An Interview with Geraldine Litz on Her New Romance Novel

Geraldine Litz is a retired elementary teacher. She is an award winning author and has published historical nonfiction articles in regional and national magazines. She lives in Georgia with her husband and family. She would love to hear from you at GeraldineWLitz@gmail.com. You can also Like her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GeraldineWLitz.

Geraldine is the author of a newly published romance novel, Fire and Ice. The book is available on Amazon in print and digital formats. She provided the following synopsis:

1. What are the particular pleasures and challenges involved in writing a romance novel?

I wanted to write a realistic romance intermingled equally with a mystery. There are explicit sex scenes, but I wanted readers to feel the couple is really in love, and not have the scenes just for the sake of adding sex to the story.

2. How do you find the right balance between romance and mystery/suspense?

Sometimes that can be difficult, and readers complain it goes too much one way or the other, depending on what they particularly like to read. I set up the mystery first and had the lead detective and the woman involved in the mystery to come to terms with a genuine relationship between the two of them. Then I tried to combine the mystery and romance in a way to just make a good story.

3. What inspired the story of Fire and Ice?

My team teacher was from the area in the book and inspired a lot of the story about ranches, the desire for oil and the need for water. Out of that came the conspiracy in the story: two men who used to be friends began to compete... one became rich and the other lost all of his money to the rich one. Now their children have met over a murder and they discover the conspiracy among their families which complicate any relationship between the two.

4. How would you describe your novel's protagonist, Claire Whitaker?

An independent strong woman who has major reasons for avoiding the touch of men and she pulls back so much she appears cold to others but the hero will be able to find the fire hidden in her depths as they solve the mystery. She is the daughter of the rich oilman.

5. You have inspired your young granddaughter to write and publish her work. What advice do you have for families and teachers wanting to encourage their children to write?

Listen to their stories. Children are terribly creative and they have ideas you should foster and work with as you encourage them. I did that with my granddaughter when she came up with a story and now Ashley Litz has published her own book, No, No, Sammy!, on Amazon about her sister and my poodle. I had to find an artist to do the illustrations but we found a very good and reasonable one. Don't give up on children if they like to write and draw. Develop their creative juices!

Thanks, Geraldine!