Thank goodness for leap years! I’m frantically writing this today. I got so caught up with planning out my latest work in progress that I forgot what side of the month we’re on.
Writing News ?
Last month, I mentioned I was finishing up my serial. It’s a
Norfolk countryside to coast family drama with countryman’s favours and
mustard. The story is all finished up now. I actually received an acceptance
for the final part straight after January’s blog post 😊
My newest serial is still in the proposal stage. This one
will be set in Suffolk (and from earlier posts you’ll guess where) with spooky
goings on, an attempted murder and a goat cart ride that goes horribly wrong.
My author copies for The Rogue Redcoat also arrived 🩷 This large print edition is available in UK libraries.
As for the kindle edition, here is the gorgeous cover created
by Marcia Dye. Now all I have to do is add the title.
As it’s a leap year, here’s a scene where my leading lady
decides to take the reins.
By Odin, she was stunning. He felt a stir within him. And
yet she was a nun, a woman wed to her Christian God, forbidden and untouchable.
It made her even more appealing.
“When I was at prayers,” she told him, “a vision came to me.
I must come to this heathen place and offer myself as your bride. And convert
you to the true faith.”
A held breath of silence, then the hall roared with outrage.
Grimulf hoped desperately she spoke the truth. His curse
hungered within him, snarling and pacing, whispering all were out to get him.
One night he might snap and kill them all.
This woman offered salvation. If she spoke true, he would
get on his knees and worship her.
– The Bride Who Rode in With the Storm, published by Satin Romance
WRITING TIPS @
This month’s writing tip is how I get inspiration for my story locations. It’s a hoarding problem I should probably curb, but I like to collect free maps and leaflets, particularly when Norfolk's Heritage Open Days are near. Often these will have little snippets of historical places of interest. I like to use them as a checklist for short story locations.
Local newspapers are another source of inspiration, even
just scrolling through their websites, particularly the nostalgia section. I
recently read about The Maritime House, which was known as the Sailors' House. It was a place where shipwrecked sailors would stay back in the late 1800s and it's definitely going to be the setting for a future Great Yarmouth story.
For my mustard serial, one of my scenes was directly
inspired by a card that I stumbled upon while desperately searching for a
notebook (and couldn’t find so I had to use said card to write in – I’ll share
it when the serial comes out).
When writing shorter stories, imagery is a great way of
creating a vivid scene in the reader’s mind. This doesn’t just apply to
historical stories. A modern story might have great characters and an emotional
connection, but might still need something else so it stands out. A unique setting could be that extra ingredient.
And, most important of all, get out and enjoy wandering
around that location (or stalking its streets on Google maps).
See you in March!
 |
| About the Author |
Kitty-Lydia Dye wanders the beaches for inspiration with her dog Bramble. Her historical fiction has been influenced by the local myths roaming the haunting landscape of the Norfolk marshes. Many of her short stories have appeared in The People's Friend magazine. She has also released a collection inspired by Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera. She enjoys knitting dog jumpers, gazing at the waves at night, exploring church ruins as well as taking part in amateur dramatics (and played the part of an evil flying monkey!)
No comments:
Post a Comment