Where This Writer Finds Ideas

The author & her sons

Time spent volunteering can turn into something I can take back with me and put into a book. The New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival is an annual event that brings my family together. We live in North Carolina and the others live in upstate Vermont (so close to Canada you can smell the snow). Meeting up in the White Mountains of New Hampshire gives us a chance to spend quality time together, while we help NHScot.org promote Scottish life. Yes, and it gives me ideas for many more books. 

The first book came to me while working the games and happens to be my biggest seller. My Honorable Highlander teams up a present day woman attending the fictional New England Highland games and the laird of a clan in sixteenth century Scotland.

The book is available in ebook, print and audio, and is followed

10 hour Audio Book is available

by other full-length stories pairing people from these different times. The central theme includes Highland games.

Check out the buy links of all the books HERE

More photos to come....

Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Sorchia Dubois

I asked author Sorchia Dubois to share a little about her Zoraida Grey series. Take it away, Sorchia! 

Zoraida Grey and How She Helped Me Hide from Reality

I’m sure psychologists have a name for this condition and I’m sure many authors have been diagnosed with it. When the real world gets a little intense, we escape into our stories. My latest delusion is my Zoraida Grey series.

The series starts with Zoraida Grey and the Family Stones, now a finalist for a Prism Award. The award is offered by the Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal Romance Writers, a chapter of Romance Writers of America and I’m over the moon with excitement just to be a finalist. The winner won’t be announced until late July.

In Family Stones, Zoraida lands in a haunted Scottish castle which is a conglomeration of all the best parts of all the castles I’ve ever encountered. It has an enchanted ballroom floor, a haunted East Tower, an oubliette, an ancient tunnel leading to a crystal-encrusted cavern, and other oddities too numerous to mention. Building Castle Logan could be a book all by itself. She meets two seductive Scottish witches but neither one of them seems entirely on her side.

The next book in the series will be Zoraida Grey and the Voodoo Queen. To gather the clan for an assault on Castle Logan, Zoraida travels to the Caribbean to retrieve a wayward witch who has stepped into a huge pile of Voodoo. Before they can return to Scotland, Zoraida must cross the Gulf of Mexico in a modern-day pirate ship, survive a hurricane, slog through the Yucatan jungle, and battle a Voodoo priestess and her army of red-eyed minions. I hope to release it late this summer or early fall. It has been a blast to write!!

The final book in the series will be Zoraida Grey and the Pictish Runes. I already know it will involve even more spookiness at Castle Logan, quite a lot of steamy romance, dangerous plans to restore the witchy Logan clan to a power they’ve not enjoyed in centuries, and equally dangerous plans to stop them. I’m a sucker for a happy ending, but not all the characters will make it to the very end. If everything goes the way it should, I’ll release it before the new year—or soon thereafter.

Somewhere in the middle of these, I also have an anthology of Zoraida Grey short stories called Witchling in the works. It contains stories about Zoraida as a kid and as a young woman before the events in the series take place plus a couple of tales delving into Logan family history. I’d planned to send it out into the world in May, but I’m behind schedule. July or August is probably more like it.

I’ve had such fun writing the series and I think that translates into fun for readers. I’d love to hear what any of you think of it.

Writing is my chosen form of escapism. What’s yours? 

Book Blurb:

Granny’s dying, but Zoraida can save her with a magic crystal of smoky quartz. Too bad the crystal is in Scotland––in a haunted castle––guarded by mind-reading, psychopathic sorcerers.

Getting inside Castle Logan is easy. Getting out––not so much. Before she can snatch the stone, Zoraida stumbles into a family feud, uncovers a wicked ancient curse, and finds herself ensorcelled by not one but two handsome Scottish witches. Up to their necks in family intrigue and smack-dab in the middle of a simmering clan war, Zoraida and her best friend Zhu discover Granny hasn’t told them everything.

Not by a long shot.

Excerpt 

   Jade green walls contrast beautifully with the burnt oak trim. A wide casement window looks over the courtyard and across it to the darkened East Tower. Michael leads us to a glass case mounted on the wall. Milky jade stones glimmer against a black velvet background.

   “Rumor has it a clan member turned pirate once upon a time. The necklace is part of his hoarded treasure. Whatever its origin, it is a unique piece. Beautiful, exotic, and priceless. A perfect setting for our beautiful and exotic guest.” He dimples at Zhu and I think she might wrestle him to the floor and have her way with him. I am disgusted by how easily she falls for this.

   He turns to me and the force of the spell catches me full in the face. He touches my arm leading me to the door between my room and Zhu’s. A flush of warmth radiates from his hand and I follow him like a sheep.

   “Your room, Zoraida.” He caresses my name, saying it slowly, meeting my eyes. “We call it the Lilac Room. It once belonged to the bride of a Logan clansman. She suspected her husband of sorcery and had the bad taste to spread the rumor in the village. At the time—the mid-fourteen hundreds—witchcraft was frowned upon and I’m afraid the villagers actually marched to the castle en masse, torches blazing, to demand the clansman be burned at the stake.”

   “What happened?” Zhu’s eyes are still glassy. I consider whipping out my phone to take a picture of her so she can see what an idiot she is being. Then I catch a glimpse of myself in a framed mirror. I have the same stupid look. My reflection frowns back at me, the spell broken.

    “That particular clansman happened to be an authentic witch.” Shea speaks from the hallway and I nearly jump into Zhu’s arms, thinking Lorne Logan has come to make sure I behave myself. “He enchanted the villagers, murdered the wife, and lived to a ripe old age. Scotland is notorious for unhappy endings.”

Buy links:

Amazon    Wild Rose Press

Barnes and Noble    Kobo 

Author Bio:

Sorchia Dubois lives in the piney forest of the Missouri Ozarks with seven cats. She edits technical
writing part time, but she spends a number of hours each day tapping out paranormal romance, Gothic murder, and Scottish thrillers. A proud member of the Ross clan, Sorchia incorporates all things Celtic (especially Scottish) into her works. She can often be found swilling Scotch at Scottish festivals and watching kilted men toss large objects for no apparent reason. Connect with Sorchia here:

Blog/Website     Twitter     Pinterest:

Facebook    Amazon Author page

Goodreads  Author page    Google+

Cyber Monday Cover Reveal!

After releasing a story in the multi-author Boxed Set When Love Conquers Time, as well as a new series with SPARK and SMOKE, I put together four books in a new Boxed Set that will be released on December 5th. I want to thank author Paul A. Crust for creating a fabulous cover.

Highland Games Through Time includes three of my time travel romances set in the late 16th century, in and around the Highlands of Scotland, and at a fictitious modern-day Highland games in New England:

My Honorable Highlander

My Banished Highlander

My Reluctant Highlander

As a bonus, I have included

my award-winning novella

Dragon in the Mist.

Bought as separate ebooks, these 800+ pages would cost $12.96 

My Pre-Order price is

only 99 cents (US)

 Buy Links: Amazon     Amazon CAN     Amazon UK     Amazon Aus


Also consider these ebooks:

Buy HERE

Buy HERE

Release Day: SMOKE Bk#2 Clan of Dragons & GIVEAWAY

Please help me celebrate the release of my 2nd book in my Clan of Dragons series.

SMOKE is available in ebook and print.  

Blurb

How far will Wynn, a green and white dragon, go to save their species? An accidental meeting with a wolf-shifter leads him on a merry chase beneath the lure of the coming full moon. Will he follow her, or shift into a human to find a mate among the villagers? Dragons don’t wear plaide. Nancy Lee Badger brings you SMOKE, the 2nd book in her Clan of Dragon series. Join the hero, pirates, and Scottish villagers trying to survive in this historical paranormal with a humorous bent, set on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. 

Buy Links 

Amazon    Amazon CAN    

Amazon UK    Amazon AUS
Amazon PRINT
Barnes and Noble PRINT

<Coming Soon> 

B-A-M     Book Depository

Please enter my 

Scottish Dragon Giveaway

No purchase necessary

ENDS October 21st

You may enter using one or all of these methods

 (You NEVER have to do them all!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms & Conditions

No purchase necessary. Open to USA and International residents.  Due to shipping costs & food gifts, International winners will receive a selection of Nancy's ebooks. All entrants agree to me adding their names & emails to my Newsletter list, and will be eligible for future GIVEAWAYS. Info will NOT be shared.

SPARK, a Book Where Dragons and Horses Mix

Front Cover

Horses have been an irrational hobby of mine since childhood. I have a black & white photo somewhere of me riding a pony when I was 4 or 5. I had the biggest smile on my face. I think I was riding around the ring, somewhere in New Hampshire, and I was in heaven. Over the years, I have ridden horses in and around my Long Island, NY neighborhood, thanks to a neighbor who allowed the local kids to muck out the stall and lead the horses through the woods. I twice attended horse camp in Connecticut, and even went on a trail ride with my new husband while honeymooning on Prince Edward’s Island in Canada. I have collected ©Breyer Horse Models ever since I started earning an allowance, and now I include horses as characters in my brand new series, Clan of Dragons.

My latest release is Spark, the first book of the series. Spark is a Scottish paranormal romance full of dragons, shifters, pirates, wolves, and Scottish villagers on the island of Skye. The timeframe is somewhere in the early fifteenth century, and revolves around three dragons who happen to be brothers. They

Back Cover with Horse...Click to enlarge

have a big problem…the lack of female dragons. One brother likes to shift into a white wolf to run through the forests, and another turns into a huge antlered red stag. The youngest has not tried to shift into anything. Seems he has plenty of fun flying over Skye’s Black Cuillin Hills as a purple dragon. However, to get close to a human female, to see if they might be compatible, he shifts into a horse and winds his way into her life. Sometimes a writer has to follow the advice that says “Write what you know,” but writing paranormal romance means I can take that much farther. 

Smoke, the second book in my Clan of Dragons is already available for pre-order and will be released October 7th. I go a little out of my comfort zone by making the middle dragon one who enjoys shifting into a white wolf. The third book in the series, Smolder, follows their heartbroken older brother, a red stag-shifting dragon, who lost his mate and unborn babe to a hunter's arrow. 

Spark Buy Links:   Amazon    Amazon Can   Amazon UK   Amazon Aus

Smoke Buy Links: Amazon    Amazon Can   Amazon UK   Amazon Aus

  

 

My Hunted Highlander-Scottish Time Travel & GIVEAWAY

Would you like to win this Scottish Window sticker? First, let me tell you about my latest Scottish time travel romance. My Hunted Highlander takes place in two distinct locations. Can a location be a character in a romance novel? YES! 

The fictitious New England Highland Games are located in the present-day White Mountains of New Hampshire. The mountains in September, the oddly changing weather between this place and the wintry weather of the other locale, give my hero and heroine many problems to overcome, while falling in love.

The North Sea plays a vital part, as my hero starts the book by being rescued by pirates. When he escapes the Scottish pirates' hidden island, and heads to the mainland, the snow begins to fall. Keep warm with My Hunted Highlander!

Here is an excerpt from My Hunted Highlander, a full-length novel available in ebook & print:

   The small craft slipped into the surf. Niall jumped into the boat, and helped Blair climb in. Waves thundered nearby, and the memory of Blair’s crushed skiff made him set the oars into motion. Thrusting them into the turbulent sea, they rode over the waves, until the boat entered calmer water. Keegan unfurled the sail, and Blair worked the rudder.

   “What can I do?” Niall asked, after pulling in the oars, feeling slightly useless.

   “Take over when I tire. Right now, my adrenaline is making my blood race!”

   “Adrenel-what?”

   “Never mind. No time to explain. We have to get away, in case we’re followed.” She turned to her son. “Keegan, hide under that canvas and get some sleep.”

   Keegan nodded, then gazed up at her. “What happened? Why do we no’ take The Black Thistle?”

   She sighed. How much of their problem would she share with the lad? Though small, Keegan was smart. He trusted his mother. Niall did, as well.

   “Raven has mutinied against me. He tried to kill Balfour.”

   “Nay, I canno’ believe that.”

   “He tried to slay yer mother, as well, lad,” Niall added, “so ‘twas time to go.”

   The lad’s eyes widened, and he swallowed hard, but did not say another word. He had not burst into tears, even though they had left behind everything, and everyone, he knew. Once Keegan was safely secured beneath the tented canvas, Niall sat beside Blair, with the rudder between them.

   “He is a brave lad. Just like his mother.”

   She smiled, but the smile did not reach her eyes. “Yes, but he’s a handful. I could not have left without him.”

   “Understandable, Blair.”

   She visibly bristled, then her shoulders sagged. “Right. I am no longer the captain of a Scottish pirate ship. Now, I’m nothing.”

   “Nay, lass. Ye be more than a title. Yer a mother, a lover, and I wish to know more.”

   She smiled sheepishly. When her cheeks darkened beneath the moonlight, she cupped his cheek. “You know more about me, than most men.”

   “Aye, we have shared our bodies, yet I yearn to learn more about the woman.”

Amazon   NOOK   Smashwords     

iBooks   AllRomance   Amazon print

Barnes and Noble Print    Kobo

Books-A-Million    Book Depository           

Powells Books

Please Take a Moment to enter my 

GIVEAWAY!

One lucky reader will win a 

SCOTTISH DRAGON

WINDOW STICKER

which makes sense...since the drawing ends

October 31st... SAMHAIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Nancy Lee Badger Interviews Author Diana Cosby

Diana Cosby stopped by to answer a few intimate questions and to share her latest book. An Oath Broken is a Scottish medieval romantic suspense and will be released on June 22^nd. Please tell my readers a little bit about your book.  

Diana- An Oath Broken is the 2^nd book in The Oath Trilogy and is set on the border of England and Scotland. Wolfhaven Castle is damaged after a series of attacks. With peace falling upon the lands, Giric Armstrong, Earl of Terrick, is determined to rebuild his home — but he’s penniless. A proud man, to raise coin, he pretends to be a knight and accepts the task of escorting the English noble, Lady Sarra, to her betrothed. Except, the simple journey turns dangerous as Lady Sarra isn’t the only one determined to see her engagement fail, men with darker motives want to stop the wedding—even if they must kill the bride.

Nancy- Describe the genre of this particular title?  

Diana- An Oath Broken is a medieval romantic suspense. I enjoy writing romances, but I love writing action and adventure as well. So, I combined the two to create fast-paced stories that I hope my readers enjoy.

Nancy- Are you a plotter or a pantzer (Write by the seat of your pants)?

Diana- I’m a major plotter, and I’m fascinated by the challenge of weaving together the hero and heroine’s journey with plot, historical facts, and suspense.

Nancy- What is your writing routine like?

Diana- I work on some aspect of writing seven days a week. Monday through Friday, after my morning posts and e-mails are finished, I write. When I’m working on a rough draft, my goal is five new pages a day. On weekends, I take care of the business side of writing.

Nancy- What is one fact that you find amazing when you’re writing new pages?

Diana- I think the most incredible thing to me when I’m writing new pages is how out of the blue the character takes over. It’s amazing! I remember writing a scene in His Seduction where Griffin-the hero and the villain, who were at odds with each other from the start of the book, were travelling on horseback with the heroine. Griffin gets fed up with the villain, tells him to dismount because they’re having it out right there. What’s funny about this scene is that this wasn’t supposed to happen. I tried to rewrite it three times as Griffin and the villain couldn’t fight yet. Except, Griffin was angry at the bad guy and refused to cooperate. So, I ate dinner and wrote out the scene out by hand to see what happened. And, the brawl ended up increasing the tension between them, which for the story worked out great!

  

Nancy- Will you share some encouraging words for authors still struggling for that first contract? 

Diana- For those of you struggling to sell your first book, my advice is to believe in yourself and dare to go after your dreams. Only YOU can tell your story!  Each book teaches you how to write better. And that day that you sell and your editor asks, “What else do you have?” If you’ve written several books prior, you have a backlist to choose from. 

Please Share four fun facts about you that most people don’t know.

1)  For my final tour in the Navy, I re-enlisted on the back of a camel in Tangier, Morocco,

2)  When I lived in Alaska, I volunteered at a riding stable.

3)  In Hawaii, I participated on an outrigger team.

4)  I’m an amateur photographer, and I post photos on my Facebook author page. 

Update on Diana Cosby’s Romance Readers build a Habitat For Humanity Home

Goal – raise $55,000.  Total as of 1 June 2015:  $6,160!

Note: All donations, Paypal or via mail, go directly to the Grayson County, TX. Habitat For Humanity.  http://graysonhabitat.org/  

What’s next for you?

My next book will be An Oath Sworn, book #3 in The Oath Trilogy, which will be released on the 23^rd of December.

BOOK BLURB

Giric Armstrong, Earl of Terrick, takes no pleasure in escorting a feisty English lass to her betrothed. But he needs the coin to rebuild his castle, and his tenants need to eat. Yet the trip will not be the simple matter he imagined. For

Lady Sarra isn’t the only one determined to see her engagement fail. Men with darker motives want to stop the wedding—even if they must kill the bride in the process.

Excerpt Link for An Oath Broken   

http://www.dianacosby.com/anoathbroken.html#excerpt

How can my readers buy your book?

Readers can go to An Oath Broken’s page at:  http://www.dianacosby.com/anoathbroken.html#buy

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A retired Navy Chief, Diana Cosby is an international bestselling author of Scottish medieval romantic suspense.  Books in her award-winning MacGruder Brothers series are translated in five languages.  Diana has spoken at the Library of Congress, Lady Jane’s Salon in NYC, and appeared in Woman’s Day, on USA Today’s romance blog, “Happy Ever After,” MSN.com, Atlantic County Women Magazine, and Texoma Living Magazine.

After her career in the Navy, Diana dove into her passion – writing romance novels. With 34 moves behind her, she was anxious to create characters who reflected the amazing cultures and people she’s met throughout the world.   With the release of her 1st book in her new Scottish medieval The Oath Trilogy, An Oath Taken, which hit bestseller lists in Canada and the United Kingdom, as well as the release of the e Box Set of the MacGruder Brothers series, she’s now preparing for the release of  the last two books in The Oath trilogy, An Oath Broken – 22 June, and, An Oath Sworn – 23 December, 2015!

You can find more information 

about Diana Cosby here:

WEBSITE      Facebook

Goodreads    Amazon Author Page