 
The story for The Virgin's Proposition was in my head for a long time before I got to write the book. I'd never written about a princess before. I thought it would be fun. I was quite sure that actually being a princess was more work than just being handed things on a platter, and getting to know Anny -- Princess Adriana -- certainly proved that to be the case. Anny was a lively bright intelligent young woman expected to hand over her life to 'those who knew better.' She understood the responsibilities that came with her role, but it didn't mean she didn't chafe under them sometimes. Like when the book opened and she was waiting and waiting -- and her prince didn't come.
But Demetrios Savas did. And suddenly her life took a very sharp turn.
I wanted to write about a woman torn between duty and following her heart. And I wanted the man she loved to wonder if he had a heart left at all. I wanted to throw them together and let them find in each other exactly what they weren't looking for -- a soulmate. And then I wanted to step back and let them figure out where they would go from here.
Where I went was Cannes. I had never been to this part of the south of France, and since the book opens there during the Cannes Film Festival, I felt I needed to 'get my feet on the ground.' I write, I suppose, kinesthetically. That is I do much better if I know the place I'm writing about, if I've paced the streets, eaten the food, smelled the scents, got a 3 dimensional understanding of the place.
So a writer friend and I left London early one Tuesday morning and took the Eurostar to Lilles, then changed trains for Cannes. In the late afternoon we arrived to a land of balmy breezes, palm trees, gorgeous beaches, the Festival hall and the Ritz Carleton overlooking it all.
We prowled the streets, toured the festival buildings, walked miles along the beach, ate wonderful food in tiny out of the way restaurants, wandered along the harbor ogling the amazing collection of yachts, and had a drink the bar at the Ritz Carleton (all research, you know).
I found a building for Anny's apartment, painted soft yellow with sun-faded lilac-colored full shutters. I found (thanks to my friend Antoinette Stockenberg who told me what to look for) the sailboat that belonged to Demetrios's brother. Mostly, though, I found that my characters came to life in Cannes. They got a headstart on their book while I was there. And so did I.
I hope you'll enjoy The Virgin's Propositiion and a brief visit to Cannes. I certainly did!
Now, where shall I go next????
Anne McAllister
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