I’m delighted to welcome New York Times and USA Today bestselling author GAELEN FOLEY to Rakes and Rascals today for an exclusive interview.
Carol, thank you so much for having me on your wonderful blog! Rakes and Rascals has certainly become a go-to destination for historical romance lovers. I’m glad to be here.
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R&R:
Could you tell us where you were born and what it was like growing up there?
Gaelen:
I was born in Pittsburgh, PA. At the time, my hometown was coming out of its long period of decline as the so-called “Steel Buckle of the Rust Belt” and undergoing a renaissance that put it on its way to becoming what it is now: frequently voted America’s Most Liveable City. Back when I was growing up, it seemed like there was a nonstop craze over the Steelers (American football team). They were in their glory days in the 70s. When I was a kid it seem like they won the Super Bowl every year.
I went to a tiny Catholic school where I was taught by truly lovely nuns and had only seven kids in my class from first through fourth grade. At home, being the eldest of four girls, I always had a lot of chores, but when my jobs and homework were done, I had a good deal of freedom. There were woods across the street from our house and I loved to run around in there like a tomboy and climb trees and build little makeshift cabins. The woods are thick and beautiful in Pennsylvania—I know people will be reading this from all around the world, but if you were here, you’d see why our State’s name is translated as Penn’s Woods. My favorite thing in the world was to take a book–typically an episode of the Black Beauty or Nancy Drew series or a fantasy novel like Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle In Time–and climb a tree, tuck into a comfortable joint in the branches and read in the tree. Preferably while eating an apple!
R&R:
How would you describe yourself – temperamental or easy-going?
Gaelen:
I am definitely easy-going. Oh, I have plenty of sturm und drang in my nature, and I can brood with the best of ’em—I’m a Scorpio, after all—but I never inflict that side of myself on anybody else. Well, with one exception–my poor husband! I can’t hide anything from him anyway. But in general, if I am having one of those episodes of struggling with the dark night of the soul, I just stay by myself until I’ve got it sorted out, and then I come back out smiling again. I love to laugh (if you couldn’t tell!) and generally save the drama for my writing.
R&R:
When it comes to food do you like sweet or savoury or both?
Gaelen:
Both! And lots of it. Ha, ha.
R&R:
What is your most treasured possession?
Gaelen:
Interesting question! My first impulse is to say my dog, but I don’t think Bingley would appreciate me referring to him as a possession, LOL. He probably thinks he owns me, if anything, since I’m the one waits on him hand and foot. It’s almost like he knows Bichons were the dogs of French royalty back in the Ancien Regime.
I suppose my most prized possession is my writing setup. As long as I’ve got a functioning computer or at least a large supply of notebooks and pens, I’m happy. (You can’t survive as a starving artist for as many years as I had to do that if you’re a material girl.)
R&R:
If you were able to afford a second home anywhere in the world where would you choose and why?
Gaelen:
It would certainly have to be somewhere tropical. I don’t mind the cold, but the five or six months of gray that we get here can get down demoralizing. It’s like Seattle gray—no offense, Seattle. (Or London gray!) In fact, I think Seattle got more days of sunshine than Pittsburgh did last year, sigh. I remember reading that in the newspaper and being rather bitter about it. LOL.
So it would have to be somewhere sunny, with palm trees and a steel drum band playing… maybe Key West or the Bahamas. Near the beach! I find the ocean incredibly inspiring and rejuvenating. Good for the soul!
R&R:
Finally, what has been your most embarrassing moment?
Gaelen:
OH, where do I begin…?! Well, Regency fans will get a good chuckle out of this, then you can cringe right along with me, since you know the people, too. A few years ago at an RWA luncheon, I mistook romantic suspense superstar Stella Cameron for the one and only Mary Balogh and, in front of a table full of marvelling librarians, proceeded to gush and congratulate “Mary” (a la fangirl) on her book that I had just seen hit very high on the New York Times list and which I had on my TBR pile. Well, Ms. Cameron was extremely gracious, but she looked at me like, “What planet are you from, dear?”
Eventually—though not right away, sadly—I realized my mistake. And somehow managed not to slither under the table in complete humiliation, LOL. Yeah, that’s me. Not so good with the names! The worst part is, I’ve actually met Mary Balogh several times and was even on a panel with her at RT, so I should’ve known better! But it had been a long time since I had seen her, so…I guess I got confused. :::head desk::: Oh, c’mon, it was an honest mistake! LOL. There is a VAGUE resemblance there—they both have light eyes, short hair, and British accents!—plus, they’re both awesome. Ah, well, lol. If only everyone had been asked to wear nametags…
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Thank you for taking time out to be here today and sharing these interesting facts about yourself, Gaelen.
Thank YOU for having me, Carol! This was fun. Come and visit me sometime, readers!
If you would like to find out more about Gaelen and her books, here are the links:
Rakes And Rascals 