TAOLove.jpg)
TAOFreedom.jpg)
TAOForgiveness.jpg)
TAOGrace.jpg)
Vickie McDonough
Just in case you haven't read any of my previous blog posts, or seen any of my website posts, I am infatuated with cowboy romances. I don't know what it is about them, but I've always adored seeing, or reading about, a man in a ten-gallon Stetson and muddy boots. Am I the only one?
I know, for a fact, that I'm not the only one who likes her cowboy romances, because my next interview-ee is a well-known author of such books. The first book I read by Vickie McDonough was The Anonymous Bride, part one of the Texas Boardinghouse Brides Collection. Needless to say, I was hooked and had to read every book in the series.
According to her Amazon page, Vickie's books have won the Booksellers Best Award, OWFI Best Fiction Book Award, Inspirational Reader's Choice Contest, Texas Gold, and the ACFW Noble Theme contest, and she has been a finalist in ACFW's BOTY/Carol Awards contest eight times and an Award of Merit winner in the Holt Medallion Contest. Imagine my excitement when this award-winning author agreed to do an interview with this Indie author! Check it out!
AJ: Thank you so much for your participation in this interview! Please tell us a little about yourself and what led you to become a writer.
VMD: Thanks so much for inviting me to be here.
I never planned to become a writer. Way back when I was a student, I loved math not grammar classes. After I graduated, I went into accounting until my first child came along. Years later, I started praying for some kink of work that I could do at home to make some extra income. Not long after that, God started sending me stories. They’d run through my mind like a movie, and they were keeping me from sleeping at night, so I decided to write them down in hopes they’d leave me alone. I wrote a full novel, then right on its heels, another story downloaded into my mind. I felt that this was the answer to my prayers and started learning everything I could about writing. I took classes, joined writers groups, and learned a lot. In 2004, I broke into publishing with a novella that was part of the Stitched With Love Collection. Since then, I’ve gone on to publish over 45 books and novellas. God is good!
AJ: Your newest book, "Partners in Crime" was released yesterday, March 1! I understand it is part of a collection of romances, collaborating with authors such as Kathleen Y'Barbo and Susan Page Davis. Can you tell us a little about "Partners in Crime" and how it fits with the rest of the stories in the book?
VMD: Partners in Crime is a novella that’s included in Seven Brides for Seven Texas Rangers. It is a sequel to Seven Brides for Seven Texans. In Seven Brides for Seven Texans, readers meet the Hart brothers and see how they each find a bride before their father’s deadline. Seven Brides for Seven Texas Rangers tells the tale of a company of Texas Rangers tasked to track down the notorious Markham gang. There are seven novellas, each of which features a different Texas Ranger. Some of the Hart brothers also make an appearance in each novella, so readers get to see how their families have grown.
Here’s what Partners in Crime is about:
Micah McCulloch, a Texas Ranger working undercover in the Markham Gang, is tasked with guarding a young, woman hostage. Cass Markham has ordered Laurel Underwood, a kidnapped silversmith, to create a set of plates for printing counterfeit money, or she and her family will be killed. Though highly skilled at etching silver trays and tea pots, Laurel knows she doesn’t have the expertise to do what she’s been asked. Her only option is to stall and try to win over the handsome but reticent outlaw guarding her—or to escape. But can she escape without the kind bandit stealing her heart?
In each story, the Texas Rangers will face various members of the Markham Gang as they close in on their prey, until the big showdown in the end. But who will win-Rangers or Markhams?
AJ: Do you have anything in common with Laurel, your main character?
VMD: No, not really. She’s a silversmith, and I grew up a tomboy who loved horses and riding my motorcycle.
AJ: Have you been able to travel for your writing? If so, what was the most exciting place you visited?
VMD: Yes, I have. That’s been one of the most exciting parts about writing. I’ve attended numerous writing conferences in places like Houston, Nashville, Denver and St. Pete’s Beach in Florida. My husband and I also traveled to several of the locations where I set stories. Probably two that stand out was our trip to the Bad Lands of North Dakota to a small town called Medora. It was established in the 1800s by a French Marquis who named the town after his wife. It’s a beautifully rugged place to visit. The other place that stood out was our trip to Charleston. I grew up in Oklahoma, which is barely over 100 years old. It was so exciting to visit a town with the history that Charleston has and to see 300- & 400-year-old homes and to visit several plantations and many of the historical sites.
AJ: And of course, we want everyone to know where they can find you on social media. Where can we find or follow you?
If you'd like to find or follow Vickie on any of her sites, click any of the links above, or one of the pictures, to be redirected to one of her pages.
