Into the Future with Owen & Lucie

Good news! I have a new contract with my publisher for the next two Owen Archer books. I love working with the publishing team at Severn House, and I’m delighted to continue with them. So, more books! I laughed to see the prompt from WordPress (this platform) when I opened the file for a new post — to paraphrase, they asked what is something you hope no one ever says about you? My first thought was, Candace Robb has retired from writing. I simply can’t imagine it, nor can all the characters rattling around in my head.

My current work in progress is something a wee bit different, though still within the world of Owen Archer. I’ll say no more for now because it’s an experiment, and time will tell whether or not I’m happy with it. Meanwhile, I am merrily playing with ideas for Owen Archer 15, which will feature Tom and Bess Merchet. As you may recall, Bess has already played a major role in this series (The Riddle of St Leonard’s, #5) as well as the Kate Clifford series (A Murdered Peace, #3). But Tom…he’s still a bit of a mystery to me and it will be fun to find out more about what makes him tick.

For an interview to be published next month in Historical Times (an online site) I was asked some wonderful questions, my favorite, because of what I realized as I answered it: How did you choose the characteristics for your detective, Owen Archer, and was it tricky getting into the mindset of an ‘ex-soldier and sometimes spy’? It’s curious that I don’t recall having been asked that specific question before, and at first I was stumped–how did I choose Owen’s characteristics? As is my wont, I took a long walk in the woods and along the lake while I thought this through. Here’s my response: Once I had the image of a half-blinded captain of archers at the beginning of chapter 2 in The Apothecary Rose, Owen Archer was there for me in the flesh, in the torment of his lost career. Being an archer, I knew he would be strong, as a Welshman he would ever be a stranger in England, and it was his relationships with others in the book that set him for me—his attraction to Lucie, a strong woman, his gentleness with Brother Wulfstan, that Magda chose to engage with him, his grudging admiration for Potter Digby, his resistance to Thoresby… I knew him through his relationships. I worked hard to get in the mindset of an ex-soldier and feel validated whenever a veteran tells me how much they enjoy him. But in all honesty, most characters write themselves after a bit of a nudge from me.

And I’m thrilled to report that A Fox in the Fold is holding strong at a 4.6 rating on Goodreads, my best yet. I am so grateful for your support and enthusiasm. Thank you!

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For those who follow me on Twitter, I am not spending much time there at present, and may freeze my account if things continue to go downhill–too much chaos. But you can find me happily engaging at Mastodon: @CandaceRobbAuthor@historians.social. I also recently added an Instagram account, CandaceMRobb and one on Post.News, also CandaceMRobb, but so far Mastodon has my heart.