Sunshine Blog Award

Today I received a ‘Sunshine Blog Award’ from my friend Erin O’Quinn, who writes great historical novels about Ireland, and also provides a wealth of knowledge about Ireland and all things Irish on her blog  - http://erinsromance.wordpress.com/

 

 

Now I have to answer 8 questions

 

1. What is your favourite Christmas/festive movie?

 

Not sure I have a favourite, but if pushed, I’d probably say ‘Scrooge’, the musical version of ‘A Christmas Carol’ with Albert Finney playing Scrooge. There are some great songs in it.

 

2. What is your favourite flower?

 

Daffodils, because they mean winter’s over and spring is coming

 

3. What is your favourite non-alcoholic beverage?

 

Diet coke - I think I'm addicted to the stuff!

 

4. What is your passion?

 

Er – writing? To qualify that, I really struggle with the first draft of a novel, but once that’s done, I’m away. I love the editing and polishing stage best.

 

5. What is your favourite time of year?

 

My answer to #2 has probably already told you – Spring. Winter’s over, the nights start getting lighter, the air smells fresher, and the flowers start growing again.

 

6. What is your favourite time of day?

 

Evening as that’s when I do my writing. I’m a night owl and always say my brain starts to come awake about 9pm!

 

7. What is your favourite physical activity?

 

Because of my arthritis, I can’t do very much physically these days. When I was younger and fitter, I used to love walking in England’s Lake District. Now I have to rely on my memory and my ‘inner vision’ to recall the wonderful views from the tops of the mountains and alongside the lakes.

 

8.What is your favourite vacation?

 

The best vacation I ever had was a Nile Cruise, two years ago, when I saw the ancient sites I’d always dreamed of seeing, especially the Valley of the Kings and the Abu Simbel temples. That cruise inspired my next novel ‘His Only Option’ which comes out in November.

 

Thanks so much for this Award, Erin – and here are my 8 nominees to receive it from me:

 

Rosemary Gemmell, Jennifer Wilck, Celia Yeary, Joanne Stewart, Nancy Jardine, Suzie Tullett, Glynis Smy and Gilli Allan

Six Sentence Sunday

Six more sentences from ‘Changing the Future’. For those who have been following my previous excerpts, I’m jumping ahead now to three chapters before the end.

 

After a blistering fight which ended all Lisa and Paul’s efforts at reconciliation, Paul has gone to Iceland. Lisa is in her room at college one morning when Ralph Glover calls her.

 

“Get yourself to a TV,” Ralph said.

 

“Why?”

 

“Mount Lakuda has erupted, it’s breaking news, and Paul’s over there”

 

“Yes, I know, he went to Iceland last — ”

 

“Lisa, they’ve lost contact with the team at the observation post on Lakuda. I’m trying to find out just where Paul is.”

 

Blurb: Lisa Marshall is stunned when celebrated volcanologist Paul Hamilton comes back into her life at the college where she now teaches. Despite their acrimonious break-up several years earlier, they soon realise the magnetic attraction between them is stronger than ever. However, the past is still part of the present, not least when Paul discovers Lisa has a young son. They can’t change that past, but will it take a volcanic eruption to help them change the future?

 

'Changing the Future' is available at $3.99 on Amazon

 

Many thanks for all your comments each week!

 

Read more 6 sentence excerpts from the other Six Sentence Sunday authors here.

 

 

Thursday Tour of NW England - Trawden

Trawden is a village in East Lancashire. In medieval times, the area of Trawden Forest belonged to the King, and only he and his retainers were allowed to hunt there.

There were probably scattered homesteads, and some area were converted to ‘vaccaries’ where the ordinary people were allowed to graze their cattle.

From the beginning of the 16th century, more clearings were made, and small hamlets started to form, with a few homes. Most people were agricultural labourers while others worked as trades such as blacksmiths or carpenters.

The big change came in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the labourers started to supplement their income with handloom weaving in their own homes. After the invention of spinning and weaving machines, cotton mills were built. More houses were needed for the mill workers, and the area between the hamlets was gradually filled by these houses.

Trawden had several mills, but most have now been demolished or converted into apartments.

My interest in Trawden stems from the fact that my mother’s maternal ancestors originated in this area. I’ve been able to trace them back to the 17th century, when William Waddington was born at Winewall (part of Trawden) in 1685. This was about a mile from where my grandmother, Lucy Waddington, was born just 200 years later. She worked in one of the cotton mills from the age of 12, as did all her siblings, and also many of her ancestors, who all lived in the Trawden area.

 

This was my grandmother’s home in the 1890’s, in one of the small houses built by mill owner for his workers. Two of her father’s brothers and his sister also lived in other houses in this terrace, most with 8 or 9 children each! The houses had two small rooms downstairs, and three upstairs (but no bathrooms, just an outbuilding at the back of the house)

 

And here, just to show how little the area has changed, is a postcard sent to my grandmother in 1937, followed by my own photo of the same road in 2001. The main difference is that the cotton mill on the 1937 photo has now been demolished.

Six Sentence Sunday

Six more sentences from ‘Changing the Future’. At the end of the first week, Lisa and Paul are forced to meet again when a group of staff go to an Italian restaurant for lunch. It seemed to Lisa that Paul was making deliberate, although veiled, references to their past life together. Back at college, they have another brief spat and Lisa tells Paul she can’t think of the good times they had together, only the bad.

 

She caught a glimpse of Paul’s small shrug before she pushed open the door and took a deep breath of fresh air.

 

Was his shrug ironic, regretful or something else? She wasn’t sure. Thoughts whirled through her mind until she let out a brief frustrated sigh.

 

Why did she even care what he thought anymore? If he still believed she was involved with Ralph, it was his problem, not hers.

 

Blurb: Lisa Marshall is stunned when celebrated volcanologist Paul Hamilton comes back into her life at the college where she now teaches. Despite their acrimonious break-up several years earlier, they soon realise the magnetic attraction between them is stronger than ever. However, the past is still part of the present, not least when Paul discovers Lisa has a young son. They can’t change that past, but will it take a volcanic eruption to help them change the future?

 

The latest 5 star review says:  If you're looking for an extremely well constructed, sweet, cosy read then Paula Martin delivers it well in Changing The Future

 

'Changing the Future' is available at $3.99 on Amazon

 

Read more 6 sentence excerpts from the other Six Sentence Sunday authors here.

 

Witches, a Ghost and a Bloodstain

Today's stop on my tour of NW England is Salmesbury, a small village in the Ribble Valley. It’s pronounced ‘Sarms-berry’ and the name comes from the Old English ‘sceamol’ meaning ledge, and ‘burh’ meaning fortification.

 

Those of you who remember my post about the Pendle witches may be interested to know that three Salmesbury women – Jane Southworth, Jennet Brierley and Ellen Brierley – were charged during the same series of trials in 1612 as the Pendle witches.. As with the Pendle women, it was a young girl who accused them of witchcraft. Grace Sowerbutts aged 14 said the Brierley women (her grandmother and aunt) were able to transform themselves into dogs which haunted her. She also said the women had taken her to the home of Thomas Walshman and his wife, and had stolen their baby in order to suck its blood. The baby died the following night, but Grace said the woman dug up its body and took it home. They then cooked and ate part of it, and used the rest to make an ointment which enable them to change into different shapes. Later Grace admitted the stories were not true, and the women were found not guilty of the charges of child murder and cannibalism.

 

Salmesbury Hall was owned by the Southworth Family, and is reputed to be haunted by the ghost of Lady Dorothy Southworth, known as the ‘White Lady’. In the 17th century, the Southworths were strong Roman Catholics, but Dorothy fell in love a young man from the Protestant de Hoghton family. The young lovers, although forbidden to meet, still met in secret and planned to elope. Dorothy’s brother discovered their plan, ambushed the young man and his two retainers, and killed them all. Dorothy was then sent to a convent abroad where she became insane due to her grief and soon died.

 

Her ghost has been seen around the house and also near to the spot where her lover was killed. Many visitors to the house have also heard the sound of weeping, and the rustle of long skirts in the galleries and corridors. There are even reports of motorists on the nearby main road stopping to pick up a lady in white – who then disappeared.

 

In the late 1800’s, three bodies were discovered when drains were being laid nearby – maybe the luckless young lover and his squires?

 

Another story about Salmesbury Hall concerns a priest who took refuge there when Catholic priests were being persecuted during Elizabeth I’s reign. He was hidden in a small, secret room known as a priest-hole, but unfortunately for him, he had been followed. Soldiers broke into the room and beheaded him on the spot. Legend has it that the floor was stained so badly with his blood that no-one was able to wash it way. The room was bricked up for 300 years, but when it was opened in 1898, the servants refused to go in until the floorboards were replaced. Even so, there are reports that the bloodstain continues to re-appear, even to this day!

Photo of Salmesbury Hall © Copyright Alexander P Kapp and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

 

Romancing the Hop - winner!

The winning comment on last weekend’s ‘Romancing the Hop’ bloghop came from Allyson. In response to my question about the most thrilling aspect of falling in love, she wrote:

 

The butterflies in your stomach when that person walks in the room...How you have each other’s complete attention...That first dance when everyone else in the room disappears...then it can be the simple things that let you know you care...

 

I loved this description!

 

There were many other excellent descriptions too. Anticipation figured highly, but here are some other descriptions:

 

- the whole romance of attraction - even with those seemingly out of our reach

- finding out about the other person. Kinda like unwrapping a nummy piece of chocolate

- the romantic tension, the lingering looks and tentative touches

- the tingling feeling and the feeling of complete and utter comfort

- discovering new things about each other and finding out new things you have in common

- the whole world looks different and you feel like a different person, too

- making a unique connection with another person

- it's like starting a new journey. everything is thrilling

- exploring all the differences that each person brings to the relationship

- the surprises

- the trust and respect built between the characters

- how just a look from them can make you blush, and how their touch can just set you off

- It's kind of like a feeling of being high

- being with that person makes everything all better. Like nothing can go wrong is his arms.

- the realization that they are "the one". That moment when it clicks that after waiting and looking for your other half, you've finally found them.

- all the feelings are new, intense and beautiful!

- the growing intimacy and chemistry {non sexual} between people.

- you get all tingly when you know you're gonna see him real soon

- that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know you are about to see or talk to the person that you have fallen in love with.

- The yearning and all encompassing feeling for that person... magic

- the beginning when you first realize they like you too

- the knowing that you love them for who they are and they love you for the same

 

And last but not least:

The most thrilling aspect of falling in love has to be the "honeymoon" phase when reality hasn't hit and you're madly in love. Of course if you can last beyond that stage, then you can reap the rewards of a loving and committed relationship.

 

I do use a lot of these emotions in my contemporary romances. If we can bring all these things into our stories, we’ll keep everyone happy!

Six Sentence Sunday

If you’re visiting my ‘Romancing the Hop’ post, please scroll down to the end of this Six Sentence Sunday post or click here - although you can always read this post too, of course!

 

Thank you all again to all the Sunday Sixers for visiting my blog and leaving such encouraging comments for me!

 

Six more sentences from ‘Changing the Future’. At the end of the first week, Lisa and Paul are forced to meet again when a group of staff go to an Italian restaurant for lunch. It seemed to Lisa that Paul was making deliberate, although veiled, references to their past life together. Back at college, they have another brief spat.

 

As she turned towards the main door, his voice stopped her. “No references to the past then, Lisa? Not even the good times?”

 

She stopped, bit her lower lip hard as memories flooded through her, and then looked back at him. “I can only think of the bad times, Paul.”

 

She caught a glimpse of his small shrug before she pushed open the door and took a deep breath of fresh air.

 

Blurb: Lisa Marshall is stunned when celebrated volcanologist Paul Hamilton comes back into her life at the college where she now teaches. Despite their acrimonious break-up several years earlier, they soon realise the magnetic attraction between them is stronger than ever. However, the past is still part of the present, not least when Paul discovers Lisa has a young son. They can’t change that past, but will it take a volcanic eruption to help them change the future?

 

'Changing the Future' is available at $3.99 on Amazon

 

Read more 6 sentence excerpts from the other Six Sentence Sunday authors here.

 

 

Or stop a while longer to read my 'Romancing the Hop' post below and leave a comment for a chance to win one of my novels. There are lots of other prizes from over 200 'hoppers', plus 3 Grand prizes!