A Visit with Joan Johnston
by Maureen Greene

New York Times bestselling author Joan Johnston, who has captivated millions of readers with her sprawling, sensuous novels about the two opposing dynasties of Bitter Creek, Texas -- the Blackthornes and the Creeds, is a warm and charming lady as those who met her at Borders Books and Music on Friday, March 28 can attest.

Joan has been writing for eighteen years and enjoys penning continuing stories about families that cross generations such as the Bitter Creek family saga that began with "The Cowboy", "The Texan & The Loner".   She is always left wondering what happened to a particular character in her books (Luke Creed in this case) and has to write that character’s story in another book to find out what happens to him.

"The Price"

This is how she happened to write her current, highly anticipated hardcover debut and March 2003 release, "THE PRICE", which relates an impassioned story of love and danger, ambition and family, and features the popular character Luke Creed, a young man who has turned his back on his family's ranch to pursue his fortune as an attorney at Houston's most powerful law firm.

I highly recommend this excellent book. Once the reader gets into the story, it becomes a real page-turner, and I found it difficult to put the book down. Luke is an extremely likeable character and the reader can feel his struggles as he gets pulled in several different directions. I hope we get to see more of this character in future books by Joan Johnston.

During Joan’s visit, I asked her several questions.

What do you find romantic?

I love traveling to exotic places like Tahiti, Australia, Texas, Montana, Scotland, Egypt, New Zealand & Bali. With my first New York Times bonus, I went to Australia where I was able to go to the outback and stay on a sheep station and a cattle station. I was the only woman on the journey and learned a lot. I am planning to write a novel based on my experiences in Australia because I experienced so many adventures.

I traveled to Big Bend in Texas to do research for my stories set there. For "Never Tease a Wolfe in Wolfe’s Clothing", I journeyed to Montana. I found a great deal of fodder for my stories on my many travels and always carry a notebook and pen. I never know where ideas for a story will come from.

Why do you like reading and writing romance?

I began to read romances to escape from the stress of trying to be superwoman. (Joan is a divorced Mom and her children are now grown.) Romances contain a positive world view. The characters may go through difficult times, but the ending is always a happy one and there is a positive resolution. I like writing them because I can make the book end the way I want it to.

Have you always enjoyed history? How do you go about incorporating histories into your stories?

History has always fascinated me but since I have become a writer, it has become even more stimulating. I know that I will do something with the information I have gathered and history seems to come alive and take on a life of its own. My characters also seem to follow this course of action as well.

I start with a period of history where I intend to set my story and then read the history to make sure that the period will work for the story I have in mind. Then I write the story. I then follow up with later research to make sure everything checks out in my story. Romance readers are a sharp bunch and pick up any historical mistakes so I try to be as accurate as I can.

What do you like about the Regency period and 19^th century American history?

The Regency period is a favorite with me. I believe most of America is fascinated by the English aristocracy, especially since we don’t have that in this country. I feel that cowboys are America’s Knights in Shining Armour. They live by a code of ethics. And there is just something about a guy on a horse…

Your first hardcover original novel, "The Price", is part of the Bitter Creek family saga that began with your New York Times & USA Today bestselling novels "The Cowboy", "The Texan & The Loner". What do you enjoy about writing family sagas?

I grew up in a big family with five sisters and a brother. As a reader, I like to read family sagas. As a writer, I desire the story to come out in ways I find satisfying and I also want to find out what happened to the rest of the family. I wonder what happened to some of the other characters and so I am driven to write their story to find out how it all ends. The characters also have a way of taking over the writing process at times.

I feel that a lot of writing is thinking and sometimes I just have what I call "thinking days" where I am working on the story in my mind, processing it and figuring out how it will all come together. I don’t do the writing on these days but then when I do sit down at the computer, my brain writes the book.

"The Price" brings up the subject of drugs on the market that are not safe. Is this fact or fiction?

It is true. There are drugs on the market that have not been tested as well as they should have been and the scenario in the book where people die as a result could happen. But the incident in the book is purely fictitious.

More About Joan Johnston

Joan got a master’s degree in theater from the University of Illinois in Champaign. She then went on to the University of Texas where she received her law degree. She practiced law for five years in Virginia for a large law firm and it was during this time that she first got the idea of writing. She realized that the hours she put in practicing law were not aiding her quality of life and resigned. The hours that Luke and his colleagues logged were accurate based on Joan’s experiences.

She moved to Florida and got a job teaching at a university which she enjoyed. She also kept writing and publishing romances. Her college department, however, was not happy that she was not publishing articles in educational journals and bid her adieu. She decided to make lemonade from the lemons she was handed and became a full-time writer. She has never looked back!

Joan’s road to getting published has been a rocky one with many lessons learned. She began the journey by attending the 2^nd RT convention in New York City while on a business trip. She has honed her craft by attending writing conferences and talking with writers. And the rest is history. Joan keeps a sign by her desk that reads, "Success is a journey, not a destination." She lives by it.