Faye Hall comes to Trin Carl's Blog

As you may know, Trin Carl will be posting interviews with authors on her blog. This is a chance for readers to get to know up and coming writers.

Today I'm interviewing Faye Hall, an Australian Romance writer.

Each of Faye's books have passionate connections between the hero and heroine, surrounded and threatened by deceit, scandal, theft and sometimes even murder. You can get a hold of Faye on her blog, Facebook or Twitter.


And onto the interview...

Faye, what are your ambitions for your writing career?

I want it all!  I want bestsellers and international recognition.  Most of all I want to lead the way for historical romances set in Australia.

Ambitious, Love it!

Which writers inspire you?

All writers inspire me, especially those that have been rejected so many times but stuck with it until they got what they wanted.

So, what have you written?

I have six historical romance eBooks published with traditional publishers – My gift to You, She’s a lot Like You, Mistress of Purity, Passions in the Dust, Shrouded Passions & Deceit & Devotion.  I have a 7th book out in May of this year – Amorous Redemption.  I obtained a best seller from ARE (which has sadly now shut down).  I also have been published in several poetry journals, and am in the process of self-publishing a complete book/s of my poetry this year.

Six books! Now you know that must have taken a lot of work.

Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

The main male character from the upcoming release Amorous Redemption is Duncan MacAllester.  He is a very mysterious man who has left his once wealthy upbringing to become a bounty hunter.  He is very in touch with the outback and the natives that live there.  The main female character is Phoebe Porter.  She is very strong minded and determined that she would not fall victim to any man.  Fleeing from her arranged marriage she is determined to create a life of her own far from her home town.

What are you currently working on and what is it about?

I’m currently working on Heart of Stone.  The story tells of an Australian slave trader who becomes involved with an Irish slave.  Together they have a very heated and forbidden love affair that ultimately ends up risking both of their lives.

Sounds interesting Faye, I also noticed that you also write poetry. I attached one of my favorites below to give readers a taste.

Sing me a song
Put lyrics to my name
And let me sing it a thousand times
Then maybe once again
Ask me questions
You know I’ll never answer
Then hold out your hand
And brush it on my cheek
Sing about tomorrow
Or how yesterday used to be
Then sing me a song once more
Then I’ll ask you once again
Sing to me.

Copyright© Faye Hall

What drew you to write romance?  

I write in my genre simply because I love history and I love the romantic tales of our forefathers when they left their homelands to start new lives in Australia.

How much research do you do?  

I tend to do quite a bit so that I have accurate names for hotels and ships and such.  My own family were early settlers in the areas my books are set so I rely a lot on my own family history and stories also.

Yes, I noticed that a lot of your novels are based on towns and cities that really exist in Australia, including Bowen which is known for having several shipwrecks. In particular the SS Gothenburg which claimed 100 lives.  

When did you decide to become a writer?

I guess I made the final decision just as I was finishing high school.  I had always written and told my family stories, but it wasn’t until one of my then teachers told me I would never make it as a writer that I really got the need to prove him wrong.

Do you write on a typewriter, computer, dictate or longhand?

I do have printed out drafts of mostly all my stories as a back-up.  The scripts usually come together in a notebook in the form of either notes or actually full pages of dialogue.  First draft is always typed on the computer though.

Where do the your ideas come from?

They come from lots of things.  I get a lot of ideas from certain songs I listen to, or from watching music clips.  Other times stories are born from conversations with my husband about the lives of our grandparents when they migrated to Australia.

What is the hardest thing about writing?

For me it’s first finding the time.  Secondly it’s how to start the story.  I type and delete and re-type the first paragraph about a hundred times usually.  Usually by the time I get to the end I have to go back and change the beginning though cause everything has changed so much.

What was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?

The hardest thing about Amorous Redemption was making sure I had the hotels named correctly in the towns.  I try to stick as close to accurate history as possible but given that so many of the buildings have since burnt down it is a challenge.  As the story is also based my own great grandparents I had to be careful to do it justice and not stray too far from the real story.

What is the easiest thing about writing?

Being Australian and writing books set in my country always sets a challenge.  Most people think of the early Australians to be ruff miners or wearing cork hats, and I need to describe everything so that the reader can see just how civilized those people actually were.  

Oh really I never heard of a cork hat, but when I googled it, I realized it's your typical Crocodile Dundee hat.

Australian slang is also hard to slip into the novels as rarely are they understood outside of my country.  We do have a unique dialogue to say the least.

Yes, I noticed. I came across a site http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html devoted to Australian slang and these great words including:Banana bender, a person from Queensland or a billy, a teapot.

Do you ever get Writer’s Block, and do you have any tips for getting through it?

I rarely get it but of course it does happen.  The only person ever able to snap me out of it is my husband though.  He starts talking to me about the story and throwing suggestions at me as to where to go with the story next.  Even if they’re just silly suggestions it always helps me get back on track.

Do you read much and if so who are your favorite authors.  

I don’t read as much as I used to unfortunately.  That said my most favorite authors are still Harper Lee and Amanda Quick.  Two very different women with very different styles but still close to my heart.

Harper Lee! You must have read "To Kill a Mockingbird." In high school, I played Scout! #fond memories

Do you let the book stew – leave it for a month and then come back to it to edit?  

I have had to do that with a few books, more out of frustration then necessity.  There have been times when it seems a bit much and I literally have to just walk away from a script for a while.

How are you publishing this book and why? 

Amorous Redemption is being published traditionally.  I like knowing that no matter how good I think a script is that someone else has looked at it and thought it was worth the effort too.

What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing against being published or the other way around?  

I guess the advantage of traditional publishing is having covers and edits supplied for you.  I don’t have to source them.  The hugest downfall would have to be the money though because you only get a certain percentage of the royalties.

Do you have any advice for other authors on how to market their books?  

It’s hard finding an avenue to get noticed these days.  Sure there’s social media which I use and find great but you do tend to get drowned amongst the masses most times.  Being persistent I find tends to help.  Also I’ve been lucky to work with some really lovely bloggers who are happy to give each of my books my plug.

What part of your writing time do you devote to marketing your book?  

I do devote quite a lot to marketing.  Usually an hour a day doing ads and sending out emails and requests.


That is all the time we have today folks, feel free to get in touch with Faye on her blog, or Facebook,  Readers, please comment below if you have some unique marketing advice .