Literary Research

Fiorella will tell you that the reason she writes contemporary romances is because she doesn't want to bother with research, but don't believe her.  She might not have to research petticoats and bloomers, but she does have to learn about such things as the places her characters live, what they do for a living, what cars are  appropriate for them, and their supposed backgrounds and life experiences.

For Where the Heart Leads, which will come out on November 11, Fio peppered five rancher friends with endless lists  of questions about life among the cows.  She also consulted an architect, a nurse, a firearms expert, two friends with Master's degrees in theater,  a high school principal, a foodie, an expert on Britishisms, a fire builder, and a wine expert.

And tomorrow, for Phillipa's unnamed novella, she's going to sally forth and visit a place that sells landscaping materials, drop by Dairy Queen to check out how a Blizzard and a small ice cream cone would be eaten, and stop at Walgreens to pick up a home pregnancy test.

Don't ask.