Rosemary Poole-Carter, author of the upcoming release WOMEN OF MAGDALENE shares her thoughts on her work and writing.

Read this engaging interview with author Rosemary Poole-Carter about her September 1, 2007 release of WOMEN OF MAGDALENE. In this lush story, the women of Magdalene are dying and no one seems to care, least of all the haughty Dr. Kingston, the director of the genteel Ladies' Lunatic Asylum.

If you enjoy books like Charles Fraziers' COLD MOUNTAIN, you will love WOMEN OF MAGDALENE.





KH: Congratulations on the upcoming release of WOMEN OF MAGDALENE. Where did you get the original idea?




RPC: WOMEN OF MAGDALENE began with a pair of boots I saw in a glass case at the Museum of Southern History. The docent explained to me that the boots with horseshoe nails hammered in the soles were worn either by a Civil War soldier to keep from slipping in the mud or by a surgeon to keep from slipping in the blood. In that moment my protagonist Dr. Robert Mallory was born. In those boots, he leaves the surgery tents after the war and takes up a new post at the Magdalene Ladies' Lunatic Asylum.





KH: Tell me about your path to publication. Any do's and don'ts you can share?




RPC: It can take a very long time to write a novel, so I find being passionate about the subject, willing to write and rewrite, helps keep me going. Perseverance—even relentlessness—helps. Listen to constructive criticism and don't react too quickly or you'll risk becoming defensive; mull over the comments and then decide what is useful to your work. Follow professional guidelines. Be patient. Thank the people who help you.


WOMEN OF MAGDALENE has found a wonderful home at Kunati Inc., and arriving at that home was well worth the journey. The editing, design, publishing and promotion are a dream-come-true .





KH: What were the historical challenges in bringing WOMEN OF MAGDALENE to life?




RPC: Sometimes, while doing the historical research about the treatment of women in 19th century asylums—and the general lot of women and blacks at that time in Louisiana—my emotions were certainly affected. I didn't want my main characters to be hapless victims; I wanted them to be strong, even when faced with overwhelming injustices.





KH: What are you doing to publicize this new release?




RPC: I'm scheduled to do a number of signings in the Houston area, including at Murder by the Book, and I've hired a publicist to help with some promotion. I'm networking in person and on the Internet, writing letters, sending press packets to booksellers. Also, I've been invited to present WOMEN OF MAGDALENE at the Louisiana Book Festival in November, a great opportunity to meet librarians.





KH: What do you enjoy most about the writing process?




RPC: I love to create dramatic scenes on the page, to put characters in conflict verbally and/or physically. Having also written plays and had the pleasure of seeing them produced, I often visualize how a scene in a novel would play on the stage or screen. I'm captivated by histrionics as well as by history.





KH: What else is on your writer's drawing board?




RPC: I'm working on another historical novel set in 19th century New Orleans—a somewhat dark and twisted tale of sexual obsession, tinged with Southern gothic elements.





KH: What are the top 3 pieces of advice you would give to an aspiring writer?




RPC: Read.

Write your passion.

Don't rush to publish.





KH: Where can someone contact you about your book?




RPC: I can be reached through my website (http://poole-carter.info) or through the publishers website (www.kunati.com).