Up Close & Personal with 'The Lord Blackwood's Regency Romance Series' Arabella Sheraton

 

Up Close & Personal is one of The Writer’s Life newest features. Here we feature authors who don't mind spilling the beans and telling what it's really like to write, get published and sell that book.  Today's guest is Arabella Sheraton, author of the regency romance series, THE LORD BLACKWOOD'S REGENCY ROMANCE SERIES.  You can visit Arabella's website at Arabell Sheraton's Regency Romances. 

On Writing…

My mother was an invalid and confined to a wheelchair. She read voraciously but complained that books in her favorite genre, Regency romance, all sounded the same. She asked me to write her a Regency romance and so I did. I was in publishing and editing but had never written fiction. This was a first step for me. Eight books later and counting…

On Being Published…

Being published for the first time was certainly an exhilarating experience. I had written my first book just for my mom to read. Then I found a publisher quite by accident through a writing newsletter. They loved my first book and asked if I had more. Of course, I had already written more so off we went! My first series is Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball and the sequel, The Lady’s Revenge.

On Publishing Industry…

I started with a small traditional publisher but sadly the owner of the company became ill and could not continue. However, I had eight published books by then, so I took back my rights and found a distributor. It has all worked out very well and been an incredible learning curve. I also had a different editor for each book, so it was an intense editing experience too. They taught me a lot.

On Marketing…

It is hard to market any book, but especially harder for indie authors. Word of mouth is best, of course. I use social media – Facebook and Twitter – and do blog tours. The goal is to build up a fan base of readers who are already looking out for your next book. Wattpad is also very useful for loading a few chapters of each book to entice readers by giving them a nice meaty section to read. The Look Inside of Amazon is not enough. I have gained fans from Wattpad.

On Goals and Dreams…

To be successful you have to write and write and write. No one can sit back on their laurels of just a couple of books. Keep writing and creating new ideas. My tips for aspiring authors are: never give up; make sure your book reaches the highest publishing standards so do not skimp on professional editing and cover design; every day tell someone about your book/s. Word of mouth is the best form of advertising and it is free.

 

 

ABOUT THE BOOKS

Title: LORD BLACKWOOD’S VALENTINE BALL (Book 1)
Author: Arabella Sheraton
Publisher: Bublish
Pages: 90 (novella)
Genre: Regency Romance

BOOK BLURB:

In this romantic traditional Regency novella, Patience Cherwell is resigned to a life of spinsterhood. Therefore, when her young friend, the lovely Lorna Hartley, comes to stay for a London season, she decides the eligible, charming Lord Blackwood is the perfect match for Lorna. Granted, Lord Blackwood, at forty, is much older than the vivacious 20-year-old Lorna, but Patience is determined to help her young friend make a good match. So why isn’t she happy when his lordship and Lorna seem to like each other’s company? The problem is that Patience is already madly in love with his lordship! An unexpected invitation arrives for Lorna and Patience to attend Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball. This is the perfect moment for him to propose to Lorna. Mysteriously, a corsage arrives from an anonymous admirer. Who is it for? And what will be the outcome for the wearer at Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball? Patience and Lord Blackwood’s enchanting story continues in The Lady’s Revenge.

PRAISE

“Set in the era of grace and chivalry, Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball by Arabella Sheraton is the heart-warming novella prequel to the more adventurous novel, The Lady’s Revenge. Written with similar charm and panache of Jane Austen’s, Pride and Prejudice, this enchanting story captivates the reader and draws them into the vibrant life of Patience Cherwell. Patience’s loving and noble spirit is evident from the onset of the story; instantly capturing the reader. Despite the results that could lead to a lifetime of loveless solitude, Patience’s sacrifice of self for the love of a friend is gut-wrenching, yet profoundly noteworthy. This is a beautiful story of eternal love and redemption, and I highly recommend it to hopeless romantics.” – Amazon Reviewer 5 stars

Charles Edward Jasper, Lord Blackwood, was, in her opinion, the handsomest man she had ever met, possibly, the handsomest man in London. The first time he shook her hand had sent a shocking tingle radiating right through her body and caused her to blush so fierily that she was sure he must have noticed. He had held her hand for a few moments as he spoke to her, his touch producing such an alarming effect that her knees trembled as if they had turned to water. Patience had felt breathless and thought she might have gasped her greeting. He did not appear to have observed her awkwardness because by then he had turned to welcome Lorna and her ever-giggling friend, Miss Sophie Sutcliffe. Had he even really noticed her that first time? Perhaps the only reason he tried to engage her in social chat on subsequent occasions was out of politeness to her as Lorna’s hostess during her London sojourn.

 

Title: THE LADY’S REVENGE (Book 2)
Author: Arabella Sheraton
Publisher: Bublish
Pages: 186
Genre: Regency Romance

BOOK BLURB:

This engaging traditional Regency romance is the sequel to Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball. Miss Letitia DeVere decides that revenge is a dish best eaten cold when she returns to London after a two-year absence to find her former admirer Lord Charles Blackwood on the verge of proposing to Miss Patience Cherwell. Lord Blackwood’s Valentine Ball proved to be the turning point in his fledgling romance with Patience. Letitia is not the kind of woman who gives up easily, as Patience and Charles soon find out. She stops at nothing to achieve her aims. However, Letitia has a dark past, with secrets that threaten to return and destroy her newfound social success. When Charles proves less malleable than in the past, Letitia resorts to subterfuge, seduction, blackmail, and even violence to force him to propose. Will he see through her tricks and remain true to Patience, or will Letitia’s seductive wiles lure him back?

PRAISE

“The timing is one of the most wonderful things in this read, especially because of the various means of subterfuge and blackmail which are at play. Author Arabella Sheraton has a knack for timing her comedy and her suspense in just the right balance to keep that rompy pace going, just like authentic Regency novels should do. I can’t recommend this two-partner enough, or indeed the author herself and her other super-fun works. Readers with a modern mindset or a lack of historical knowledge might not fully ‘get’ the style, but if you’re someone that does, then you’re going to truly fall in love and want to keep stepping back into this world time and again, so give them a try!” – Amazon Reviewer 5 stars