Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Trivia Tuesday




How about sports and leisure? Hmm...  This one can be misleading. There are not only sports questions but there seems to be a lot of questions about liquor. However, this is a gold question. So I'm sure golf enthusiasts every where know this answer.
Check back tomorrow for the answer.

What number golf iron lofts the ball, on average, at 47 degrees?

a) 28 degrees
b) 52 degrees
c) 37 degrees
d) 43 degrees



Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Please Welcome Author of Love Beyond Loyalty by Rebecca Royce

This sounds like a wonderful Paranormal Erotic Romance. It has a little something for everyone. Rebecca has some wonderful gifts for those of you who comment. Remember the more you comment the greater your chance of winning.

Rebecca will be giving away a $50 Amazon.com gift certificate to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour. 


Bio
First lets hear a little about Rebecca.






As a teenager, Rebecca Royce would hide in her room to read her favorite romance novels when she was supposed to be doing her homework. She hopes, these days, that her parents think it was well worth it.
Rebecca is the mother of three adorable boys and is fortunate to be married to her best friend. They live in northern New Jersey and try not to freeze too badly during the winter months.
She's in love with science fiction, fantasy, and the paranormal and tries to use all of these elements in her writing. She's been told she's a little bloodthirsty so she hopes that when you read her work you'll enjoy the action packed ride that always ends in romance. Rebecca loves to write series because she loves to see characters develop over time and it always makes her happy to see her favorite characters make guest appearances in other books.
In Rebecca Royce's world anything is possible, anything can happen, and you should suspect that it will.

Blurb
Gabriel Ward has no problem with the fact that he’s an Outsider. Hell, he’s always known he was different. What he takes issue with is the idea he has to follow any destiny at all. He’s taken care of himself-and others-since birth. There’s no way he has to start following rules now.

Loraine Peacock can speak to animals. Other than that she thinks she’s just a regular woman making her way in the world. She figures its not that weird. Many people have unusual abilities.

But when Gabriel and Loraine are forced together by a destiny he denies and she is ignorant of, they will both finally have to accept their Outsider legacy and help the others in their quest to defeat the ultimate evil—a demon bent on world destruction. That is, if they can both survive to find their way to the most important part of their destiny: love. 



1. What or who inspired you to start writing?
I’ve always been writing. I think I wrote my first book when I was in fourth grade. But, my husband encouraged me to try my hand at actually doing it when I was pregnant with our second son. Should we blame it on the pregnancy hormones?

2. How did you come up with ideas for your books?
I don’t know. I wish I could answer that question. But ideas hit me and I’m just glad they do.

3. How would you describe a paranormal erotica book? Please use your own book for examples.
A paranormal erotica book is a book set in the paranormal world (or with paranormal themes) that are also charged with sexual tension and use a certain type of language to describe those experiences. For example, in Love Beyond Loyalty the focus is on the journey, on the tension, and the sex is hot.

4. What expertise did you bring to your writing?
I’ve been doing it for a while now. Before that, I have a degree in English and Communication as well as a graduate school degree.  Also, I read constantly.

5. What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?
I’m really just a normal lady hanging out in the world trying to do the best I can, just like all of you.

6. As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?
I want to keep doing it, I want to come up with more ideas, and attract more readers.  I hope.

7. If you could be one of the characters from any of your books, who would it be and why?
Oh, I don’t know. They’re all like my babies. In Love Beyond Loyalty, I think I’d want to be Loraine. Gabriel is smoking. She’s a lucky lady.

8. Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?
Before I was published, I did.  After that, it became sort of difficult because the group didn’t put a limit on new members, which was wonderful. But I’d had some experience with professional editing at that point and I found it difficult to hear certain things from the critiquers that I knew not to be true. However, I do find having a critique partner(s) and Beta readers to be a really good idea.

9. When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?
I was in the critique group and it just seemed like time. My CP at that time encouraged me to take the next step and I did. Very glad to have listened.

10.         What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)
The best advice I got was to write as much as possible.  The worst was to try to write to a trend. Write what you love, that’s what makes it great writing.

11.         Do you outline your books or just start writing?
Start writing.

12.         Do you have any hobbies and does the knowledge you've gained from these carry over into your characters or the plot of your books?
I learned a lot about fishing doing research for one book. Not hobbies so much but places. I love to travel, I guess its my hobby, and the places I go show up in all my writing.

13.         Do you have an all time favorite book?
That I’ve written? No, I love them all.  That I’ve read? Jane Eyre.

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14.         Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?
I am currently writing a book in my YA series.  Very exciting stuff. Its going to be called Subversive and it’s the 3rd book on my YA series called The Warrior.

15.         Your interview will be posted February 28th. Is there a family Valentine tradition or recipe you would like to share? 
(I know it's after the 14th but I love seeing knew recipes)I do not cook. I’m sorry. You’re talking to someone who burns water.

16.         What is your favorite reality show?
The Biggest Loser and I do watch Keeping Up with The Kardashians, although I’m annoyed at them now.


17.         Who is your favorite actor and actress?
Good question. Um. Actor: Christian Bale. Actress: Anne Hathaway

imgres.jpgimgres.jpg


18.         Can you tell little about the black moment in your book?
In this book, it takes place when Gabriel is left alone in the house with Sebastian, the demon.  What should Loraine do?

19.         Anything else you might want to add?
Thanks so much for having me. I loved being here. 




Monday, February 27, 2012

It's Monday Again




Wow...where did the weekend go? For me it was non-stop granddaughters. Saturday I spent the day with Abbi. We don't get to see this little one as often as we would like. It was a wonderful day...her favorite word...okay. And does she love to cook with grandma. "gran-ma cook" We wore her out. She fell asleep in the car on the way to dinner and didn't wake up until her mother finished eating. Good for her mother.

Sunday I worked out, ran three miles then lifted weights for a half hour. That was fun then we picked up our other granddaughter, Ana, and spent the day playing train, skyping with her Aunti and all in all having a really good time. We are looking forward to spending a lot more time with the grandchildren.

Our Little Angels

Source: google.com.sg via Chris on Pinterest


Looking forward to this week, editing and bloging mostly. I have so much to do to get ready for my blog tour beginning on March 12th. Safari Moon is touring for four weeks with goddessfish. Hope everyone stops by and leaves a comment. Leaving a comment will enter you to win in the St.Patrick's Day contest.



Contest


Prizes:

$10.00 Starbucks e-GC
copy of my novella Star Crossed
copy of my novella The Gift
$5.00 Rogue Phoenix Press Gift Card

Happy St.Patrick's Day

Source: bing.com via Chris on Pinterest



Friday, February 24, 2012

Lakota/Pinkerton series: The Locket by Christine Young

The Locket is the third book in this series. If you have been reading these books you would have met Misha in the second book. He is honest and loyal but he has a secret he is chasing as well as looking for the people who murdered his family and the heirloom locket which holds the only portrait of his mother.

Ariel has secrets of her own. The one thing that keeps her memories alive is the locket she wears.


Read an excerpt


The Locket by Chrsitine Young
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 4

Buy at:  www.roguephoenixpress.com 
This is the 3rd book in the Lakota/Pinkerton series
Dakota's Bride, My Angel, The Locket, The Talisman, and Forever His

Oregon Coast,1894

Bone-weary from a hard day at sea, Misha trudged up the long mud-rutted road to the boarding house that sat on top a hill less than a mile outside Mist Harbor, Oregon. A thick, cold mist hovered close to the ground wetting everything: the rhododendrons that grew wild, the azaleas that lined the cement walkway to the front porch, and the saw grass that grew easily in the sandy soil. Misha paused a moment to push back a lock of hair that repeatedly fell across his brow and into his eyes.

The land was windswept and salt battered, yet he enjoyed the salt-taste of the air and the swooping sea birds as well as the playful sea animals. He loved the way the trees bent to the power of the wind and found a way to survive despite the brutality of the elements.

His purpose here was short lived, he reminded himself. He didn’t intend to find himself attached to these parts in any way.

He smelled of a hard days work. The lingering aroma of sweat and Chinook salmon filled his nostrils. It was not a scent he had any use for, but for the time being the job on the fishing boat gave him a reason for staying in the small coastal town. Right now he couldn’t wait to submerse himself in a hot bath, wash the stench from his body, and ease his stiff, strained muscles.

The sea had always been one of his favorite places. But fishing?

By God no, he’d just as soon relax and watch the sails billow on a clipper as the majestic ship rounded the horn or stand at the tiller with the wind whistling around him. He’d even rather battle a hurricane off the Bermudas.

Blending in with the people who lived in this small coastal village had been imperative.

The quest he’d undertaken had led him straight to Miss Ariel Cameron’s boarding house in Mist Harbor, and there the trail stopped. Thinking about Ariel set his nerves on edge.

Ariel was willow thin, femininely delicate, and hardly capable of the atrocities he’d set out to avenge less than a year ago. Yet the evidence he’d uncovered had sent him here, to her home. The name he’d followed had been her name. The men he’d followed had landed in Mist Harbor more than once, her father one of them.

He walked up the immaculately kept steps to the house and opened the door to the screened in porch.

"Misha," the captain boomed out a welcome. "Fine weather we’re havin’ now. Just right for the salmon runs."

The rocker squeaked as the captain moved back and forth in the wicker chair.

"Just right," Misha acknowledged and stepped through the next door to the parlor. A blast of heat met him as he nodded his head in polite recognition to the other borders. In a pale blue day dress, Ariel moved with a slight limp through the hallway and disappeared into one of the first floor rooms. Even though she seemed to favor one leg, the sway of her hips enticed all of Misha's senses.

He didn’t understand the feeling but in a way no other woman had touched him, she beckoned to him. Her amber colored eyes were wide and when she smiled, they glistened and shimmered, reminding him of the bronze mosques in Constantinople when the sun beat upon them. Miss Ariel Cameron was unique--unconventional--and she fascinated him. She was the key to his revenge as well as his salvation.

 Review

The Locket is a very exciting tale with a dramatic setting. Overall, this is a very entertaining story.

Maura
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

What If Wednesday: What If You Could Live For A Year In A Book You Have Written




Your imagination has taken root. You have traveled back in time to write a historical or maybe you have created your own world of wonder and intrigue in a fantasy or futuristic. Falling in love with a hero or a setting is not unusual for a writer.

If you could live for a year in one of your novels, which one would it be?
What character would you become?
Would you change the outcome or push the hero and heroine into making better decisions. Of course this would affect the outcome of your story. Or perhaps you would choose to be the hero or heroine.

My back log of books is pretty extensive and I'm not sure I have a favorite story or one I can separate from the others. Castles, knights in shining armor, banners and tournaments all of these things that belong to the past fascinate me. Did I forget Highlanders in kilts? No way...

On the off side, drafty castles, less than stellar living conditions, no antiseptic for cuts and bruises, no pain killers for simple headaches.

However, I would probably like to give it a try, live in all of my books. But I believe I would start with Highland Honor one of my Scottish Historicals. I would be a trusted hand maiden who could impart knowledge and encouragement. Lady Callie is far too innocent and trusting. She doesn't have a cynical bone in her body. Although she is a strong character, I do believe she could use a little contemporary wisdom. She doesn't need any more backbone. It could be said she has a little too much. Callie definitely needs to find a way to stand up to her very Alpha male Hawke without putting her own life in jeopardy.


Answer to Tuesday's Trivia Question;
Blue Boy is holding his  HAT
Castles, I Love Them
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Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Trivia Tuesday




This is an art and literature question. Do you fancy knowing painting?
Check back tomorrow for the answer.

What does the subject in the painting The Blue Boy hold in his right hand?

a) handkerchief
b) hat
c) coin purse
d) a doll

I can clearly see the painting, well, maybe not so clearly because I can't see what is in his right hand.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Lakota/Pinkerton Series by Christine Young




My Angel by Christine Young
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 4

Buy at:  www.roguephoenixpress.com 
This is the 4th book in the Lakota/Pinkerton series
Dakota's Bride, My Angel, The Locket, The Talisman, and Forever His
Read an Excerpt 

Denver, 1893

A polished azure sky looked down on a day that vacillated between winter and spring--a day unable to make up its mind. Cool breezes lifted Angela Chamberlain's brand-new canary yellow skirt off the moisture-laden sidewalk. A blazing hot sun dried the puddles in the street left over from last night's deluge.

Unlike the day, Angela had no trouble making up her mind. Angela knew what she wanted out of life. She touched one finger to the sapphire earrings adorning her newly pierced ears.

She wanted adventure.

She had a terrible craving to see the world--to climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower, to walk the Great Wall of China. She yearned to fly in a hot-air balloon high above the earth, or ride in a gondola in Venice. She wanted to fall in love with a man who was as brave and smart as her father and as dangerous as Devil Blackmoor.

Angela's wish list had no end.

Instead of adventure and romance, in three short weeks she'd be enrolled in Miss Somebody's finishing school for young ladies, where knowing which fork to use was more important than riding with the wind on her favorite horse, Kangee. A place where changing one's clothes three times or more each day was common practice.

Two days ago she'd told her father she didn't want to go.

And two days ago her father had told her she would learn to appreciate the schooling and that she was a very lucky young woman. He'd also promised her a trip to the continent for a graduation present.

A graduation present! She wanted to yell at him, but wisely kept her mouth shut. She wanted to travel now. Today. But more than anything, she didn't want to be confined to the stuffy drawing rooms in the East. Just like her father, she needed freedom. But her father meant to take the choice from her.

To gossip and chatter with rich society women was not her destiny. To know which wine was served with fish would not make her happy. This was his dream for her. Sam Chamberlain needed to look to his own heart and remember the choices he had made twenty-five years ago.

Her destiny was out there somewhere, waiting for her to snap it up and hold the moment close to her heart. She knew what she wanted, and to prove her point, she'd bought a camera and had the machine sent over to the hotel. She meant to photograph all her adventures, every nook and cranny, every monument, every intriguing person.

Across the street and down two blocks, Devil Blackmoor had just taken the saddle off his horse. He brushed the stallion's back, all the while petting the animal's sleek coat and crooning into the horse's ear. Mesmerized, she watched his hands and the gentle way he stroked the horse.

She wished she had her camera.

Devil Blackmoor commanded her attention. He symbolized everything a father cautioned his daughter to be wary of. Despite the warning, Devil's strong jaw, his powerful shoulders and the confident way he held himself beckoned to every feminine nerve in Angela's body.

Angela clutched her hands to her chest, willing her gaze to shift to something or someone who wouldn't shatter her senses and set her blood boiling. Helpless to control her wayward heart, she kept looking back at Devil. She noticed everything about him, the way he moved, the way his denim jeans clung to his legs and the way they molded to his backside. Devil laughed at something the bouncer from the saloon said, and when he smiled, one edge of his mouth tilted crookedly. Ange­la's heart swooned and fluttered, and she thought she might never breathe again.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

What If Wednesday


Source: google.com.au via Jen on Pinterest


What if you were contracted to write a novel with a shapeshifter for a hero or heroine. If there were no guidelines, I think I would go with the dolphin. I've never really thought about this before even though I love shapeshifter novels.

So why a dolphin? 

Source: google.com via Julia on Pinterest


I dolphins are highly intelligent animals. They seem to be attracted to humans and of course they live in the water. There was a time in my life where I felt as though I lived in the water. Training dolphins was also a profession I never pursued but have always been fascinated with.




Wolves would be my second choice because they also are intelligent and they are so misunderstood. One would think that by this time, and all of the research done on the wolf that people would begin to believe they are not the horrible creatures of "Little Red Riding Hood" status. My  hero in Safari Moon is photographing wolves in the Alaskan wilderness. And well, had I thought of this before, Solo certainly could have been a shapeshifter.



I'm not sure what my third choice would be. Perhaps a lion all tawny and strong. But the male lion is a bit lazy from all I have read. The female does most of the work. Of course that could be said of a lot of the mammals in the animal kingdom.




What animal would you choose?

Answer to Tuesday's Trivia question: Lee Harvey Oswald.


Trivia Tuesday



Source: google.com via Kellie on Pinterest


Source:



This is a history question. Any history buffs out there? Well didn't want to make this one too hard.
Check back tomorrow for the answer.

Who returned to the U.S. in 1962 partly because he thought Russian winters were making him bald?


a) Lee Harvey Oswald
b) Dobie Gillis
c) Reverend Guppy
d) Lex Luther



Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Please Welcome author of a Mercenary Way, Tory Richards

I am pleased to have Tory at my blog and I hope everyone who visits here in the next couple of days enjoys meeting the author, and reading a little something about her book The Mercenary Way. Love your cover artist!




Tory will be awarding a $20.00 egift certificate to Bath and Body to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour, and the blog host with the most comments (excluding Tory's and their own) will receive an "Own this Spot for a Whole Year" ad spot ($100.00 value) on Sex Between the Covers Blog.


So, everyone who visits please leave a comment.


First let's learn a little bit about Tory:

I'm a fifty-something author who discovered my passion for writing and story telling at the ripe old age of thirteen. Before I received my first manual typewriter, with pencil in hand, I would jot my stories down on notebook paper. Later, after receiving that desired typewriter I spent hours in my bedroom, where my parents thought I was doing homework. Writing turned out to be a kind of therapy for me, something I didn't realize until years later.
 
I also hold down a full time day job. So basically I'm working all the time. Only writing is a hobby for me, something I do during the quiet of the evenings and on my weekends. My goals are simple and realistic. By the time I retire I'll be happy if I'm just making enough "mad money" from it to be able to travel a little, and spoil my grandchildren.
 
I'll travel any place a cruise ship will take me. I've been to: Greece, Italy, Croatia, Spain, and Alaska just to name a few places. I don't like to fly, even before I found myself on a plane on 9/11, but I will if I'm given enough legal drugs. I collect antiques and art, and I love chocolate, who doesn't? And I'm addicted to good coffee and sweet ice tea.
 
For a while life got in the way of my dreams. A few years ago I decided to get serious and haven't looked back!

Find Tory and her books at:

http://www.thewildrosepress.com/

How about a short teaser to get things started.

When a ruthless gem smuggler mistakes Sarah for her best friend Susan, she's kidnapped and stashed on an island. Her only hope of rescue is Susan's cousin Clint -- a soldier-of-fortune whose my-way-or-else attitude is as infuriating as his muscular body is distracting.

Clint, ex-Navy SEAL turned mercenary, desperately needs a vacation. Rescuing a kidnapped woman from an island paradise isn't what he had in mind. And when he encounters Sarah's sassy mouth and tempting ways, he soon realizes he's the one in trouble.

What will Tory reveal in her interview? Hmmm...

1.What or who inspired you to start writing? Looking back, I was very young when I decided I wanted to be a writer when I grew up. I think reading fairy-tales inspired me. I was a big fan of the princess finding her prince charming and living happily ever after.

2.How did you come up with ideas for your book? A tough question to answer! My ideas can come from anywhere and anything. A dream, a random thought popping into my head, something I see or experience. With It's All in the Jeans I wrote a lot of the humorous scenes from my experience of living in a retirement community.

3.Have you ever written erotica? What special elements are needed for this genre? LOL...yes! I started out writing mainstream like Cupid's Arrow and The Senator's Daughter, but have evolved into full fledged erotica. As far as special elements is concerned, it depends. Publishers are open to a wide variety of erotica and have a very short list of what they won't accept. Authors have to be willing to go there, if you know what I mean. So far I've stuck with the basic one woman one man storyline. I might venture into other areas later because if there's one thing I've learned as an author, never say never! A few of my erotic titles with Ellora's Cave are Talk Dirty to Me, Breathless Surrender and Her Hands-On Man. For a little over $2 you can have, I mean read, a Quickie.

4.What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio? I'm very blunt. I say it like it is and usually, unfortunately, without thinking first. I'm also a good listener and will offer advice any chance I get:)

5.As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans? Just to continue writing for me. When I can, when I want. No deadlines to make. Writing isn't a job to me, it's a hobby that I enjoy.

6.Do you outline your books or just start writing? I just start writing. Once the book is done, I go back and add a lot of meat to it. So I guess the first draft could be considered an outline of sorts.

7.Do you have an all time favorite book? The Wolf and the Dove by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss.
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sorry you can't actually click to look inside unless you go to amazon

8.Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book? I have several projects started but lately I've been in a funk. Too much life going on. It happens. I have a werewolf romance started, a couple short erotic romances, and a couple novels I wrote many years ago on a manual type writer I hope to do work on some day.

9.Who is your favorite actor and actress? I love Tom Hanks! Anything he does turns out great and he seems like a genuinely nice guy.
 imgres.jpg



10.  Anything else you might want to add? E-books rock! There are still some traditional publishing houses out there, and groups that don't consider eBooks as being published. But let me tell you, just as much work goes into them from both the author and the publisher's side. EBooks have a much longer shelf life than book store books, too. They're cheaper. I'm willing to bet that in the future we'll be more concerned with saving what trees we have left on the planet, and protecting the environment, than holding a paper back in our hands. I've noticed some traditional publishing houses have added eBooks and some well established authors are also writing them now.  


don't want anyone to forget what Tory's cover looks like!

What you have all been waiting for--the Excerpt!

Grabbing his duffel bag, Clint sprinted in the direction of the trees, leaving Sarah to follow. She’d learn soon enough that he wasn’t going to wait for her. They’d almost reached the safety of the trees when the first shot rang out. It whizzed past them ricocheting off a nearby tree, splintering the bark over their heads. He glanced back, swearing. Just as he’d expected, Sarah had come to a halt and was looking around as though wondering what had just happened.

“Keep moving!” he commanded, grabbing her arm. He gave her a violent shove in front of him where he could keep his eyes on her, and ducked when another bullet whizzed past. Soon after, a volley of gunfire erupted, forcing Clint to push her to the ground before they shot her head off.

She screamed when he careened into her and, in seconds, they were slipping on the muddy earth. Keeping his hands on her hips, he forced her to crawl behind a large tree. As they came to rest against it, flying bark sprayed the area around them.

“We have to keep moving!” Sarah cried above the sound of gunfire. “They’re coming!” She tried to struggle to her feet, but Clint easily held her down.

“No!” he said against her ear. “They’re still back at the house. They’re shooting wild, hoping to scare us out in the open. We still have a good head start,” he finished in a calm tone.

“You sound like you’re used to this,” she commented, trembling beneath his weight. She cried out again when another bullet hit the ground in front of them.

Clint forced her head down, lying protectively over her, all the while knowing that if a bullet went through him, it would probably go through her too. “Pray, angel.”

Oh, don't forget two things! 
Please leave a comment.
and most important go right now and buy Tory's book :)





Monday, February 13, 2012

Release of The Gift by Christine Young

The Gift a novella which is part of A Valentine Anthology is now available at Amazon for $2.99.

Read an Excerpt


The Gift
Christine Young
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 3

Buy at: amazon.com


"Get in the house, now!"

"Mama?"

Elice Weld shielded her eyes and watched the ground fog rising in the distance. She didn't know what was coming her way, but she could guess. The rumors that a Union cavalry unit was in the vicinity had spread like a wildfire on a Kansas prairie.

Rain had fallen all morning. Now the clouds had separated, and the sun heated the earth, causing the evaporation of the water-soaked ground. The cavalry rode through the mist like dark, avenging wraiths bent on the destruction of all mankind. She could see seven men silhouetted on the horizon.

"Izzy, go." Elice didn't want to frighten her daughter but the urgency of the moment could not be denied.

"But mama?"

"Go to the cellar. Now."

"It's dark."

Izzy's voice echoed in Elice's head, filling her with a wild panic she didn't know how to stop. Every time soldiers approached she was terrified. The last four years had been the longest years of her life. "Do as I say, quickly." Elice hugged her daughter, turning her at the same moment and with a gentle shove sent her through the open door of her house.

"Izzy."

Elice knew the panic in her voice would mobilize her young daughter. She despised the fear and the terror. She loathed the war. She looked up. The fog was dissipating, and she could see the dark blue of the Union coats. She didn't have anything left for the soldiers to take. Good God, they'd taken everything already--everything save her daughter and her hope for the future.

She inhaled a quick breath then stood on the steps, hands folded together in front of her, watching the dark wraiths inch closer. She knew from experience she couldn't fight these men. She would do as they said and when they left, she would put the pieces of her life back together.

Until the next time…

"Mama," Elice jumped when her daughter tugged on her skirt before looking at her with sorrow-filled eyes. "Are the soldiers going to take my doll?"

"No," Elice ruffled her little girl's hair. "Go back inside. Go to the cellar and don't come out until I tell you it's safe."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine." But Elice knew she might be lying to her child. She wasn't always fine when the soldiers invaded their home. "Now go and don't make me say it again. Stay there until I come for you."

Izzy nodded before she turned and walked through the parlor to the stairs leading to the cellar.

The Three Novellas in A Valentine Anthology are:

The Gift

The Lending Library by C.L. Kraemer

Chasing Rainbows by Genene Valleau





Sunday, February 12, 2012

What If You Have To Write A Novel With A Disney Movie Theme?




What if you had to choose a Disney movie to incorporate into a story of your own? This type of writing from fairytales seems to be the in thing right now. Lots of this type of story line on the new television shows--might have even replaced some of the vampire stories. For me this is a welcome relief.

Back to Disney movies, the most logical choices of course would be the romances. Wait a minute aren't most of them romances?

Not all, but could you write a modern day romance using, say, Lady and the Tramp. Of course, what do we have but the classic uptown chick and the downtown bad boy.

Beauty and the Beast is a classic and I believe many people have used this theme in their modern day romances. The beautiful heroine, after many trials, falls in love with the scarred hideous beast. There are so many variations of this theme.

Of course Cinderella comes to mind. A woman having to wait hand and foot on the evil stepmother and her horrendous demanding daughters. Everyone loves Cinderella and work night and day to help her. But not until the prince falls in love with her and has the strength to search for her is she freed from this horrible plight.

I think I would use a story like Lady and the Tramp. I've always liked the bad boy. But I think I would put a twist on this and instead of the bad boy, I'd have the bad girl. Of course the handsome rich young man from the richer communities would see through all her insecurities. He will not "tame" her because he loves her the way she is but he will find a way to help her see how really good she is.

What movie would you choose?