Talking with Loretta Chase and a Giveaway!

For years, we fervently hoped to see Lord of Scoundrels in audio format…with the perfect narrator of course. We knew only the best of narrators could maximize the impact of this perennial historical romance favorite. Early in 2014, Blackstone Audio made that wish come true by releasing Lord of Scoundrels with narrator Kate Reading performing. Since that time, we have seen the audio release of Loretta’s Dressmakers trilogy plus another eight titles from her backlist. And there are still more Loretta Chase books we’re hoping to see in audio format!

Last month, I invited Loretta to join us today when I discovered two more of her backlist titles, The Lion’s Daughter and Captives of the Night, scheduled for release on December 23rd – with Kate Reading once again narrating. Not only did I want to hear her thoughts on audiobooks in general but we were hoping for some news on future releases as well. You’ll find that she doesn’t disappoint us on the news front!

And, of course, talking about Loretta Chase’s new and future releases means we have yet another reason to celebrate. And what better way than with a giveaway! Ten winners will receive downloadable copies of both The Lion’s Daughter and Captives of the Night.

The Giveaway

We’re giving away ten (10) sets of two downloadable Loretta Chase titles, The Lion’s Daughter and Captives of the Night (both narrated by Kate Reading) with downloads through Audible.com. Entry is simple. Just complete the easy entry form found at the bottom of the page by midnight (CST) Thursday, January 8th. No comments are necessary to enter although we’d love to hear your thoughts in our discussion area. You may only enter once. We’ll contact winners on January 9th so watch your email as we must have acknowledgement of your win within 24 hours. If we don’t hear from you, we’ll select another winner.

The Talk

Lea : Welcome to AudioGals Loretta! We are thrilled to have you with us today.

Loretta : Thank you for inviting me. I’m honored to be here.

Lea : Romance audio listeners have longed to see your work in audio format so 2014 was an exciting year with the release of twelve of your titles. Before 2014, did you know much about the audiobook market? Had you listened to an audiobook?

Loretta: You may not realize how exciting this was for me. For years I’d had to tell inquiring readers “I’m so sorry, but the chances of Loretta Chase audiobooks are infinitesimal at best”—or variations of the theme, Don’t Hold Your Breath. This market belonged mainly to mega-selling authors, because of the cost. Audiobooks were expensive to make as well as to buy, so it didn’t make sense to do this unless the author was selling in the gazillions or had written a Classic, which could be counted on to sell forever. Return on Investment, in short. Then, as had happened with eBooks, everything changed – overnight, it felt like.

The thing is, I’ve never been a good audiobook candidate. When people read aloud to me, my mind wanders. These days I can’t even have soft music in the background while I’m writing or reading. Cannot concentrate. Also, when I read or write a book, I hear the voices in my head. These are my personal voices, which no narrator, no matter how brilliant, can match. Just as no actress or model or even ordinary person really corresponds to the characters in my mind’s eye.

BUT—I totally get others’ love of audiobooks. People who love them love them deeply and passionately. My friends and relatives have told me the ways it makes their lives better: the joy of listening to a book during a long commute or while multi-tasking at home or exercising. And I’ve even thought of a way it could work for me: to get through the excruciatingly boring forever on the treadmill.

Lea: Ahh – a treadmill marked the beginning of my audiobook experience!

Have you listened to any of your audiobooks or snippets from those books? What was it like hearing your words performed for the first time?

Loretta: The first one I heard a bit of was Lord of Scoundrels. My jaw dropped. Kate Reading got it completely right: tone, attitude, everything. My relief was vast, and yes, I did do a little dance, I was so happy.

Lea : Two of your 1990s titles, Captives of the Night (1994) and The Lion’s Daughter (1992) were very nice Christmas surprises with both releasing on December 23^rd. Were you personally involved in the release of these titles in audio format?

Loretta: Those were wonderful gifts for me, too. The Nancy Yost Literary Agency, which represent me, have been proactive in getting my books into other formats. They’re also very protective of my time and creative energy. After Lord of Scoundrels’ audio release we did consult regarding narrators, covers, publishers and such. Otherwise, I let my representatives do their job, which they do spectacularly well. One fun note: My lovely Albanian aunt provided a recording of correct pronunciation for the Albanian words in The Lion’s Daughter. We did this because Kate Reading wanted to make sure she got the words right. I know readers love her, but they may not know all the reasons authors do. She shows such great respect for our work.

Lea: We love hearing that about Kate! We so admire her work – what an example to others learning her craft.

We keep a Wish List here at AudioGals and there is a continuing thread at the Romance Audiobooks Goodreads group for those wished-for audiobooks. There’s still a lot of wishing going on for more of your backlist. Any chance we’ll see more of your backlist? And, in particular, The Last Hellion or the Carsington Brothers series?

Loretta: I do thank everybody for these wishes! In early 2015 NYLA will be scheduling the next batch of recording sessions, which covers these books, and I believe The Last Hellion is at or near the top of the list.

Lea : Yay! I know this news will spread like wildfire! :)

In our opinion, your Lord of Scoundrels (1995) is simply the best-loved historical romance around. Holding first place at the top of AAR’s Top 100 Romances Poll since 2000, it became an immediate romance audio classic when released in audio format. It was one of only nine Historical Romance audios to make our Hall of Fame in our recent Historical Romance infographic. I wrote in the accompanying article,

“With Kate Reading’s telling, it was an overwhelming hit, of such quality that it became an immediate audio genre classic. Lord of Scoundrels has held first place in AAR’s Top 100 since 2000 and we predict it will hold first place in the hearts of historical romance audio listeners for that long as well.”

I know it will take the number one spot on my 2014 Top Ten Audiobook List. It is such a timeless book. Why do you think Lord of Scoundrels continues to thrill so many romance readers/listeners inspiring multiple reads/relistens?

Loretta : First, thank you! And thanks again to Kate Reading for doing such a beautiful job with this story. As to the popularity—I’m not sure there’s a simple answer. Different readers give different reasons. What I do know is that the book came to me as a gift from the writing gods. It was the only time in my career when every single element of the story – characters, dialogue, narration, plot – came together at once. Even the title appeared in my mind, big and bold, like the sign in the Hollywood hills. Nothing needed to be dug out of the dark and narrow mines of my brain. I never felt as though I was trying to dig a tunnel, through granite, with a bent espresso spoon. In other words, it was nothing like my normal writing experience. Every day when I sat down to write Lord of Scoundrels, the scenes were clear in my head, in Technicolor and stereo. It was like watching a movie. The wonderful thing is, whatever it was I felt—the strong sense of the story and the joy of it – came through to readers.

Lea: That describes my feelings when reading (now listening to) Lord of Scoundrels yet again – there is such a sense of joy when experiencing the humor, the characterizations, the storyline, and how perfectly it all fits together!

Do you have any upcoming books or projects to share with us?

Loretta : From the day I introduced Lady Clara Fairfax in Silk Is for Seduction, I knew she had a Destiny. Some secondary characters are like this. Initially, in the plotting stages, they’re secondary, but from the moment they come onstage in the book, you know they’ve a future beyond this story. You know you’re going to follow them, investigate their psyches, and work out their story. And so I developed Clara’s story arc through the Dressmakers series. While readers won’t need to have read the dressmaker books to understand Dukes Prefer Blondes—I always try to write even series books to stand alone—I do believe it’ll be a bit more fun if they do, because of the added perspective. Dukes Prefer Blondes is scheduled for release in January 2016. I don’t yet know what the audiobook date is, but going by Avon’s promptness in getting out the Dressmakers series, sooner rather than later is my guess.

Lea: Great news for all of us!

Loretta, it has been an absolute delight having you with us today. Our many thanks for joining us and all the good news about your upcoming audio releases as well!

Time to Enter

It’s time to enter for your chance to win one of ten sets of Loretta Chase audiobooks – The Lion’s Daughter and Captives of the Night.

Contest closed.

Thanks and the best of Loretta Chase listening to you!

Lea Hensley