Author Rosanne Bittner: Westerns and Romance

It’s my pleasure to welcome award-winning novelist Rosanne Bittner to Thoughts in Progress today to talk about westerns and romance. Rosanne’s latest release is, PARADISE VALLEY.

Here’s a brief synopsis of PARADISE VALLEY:
    Maggie Tucker’s life is forever changed when outlaws murder her husband, leaving her alone and lost in the wilds of the Wyoming Territory. She vows to find the men who killed him and who tried to destroy her spirit.
    Sage Lightfoot, owner of a ranch called Paradise Valley, is hunting for three men who murdered his best ranch hand. When he finds Maggie collapsed beside an open grave, they embark on a life-changing journey along the famed Outlaw Trail. But a secret Maggie carries and a woman from Sage’s past could destroy their fragile love…

Rosanne is graciously answering a topic I found intriguing. Here she is.

Hello fellow bloggers at Thoughts in Progress! My name is Rosanne Bittner and I’m here to share with you the news of my latest publication, Book #58 (over 30 years of writing), called PARADISE VALLEY (available through Sourcebooks.com – Amazon.com – and in stores in July). My story takes place along the famed Outlaw Trail in 1800’s Wyoming and is filled with memorable characters, action, passion, danger, romance and adventure. It is a typical Bittner western that will take you into America’s rich Western landscape and introduce you to the kind of rugged, resilient men and women it took to settle a wild, lawless land.

When my publisher, Sourcebooks, sent me a request from your blog, only one question was asked – What are the disadvantages and advantages of writing a historical western romance while living in Michigan? 

Well, the disadvantage is obvious – I’M NOT LIVING OUT WEST AND CAN’T BE THERE 24/7!! I would love to be living in the Rockies, but I was born and raised in Michigan, and we have a family business here and my sons and grandsons all live here. I won’t leave my family and I love being a grandma more than anything. Still, I absolutely love the American West, its history, its scenery, and the “feel” of the presence of ghosts from the past … pioneers, Native Americans, lawmen, entrepreneurs, miners, builders, explorers … people who needed courage and strength to stand against the dangers presented during the early settlement of this country.  

Of course it’s also a disadvantage to not be able to sit here and look out my window at mountains. However, my husband and I have traveled the West extensively and I have taken hundreds of pictures and have visited many of my settings more than once. I have hundreds of research books that contain anything and everything you’d want to know about the growth of the Old West. I grew up watching numerous  westerns on TV, so in my youth and as I have read and studied my subject, I have saturated my brain and heart with American history and especially the western landscape and the stunning growth of that wild, lawless land. All I need to do to be “out west” is close my eyes.

One nice advantage to living in Michigan while I write about the west is that Michigan is also a beautiful state, and unlike the West, we abound in water – an inland lake about every 7 miles in any direction. We are only about 10 minutes from Lake Michigan, part of the Great Lakes, one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. And of course my family is here, and I have tons of friends in the small town of Coloma, where my husband and I graduated from high school, my sons went to the same schools and now my grandsons attend the same schools. 

And writing about the West while here in Michigan makes me write better descriptions of the breathtaking western landscape – simply because I sit here longing to be “out there.” I can literally smell the mountain air and hear the way thunder echoes through the Rockies. I ache to be there, and that shows through in my books, as I have received hundreds if not thousands of compliments from my readers about how vividly I describe my locations.

I am so glad to be able to visit your blog site. I hope you will go to Sourcebooks.com, Amazon.com or to a local book store in July and look for PARADISE VALLEY.
 
You will love the characters of Maggie Tucker and Sage Lightfoot as they search for killers who wronged them both. Their journey brings them together romantically for a hot love story set against danger and adventure. You don’t want to miss PARADISE VALLEY! 

And be sure to visit my virtual July 4th party at http://rosannebittnerbookparty.blogspot.com/ and find out how you can sign up to win some great prizes (throughout the entire month)! And be sure to visit my website at www.rosannebittner.com to learn more about my writing. You can also scan through some of my personal blogs at www.rosannebittner.blogspot.com. Thank you!

Rosanne, thank you for visiting with us and sharing the advantages and disadvantages of writing about a location you don’t live in. Sometimes we don’t see the advantages as clearly as the disadvantages.

Now a bit more about Rosanne. She is highly acclaimed for her thrilling love stories and historical authenticity. Her epic romances span the West—from Canada to Mexico, Missouri to California—and are often based on Roseanne’s personal visits to each setting. She lives in Michigan with her husband and two sons.

Thanks everyone for stopping by today. Be sure to stop by Rosanne’s July 4th party for a chance to win some fantastic prizes.