Discovering RORY’S PRINCE CHARMING
An interview with Patricia Otto
by Roberta Olsen Major
ROBERTA
When did you first discover your desire to write?
PATRICIA
I first discovered my desire to write as a teenager. I would write soulful poetry and send it to magazines that didn't print poetry. Form rejection letters would follow.
ROBERTA
What drew you to write Rory’s Prince Charming? Was there a specific event in your life that triggered the writing of it?
PATRICIA
I actually started research for Rory because I live near Saratoga Springs, New York, which is a big horse town with a very rich history. I wanted to set a book in Saratoga--plot line and the development of the characters moved me to Kentucky.
ROBERTA
What parts of you are reflected in the main characters in your book?
PATRICIA
Rory's determination, stubbornness and willingness to work for her goals is very much me. Ian has some personal history that follows mine but I won't say what that is.
ROBERTA
If a movie were being made of Rory’s Prince Charming, who would you cast in the principle roles—and why?
PATRICIA
Rory would be Gwyneth Paltrow because Rory needs to be fragile and innocent looking yet have the feistiness of a pit bull.
Ian would be Charlie Meadows, a cover model/actor I met in Orlando at the RT conference in November. He is big and has a very youthful face. I'd leave making Ian come alive to him.
ROBERTA
What were the particular challenges in doing the research for your book? What historical resources did you find the most helpful in constructing your story?
PATRICIA
Oh, boy--research is always a touchy thing. Sometimes history books contradict each other. I have certain library books I always head toward. Saratoga has a great library. There is a series of books about each of the fifty states that I use each time I set a book in that state. I have several EVERYDAY LIFE IN… books that are part of my personal library. ENGLISH THROUGH THE AGES by William Brohaugh is another; it tells when words first came into use.
ROBERTA
What drew you to the era and setting of 1830s Kentucky?
PATRICIA
I wanted my heroine to be an indentured servant and I wanted it to be a story with a horse farm. I originally wanted the setting to be Saratoga. However, indentured service was pretty much history by the beginning of the 1800s and Saratoga didn't start running horses until 1865, so something had to give. I moved the story to Kentucky and headed back to the library.
ROBERTA
What is the most interesting piece of historical information you learned in the process of writing your book?
PATRICIA
Most fascinating to me was the history of labor in our country. Indentured service, slavery, apprenticeships, that sort of thing--all the way through to labor unions and strikes.
ROBERTA
Do you read a lot of historical fiction? If so, who is your favorite author? Do other genres appeal to you as a reader? If so, which ones?
PATRICIA
Yes, I read historical fiction. Catherine Coulter's early historicals, Jude Devereaux, Leigh Greenwood for the west. I am a garbage head. I read everything except books with a real downer bent. I like sci-fi, paranormal, suspense, whodunits, and not just romance either. Part of my problem when I do research is stopping the quest for every detail. Being able to read something and say "I didn't know that" is a big thrill.
ROBERTA
Are all your story ideas historical, or are there other genres that you, as a writer, would like to explore?
PATRICIA
I have written five books. My first three were historical, the fourth is contemporary and the fifth is paranormal. My current work is paranormal and I am thinking about a more mainstream fiction contemporary.
ROBERTA
Are you working on another book, and, if so, what’s it about? Will you revisit Kentucky, or move the setting to another locale?
PATRICIA
My current work is contemporary paranormal about a woman who discovers she is a healer, and is set in Vermont. I have no plans to set another book in Kentucky but you never know.
ROBERTA
If you could choose one of the characters from Rory’s Prince Charming to have a leisurely lunch with, which character would it be, why that particular character, and where would you go?
PATRICIA
I would have to lunch with Ian. Romance writers always want to meet their heroes face to face. We would go to the Old Bryan Inn in Saratoga and I would find out what he did the years he was away from the family farm and how it shaped him into the man he is now.