found in my mother’s bible. It was dated after she and Dad were married, but the letter wasn’t in Dad’s handwriting.

I also write historical fantasy romances. I have two series, The Druid Knight series which are time travel stories. The Stelton Legacy series are stories about a family curse on each of the seven sons. My stories for the Pirates of Britannia Connected World cross over to the Stelton stories.

These genres are very different. Contemporary stories need little world building while historicals need lots of research and world building. The rhythm of the genres is also different, as is the syntax.

If you had to go back and do it all over, is there any aspect of your novel or getting it published that you would change?

This is a great question. I wouldn’t do anything over about this story, Heart of the Matter, but I would for my first published book, Knight of Runes.

As a matter of fact, Harlequin recent gave me back the rights on that story. It was my first story and it was published in 2011. The story and characters hold a special place in my heart. I was getting ready to self-publish the book. When I reread the book, my heart sank. There were so many things I would have done differently. So, I did. I re-edited the story. Got a new cover and plan to release it May 19.

Have you written a book you love that you have not been able to get published?

Yes, Einstein’s Theorem. Let me tell you how the story came about. My brother is an appraiser. He showed me a letter he was appraising. It was from an author to her editor. “I agree with you. Scarlet is a much better name for the heroine than Daisy.” It was Margaret Mitchell’s letter and of course it was for her story, Gone With The Wind.

I was curious how to value such a document. First and foremost was proving its authenticity. Provenance. Follow the ownership of the document, item, art, etc. He told me sometimes it’s very difficult. I off-handedly said, too bad you can’t time travel, you could guarantee if the item was authentic or not. That got me thinking.

Here is a draft of the back-cover copy:

Cari Holt, a Boston art detective with a background in particle physics uses a theorem she discovered in a lost journal penned by Albert Einstein to time travel in order to investigate the amazing stories behind the art she’s hired to authenticate.

Meanwhile, in Geneva a miscalculation in an experiment creates a rip in the fourth dimension compromising a high-power lab opening a pathway in time. Jayson Stone the company’s security executive and Cari’s ex-fiancé is sworn to prevent time travel.

When the lab, hard at work on damage control unknowingly maroons Jayson in time, Cari and Einstein’s theorem is Jayson’s only hope. She must close the rip while opening her heart. Will she sacrifice a once in a lifetime career to save Jayson and their chance for a timeless love?

Publishers love the concept, but because is mashes up genres, they don’t know how to sell it. It’s a shame because I have three books outlined and the potential for another six.

Can you tell us about any other upcoming books, series, or writing plans?

This winter I’ve focused on my historical stories, expanding The Stelton Legacy with cross over stories with my The Pirates of Britannia stories. The first of three new stories, Hugh, is scheduled to be released April 9, followed by Donald July 9 and Graham October 8. I will also be re-releasing The Druid Knight series with a re-edited version of Knight of Runes in May and it’s followed up story, Knight of Rapture in August.

How did you come up with the title for your Havenport story?

The Havenport series includes the work of five authors. Each year we get together and decide what the theme will be. This year it was love letters. We also plan how we will name our stories. For instance, when we wrote stories where our characters all attended the same wedding, our story titles were lines from the wedding ceremony. My title was Forsaking All Others. Our Christmas stories were all the titles of Christmas songs. My title was I’ll Be Home for Christmas.

Heart of the Matter. The theme for this story was love letters. The plan for our titles was that the first letter of each of our stories would spell a special word. Here are the five titles. Can you figure out the secret word?

Rescuing the Ranger, Heart of the Matter, Always, Time After Time, and Everything.

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

The best compliment is when a reader tells you they couldn’t put the book down or they felt they were in the story. Those comments make my day.

The toughest criticism I’ve gotten was more of a personal attack than about the story. It’s hard when you’re criticized for things beyond your control. The title and cover of my first book, Knight of Runes was chosen by my publisher. The cover is gorgeous, a bare-chested knight. However, the story was about the heroine. That said, when I showed the cover to my resident hero, his words… “Every woman will buy that book.” Got it.

The reviewer wasn’t impressed with the title or cover. She thought the heroine was too perfect and the hero too self-centered. That was the nice part of her review. The rest was a personal attack. Fast forward to 2015. I wrote a story about an author who falls off the literary lists and is stunned by a horrid review. Yea, part of that horrid review I got 2011 is in the first paragraph of my story, Happily Ever After.

This is big thank you to Zara for having me on her blog today and to you for stopping by. I love to write, and I’d love to hear from you. Zara has my contact and social media information. Please stop by and say hello!

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Heart of the Matter by Ruth A. Casie

Digging into the past can be murder.

Addison Moore, a well-known psychiatrist is having difficulty coming to terms with the death of her grandmother Cookie. The woman was everything to her after her parents died in the plane crash over Lockerbie, Scotland. Little did Addy know that an old picture, tucked away in the family bible of Cookie with a handsome stranger would lead her to a discovery for which she is little prepared.

Ethan Taylor is an art historian. He’s lived with his Great Uncle Ben for a long time and would do anything for him. He never anticipated that Ben’s dying wish would introduce him to Ben’s biggest sacrifice.

Neither Addy nor Ethan are prepared for the lengths at which their families went through to keep Cookie and Ben apart. As they try to put the pieces together they uncover a decade’s old unsolved murder implicating Cookie and Ben. Will Addy and Ethan’s blossoming love be able to stand the strain of finding the truth? Will they be able to overcome their own matters of the heart?

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083VZCF8J

 

Visit Ruth A. Casie’s  AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE 

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Learn more about Ruth A. Casie

RUTH A. CASIE is a USA Today bestselling author of historical swashbuckling action-adventures and contemporary romance with enough action to keep you turning pages. Her stories feature strong women and the men who deserve them, endearing flaws and all. She lives in New Jersey with her hero, three empty bedrooms and a growing number of incomplete counted cross-stitch projects. Before she found her voice, she was a speech therapist (pun intended), client liaison for a corrugated manufacturer, and vice president at an international bank where she was a product/ marketing manager, but her favorite job is the one she’s doing now—writing romance. She hopes her stories become your favorite adventures. For more information, please visit RuthACasie.com or visit her on Facebook, @RuthACasie, Twitter, @RuthACasie, Instagram RuthACasie, or Pinterest RuthACasie.

 Social Media Links:

Website: https://ruthacasie.com/

Ruth’s Newsletter Signup:  http://ruthacasie.com/contact.html#newsletter

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ruthacasie/

Facebook private reader’s page, Casie Café: https://www.facebook.com/groups/963711677128537/

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Ruth Casie can’t wait to hear from you and answer your questions.

Please post your comments below.