Come Meet Vickie McDonough With Me!

SDC.Welcome to A Pen for Your Thoughts, Vickie! Tell us a little about yourself first.

VM. I’m an Oklahoma native, a wife of 32 years, and mother to 4 boys. I have a sweet daughter-in-law and an energetic two-year-old granddaughter. I’ve been writing for seven and a half years now.

SDC. Does where you come from or where you live now work into any of your writings?

VM. Definitely. Having grown up in Oklahoma, I’m familiar with the state’s unique history. I have a whole series set in the years just before statehood called Oklahoma Brides. This book is a re-release of three Heartsong novels compiled into one book. It’s about brave women and tough men who carve out a life when times were difficult.

SDC. Who are your favorite characters in the book that are coming out now and why?

VM. Mariah Lansing aka Drew Dixon from Wild At Heart is a woman who writes dime novels. She’s spunky but a bit naïve. When a rancher challenges her to get her facts straight about the West, she accepts his offer to visit his ranch in North Dakota. But he’s expecting a man, not a woman who draws trouble like flies on a horse.

SDC. I love your original titles. They in themselves draw my interest to read your books. How do you come up with them, or are they chosen for you?

VM. I’m fortunate to work with a publisher that usually lets me keep the titles I’ve selected. My titles generally evolve from a line in the story or something that encompasses the overall idea of the book. With The Bounty Hunter and the Bride, I got the title idea first and wrote a story to go with it.

SDC. What made you decide to write in your genre and what advantage do you see in the reading audience you have? How do you respond to them when they write to you?

VM. I chose to write Christian romances because that’s what I read. I especially love historicals with cowboys and horses. I grew up watching all those cowboy shows of the late sixties, and my heroes have always been cowboys and lawmen. So it was just natural for me to write about them when I started out. Although I’ve now written a couple of contemporaries, my favorite genre is still historical romance.

I love it when readers write to me. I haven’t gotten all that many letters, but I try to respond to each one I do get.

SDC. What pleases you the most about your writing experience?

VM. It’s hard to narrow down. I’ve been in awe of how God has directed my career and the doors He’s opened for me. I never saw that coming, but am very grateful. The thing I think that has pleased me the most is all the wonderful friends I’ve made along the way. My writing buddies are some of my closest friends now. Another perk is that I’ve gotten to travel to writers conferences all over the U.S.

SDC. This is one of my favorite questions to receive from those who interview me, and to give to others. If you were to turn your newest story into a film, who would you want to be the heroine and hero?

VM. In Wild At Heart, the hero, Adam McFarland, is a rancher who loves to draw. Because of something that happened, he gave up his drawing but he sorely misses it. He’s a bit moody because of it. I’d like Christian Bale to play him in a movie. For the spunky heroine, Reese Witherspoon would be perfect.

SDC. Sounds fun! What other genres or subgenres might you tackle if any?

VM: I have a novella set in Ireland, and two contemporaries. I also have a story, Spinning Out of Control, which is set in Virginia in 1804, but for the most part, my books are set in the late 1800s.

SDC. What kinds of books do you like to read besides these?

VM. I like to read just about any historical setting except for Regencies. I enjoy suspense, but not mysteries as much. It doesn’t matter really. If it’s a good Christian fiction book with a sweet romance and a faith message, I’ll like it.

And finally from Shirley: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US, VICKIE. I understand you want to give out a book to one of our fortunate readers who writes in. Which one will you offer? And where can people come visit you and find out how to get your present books as well as your upcoming releases?

VM. I’m delighted to give one of your readers a copy of one of my books. How about letting it be their choice of any book on my website, as long as I still have copies of it?

SDC: Sounds great to me!

VM. Guests are welcome to visit my website: http://www.vickiemcdonough.com/ to find out more about my books.

You can order most of my books from Christianbook.com or Amazon.com or they can get autographed copies by emailing me at fictionfan1@cox.net

Thanks so much for allowing me to be a guest on your blog.

From Shirley: Guests! Please drop a comment to Vickie! I know she will love to hear from you here at A Pen for Your Thoughts!

WE HAVE A WINNER FOR VICKIE'S BOOK! CONGRATULATIONS MATT JONES FROM JENKS, OKLAHOMA! YOUR BOOK IS ON ITS WAY!