Even as her twenty-fourth title is about to be published, award-winning author Linda Broday isn’t slowing down.<\/p>\n

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Even as her twenty-fourth title is about to be published, award-winning historical western romance author Linda Broday isn’t slowing down.  In our conversation, she told me,  “I don\u2019t want to waste any time goofing off. This is my second chance. I won\u2019t get a third.”  Disciplined and hungry to write, Linda doesn’t let any of life’s curve balls stand in her way and has plenty in store for her readers. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE:  This coming week (January 29th, to be precise), your new series and twenty-fourth title, The Outlaw’s Mail Order Bride,<\/em> will be launched. How does that feel? <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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LINDA BRODAY:<\/strong> I\u2019m always happy (and greatly relieved) to have another book under my belt. It seems the older I get, the more grateful I am that I can continue to put them out. But I have such a love for this craft that drives me. I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll go to my grave with unfulfilled dreams and stories churning in my head. Ha! <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Is there anything about The Outlaw Mail Order Bride series that gives you a different set of feels from when you published your other series?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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This Outlaw Mail Order Bride series is very different from my others in that I incorporated so much more historical fact into each story — and it\u2019s set here in the Texas Panhandle where I live. I\u2019ve never set a book here — much less a series — where I have personal knowledge of the landscape, plants, wildlife, and weather. When an author doesn\u2019t have to rely on books and online articles, I think it makes a story seem more authentic. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s go back to the \u201chistorical fact\u201d part of what you just said; was there much research involved for The Outlaw\u2019s Mail Order Bride<\/em>?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Writers must research, and that\u2019s a fact. I had to study quite a bit for this first book in the series. For example, my female protagonist Tally wears a diamond-shaped tattoo on one cheek that declares her the property of the Creedmore Lunatic Asylum. I had to find out if it was possible to remove a tattoo back then and was surprised to find that the Egyptians created a process in 4000 B.C. that made it possible to remove one from slaves when they obtained freedom. It was a painful procedure and often left scarring; however, Tally does have hers removed.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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In the The Outlaw’s Mail Order Bride<\/em>, Tally and some of the other characters have escaped from the Creedmore Lunatic Asylum \u2013 that must have been some interesting research.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Lunatic asylums had no oversight or laws to govern them until around 1950. If a husband wanted to get rid of a wife, or a family member wanted to make someone disappear, they could stick them into an asylum. Here are some actual reasons people gave for putting someone in West Virginia\u2019s Hospital for the Insane from 1864-1889: Political Excitement, Immoral Life, Female Trouble, Blindness, Epileptic Seizures, Bad Company, Religious Enthusiasm, and my favorite\u2014Novel Reading. This fit in with the reasons why Tally Shannon and her group of escapees were hiding out in Deliverance Canyon.   <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s talk about the leading men in your books. Tell me what character qualities are essential?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I want my men to be tough yet gentle, to treat everyone fairly, to show kindness to the poor and downtrodden. He lives with honor and respect for women, never condescending or showing dominance over her. He\u2019s a man who lives by a code he set down for himself and personal rules he\u2019ll never break, no matter what. My heroes also love animals and have reverence for the land.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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And the leading women? <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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My ladies are smart, caring, and compassionate, and take care of themselves. She\u2019s not going to stand around waiting for a man to come along and rescue her. She\u2019ll do what she can to get out of a situation before accepting help. She\u2019s strong and independent, knows when to speak and when to hold her tongue. She and my hero respect people of all nationalities.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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On your website, you unapologetically say you come from \u201ca long line of poor but prideful people.\u201d Would you say this influenced your writing?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I think every event in my past has influenced my stories. The fact that my family was homeless for part of my life is the reason I really love writing about poor people. I know how they think, how they feel, their hopes and dreams, and the things that keep them awake at night because I lived it. I was born in a tent in 1948 and didn\u2019t move into a house until I was about three years old. My daddy was a bootlegger and Mom took in washing and ironing. I can still picture her standing over a rub board then iron for hours and hours, making fifty cents per dozen pieces. That was a hard way to make money.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The challenges didn\u2019t end after your childhood, did they? <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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No, they didn\u2019t. An event that had a huge impact on me was the large tornado that tore through my husband\u2019s and my home in Wichita Falls in 1979. I faced certain death as I lay on top of my three small children in a hallway; I didn\u2019t see how we\u2019d survive. The tornado was huge and terrifying, and yet it was the aftermath that tested me most. We were left homeless for a year until the government brought in trailer houses for the survivors. To say that was a difficult year is an understatement. At times we didn\u2019t know where we\u2019d sleep or get food. That devastates you when you have little children looking to you for answers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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To have survived all that you had to that point is miraculous and more than most have to handle in a lifetime.  Did things level out after that?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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They didn’t. On another deeply personal level, I discovered I had MS in 1998. It was one more trial that God sent my way. Some days it\u2019s hard to manage even simple tasks, but I try not to dwell on what I can\u2019t do and focus instead on what I can. I want to live each day to the fullest and have no regrets that I didn\u2019t try.  <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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How in the world do you move forward and learn from all that\u2019s happened? <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I discovered that life is full of tests and to fail wasn\u2019t the end; it simply meant that I had to start over. I learned that we\u2019re human and to forgive myself when I mess up. I also found that I have a deep well inside me that contains more strength than I ever thought possible. We all do, and knowing when to tap into it is something we each must figure out.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Linda, you are one of those people that my husband would call Velcro for friends.  From the time we were introduced via email a couple of years ago, I felt your warmth and energy and approachability from all the way across the state. I know your readers feel the same way. Can you share a little bit about how you make time for them in the midst of everything else?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Writing does take up so much of my days, but I love my readers (and friends) and I know I wouldn\u2019t be here without them. I can\u2019t do this alone. I try to let them know how important they are and how much I value them by commenting on their Facebook and Twitter posts and keeping up on what\u2019s happening in their lives. When I can, I send birthday wishes, congratulations, and sympathy\u2014not only online but actual cards in the mail. I\u2019ve driven many miles to meet a reader who couldn\u2019t come all the way. Those who do wind up in Amarillo, I meet for a meal or coffee. I like to make them feel special because they are very appreciated. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Saving the Mail Order Bride<\/em>, the second book in your OMOB series, comes out in April. Can you give us a peek at what\u2019s after that? (more books? Naps? Vacation?) <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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A nap? Ha! Sounds perfect if only\u2026 Seriously, I have a novella in a Christmas anthology coming out in October, and book three in the Outlaw Mail Order Brides in early 2020. Then I\u2019ll publish the fourth and last book in this series, probably mid-2020, after which I\u2019ll start a new, already contracted series that\u2019s set around the turn of the century.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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And because your plate isn\u2019t full enough with all your contractual commitments, you self-published Gunsmoke & Lace? Is this one of those it-seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time things?<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I self-pubbed Gunsmoke and Lace<\/em>, my first indie book, in June 2018. It\u2019s a collection of short stories I\u2019d written over the years. The first one, \u201cThe Telegraph Tree<\/em>,\u201d won third place in Women Writing the West\u2019s short story competition and also an award from Wyoming Writers, Inc. For years, I had just stuck the stories in a file on my computer, doing no one any good. I wanted to make them available to readers, so I went through the process of finding a cover and finding people to edit, format, and put it into book form. I have to say that it was very tedious, and I didn\u2019t enjoy it at all \u2013 but it\u2019s out, and I\u2019m happy about that. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Lightning Round: <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Favorite book?<\/strong> Where the Crawdads Sing<\/em> by Delia Owens<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Number of books on your nightstand?<\/strong> 8<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Interesting writing ritual?<\/strong> I have to have colored pens laid out to the left of my computer.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Favorite quote?<\/strong> \u201cShe stood in the storm, and when the wind didn\u2019t blow her away, she adjusted her sails.\u201d — Elizabeth Edwards<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Team Oxford comma?<\/strong> This is a work in progress. My publisher insists on using it.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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