The Appeal of Song of Salzburg

One of the joys of writing books is the human connection you create with readers. I felt this the most from writing Song of Salzburg and as I look back at the text and rethink the story, I am convinced it is in part because this book really touches on the journey of an artist. […]

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She will be Heard

While researching for A Lady’s Maid, I found myself on numerous occasions, standing up and pacing. “How?” “Why?” Even the teenage, “I can’t even…” all rushed through my mind. Then I would rush back to the screen, trying to puzzle through how a human could come to another and say, “We want our voice to […]

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Scarlet and the Art of Retellings

The nitty gritty about the first scene in Scarlet: I have wanted to talk about retellings for some time. What makes a good retelling? Do we want to stay in that world longer, and so as a reader we look for new characters in the same world? Or do we love the characters so much […]

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Can your Romance Stand Alone?

Can your Romance Stand Alone? A Tribute to the Clean, Proper and Sweet. and compelling, gritty, tense, angst ridden, smart and fun. As a historical romance author of clean fiction, I get asked every so often, “Is there a market for clean romance?” When I tell them, most exuberantly YES! Many adults nod their heads […]

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Red Caps, Eagles and the Sparrow

Complicated: the best word to use when describing England’s change to greater democracy. What could they do, with the French Revolution so close at their heels? Fear dictated much of the lawmaking. At the forefront, they wished to avoid the terror from across the channel. Undercurrents of resistance to change, the noble class’s feelings of […]

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Costumes, Heroines, Frenchies

“They seek him here. They seek him there. Those Frenchies seek him anywhere…” The Scarlet Pimpernel. A Tale of Two Cities. Les Miserables. I have a thing for the French Revolution. Where tragedy strikes, heroes rise. It always happens. When oppression grinds, freedom struggles against it. The human spirit beacons, like a fiery torch and […]

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Maid in Disguise

“Father.” Liz tried to reason with him. “His teeth protrude so far forward that he cannot even close his lips around them.” Not the largest of her concerns about his suitability, but one that surely her father would recognize. Chuckling while he glanced over the ledger on his desk, he responded, “Lizzy, Lizzy. Come now. […]

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