Oklahoma Author, Callie Hutton, Brings Home a Confederate Soldier

        Callie Hutton has been making up stories since elementary school, and writing gave her a way to turn off the voices in her head. She’s had a number of articles and interviews published over the years, and finally decided to put those writing skills to the test and write novels.

Oklahoma is where Callie hangs her hat with her husband of thirty-six years, two young adult children, and three dogs.

You can catch Callie Hutton hanging out at Facebook, Twitter- @CallieHutton, and her home base, www.calliehutton.com. Stop by sometime and say hello.

 

Please tell us a little about your new release without giving too much of a spoiler away.

When Confederate soldier, Lt. Daniel McCoy makes his escape from a Union prison toward the end of the Civil War, his only thought is to get as far away from enemy territory as possible. But he doesn’t count on saving young widow Rosemarie Wilson’s life from an infected leg wound.

Rosemarie has no use for Rebels soldiers, having lost everything, including her husband, the last time they came to her home. However, Daniel has not only saved her life, but is sticking around to help with the farm and her three children until she recovers.

With Union soldiers searching for him, every day Daniel remains puts him in danger. Or is the beautiful widow who has captured his heart the greater risk? 

What was the hardest part of writing your book?  

The ending. I always find I tend to rush the endings of my books. I’ve built the story, carried everyone along, and now that I know how it ends, I want to get it finished. My hand’s been slapped by my critique partner and editors more than once for that.J

What comes first: the plot or the characters?

Definitely the characters. I’m a panster, so I start off with characters in my mind, a general idea of what the story will be about, and let them take it from there. I’m always surprised at what my characters will do and say, and the direction they’ll take the story. The characters in Daniels’ Desire, though, were easy to work with. They did pretty much what I wanted them to do. 

Do you plan all your characters out before you start a story or do they develop as you write?

I usually start with a name, a general idea of what they look like, but I let the story tell me about their personality. I really did try one time to do the ‘character interview’ thing I leaned in a workshop, and I ended up tying myself in knots, so I deleted it, and started my story. 

Do you have a ritual when it comes to writing? Example….get coffee, blanket, paper, pen, laptop and a comfy place. 

Not really. I write at work, where I’m alone for five hours dealing with a few customers. With all that down time, my employer allows me to write while I’m there.  

Do your books have a common theme or are they all different? 

I guess the most common theme I have is the heroes. Almost all of my heroes are really nice guys. I have one arrogant hero, but the heroine takes care of that.J I’ve published both contemporary and historical, and I have a series of books in my historical line, which are all set in the late 1800s/early 1900s in the same town of Guthrie, Oklahoma. 

How long does it take you to write and then edit a story? 

Because I can dedicate pretty much five hours, five days a week to writing, I move quickly. I can usually write and edit a book in two to three months.  

How do you go about naming characters? 

When I hear an interesting name, I add it to my growing list of names on my computer. Right now I’m in the process of using my daughter and nieces names for heroines. In Daniels’ Desire, my heroine is named after my oldest niece and goddaughter, Rosemarie (we all call her Roe). The problem I’ll face is most of my stories are historical, and my nieces mostly have ‘modern’ names.  

What so you see for the future of publishing and e-books? 

The growth in e-books is phenomenal. Eventually we‘re going to have an entire generation of readers who only picked up a book in school—and that may change too, with schools putting a lot of information on the internet. With Ipads, Iphones, Kindles, Nooks, etc. I think the explosion of e-books will only grow.  As a reader, I hope print books stay in fashion. I read just about everything on my Kindle now, but I still like to brows a book store on a rainy afternoon. And all my research and writing books are in print. I find it easier to use them that way.

As far as publication goes, I think the publishing houses have to go with the times. Years ago the trains took a big hit because they forgot they were in the transportation business, and thought they were in the train business. Publishers need to remember they’re in the reading business, not just the publishing business. 

What are your current books out right now, and what are the books coming up for release? 

I have three books out in my Oklahoma Lovers series, A Run For Love #1, A Wife by Christmas #2, and A Prescription for Love #3. I also have An Angel in the Mail, Miss Merry’s Christmas, and Daniels Desire in publication. They’re all historical. I have one contemporary novella, Tessa’s Treasures, which is part of the Tales of the Scrimshaw Doll series.

I just received an offer from Entangled Publishing  for my very first full-length Regency, The Elusive Wife, and a pending contract with The Wild Rose Press for Choose Your Heart – a contemporary novella for their Honky Tonk Hearts series.  

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?  

Read. I’m not a TV viewer. I watch a couple of news programs each day, but that’s about it. I like movies, but haven’t been to one in a while. I like to cook, and even though I’m tired of the daily ‘what’s for dinner’ routine, I do like to pull out all the stops and make something fancy and creative once in a while. 

Is there anything else you would like to tell the readers we have not touched on? 

Yes. If you read a book by any author that you really liked, do that author a favor and post a review. Even if it’s a one liner. Just something to let the world know what you thought of his/her work. 

Where can the readers learn more about you and find your books on the web? (Add the web links and buy links here) 

Website:  www.calliehutton.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/callie.hutton

Twitter: @calliehutton

 

When Confederate soldier, Lt. Daniel McCoy makes his escape from a Union prison toward the end of the Civil War, his only thought is to get as far away from enemy territory as possible. But he doesn’t count on saving young widow Rosemarie Wilson’s life from an infected leg wound.  

Rosemarie has no use for Rebels soldiers, having lost everything, including her husband, the last time they came to her home. However, Daniel has not only saved her life, but is sticking around to help with the farm and her three children until she recovers. 

With Union soldiers searching for him, every day Daniel remains puts him in danger. Or is the beautiful widow who has captured his heart the greater risk?

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