by Roseanna White | Sep 16, 2010 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
So, there’s an awesome new site debuting in October, and as an official sponsor (well, the Christian Review of Books is), I feel the need to let y’all know about it. Cuz it is cool.
Clash of the Titles (www.ClashoftheTitles.com) is a place “Where authors battle and readers judge.” Here’s the setup. Two published authors submit excerpts from their books in a certain theme (best kiss, smoothest conversion scene, best nature description, etc.). The two selections are published–but the readers don’t know who the authors are. Readers vote based solely on which snippet they think best captures the theme.
Mid-week, the results are tallied and the winners are announced, along with the knowledge of who wrote what. The authors and their books are promoted, and readers get a chance to win a signed book–and meet some new authors they now know they’ll love!
I adore this idea and have already submitted something–though mum’s the word on what or when. 😉
Readers, writers–you have GOT to check this site out! It’s going to be a ton of fun. How often do you get to do a blind taste-test when it comes to books??
Hop on over to get a feel for things, and when it goes live in a month, visit weekly to vote for The Worthiest!
by Roseanna White | Sep 15, 2010 | Remember When Wednesdays, Uncategorized
Okay, so since I’m on vacation right now (mwa ha ha ha!) I’m cheating and cross-posting something for a friend. And since she writes historical fiction and this is my historical day . . . works pretty well. =)
So, dig in and learn a little about Rita Gerlach’s wonderful Revolution-era romance, Surrender the Wind. Enjoy!
~*~
~ When a
n American patriot of the Revolution inherits his grandfather’s estate in faraway England, he inherits more than an isolated manor house. He discovers Juleah’s love and a plot that leads to kidnapping, murder, and betrayal, in this stirring tale of fidelity and forgiveness. ~
Instead of answering interview questions, I’m commenting on some quotes from reviewers to give my readers a deeper glimpse into the storyline in Surrender the Wind.
* * *
From author Marylu Tyndall ~ Ms. Gerlach’s historic research is evident throughout the story, and her attention to detail and literary descriptions of scenes placed me right in the middle of the action.
If a writer wishes to write a historical novel, research is a vital, essential part of developing a great story. When I began Surrender the Wind, I read numerous accountants of the Battle of Yorktown where the book opens in the prologue. I researched uniforms, dress, weaponry, food, and culture.
As the book moves forward into Chapter 1, the reader is taken to England, to a crumbling manor house in Devonshire. The historical research from this point on had to be in the details. I wanted my reader to see in their mind the scene, outdoors and indoors. Everything from a tallow candle in the socket of a brass candlestick, to the blue and white pitcher and bowl on the heroine’s washing table, adds strong visual imagery. My editor told me once that a place can become a character in a book. I feel that is true for Ten Width Manor. It’s walls hold secrets of lives past and present in the story. Because it is the ancestral home of the Braxtons, Ten Width has a stronghold on those living in it.
Then there are the historical cultural markings in a book that make up the characters. Dress. Etiquette. Traditional family life. I studied 18th century wills and marriage customs, the fashions of the period, and how the classes interacted with each other.
* * *
From author Linda Clare ~ The American Revolutionary period comes to life as Gerlach explores themes of patriotism with a faith element.
In America today there is a resurgence of patriotism. We are returning to our roots, our Constitution, and faith. In the 18th century faith played a major role in the lives of people in both the Colonies and United Kingdom. In Surrender the Wind, I bring faith into the story as a lifestyle. It is delicately woven into the characters’ personalities. One thing I did not want to do is write a ‘religious novel’. My goal was to write a novel where readers would become immersed into the characters by relating to the struggles they faced which bring about spiritual breakthroughs.
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From Annette Temple ~ A Well-Watered Garden Blog’ This book is one of the most romantic books I’ve ever read. The passion and love that is poetically described between Seth and Juleah was rousing.
I am so grateful to Annette for this comment. She helped me realize that I achieved my goal. Most of us ladies want a bit of romance in our stories, don’t we? We want a hero that is tough with the world, but tender with his lady. And a heroine that is strong in the face of tribulation, but swept away by the love of a man. Romance in a novel, in my opinion, is the most intriguing when what is written is just enough to leave the rest up to the reader’s imagination. In Christian fiction a writer brings out romance deftly, love that goes beyond the material, but deeper into the heart and spirit of the characters.
I’ll close here with a romantic excerpt from Surrender the Wind . It is Seth and Juleah’s wedding night. I hope you will consider reading my novel, and keep an eye out for the release of book 1 in a new series, Daughters of the Potomac, coming out in May, 2012, entitled ‘Before the Scarlet Dawn’.
* * * * * *
In his bedchamber, which they now shared, Juleah slipped on her silk nightdress. Thin white ribbons laced the front. She sat at the dressing table brushing her hair. Tinted with the golden splendor of the candles, she smoothed it over her shoulder and ran her fingers down its length. Excitement filled her, tripped over her skin along with desire. She glanced around the room. How masculine it appeared. A fresh coat of paint would improve its appearance, and white curtains over the windows would bring it warmth and light.
She set the candlestick on the table next to their bed. The brass clock on the mantelpiece chimed out the hour. She paused to listen to the musical sound it made, while she pulled down the coverlet. The door drifted open. Seth came inside, shut it, and proceeded to pull off his waistcoat.
“Ah, have you seen the moon?” She opened the drapes wide to let the moonlight pour in. It bathed the room soft blue. “Is it not lovely, Seth?”
He joined her at the window. Wrapping his arms around his wife’s waist, he stood close behind her. His breath brushed against her neck and she sighed.
He whispered in her ear. “Doubt thou the stars are fire. Doubt that the sun doth move. Doubt truth to be a liar. But never doubt I love.”
It pleased her that he, a Virginian rebel, had memorized the beauty of Shakespeare’s verses. Melting with longing, she turned to him. He took her into his arms. She reached up and pushed back a lock of hair that fell over his brow. “I will never doubt your love, not for anything in the world.”
He brought his lips to hers and she strained against him. Love rose within each heart. He lifted her, and her feet dangled above the floor. Holding her, he kissed her, turned with Juleah toward their bed, and took his bride away from the window.
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Read Chapter One: http://www.abingdonpress.com/forms/displayImage.aspx?pcid=1173111
Rita’s Website: http://www.ritagerlach.com/index.html
Surrender the Wind is available wherever books are sold. Kindle additions available from Amazon.com
Cokesbury Bookstore is having an amazing sale. http://www.cokesbury.com/forms/ProductDetail.aspx?pid=783958
by Roseanna White | Sep 14, 2010 | Uncategorized
Can I just say that I miss chick lit? I’m not sure why it went out of style, but there’s something about those insecure young heroines with a quirky outlook that inevitably sucks me in. And you know, I occasionally need a break from heavy, serious works–when that happens, this genre is just perfect. They still deal with the real issues, but they do it in a light voice.
Last month I e-met (how’s that for coining a phrase? LOL) Sandra Byrd, who was interested in joining one of the historical groups I belong to. She has a Tudor-era novel coming out from Howard next year and loves this new direction of her career. Now, though, she has some YA books out, and a chick lit series. We did a book swap–I sent her Stray Drop, and she sent me these contemporaries. =)
I just finished reading the first one, and I gotta say, I love it. The heroine, Lexi, is a fairly recent college grad who majored in French studies . . . and now can’t find a job. Certainly not in her area of interest. As a result, she’s living at home again–and can’t find a guy. But with her parents selling their house and moving to a retirement community in six months, Lexi’s on the clock. It’s time to get her life together–fast. Can the fabulous French bakery–and the fabulous French baker–be the answer to her stilted prayers?
But nothing’s easy, not even something she loves as much as working at L’Esperance. She somehow manages to flub a huge order for a cute professional, and when he asks her what he’s supposed to do, she snaps, “Let them eat cake!” Something snaps inside her too–it’s high time she stop trying to please everyone else in her life and work on pleasing God. Chasing her own dreams, no one else’s. Viva la revolution!
Personally, I was hooked from the first page. Each chapter starts with a French quote translated into English, and what woman wouldn’t love this one? :
Chaque personne sait où sa chaussure pince.
Each woman knows where her shoe pinches.
And that is the summation of life through the eyes of Lexi Stuart. She knows where her problems are–but just like those fave shoes that rub, but which you just can’t get rid of, it isn’t a matter of obliterating your problems. It’s a matter of working with them.
As I was reading, I couldn’t wait to see what Lexi would get into next! Where her rêves, her dreams, would take her. And how many blisters her over-priced shoes rubbed along the way. 😉
(Adorable note–my kids sat there yesterday trying to decide which of the petit fours on the cover would be tastiest and them pretended to munch them. =) Xoe, of course, favored the pink heart-shaped one in the middle. Rowyn wanted the German chocolate one on the back. )
by Roseanna White | Sep 13, 2010 | Uncategorized
Given that I’m yet again staring out at the Atlantic (ah, bliss!), this seems like a perfect topic for today–especially because coming down to the Outer Banks inevitably reminds me of the contemporary novels I set here.
I know I’ve talked a bit about Yesterday’s Tides before, but I can never think of it enough. =) This is one of those stories that totally obsesses me every time I work on it. There’s something about the life of Louisa, my single mom to twins, that inspires me and consumes me. It’s not just that she’s brilliant, that she’s so very dedicated to her family. It is, in part, this place. And the fact that she’s so tied to it.
This is one of those stories that couldn’t have been set anywhere else. Louisa belongs to the Outer Banks. In a lot of ways, she is the ocean. Steady, but not always predictable. Deep, and not always safe. Yet also nurturing and welcoming. A life source.
I always expect to see Louisa sauntering up the beach when I’m here. Who knows. Maybe someday I will. =)
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.