Faye Hall is the author of the historical erotic romance novel "Mistress of Purity."
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I was born and raised in North Queensland, Australia. I married the love of my life in 2013 (though we met each other over 20 years ago) and between us we have 9 children. I have been writing romance since I was in high school and currently have 4 eBooks with Red Sage Publishing.
Describe the plot of “Mistress of Purity” in a few sentences.
When Gareth obeyed his father’s widow’s request for him to return to Sarina to collect his inheritance, never could he had imagined he’d find her to be the same woman he’d loved so passionately a few weeks before. The secrets that Gareth unveils upon returning to his late father’s estate become a near obsession to him, revealing to him not only the truth about Prue, but also the man his father had truly been.
Who do you think would most appreciate this book?
"Mistress of Purity" has a very intricate web of tales to tell which ultimately joins the lives of all the main characters together through love, lust, lies, deceit and murder. There is also an underlying love story told between two sub characters which I feel is extremely heartwarming too.
Tell us about the selection of this book’s title, “Mistress of Purity.”
The title came about as more of an idiom than anything else because when the affair between Gareth and Prue first began he did think to set her up as his mistress, indulging in all her innocence. When Gareth was requested to return to Sarina though and back in the company of Prue he realized the cruel irony that she was in fact his father’s widow and maybe not quite as innocent as he first thought – hence becoming a tongue-in-cheek version of his ‘Mistress of Purity’.
Tell us a bit about our protagonists, Prue and Gareth.
Prue was a wonderful character to create. She has a soft and vulnerable side to her, but she struggles so much through this book to keep that hidden and portray a very strong front that she is often far from feeling. She’s also very determined to get revenge on the man who tried to kill her father and is reluctant to let anything get in her way.
Gareth starts off quite a cold character, having held a lot of reluctance to let anyone close to him emotionally. Because of his abusive childhood, he wants to share little more than a physical relationship with Prue. As the book progresses though Gareth soon finds he is willing to sacrifice near anything for even an ounce of love from this woman.
All of your books are set in the rural areas of North Queensland. What is the allure of this area for you?
Most of it comes from my childhood. I grew up in a rural area of North Queensland and was raised on stories and photos of the area and it made me wonder just what it must have been like for my ancestors when they first moved to this country and helped develop the townships. I also like being able to show that Australia has just as an intriguing and beautifully romantic history as other parts of the world.
Your novels incorporate elements from multiple genres (romance, suspense, mystery, etc). Have you always wanted to write stories with aspects from different genres? Or did this just develop naturally as you wrote?
A bit of both really. I have always loved romance, be it in books or in the movies, but I have always needed more than just the love story to keep me interested. When I started to write my own stories I set out to incorporate this ‘more’ in my books but as I kept writing it all kind of took on a life of it’s own.
Who was your favorite character to write?
My favorite character from "Mistress of Purity" to write would undoubtedly be Prue. She has so much to tell, and so many things she is searching for answers to. She also has so many sides to her personalities including a fiery, stubborn side that I just loved writing dialogue for.
Are there any authors who have influenced your writing style?
A few have. I have always enjoyed the romance novels of Amanda Quick, but I have equally enjoyed the mystery of Agatha Christie too.
How do you think you've evolved as a writer since when you first started?
My editor with Red Sage Publishing, Rosie Murphy, has taught me heaps since my first book was contracted. Most of all is to try not to head hop too much throughout a book or you risk confusing your readers.
How do you feel about the increasing popularity of ebooks?
I’m of two minds about it. From an author’s point of view I love that eBooks are taking off as it makes submissions to publishers so much easier as everything can be done via email which allows for quicker communication. It also allows for quicker and more spontaneous sales from readers you might not have reached a few years ago. But there is always the thing that a writer craves to see their book in print and be able to walk in to a shop and see their name on the cover of a book. As a reader too I still prefer paperbacks.
Is there any aspect of writing you don't like?
I dislike writing a synopsis. Honestly my one pet hate. I can sit and type out a few thousand words a day easily, usually resulting in a near 100,000 script but ask me to condense that into a few paragraphs or a few pages then I usually chuck a hissy fit and carry on like a child as my poor husband would tell you.
What do you have in mind for your next project?
Coming up next for me are a few things – I’m currently waiting to hear back about two other manuscripts and I’m about a third of the way through book number 7 – "Lust & Chastity" – my own take on a seven deadly sin and one of the heavenly virtues.
Is there anything else you'd like potential readers to know about your book?
The first draft of "Mistress of Purity" was written almost 20 years ago. I wrote it in a matter of three days whilst listening to Fleetwood Mac and eating copious amounts of chocolate. Since then the manuscript has been rewritten about 4 times until the final product was taken up by my publisher.
Relevant Links
I was born and raised in North Queensland, Australia. I married the love of my life in 2013 (though we met each other over 20 years ago) and between us we have 9 children. I have been writing romance since I was in high school and currently have 4 eBooks with Red Sage Publishing.
Describe the plot of “Mistress of Purity” in a few sentences.
When Gareth obeyed his father’s widow’s request for him to return to Sarina to collect his inheritance, never could he had imagined he’d find her to be the same woman he’d loved so passionately a few weeks before. The secrets that Gareth unveils upon returning to his late father’s estate become a near obsession to him, revealing to him not only the truth about Prue, but also the man his father had truly been.
Who do you think would most appreciate this book?
"Mistress of Purity" has a very intricate web of tales to tell which ultimately joins the lives of all the main characters together through love, lust, lies, deceit and murder. There is also an underlying love story told between two sub characters which I feel is extremely heartwarming too.
Tell us about the selection of this book’s title, “Mistress of Purity.”
The title came about as more of an idiom than anything else because when the affair between Gareth and Prue first began he did think to set her up as his mistress, indulging in all her innocence. When Gareth was requested to return to Sarina though and back in the company of Prue he realized the cruel irony that she was in fact his father’s widow and maybe not quite as innocent as he first thought – hence becoming a tongue-in-cheek version of his ‘Mistress of Purity’.
Tell us a bit about our protagonists, Prue and Gareth.
Prue was a wonderful character to create. She has a soft and vulnerable side to her, but she struggles so much through this book to keep that hidden and portray a very strong front that she is often far from feeling. She’s also very determined to get revenge on the man who tried to kill her father and is reluctant to let anything get in her way.
Gareth starts off quite a cold character, having held a lot of reluctance to let anyone close to him emotionally. Because of his abusive childhood, he wants to share little more than a physical relationship with Prue. As the book progresses though Gareth soon finds he is willing to sacrifice near anything for even an ounce of love from this woman.
All of your books are set in the rural areas of North Queensland. What is the allure of this area for you?
Most of it comes from my childhood. I grew up in a rural area of North Queensland and was raised on stories and photos of the area and it made me wonder just what it must have been like for my ancestors when they first moved to this country and helped develop the townships. I also like being able to show that Australia has just as an intriguing and beautifully romantic history as other parts of the world.
Your novels incorporate elements from multiple genres (romance, suspense, mystery, etc). Have you always wanted to write stories with aspects from different genres? Or did this just develop naturally as you wrote?
A bit of both really. I have always loved romance, be it in books or in the movies, but I have always needed more than just the love story to keep me interested. When I started to write my own stories I set out to incorporate this ‘more’ in my books but as I kept writing it all kind of took on a life of it’s own.
Who was your favorite character to write?
My favorite character from "Mistress of Purity" to write would undoubtedly be Prue. She has so much to tell, and so many things she is searching for answers to. She also has so many sides to her personalities including a fiery, stubborn side that I just loved writing dialogue for.
Are there any authors who have influenced your writing style?
A few have. I have always enjoyed the romance novels of Amanda Quick, but I have equally enjoyed the mystery of Agatha Christie too.
How do you think you've evolved as a writer since when you first started?
My editor with Red Sage Publishing, Rosie Murphy, has taught me heaps since my first book was contracted. Most of all is to try not to head hop too much throughout a book or you risk confusing your readers.
How do you feel about the increasing popularity of ebooks?
I’m of two minds about it. From an author’s point of view I love that eBooks are taking off as it makes submissions to publishers so much easier as everything can be done via email which allows for quicker communication. It also allows for quicker and more spontaneous sales from readers you might not have reached a few years ago. But there is always the thing that a writer craves to see their book in print and be able to walk in to a shop and see their name on the cover of a book. As a reader too I still prefer paperbacks.
Is there any aspect of writing you don't like?
I dislike writing a synopsis. Honestly my one pet hate. I can sit and type out a few thousand words a day easily, usually resulting in a near 100,000 script but ask me to condense that into a few paragraphs or a few pages then I usually chuck a hissy fit and carry on like a child as my poor husband would tell you.
What do you have in mind for your next project?
Coming up next for me are a few things – I’m currently waiting to hear back about two other manuscripts and I’m about a third of the way through book number 7 – "Lust & Chastity" – my own take on a seven deadly sin and one of the heavenly virtues.
Is there anything else you'd like potential readers to know about your book?
The first draft of "Mistress of Purity" was written almost 20 years ago. I wrote it in a matter of three days whilst listening to Fleetwood Mac and eating copious amounts of chocolate. Since then the manuscript has been rewritten about 4 times until the final product was taken up by my publisher.
Relevant Links
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