Blog Tour: Stephanie Burgis

Stephanie Burgis is the lovely author of A Most Improper Magick and A Tangle of Magicks: two immensely fun and magical Regency adventures and she’s stopping here to share her favourite Austen heroine and the best spots in Bath.

1. Is there a specific time or place that you do your best writing in?

I’m definitely a morning writer. If I had perfect self-control and no other responsibilities, I’d start writing the moment I finished breakfast. As it is, I’m a mum and a procrastinator, so first I have to get my son off to nursery, and then I spend ages surfing the net...but then my husband and I turn off the internet to avoid any more temptation, and we both get to work. (He’s a fellow writer and a freelance web developer, so we tend to do our work in the same room and at the same times of day, to keep each other honest. Peer pressure can be really helpful! ;) )

2. Who were your favourite authors as a teenager? Are they different to your current favourites?
When I was a teenager, my favourite authors were Georgette Heyer, Jane Austen, Elizabeth Peters and JRR Tolkien. They’re still among my favourite authors, but I’ve added lots of new favourites as well, including Caroline Stevermer (the Sorcery and Cecilia series she co-wrote with Patricia Wrede is wonderful, funny and romantic YA fantasy set in the Regency era) and Hilary McKay (I love the Casson family so much!).

3. Is there a book you wish you had written? Why?
I wish I could have written the Casson family series, especially Saffy’s Angel...but the truth is, as much as I love reading funny, warm mainstream fiction like that, as a writer, I need magic and fantasy and adventure to keep myself engaged! It’s irresistible to me.

4. If you could take three books to a desert island what would they be? Why?                                       Hmm. That is hard, but okay...here’s my list:

a) The Collected Works of Jane Austen (I know, it’s cheating! But this really has been published as a single book, honestly): because every time I re-read Jane Austen’s novels, I laugh at jokes I didn’t pick up the first, second, or even third time through. Her writing is so smart and witty and full of hidden layers, her novels are perfect for endless re-reading.

b) The Lord of the Rings (another cheat, since that complete edition includes three books!): What can I say? I loved LotR when I was a kid for the sheer adventure, and as an adult I love it even more for the beauty of the writing. I could (and have) re-read it again and again.

c) Georgette Heyer’s The Talisman Ring: When I read this for the first time, I was about 14, and I woke up my grandparents by giggling uncontrollably over it in the middle of the night. I still laugh every time I re-read it - it’s so delicious and funny, on so many levels. I love it!

5. What is it that captures you most about Regency England?
That’s a really good question, and truthfully, I’m not entirely sure. I fell so hard in love with the era when I was eight and first listened to Pride and Prejudice (read by my dad), and then I just got even more committed when I discovered Georgette Heyer’s novels four years later... I think it’s the fun of all those intricate social rules that smart heroines have to work around, plus the literary tradition of setting romances there that are full of wit and banter and fun, rather than hot-and-heavy angst. (Not that I don’t enjoy that kind of romance too, from time to time...but at heart, I always prefer romantic comedy. And since I’m a total history geek, historical romantic comedy is my ideal!)

6. Who is your favourite Austen hero?
Ooh, she has SO MANY yummy heroes, and I love almost all of them in different ways. Edmund in Sense and Sensibility is such a nice guy, so honourable and self-deprecating and sweet; Captain Wentworth is incredibly hot and romantic...but I have to say, my own husband reminds me the most of Mr. Darcy, so he’s the one I’ll always pick! ;)

7. Which of the Stephenson sisters are you most like?
In my real life, I’m an oldest sister, and so (probably unsurprisingly), I’m honestly most similar to uptight, responsible Elissa - which is exactly why I have so much fun writing from the perspective of reckless youngest-sister Kat! It’s totally liberating for me. :)

8. Where’s your favourite place in Bath? Why?
Argh, that’s a really hard question! Bath is my favourite city in the UK and one of my very favourite cities in the world. I love the Georgian architecture, I love, love, love the Jane Austen Centre, which I’ve visited over and over again, I love the Pump Room and the Assembly Rooms...but I have to say, my very favourite spot in Bath is the Roman Baths Museum. Which will NOT surprise anyone who reads A Tangle of Magicks! ;)

9. Are you working on anything at the moment? Can you tell us anything about it?
I just finished the major edits on Kat Book 3 (which doesn’t have a title yet). Whew! It was so much fun to write…but I also felt pretty weepy as I hit “send” on that email. I didn’t want to be finished with Kat’s family and world! I’m going to really, really miss them.

Thank you, Steph! Make sure you check out the rest of the stops on the A Tangle of Magicks tour and read my reviews of A Most Improper Magick and A Tangle of Magicks.

You can also win a copy A Tangle of Magicks on Templar Publishing’s Facebook page as part of their August Monthly Giveaway. Good luck!

Sophie