Book tour interview: For Love of Sarah

Please welcome Hazel Statham who is stopping by on her blog tour today and talking about her new release, For Love of Sarah. 

Be sure to comment as Hazel will be awarding winner's choice of either a Cream Coin Freshwater Pearl necklace or a digital copy of DOMINIC or HIS SHADOWED HEART (international giveaway) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

What is your name (or pen name) and where do you live now?
I write under my own name, Hazel Statham and I live in an area in the UK called The Midlands - Staffordshire to be precise.  It is an area known for its pottery industry with such well-known names as Wedgewood, Dolton and Spode etc.  I have lived in the city all my life and live in a quiet residential area with my husband and our lovely Labrador, Mollie.


First off, how has your week been?
In a word, hectic.  Our grandson came to visit for the day yesterday and he and Grandpa did nothing but squabble like two naughty children all day, plus Mollie just had to join in their wrestling matches, which created even more mayhem – it was hilarious!   On the downside, we have been very worried about my daughter’s foal who suddenly became very ill but, thankfully, due to the quick actions of our vet, is now well on the road to recovery. As with all young animals, foals are susceptible to all manner of strange illnesses and Willow is no exception.  Now she’s trotting around the field with all the other horses.  It was very worrying at the time but now she’s back to her usual cheeky self.


Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you’ve been writing?
I am now officially retired, although, I haven’t gone out to work for the past nineteen years.  Previously I worked as an accounts officer and prior to that a personnel officer.  I started writing at the age of fifteen and have written on and off ever since. I don’t know exactly what prompted me to write my first book at such an early age – I just found myself putting pen to paper and so started my first novel.  Of course, everything had to be written in longhand as I didn’t own a typewriter then and there were certainly no signs of computers.  My passion was for historical novels as it is now and I immersed myself in creating my own historical world.


Please tell us about your current release.
My new release it titled FOR LOVE OF SARAH.

Here is a brief blurb:-      How many times can a heart be broken?  How many times can love be denied?  Sarah and Alexander were destined for each other but after just four short weeks of marriage, their lives were torn asunder.

     Alexander, Earl of Thorne thought he had found his ideal mate but, when Sarah absconded shortly after their marriage, his world came crashing down.  Now, five years later, he discovers her in a remote Yorkshire village.

    Sarah had thought she was safe, but when, severely injured in a freak accident, her husband is thrust once more into her life, she fears her dark secrets and the fact she has a son, will become known.  

    Despite her own desperate longings, she continually repudiates Alexander’s efforts of reconciliation. However, fate conspires against her, and when her home is made uninhabitable by floods, she and her young son are forced to accept his aid and return to her former home.

   Discovery threatens and, despite her breaking heart, she plans to leave Alexander’s life.  What is this secret that makes it so imperative that she should abscond from him yet again?  Can two broken hearts cleave and emerge victorious or will life's cruel forces tear them apart forever?  

Where did you come up with the idea to write your book?
Believe it or not, I had just the first six words my hero utters at the beginning of the first chapter, “Why now?  Dear God, why now?” and it grew from there.  Later came the details of the accident that threw my hero and heroine together after five long years apart and so the story began.  I checked the facts of Alexander’s injury with a doctor before taking it any further to make sure my storyline was feasible.  Apart from that, I listened to my characters and let them dictate the course of the story.


What was your favourite chapter to write and why?
I think it is the penultimate chapter when the villains are thoroughly dealt with and all is satisfactorily revealed. I took great pleasure in plotting their downfall and I wanted it to be thorough and complete – it was!


What was the hardest part of writing your book?
About half-way through the book I began to doubt its validity.  So much so that I asked a fellow author to read it through.  In just a few short days came the message, “If you don’t finish this book and tell me what Sarah’s secret is, I’ll strangle you!”  I had two possible scenarios in mind and wanted to make sure I chose the right one – the other I will save for another story.


Are your books available as eBooks? Were you involved in that process at all? Do you read eBooks or is it paper all the way?
Yes, all my books are available as eBooks.  I’m very lucky that my publisher produces them as eBooks and paperbacks.  Two years ago my husband bought me a Kindle and I am hooked.  It goes everywhere with me including hospital and holidays – how else can you carry so many books with you (I currently have 108 on mine)?  At first, I resisted joining the digital age and clung to my paperbacks but now I love my eBooks too.  Of course, paperbacks still have their value and I am steadily working my way through a large bookcase full of historical novels.


Did you have any say in the title / cover of your book?
The title is wholly my own and was decided on early in the writing process, but my publisher produced the cover.  I am, of course, allowed some input, but the final decision is their’s.


How long does it usually take you to write a book, from the original idea to finishing writing it?
It varies greatly.  DOMINIC (one of my earlier books) took just three months as he just strode onto the stage and demanded he tell his own story, but the depth of emotion in FOR LOVE OF SARAH required a lengthier process and I think it took almost a year to write.


Where do you get your book plot ideas from? What/Who is your inspiration?
I have gained inspiration from many different sources.  All it needs is a line from a song, a dream, or as in this case, just six words from a film to set the creative thoughts in process.  I usually have some idea where I want the storyline to go but I leave the final decision up to my characters.  Sometimes inspiration comes at the most inconvenient of times, for example on a ten hour flight across the Atlantic when I was desperate to find something to write on but could find nothing.  As soon as we arrived at our hotel in Florida, I dragged my husband out in search of pen and paper.  I’ve never travelled without them since!
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How many times can a heart be broken?  How many times can love be denied?  Sarah and Alexander were destined for each other but after just four short weeks of marriage, their lives were torn asunder.

   

Alexander, Earl of Thorne thought he had found his ideal mate but, when Sarah absconded shortly after their marriage, his world came crashing down.  Now, five years later, he discovers her in a remote Yorkshire village.

  

Sarah had thought she was safe, but when, severely injured in a freak accident, her husband is thrust once more into her life, she fears her dark secrets and the fact she has a son, will become known.  

  

Despite her own desperate longings, she continually repudiates Alexander’s efforts of reconciliation. However, fate conspires against her, and when her home is made uninhabitable by floods, she and her young son are forced to accept his aid and return to her former home.

   

Discovery threatens and, despite her breaking heart, she plans to leave Alexander’s life.  What is this secret that makes it so imperative that she should abscond from him yet again?  Can two broken hearts cleave and emerge victorious or will life's cruel forces tear them apart forever?  

~

Excerpt

“There is no man with whom I live. I am thought to be a widow by the villagers.”
   
“A widow? By God, you would feel so, in fact, if I were able to leave this accursed bed. He would find no place to be safe from me!”
   
“There is no one,” she cried, her voice rising to the verge of tears.
   
“Then he has left you,” stated the earl, coldly. “Taken what he desired and left you to bear the consequences alone. Or did he discover your duplicitous nature and decide he would not play the fool to your deception?”
   
“My nature is not at all as you suppose, sir. I merely fell prey to a circumstance that has blighted my life.”
   
“Infidelity and desertion are definitely circumstances that blight your life, and those who are associated with you. When I sought your brother, it was reported that he had gone to India. Even your grandfather is in ignorance of your whereabouts. I thought you may have flown to him, but when I looked for you there, he had no more information than I and the poor man is desperate for knowledge of you.”
   
And if he should have that knowledge, he would disown me and his life would be in ruin. “It is best that you and he should forget my existence. I have built a new life far removed from your world.”
  
“You are still my wife, Sarah!”