10.15.2017  “You can go anywhere in the world and they know about Texas”: Texas’s romantic faces and places with Panhandle author Linda Broday

Linda Broday kept at her dream of publishing the stories that sprang from her Southwestern upbringing — and has been rewarded with success on top bestseller lists. A featured author at the upcoming Lubbock Book Festival, Linda will discuss and sign her Texas brand of romance fiction on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, at the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts (among dozens of local, regional, and nationally known poets and writers).

LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE: Where did you grow up, Linda, and how do you think the place has influenced your writing?

LINDA BRODAY: I grew up in New Mexico, five miles from the Texas state line. In school, I studied Texas as much as I studied New Mexico, and I’ve always considered myself a Texan. I would read about the heroes of the Alamo and others who fought for independence and my imagination would go crazy. The men and women in my stories reflect the spirit of the courageous people who settled here. This is more than a state. The blood of those who died flows in our veins and the history is embedded inside each of us. I want readers here and abroad to feel the pride that is reflected inside each character in my books and I think they do. You can go anywhere in the world and they know about Texas.

What kinds of books did you enjoy reading when you were growing up?

Oh my goodness! I was a huge Nancy Drew and Hardy boys fan. I loved those mysteries. I also read every Little House on the Prairie book, and those fed my love of the 1800s frontier. My little sister ad I haunted the public library. My mom would drop us off every Saturday, and we’d spend hours breathing in the scent of the books. There was nowhere else I had rather been than with my imaginary friends, having exciting adventures.

When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

I think the good Lord decided that for me because I was born with stories in my head. I started making up stories before I started school, then I wrote them down as soon as I learned to write. But I never thought I could write books. Those were done by smart people, not by someone with only a high school education. I mistakenly thought writers had to be college graduates. Luckily, providence played a role and my thinking changed when I read a book and hated the ending. I sat down and rewrote it the way I wanted. That gave me confidence and I started writing my own novels, learning as I went. Those first ones were just practice — and hidden away which is where they needed to be.

What was your first big break as a writer?

The life of a writer is often one of struggle, and it certainly was for me. Ten years of trying repeatedly to get an editor’s notice only to end in rejection took its toll, and I had reached the point of giving up. Then in August 2000, I heard about the New Historical Voice Contest by Dorchester Publishing. I decided to try to get published one last time and entered the required first three chapters of Knight on the Texas Plains. Three weeks later, I received a phone call with a request for the complete manuscript. I sent that in — and less than a month later, I got another phone call. The editor told me they wanted to remove me from the contest and she offered me a contract then and there. I put down the phone and sat there and cried. My journey had been very long and winding, but I’d finally reached my dream. This past August, Sourcebooks Publishing reissued Knight on the Texas Plains, which had long gone out of print, and gave it a new life — which thrilled me beyond words.

How many books have you published?

I’ve been really fortunate to have published twenty novels and novellas combined.

How do you think the publishing business changed since you started?

I’ve seen tremendous change. When I first started, the Internet was very new and few people had a computer in their home. I sent out everything via the postal service back then, up until around 2008 or 2009, so emailing stories in was a huge improvement. Historical romances had a larger share of the pie back then among the three main sub-genres under romance. Also, everything was released in print. Goodness, I feel like a dinosaur! I remember starting to hear about the ebook format late 1990s, but authors made very little money doing that because [most] readers didn’t have a way of reading them. They had to wait for technology to catch up before that medium took off. And did it ever! The book world is a fluid, ever-evolving presence. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

If I’m a reader and have never read a Linda Broday book, which book or series should I start with, and why?

I recommend starting with the first book of my Men of Legend series, To Love a Texas Ranger. I think you need to meet the family, the patriarch Stoker Legend, and his three sons to really have a grasp on the later books. There are threads and secrets carried over from book to book. All the way through, the illegitimate son, Luke Weston, struggles to find his place in the family and find the acceptance he craves. I think it’s important to learn the complicated family dynamics to really understand the series.

Men of Legend is your most recent series. Tell us a bit about it.

I knew in my heart this Men of Legend series would be big, but doubt plagued me that I could get it down on paper. The family consists of patriarch Stoker Legend and his three sons. Sam is a Texas Ranger and wants no part in ranching, which causes great conflict between him and his father. Houston is the one most like Stoker. The land is in his blood, and he works himself to the bone to make the Lone Star Ranch something lasting. Luke was born on the wrong side of the blanket, and the fact he grew up with nothing while his brothers had everything creates a lot of anger issues he has to work through. He hasn’t had one thing easy and he’s ashamed to have a price on his head. He yearns to claim the Legend name with every fiber of his being, but he won’t until he can do it with honor. In this family, all to a man fight for the land and their birthright, and I love their deep commitment they have to each other. No matter what, they stand together and fight anyone who dares to come at them. I did my best with this undertaking but I’m still not sure I’ve done it justice. We’ll see after Book #3 — To Marry a Texas Outlaw — releases on November 7.

You write so many books! What’s your creative process like?

When I start a new story, it stays in my head until I finish no matter what else I have to stop and do. Usually a character comes to me first and whispers in my ear. My story people tell me what they yearn for and what’s standing in their way. Then the story just unfolds from there. I am a panster and do no preliminary outlines, profiles, or anything. I simply write what my characters tell me. If I do outlines or lay each chapter out scene by scene, I lose the excitement for the story and it becomes dull. I love the surprises that come as I journey along and I love what my characters tell me. My creative process is really just listening and letting my characters do the plotting. They haven’t let me down yet.

As a romance author, you must have a favorite place, or places, in Texas. What do you consider the most romantic place in Texas?

Anywhere under the stars. We are blessed with a magnificent sky, and love blossoms whenever, wherever, two people come together. I’ve set books in the swamps of East Texas, in the Hill Country, in North Texas near Fort Worth, and along the Red River, and now in the Panhandle in a brand-new series I’m working on. Texas has so many breathtaking settings I can’t pick just one.

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