Author Interview: Joanna Lloyd

Today I am pleased to welcome Joanna Lloyd, author of the historical romance Beyond Innocence . You can read my 5 star review here.

About the book:

Electra Shipley lies in a mite-infested bunk, weak from lack of food and seasickness. Imprisoned and sentenced to seven years’ transportation, she sails towards the penal colony of New South Wales, Australia. Despite the odds, she is determined to survive, to clear her name, and return to her life of wealth and ease in England.William Radcliffe has fled the betrayals of his father and fiancée to make a new life in the colony. When a transport ship from England docks, William stumbles across much more than mere trade cargo. Haunted by the beautiful convict with wild hair and golden eyes, William decides a compliant and grateful convict wife might meet his needs without the complications of love. Electra must now decide whether a loveless marriage with a "colonial barbarian" is preferable to imprisonment.William is unprepared for the deeply suppressed passion his new wife arouses within him. Against his conviction never to love, he begins to desire Electra and the sexual tension between them sparks into a fierce physical attraction he longs to satisfy.But Electra has made enemies on the ship and a vicious act of revenge endangers her life and the lives of the people she has come to love. Can Electra and William’s love survive the perils of this land and its inhabitants, or will their pasts destroy their future?Sensuality Level: Sensual

Interview with Joanna Lloyd:

Describe your ideal writing space. How does it compare to reality?

My ideal is a cottage perched on a windy cliff in Scotland with a huge window looking out at the sea and an equally huge fire blazing behind me. Someone kind but anonymous would keep me fed and watered while I write uninterrupted.

Reality is a house in a valley in tropical Far North Queensland (Australia) surrounded by lush vegetation and mountains and warm, humid days. As I am in a wheelchair, I do have a kind someone feeding and watering me but she is under the illusion that I actually need company all the time and continues to interrupt me! I long for solitude. Now you’ve made me reconsider – maybe it’s the isolation of the cottage in Scotland that attracts me. :)

What is the first story you remember writing and what was it about?

The first stories I wrote began when I was in boarding school. I was born in Papua New Guinea and was sent to school in Australia at the age of 12. Each week I would write home to my parents and these letters became the comedic angst of a pubescent child, pouring onto the page, not only the activities of the week but all the emotions behind them. The comedy part involved the mistresses who ran our lives – the house mistress, who had a face like granite, a personality to match and breasts which hung over her always-crossed arms like tame puppies; the headmistress was a lesbian who lived with the sports-mistress – both of whom despised my rebellious nature. I’m sure those letters were where I developed my skills in melodrama. :)

Name a memorable book from your childhood. Why is it memorable?

My strongest memories are of a book my mother would read me each night called Snugglepot and Cuddlepie. It was the story of two gum nuts who lived in a gum tree. It was an Australian classic and is still popular today. Unfortunately what made it so memorable were the villains who were the bottlebrush flowers from a nearby tree. I was terrified every night they would stalk into my bedroom with their furrowed bottlebrush eyebrows and spindly arms and take me away.

If you could ask any writer (living or dead) a question, who would it be and what would you ask?

It would be Herman Hesse and I don’t think I could stop at one question. His book, Siddhartha (among others) has been one book I read over and over. I think perhaps I would just want to sit and hear him speak.  Another author I would like to have a word with is Shakespeare. I would like him to clear up for me the controversial supposition that he did not write the plays we are all so familiar with.  And then tell me just who did write them. Although, he’d probably keep the secret – he has done for over 400 years.

If you could pick any of the worlds or characters you have created, which would you want to visit or spend a day with?

Definitely William, from my book, Beyond Innocence. He was an adventurous pioneer in a new colony who just happened to be handsome, kind and generous. I would love to have lived on the farm he carved out of the wilderness when the air was clean and the streams unpolluted and a man would fight to the death for the woman he loved. Now he’d probably just sms and tell her “to get over herself”!

What is one thing you like to do when you are not reading or writing?

I think I was a fish in another life so anything to do with water. Where I live we have beautiful water holes fed by mountain streams as well as clean, white beaches. A thermos of tea and a nice biccy (cookie to you yankee gals) and I’m happy as a pig in mud.

What are you currently working on?

I have two manuscripts going at the moment. One is on the final edit and will probably be published later this year. It is a love story based on the fateful voyage of the Lusitania which was torpedoed during World War I killing over 1,000 people.  The second manuscript, which is half written, is the story of a mother and daughter and their journey towards resolution through many life changing events.

Author's Bio:

Born in Papua New Guinea, I, like many other ex-pat's, were sent to boarding school in Australia. After thirteen years in Sydney, I gravitated to the lush warmth of Far North Queensland. Now that my two boys are safely married and raising their own families, I have the time to indulge my love of books and writing. I have always had a voyeuristic fascination with people, how they think and why they act in certain ways. This led to studies in Psychology and years of workplace and family law mediation. All of which convinced me it is impossible to know what another is thinking and the most bizarre fiction could never emulate real life.

What wonderful fodder for a writer! When the iconic John Lennon wrote "All you need is love", he knew that every living being seeks out love in some form. My novels are about love - romantic, passionate, parental, selfless and self-serving. I will spend the rest of my writing life exploring and writing about the many levels of love. Maybe the day will come when I truly understand it.

Where to find her:

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Get the book:

Also available at The Book Depository and JB Hi Fi.