WEEKEND WRITING WARRIORS #40

I've been sharing from Katherine, and I'm loving how the story is unfolding, but today I thought I'd share from a paranormal/time travel that I work on whenever I can't think of what to add to my current WIP. It's my stress reliever.

This is from Craven Desires. The image to the left is part of the cover. Dreamy, or what?

Ma'alcom, a dark Druid, has two goals. The most pressing one is to rule the clan. The only thing standing in his way is his cousin, Robert Douglas MacKinnon, Laird of Craven Castle and a powerful Druid in his own right. Ma'alcom has captured Laird Craven's wife and in order for Craven to claim her, he must fight a champion of Ma'alcom's choosing, a giant of a man, topping Craven by a good six inches.

Unbeknownst to all of them, Eve included, she has been imbued with Fae powers... well, that is for another snippet....but they're about to get a taste of what she can do.

I've done a bit of a time jump in this excerpt, in order to leave you on the edge of your computer chair.

Ma'alcom twisted the rope until it bit into her skin and tossed the remaining length of rope over the branch of a tree, stretching her arms until she was forced up onto the tips of her toes. She struggled to stay on the balls of her feet, to help ease the pull on her shoulders.

"Don't think your lover will save you with magic, for the area in which he'll fight my champion has been heavily warded," Ma'alcom bragged before he stepped away and surveyed her, much as an artist would assess a new painting. "Unfortunately, this means my magic will be rendered useless as well, but such is the sacrifice I'm willing to make in order to keep the battle fair."

Hours later, as the full moon rose to its zenith, Eve watched the two men circle each other, testing the other's reactions, gauging their skills. She knew Ma'alcom intended Craven to be distracted by the thought of her strung up on the edge of the warded boundary and prayed fervently he would win and---

Pain sliced through her leg and she involuntarily cried out. Ma'alcom raised his dagger and watched blood drip off the end of the blade. Momentarily diverted, Craven lowered his shield and the giant swung his mallet.

"No!," Eve cried out, and the wood became silent, leaving only her and Craven.

Ooooohhhh, what do you think happened?
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Manic Monday - Am I Crazy or What?

Yup. I've lost it. I'm participating in the National November Writing Month, #NaNo for short, or NaNoWriMo for more erudite folk. I'll be finishing up Man of Her Dreams (not sure if should add that to my word count or not....) and then I'm puttin' the hammer down on Craven Desires.

Love that story, but the characters are so interwoven, my inner editor always makes me stop. That's why I decided to do THIS story for #NaNo. During the month of November you are supposed to 'vomit' the words onto the page.

NO EDITING!!!

Aw, crap. I just used up my quota for exclamation points for the month. Anyway, I digress, we get the words on paper and 'then' we edit once complete. How hard can it be, right?

I'll find out. Oh, and I'm on vacation for eight days during the month. I don't think I'll want to bring my laptop to the Mayan Riviera - yes, groan with envy - but....I probably will to make myself feel like I could be productive. *snort*

#1LineWed

Today I left a teaser from one of my works in progress, Dark Desires. This will be book two of the Miatharan Chronicles and focuses on a delicious character - Cian.

An exiled Fae Prince

An Ancient Curse

Druid Father

Fae Mother

She's the Chosen One

Gives me goose bumps....



WEEKEND WRITING WARRIORS #8

Welcome to my weekly post for Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday, where all of us who are slogging in the writing trenches come up for air and share a brief snippet of what we're working on.

I've shared from my WIP - Man of Her Dreams, and WIP - Fiancé for Hire, but did you know I was also writing a paranormal/time travel historical romance? <-- say that five times fast.
When I get frustrated with my contemporary folk I take a trip to Scotland-circa 1605 and visit Laird Craven and his wife, Lady Evelyn.

I hope you enjoy this week's selection where Lady Evelyn has entered her bed chamber and discovers Laird Craven bathing in front of the fire. She demands to know why he's there and then has to close her eyes as he rises from the tub....

"Do ye remember when the old priest came out to welcome us?"

He prowled around her, smelling fresh, clean and....very Male. She stepped back and bumped into a wall, her breath quickening at the realization she was trapped.

"As ye ken, poor Father Cleirigh canna speak a word of English and relied on me to translate."

Evelyn knew that, but why did he bring this up now?

"Ye'll also remember I told ye the good Father asked if ye were in want of a good night's rest and warm food."

She did and recalled that she'd answered 'Aye', strangely pleased when the priest smiled a broad, almost toothless grin.

"What ye dinna realize - me Lady - the good Father had just recited marriage vows and ye most readily said 'Aye' to being my wife."

Her eyes flew open and she gasped. Craven stood in front of her, strong arms braced against the wall, boxing her in.

Yum

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#1LineWed

Today on Twitter's #1LineWed I shared a little bit from my paranormal/time travel romance ~ Craven Desires. I thought I'd expand the selection and give you a taste of the novel's villain, Ma'alcom.

Excerpt:

Ma'alcom spat out a curse, turned from the fire and faced the messenger, who recoiled. For the first time he believed the whispered stories about the strange one, who dabbled in the dark arts, twisting his Druid teachings into an evil force.

He took a step toward the him, and the messenger instinctively backed up. As Ma'alcom's eyes darkened, the boy noticed tattoos appear, almost as though a mask were slipping off his face. Behind his eyes, something dark slithered and disappeared. A voice so deep it couldn't be natural rumbled from the druid standing before him.

"Enough. When will the marriage take place?"

The power within Ma'alcom caused the boy to fall to his knees and he choked out the words.

"Laird Craven is at Inverness now. T'would seem her da is most anxious to have her wed, and wed quickly. No one knows why--"

Ma'alcom raised his hand and the messenger stopped talking. The fire hissed and crackled. After what seemed like an eternity, Ma'alcom spoke, his voice normal once again. Relief flooded through the boy and he took a deep, shaky breath. After tonight, he ne'er set foot in this house again.

"Did anyone see ye leave the keep?"

"Nay. I was most careful, as ye instructed. No one saw me leave."

"Good."

Ma'alcom moved behind the messenger, murmuring beneath his breath. A chilling numbness crept through the boy's body, binding his limbs in place, squeezing the air from his lungs. The last thing he felt was the blade of a knife slice between his ribs and through his heart.

I've never written a villain before. I'm usually your fluffy bunnies and white clouds kind of girl, but for an epic such as my Desire Series, you need a good villain. Hope you liked.

Desire Series will be coming out in 2016. Look for it then.