Can you believe we’re halfway through October already? As the holidays quickly approach, I’d like to introduce you to yet another author who has been writing all her life. Please help me welcome Victoria Oliveri! A quick peek at her bio and then we’ll find out more about her inspiration and stories.
International bestselling author, Victoria Oliveri, is a life-long researcher and re-enactor whose studies and travels have given her volumes of ideas for her historical novels.
As a full-time author, she spends her days writing, editing, and researching when her pets are not nagging to be fed or paid attention to. She enjoys chatting with fellow authors for impromptu brainstorming and discussions of the craft, and when she has the time, she goes on the occasional road trip to refill her creative well.
Website * BookBub * Twitter * Pinterest
Betty: When did you become a writer?
Victoria: I’ve been writing since I was in grade school, much like many other authors. I began publishing in 2006, and to me that was when I became a real writer. Writing is one thing, having to deal with the business side of that demon is another. It really tests your courage and your ability to keep at it despite criticism and trying to drown out your own self-doubt.
Betty: How long did you work on your writing skills before you became published?
Victoria: Many years. I was always involved in writing at school, majored in Journalism in college and held so many jobs where all that I’d learned was utilized.
Betty: What authors or stories do you feel influenced your writing style?
Victoria: There are so many. Ursula le Guinn, Jane Austen, William Gibson, Jackie Collins… so many writers, so many genres.
Betty: What prompted you to start writing?
Victoria: My inner voices. I was always a storyteller, it runs in my family, and writing is just a way to record it all.
Betty: What type of writing did you start with?
Victoria: Short stories. As a kid I wrote picture books for my friends, as I got older, I wrote stories of teen girls with a love of horses and boys that don’t deserve them. I guess I haven’t grown out of that LOL
Betty: What do you most enjoy writing? Why?
Victoria: It has never been a love of genre for me, but the love of the character and the story. If you have passion for what you’re trying to say and a vivid imagination, it doesn’t matter what it is in my book, as long as you write about it. I’ve written historicals, science fiction, and now contemporary. I love it all.
Betty: How did you learn to write? A mentor, classes, conferences, craft books, or something else?
Victoria: Mentors, great teachers and lots of reading. Growing up I had a handful of great teachers who let me express myself as often as I was able. I was in a few special creative classes and AP English. There are a lot of craft books and how-to books out there, but in my opinion, you have to learn the basics before you go looking for help. Read a lot. Read the genres you want to write. Make note of how the author builds characters and scenes. Believe it or not, all my years of playing Dungeons and Dragons in the 80s taught me a ton about world building, some of which I still use to this day. You can learn from everything around you. Listen to conversations and the cadence in people’s voice to figure out how to do dialogue. Watch an action movie and try to describe what you’re seeing to learn to write action scenes. You have to find your own voice that way.
Betty: What do you wish you knew before you started writing/publishing?
Victoria: Nothing. Honestly, when I started into the publishing world it was before the internet blew up and all we had was email. Manuscripts had to be printed and mailed to publishers in boxes. Everything I knew then is completely antiquated now, and I had to learn and relearn things over the years as the industry has changed. One thing I will say to people who don’t like social media or technology… suck it up or choose another occupation. Both are intrinsically tied to what we do. And start your mailing list early. Even if you don’t have a book out, get the word out, get your readers interested because they will be the only thing to sustain you.
Betty: What other authors inspired you (either directly or through their writing) to try your hand at writing?
Victoria: Again, so many. Ursula le Guinn has always been a favorite. She pushed boundaries and everything she wrote was so thought-provoking, got people talking. When I write, I don’t want my readers to say “Oh, her heroes are hot”, I’d want them to say “I’m still thinking about that emotion she churned up in me” months after they read the book.
Betty: What inspired you to write the book you’re sharing with us today?
Victoria: History has always inspired me, which is why I love to write historical romance. I started to write this book during a snowstorm, sitting at my desk watching the world get buried in white outside my window. For me it was easy to imagine things transpiring and how the outcome would be affected by not only the elements, but the characters emotions and decisions. It’s the main reason I look forward to writing every day. I’m a reader just like everyone who picks up my books. As I write, I want to see what happens too. 😊
A determined Governess who needs to support her family, an eager gentleman who is moving blindly through his life, and love like the blizzard that blindsides them both.
Excerpt:
“So, you’ve been in love before to know this?” he asked, reaching for his own cup and taking a sip.
“No, I haven’t,” she said, suddenly looking away.
“Then how would you know how one would feel if you’ve never felt it yourself?”
“It is obvious. Have you never seen two people in love before? It is as if the world starts and ends between them.”
“That type of love is fleeting. For newlywed couples the look of love follows them everywhere for the first few months, but it subsides eventually.”
“That is not true. My parents were deeply in love until the day my mother passed. So, I have seen it,” Arabella bit out.
“Then your parents are very lucky to have found one another because that sort of long lasting attraction is very rare, and I am sorry to inform you that the real world is not like that so you will be forever searching for something that simply does not exist.”
“I did not know you were such a pessimist,” she said with a grimace. “Of all your brothers, I thought you were the romantic one with a heart.”
That remark hit him sideways and his eyes darted to hers as he quirked his head.
“You think I have no heart because I do not believe in love as it is written in novels? That’s the most absurd thing you’ve said yet,” he said with a laugh
Buy links: Books2Read
There’s something about being snowed in that gets people to talking and opening up, isn’t there? This story sounds intriguing. I hope many will pick up a copy to read and enjoy. Thanks for sharing!
Betty Bolte
Best-selling Author of Historical Fiction with Heart, and Haunting, Bewitching Love Stories
Visit www.bettybolte.com for a complete list of my books and appearances.
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