FAQs About Romance Writing, Story Ideas, Character Selection and More...

Why did you choose to write mainstream romance?: As psychotherapists, we daily saw the struggles women faced as new opportunities have opened over the last few decades. How could we not want to tell some of their stories? We wanted our stories to have happy endings - a criterion for romantic fiction but we weren't interested in writing bodice rippers. We thought about writing psychological thrillers - briefly - but it held little appeal for us. What an author chooses to write often reflects their background and values. A core value for us is our marital partnership so this theme needed to be inherent in this story.
Why did you choose to write under a single name - Annie Rogers?: We have been published previously in nonfiction and having two names on a book in that context seemed to work. But, it seemed to us that for a novel a melding of our two names seemed more appropriate, reflective of our partnership commitment. Annie, by the way, is Mala's mischievous alter ego and the Rogers is obvious.
Where do you get your story ideas?: Largely from life experience - both our own and people we have met. We've been through marriages that did not work and raised four children. We also had the good fortune to be able to experience life in the Caribbean first hand. We find the stories of the people we meet fascinating. The idea for a link to the past came from a dinner on Martinique. Our host told of a chance meeting, on a dusty country road, with a man who looked very familiar. The man turned out to be a branch of the family lost to them during the French Revolution. The lost child theme comes from Mala's father's family. An 18 month old boy was lost on the docks when the family arrived at Ellis Island. He was never found.
Why did you choose to write a saga?: We didn't. It chose us. Once the basic story for A Dream Across Time was in place, it became clear that there was an ongoing story which we could not ignore.
What kind of research do you do?: Again, we had the good fortune to get to know the Caribbean well. We have been interacting with the people of St. Lucia for 17 years as well as being led to other islands by our travel business. In a sense, our life experience is our research.
How do you decide on your characters?: Jamie, for example, was a clear choice. We wanted a modern, gutsy woman. Having a troubled marriage worked in the plot but we had no interest in having her being either neurotic or a victim or a poor communicator. Given who Jamie is, Andre took a specific form because he had to be someone who deserved her. Then people like Bertille and Marcus are representative of the deep currents of island life we have observed. Sometimes the characters represented people who were needed for various plot purposes or served a symbolic function and sometimes they just walked in the door one day during the writing process.
Why did you pick the Caribbean as the site for A Dream Across Time?: When the story was first forming we decided we would like an "exotic" setting. We knew the Caribbean intimately and the mystical themes which we found appealing could easily be found in that setting.
Why did you choose to build in mystical elements?: Symbols convey more than words and conveying the underlying sense of the island experience required moving to an underlying set of mystical themes.
How do you work as a team?: For one reason or another we have always worked as a team. Fundamentally we each take responsibility for different parts of the work at hand. That way we do not compete or trip over each other. It is also essential not to get too caught up in egos. One or the other of us may have some pet part of the project which we may have to let go of. After all, a theme can typically be played out in a number of ways. So, sometimes, compromise is necessary. We work together to carve out the basic storyline, then we apply our particular expertise. We found it didn't work for both of us to do parts of the writing. There needed to be one voice and that voice is Mala's. Roger takes on much of the organizing and outlining. Mala drafts the initial manuscript using this organized material and outline. Then Roger comes back in with editing, attention to continuity and consistency. Initial plot development and plot revisions come out of joint work - a weaving of shared thoughts and ideas.
How did you find a publisher?: Our nonfiction works were picked up by publishers based on proposals. Wouldn't it be nice if those days were still with us? Fiction is another matter entirely. Publishers and agents are inundated with material. Much of it is of highly variable quality. That means they can't spend a lot of time giving submissions much scrutiny. Our impression is that most of the people in the publishing field are overwhelmed. For fiction, it is now a matter of having a finely honed finished work to present and tenacity. Tenacity is probably as important as anything else. A writer just has to keep on submitting their work and not get discouraged. The publishing world is changing fast. We have now chosen to self publish because it brings the whole process under our control.