SS: Today, I have with me Anne Armistead, author of Dangerous Conjurings, which was released by Soul Mate Publishing on April 18, 2018. When she’s not wearing her story-telling hat as Anne Armistead, historical romance author, she’s Sandra Havriluk—English teacher, wife, and mom of two grown daughters and a rescue mutt named Jackpot. She earned her English literature degree from the University of Georgia and her MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University and is a member of the Society of Children Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), Romance Writers of America (RWA) and the Georgia Writers of Romance (GRW), and the National and Georgia Sisters in Crime (SinC) organization. Her love of storytelling came naturally from her daddy, who spun tales of his growing up in the South. She cherishes a collection of his hats, which she believes brings her a touch of his storytelling magic. Dangerous Conjurings is her debut historical romance novel.
What are you working on at the moment, Anne?
AA: I am co-authoring an historical fiction with Jan Agnello, a creator of jewelry using antique artifacts – Storology Designs https://www.storyologydesign.com/.
The story is based on true events with a Then (1919) and Now (contemporary) structure. It’s entitled With Kisses from Cecile, and is based on actual letters written in 1919 by a young French girl to her American pen pal. The tagline is “A heartbroken Maggie travels to Paris to visit the grave of her great-grandmother’s French pen pal Cécile and uncovers 100-year-old secrets that give her courage to rebuild her own life.”
I am also working on a solo project entitled When Sparks Fly. It’s set in 1924 in the fictional small town of Springville, Georgia, where the state prison is located and the first electric chair has been installed. Iris Calhoun, a young lady of independent wealth during the jazz age, arrives in Springville, Georgia, determined to prevent the electrocution of an African-American teen who is the son of her housekeeper. She engages the legal services of handsome but troubled Horatio Whitman, a World War I veteran who has just been released from the State Sanitarium for treatment of shell shock. When their fight against injustice makes them targets of the KKK, sparks fly between Iris and Horatio while they refuse to back down from personal danger. Iris is determined to save both the accused’s life as well as heal Horatio through her love. But will Horatio allow himself to be whole again?
SS: Those two projects sound terrific. What epitaph would you want most to be written about you when it’s all said and done?
AA: “Her story continues…”
SS: If you were deserted on an island, which three people would you want to have with you? Why? One fictional character from your book, one fictional character from any other book, one famous person that is not a family member or friend.
AA: From my book, Dangerous Conjurings, I would chose Viola, the hoodoo girl whose knowledge of herbs and holistic healing helps my protagonists Leah and Marcus survive life-threatening dangers. She would be a handy person to have around on an island, where she would be able to conjure up medicines and food from the indigenous plants.
For a fictional character from any book, I would chose Sherlock Holmes (although I’m a Benedict Cumberbatch fan, I am thinking more along the lines of Robert Downey, Jr.) With his brilliant mind (and Downey sexiness), I am assuming Holmes would get me off the island, but I would be enjoying the time stranded with him while he is figuring out how!
For a famous person, I would have to go with Hugh Jackman. He’s not only my major crush (a super-sexy, moody action hero who sings!), but he’s a terrifically nice person from all I can detect from his interviews.
SS: What’s the first book you read that made you think, “I’ve got to write something like this someday!”
AA: I was twelve when my mother, tired of carting me back and forth to the library multiple times a week over the summer, stuck a thick, gray-bound old novel into my hands and said, “I think you’re old enough to read this.” It was her 1939 copy of Gone With The Wind. I read the 1000 pages straight through in three days, only stopping for food and when my mother threatened me with lights out—or else! I remember thinking “one day I want to be a writer, like Margaret Mitchell.”
SS: If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why?
AA: Oh, easy. Margaret Mitchell and Gone with the Wind. I would love to have created Scarlet, Rhett, Melanie, and Ashley, all of whom have become iconic literary characters. As one who has a passion for historical fiction, I would love to have crafted this story full of twists and tragedies played out against the backdrop of the Civil War. As an admirer of strong female protagonists, I would have loved to have created the character of Scarlet, a flawed woman who doesn’t hesitate to do whatever it takes, morally or otherwise, to survive. She is a femme fatale who breaks hearts only to have hers broken in the end, yet the reader pulls for her to have a happy ending while still admiring Rhett’s “not giving a damn.” What storytelling!
SS: What advice would you give aspiring writers?
AA: Write the first draft through—keep going, as imperfect as it may be! Just. Write. It. Then go back to edit, revise, rewrite. But, remember—you can edit, revise, rewrite forever! Be aware that you must find a stopping point to the madness and trust it’s the best it can be.
SS: I agree with that. At a certain point you have to let your work soar. I reached the point with one short story that I had put in and removed the same word fifteen times. I turned it loose, but that one spot still niggles at me. Somehow, it’s not quite right. Is there a phrase or quote about writing you particularly like or that inspires you?
AA: “Try to write about people you would worry about if you knew them outside the pages.” – Billy Keane
SS: Who are the protagonist and her love interest in your most recent work? Describe them in ten words or less.
AA: Leah Sullivan: dutiful, loyal, risk-taker, brave, bound-by-conscience, determined, yearning for love
Marcus Quinn: sensitive, haunted, guilt-ridden, strong in body, problem-solver, protective, yearning for love
SS: Who’s the villain of your story? Describe her/him in ten words or less.
AA: Kali Despierre: crafty, greedy, remorseless, manipulative, violent, vengeful, street-smart
SS: Do you prefer tidy endings or can you leave a few loose ends?
AA: When writing romance, I am obligated for the HEA (happily ever after), but that doesn’t mean I like to wrap up all story elements with a nice, neat bow. I like to leave the reader with a few events over which to mull and let their imagination fill in the blanks!
SS: What’s your favorite historical era?
AA: I teach American Literature, so I include American history as part of my instruction to set the backdrop for the classics we read. My favorite era is The Modern Period 1910-1945, including the Jazz Age and World War I and II. I love teaching The Lost Generation, Hemingway and Fitzgerald especially. I never tire of The Great Gatsby.
SS: Patricia Cornwell (the Kay Scarpetta series) worked in a morgue to research her books. What is the darkest place your research has taken you?
AA: The darkest place my research has taken me recently has been research I’ve done for When Sparks Fly which included viewing Peter Jackson’s recent World War 1 documentary They Shall Not Grow Old. Peter Jackson used computer technology to restore WW1 film shot on the Western Front, narrated by interviews with WW1 veterans recorded from the 1960s. The documentary has the contemporary look and feel of now, so you feel as if you are in the trenches on the Western Front with these soldiers, experiencing first hand the devastation of that war. It left me in tears, and I feel I now have so much more in-depth emotional content to invest into my protagonist of my story.
SS: Susan Sontag (The Volcano Lover) said, ‘Every fictional plot contains hints and traces of the stories it has excluded or resisted in order to assume its present shape. Alternatives to the plot ought to be felt up to the last moment.’ What story did you set aside in the writing of your novel?
AA: In writing Dangerous Conjurings, I initially had Fitzgerald, the first love of my protagonist Leah, return to her as a ghost. My idea was for her to be in somewhat of a love triangle with Marcus, her love interest who is alive, and Fitzgerald, who she still longs to be with, even if it means she must die for that to happen. I loved my ghost scenes, but after several drafts made the rounds to agents and editors, the consensus of all was “kill the ghost.” So, I did, with great reluctance and sorrow. However, I have to confess, by eliminating this idea and this character, it greatly improved the story by giving Leah more agency and the love story between her and Marcus more grit and passion.
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Excerpt from Dangerous Conjuringsby Anne Armistead
On the first of September, a stranger came to call.
I was cutting and gathering into a basket the sunflowers Mama fussed over. “At least the Yankees didn’t stampede the flower garden,” she always said. The jaunty flowers served as a small comfort, as far as I was concerned.
Curiosity over the caller set my pulse singing. A visitor was such an oddity. He must be lost and in need of directions.
The skinny reddish mare from which he dismounted appeared sore in need of tending, and so did he. The tell-tale signs he had been a soldier were apparent from his saddlebags, bed roll, canteen, lead and picket rope, tent half, and poncho, all War-issued. His faded trousers with the yellow stripe down their sides marked him as Cavalry. His sack coat bore the dust of many days’ travel. His haversack was slung from his shoulder and slouch hat was tugged over his brow.
He looped his reins around the hitching post by the front porch steps and was making his way to the door. His gait favored his left leg, a war injury I assumed.
Preparing to greet him, I straightened my work dress and checked the ties of my work apron, thankful I was not attired in William’s work trousers I had taken so often to wearing. I patted my hair which I had gathered into one of Mama’s yarn snoods to keep off my neck.
Walking toward the porch with basket in one hand and scissors in the other, I reminded myself it was not this survivor’s fault that William and Fitz were gone. No matter how hard I tried not to blame those who had survived the War, I couldn’t help it. I lay awake nights wrestling with the unanswerable question of why Fitz and William were taken and others spared.
I forced warmth into my voice. “Welcome, sir.”
His quick turn showed I startled him. He tugged his hat’s brim. “Sorry, ma’am. I didn’t see you.”
He held his hand out to assist me up the stairs, his touch firm yet gentle. His broad-shouldered body cast a shadow over me, blocking the slant of the late afternoon sun. Withdrawing my hand from his, my introduction tumbled out. “I’m Leah Sullivan. And you are?”
He hesitated to answer. Had I been improper in introducing myself first? Should I have curtsied? Waited for him to have spoken first? I hadn’t a clue. It had been so long since I had been in the company of others. Hotness crept across my cheeks.
He removed his hat, revealing handsome features, set off by cornflower blue eyes flecked with black. They held the same expression as Daddy’s, one of aged tiredness that told of the horrors of battle. He, as had all soldiers, had endured such suffering. Sympathy overtook my initial resentment.
“My name is Marcus Quinn, ma’am.” His voice held a quiet fatigue.
I slightly bowed my head to avert my gaze. “Pleased to make your acquaintance.” An awkwardness settled between us until my curiosity over his visit overcame it. “What brings you here, Mr. Quinn?”
His posture stiffened, as if my question had been too forward. His reserved mask cracked, exposing the raw sorrow I’d seen so often on Daddy’s face. His one-word answer was an unexpected one. “William.”
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Desire. Betrayal. Fate. Can love conjure all? With the mysterious and handsome Civil War veteran Marcus Quinn at her side, Leah Sullivan chases after the evil conjurer who has kidnapped her brother. The couple’s passion heats up while sleeping under the stars only inches apart and surrounded by peril. However, through a cruel twist of fate, Leah discovers the devastating secret about Marcus’s past that breaks her heart and jeopardizes her brother’s rescue. Will Leah’s love for Marcus be powerful enough to overcome his betrayal? Or will dangerous conjurings doom their future together?
Dangerous Conjurings is available through:
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