A Story is Born by Sherrie Hansen

Author Sherrie Hansen stopped by to share her latest 

BOOK BLAST!

Take it away, Sherrie!

The second I stepped out of the car and looked out over the tree-covered hills and valleys surrounding Loch Carran, Scotland, I knew I’d found the setting of my next book. It wasn’t just the beautiful view and the amazing pine trees, firs and wildflowers that lined the banks of the lake – it was the abandoned ferry station that led to nowhere, and the little strip of houses between the shoreline or Loch Carron and the steep hill behind. It was the soft, smooth, tartan wools woven with such intricate colors at the local woolen mill.

I’ve already started working on Golden Rod, the Wildflowers of Scotland novel that was born along that day in early June. It’s gotten me thinking – what is it about a place that reaches out and grabs a person’s attention and makes them want to spend a lifetime – or at least a book-life – there? I think the thing that first made me fall in love with St. Conan’s Kirk on Loch Awe, the setting of Wild Rose, my first Wildflowers of Scotland novel, was the fact that it was so over grown and tucked off the beaten path that we almost missed it. The quirky, eclectic architecture mirrored Rose Wilson’s personality perfectly; its lofty, stunning, reverent, holy feeling gave rise to Pastor Ian MacCraig.
The rainbow-colored waterfront reflected in the waters of Tobermory Bay, Isle of Mull,

Craigievar

was the first thing that drew me to the setting of Blue Belle, but it was the castles – Glengorm, Duart, and Torosay – that made me want to stay. A Spanish galleon that went down in the bay in 1588, fully loaded with gold, that’s supposedly never been recovered, cinched the deal.

There are a million reasons to love Eilean Donan Castle. The backdrop for Shy Violet was born of a lone bagpiper playing in front of the castle, a pirate boat docked offshore, and the absolutely delicious Castle Pâté I had for lunch on the day we visited.

Rabbit Hill Lodge, in my new release, Sweet William, is an actual inn (renamed to protect the innocent) we happened upon on the road from Loch Ness to Dorney. There was just something about the stone fence and the gate, and the pretty little tables all set for dinner that grabbed my attention. It didn’t take long before Lyndsie and William were in the kitchen, living out a real life episode of Chopped.

I thought maybe Sweet William was where my fascination with Scotland would end, but we returned to Scotland in June, and not unsurprisingly, toured two castles whose stories will become a part of my next book, Golden Rod. The first was Fyvie Castle in Aberdeenshire, whose Green Lady is said to haunt its halls to this day.  The second was Craigievar, a castle riddled with legends, including one that says the eldest son will never inherit.

Skye view

There’s also a farm in a valley, deep in the Isle of Skye, that beckons to me, and a seaside village, and a wee boothie surrounded by pastures dotted with sheep. One day, they may become a novel called Mountain Laurel, or Seaside Daisy, or who knows? Sometimes it’s a building, or a story, or even a name that captures my fancy. And a story is born.

Sherrie’s new release is Sweet William available HERE 

He’s a real sweetheart. She’s a wee bit tart. When Minnesota farm boy,
William McKnight, and sassy Scot, Lyndsie Morris, are forced to work
together in the kitchen of Rabbit Hill Lodge, the atmosphere is as charged
as an episode of Chopped. Will someone get cut, or will they find a recipe
that works? Things just start to get spicy when an angry bull butts his
way into the picture, and Lyndsie has to decide if she loves William more
than everyone and everything she holds dear.

Sherrie at Fyvie Castle

More About the Author
Twenty-five years ago, Sherrie Hansen rescued a dilapidated Victorian house from the bulldozer’s grips and turned it into a B&B and tea house, the Blue Belle Inn. Sherrie and her husband, Mark, who is a pastor, divide their time between two different houses, 85 miles apart. Sherrie writes murder mysteries and novels whenever she’s not working at her B&B or trying to be a good pastor’s wife. Her contemporary romantic suspense novels include Night and Day, Love Notes, and Thistle Down, Wild Rose,
Blue Belle, Shy Violet and Sweet William, her Wildflowers of Scotland novels.

You can see what Sherrie's up to at:
https://www.facebook.com/BlueBelleInn

http://sherriehansen.wordpress.com/

www.BlueBelleInn.com or www.BlueBelleBooks.com
https://twitter.com/SherrieHansen
https://www.pinterest.com/sherriebluebell/
http://www.amazon.com/Sherrie-Hansen/e/B007YXQJ4W/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1