Michele talks horses

How did the Michaela Bancroft series come about? 

I love this series. I always knew that I wanted to write something that involved the horse world. I was fortunate to grow up with horses, and they have been a passion of mine since I was four or five-years-old. My family is very involved with these wonderful animals. It’s been my dad’s life mission to help the horse have a more comfortable and healthier life through the products we make at our family business http://www.profchoice.com. So writing about Michaela Bancroft has been a natural fit for me. Michaela is a bit of a more serious character than Nikki. I think that’s true for people who work with animals. She has a funny bone, too, because I also believe that animals bring humor into our lives. But Michaela’s first priority are her animals. She is a reluctant sleuth at first. Unlike Nikki who jumps on board immediately to figure out a mystery, Michaela would prefer that dead bodies would not get in her way. Michaela has some great friends in this series as well as some amazing horses. She’s a fun character to write and for me she is the closest character to who I think I am as a person. We’ve both dealt with many of the same issues, so writing her comes easy, and is really enjoyable. I hope you’ll pick up the series. A lot of readers think they need to be horse fans to enjoy the books, but that isn’t the case. I have received e-mails from all over the country from readers who love the series for the mystery, romance and the characters. For horse people, the horses are an added bonus. 
 

What about your horses? 

I am now grinning from ear to ear because my mare Krissy is a very special animal. She has given me so much joy and taught me so much about myself and about horses. I feel so blessed to have had her come into my life. I’ve grown up around horses. My dad brought our first horse home when I was five-years-old, and I’ve loved every horse we’ve ever owned. But Krissy is tops. She is the kindest mare I’ve ever been privileged to own and ride and she is a hard worker. She LOVES to be pointed toward a jump. Her ears go forward and it’s almost as if I can hear her saying, “Whoopie!” Now, make her do some dressage exercises and I get a kind of like, “Are you serious?” attitude. “Can’t we please just jump?” 

As a family we are also really fortunate to own the coolest pony in the world (okay, I am a little partial). Monty belongs to my eight-ear-old daughter who has Olympic dreams. He is a Gypsy Vaner/Welsh cross and if I think Krissy loves to jump, Monty likes it even more than she does. Because he is a little fast out on the cross-country country course, I ride him for now out there. My daughter’s legs need to get a little longer. Monty and my little girl have a special bond. When we show up at the barn as soon as he hears her voice he lets out a little nicker. It’s a sweet sound and the relationship they have is awesome.