Her favorite work to date is The Conn-Mann Chronicles Steampunk series with five books released so far: The Marvelous Mechanical Man, The Nearly Notorious Nun, The Incredibly Irritating Irishman, The Fiercely Formidable Fugitive, and The Elderly Earl’s Estate.
Rie lives in Texas with her wonderful husband and several spoiled cat-children.
WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:
Website: https://riewriter.com/ and https://theconnmannchronicles.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/RieSheridanRose
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConnMannChronicles/
About the Book
The Marvelous Mechanical Man is the first book in a Steampunk series featuring the adventures of
Alistair’s prize invention is an automaton standing nine feet tall. There’s a bit of a problem though…he can’t quite figure out how to make it move. Jo just might be of help there. Then again, they might not get a chance to find out, as the marvelous mechanical man goes missing.
Jo and Alistair find themselves in the middle of a whirlwind of kidnapping, catnapping, and cross-country chases that involve airships, trains, and a prototype steam car. With a little help from their friends, Herbert Lattimer and Winifred Bond, plots are foiled, inventions are perfected, and a good time is had by all.
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Can you tell us what your new book is about?
The Marvelous Mechanical Man is about a young woman
who needs a job and the absent-minded professor who she meets at the newspaper
office looking for a new assistant. Told from Josephine’s point-of-view, it
recounts the adventures they have revolving around the nine-foot mechanical man
that Professor Conn has created.
Can you tell us a little about your main and supporting
characters?
The main character, Josephine Mann, is a young Irish
American woman trying to make her way in the 1870s. She is independent,
opinionated, and wryly amusing as she tells the tale in her own inimitable way.
The hero, Alistair Conn is a professor who uses his spare
time to create marvelous mechanicals and other fantastical inventions.
One of the things that Alistair has created is the
mechanical man, Goliath—which Jo promptly convinces him to rename, as Goliath
was a villain and a bully. She christens the marvel Phaeton. He is the
centerpiece of the story.
While there are a wide and varied cast of colorful
supporting characters, the other that I want to make sure to mention is Jo’s
cat, Miss Priss. She may not say much, but she also has a key role in moving
this story along—as well as the sequels.
Your book is set in New York City. Can you tell us why you chose this location
in particular?
I wanted to write Steampunk that wasn’t set in England. The
whole world existed during Victoria’s reign, so I wanted to explore what might
have been going on this side of the pond. Having never been to England when any
of the five books were written, that seemed the best course. New York City was
pretty much the London of America in the era of Victoria in my eyes.
How long did it take you to write your book?
The original first draft was written for National Novel
Writing Month several years ago. It then went through an extensive edit and was
published by Zumaya Publications in 2013. In 2016, I regained control of The
Marvelous Mechanical Man and its sequels and republished the book with some
additional edits. So, depending on how you look at it, between six months and
three years.
What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?
The most pivotal point in my writing life was when I was
laid-off in 2002 right before I got married. My then fiance told me I could be
a full-time writer and not look for another job. I’ve been working on living up
to that gift ever since. That was about ten novels and lots of short stories
and poems ago.
What kind of advice would you give other Steampunk authors?
While it doesn’t have to be completely accurate in every
detail, your inventions should be plausible. Research is fun, and key to
success in this genre. You can add a bit of fantasy or magic to your steam, but
don’t forget that at its heart, the mechanics matter.
Also, keep in mind the period. To really work, anachronisms
should be kept to a minimum. Life in the 1800s was different than our world is
now, and that includes speech patterns and ways of moving. Clothing needs to be
taken into account. If you step outside the period, there should be a reason,
and someone should probably notice.
