Lizbeth Selvig: For the love of British heroes

Lizbeth Selvig, author of Beauty and the Brit, incorporates her love of all things British into her romances.

Lizbeth: Hi, HEA Readers, it's such a happy honor to be here today to share my newest contemporary romance, Beauty and the Brit, with you. I'm excited for this book for lots of reasons — it has such diverse characters (an inner-city heroine with six tattoos who moves to a quiet farm, a gang member, and an injured war vet, for example) and I got to explore a lot of themes (acceptance, gang violence, honesty, loyalty). But most of all, I'm excited because I have a British hero!

The topic of our American obsession with all things British could take up an entire post by itself, and I'm not sure there's one definitive reason for it. All I can say for certain is that I'm one of the obsessed. History, royalty, accents, Colin Firth ... I love them all and have from the time I saw The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night back in 1964.

This preoccupation has carried into modern times — through a three-week hiking trip to England in 2012 (192 miles in 16 days, basking in gorgeous accents and stunning Yorkshire scenery) to my attendance at the most recent Paul McCartney concert just two weeks ago in Minneapolis. (Review: awesome!)

It might seem I digress, but this really does wend its way around to my writing and my book — where the first clue might be its title, Beauty and the Brit. Romance readers are used to finding British heroes in historical novels. Dukes, viscounts, and their peers are standard fare. There are also a fair number of Brits in romantic suspense stories. Who doesn't love a good MI6, Bond-ish alpha hero?

But I've always wanted to bring a little England into my contemporary romances — because it's unexpected, and the task of making an Englishman fit organically into an essentially American story is a fun challenge. I discovered after my first forays into short story and then novel writing (those million words that will probably always dwell under the bed) that no matter how much I tried to keep them out, four things — two of them very British indeed — found their ways into each story. The first two: a horse and an older, wise character are easy to explain. I always want there to be a voice of reason in my books and I truly revere the elders in my life, so they're great writing inspirations. As for horses, they've been part of my life for thirty years — I know them, I can write about them with some expertise, and it's easy to incorporate them even if it's just with a mention.

The other two permanent fixtures in my books are a Beatles reference and a British accent. Neither of these has to play a big part in the plot. My second and third books revolve around a horse farm, but the first and fourth (Good Guys Wear Black, coming out Oct. 14) include horses more peripherally.

The accent and the Beatles references are harder to justify craft-wise because they're definitely more in the "passing fancy" category. For example, in my first book, The Rancher and the Rock Star, my hero, Gray Covey, wears a Beatles T-shirt to one of his own concerts, and I gave his ex-wife, who has a cameo appearance, the British accent. In Rescued by a Stranger, I gave the accent to secondary character, David Pitts-Matherson, a horse stable owner, and I placed a 1965 Beatles poster on the wall of a free clinic in Memphis. Not important plot points, any of those examples, but as you can see, I'm easily amused.

Enter Beauty and the Brit. David from Rescued graduated to his own book and, ta-da! I got to write my full-on British hero. In small-town, rural Minnesota no less. I got to make him an ex-British Army man, a fantastic equestrian, a part-time cowboy (because his heroine wants no less than a hunky guy in a Stetson), and a struggling nice guy who needs a feisty red-headed heroine to bring out the hero in him. Plus — he gets to use really cool (to American ears) phrases that sound nothing but dashing even in a modern setting.

I certainly did fall for my own hero — and I hope others will, too. But what really tickles me is to know there are a few special indulgences woven into the story just for me (and for readers who've followed along). For anyone who knows, it's a romance and a scavenger hunt! And, I think it makes my books better because they have a silly little unique touch.

So I hope you enjoy my handsome, sexy Brit David even though he's my indulgence. And if you're wondering what references to look for in Beauty here you are: Horses are obvious — David is a horseman and runs a horse stable. The wise, older person is Claudia Hanson — one of my famous Kennison Falls sisters who have appeared in all my books so far (but aren't a theme, promise). The British accent is certainly not a mystery to find.

As for the Beatles reference ... well, I think maybe you'll all have fun reading the book for yourselves. And when you run across it — be sure and let me know you did!

A question for you: Do you pick up on silly little intimate things authors put in their stories? Do you look for threads from book to book? All of us who write truly hope you do!

Find out more about Lizbeth and her books at www.lizbethselvig.com.