Author Confessions With Rhys Bowen

How on earth does anyone write 40 novels?

Aug 22, 2023

A book editor once told me that when they start working with a debut writer they’re never certain if the author will have a second book in them. In other words, most writers have at least one story that’s dying to get on the page, but after that, the well can run dry. That is certainly not the case with popular authors like Elin Hilderbrand who has written about thirty books (30!) or Beatriz Williams (19!) or Stephen King (65!!!). And it’s certainly not true for novelist Rhys Bowen.

Rhys is the New York Times bestselling author of more than forty historical fiction novels, including The Victory Garden, The Tuscan Child, and her 2021 book The Venice Sketchbook, which was nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Novel of the Year. Her latest WWII novel, The Paris Assignment, is on my nightstand, ready to be devoured. In the meantime, she stopped by Dear Fiction and I asked her to share her secrets to writing longevity.

How in the world do you come up with forty plots?

Welcome Rhys!! I have to start with my most burning question. You've written over forty novels. How have you grown and evolved as a writer since that first book? Do you approach the process any differently?
RHYS: I think every writer learns from everything they write. In the beginning I was anxious to tell the story. Especially if it was a mystery I felt compelled to solve the murder. Now I know that we need time to explore the characters, set the scene, etc. I have also learned to trust my characters. Once I have created them it’s up to them what they choose to do. I just follow along and write it down!

Where did you get the idea/inspiration for The Paris Assignment? How is it different/similar to other novels you've written?
This was a tough book to write, as you can imagine, knowing that bad things were going to happen to several characters I adored. I think each of my WWII books highlights a different aspect of women’s bravery during the war, and this was the ultimate. Knowing their chances of survival were slim they still volunteered to go into enemy occupied France. I think my aim is always to bring the reality and starkness of the war to life, to remind current readers that we never want that again.

In one of my interviews last week I was asked if I was influenced by Ukraine when I wrote it. The idea had come to me long before Putin invaded but I do see striking similarities: ordinary people showing incredible courage and resilience. I got the idea when I rented a house in Fontainebleau on the Seine in 2019. I read the history, saw that the chateau had become Nazi headquarters, and as I gazed at those boulders in the forest I thought—the Resistance could hide out here… I planned to go back the next year but it was 2020 so I had to wait until last year to finish my research in Paris and on a boat on the Seine.

Is there a scene in the novel that you're proud of as a writer, something you feel as though you nailed?
The tiny scene that sums up the book is when heroine Madeleine is in training for her role as a courier in France. She’s staying at a lovely English country house while she learns the tricks of the trade. She had to create a persona for herself and has to stick to it all the time. She invents Minette Giron. As she walks across the lawn someone calls “Hey Madeleine.” She turns around, is struck across the face and told “You just signed your death warrant.” That’s when it became real to her.

Whoa. That’s going to get a reader’s attention. I love that. What was the most challenging part of the novel to write?
Knowing I had to kill a beloved character was hard, also watching Olivier suffer was hard too.

Have you read any novels you've loved lately? If so, please share.
Lessons in Chemistry was a favorite this year. Such an interestingly different and quirky heroine and plot. I also liked Canary Girls and I’m reading your new one right now. It’s yummy!

Thank you, Rhys! Good luck with your next novel. If you have any questions for Rhys, please put them in the comments and she’ll answer them.

Next week’s post: Author Confessions with Jackie Friedland and an issue devoted to our Two Glorious Weeks in Martha’s Vineyard. OMG, the kids are going back to school next Thursday and I’m throwing myself back into my next novel beginning that morning. I’m so excited to get back to work but Im nervous, too. There’s so much I’m trying to accomplish on the page. More on this in a future post. I need to catch you up on my novels soon. xo