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Ellie St. Clair Samples Her Runaway Duke
Katherine Grant: [00:00:00] Hey samplers, before we get into this episode with Ellie St. Clair, I have a quick disclaimer. I was experiencing some technical difficulties on the day that we recorded and ended up calling in on my telephone. So my audio does not sound great.
The good news is Ellie's sounds fantastic, and she is the person that we all want to hear from anyway. So I hope you will forgive me for putting out this episode with subpar quality on my end, and I hope you enjoy the fantastic Ellie St. Clair and her Beauty and the Beast inspired novel, Her Runaway Duke.
Let's get into it.
Katherine Grant: Welcome to the historical romance sampler podcast. I'm your host, Katherine Grant, and each week I introduce you to another amazing historical romance author. My guest reads a little sample of their work, and then we move into a free ranging interview. If you like these episodes, don't forget [00:01:00] to subscribe to the historical romance sampler, wherever you listen to podcasts and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
Now let's get into this week's episode.
I am super excited to be joined by Ellie St. Clair today. Ellie has always loved reading, writing, and history. For many years, she has written short stories and nonfiction, and now she can hardly believe that she is living out her dream of writing historical romance. Ellie enjoys exploring many different time periods, cultures, and geographic locations.
No matter when or where, love can always prevail. She has a particular soft spot for the bad boys of history and can't help but write a strong Christy heroine. Ellie and her husband love nothing more than spending time at home with their two sons and husky cross. Ellie can typically be found at the lake in the summer, pushing the stroller all year round and of [00:02:00] course with her computer in her lap or a book in her hand.
Ellie thank you so much for coming on.
Ellie St. Clair: Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be here.
Katherine Grant: Yes, I am super excited to hear you read you're reading for us, Her Runaway Duke, which is one of your Regency romances, correct?
Ellie St. Clair: Yes, that's right. Yeah, this is part of my most recent series. This is the first book in the series.
I am going to read chapter three, so I'll set up the scene a little bit. But the series, it's called Noble Pursuits, and each book is very loosely based on a fairy tale. I'd say this first book is the one that's most closely tied to the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, so to set up the first couple of chapters we have Siena, our heroine, has just run away from her wedding. Her parents had arranged for her to marry a colleague of her father's. So he is quite a bit older than her, but it's not so much the age that bothered her.
It's just, he's, you know, Like an awful person, [00:03:00] which we discover more of later in the book, kind of the evilness, I guess that she kind of felt from him and she was prepared to marry him. Because she's always done what she's told, you know, the perfect daughter follows her parents wishes, but then Eliza, who was actually Well, her story is told in the second book of the series, but she convinces Siena that she just can't go through with this wedding and helps her to escape.
So she, so Siena escapes on horseback. She has a destination that Eliza has set up for her, but she gets off course because of course, she has never had to figure out where to go or follow directions herself. And she's captured by highwaymen. And then meanwhile, we have Levi, our hero. He's a bit more of a tragic backstory.
He lost his brother in a fire that also left him severely scarred, accused of murder. And so he's like a recluse out you know, doesn't come into London, doesn't want to see anyone. And of course, but most of his scarring is [00:04:00] on the inside. Like he's taken on all his guilt that he couldn't save his brother.
So he's kind of shut himself away. And yeah, I think that should be enough to give some backstory before we head into chapter three.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. It sounds thrilling. Can't wait to hear it.
Ellie St. Clair: Okay. All right. Chapter three, Fitz was right. Levi couldn't sit here and stare at the walls of this cold, empty estate all day waiting for his life to pass him by, which was why Levi went out riding three times a day, surging through the fields around the estate was the only time he felt like his old self.
It was a heavily wooded area, and he enjoyed meandering through narrow paths, while also giving his horse free reign to gallop over stretches of open areas. Sometimes, he allowed his horse to choose their direction. It was not as though Levi had anywhere to go, anywhere to be, or anyone waiting for him, so what did it matter?
Tonight, the ironically named Lucky had decided on the road more traveled, the one that led away from the estate. Perhaps Lucky had been [00:05:00] listening to Fitz and was trying to return Levi to London. "Sorry, Lucky," he muttered. "I said no to Fitz, and I will say no to you, too." Suddenly, Lucky increased his pace as though he had sensed temptation before him, and Levi peered out into the darkening sky.
"We should be heading back," he said, trying to turn the horse's head. But Lucky continued to pull forward, which was when Levi heard it too. A shout ahead of him. Instead of allowing the horse to run ahead, he slowed him down, leading him off the road, close to the line of trees, so they'd be hidden from anyone who might lie in wait.
Levi knew that he should turn around to leave this trouble to itself and return home, but old habits were sometimes difficult to break. He had spent enough time with the rifle in his hand that the pistol was already out and trained ahead of him. Using his legs to push Lucky slowly forward, the four figures on horseback soon came into view.
The three men with their distinctive tricorn hats were fairly easy to identify, likely highwaymen who had stopped on a side road on their way to London to trade in their goods. [00:06:00] Levi couldn't quite make out the person in the midst of them, however. When he heard a female voice, his stomach sank as he knew they had likely come upon a woman, one who would be far too tempting for such men to dismiss.
The fact that she was alone was troubling. Had they done away with whoever had been accompanying her? "We asked nicely, but you actually don't have a choice," he heard one of the men say. "We could use some company tonight." Levi had no wish to become involved in this woman's problems, none at all. Nor did he have any desire to take on highwaymen, especially ones who are willing to use violence to get their way.
But he had not become so much of a beast that he would allow who was most likely an innocent woman to be taken by these men. He sighed as he brought the pistol up. Pulled the cock fully back, trained the first man in his sights, and then pulled the trigger. "What in the bloody hell was that? Linus?" One of the remaining men shouted as the other began to back his horse away, looking from side to [00:07:00] side.
They had both pulled their pistols, but neither seemed to know where the shot had come from. Siena took some perverse satisfaction that they were the ones now panicking. Siena knew that she should run, but at the moment she was frozen in indecision. Was she safer to stay where she was or to turn around and try to escape?
It is becoming difficult to know just which decisions were causing her more danger. When another gunshot sounded and the second thief clutched his knee as bright red blood spurted from it, she had to breathe deeply to keep from being further affected and trust the shooter could aim around her. The third man turned his horse around and bolted away, trying to outrun her surprising savior.
Siena herself looked around in shock, but no one was coming forward to try to claim her in turn. "Who is there?" She called out, trying to instill bravery into her voice. "Are you still here?" She waited, holding her breath as her heart hammered against her ribs, and it was another minute before she finally caught sight of the figure on horseback, slowly walking toward [00:08:00] her from the trees ahead.
"Thank you," she said as he neared, "you saved me". He reached up, touching the brim of his hat, keeping his head tilted so that the wide brim concealed his face beneath. "Had yourself in quite the predicament." "I did," she said, a hiccupy sob escaping along with her words, and she slapped a hand over her mouth to keep it in.
"I thought, I thought..." "You thought right," he said grimly. "Good thing you had Lucky." "I am not sure I understand." "My horse," he said, gesturing forward. "Name is Lucky." "Oh, I see," she said, still not completely understanding. "Well, thank you, Lucky. And thank you, I'm sorry, what is your name?" "Not necessary," he said with a slight shake of his head.
"Where are you going?" "It is a very long story," she said with a quivering breath. "I am lost. Do you know how far Crawley is?" "A day or so," he said. "Would not take long to return to London, though." "No," she said quickly. "I cannot go back there." She waited for him to ask why, but he just sat [00:09:00] there, still and silent, obviously not caring about her reasons.
"What happened to your companion?" "My companion?" "I assume you're not out here alone." "I am, actually," she said, lifting her head, not appreciating that a stranger would feel the need to pass judgment on her actions, as right as he might be. "It was stupid to be out here alone," he said, and her mouth fell open in shock.
"Did you just call me stupid?" "I said stupid to be here alone," he said, his voice low and gravelly still. "What did you think was going to happen?" "Well, I hadn't planned for this," she said, and he snorted, looking away from her. As he did, she caught a glimpse of the right side of his face, noting the beard that covered it in a handsome, princely profile.
"Why are you alone?" He finally asked, sighing as though he hadn't wanted to know the answer, but realized its importance. "I ran away from my wedding," she said, and his head lifted as though he was going to look at her. But before the brim of his hat rose completely, he lowered it once more. She had to admit that she had liked what she had been able [00:10:00] to see, from the prominent cheekbone, down the strong jawline to plush lips on the one side of his face.
"My parents were forcing me to marry a man who was over twice my age, you see," she said, "which was not so much the issue, but the fact that he was rather the lecherous type. There were stories and, well, my friend convinced me to escape, and now I think I would have been best to stay and take my chances. It would have been better than highwaymen."
She took a breath, realizing that she had likely said far too much. "Thank you for saving me," she said, more quietly now. "Where is the closest place I could find shelter for the night?" He didn't say anything, just sat there, and a chill began to creep down Siena's spine. Somehow, she had this innate feeling that she could trust this man, but he was so quiet.
Perhaps she had only gotten rid of the highwayman. Perhaps he had only gotten rid of the highwayman to have her for himself. "Thank you again, sir," she said. "I, I shall go now. I did not mean to cause you trouble." She turned her horse to walk away, but she hadn't traveled more than a step or two when [00:11:00] his voice called out.
"Stop." She paused, her horse following his command. "You can come with me." "Thank you, but I shall continue on," she said. " I would not mean to cause you any more trouble than I already have." "I have an estate nearby. When we arrive, my housekeeper will see to your needs."
"Your housekeeper," she repeated, intrigued that he would have an estate. He must be someone with means, although his intentions might not be any better than those of the highwaymen. But he had saved her. "Who are you, and where are we?" "Near enough to Chiswick," he said. "Who I am does not matter." He turned his horse- lucky he had called him- back toward the way he had come, leaving her with the choice to follow or remain behind.
She looked behind her into the night, and then at the retreating back of the insufferably rude man in front of her. He had called her stupid, and yet he had saved her life. What was she to do? She closed her eyes and let her heart's intuition speak for her, and took a chance. Levi shouldn't care [00:12:00] whether the girl followed him or not.
She was just a slip of a thing, clearly frightened by him, and she hadn't even fully seen him. The last thing he wanted was to take her back to his estate, but he couldn't very well leave her in the middle of the road with night falling. He was worried about her, and had a strange sense that it was up to him to protect her.
Her story was far fetched, and yet the gown peeking out from beneath her cloak was quite fine. Pieces of fair hair were falling over her shoulders, but aside from her dishevelment, her delicate features and thin, fine jewelry were those of a well bred woman. He would give her a place to stay for the night, and then return her to London and this despicable fiancé tomorrow.
It was all he could do. "I know you think me a fool," she said softly behind him, apparently having decided that he was a less threatening option compared to the dark woods. "It seemed the best decision at the time, and I had a plan. It just went awry." He said nothing, allowing her to keep talking. Her voice was sweet and melodic, flowing over him in waves, somehow soothing his tortured spirit.[00:13:00]
"Where did you learn to shoot like that?" She asked. "The military." "You were in the military?" "I was," he said with some hesitation, unsure if she would think that was a positive or negative, not that it mattered. "You are not anymore then? Were you injured?" "You are inquisitive." He supposed after the day she'd had, she deserved to know more about the man she was following, but all she needed to know was that he was best avoided.
Siena studied the back of the man in front of her. He was tall with broad shoulders and a build that tapered closer to his hips, although it was difficult to tell his cloak billowing behind him. As darkness had fallen, he had lifted his head, no longer hiding his face beneath the brim of his wide unfashionable hat.
Siena couldn't help but be intrigued by the shadowy figure, as much as she should likely be fearful. His silence, compared to most people in her life, was something of a refreshing change, even if his grunts were frustrating. She had more questions, but after the surge of unwelcome excitement, fatigue was setting in through her [00:14:00] entire body, and she had to fight to keep her eyes open.
They must have closed for a moment, for suddenly, her whole body was jolting upright. Her heart pounding once more as she realized she had nearly fallen off of her horse. Her companion never looked back, never turned around to see if she was still following him, let alone still attached to the horse. He probably didn't care and was only now doing what was expected of him.
Siena was about to ask how much farther they had to go when a building rose up in front of them, seemingly from nowhere. She first noticed the portico, supported by columns with triangular pediments crowning on top. Beneath was a grand entrance, to the side symmetrical wings fanning out with identical large rectangular windows, with an odd look of eyes peering out into the night.
It might just be the light, she considered, wondering if the grey hue of the building was also from the darkness, or if it was truly as dreary as it appeared. Second floor balconies adorned with wrought iron railings stuck out of the sides like leering grins and Siena shivered at the sight of the cold, austere building.
She [00:15:00] looked around, expecting to be led up an ornate drive trimmed in hedgerows, similar to the estates she more commonly frequented. But instead, the landscape around them was nearly barren, borders of garden blocks, the only memories of previous opulence. " Do you live here?" Her voice came out as more of a squeak.
"I do," he said, swinging down from his horse with ease before taking the reins of hers, lifting a hand to help her down. Her legs were numb from being so long on the horse, and when she swayed right into him, he caught her, an arm coming hard and strong around her.
"Steady," he murmured in her ear, as though he were speaking to a horse. Siena barely noticed the groom appear and take their horses, likely round to a stable, as her exhaustion threatened to overwhelm all. The man led Siena up the front stairs beneath the massive portico, not offering his arm but staying a step behind her as she held onto the railing.
The moment they stepped through the front doors, he called out, "Mrs. Porter?" As Siena surveyed the entrance, the dome on top of them covered in stained glass [00:16:00] that she could imagine cast beautiful colors around the entryway in the daylight. Soon enough, a plump woman clad in black with a surprised expression that quickly fell into a welcoming smile appeared in the front entrance.
"Who do we have here?" She said, looking from Siena to the mysterious man, who appeared to be the master of the house, and back again. "I found this young woman being encosted by highwaymen," he said, his voice back to its curt gruffness. "She has had a trying day and needs a place to stay, just for the night.
Help her, Mrs. Porter?" "Of course," Mrs. Porter said, coming to Siena and taking her hands in hers. Siena felt reassured and safe with the woman, and suddenly she wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep. Protected by this strange house and people she had never met before, it seemed more trustworthy than those in her own family.
She turned around to thank the man, but her attempt was in vain. He was gone.
Katherine Grant: Yay. Wow. What a great scene with very strong Beauty and the Beast vibes.
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah, I had a lot of fun incorporating different elements, like a rose garden [00:17:00] and mirrors and, you know, all those little pieces from Beauty and the Beast through the stories.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I look forward to talking to you more about that right now.
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I am back with Ellie St. Clair, who just read an excerpt from her Beauty and the Beast inspired novel, Her Runaway Duke. And you know, like we said, Just before the break, there are a lot of fun little Beauty and the Beast Easter eggs throughout this story.
So I want to start by asking you, you know, were there specific sources of the Beauty and the Beast tale? Because these fairy tales, you know, exist in all these different pockets. I was envisioning, you know, some of the scenes in the Disney movie where she's in the woods and the Beast comes and saves her from the wolves.
What, what were some of your inspiration sources?
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah, I definitely like I grew up on the Disney Beauty and the Beast like that's the one that's like ingrained in my head and then I have always loved and I've, you know, I've read and watched lots of different Beauty and the Beast retellings, whether it's actually the original, you know, source material or just taking the themes of it.
So [00:19:00] I would say, you know, whether I realized it or not, probably that Disney version was kind of in my head. I've also seen the you know, I've seen it on stage and that kind of thing. So it really, like the little pieces of Beauty and the Beast's throughout, I think are consistent through all the kind of Beauty and the Beast tales, like whether it's you know, the roses, which in Her Runaway Duke, it's a rose garden that becomes You know, a key feature of the story as well as the, the servants that kind of befriend you know, the main female character, the house itself and how it starts out, you know, so kind of empty and dreary and how that might change through the story.
And the library is an important focal point. So those kinds of pieces are in the story and it starts out with that beauty and the beast kind of idea, but through the story, it definitely takes on a plot of its own, like it still kind of keeps those little themes and elements, but the story becomes its own tale and [00:20:00] not so much like a beauty and the beast from start to finish story, if that makes sense.
Katherine Grant: Sure. Sure. Yeah. And I was picking up on this theme of like intuition versus reason, particularly Siena trying to figure out. Should she listen to her gut or should she do the like smart thing and can you talk about that theme at all and how you approached it?
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah, especially for Siena. She's like, she spent her whole life doing exactly what her parents told her to do, which was probably a very common thing at that point in time.
I mean, even today, but even more so then for a young woman. And yeah. You know, leaving her wedding is the first time she's ever done anything that is against what she was supposed to do. So I don't think she's very, she doesn't really know how to follow that intuition. Like this is new for her. And now that she's taken that first big step, She kind of just [00:21:00] going with it to see if it's the right thing to do or not.
And then I think through the story, it continues to play a role. Like that idea of this is what I should do versus this is what I feel like I should do. You know, for myself, not so much what I should do, according to what You know, society or other people might say, so, yeah, and then same with like Levi through the story, like he definitely has these demons that he's fighting against and thinks himself not worthy.
And that's like a big thing for him. You know, he sees Siena as this kind of like perfection and that he's got. So much trauma and in his past and the scars that are with him that he doesn't think that he can ever Deserve her so really tried to like keep himself away from her no matter how much he Feels that he would like to spend more time with her, you know, whether that's obviously becomes romantic through the story But you know even just when she was talking her voice kind of soothed him and she does provide [00:22:00] that Kind of healing for him.
So he wants that as much as he thinks that he shouldn't
Katherine Grant: Yeah, so they're each kind of struggling against themselves to get what they actually want. Yeah, that's so interesting. And I know you write across multiple eras. This is a Regency, but you also have some Victorians and you have some Highlander stories.
So can you talk about more generally how do stories come to you and how do you maybe decide or are you just told through your muse what a book should be?
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah, I write like most of my books, most of them are Regency. Like if I you know, looked across most of the series, the first book I ever wrote was actually the first book.
It wasn't the first book I released, but the first book I ever wrote was the one it's called Callum's Vow and it's the Victorian Highlander series. So at that point in time, I just, I had read a lot of Regency and different genres, but I didn't realize that most of the books that were read [00:23:00] were within like certain genres.
So I just wrote what I felt like writing in the era that just sort of came to me. And so it's like the name Victorian Highlanders. So it's like late Victorian, like 1880s. And part of that series takes place in Scotland, but a large part of it takes place in what is now like where I live in the middle of Canada.
And that's kind of why I wrote that story because I knew the, you know, a lot of the history and the area and really that's just, was a period that I thought all this would be fun to write and did a lot of research. And then there wasn't much of a market for that particular Time and period because I didn't write it like a, it's not a Western, which is kind of where normally a setting in that time period would be so then after that I did write a Regency because Regency was, I had read tons of it.
Like I used to read so much historical romance and kind of fell in love with it. Actually, I don't [00:24:00] read that much historical romance anymore now that I'm writing it all the time, but that's what I always read and then kind of fell into some Regency and then at one point I wrote a time travel series back to Medieval Scotland. Just sometimes...
I love writing Regency. I love the, you know, the period and all of the, you know, and as you write it, you just come sort of immersed in it and know the, the fashion and the events happening. And sometimes it's just, you have to write something totally different just for, for fun, you know, just to kind of keep things interesting.
Katherine Grant: So, so you had been reading a lot of historical romance, but then kind of got you hooked into this. So who are some of the authors that specifically influenced your work?
Ellie St. Clair: I would say, I feel like everyone read Julie Garwood, but that was who I like grew up reading.
I've read all of her historical romance novels and I think the one thing about her books that kind of inspired me was that like every book is [00:25:00] so unique and different and she didn't really stick to one particular time period. Like she's written kind of all different and all different times.
So I would say like her work influenced me. You know, I was, I was the kid that would go to the library and just like take out as many books as I could take out and go home and read. So, you know, any historical romance library I was reading and probably younger than I should have been reading it.
But yeah, I think so. I don't know, besides Julie Garwood, I think it was just like the whole genre that really influenced how I wrote. Some people who really enjoy like traditional historical romance sometimes find fault with it, but I like all of my female characters are usually pretty strong, unconventional lots of time I have.
A particular hobby or pastime or even occupation that would not have been widely accepted in the Regency and sometimes I hear like, well, I don't know that they actually would have done that. But [00:26:00] I think, you know, it's a matter of finding to make sure it's plausible that there was it was possible and that's.
To me, just kind of something that I really enjoy writing and I really enjoy reading and I always, but I do always research and make sure that like, you know, there were women like that. They just weren't maybe the norm, but they're also the ones that I find it most fun to read and write about.
Katherine Grant: Yeah, so where does research fit into your creative process?
Are you like constantly researching or are you doing it to spot check stuff?
Ellie St. Clair: Both. I'm kind of in between a plotter and a pantser. You know, like I don't plot, you know, scene by scene. But I usually have an idea of where I'm starting and where I'm going. So lots of times depending on the book, some of the research is upfront and then some during, like, if I know I'm writing, like one book I wrote was about a female banker.
So a woman who had taken over a bank and there were, it's actually, I read a whole book [00:27:00] before I started like a nonfiction book before I started on women who were bankers in that time period. And it was fascinating, like who, you know you know, these women's lives and so that was, you know, some upfront research that inspired the character in the book, but then lots of fact checking throughout, of course, so it's a little bit of both kind of probably more research ahead of the book on, you know, if it's a particular topic that I haven't written about before, and then the rest sort of, you know during, so I guess kind of the original research is more of like inspiration as well.
And then kind of the fact checking or, you know, it's, well, with historical, of course, it's constant, like making sure they're in the right place and what that would have looked like and what street they're going to, you know?
Katherine Grant: Yeah.
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah. You know, or just little details.
Katherine Grant: That's really, that's really interesting.
I haven't heard about women bankers and Before, you know, before we were allowed to have credit cards.[00:28:00]
Yeah.
Ellie St. Clair: So that's, that's fascinating. Yeah. That own banks and yeah, it's, it was. I didn't realize how interesting it would be until I started reading about some of them.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. Yeah. I love finding that sort of thing and getting inspired by it. Well, I think it's a good time to move into our game, love it or leave it, to find out how much of a rule follower are you?
[Musical Interlude]
Katherine Grant: So. Do you love it or leave it? Protagonists meet in the first 10 percent of the novel.
Ellie St. Clair: Love it. Almost all my books, it's like between, probably chapter three is actually one of the latest that they meet. Cause usually I like, when I read, I like when they meet pretty early on.
So I always try to write that too.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. All right. Love it or leave it? Dual point of view narration.
Ellie St. Clair: I love it. [00:29:00] Yeah, I like to get into the heads of both characters. So I love it for sure.
Katherine Grant: Love it or leave it? Third person, past tense.
Ellie St. Clair: A little bit ambivalent on that one. Like I like it. I don't know if I love it.
Like I read lots of first person as well, but I think for historical romance, I love it.
Katherine Grant: Mm hmm. All right. Love it or leave it? Third act, breakup or dark moment.
Ellie St. Clair: I can
leave
that one. I have been writing more and more without like a big third act breakup, just because I found when I'm reading, like I kind of, I'm reading, you know, you're going along and especially when you write romance, you kind of know, obviously the particular beats of romance.
And so I'm almost like dreading that. moment when I think that they're going to break up or especially if it's like a miscommunication or something like that. So yeah, lately, cause I have been writing more so books with like mystery and suspense in them. So I'm kind of finding my [00:30:00] third act moment isn't so much of a breakup between the characters, but something external.
It might be a dark moment, but not so much because of their relationship at a dark moment because of something else. If that makes sense.
Katherine Grant: Makes sense. Yeah, yeah, totally. Okay. Love it or leave it? Always end with an epilogue.
Ellie St. Clair: I love it. I can understand sometimes not needing one and lots of times when I'm writing, I kind of think, Oh, maybe the story's done.
Maybe I don't need an epilogue. But usually I do write one. One, even if it's fairly short, just to kind of, I kind of like that little glimpse into the future. So I love it. Yeah.
Katherine Grant: All right. And love it or leave it? Share research in your author's note.
Ellie St. Clair: I'd say it depends. Like, I love it if it's something that contributes to the story or has been a major hot point.
Or maybe if it tells something that might be opposed to what a reader might have thought [00:31:00] about the time period but I leave it if it's something that is kind of just background information to the story, if that makes sense, like if we give it to if I took inspiration from a historical figure.
I'll usually do a little author's note, but if it's just sort of research about the time period, then I wouldn't write anything extra about that.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. But the book with the lady bankers, there's an author's note, hopefully about that one.
Ellie St. Clair: Yes. Yeah. And if I have read a book or something that has a lot more information.
I usually will point people to where they can read more if they become interested in it as well. Nice.
Katherine Grant: All right. And are there any other romance rules I didn't ask about that you like to break or play with?
Ellie St. Clair: I think I've probably mentioned most of them, like writing unconventional, unconventional women.
I would say sometimes I sort of describe my, Books as historical romance for a more modern reader in terms of like [00:32:00] how I write and the characters I write like all is still completely plausible is factual in terms of the historical part, but kind of keeping more of a modern reader in mind, if that makes sense.
Katherine Grant: Yeah, I, I think about that to myself, like, I'm not trying to please someone from a past era with my stories. My books are reflecting that. My experience as a modern person, and so therefore, a modern reader will hopefully enjoy them.
Ellie St. Clair: Yeah, like sometimes ideals that my characters might hold aren't necessarily those that most people at the time would have, but someone reading today, Most likely would.
So I get those kind of ideas come into play a little bit when I'm writing.
Katherine Grant: Yeah. All right. Well, Ellie, thank you so much for playing love it or leave it. Where can listeners find you and your books?
Ellie St. Clair: Probably my website is the [00:33:00] best place to find a complete listing and in terms of to find out which books are in which series which is elliesainclair.
com. So that's E L L I E S T. C l a I r. com. Also all my books are on Amazon and. Almost all of them are in Kindle Unlimited. I have one series that is available on most wide, most wide retailers. But yeah, those are the, probably the two places I'm on on social media. I'm active on Facebook and Instagram.
And I have a Facebook group where we post daily and have lots of fun and play games and all that kind of stuff. So those would be the top places. And then on my website, you can also subscribe to my newsletter, which I send out pretty regularly. It's short and sweet, but more frequent, so.
Katherine Grant: Awesome. Well, I will put a link to your website in the show notes so listeners can just click on through. Thank you again for podcast. This has been really fun. [00:34:00] And I hope you stay warm in that snowy Canadian frontier.
Ellie St. Clair: Thank you. Absolutely. Well, thanks so much. I had lots of fun. Appreciate you having me on.
Yeah, thank you.
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