By B. J. Robinson
What inspires your muse?
As a lover of the outdoors and nature, I’m often inspired by spending time
outside, especially around water such as lakes, rivers, or the ocean. Lately,
I’ve found myself inspired by history of the antebellum era and touring old plantation
homes. This is how I came to write my two latest novels River Oaks Plantation and Romance under the Oaks. Taking
tours seeped in history allowed my mind to wander and wonder. Two novels were
the result.
I’m also a product of
the South complete with an accent that announces it, so locale plays an
important part. If it’s about the South, I’ll be inspired. Due to this, other
writers such as Eva Marie Everson inspire my muse. I loved her novel Unconditional and
think it’s her best yet, though I also enjoyed her Cedar Key Series and
Things Left Unspoken. If you’re stuck, read other authors in your genre
or who write and set their books in a locale that inspires your muse.
As a teen, I loved
Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind and always
wanted to write a novel set on a plantation. There is something about the old
homes beneath the live oaks and Spanish moss that stir me with romance of the
past. I can’t help but imagine what life must have been like for young couples
living during the antebellum era, ones who had to endure the Civil War. From
the depths of my mind and history, I create characters that will transport you
to another era.
One thing I am thankful
for is that we don’t have to wear the yards of material and layers women did in
those days. Gardening had to be an art. The South is too hot and humid to wear
layers of clothing while gardening. I love the outdoors and working in my
flowers, but I don’t know how much I would have enjoyed it back in the day.
My novels are character
driven, and I’m a morning writer. I’ve always felt I did my best writing then.
Once I get into a novel, the characters tell their story. In the wee hours of
morning, I’m perking with the coffee.
In my latest novel, Romance under the Oaks, Celina loves the city of New Orleans, and Jacques loves
the bayou country and quiet plantation life. Their differences and secrets
could drive them apart. Celina hides something in the wall of the plantation
and never tells Jacques about it. He keeps something from her even while he
romances her under the oaks. Can their love survive differences and secrets?
This family saga set on a planation fifty miles from New Orleans is more than a
love story. It’s rich in New Orleans history. Learning inspired my muse as I
researched and discovered things I never knew, though I was born in New
Orleans.
So, what inspires my
muse? Outdoors, nature, oak trees, Spanish moss, the antebellum era, old New
Orleans, plantation homes, history, research, and learning, and reading other
authors all enhance my creative mind and inspire me to create other worlds
through characters who lived in the past and tell their own stories.
_________________________________________________________________
B. J. Robinson is a multi-published, prize-winning author of Christian romantic
suspense and historical romance. River Oaks Plantation is
a finalist in the Grace Awards. She writes from Florida,
blessed with her husband, children, grandchildren, pets, and faith. When she’s
not writing, she’s reading and reviewing books. Visit her at http://barbarajrobinson.blogspot.com.
Historical Romance Author Page https://www.facebook.com/BJRobinsonHistoricalRomanceRomantic Suspense Page https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBJRobinson
Louisiana Southern Reads Page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-BJ-Robinson/600635176683799
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/BJ-Robinson/e/B007DNJIKU
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