Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!
I have a special treat for you today! I have invited Ms Robb (of the Kate Clifford series) to join me in discussing her writerly approach to not only creating this captivating Cosy Historical Mystery series but to dig a bit into the heart of what motivates her as a writer inasmuch as asking her a few curious questions about things I had noticed as I read her novel: The Service of the Dead!
It has been a true pleasure and honour becoming introduced to this Historical author – as some of her writerly instincts match my own – whilst I have a fond respect for anyone who not only can curate a brilliant threading of continuity in serial fiction but who can fully embrace the spontaneity of an organic writing process!
Without further adieu, here is our conversation!
The Kate Clifford Mysteries:
I personally love the cover art design on this series! There is something about it which lends well to the era in which they are set but also the appeal for those of us who crave a heroine out of a wicked good Cosy Historical Mystery!
Robb has created a thinking man’s mystery – you have to peel back the layers (as you would an onion) to sort through how she’s drafted an intellectually intriguing tale. Having learnt her prior series #OwenArcher is interlinked into the #KateCliffordMysteries I must admit, the idea of back-tracing through the prior series to re-enter into the latter is going to be wicked sweet fun! (as foresaid on Twitter; the tweet is below this review) One reason I love reading Mysteries (and Suspense or Thrillers) and watching them is because of the exercise they give your mind! I find them as challenging to undertake as a stellar crossword! The intricacies abound and it is by moving in the directions the writer wishes you to traverse you not only gather the evidence along with the sleuths on the page but you draw closer to understanding how the mind of the writer first conceived their idea which is keeping you up late and musefully happy for the experience of reading their story.
For me, Robb not only entertained me from the stand-point of a new chapter of understanding of the Middle Ages (as she threads the everyday politico very well into the backbone of her series foundation) but she grants you licence to step with a certain bias of interest to see Ms Clifford succeed even if her methods are not entirely on the level of what you’d expect a woman of her status to choose.
(*) quoted from my review of The Service of the Dead
The Service of the Dead | Book One (see also Review)
A Twisted Vengeance | Book Two | Synopsis | *forthcoming review
I also blogged about this series via #TheSundayPost this week!
Converse via: #Cosy + #HistoricalMystery | #HistoricalMystery | #KateCliffordMysteries | #CandaceRobb
How did you initially develop the Kate Clifford Mysteries? What drew you into developing Kate Clifford as the series lead as well?
Robb responds: I wanted to get back into the crime genre after stepping away to write two standalone historical novels, The King’s Mistress(Alice Perrers, mistress to Edward III) and A Triple Knot (Joan of Kent, wife of the Black Prince and mother of King Richard II). What I really wanted to do was reboot my Owen Archer series, but while my agent was exploring that I needed to keep working, keep writing. While writing the two standalones I’d become aware of an opportunity missed in the Owen Archer series—I was never going to reach an interesting and dangerous period in the history of late medieval York, Henry of Lancaster’s return from exile, his unseating of his cousin Richard II, and the ensuing troubles of Henry’s reign. York has an active role in all this.
So I cast about for a new sleuth, and Kate literally came to me in a daydream. She came striding toward me down Stonegate in York, flanked by a pair of Irish wolfhounds, her step bold, her gown craftily hiding the small battle axe she wore for protection. She rounded the corner into High Petergate and entered a well-appointed house, welcomed by an elderly couple with the respect due an employer. I loved her boldness, her edginess, and I wanted to know her story. (Par for the course with me, actually: Owen Archer came to me in a daydream in a yoga class.)
I, especially love how Kate stepped out of the ether and alighted in your heart and mind to capture against the page! She came out so wholly authentic and true to her person, I can see why you readily knew you had ‘found’ the character who could bring to life your vision for this new series which would stitch itself behind the historic events you dearly wanted to explore next in a series! I think one of the most compelling things a writer can do is to ‘write-in’ where historical archives leave off! This is why your series is so delish to read! As it not only captures ‘living history’ but it articulates what ‘could have been’ just as readily as if it weren’t all imagined and invented!
I find it wicked fascinating how inventive writers are when they create their Chapter Titles – how did you pull yours together to be uniquely different but viscerally captivating? Almost like a clue towards what would be ‘in-scene’ similar to how lyrics and poems reveal a bit of themselves in titles?
Robb responds: No one has ever commented on my chapter titles before. I’m using the same technique I use in the 10 Owen Archer mysteries, something about the chapter presented obliquely, which also acts as a mnemonic for me. Glad you like them!
I found this most interesting! I might have thought a causal reader might have overlooked this technique you used but I was quite surprised a fellow writer hadn’t stepped forward to highlight this ahead of me? Hmm. Most curious, indeed! I still say it’s one of the most clever title clues I’ve stumbled across!
I liked how you anchored Kate Clifford into living history – inserting her into a plausible family and then, by their own accord of connections, gave her the back-history to be able to thrive in her station. Did anything surprise you in your research for how a woman like Kate could have become self-reliant by the means she elected to use? How viable would this option have been for others like her?
Robb responds: I fashioned Kate out of bits and pieces from the archives, so I knew that women had done what she does. What I learn as I hand them to her and set her in motion is the part that intrigues me—how did this work? How hard was it? For instance, she hosts the worthies of the city and their lovers—they’re strongly motivated to keep quiet about it to preserve their own reputations. But what happens when they think Kate’s guest house might be compromised (that’s The Service of the Dead) or when the city is crowded with soldiers prepared for a siege (A Twisted Vengeance)?
I’m figuring out what isn’t in the archives.
Ah, yes! Those lovely archives – where writers (such as us) could not just disappear for hours but for whole lifetimes! The resources and information at our fingertips solely based on the whims of our imaginations and our desires to root out the missing bobblements of the Historical past is what grants us the most folly of joy! To seek out new surprise threads of realistic Historical knowledge for readers to devour in a new book is quite exhilarating! It reminds me dearly of how excited I become whenever I am sleuthing inside my ancestral past as you just never know ‘whom’ is going to be linked to your ancestors! The same of course is true for character and serial development – the tangents you can explore, the important ‘moments’ you can bridge into the backdrop – my goodness, it’s such a wicked lovely delight! I do hope you’ll find an unending repository of ideas!
In the back of my mind, of course, I was thinking – this would make a wicked good serial on television! Especially as I recently fell out of love with ‘Father Brown’ as S5 pushed me too far afield from where it was classically scripted (not to mention it had a huge cast switch-out!) but what I adored most about Father Brown was how charmingly old school his character was and yet how aptly open-minded he was at the same time! Quite the complex character and unusual amateur sleuth – we need more sleuths who have unique marks to leave on our memories. Just a thought, mind.
What in particular led you to set this during the Late Middle Ages? Was it a particularly volatile period of political unrest which sparked your writerly eye or was it something else which prompted the immersion?
Robb responds: See my answer to the first question!
Laughs. Yes, you did give me such a very well rounded reply! Bless you!
As relating to the series – did you fully conceptualize how many installments you wanted to bring readers about Kate Clifford or is it an organically evolving series where after each story you’ve written you decide to carry-on or to find a way to conclude her adventures? What marks in history are you excited about writing within the series?
Robb responds: What I love about writing a series is how it grows organically. I am aiming for specific points in history (which I won’t name because that would give things away—sorry!). But I stay open to the possibilities along the way. Continuous research means I’m always learning something new that I’d love to include.
Yes, I do as well! This mirrors my own writerly progress in regards to serial fiction – if I had to plan it to the hilt, the enjoyment factor would diminish! Spontaneity in writing is one of the things I cherish most – you get to follow your characters and your own narrative instincts; seeing what works and what fuses together with the vision you have for the story itself whilst being mindful there are adaptive changes which might go against or for your initial ideas for the story-line, too! Ooh, yes, I know – I do toy with the invisible line of ‘spoilers’ and do try not to encourage them to be spoilt ahead of time – but then, of course my curiosity at times (like this) get the best of me! You did hold back though, cheers to you! You did give us something to chew on even though you hadn’t disclosed anything particular! Thanks for that!
Being that Kate grew up in the border territories – how did this help augment her spunk to overcome her husband’s infidelities and financial ruin? Was there something in your research which led to women from this region being stronger than those from other areas during the same era?
Robb responds: Kate growing up on the border gives her a reason to be skilled with weapons and not afraid to use them on people rather than, say, deer or coneys. And having lost most of her family in feuds she has a habit of vigilance; no rose-colored glasses on my Kate.
Good heavens, no! If Kate ever developed a rosy glassed view of life, I daresay she was struck ill! It’s just not in her character to see the world in this way and that’s part of her appeal. She’s keenly clued in to what is going on round her without the pretense!
What was important about keeping Kate on the outside fringes of the community? How did you attempt to thread this insight into the series?
Robb responds: The classic sleuth is a stranger in the community in some way—think of Sherlock Holmes. I think it makes sense that someone not quite absorbed into the community can see it more clearly and is more open to questioning how it functions. Kate’s a misfit; her entire household is a rather unusual group. I keep that in mind as I write.
Yes, I do suppose this is true. I don’t always think about it from this perspective, but I cannot deny it’s not true! I think even Miss Marple might qualify as she’s a step outside her own circle of society, too. She’s one of them, but she’s not at the very same time!
Of all your secondary characters in the series (thus far along or yet unpublished) which one was the most challenging to write and why?
Robb responds: I honestly can’t think of one.
Laughs. This is good though – it means all your characters alight just as they are meant to be found!
What did you think would be challenging to overcome if you could time travel back to Kate’s era and live amongst her peerage for a fortnight? Could you blend in or do you think they’d recognise you were a step out of time?
Robb responds: Hah! My English would be completely incomprehensible to them.
Oh, I don’t know – I think after a short spell of travelling backwards into their timeline, we might surprise ourselves and pick up the nuance of their age… it would be a fittingly wicked challenge anyhow!
As you plan to bridge your previous series Margaret Kerr and Owen Archer into the Kate Clifford Mysteries – would you recommend those of us stepping into this one first to go back into the Archer series ahead of the third being released? Or to put it another way, when do the Archer characters start to ‘step in’ to this series? Do you have a character map on your blog or site which relates to which characters move between both series and the titles of the books?
Robb responds: The Margaret Kerr trilogy will remain separate from the York books. They’re set much earlier, in Scotland.
Readers might like to review a few of the Owen Archers before they read the third book, which I’m still writing, but it’s not necessary. I intend for the Kate Clifford series to stand on its own. The subtleties in the connections are just an added treat for Owen Archer fans. I don’t have a character map. I don’t want to give anything away! I might do something like that later. Thanks for the idea.
Honestly, I think this question was mostly inspired by my own desire to find the little nudges of anchoured connection in your previous novels! I love little treasure quests like these – of noodling out unexpected coincidences and inter-connected threads which move in and out of different series even though they are on one layer connected and on another completely independent of each other, too. Just jolly good fun (at least to me!).
You’re most welcome – on giving you the idea! I’m thankful I mentioned it now as I’ll look forward to seeing it!
What kind of Suspense novels do you personally enjoy reading? Those set in the historic past or those set in the modern world? What do you look for in regards to how the writer(s) thread their plots together to where you cannot easily solve the mysteries? Are there key elements you believe are ‘must haves’ in order to find the allure of soaking inside the stories?
Robb responds: I read fiction for enjoyment, so I follow my instincts and read eclectically. Because I do so much research, I tend to read fiction set after the late middle ages.
Don’t we all do this though? Read outside our own writerly curiosities and genre preferences? If at the very least, to keep our eyes off finding something too similar to our own writerly pursuits? I definitely can see why you’d dip in and out of different periods of History outside of this specific era of time!
Since you read a lot of Forensic Psychology and/or Criminal Psychology books how do you re-learn how not to address inserting your knowledge into your stories? Or rather, how do you choose what to disclose and what to temper since your series is set in the 14th Century? Is it hard to backtrack or does it make it easier?
Robb responds: It’s a matter of focusing on keen powers of observation, as well as the scientific and medical knowledge they had at the time. I’ve no idea if a more modern story would be easier—I haven’t written one!
Smiles. Yes, this does make perfect sense – and you can denote this dedication as soon as someone picks up your novels because they are authentic sounding and appear to be contained to their era of time. This is an incredible luxury to find as I didn’t see any references outside of this era at all – which is incredible because I would imagine sometimes it’s hard to ‘stay in method’ of how your characters would interact back ‘then’ vs how we might accidentally insert something more radically modern! I sometimes think the modern timeline is a bit easier to adapt into and alter as it’s readily known to us all – but then of course, could prove it’s own challenge! lol Good food for thought!
When it comes to studying afflictions and poisons what as most fascinating about the prevalence of apothecaries during the Medieval Ages vs. the ready availability of doctors? Did anything surprise you in regards to what could be hiding dormant in your garden?
Robb responds: This could be an essay in itself. The short answer, they were always risking the slight overdose that turns a medicine into a poison. For a medicine that worked as an anaesthetic they included a purgative, so that the concoction stayed in the body only so long. Which meant the surgery had to be carefully timed.
Oooh, how I had hoped for the ‘essay’ version of this response! Your shorter answer about natural poisons did give my curiosity a nudge of joy though! Well-timed, indeed! A bit too much one way of the other, I’d presume is the difference of survivor and burial!
Robb responds: I used the poison I mention in The Cross-Legged Knight, one of the Owen Archer mysteries.
Now you have my full attention! I should read this one first, then! Ooh, now that’s telling! lol
Was guardianship of children out of wedlock commonplace during those centuries or was this an irregularity which was not as common for someone in Kate’s position? How did you give her the empathy to relate to the children without holding their birthright against them?
Robb responds: Children were as valued and cherished then as they are now, and wardships were an established way to care for orphaned children. In Kate’s case, the Neville family might have chosen to bring up Marie and Phillip as lesser members of a noble household. But Kate is more ambitious for them. How does she have the empathy? This is a key to Kate’s heart, that she takes them in and loves them without question. Each character is unique. This is Kate.
The children provide a layer of insight into Kate she doesn’t always freely share with anyone – it’s a hidden way of seeing her heart and her affection without drawing it out of her directly. Most interesting.
What uplifts your spirit when your not researching or writing?
Robb responds: Nature, music (I’m in the Medieval Women’s Choir), physical movement, long talks with friends, my cat.
Yes, for me as well (nature). I cannot live without it personally (music); congratulations on being in such a lovely choir, by the way! Ah, there is nothing quite like combining the art of walking with a passion for the natural world – as this is my own preference. Fireside chats are the absolute best! And, dear say – how would any of us get by without our dear companions in fur?
I thoroughly enjoyed finding out the responses to my questions by Ms Robb! I hope you have enjoyed our conversation about her lovely Kate Clifford series & perhaps will consider picking up the series yourself as I must admit, your in for a wicked treat of a Cosy Historical Mystery! My gratitude to Ms Robb for giving such candid & earnest answers! I appreciated learning more about your writerly process whilst gaining a bit more insight into the series as well! Many blessings!
No, before you ask – you were not mistaken! I inverted my tour dates as I couldn’t wait to share this convo with you!
This blog tour is courtesy of: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
{SOURCES: Cover art of “The Service of the Dead” and “A Twisted Vengeance”, book synopsis, author biography, author photograph of Candace Robb and the tour badge were all provided by HFVBTs (Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours) and used with permission. Quoting the first chapter ‘title’ is with permission of the publisher as we’re allowed as reviewers to use small quotations in our reviews embedded within an online publication (ie. my blog) as stated on the copyright page for ‘fair use’ guidelines. YouTube video was able to be embedded due to codes / links provided. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Tweets embedded by codes provided by Twitter. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: Conversations with the Bookish Banner and the Comment Box Banner.}
Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2017.
I’m a social reader | I tweet my readerly life
Author Interview | Jorie talks to Candace Robb about her writerly process in creating the… https://t.co/IX9OLUV3Go pic.twitter.com/QVmuuDotr4
— Jorie Story 📖🎧 (@joriestory) July 20, 2017
Comments via Twitter:
I was so wickedly surprised by this beautiful tweet s/o:
✔️ out the fabulous interview w/author @CandaceMRobb & @joriestory & learn more about the #KateClifford Series! https://t.co/1cUWQ8cSI5 pic.twitter.com/qRfiuRrSZw
— HistFic Virtual Book Tours 📚 (@HFVBT) July 20, 2017
Thank you for hosting me, Jorie. I enjoyed our Q&A!
— Candace Robb/@CandaceRobbAuthor.bsky.social (@CandaceMRobb) July 20, 2017
Great interview! Thank you for hosting Candace's Blog Tour, Jorie! pic.twitter.com/Hj0RyxH6MV
— HistFic Virtual Book Tours 📚 (@HFVBT) July 20, 2017
#Author Interview | Jorie talks to Candace Robb #amreading https://t.co/po5a8KWgCc via @joriestory
— Christina Philippou (@CPhilippou123) July 20, 2017
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