Inspiration, And Then Some

Let’s talk covers, shall we?  As most romance readers know, writers often look to actors and actresses for inspiration when developing their characters.  It’s a fun way to bring the hero and heroine to life in our imaginations.  Typically, a writer spends months on a book, imagining the hero looks remarkably like Gerard Butler, for instance.  Said writer may have even been asked by her editor to provide detailed descriptions of her hero (and heroine), which is then passed along to the art department.  With crossed fingers, the writer then spends the intervening weeks praying the cover will at least remotely match the descriptions she provided to her editor.

Finally, the day arrives and that much-anticipated cover jpg. lands in the writer’s email box.  With pounding heart, the writer clicks on the jpg. and then…well, sometimes they get it right.  Often they don’t but it’s still a great cover, and every once in a while it can be an unmitigated disaster.

How have the cover gods treated me?  Extremely well, IMHO, thanks to the fantastic art department at Kensington Publishing.  The models didn’t always match what was in my head, though, so I thought it might be fun to look at what I imagined and what actually happened – particularly with my heroes.  So here are my covers, starting withMastering The Marquess at the top of the page.  Let’s see how they match up with the actors I used for inspiration.

For Stephen, the Marquess of Silverton, I imagined him played by the beautiful and tragic Heath Ledger.

Now glance up and compare that to the guy at the top of the page.  Not so much, although I think MTM has a great cover.  But the hero looks more like a cross between Brad Pitt and a young Arnold Schwarzenegger, which more than one person pointed out to me.  Whoever he looks like, he does have a great set of abs.

In  my next book, Sex and the Single Earl, I imagined the hero, Lord Trask, to look much like Christian Bale.

And here’s the cover.

Pretty good matchup and, again, great abs.

For my novella in An Invitation To Sin, I based the hero, Captain Christian Archer, on Sean Bean in Sharpe’s Rifles.

And, the cover…

Oh, well.  Pretty, but a distinct absence of abs.

For my last book, My Favorite Countess, I used the gorgeous Hugh Jackman to provide me with inspiration for Dr. John Blackmore.

And the cover…

I was surprised when I got the email because I was expecting another clinch cover, but I certainly wasn’t unhappy.  MFC is a gorgeous cover and since I had imagined Bathsheba played by Kate Winslet, the artist definitely got the vibe.

My next book, which will be out in 2012, has a tough and handsome former soldier as its hero.  When I pictured him in my head, this is who I saw.

Yes.  Uber-handsome Henry Cavill from The Tudors.  I won’t see my cover for some months yet, but I surely a girl can dream, can’t she?

What about you, readers?  Do you cast actors for certain characters when you read a book?  Does it bother you when the cover doesn’t match the description?

No Explanation Required, Part Two

On Monday I talked about some of the things that have inspired me while creating the heroes in my books – lovely things like this:

Yes, that’s the awesome Sean Bean, who was the mental stand-in for my hero, Captain Christian Archer, in my novella, An Invitation To Sin. Here’s some more heroic inspiration that served me well when I was writing my other two books.

For your viewing pleasure, I give you Christian Bale, who helped me vividly imagine the hero of my second book, Sex And The Single Earl.

Well, hello Lord Trask!  He certainly looks ready to head out and do some manly work around the estate, doesn’t he?  Aside from being a truly gifted actor, Mr. Bale has just the right kind of smoldering, intense sensuality I was looking for in that particular character.

Inspiration, indeed!

The hero of my first book, Lord Silverton in Mastering The Marquess, was partly based on a very special person – the impossibly talented and tragic Heath Ledger.

I loved Heath from the moment I saw him in A Knight’s Tale.  I fell in love with his talent and his intensity, and his truly devastating male beauty.  It was very easy to imagine him in the role of Regency hero.

And Ledger was enormously talented, as his performances in Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight so ably demonstrated.  His death was a terrible tragedy for his family and a loss for his fans, but his legacy lives on in a fairly short but very impressive list of movies.

Christian Bale and Heath Ledger:  gorgeous and talented men, who provided this particular writer with plenty of inspiration.

Long live the hero!

Regency Friday Fun And Giveaway

My next book, My Favorite Countess, will be released on May 3rd.  The hero of this book, John Blackmore, is a bit of a departure for me.  He’s a Regency physician, and you can read more about my inspiration for him here.

Like today’s doctors, Regency physicians often worked in hospitals as well as attending to their own practices.  That’s the case with John, who administers to high-born members of the ton as well as working in a large hospital in London.  In fact, I chose the oldest hospital in the city for John – St. Bartholomew’s in Smithfield.  St. Bartholomew’s or, Bart’s, is actually the oldest surviving hospital in England, and holds great historical and architectural value.

It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, an Augustinian who suffered a malarial attack while on pilgrimage to Rome and had vowed to build a hospital when he returned to England.  The picture above is of the famous King Henry VIII gateway, built in 1702 by Edward Strong.  The stone statue of Henry is by Frances Bird, and is apparently the only public statue of that monarch in the city.  On an adjoining wall is a plaque to William Wallace, who was executed nearby in 1305.

Over the years, there were a significant number of architectural and cultural beauties added to the grounds and the buildings, including the inner courtyard and the Great Hall.

The hospital was rebuilt in four blocks around this inner courtyard in the 18th century, and would have looked much like the above illustration when my hero, Dr. John, was attending to his patients.

Bart’s is also home to not one but two magnificent paintings by Hogarth, who was appointed a governor of the hospital in 1734.  Apparently, the hospital originally intended to commission art from Italy.  Hogarth, annoyed that the administrators would choose Italian painters, donated these two murals instead.  The one depicted below is called The Pool of Bethesda, and depicts Christ healing the sick.  The mural figures in a scene in my book, as the place of reconciliation between my hero John and my heroine, the fiery-tempered Bathsheba.

St. Bartholomew’s survived the Great Fire of London and The Blitz, and is a grand historical and cultural institution.  And it continues to be one of England’s best hospitals, with a medical school and a renowned international reputation.  For anyone interested in the history of London or of medicine, it is well worth the visit.

To celebrate the upcoming release of my book, I’ll be running some fun contests in March and April.  Today, I’m giving away signed cover flats of all four of my books:  Mastering The Marquess, Sex And The Single Earl, An Invitation To Sin, My Favorite Countess. Just leave a comment telling me who’s your favorite fictional doctor from either books, TV shows or movies.  Is it Dr. McDreamy from Grey’s Anatomy? Or how about one of the crew from E.R?

And don’t forget to check out the great contest I’m running all month on my website. I’m giving away ARCS of My Favorite Countess, as well as tee shirts and tote bags!

Gift Baskets Galore!

I normally try to blog three days a week, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  Despite my best intentions I didn’t manage to do that yesterday, because I was too busy making up fabulous gift baskets for the First Coast Romance Writers mini-conference that’s happening this Saturday, March 12, in Jacksonville, Florida.

Okay, I have a confession to make.  I didn’t really make up those baskets; my uber-talented stepmother did.  I did buy all the candy and treats for the baskets, though, and made sure my stepmom was well supplied with high-test coffee while she worked.  As you can tell by the pictures, she does do great work.

Here’s the basket that contains a whole mess of books from Kensington Publishing.  My editor, John Scognamigio, very kindly contributed a box of books to the conference, and other generous Kensington authors like Kate Douglas, Susan Fox, Marilyn Brant, Diane Whiteside, and Elizabeth Amber all sent books.

It will be a lucky pup who wins that basket, I can tell you!

And here are the two baskets I’m contributing.

The basket on the left contains books donated by friends and some of my favorite authors, like Eloisa James and Courtney Milan.  The basket on the right contains my books, including Mastering The Marquess, Sex And The Single Earl, An Invitation To Sin, and also contains an Advanced Reader’s Copy of my upcoming May release, My Favorite Countess.

How do get your hands on one of these lovelies?  Easy!  Just go to the First Coast Romance Writers website and sign up for our mini-conference on Saturday.  Our featured speaker is the fabulous CL Wilson, and we’re also hosting pitches with Avon editor Tessa Woodward and literary agent Emmanuelle Morgen.  It’s going to be a great day!