Texas Druids people Lyn's trilogy

Welcome Lyn. Please get comfortable and tell us a little about your writing adventure.

First, I'd like to thank you, Jean, for having me as your guest today.

What inspired you to write your first book?

While living near Chicago years ago, I read about the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and was inspired to write about a young woman who lives through the fire and later moves west in search of a new life. After many false starts, this led to my first historical romance. Sadly, it went unsold despite the best efforts of two different agents, but years later I dug the manuscript out of the dust bin and radically revised the story, adding a paranormal element. In November 2010, I self-published it as DARLIN’ DRUID, book one in my Texas Druids trilogy. Later, I published book two, DASHING DRUID, and a prequel novella titled WHITE WITCH – the story of the fire.

Do you see writing as a career?

Yes, I do. Writing is actually my second career. Trained in the visual arts, I worked as a fashion illustrator and art instructor for a number of years. After quitting work to raise my children, I took up writing as a creative outlet. This hobby soon grew into a love of historical research and the crafting of passionate love stories. Now, with five books published and a sixth due out in a few weeks, I view myself as a professional author.
 

Can you give us some details about your upcoming release/s?

I’d be glad to. DEAREST DRUID, Texas Druids book three, will be released at the end of April. This book stars Rose Devlin, the youngest of three psychic siblings who are descended from a secret line of Irish Druids. Rose possesses the gift of healing, a power that draws Native American cowboy Choctaw Jack to her in desperation. Set in Texas and the Indian Territory, ca. 1876, their sizzling romantic adventure concludes this unique series.

Do you belong to any non-writing organizations?

Yes, I belong to Delta Theta Tau, a national philanthropic sorority (no college affiliation.) My sorority sisters and I raise money for charitable organizations, both national and local. I’ve served as publicity chairman and secretary for our Fort Worth chapter.

Who are some of your favourite authors?

My favourite author is Diana Gabaldon. Her Outlander series is magnificent. I adore her main characters, Jamie and Claire, and greatly admire her historical settings and writing style. Other authors I enjoy reading are Linda Howard, Iris Johansen and Judith Ivory. Oh, and for a change of pace, James Patterson.

When you are not writing, what are your hobbies, passions, etc?

Well, I’m usually writing in one way or another – blogging, chatting with other authors online, scribbling ideas in a notebook, or typing away on my current project. When I do take time off, it’s usually to read, watch movies and favourite TV series such as Castle, The Mentalist, The Good wife, etc. Once in a while I manage to squeeze in a little gardening, although not nearly as much as I used to do. And of course I enjoy getting together with family, especially my grandkids.

Share three fun facts about you that most people don’t know.

1. I’m addicted to mint chocolate chip ice cream.
2. I frequently talk to inanimate objects, especially my computer when it decides to give me a hard time. Darn thing!
3. I dream of owning a summer home in Silver Plume, Colorado, a former boom town during the great silver mining era. Now called a “sleeping town” because it has so few year-round inhabitants, the hamlet sits on the side of a mountain and is my idea of heavenly seclusion. What a place to write!

Blurb

Dashing Druid (Texas Druids, Book II) ~~ Tye Devlin is an empath. Assailed by emotions from everyone around him, Tye has learned to block out most of the "racket". Yet, when he meets cowgirl Lil Crawford, he has no defense against her hidden pain, for it echoes his own.

Wounded by love, Lil guards her bruised heart behind a tough shell. When a handsome stranger with an Irish brogue calls her beautiful, she thinks he's mocking her, but she secretly wishes such a man might truly want her. Feuding families stand between the two and a perilous cattle drive pits them against menacing foes as they fight their personal demons. Is love worth the risks, and will Tye's gift prove to be a curse or a blessing?

Excerpt

Bosque County, Texas; July 1874

          “Consarned critter! Why’d you have to go and get stuck in there?” Lil Crawford muttered. She tugged harder on her rope in an effort to pull the bawling calf from the mud wallow it had wandered into. No luck. The animal was mired nearly up to his shoulders in thick clay gumbo. No matter how hard she pulled, she wasn’t going to get him out.

            Nearby, standing beside the creek that had carved out the treacherous wallow along the bank, the calf’s mamma lowed plaintively as if blaming Lil for her baby’s predicament. Sending her a baleful glare, Lil said, “It’s not my fault. You should’ve dropped him in the spring like you’re supposed to ’stead of in the middle of summer. Then maybe he’d be big enough to climb out of this dang mud.”

            Arms crossed, she studied the situation. She considered letting Major, her buckskin gelding, drag the calf out but feared injuring the little mite, possibly even breaking his neck. She sighed in disgust. There was no help for it; she’d have to get down in the mud and wrestle the calf out. It was either that or leave him there to die a slow, miserable death.

Dropping to the ground, she tugged off her boots and socks. She set them near the edge of the wallow, then rose, unbuckled her gun belt and laid it atop her footgear, where she could reach her six-shooter if need be. Her hat joined the pile for good measure.

            Lil took a deep breath, set her teeth and stepped into the wallow, cringing as she sank up to her knees in the gooey muck. It squished between her toes and clung to her legs, plastering her britches to her skin. It also stank of rotting grass and other things she’d as soon not name.

Crooning softly to the frightened calf, she wrapped her arms around his middle, coating her hands, arms and shirt with mud in the process. She braced herself, preparing to wrestle the animal free.

             A man’s deep-throated laugh caught her off guard. Jolted by the sound, she cried out in surprise and struggled to turn around, fighting the mud that imprisoned her legs. Once she succeeded, she stared, slack-jawed, at the stranger grinning at her from atop the most broken down nag she’d ever laid eyes on. The dude himself was a sight to behold. Togged out in a funny checked suit, with a derby hat atop jet-black hair, he made her lips twitch. However, her humor fled when she met his eyes. Brilliant blue, they shot sparks of light, brighter than the toothy grin splitting his handsome face.

“Sure’n I must be dreaming,” he said in a lilting Irish brogue. “Or are ye truly a lovely faery maid sent to enchant me?”

             His foolish question broke Lil’s frozen stare and roused her anger. She knew she was far from lovely, and right now she was covered with nasty muck besides. “Mister, I’m no fairy and I don’t take kindly to strangers who ride up on me with no warning. So you can just turn that bag of bones around and git. Right now!”

“Ah, colleen, will ye not grant this poor beggar a few moments of your company? ’Twould be my pleasure to help ye with the wee animal if ye like.”

             She snorted at his offer. “No thanks. I can get him out by myself. ’Sides, you wouldn’t want to muddy up your fancy suit, would you?” she drawled with a smirk.

 He looked down at himself and grimaced. “I take it ye don’t care for my fine attire.” Fine came out sounding like foin. “Well, you’re not the first. A layer of mud might not be such a bad thing, eh? With that in mind, will ye not reconsider and allow me to lend ye a hand?” He gave another roguish grin and splayed a hand over his heart. “In truth, your beauty so captivates me that I fear I cannot turn away.”

Lil bristled at his absurd comment. Certain he was making fun of her now, for her beauty would never captivate any man, she narrowed her eyes. She’d teach him, by criminy!

Without a word, she plowed through the mud over to where her belongings lay piled. She hastily wiped the worst of the mud from her hands onto the grassy embankment, then reached under her hat and drew her Colt. Coldly calm now, she turned to face the impudent stranger. It pleased her to see how fast he sobered with a gun aimed between his eyes.

“This is Double C land, mister. You’re trespassing. I could shoot you dead and nobody’d blame me. So unless you want a hole in your head bigger than your mouth, you’d best get moving.”

         Sighing, he crooked his lips. “As ye wish.” He tipped his hat to her, clumsily reined his horse around and started to leave, but then he pulled up and glanced at her over his shoulder. He held up his hands when she cocked her gun. “I’m going, colleen, never fear. But first, could ye be directing me to the Taylor place, by any chance?”

            Lil stared at him for a moment while questions raced through her head. Normally, she didn’t poke her nose into other folks’ business, but in this case . . . . “What do you want at the River T?” she demanded.

He frowned testily. “I mean no harm, if that’s what you’re thinking. I’m merely trying to find my sister. She’s wed to David Taylor. D’ye know him?”

Lil drew a sharp breath. “You’re Jessie’s brother?”

             “Aye, that I am. So ye do know them.”

             “I know them all right,” she gritted. She should’ve guessed who he was from his damned Irish accent and those blue eyes that were so much like his sister’s. The two looked a lot alike in other ways, too, except Jessie’s hair was dark red instead of black. And he was handsome, not beautiful.

Fiddlesticks! She didn’t care what he looked like. And she didn’t cotton to the way he was staring at her now, as if he was trying to see inside her head. It gave her an uneasy feeling. She wanted him gone. If giving him directions would get rid of him, so much the better.

           “Follow the creek. It’ll take you to their place,” she snapped, jerking her head in the downstream direction. “Now leave before my trigger finger slips. On purpose.”

He blinked and seemed to come back to himself. “I thank ye for your kind assistance, milady,” he said mockingly. Facing forward, he kicked his sorry mount into a stiff-legged trot and headed down the creek, bouncing in his saddle.

           Watching him, Lil snickered. He was a greenhorn if there ever was one, and he was going to be mighty sore tonight. She waited until he was well out of sight before laying her gun aside and returning her attention to the mired calf.

            By lifting and shoving with all of her might, she finally muscled the loudly complaining critter onto dry ground. Once there, she, not he, made straight for her mother. Without a backward glance or a single moo of gratitude, the pair trotted off in search of greener pastures. Not that there was much green grass to be found anywhere on the range at this time of year, Lil thought as she set about cleaning herself up.

A quick dunk in the creek rid her of most of the mud. Climbing out, she slapped her hat on, slung her gun belt over her saddle and mounted up barefoot, toting her boots to save them from getting wet. Then she directed Major toward her favorite swimming hole, about a mile upstream. She wanted more of a bath before heading home.

           As she rode, she couldn’t help thinking about her run-in with Jessie Taylor’s pesky brother. Still angry over his mocking remarks about her so-called beauty, she also found herself wondering if he was here for a short visit or if he meant to stay. Did David and Jessie know he was coming? Then she wondered what his name was. Wait, she’d heard Jessie’s maiden name once. It started with D. Doyle? No. Dillon? No. Devlin! His last name was Devlin. Not that it mattered.

 

Bess hooked on historical time travel

 Hi Bess, thank you for joining me today. Please get comfortable and tell us something about your writing adventure.

What books have most influenced your life most?

All the books on writing have inspired me. I’ve read and purchased so many. Some that come to mind. Stephen King’s “On Writing.” Ralph Keyes’s “The Courage to Write” and “The Writer’s Book of Hope,” Mary Pipher’s “Writing to Change the World.”

And Jude Devereaux’s “A Knight in Shining Armor.” I loved the time travel romance in that book.

Do you see writing as a career?

Yes, I do now, as of January 2013. For the first six years of my writing career, I did not, and in fact could not think of it as a career as I made very little money with a small press, but I recently dived into independent publishing (once a bad word), and I am making a small, but attractive profit from it, such that I finally feel like I’m being paid for writing and not just paying someone to let me write.

I hope I’ll write forever!

How many books have you written? Which is your favourite?

I’ve written twelve books since I began writing in 2006. Time travel romances are my favorite.

In which genre do you prefer to write and why?

I love writing time travel romances. Like all folks who read time travel romances, I enjoy the juxtaposition of one person dropped into another era. The most common is to have the lead character enter a historical era, but I’ve had my heroes come forward in time in ACROSS THE WINDS OF TIME and TOGETHER FOREVER IN TIME. While I do love bringing them forward in time, I “sense” readers prefer to enjoy the historical aspect of most time travel romances from their comments. I don’t write futuristic, so I can’t say if that’s a popular time for time travels.

Have you ever travelled to a place and come away with a story unexpectedly?

Always! Most of my books are set in locations where I’ve travelled...most, but not all. I’ve travelled extensively, and in my contemporaries, romantic suspenses and to some extent my time travel romances, I’ve been to all the locations...albeit in modern day. J Readers of my books know that I treat my locations and settings as a character.

Have you ever cried during a movie? If yes, which one and why?

All the time. I’m a crier. I also cry during some commercials, even if they’re not particularly meant to be sentimental. Gee, which movie did I last cry at would be an easier question? I actually shed some tears at the recent movie “Olympus Has Fallen.” In this case, there were scenes of the Pentagon (where I once worked) and the White House and the National Monument being attacked by planes, and that was just very, very difficult for me to take for obvious reasons.

I cry during a lot of Nicholas Sparks’ movies. In fact, my daughter hates to go to them because she says they’re always unhappy endings. That’s not accurate, but there you go!

I can’t think of any specific romantic movies I’ve cried at because I think I’ve cried at all of them, but I will say that the music is absolutely key to my emotion. The characters could be doing almost anything, but if the music is beautiful, then I’m sobbing. Anna and the King makes me cry. The music is spectacular on that one.

BLURB:

Stephen Sadler reluctantly attends the Seattle wedding of Robert Chamberlain to Ellie Standish, the woman who had captured his interest. There he says goodbye to the woman he thought he had fallen for. Only a few weeks later while traveling on a train, Stephen is confronted by the vision of a strange wild-haired woman in a pair of snug-fitting trousers called “jeans” who claims she doesn’t know where she is or how she came to be on his train—until she sees the date on the newspaper, that is.

Dani Douglas cannot travel through time! Her mother in Montana is ill, and she has to get back to her. But the crystal clear blue eyes of handsome Stephen Sadler hold her captive in 1901, and she doesn’t know how to leave him...perhaps forever.

Stephen realizes that Dani and Ellie have much in common, but where Ellie simply captured his interest, Dani has captured his imagination and his heart. Unlike Ellie though, Dani cannot stay, her mother is ill. Stephen doesn’t know how he can let her leave him...perhaps forever. As the train hurtles back and forth across the rails, Stephen and Dani struggle to find a way to be together forever across time.

EXCERPT from TOGETHER FOREVER ACROSS TIME

   “I thought I might have to rescue you,” Stephen said dryly when Dani emerged from the restroom. “Your hair, while quite beautiful, is very wild, isn’t it? I see you have made efforts to bring it under control.”

   Dani leaned against the wall for balance while the train rocked. She put a hand to her hair.

   “Does it look dumb?” she asked. “If I’m really in 1901, most women are wearing their hair up, aren’t they? Lucinda is.”

   Stephen nodded with a sigh. “That they are. I take it you are able to wear your hair down in your time.”

   Dani chuckled. “My time. That sounds so funny when you say it. But yes, we can wear it any which way we want. Even purple if we want.”

   Stephen surveyed her for a moment and looked toward the front of the compartment.

   “Shall we brave this again? I can walk in front of you.”

   “You know, Stephen, I’m not the one who is ashamed of my jeans. I’m quite comfortable in them, and I don’t mind if Lucinda sees them one little bit.”

   “Yes, I can see that,” Stephen said with a quirked eyebrow. “However, the scandal would be long lasting. I may not have met Mrs. Davies until today, but I am not unaware of who she is. I could not place the name when they first introduced themselves as I was understandably distracted.” His eyes dropped to her legs again before returning to her face. “But I remembered too late. She is a socialite, well known in Seattle, and her reach is far. I do not wish to immerse myself in such notoriety, nor do I wish you to become the fodder for gossip.”

Dani, her head swimming along with the movement of the train, grasped his jacket lapels and shook them.

   “Then why, for Pete’s sake, did you say I was your wife? How are you going to get out of that? Divorce? Murder?” She giggled foolishly. “You could have said I was your cousin or something.”

   “Miss Douglas, please try to control your chortling. It would not be acceptable for you to travel alone with me as my cousin. No one would believe that charade.”

   The train shifted again, and Dani, her hands still on his lapels, jerked for balance, bringing his face close to hers. Their eyes locked, and Stephen covered her hands with his own.

   “No one, Miss Douglas, would believe you are anything to me other than a woman who has captured my imagination...much as you have my coat.”

Buy link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BLS8U7U/ref=rdr_kindle_ext_tmb

Jean uses symbol and theme lift the most basic plot

Hi Jean, welcome to Adventures in Authorland. Pull up a chair, get comfortable and tell us about your adventure.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

Way back when I first learned C-A-T spelled a word.  Writing’s magic ability to world build has grown in me since then and shows no sign of stopping.  I consider that great good luck!

What books have influenced your life most?   

Jane Eyre with its indomitable heroine and moody masochistic Mr. Rochester had a profound influence on me in my teens.  The fact that Jane was a feminist and resisted Rochester’s attempt to make her his mistress escaped me on first youthful reading.  A good reason to revisit old favorites.

By analyzing fairy tales in The Uses of Enchantment, Bruno Bettelheim provided me with multiple examples of how symbol and theme can hide within the most basic of stories.  Enchantment was both a revelation and an education in how to pack meaning into plot and characters without ever letting the effort be obvious.

For sheer fun, I’m hooked on Nelson DeMille’s sassy character John Corey.  His wit and humor makes DeMille one of my all-time favorites.  I even got to shake his hand at a reading festival last year.  What a thrill!

Can you give us some details about your upcoming release?

Yes and yes!  I am currently writing a contemporary murder mystery series and having a ball with my amateur sleuth, Deva Dunne.  A young widow, she needs a change of scene and moves to sunny Florida.  In Killer Kitchens, the latest book in the series, her interior design business is thriving; she’s even snagged her first commercial design project, the La Cucina Restaurant.  Then disaster strikes, and the kitchen explodes.  As Deva says, “Just because the restaurant had Dynamite Shrimp on the menu is that any reason for the place to blow up?”

When you are not writing, what are your hobbies, passions, etc?

When I’m not writing, I really am writing.  Oh not with pen in hand or fingers on the mouse, but in my mind.  The characters, once released, refuse to go away.  So during

3 a.m. insomnia breaks, or while on the exercise bike, or out driving around town, I find Deva and Rossi and the killer all reappear.  And that’s great, that’s what keeps the plot moving forward.

What historical person would you want to meet and why?

Elizabeth I of England.  What a charismatic, brilliant old girl she was.  Walking through that minefield of intrigue and power grabbing that was the Tudor court of her day and not just surviving but prevailing.  She must have been both fascinating and impossible.

Share three fun facts about you that most people don’t know.

Three fun facts? Oh my gosh.

1. Well, I’d love to stretch out on top of a piano and belt out a torch song.
2. I met my husband on a street car.
3. Just as Australia has elected a woman prime minister, I’d like to see a woman elected president of the USA.

BLURB

Interior designer Deva Dunne just may have hit the jackpot.  Sure, her new client, Francesco Grandese, talks tough and has strange business connections, but he has the eye of a connoisseur, and a huge, empty mansion he wants her to decorate.

Deva’s boyfriend, police lieutenant Victor Rossi, has misgivings about her promising job—especially when he accompanies her to one of Francesco’s dinner parties.  After Francesco returns a dish to the kitchen untasted, the chauffeur promptly scarfs it down and drops dead from cyanide poisoning.

Has the killer made a terrible mistake and murdered the wrong person?  Or was the dead man the intended victim?  The only thing Deva knows for certain is someone present that night committed murder.  And it seems everyone—from the dinner guests to the kitchen help—has a motive.

EXCERPT

   “How about a little Pavarotti while we eat?” Francesco asked.

   “I wouldn’t advise it,” Rossi replied, smiling.

   “Yeah. Don’t want the cops here twice in one night. Just shows what kind of neighbors I got to put up with.”

   I shot a quick glance in Francesco’s direction. Did that mean he wanted to leave, wouldn’t go through with the restoration?

   He caught my glance and read my thought. “Not to worry, Deva. I’m nuts about this place. When Jewels and I are under air, I’ll blast the hell out of the sound system. Get the kids used to good music.”

   Cookie returned from her visit to the powder room and sat down rather gingerly. Then, rigid in her seat as if she feared contamination from some source close by, she sucked on her bourbon and ignored her shrimp.

   “You don’t care for shrimp?” I asked.

   “I’m enjoying my pre-dinner cocktail at the moment.”

   “I see. Well, when you’re ready, they’re delicious.”

   Like the shrimp, I was ignored. The woman sat sipping in silence until Norm whispered something in her ear.

   “You did what?” she asked, slurring her words ever so slightly.

   “Shh.”

   “You going to eat that shrimp?” Donny asked suddenly. The first full sentence I’d ever heard him utter.

   “Are you speaking to me?” Cookie asked.

   “Yes. You want the shrimp or not?”

   “I beg your pardon.”

   “That a yes or a no?”

   When she didn’t answer him, Donny shrugged. “I guess that’s a no.”

   While Donny found solace in his beer, Norman again whispered in Cookie’s ear. For Brahmins who worshipped correct behavior, wasn’t that rather rude?

   Cookie didn’t say a word but took something Norm handed her and concealed it on her lap. What on earth was that all about?

   Oh well. I turned to my shrimp, enjoying every morsel as well as Rossi’s hand on my knee, caressing me secretly, giving me bad boy glances from under those hooded lids.

   A few minutes later, though he hadn’t even touched his shrimp, Francesco announced,      “Time for the antipasto.”

   “These shrimp are scrumptious,” I said. “You don’t like yours either?”

   “I been eatin’ them all afternoon. I’m ready for some provolone and salami and a couple slices of tomato.” He tore off a chunk of warm bread and dipped it in a saucer of oil.

   What about his delicate stomach? I wondered as Chip and AudreyAnn cleared away the first course dishes. Donny must have taken his boss’s impatience as marching orders, for he stood too and, picking up his dish and Francesco’s, carried them out to the kitchen.

   As we waited for the antipasto to be served, Cookie and Norm sat in glum silence, draining their drinks. She had both hands on the tabletop, so whatever Norm had given her she’d put down somewhere. Her purse probably.

   “The party’s dying,” Francesco declared, jumping up. At the bar, he uncorked a bottle of Chianti, and poured some for everyone.  He returned to his seat and raised his wine on high. “Cin cin!” A ray of late-day sun struck his glass, and the Chianti glowed ruby red in the fading light. “Great color, huh?” he said to me and laughed.

   My glass halfway to my lips, I smiled. There was definitely something about Francesco that—

   A scream straight out of a horror movie rent the air.

Jean's Murder by Design Mystery Series is published in e-book and audio format, and will be due out in paper in July.

 http://www. Amazon.comhttp://www.CarinaPress.com

Rue inspired by Chaucer and Dante

Welcome to Rue Allyn. Thank you Rue for joining me today. Please get comfortable and tell us about your adventure.

Thank you so very much Jean for inviting me to visit your blog and readers. Since I’m still a relatively unknown author, I opted to answer your interview questions. It wasn’t easy. You asked some really tough and insightful questions. Nonetheless, I gave it my best shot. I hope everyone will leave a comment. Hearing from readers is this author’s greatest reward.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I don’t remember. I have always ‘written.’ Even before I learned how to form letters, I told stories. If you mean when did I begin to think of myself as a professional author, the answer is 1995.

What inspired you to write your first book?

I’ll re-interpret the question, if I may. I was inspired to write my first commercially viable romance when I completed my doctoral work in English Literature. Partly, I was inspired by the first ‘modern’ romances I read—Victoria Holt, Georgette Heyer, Kathleen Woodiwiss, et al. However, the tipping point that caused me to actually try my hand at writing commercial fiction was my doctoral dissertation. I had produced a very dry (and in my eyes pretty boring) 300-plus page tome on Middle English dream vision stories.  After years in pursuit of this degree, I was somewhat dis-enchanted with the study of literature. I liked reading stories much more than I liked writing about them. Every author is the first reader of his or her story. So I figured if I could write a dry as dust dissertation (because the conventions of that form tend to produce that kind of writing), I could write something much more fun and interesting. The logic isn’t very strong, but it turned out I was right.

What books have most influenced your life most?

Authors influence me more than specific books, and most of those wrote prior to 1500 AD. Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dante, Petrarch. . . . I could go on, but I’d rather answer another question.

What book are you reading now?

I’m about to start the third book of my Wildfire Love series, ONE DAY’S LOVING. So I’m reading a bunch of research books about Boston in 1870.

Do you see writing as a career?

Yes. Do I recommend it for everyone? No. You need a skin of steel not to break under the constant rejection of your work. You need to be independently wealthy unless your name is Nora Roberts. You need an education in the publishing and commercial writing business that is rarely offered at colleges and universities.

In which genre do you prefer to write and why?

I think you can tell from the list of authors who have inspired me that I prefer historical. One of the appeals of historical romance is that in certain periods and locations (medieval British Isles, and the American west from about 1865 to 1880) cultural rules and conventions were much more fluid. Another reason that I love historicals is that I read and write escapist fiction. I don’t want to spend my time with the things I see and hear about every day.

As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?

I said earlier that I have always written. I cannot see my life without writing. However, when I was six, my grandfather (from whom I learned storytelling) introduced me to opera and music in general. For about a year, I desperately wanted to be a diva, specifically a coloratura soprano. Sadly, I did not then or any time since have the voice for such an ambition.

Have you ever travelled to a place and come away with a story unexpectedly?

Unexpected story? The concept is completely alien to me. I expect stories, ideas, concepts to occur everywhere and everywhen.

Do you have any advice for new writers beginning their adventure?

Work hard (very hard) and be persistent or don’t bother.

Have you ever cried during a movie?

Oh yes, absolutely. You mean there are people who don’t cry at movies? There are so many films that moved me to tears. The two that come to mind immediately are Casablanca, An Affair to Remember, and ET. Oh darn, that’s three. Sigh! There is a very good reason I did not go into accounting as a profession.

Share three fun facts about you that most people don’t know.

I’m a gleek. I’m more interested in similarities than I am in differences. If I could take only one more trip outside the continental US it would be to the land down under: Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania with a short stop in the Hawaiian Islands.

My next book and first western historical, ONE MOMENT’S PLEASURE ~ Wildfire Love # 1 is due out March 18, 2013. Today Yippee!!! You may pre-order today at Amazon.com.

Now, here’s the blurb for ONE MOMENT’S PLEASURE for you to enjoy.

BLURB: ONE MOMENT’S PLEASURE will become a lifetime’s passion when spinster, Edith Alden, embarks on a search for her missing sister.  Pretending to be a rich bored woman looking for an interlude with an anonymous male Edith enters the San Francisco bordello where her sister was last seen. She escapes the bordello almost too easily, but she can’t escape the passion ignited by a stranger’s kiss. 

Born and raised in the brothels of the California gold rush, Dutch Trahern worked for years to erase a childhood spent committing petty crimes and worse in order to survive. That past comes back to haunt him in the form of a woman he rescues from prostitution. Now his hard won respectability is threatened by an irresistible desire for a woman he shouldn’t want.

Learn more about Rue at http://RueAllyn.com

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Blog:  http://rueallynauthorblog.com/

Loreen hooked on historicals

Hi Loreen, welcome to Adventures in Authorland. Please get comfortable and tell us about your adventure.

Thank you for having me on your blog, Jean.

What inspired you to write your first book?

I loved reading historical romances, and one day, I decided I could write one. When my youngest started school, I began my first book to see if I could finish. I did and started the second and then the third. The problem was I enjoyed the writing and creating aspect, and I never went back to edit the manuscripts. Around the fourth book, I decided if I was ever going to be published I had to edit. It is not my favorite part of writing.

What book are you reading now?

I am reading “One Good Earl Deserves A Lover” by Sarah MacLean. I like her books because her heroines are just a little bit different and her heroes are tormented by a previous event in their lives. Her books are filled with emotion.
 

In which genre do you prefer to write and why?

I love to read and write historical romance. Life was simpler and slower.  Since historical romances take place before World War II, the plot can be set in the fifteenth century for one book and the eighteenth century the next. I also enjoy learning about different time periods and events in history while researching.

Who are some of your favourite authors?

I love Johanna Lindsey’s and Catherine Coulter’s earlier historical romances. I also like Brenda Joyce, Sabrina Jeffries, Candace Camp, Shannon Drake, Teresa Medeiros, Joanna Bourne, and Pamela Clare.

Do you have any advice for new writers beginning their adventure? 

To never give up. I wrote for ten years before I had a story published. If you don’t continue to write and send your manuscripts to publishers, it will never happen.

Have you ever cried during a movie? If yes, which one and why?

I cry at any movie where the hero or heroine dies. That is why I read historical romances. The hero and heroine have to struggle through trials and tribulations but there is always a happy ending.

Can you tell us a little about your latest writing adventure, LOST HONOR?

  

Captain Morgan Danvers sets sail to rescue his brother, kidnapped by pirates. Fearing he will become like his father who abandoned him, he has cut himself off from his emotions. Then a willful stowaway crashes into his life, awakening dormant feelings and firing his lust. Soon he finds his all-important honor threatened, for even though he is betrothed to another, he is drawn to her against his will.

Arianna Pemberton hides in a barrel she thinks will be loaded on her brother's ship but lands on Morgan's brig. Her father has forbidden her to sail, and this is her only course of action. Unwilling to allow a man to control her, she is determined to make her way as a seaman, a profession she knows and loves. But when Captain Danvers discovers her deception, he refuses to permit her to prove herself. As she struggles to convince him, unwanted passion emerges, jeopardizing her plans for independence.

EXCERPT

   Shoved by powerful hands, she fell to her knees before booted feet. “Found her in the hold, Cap’n. Thought she was a boy at first, her wearin’ pants and a cap, but she has tits.”

    “I can see that, Jurgens.”

    Arianna followed the shiny boots up to tight-fitting, brown breeches hugging muscular thighs, and slim hips. A loose, white shirt covering broad shoulders next met her gaze, then a corded neck, square jaw, stern lips, crooked nose, and cold, dark eyes that stared down at her. “Where’s my brother? Who are you?”

    “I will be asking the questions. Who are you, and why are you on my ship?” The deep voice thundered through the cabin.

    Her stomach flip-flopped. Dizziness swamped her. Swallowing convulsively, she battled to contain the contents of her queasy stomach. Hiding in that empty molasses barrel hadn’t been the brightest idea of her twenty-one years. “I’m not talking to anyone but my brother.”

    Jurgens’s forceful hands yanked her to a standing position. “You answer the cap’n.”

    The abrupt movement snapped the fragile control she clung to. Spasms seized her throat. Arianna struggled to turn away, but the fingers digging into her arms held her in place. The contents of her stomach erupted.

    All over Captain Danvers’s boots.

    Her captor released her and jumped back in horror.

Lost Honor is available in e-book and paperback. You can view my books with buy links on my website www.loreenaugeri.com

Buy links

Amazon e-book

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Honor-ebook/dp/B00AD99TSM/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1362433938&sr=1-1&keywords=lost+honor

Amazon paperback

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Honor-Loreen-Augeri/dp/1612177298/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1362434027&sr=1-1&keywords=lost+honor

The Wild Rose Press paperback

http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=191&products_id=5144

The Wild Rose Press e-book

http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=195&products_id=5133