Volume 2, Issue 1 – February 1999
Nora Roberts: the Joy of Make Believe
Nora Roberts started writing in a snowstorm twenty years ago and never stopped. Today with over 85 million copies of her books in print — and 11 New York Times bestsellers, four of them reaching number one, in 1998 alone — Roberts reigns as queen of romance. She also provides a sterling example of quality and originality in a genre too often dismissed by “serious” readers as “formula fiction.”
Fortunately for more perceptive critics and fans, Roberts shows no sign of slowing her writing pace. But this Haydn of the computer keyboard did take a small break to share with Crescent Blues her views on writing, her characters, the Internet and cooked cereal.
Crescent Blues: In a little less than 20 years, you’ve sold 126 novels, many short stories and novellas, and you’ve written even more. And contrary to the popular conception of romances, each one has been unique — different stories with different characters. How do you do it — how do you write so many well-written books? Is it inspiration, craft, expertise or something else?
Nora Roberts: Mostly, it’s work. It’s my job to tell stories, and the point of the job to tell good, entertaining stories. I happen to have a fast pace. That, I think, is just the luck of the draw. I’m disciplined. That’s my make-up. And, best of all, I really love my job.
You’ve mentioned that you grew up telling stories, you just never wrote them down until the blizzard of February 1979. Did any of those stories find their way into your books?
Pieces of them probably have. I always made up stories in my head, but I never thought about actually writing them down until that blizzard.
Looking back, do you recognize the writer you became in the storyteller you were?
The writer’s more disciplined than the storyteller was. But I still have the joy that comes with the make believe. The writer has to craft the story into a book that makes sense.
Family plays a key role in your novels. What makes family themes so compelling for you?
As my roots are in romance, relationship has always played a key role in my books. It seems a natural progression from love to marriage to family. And I’m fascinated by the dynamics of family, the loyalty and the spats, the shared history and the way each individual grows.
How has your own family life influenced your work?
I think having four older brothers, and no sisters, two sons and no daughters, certainly gave me a view of men. How they think and how they operate. It helped me appreciate them. And it helped me appreciate the bond women can make — female friendships and what they mean.
Do you see your family sagas — the MacGregor series, the Irish series, etc. — as an exploration of families or as a convenient way to relate separate romances?
It’s certainly both. I wouldn’t do the family series if I wasn’t interested in family dynamics, or believed I could tell a good story with that at the core. It’s also a interesting way, to me, so show each family member as a separate person with individual needs and dreams.
Were all your series conceived as series? Did any “grow” from a single book or result from reader demand?
I’ve done both. The MacGregors started as one book. But in Playing The Odds, Serena had two brothers, and through the course of the book they intrigued me. I wanted to tell their stories. Daniel was, absolutely, a big catalyst there as well. I found him irresistible.
What are your strategies for sustaining and building interest over a series of books?
First the characters. If they don’t compel me to tell their story, I can’t believe the reader would be interested. If I’m crafting a trilogy, I have to fall for the people in it, and I need a thread, some theme or question that will weave through all three of the books, and be resolved at the end. Each book must stand on its own as far as character development, relationship and the resolution of the romance, but to continue on I need — and believe the reader wants — a connection.
How do you keep everybody straight — especially the MacGregors and all their kin?
They become part of my life. They’re important to me. If they’re not real to me, why would they be real for the reader. You don’t forget your friends.
How do you keep inspiration fresh and avoid repeating yourself? What’s your method for tracking earlier novels and stories to avoid repetition?
I don’t have a method — at least not a conscious one. Every book I write has a new set of characters with new problems, different backgrounds, different personalities and so forth. There are only 88 keys on a piano, but you can make all sorts of music.
Do you consciously base your heroes or heroines on people you know or media personalities?
No, I don’t.
Many of your heroines have red hair. What’s so attractive about red-haired heroines?
After 130 books or so, you gotta have a good supply of red heads. I think the color might be used, at least occasionally, to show character. The old red-headed temper — or as a contrast between that preconception and a shy or insecure heroine. Added to that, I’ve done a considerable number of Irish heroines. Red hair’s kind of a natural.
Do your characters ever surprise you by turning out very differently from who you thought they would be? Which character (or characters) surprised you the most?
My characters always surprise me. Once they’ve taken on a life in a book, it’s wise to let them go their own ways. I can’t remember ever having a character turn out precisely as I’d imagined them before I started the book. That’s a good thing.
In romance, the girl always gets the right guy by the end of the book. If a writer wants to continue the plot or spirit of a given book, they need a new set of lovers. Do you see the steadily developing relationship between Eve Dallas and Roarke in the series you write under the name J. D. Robb as providing an alternative to this model? (Or do you see their relationship more in the romantic suspense tradition of Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody and Emerson, for example?)
With the Robb books, one of the things I wanted to do was develop those characters, those relationships, over many books rather than tying it all up in one. I wanted to explore these people, and peel the layers off book by book. Eve and Roarke have given me the opportunity to explore a marriage as well. Each book resolved the particular crime or mystery that drives it, but the character development, the growth and the changes, the tone of the relationships go more slowly. I’m enjoying that tremendously.
The Eve Dallas series is set in 2058. What inspired you to start a “near-future” romantic suspense series?
I wanted to try something a little different, while continuing to write romantic suspense. I love writing romance, and suspense, but also wanted a twist. The near future setting provided this, and allowed me to more or less create a world. What would it be like in 2058? I could decide. And I could illustrate my own feeling that while the toys may change, people remain basically the same. They still love and hate and covet, they still have courage and cowardice. They’re still human.
When you start to write a book, do you know from the start whether it will be a category romance, a single-title paperback, a hardcover, etc.?
Absolutely. That’s essential. There’s a different tone, there are different reader expectations, a different pace, different style. I have to know which lane of the highway I’m going to drive on before I sit down to the keyboard. The idea has to fit the particular form.
What are the differences you find in writing so many different types of books? Do you prepare for them differently? Do they require a different level of research?
I don’t prepare for the actual writing any differently. Work is work. The research depends on the subject matter, not the type of book. But I have to know if this is a hardcover romantic suspense and craft the idea in that way. If it’s a trilogy, what is the common thread, what binds these people together?
Where do you start when you write a book or a story? For example, do you start at the beginning and write through? Do you prefer to toy with character or plot?
I start at page one chapter one and write straight through, generally a fairly quick and loose first draft. Then I go back and do another draft from the beginning, fixing where I went off, fleshing out the characters (as I’ll know them better by this point), seeing if the story holds. It’ll take at least one more draft for polishing, maybe two. But I don’t edit my work as I go. I like getting the story down first.
When did you make the transition from typewriter to computer? What are the differences between the two methods of recording a story?
I shifted from typewriter to work processor in the early Eighties, then to computer in the late Eighties, early Nineties. The difference is about the same as washing a shirt by beating it on a rock in a fast stream or tossing it into a Maytag ™. Give me technology every time.
When did you discover the Internet? How active are you in on-line?
I got on the ‘Net about six years ago, I think. What a world! I’m very active on line. It’s a wonderful way to communicate — with writer pals, with readers. And as a research tool, I’ve found it invaluable.
Would you ever consider electronic publishing? Have you ever downloaded and read any electronically published novels?
Not at this point, no. And no, I’ve never read any e-novels. I like holding a book in my hand.
How important is research to you?
It’s an essential part of the job. You have to know the setting, the canvas on which you’re painting. You have to know what goes into the professions you’re writing about. You have to know everything, so you find out. Invariably, you’re going to make a mistake along the way — but it’s vital to be as accurate, and honest, as possible.
Was it always a key factor in your books?
I’ve learned how to research more accurately over the years. And with the ‘Net, found a way to make it easier on myself.
How have the Internet and the Worldwide Web affected the way you research?
Streamlined it, beautifully.
Are your fans particular about accuracy?
They will always catch you. Once I had a character stop to pump gas in Oregon. Honestly, I never thought to check this one. I had no idea that pumping your own gas was illegal in Oregon. Readers who live there let me know.
How much influence do your fans have on your work?
You have to know that you will never please every reader with every book. I listen, certainly, but I can’t always give a reader what he or she wants. It has to come from me first. Disappointing is reader is painful for a writer.
Do you feel empowered by fan loyalty or constrained by their expectations?
Their expectations are important to me. I wouldn’t say I feel constrained by them, but more aware of them. I am a reader, and a very typical one, I think. So I write the story that pleases me first. As for the loyalty of the reader, I am tremendously grateful for it.
Have your heroes and heroines changed since you started writing romance?
Certainly. I’ve been writing nearly 20 years. When I started the romance genre was geared more to the young, virginal heroine and older, fabulously wealthy hero. Silhouette’s Americanization of that theme began changing the face of romance. I’ve always written strong, independent characters, but they’ve grown up considerably since the early days.
How do you keep strong female characters from coming across as “bitchy?”
I’ve never thought about this. And I find, reading the question, that I’m puzzled why the word “strong,” when applied to a woman, should so easily be equated with “bitchy.” You have a strong hero, you think of him as tough or heroic or, at worst, arrogant. Give a heroine the same traits and she might be considered bitchy. Nope, I don’t think so.
In Brazen Virtue (1988) the lead female characters say they’d prefer a sock on the jaw to infidelity. Brianna in Born in Ice (1995) feels more pain from anger and harsh words than “a violent hand.” Do you feel these sentiments reflect your readers’ views or are they character specific?
They’re always character specific. Who these people are is illustrated in what they feel and what they say. I couldn’t possibly speak to my readers’ views on subjects such as this.
Have you ever gotten any criticism from fans because of the views espoused by individual characters?
I’m sure I have. What that says to me is that the reader considered the character a person. That means I did my job.
How much influence do current models of political correctness have on your books?
Little to none.
Birth control is seldom mentioned in your novels. Is this a philosophical stance or a technical decision not to interrupt the flow of a good love scene?
I’m a writer telling a story, not a public service announcement. If using birth control ties in with character and story, I put it in. If it’s just to show the reader that these characters are being responsible, then I haven’t done my job to that point of the book by creating people who have already shown they are responsible people in a loving, monogamous relationship. Tearing open a foil pack at the proper moment doesn’t illustrate this commitment or add dimension to character.
Do you feel novelists have a responsibility to instruct readers?
No, I feel we have a responsibility to entertain them. If there’s something learned along the way, that’s wonderful.
In series like the “Irish” books, how do you get the accent right?
It probably helps that I have Irish roots. I’m pretty good with accents anyway, but one visit to Ireland — or speaking with anyone from Ireland — should give you the rhythm. It’s something like music.
Anecdotes, stories and reminiscences are woven into the narrative of Born in Ice, giving the book a very Celtic feel and a very different quality from books set in the United States. How much of this was intentional and how much was serendipitous?
It was very intentional. I wanted to take the reader on a trip to Ireland, and I took myself there — as I sat at the keyboard. Once the story was begun I was in Ireland, and the tone of the book, I hope, reflected that.
Do you plan to employ this technique again? Are there other narrative experiments you’d like to try?
I’ve just finished another trilogy set in Ireland. The Gallaghers run a pub in a little village on the coast of Waterford. As for narrative experiments… you know, I just never think about it very much. It’s something that just comes out of the story.
Your characters seem to have a thing for cooked cereal — oatmeal, porridge. Where does this come from? How do readers respond?
They do? Really. I have to laugh. Personally, I can’t stand oatmeal.
What, if anything, would you like to say about the plagiarism suit against Janet Dailey?
That I’m relieved it’s basically over. It was a difficult period, and the hardest thing I’ve dealt with in my professional life.
Which of your characters has struck the deepest chord with readers? What do you think makes this character/these characters so compelling?
I can’t be sure of this. Certainly Eve and Roarke touched a chord. Daniel MacGregor’s another favorite. I hope the reader finds them compelling because they — the characters — have something to say.
What inspired you to get into the collectibles market? Is “Julia: the MacGregor Bride” your first venture in this area?
This was Silhouette’s idea, not mine. So it’s really their venture. I have my own Julia, and she’s gorgeous. They’ve done such a wonderful job on the doll. I couldn’t be more delighted with her.
What other collectibles (if any) do you plan to authorize in the near future? Do you have long-term goals in this area?
It would really depend on the idea broached to me, and how it was implemented. I don’t have any particular goals in this area.
Has your incredible productivity ever been a problem for you or your publishers?
It is a bit of a problem, scheduling-wise. The main reason I agreed to take another name was due to marketing and scheduling. My publishers, both Putman/Berkley and Silhouette have been terrific in working together to try to schedule the books in a way that keeps everyone happy.
How has the romance-writing field changed since you started your career? Do you believe it’s easier or harder for romance writers starting out today?
It’s changed a great deal. When I started Silhouette was brand new, and kicking major butt in the market. Every major house started their own category line in the early 80’s. It was certainly easier to break in. But those lines didn’t last, so many who published couldn’t find a new home.
It’s never easy. A writer has to be tenacious and suck in the rejections.
If you were starting your career over again, what would you do differently?
I’d start sooner.
Do you feel there was anything about your early days as a writer that you got exactly right?
I still don’t know if I get anything exactly right.
You have a great track record for befriending and helping new writers. Do you feel this to something the romance genre encourages? Or do you think it’s more gender- than genre-based?
I do think romance writers tend to be the most generous in the business. Part of this may very well be that we are mostly women, and women tend to share. Romance Writers of America (RWA) was formed to help nurture and support new and aspiring writers.
If you could, what advice would you give someone who’s just discovered they want to write?
If you want to write, write. No excuses. Then do your homework. Find out who’s publishing the kind of books you want to write. Write what you’d read for pleasure first.
Is there anything you’d like to add?
I never miss a change to plug my husband’s store. Turn The Page opened three years ago. It’s really a nice little store — and they mail order. E-mail TTPageBC@aol.com. They carry a very solid variety of books.
Jean Marie Ward