For the last few months, I have been madly in love with Dan Mitchell (please don’t tell my husband).
Dan is the hero in my second Coorah Creek book – and until now I’ve been keeping him a secret.
He’s an intensely private man – we have spent many days together in the far outback of Australia.
But now I have to ‘fess up… and share him with you.
I was tagged to do this by my friend and fellow author – the lovely Jennie Jones.
Like me, Jennie writes romances set in rural Australia.
She was born and brought up in Wales – but now lives and writes in Australia. She was an actor – and while ‘resting’ (a theatrical term for being out of work) wrote her first romance story. It was a western, but nobody wanted it. How things change!
She’s now a very popular author of really fab Australian romances. Go check her website. Last week she introduced Kate Singleton – the heroine of her new book. You can meet Kate here.
Because I like Jennie’s books so much, I am going to share Dan Mitchell – something I don’t do easily. I like that special relationship an author has with her hero.
But the time is almost here for me to let go of Dan… so here goes…. eight reasons to love Dan Mitchell.
1.) What is the name of your character?
His name is Dan Mitchell. He’s a quiet man, who avoids other people as much as he can. But at the same time, he’s the man people turn to when they need someone strong and very competent.
2.) Is he/she fictional or a historic person?
He’s fictional – but to me (and to my readers I hope) he’s very real. He made a short appearance in Flight To Coorah Creek helping an injured girl.
3.) When and where is the story set?
Dan is a National Parks ranger. He looks after the Tyangi Crossing Park, just outside Coorah Creek, in the far west of Queensland (the places are fictional too – but also very real to me). It’s the sort of place you need a four-wheel-drive vehicle to go, and once you get there, forget about your mobile phone, because it just won’t work. It’s a rugged place, but very beautiful.
4.) What should we know about him/her?
He was a soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. He saw some terrible things while serving there, and has come to a peaceful and wild place while he tries to come to terms with what happened and move forward with his life.
5.) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?
He’s received an order from his employers. I won’t tell you what it is (no spoilers here) , but it’s something he doesn’t think is right. He’s struggling with concepts of honour and duty.
6.) What is the personal goal of the character?
He meets a wildlife photographer named Quinn. She’s beautiful but, like Dan, she has scars. They share a love of wild and beautiful places – and things. They decide to find a way to disobey Dan’s orders … and maybe along the way they can also help eachother.
7.) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?
The working title was The Last Brumby Run – but as my readers outside Australia don’t know what a Brumby is, the title may change.
It’s the second of my Coorah Creek novels – the first one, Flight To Coorah Creek was released in March 1014 and was recently nominiated for Book of the Year by AusRomToday. You can vote for it until Nov 30th – here.
8.) When can we expect the new book to be published or when was it published?
I don’t have a firm date yet for the new book – but certainly in the first half of 2015.
So that’s Dan. I’ve been just a little bit in love with him for the past year. However … I know you’ll say I’m fickle… I’ve just gone back to Coorah Creek and met a lovely new man called Steve and now he’s telling me his story …
I’d like to tag two of my writer friends to tell all next week…
Liz Harris is another author who loves an outdoor man. Her most recent books have been westerns and she also writes stories set in far flung places. Now I think of it – she was once an actress too. I guess it’s those creative genes at work in all of us. You can read more about her and her books here.
I also would like to tag another Aussie – Beverley Eikli. Well – when I say another Aussie, Beverley lives in Australia, but like me and Liz, she travels. She has lived and worked in some really exciting places. Her books are historical – but unconventionally so. You can read more about them here. We shared a book launch in London earlier this year – so I thought we could share our works in progress too.
So – ladies – over to you. Time to share. Look for their blogs on their websites next Thursday.