Skip to main content

Little Tidbits about my Crescent Bay Series

Tugging on your heartstrings . . . 

Okay, Regency readers, just remember this:  I love you all and I love that you love my Regency romances!  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.  But my poor contemporary romances are languishing on the digital shelves . . . sigh!  :-(    Why?  I'm not sure because my beta readers and those who've reviewed them seem to like them, and I certainly enjoy writing them "almost" as much as I do my Regencies.  

So, I'm asking:  can you give them a shot?  These are not trashy stuff, I assure you.  Hey, I attended Catholic school from elementary through high school!  God forbid Sister Mary Joseph ever found out, I'd be dead meat .  . .

To start you off, my Crescent Bay series, book #1 and #2, go on sale tomorrow (May 2) through May 7 -- both will be free on Apple, B&N, Kobo and more -- here are the links for Hold You in My Heart and Straight from the Heart.  Unfortunately, Amazon will not let me reset the price to free unless I'm a "select KDP" author.  However, if you show them the offers at their competitors, I believe they'll honor the sale.

And, as so many of us Indie Authors ask, if you would leave an honest review on either or both, I would truly appreciate that.  So many of us depend upon reviews for future sales.

But now let's have a little fun, shall we? 

In Hold You, Amanda Gallagher opens a vintage home decor shop and her family members help her create various "rooms" throughout the shop.  Her cousin, Giana, creates a Boho corner (vintage hippie style) and I got the idea from a website and Justine Blakeley's book, Jungalow.  Awesome book!  Here's an example:

Takes your breath away, doesn't it?  Of course, my husband would run from the house screaming if I did this in the living room -- ha!  But I just love the bold designs and colors, especially during a dreary New England winter.  

Here's another image that inspired the side garden to Amanda's house where several scenes take place:


Not sure about the umbrella but you get the idea -- private, romantic and cool during the hot summer months.  The perfect setting for a romantic interlude, right?  

And who are Amanda Gallagher and Nate Russell?  

Sometimes a writer has images already in her head about her heroine and hero; sometimes not.  The two characters organically form as you write.  But for Amanda and Nate, I did have two distinct ideas for my characters.  Here are the posted images from Instagram:


I hope you'll give them a chance and read Hold You in My Heart.  Each time I finish a romance, I find myself a little sad to say goodbye to my characters.  If I can bring them back in the next book, great, and I think that's one reason so many authors create series -- they're reluctant to let go!  

Next blog posting will feature Giana and Ryan - completely different from Amanda and Nate, but just as much fun, in Straight from the Heart.  And naturally I'm already making notes for book #3, Heart's Journey, featuring Simone and Marc.  But in the meantime, I'm writing the final romance of my School of Sophistication, featuring Lady Caro and her long lost love, Julien Roberge, which should be ready for release in early June.  

Happy Reading!

Claire H.  

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

More Secondary Characters

As promised, I'm back with some tidbits of info on another favorite secondary character who has appeared in several of my Regency romances -- the Dowager Lady Rutherford. I needed a character who would balance out Lady Caro (see last week's blog entry), someone who was smart as a whip, tough and yet hiding a soft side.  The dowager seemed to fit the bill for when she first appears in Snowbound Seductions , she's ornery, feared by all (even the duke) and willing to use her ebony cane like a Scottish claymore. So, the first British actress who visually inspired me, mostly for the dowager's physical attributes is Phyllida Law.  If you're an Acorn TV or Brit Box fan, many of you will recognize Ms. Law. Phyllida Law She's appeared in so many series and movies, and is also known as Emma Thompson's mother.  She is a wonderful actress and, to me, captures how I visualize the dowager. And in my work-in-progress, Wicked Wagers , we'll see a b...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sources of Inspiration

I've been working on my first Regency romance novel and, although I've read most of Jane Austen and seen so many of the excellent BBC movie variations, one still needs a bit of inspiration when working through the writing. It's usually those small details, descriptive of the landscape or the manor house, that gives a work that added level of veracity, of impact for the reader.  Why else would readers want historical romance?  I have to think that it's the time period that intrigues, a bit like a time tunnel.  Go ahead, pick your period -- there's probably a romance set in each one. That's why I love Pinterest.  If you can control the time spent on the great "P" -- and that's a big "if" -- there's so much out there to help spark those imaginative ideas or get a writer over the hurdle of writer's block.  Here's a few that I chose to help keep me churning out those words: Image captured from Pinterest Wouldn't thi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Swimming in Brighton

As I work on the first draft of Betrayed in Brighton , I find I'm enjoying the research into the history of Brighton as a popular seaside resort for the Regency period of England. Think Cape Cod, early 1800s! Because of the oppressive heat wave in London during the Season, my characters will head to the shore and enjoy the restorative powers of sea bathing, fresh air and sunshine. The more I read about people bathing for medicinal reasons, the more intrigued I become. Numerous writers refer to this popular phenomenon, which became the thing to do in the mid-1700s. Brighton, late 1700s  (bathing huts heading into the sea) ca. 1829 - Dippers are on the left; lady preparing to undress; other women frolicing Jane Austen, Fanney Burney and even the Prince Regent went bathing in Brighton's chilly waters, usually guided by "dippers," men and women who aided their forays into the salty waters of the English Channel -- Franny Burney, August 1773 “Ever si...
Post a Comment
Read more