Wishing on Buttercups, historical romance
Can Love Survive When Secrets Collide?
She’d kept her secrets safely hidden—those from her past, and those in the present. Some things, Beth Roberts knows, a lady simply doesn’t share, even in the 1880’s West. The townspeople would never understand. No one ever has.
Jeffery Tucker, a handsome young writer, has kept his own secrets. He doesn’t have a right to pry into Beth’s affairs but finds himself strangely drawn to her and intrigued by the whiff of mystery surrounding her.
Beth knows that one day someone will unravel the threads of her past. And when two men from her past arrive, the truth might just hurt . . . Beth’s future and her heart.
As shadowy memories surface, Beth sketches the scenes she sees and is shocked by what—and who—her illustrations reveal. Dare she risk her heart again?
Miralee Ferrell is a speaker, accredited counselor, and former ACFW chapter president who has published multiple contemporary and historical romance novels since starting to write in 2005. She enjoys horseback riding, gardening, and family gatherings around their eleven-acre property in Washington State’s beautiful Columbia River Gorge. Miralee has had eight books release, both in women’s contemporary fiction and historical fiction, with another 5 under contract. She’s an award-winning author of Western fiction, and her newest novel, Wishing on Buttercups released February 1, and is the second in a series set in Baker City, Oregon, 1880s.
Interact with Miralee:
Website: www.miraleeferrell.com
Facebook Author page: www.facebook.com/miraleeferrell
Twitter: www.twitter.com/miraleeferrell
Miralee would love to answer questions concerning her books, writing, publishing career, pets, or her hobbies. Readers can feel free to only leave a comment, but if you would like to be entered in the contest, you need to come up with a question.
Then, you can return to this blog if you want to, and interact with her again.
Please be sure to enter the rafflecopter here after you have asked a question! And follow the entire tour, if you would like to.
One winner per blog, and no winner may win more than one book in this tour.
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27 Comments
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Hi Lynn, I’m sorry, I didn’t see your question until this evening. They come to me in a variety of ways. With one, it was part of a short news clip that made me think ‘what if that happened and it turned out differently?’ On another, it was a snippet of another book I read that gave me a different idea…kind of sparked my creativity to go in a different direction….with others, it might be an event in my life, or a situation I dealt with while ministering to and counseling a woman in need. I will say that coming up with new ideas is the hardest part of writing for me, and I hope it will get easier as I go along. Thanks for stopping by!
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Hi Miralee
How do you come up with the ideas for your books? -
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Hi Danie, my favorite color has always been a rich, royal blue…but almost any shade of blue is good. A close second is emerald green. Thanks for asking!
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Do you have a favorite color???
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Linda, I’m sorry, somehow I missed your question. So nice to see another resident of the Columbia River Gorge here, welcome!! You mentioned my next book…there will be 4 in this series, as I also have a novella releasing in late March called Forget Me Not, so be sure you watch for that one on Amazon. As for how I write…I’m not a plotter. I have a bare-bones idea of what I want to do and where the story is going to go when I start, then I build it as I get better acquainted with the characters, the setting and the history. It’s a fun way to write, but a hard way, as well, as I often hit blank walls when I have no idea what comes next. Not fun!!
Beverly, It’s so funny you should ask that….when I started writing I wrote women’s contemporary, no romance. For those first two books I said I’d NEVER write romance, and would always write contemporary. Sheesh. Never say never, as God has a sense of humor. I did not enjoy writing romance at first, and it was very hard for me. If you start with LFY in Last Chance, and work you’re way forward, I think you’ll see growth in some of my romance threads, although I’ll admit I regressed (purposely) in Blowing on Dandelions, as I didn’t want the romance thread to take over the book. But since I started writing historical fiction I’ve been in love with it. I know I’ll probably someday return to contemporary, as the pendulum swings on what readers want, but I feel I’ve fond my true voice with historical and love it.
Janice, the most important thing to an author from a reviewer is that you don’t try to tell too much of the story, and NEVER, EVER, give anything away that isn’t stated on the back cover or the book vendor description, that you wouldn’t have wanted to know in advance yourself. I’ve had readers get very upset over a review, and feel like the book was spoiled for them, as too much information about the story was given. I’ve had some reviewers almost literally give a blow-by-blow account of every major plot point in the book. That’s not what an author wants to see, and I truly don’t think readers do, either. They want to know what you thought of the book and why. If it touched you, WHY did it touch you? If you hated it, why did you hate it? Your feelings and reactions to the story are so much more important than retelling the story. I hope that makes sense, and I did not go back and read any of your reviews before answering this, so I hope I haven’t stepped on any toes with this reply. By the way, authors LOVE reviewers who are honest in their opinion, and if they find something they didn’t care for, are willing to explain why, not just give it a low star rating. Thanks so much for caring enough to ask such an excellent question!
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Hi Lu, there’s actually 6 more in the works and coming…when I wrote that, I forgot about my novella in this same series that releases in late March. So two historical romances, both in this current series yet to come, then four middle-grade girls horse books. The first of those releases March 1, 2015.
Merry, I LOVE my local library and I’m in there at least once a week, sometimes more. But not to borrow paper books, but audio books. I’ve found that’s the best way for me to read with my busy life. I have a CD player hooked to my belt loop when I’m cleaning or doing yard work, or I pop one in the car CD player when I’m driving. I listen to a lot of books per year and love it.
Hi BookLady! The biggest influence on my writing life (as far as another author) was Zane Grey, a great Western writer from mid 20th century. I have all of his books and have read everyone of his westerns, all of his boy’s adventure books, and many of the western’s 2-3 times. I love his vivid descriptions, his action scenes, and the touch of romance he brings to almost all of his stories.
BN100….our property really isn’t huge, it’s just 11.5 acres. Most of it is in trees/douglas fir and white fir and pine, so we don’t have to do much with that. It has a small, spring-fed pond on it that we irrigate our lawn out of, and a large yard, flower beds and over-sized garden area….those are the most work. It definitely keeps me very busy in the spring, summer and fall trying to keep up with everything, that’s for sure. Thankfully my husband enjoys puttering in the garden, or I’d never be able to do it all.
Thanks, everyone!!
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Hi, Miralee, I do understand why you diplomatically chose now to not do reviews. Since I do re iews, what is the most important thing in your opinion that a review should cover?
Thanks, again, for all your thoughtful answerz.
Janice jsmithg@hotmail.com(at) -
Miralee, I love how you weave biblical principals through your books. What is your favorite scripture?
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Oops, sorry, I just realized I already ask you this question a few days ago. Let’s try this one. 🙂 Which do you love most about historical romance, the history or the romance?
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How do you manage a huge property?
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
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Hi Ruth! I’m glad you decided to join us on the tour! I look forward to reading your review. 🙂
Wanda Barefoot recently posted…From Gods by Mary Ting – Win a $50 Amazon Giftcard!
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Who are some of your favorite authors and how have they influenced your writing?
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Miralee, How often do you visit your local library? I loved Blowing on Dandelions!
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Miralee,
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Thanks for helping to publicize Miralee’s writing!
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This sounds like a really fun book. I would love to read/review it!
WOW! Five more books contracted. How many of those will be Historical vs Contemporary? -
Hi Melanie, it’s been so long ago since I read to my kids, that I’m not sure I’m being accurate, but I think I mostly just read the story. They loved being read to and didn’t expect anything fancy, and it was easier to read it straight through. Great question, by the way!!!
Joye, that’s a very good question, and I’m afraid I don’t have the answer. I didn’t dig that deep in my research, as I was mostly just interested in Beth’s ability to draw and the memories it evoked. Thanks for asking!
Courtney, It was awesome when we had our two cougars. They were my husband’s project, as they were too big and too strong for me to handle, but I loved them. It was a unique, wonderful experience, although I would never recommend that people do something like this. It takes a lot of study and the right facilities to handle them.
Rita, I have a BALL researching the Old West! My favorite trip so far was to Tombstone, AZ, although we really enjoyed Last Chance, CA, as well. I’m hoping to make a trip to New Mexico soon for my next potential series. Thanks for stopping by!
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I love reading your books. Being raised in the Gorge, close to fields of golden hills, surrounded by high cliffs and a huge river, must help imagining some of your western themes. What I want to know is how you come up with the stories? Do ideas just come to your mind, or do you sit and create a story step-by-step? It would be hard to stop and go back to the story line once it was in my head…I wouldn’t b able to leave it. I’m anxious to read your next novel.
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Did you have fun researching the old west? I have always loved the time period, probably because I grew up watching westerns.
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What is it like having two cougars as pets?
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Why was it that in the 1800’s women did a lot of drawing and painting and yet all of the wonderful art that has survived that era was all done by men? Did you find the answer to that in your research?
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Thanks for participating in the tour! I really like your blog header picture!
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Thanks for joining the Tour!
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Hi Miralee,
Do you have a favorite color that you like?
oh.hello.hiya@gmail.com -
Great post! My question…..”Miralee, as you read to your children when they we young, did you use different voices or voice inflections when you read conversations between different characters or did you just read the story straight through?”
mauback55 at gmail dot com
