Here is what Ms. Hunter has to say about The Promise:
Cloey: When did you become interested in writing?
Lauren: I can't say there was any one defining moment. I didn't wake up one day and say: I want to be a writer. I guess I could say the seed was always there, right from elementary school. We would be required to write a story each week. For some reason the teacher would read my stories to the class. This was my first inkling they must be okay. But I still never really had that drive to pursue writing as a career. I never really stopped though, as I would write poems and short stories. I was in my twenties when I thought of trying my hand at writing a full length novel. I worked on it on and off over the years, finally finished it, and then started on another. I didn't try to look for a publisher at that time, but I didn't stop writing either. So at some point I came to the realization that I always had the writing bug, I just didn't acknowledge it until much later.
Cloey: What inspired you to write The Promise?
Lauren: I love regencies, their innocence, their humour, and it just seemed like a genre I could feel really comfortable with. Whenever I come up with an idea it usually just happens out of the blue. I will get a story idea, and then it quickly fleshes out in my head. I can't say where the inspiration comes from, perhaps from reading another author's book, or watching a really great movie, or just the love of writing. It seems to have a life of its own, it lets me know when its ready, and I go along for the ride.
Cloey: Who was your favorite character and who was your least favorite character and why?
Lauren: That's like asking a parent which child they like best. I don't have a favourite, and in this story I don't hate any of them either, but I can say I like each for their own unique qualities that appeal to me. Elizabeth is young and desperate to be a part of the world she's witnessed growing up. Yes she is naive, but she is quick to learn. Her youthful love of life, and jump-without-looking approach, gets her into more trouble than she'd like to admit. But I love her passion and spirit.
Anthony is this wounded soul, feeling lost and alone in the world, but trying to hide it behind a devil-may-care attitude, and yes, being quite selfish in the process. But that he sees a chance for happiness in Elizabeth, a chance to regain what he once thought lost to him, makes you want to cheer him on. It allows you to see glimpses of the real man once more, that had been buried so many years ago.
Sarah is the friend everyone wants, dependable, march through fire for you if necessary, kind of person. She doesn't want to see Elizabeth hurt, and will do anything to prevent it.
Cloey: What did you enjoy most about writing The Promise?
Lauren: I found the in-depth research into the era fascinating. As writers, when we research, the vast majority of what we find out never gets onto the page. You want to give a sense of another time and place, through tidbits of description that set a mood. But you have to be careful not to hit your reader over the head with it either. It becomes a balancing act of just enough, but not too much. But the things I learned could fill volumes on their own. How they lived, their daily rituals, and dress, and food. How society dictates the lives of people, or brands them.
Cloey: What were the challenges (research, literary, psychological, and logistical) in bringing the story to life?
Lauren: The research was the biggest challenge. But I don't really look upon it that way. I love to find out the details of the behind the scenes life. To me it adds a whole other layer of depth to what life was like in the regency.
Cloey: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in The Promise?
Lauren: During the editing process the story was changed a great deal. What you see before you today is the fulfillment of that collaboration.
Cloey: What are you working on now?
Lauren: I have so many ideas for novels and short stories, that I have to allow my gut to guide me in that decision. I have a number of projects I'd like to launch into, but I am still uncertain which one to do first.
Cloey: What do you like to read in your free time?
Lauren: When I am promoting and writing I work until I fall asleep. I don't have free time to read. But if I do find a moment my tastes are very eclectic. It is very much like my writing, I write in many different genres, so depending on my mood I may read Keats or Byron, Stephen King, or Nicholas Sparks, Homer or Nietzsche, etc. I read for entertainment, and I also love to read to learn.
Cloey: Thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule to interview with us today. It is always a pleasure speaking with you.
Lauren: I can't say there was any one defining moment. I didn't wake up one day and say: I want to be a writer. I guess I could say the seed was always there, right from elementary school. We would be required to write a story each week. For some reason the teacher would read my stories to the class. This was my first inkling they must be okay. But I still never really had that drive to pursue writing as a career. I never really stopped though, as I would write poems and short stories. I was in my twenties when I thought of trying my hand at writing a full length novel. I worked on it on and off over the years, finally finished it, and then started on another. I didn't try to look for a publisher at that time, but I didn't stop writing either. So at some point I came to the realization that I always had the writing bug, I just didn't acknowledge it until much later.
Cloey: What inspired you to write The Promise?
Lauren: I love regencies, their innocence, their humour, and it just seemed like a genre I could feel really comfortable with. Whenever I come up with an idea it usually just happens out of the blue. I will get a story idea, and then it quickly fleshes out in my head. I can't say where the inspiration comes from, perhaps from reading another author's book, or watching a really great movie, or just the love of writing. It seems to have a life of its own, it lets me know when its ready, and I go along for the ride.
Cloey: Who was your favorite character and who was your least favorite character and why?
Lauren: That's like asking a parent which child they like best. I don't have a favourite, and in this story I don't hate any of them either, but I can say I like each for their own unique qualities that appeal to me. Elizabeth is young and desperate to be a part of the world she's witnessed growing up. Yes she is naive, but she is quick to learn. Her youthful love of life, and jump-without-looking approach, gets her into more trouble than she'd like to admit. But I love her passion and spirit.
Anthony is this wounded soul, feeling lost and alone in the world, but trying to hide it behind a devil-may-care attitude, and yes, being quite selfish in the process. But that he sees a chance for happiness in Elizabeth, a chance to regain what he once thought lost to him, makes you want to cheer him on. It allows you to see glimpses of the real man once more, that had been buried so many years ago.
Sarah is the friend everyone wants, dependable, march through fire for you if necessary, kind of person. She doesn't want to see Elizabeth hurt, and will do anything to prevent it.
Cloey: What did you enjoy most about writing The Promise?
Lauren: I found the in-depth research into the era fascinating. As writers, when we research, the vast majority of what we find out never gets onto the page. You want to give a sense of another time and place, through tidbits of description that set a mood. But you have to be careful not to hit your reader over the head with it either. It becomes a balancing act of just enough, but not too much. But the things I learned could fill volumes on their own. How they lived, their daily rituals, and dress, and food. How society dictates the lives of people, or brands them.
Cloey: What were the challenges (research, literary, psychological, and logistical) in bringing the story to life?
Lauren: The research was the biggest challenge. But I don't really look upon it that way. I love to find out the details of the behind the scenes life. To me it adds a whole other layer of depth to what life was like in the regency.
Cloey: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in The Promise?
Lauren: During the editing process the story was changed a great deal. What you see before you today is the fulfillment of that collaboration.
Cloey: What are you working on now?
Lauren: I have so many ideas for novels and short stories, that I have to allow my gut to guide me in that decision. I have a number of projects I'd like to launch into, but I am still uncertain which one to do first.
Cloey: What do you like to read in your free time?
Lauren: When I am promoting and writing I work until I fall asleep. I don't have free time to read. But if I do find a moment my tastes are very eclectic. It is very much like my writing, I write in many different genres, so depending on my mood I may read Keats or Byron, Stephen King, or Nicholas Sparks, Homer or Nietzsche, etc. I read for entertainment, and I also love to read to learn.
Cloey: Thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule to interview with us today. It is always a pleasure speaking with you.
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