Today my friend, Shirley Skufca Hickman is my guest on my blog. I had the privilege of editing both of her historical romances as well as several of her other books. Welcome, Shirley. I asked her about how she writes historical romance.
I’ve written two romance novels, Sarah Darlin’ and The
Tangled Web of Love. I like researching
the time period, creating the main and minor characters, and developing a plot.
Often twenty pages of research may become a single paragraph in the
book. I like to discover
historical characters who can interact with my fictional ones.
For my first romance novel, Sarah Darlin’, set in San Francisco during
the Gold Rush, I found Tom McGuire, a real person, and used him to hire my
fictional characters, Sarah, Patrick, and Katie O’Malley to sing and dance in
his Jenny Lind Theater. Much of the action in the book takes place there. When
the theater burns down, it triggers a painful memory for Patrick O’Malley.
Sarah O’Malley and
Richard Moresby, are attracted to one
another, but the O’Malleys left Ireland during the potato famine because of the
injustice and cruelty of British landowners. Understandably, they despise the
British. Sarah is fascinated by Richard, a British aristocrat, but is torn
between her loyalty to the O’Malleys and Richard’s appealing charm.
My second romance
novel, The
Tangled Web of Love, set in England in 1812, is one of my favorite time periods because its
stratified society offers limitations and opportunities.
In researching this
time period, I found Richard Wellesley, former Governor General of India. He helps
my fictional character, David, sign a lucrative contract with the East India
Company, and Elizabeth translates for Wellesley’s French wife.
David Stedfeld, an
orphan forced to steal as a child to survive, is now a sea captain and one of
the richest men in London. Lady Elizabeth Reneau, the daughter of a duke, was born
into wealth and privilege, but after her parents died and their estate sold,
she is forced to live with her licentious uncle.
She runs away and waves
down David’s coach to ask for a ride to London. She refuses further help and
secures a position in London as a seamstress. She borrows a gown to attend a
ball, but David accidentally spills wine on it, ruining it. She is dismissed, charged
with theft, and sent to Newgate Prison, David fights to free her and offers her
a position as his housekeeper. As their mutual attraction grows, Elizabeth
knows David desires her, but will he ever love her?
After the research
is complete, main characters determined, and a basic plot outlined, minor
characters are created. Fortunately, or unfortunately, sometime they tend to stay
longer than I intended.
I introduce Brandon
Ratliff so Elizabeth has someone to dance with at the duchess’s ball, but he
continues to intrude upon her life and competes with David for her attention.
Sean, in Sarah
Darlin’, also refused to leave. I used him to illustrate how sailors were
fleeced by unscrupulous landladies, but when the O’Malleys meet Sean, wrapped only
in a blanket, they can’t leave him in the street, so they take him home, give
him clothes, and help him find a job. Soon he becomes Richard’s rival for
Sarah’s affections.
I never planned any
of this, but Sean became so interesting to some readers, they requested a
sequel to find out what happened to him.
Will the O’Malley’s
accept Sarah and Richard’s love for one another? Will David and Elizabeth find
enduring love despite their social differences?
Of course, they will.
My responsibility as a romance writer is to make sure my characters live
happily ever after in my books.
SHIRLEY SKUFCA HICKMAN grew up in a Colorado coal mining town, during World
War II. As an adult, she wrote about the war from a child’s point of view in Don’t
Be Give Up.
In 1947, the mine closed, forcing the family to move. Living
in three rooms and sleeping in the kitchen with her two older sisters, she
wondered if they’d ever have a real home again. Whenever her father made life
better for the family, he’d ask: Is Everybody Happy Now? This became
the title of her next memoir.
She enjoyed her high school years until her father’s death
devastated the family. Without his love and financial support, they might have
lost their home. Family is Forever is about their love for one another and how
they coped.
Shirley graduated from college and became a teacher. She
wrote Fall in Love With An Orange Tree or a Book about a teenager who
lived in the shadows because she was in the U.S. illegally.
When parents asked her to recommend a book to help their
children, she wrote: School Success: Five Hundred Ways Busy Parents
Can Help their Children in School.
She also wrote Sarah Darlin’, a romance novel set
in San Francisco during the Gold Rush. Before Sarah and her lover could be
together, they must deal with prejudice, a fire, and a terrible secret from
Sarah’s past.
In 2020, she published Rocky Road is More Than a Candy
Bar about her courtship with her husband, Joe. Another moving memoir
from this author.
Her greatest joys are her son, his wife, and their two boys.
For more information, contact the author at hickman@ocsnet.net
