A few weeks ago I promised to introduce you to some of my fellow writers and let them share their secrets of what it’s really like to be a writer. Today I’d like to introduce you to Ruth Axtell Morren. I know you’ll enjoy learning about where she lives and the research she does. Here is a picture of her at a booksigning.
                              
Ruth, introduce yourself-where you live, what you write, your family. 
I write inspirational historical romances. Presently, my husband and two of our children live in the Netherlands, but we’ve lived on both sides of the Atlantic and will probably soon be moving back to the coast of Maine, where we have another teenager.
What brought you to writing? If you’ve always wanted to write, why? What is it about writing that pulls at you? Did you write in secret early in your writing life?
I’ve probably wanted to write since I was about 11 or 12 and began to live in the world of books. I began writing my own teen romances back then, in secret, of course.
I think it’s the story that pulls me to write. I’ll get an idea about two characters and just begin weaving more and more details about it. Even with books that others write, I’ll continue imagining what happens after “The End” for a few days after reading it.
Describe your writing area. Is there something special that seems to encourage you to write? Perhaps a memento that has special meaning, something that triggers your muse. Is there something people would be surprised to see?
 In our house in Maine, my husband and I shared an office overlooking a large front yard and evergreen forest beyond. Now, in Holland, I have a cramped corner of the bedroom. I’ve put up some maps of Europe and England, since many of my stories take place in England and made the space my own, with a bookshelf near at hand.
What is the wall paper on your desktop? Why?
A view of Mt. Katahdin in Maine, Maine’s tallest mountain and part of the Appalachian Trail. My daughter and I took a trip there the summer before last and did some hiking, though we didn’t hike all the way to the top. It was part of a research trip of mine for The Rogue’s Redemption, so it is a memory dear to my heart, both because of my daughter’s company and that of my characters.
This sounds like wonderful fun.
Do you have little routines you follow in your writing time? Special music, special tea or coffee, certain cup or pen or color of paper you prefer.
 Right now, there’s too much Internet, a habit I’ve got to cut down on soon! That’s the blessing and bane of having high-speed internet. Wait till I go back to Maine with either dial-up or hopefully, something a little better.
I do like to listen to Christian CD’s during the first draft phase. Sometimes, it will be one artist’s CD which will get me through many scenes. Lately, I haven’t done so much, maybe because deadlines have been drawing closer-so many books, heroes, heroines, the music starts all jumbling together.  I did listen to a lot of Church of England services on BBC Radio over the internet with their hymns for this last manuscript which features an Anglican curate as the hero. It was very inspiring. It drew me back to my roots in the Episcopal Church, which I haven’t been to in years.
Do you have a favorite dead author? Favorite research or reference book that is always at your fingertips?
Right now, it’s Grace Livingston Hill. Also, George MacDonald.  I just discovered Sorrell and Son, by Warwick Deeping’s 1925 moving novel about a father and son in post World War I England. Loved it!
Okay, let’s be brutally honest. What is your biggest distraction, perhaps self-made, during your writing time?
 As I said above, the Internet! Checking emails, etc. In defense of this, writing is such a lonely occupation that the Internet is our way to connect to other writers and the publishing world as a whole.
What is your favorite thing about being a writer? It could be flexibility, informal dress requirements, creating stories-anything that comes to mind.
The thrill of hearing from a reader who got as involved in your characters as you did while you were writing about them.
Your least favorite?
Slogging through those scenes where the ideas and words don’t want to come.
Is there something you secretly would like to change about your writing live? Perhaps the surroundings, the chair, anything.
Have enough money and time to travel more for my research.
Thanks for sharing. We’ve enjoyed getting a glimpse of your writing life.
You can find out more about Ruth by following these links.
http://www.ruthaxtellmorren.com/
http://ruthaxtellmorren.blogspot.com/
Below is the cover for Ruth’s book, Hearts in the Highlands, a Love Inspired Historical due out in April. Be sure and pick it up. The second cover is her February  book with Steeple Hill, The Rogue’s Redemption, that she mentioned researching with her daughter.
Ruth is giving away a free copy of each of these books to two lucky readers. In order to get your name into the draw post a comment on this blog.