Monthly Archives: January 2014

Jan 31 2014

I’ll Be All Right WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM SFR Brigade Presents

THE SFRB Presents(The link is here to find this week’s excerpts from novels or WIP written by other Science Fiction Romance Brigade group members. A fun way to sample new books!)

Here’s the next excerpt from  WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM, which I was really pleased to see on the Rabid Readers Reads Best Of List for 2013.

The small party of survivors has discovered some really bad things about events surrounding the wreck. They’ve been to the Hold to collect Nick’s blasters and an important piece of gear which he just used to try calling for a rescue ship. The technology is only issued to members of the Sectors Special Forces (which he happens to be) for specific missions. He managed to contact two ships close enough to attempt a rescue. One was a mysterious freighter. This snippet follows directly after the last one I shared on January 3rd. Nick has to destroy the secret technology he used to call for help.

Until he finished the destruction of the transmitter, he couldn’t give in to the weariness now settling like a physical weight on his entire body. I have to rest.  “So, if you don’t mind, let me do my sworn duty and blast this piece of top-secret technology into smoldering fragments, okay?”

Mara walked away a few steps, giving him a clear shot. “You’re the expert here, do whatever you have to do – blast away,” she invited with a wave.

“Don’t blow any new holes in the ship, okay?” Twilka muttered loudly enough to be heard.

Nick chose to ignore the Socialite’s comment. Teasing or serious, she could get annoying.

The next second, the fastlink transmitter was no more. The deck glowed cherry red where his blaster beam had struck.

Holstering his weapon, Nick staggered to the nearest bench, where he sank down next to Lady Damais, who moved her tiny feet aside obligingly. Putting his head in his hands, he realized his whole body was shaking.

Rubbing his back, Mara said, “You have to rest now, right? You warned us before you transmitted, a couple of hours sleep. And I’m guessing there’s some kind of inject you’re prob­ably supposed to have, if we only had a field medkit. You were asking for adrenephix.”

Struggling to stay awake, Nick nodded and answered her through gritted teeth, trying to damp the tremors in his muscles. “Yes to both questions. But I’ll be all right. Let me nap here for a half an hour or so.”

Wreck-of-the-Nebula-DreamFinalMedHere’s the story:

Traveling unexpectedly aboard the luxury liner Nebula Dream on its maiden voyage across the galaxy, Sectors Special Forces Captain Nick Jameson is ready for ten relaxing days, and hoping to forget his last disastrous mission behind enemy lines. He figures he’ll gamble at the casino, take in the shows, maybe even have a shipboard fling with Mara Lyrae, the beautiful but reserved businesswoman he meets.  All his vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck of Titanic proportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara, Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.

But can Nick conquer the demons from his past that tell him he’ll fail these innocent people just as he failed to save his Special Forces team? Will he outpace his own doubts to win this vital race against time?

This Best Selling and Award Winning Science Fiction Adventure is Available from  Smashwords ,  Amazon  Barnes & Noble  All Romance eBooks and iTunes  Also available from Amazon as trade paperback here

Audiobook, narrated by Actor Michael Riffle – Available Now at Amazon and iTunes

Jan 27 2014

Cover Reveal MAGIC OF THE NILE

Coming in February (still in edits) – MAGIC OF THE NILE, the sequel to PRIESTESS OF THE NILE.  My lovely new cover from Frauke at Croco Designs:

MagicOfTheNile_1600x2400

Here’s the story:

1535 BCE

After a childhood spent scorned and ignored by her family because of her crippled foot, Tyema was magically healed then installed as the High Priestess of his temple by Sobek the Crocodile God. But Tyema is still haunted by her memories, scarred by the abuse she endured. Despite Sobek’s protection, as an adult she’s become a near recluse inside the temple grounds…

Until Captain Sahure arrives in her remote town, sent from Thebes on an urgent mission for Pharaoh, requiring High Priestess Tyema’s help. From that moment on, her quiet, safe life is upended in ways she never could have expected.

But after a whirlwind romance with Sahure, the two lovers part as Pharaoh orders the captain to undertake another assignment on Egypt’s dangerous frontier, far from Tyema’s remote town.

Heart-broken, Tyema is ready to return to her life of loneliness, official duties and, now, regret. But the Crocodile God has other plans for his priestess: she must uncover the sorcerer who threatens Pharaoh’s life with black magic. Soon enough, Tyema finds herself thrown into the chaos of Pharoah’s court, neck deep in intrigue and danger. Just when she thinks she can’t handle the twin pressures of a public life at court and her secret investigation for the Crocodile God any longer, Sahure re-enters the scene.

But is her former love there to help or to hinder? Can they resolve their differences and work together to find the dark sorcerer who threatens Pharaoh and Egypt? Will the love between a proud warrior and a shy priestess lead them to a future together?

 

Jan 26 2014

The Dance Begins DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwa???????????????????????????????Continuing on with my paranormal romance set in Ancient Egypt. Nima the dancer and Kamin, one of Pharaoh’s warriors, are traveling with the caravan for a few days as they seek to escape the pursuing enemy and get vital information to Pharaoh to stop an invasion. Nima was exposed to various temptations involving her future as a dancer and Kamin realized how much she means to him. But he’s got secrets he can’t share…they’ve quarreled, made up and Nima has said she’ll do a private dance for Kamin. It’s now evening and Kamin has been escorted by a friend of Nima’s to a borrowed tent and left alone there:

Nima came to the center of the tent, eyes focused on the floor, then chimed her finger cymbals once and lifted her head, eyes seeking his face. Kamin swallowed hard. Raising both arms above her head, fingers cupped as if to catch raindrops, she assumed a classic dancer’s pose, one foot planted solidly, on tiptoe with the other. A moment later, unseen musicians seated in the outer chamber played the first measures of music. Kamin heard a hand drum, flutes, other instruments he didn’t recognize, playing a version of a tune known as a standard in taverns along the Nile. She must have practiced with them on the march, during the day.

???????????????????????????????Keeping her eyes locked on his face, Nima rose effortlessly onto her toes, signaling the beginning of his private dance. He couldn’t have looked away if the entire Hyksos army had burst into the tent.

  I  love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here  to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read  an amazing variety of  terrific excerpts…

The story:

Egypt, 1500 BCE

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400Nima’s beauty and skill as a dancer leads an infatuated enemy to kidnap her after destroying an Egyptian border town. However, she’s not the only hostage in the enemy camp: Kamin, an Egyptian soldier on a secret mission for Pharaoh, has been taken as well. Working together to escape, the two of them embark on a desperate quest across the desert to carry word of the enemy’s invasion plans to Pharaoh’s people.

As they flee for their lives, these two strangers thrown together by misfortune have to trust in each other to survive.  Nima suspects Kamin is more than the simple soldier he seems, but she finds it hard to resist the effect he has on her heart.  Kamin has a duty to his Pharaoh to see his mission completed, but this clever and courageous dancer is claiming more of his loyalty and love by the moment. Kamin starts to worry, if it comes to a choice between saving Egypt or saving Nima’s life…what will he do?

Aided by the Egyptian god Horus and the Snake Goddess Renenutet, beset by the enemy’s black magic, can Nima and Kamin evade the enemy and reach the safety of the Nile in time to foil the planned attack?

Can there ever be a happy future together for the humble dancer and the brave Egyptian soldier who is so much more than he seems?

DANCER OF THE NILE, an Amazon Best Seller, is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks iTunes   Smashwords   Google Play

Jan 21 2014

Ancient Egyptian Beer Had Bubbles and Saved the World

???????????????????????????????

Recently there were stories of a newly discovered ancient Egyptian tomb – no, not a new pharaoh or queen, but the tomb of “A Maker of Beer for the Gods of the Dead”, one Khonso Em Heb. (Here’s the CNN story with photos.) This gentleman lived about 500 years after the era where I’ve set my “Tales of the Gods” paranormal romances, but one thing he, my characters and pretty much all ancient Egyptians shared was a love for beer.

Beer was cheaper than wine, even in ancient times and was thick, sweet and nutritious. One leading Egyptologist, P. M. Chou, is quoted in the CNN  article as saying:

“While it’s a close cousin to modern beer, it’s manufacture was more primitive and they had to use a tube to extract the liquid from below which would have had a fermented layer of substance floating on the top of the jar,” he said.

“It would have had bubbles,” he added.

Not only was beer a staple drink, Egyptians consumed the beverage often, even at breakfast, and included beer as offerings to the gods and goddesses. Workers could even be paid in beer. Women typically took the lead as brewers, and although there were various techniques, the drink was often made with a yeast bread, baked then crumbled into pieces and strained into water flavored with dates and other spices or fruits. An alternative method of beer making involved heating barley and emmer, mixing them with yeast and malt and allowing the liquid to ferment. Quite a few tomb paintings have been found, depicting the beer making process.

Two favorite quotes of the Ancient Egyptians were:

“The mouth of a perfectly contented man is filled with beer” from around 2200 BCE and an instruction to young scribes that read (your mother) “…sent you to school when you were ready to be taught writing and she waited for you daily at home with bread and beer…” Their version of an afterschool snack! The last fragment is from my time period, the Eighteenth Dynasty, around 1550 BCE…

As far as beer saving the world, there was a famous Egyptian myth that the goddess Sekhmet was sent  by Ra the Sun God to slay some humans who’d been conspiring against him but she got carried away with wrath and threatened to kill all humankind. Horrified she was going too far, Ra dyed beer red to simulate blood and poured it out for her in floods, getting her drunk enough to pass out. When she awakened, her killing rage had subsided and she left the remaining world in peace.

In my next novel, “Magic of the Nile,” which should be released this February, Sekhmet decides to repay a debt by helping my hero Sahure. Here’s an unedited excerpt from the novel (so, subject to change):

The Great One Sekhmet stood in the center of his office. Sahure blinked, astonishment flooding over him, but the goddess herself was in his office, staring at him from glowing amber cat eyes.  Clad in formfitting red robes hugging the curves of her voluptuous human body, curious rosettes of gold at the shoulders, she was barefoot and he saw her shapely arms ended in the deadly paws of the lioness. On her leonine head, atop an elaborately dressed wig, she was crowned with a golden sun disk, the symbolic uraeus wrapped around the glimmering diadem. Sparks of red and gold light flew from her crown as she regarded him, leaning on a staff crowned with papyrus buds. Slowly he went to his knees, arms crossed in respect.

“I’m honored, Great One.”

“I would taste the beer you offered, had I more time to spend with mortal concerns,” she said, tilting her head, feline whiskers twitching. Her sinuous tail curled around her ankles. “To business, mortal. My sisters are going to take part in a battle on your behalf tonight, the combat of which I spoke,” she said. “I’m here to intervene for you.”

Caught in her hypnotic gaze, Sahure felt as if he’d drunk deep from a highly intoxicating vintage, although he’d only had one cup of ordinary, military-issue beer at dinner. The room was spinning around him. He drew a deep breath to steady himself. “I don’t understand, my lady. Intervene in what? I mean no disrespect, but I’m sworn to Horus the Falcon and he’s given me no orders, requested no action on my part tonight.” Focus, fool, you’re dealing with one of the most dangerous of the Great Ones.

“I don’t speak of combat with sword and shield,” she said, revealing a glimpse of her impressive fangs, her voice almost a purr. “All things will become known to you in the proper time. Explanation tonight beyond what I’ve already revealed would be useless.”

Sahure kept a frown off his face with supreme effort. I’d like to be the judge of that.

But the goddess was still talking. “I acknowledge you’re not one of my children but you saved my beloved village of Kharga from the nomads and the Hyksos.” Her tail lashed angrily at the mention of the enemy, thumping the hard-packed dirt floor. Sighing, she stood taller. “You rescued those who are my children, the people here. You honored my priestess, gave freely to my celebrations, showed proper deference.”

Realizing she seemed to expect him to say something, Sahure nodded. “It was my honor to be of service, Great One.”

“In return I’ll guard you while you’re here in this place.” She pointed her paw at him, one claw extended. “When you are once again in Thebes, it will be the task of others to watch over you. Your task to protect Pharaoh.”

Why do the Great Ones love to speak in riddles? Thoroughly frustrated, Sahure took the risk of standing up. “I’m sorry, Great One, but I don’t understand–”

She extended her golden-furred paw to him, palm up. A curious amulet lay in the middle, in the shape of a tiny hand no bigger than his thumbnail, made of some crystalline stone, deep blue in color, with a cat’s eye depicted in the center, delineated in yellow, purple and black beads.  The amulet was woven into a black leather wristband. “This is for you,” Sekhmet said. “Give me your wrist.”

He extended his arm and the goddess tied the cord around his wrist, skillfully using her claws in place of fingers. Sahure felt a wave of cold run up his arm from where the curious blue hand touched his pulse. The chill ran through his heart and for a moment he couldn’t breathe. He felt Sekhmet’s tail curling around his ankles.

“I deal in magic of all kinds, mortal.” Sekhmet moved closer, putting one paw on his chest. “Therefore I know how to guard against the most evil sorcery, when I choose to intervene.”

“I-I don’t traffic with magic,” he said, searching his mind for any time he’d even remotely been involved with sorcery and spells and coming up empty. The heady smell of her blue lotus perfume was making his vertigo worse, interfering with his concentration on her words. “I’m a simple soldier, loyal to my Pharaoh.”

She nodded, patting his cheek with her massive paw, claws sheathed, before stepping away. “I know this. So I’ve given you a shield.”

He touched the amulet with his fingertips. “Why do I need to be shielded?”

And we’ll just stop there….for now!

???????????????????????????????

Jan 19 2014

She’ll Dance For Him DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwa

???????????????????????????????Continuing on with my paranormal romance set in Ancient Egypt. Nima the dancer and Kamin, one of Pharaoh’s warriors, are traveling with the caravan for a few days as they seek to escape the pursuing enemy and get vital information to Pharaoh to stop an invasion. Nima was exposed to various temptations involving her future as a dancer and Kamin realized how much she means to him. But he’s got secrets he can’t share…

Today’s excerpt follows last week’s. Kamin has apologized, Nima accepted and I’ve skipped over the part where Nima says she intends to dance a private dance for him tonight and leave the caravan with him the next day. (I’ve also skipped the adorable baby camel – sorry!) Here’s the end of the conversation. There’s been some editing and odd punctuation to meet the eight sentence rule. Kamin is speaking:

 “There are things you should know about me, but I’m under stringent orders not to reveal anything until my report is safely delivered to the nomarch —”

                She put her finger on his lips to silence him, then framed his face with her hands as she said in a low voice, “I know you’re an honorable man – I know you treat me as your equal.” A smile lit up her face. “I know you have three younger sisters who probably adore you, and I don’t need to know anymore right now. “ Going on tiptoe, she kissed him on the lips, ignoring the whistles of the nearby drovers. Strolling on, hand in hand with Kamin, she said, “There are things I must do if I’m to dance properly for you tonight so I’m hoping the troupe will be able to provide what I need. ”

“All I need is you,” Kamin said, kissing her cheek.

???????????????????????????????“Gratifying to hear, soldier, but I’d like to present a better show than just myself humming, dancing in this shabby dress.” 

(A Nomarch is a provincial ruler, reporting to Pharaoh. Also, Kamin had told her earlier in their journey that he had three younger sisters.)

   I  love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here  to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read  an amazing variety of  terrific excerpts…

The story:

Egypt, 1500 BCE

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400Nima’s beauty and skill as a dancer leads an infatuated enemy to kidnap her after destroying an Egyptian border town. However, she’s not the only hostage in the enemy camp: Kamin, an Egyptian soldier on a secret mission for Pharaoh, has been taken as well. Working together to escape, the two of them embark on a desperate quest across the desert to carry word of the enemy’s invasion plans to Pharaoh’s people.

As they flee for their lives, these two strangers thrown together by misfortune have to trust in each other to survive.  Nima suspects Kamin is more than the simple soldier he seems, but she finds it hard to resist the effect he has on her heart.  Kamin has a duty to his Pharaoh to see his mission completed, but this clever and courageous dancer is claiming more of his loyalty and love by the moment. Kamin starts to worry, if it comes to a choice between saving Egypt or saving Nima’s life…what will he do?

Aided by the Egyptian god Horus and the Snake Goddess Renenutet, beset by the enemy’s black magic, can Nima and Kamin evade the enemy and reach the safety of the Nile in time to foil the planned attack?

Can there ever be a happy future together for the humble dancer and the brave Egyptian soldier who is so much more than he seems?

DANCER OF THE NILE, an Amazon Best Seller, is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks iTunes   Smashwords   Google Play

Jan 16 2014

Eye Candy ~ Outrageous Earrings

???????????????????????????????Wore these to work today – no, I’m not a Las Vegas chorus girl, I promise. I wish I was that tall! did you ever see “Honeymoon in Las Vegas” with Nic Cage and Sarah Jessica Parker? The scene where she dresses as a chorus girl to try to hide out from the infatuated mobster? And the other dancers are all like seven feet tall and she’s this petite little thing? Well, that would be me.

But I loooove outrageous earrings and I’ve  been acquiring a few new-to-me pairs, so I thought I’d share today. Years ago I established at the day job that long, whimsical, fancy earrings were my thing (well and big rings but that’s a topic for another blog) so no one thinks twice when I show up with 5″ bling on my ears.

Aside from the pink peacock bling above, these are all vintage Lunch At The Ritz, which I’ve mentioned before. A herd of Pegasus (Pegasi? Pegasusses?) and a Carousel…

???????????????????????????????

 

Castle Tintagel, love the tiny dragon!

???????????????????????????????A gathering of butterflies:

???????????????????????????????And this pair is entitled “I Know It’s In Here Somewhere” which is my constant problem with all my overstuffed purses!

???????????????????????????????But the pair of earrings I’d love to own – or even try on once –  are a few thousand years older:

???????????????????????????????

 

 

 

Jan 13 2014

Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea – Revisiting a Favorite

spartakusSome of us were talking about our favorite comics over on Facebook the other day, thanks to my friend and Fellow Word Whore blogger James A. Moore, and although “Spartakus” was an animated series, not a comic book, the show came to my mind. Did you ever see it?

“Ever since the time of the Great Cataclysm, the Arkadians have lived deep in the center of the Earth. They believed they were the only survivors of this great devastation. Their civilization thrived under the power of their sun, the Tehra…until it began to fail. In desperation, the children of Arkadia broke the law and entered the forbidden Archives, searching for a solution. What they discovered gave them hope. Anxiously, they used their special powers and created a messenger to the people above. They named her Arkana…”

OMG we used to LOVE this animated series. One local channel showed it once a week at the terrible hour of 5:30 AM (this was before DVR, folks) and we would watch it, try to remember to tape it…at first we had less than no idea what we’d wandered into. It’s a French animated series, created by Nina Wolmark and as we came in at the middle (somewhere anyway) of the 52 episodes and some of the episodes made next to no sense – there’s one where the Pirates of the Seas sing their interminable theme song twice,  I kid you not! But we fell in love with the Spartakus of the title, who apparently was an escaped gladiator, and the woman Arkana…the two children from our world, Matt and Rebecca (I’m not sure we ever did figure out how they came to be involved)…the ship Tehrig, which seemed to be sort of mechanical being…the “Triggies” robots….and Bic and Bac, who were a pair of happy little animals with their own song, vaguely anteaterish…

Being a writer, I probably filled in a lot of unexplained plot twists and turns for myself, especially in the romantic aspects…

SPOILER: all the journeying between worlds or levels eventually did end and the mysteries were resolved and there was a Happily Even After for the people who created Arcana and of course for her and the dashing, capable Spartakus…Wikipedia says as recently as 2010 there were plans to make a live action version of the film but that the effort fell apart over rights issues. Bummer! I’d love to watch it again, with the ability to fast forward through the Pirates (sorry, guys, but your theme song was bad enough heard once in an episode LOL.  You can find them singing in all their glory on youtube if you feel the need to see/hear it). I do realize a lot of the material is out there on youtube but I’d like a nice boxed set, you know? Well, I can dream….

It’s even better in French!

Jan 12 2014

Warrior’s Apology Continues DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwa

Continuing on with my paranormal romance set in Ancient Egypt. Nima the dancer and Kamin, one of Pharaoh’s warriors, are traveling with the caravan for a few days as they seek to escape the pursuing enemy and get vital information to Pharaoh to stop an invasion. Nima is being exposed to various temptations involving her future as a dancer and Kamin realizes how much she means to him. But he’s got secrets he can’t share…

Today’s excerpt follows onto last week’s,  after the Minoan dance master Andrios provoked an argument between Kamin and Nima, after which she danced with the troupe, spending the night in their company, while Kamin kept a self-imposed watch over the area to be sure she was safe. Last week I started on Kamin’s apology – “I never meant to spoil your pleasure in the dancing.” – so here we go with more from that conversation. There’s been some editing and odd punctuation to meet the eight sentence rule.

??????????????????????????????? Brow furrowed, eyes worried, he looked at her as he said, “That’s the last thing I would ever want to do; it’s my nature to protect those who—who mean the most to me, and I let my emotions get the better of my common sense when Andrios provoked me.”

                “I’m sorry I grew angry in turn,” she said. “And he was trying to be provoking. I think I’m learning that all troupe masters have certain traits in common. But I can take care of myself.”

                Kamin nodded. “A fact of which I’m well aware, and one I swear not to forget again. You saved my life twice, after all.”

    I  love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here  to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read  an amazing variety of  terrific excerpts…

The story:

Egypt, 1500 BCE

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400Nima’s beauty and skill as a dancer leads an infatuated enemy to kidnap her after destroying an Egyptian border town. However, she’s not the only hostage in the enemy camp: Kamin, an Egyptian soldier on a secret mission for Pharaoh, has been taken as well. Working together to escape, the two of them embark on a desperate quest across the desert to carry word of the enemy’s invasion plans to Pharaoh’s people.

As they flee for their lives, these two strangers thrown together by misfortune have to trust in each other to survive.  Nima suspects Kamin is more than the simple soldier he seems, but she finds it hard to resist the effect he has on her heart.  Kamin has a duty to his Pharaoh to see his mission completed, but this clever and courageous dancer is claiming more of his loyalty and love by the moment. Kamin starts to worry, if it comes to a choice between saving Egypt or saving Nima’s life…what will he do?

Aided by the Egyptian god Horus and the Snake Goddess Renenutet, beset by the enemy’s black magic, can Nima and Kamin evade the enemy and reach the safety of the Nile in time to foil the planned attack?

Can there ever be a happy future together for the humble dancer and the brave Egyptian soldier who is so much more than he seems?

DANCER OF THE NILE, an Amazon Best Seller, is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks iTunes   Smashwords

   

Jan 9 2014

Veronica Tackles the MORE Quiz

???????????????????????????????I’ve been fond of MORE magazine for years, really enjoy their articles. This past month they asked their special guest actress Emma Thompson, a series of questions, with the title of the magazine in the question…you know me, I love doing magazine quizzes! So here goes with my answers to their questions:

My number one rule when striving to achieve more is: Be organized! Whenever I start perusing online container stores, or buying drawer organizers, or sorting through my desk, I know I’m stressed and trying to get back in control of whatever it is I feel is going out of control. So maybe if I was more organized up front….

If you could start over what would you do more of: Network with my fellow authors, at RT and RWA and other conferences, plus online…there were years I could have been doing that instead of attending NASA conferences LOL! I did very much put my writing on hold for a lot of years, for various reasons, including being widowed with two extremely young children to support, but looking back, I could have and should have kept my hand in at least a bit more. It would have been something I could have done for myself, you know? But it’s all good now, having a great time as a published author and writing more books!

What do you appreciate more as you age? Well, first of all, who sez I’m aging??? But moving past that discussion, I appreciate having more time for myself, since my daughters are grown and busy with their own lives!

I wish I had more time for: working on my novels and associated with that, doing more research into ancient Egypt. I still have the day job so I’m constantly feeling pressed for time. NEVER enough time!

More women should: Umm, I’m not a believer in telling anyone else what they should or shouldn’t do….I sure don’t want anyone telling me. Moisturize maybe? That seems relatively safe advice.

What do you cherish more than anything else? My children and my grandson, and my brother. If “what” means the answer has to be a thing not a person,  going by the criteria of what’s the one thing I’d save if the big bad brushfire was coming – there’s one silver teaspoon that’s been in the family for over 200 years and I’d feel really responsible if it was lost on my watch.

The world could use a little more: patience, peace and understanding for each other’s point of view. I’m a big believer in the ideas that my friend, Rob DuBois has expressed on his website and in his book “Powerful Peace: A Navy SEAL’s Lessons on Peace From A Lifetime At War.”  OK, but not trying to get into a political debate here…Peace!

What is more important to you today than it was 20 years ago? My health. I’ve always had migraines since I was a kid but it’s just amazing how as a person gets older, new and less fun health issues pop up.

What’s more terrifying than failure? Never making the attempt at all. I’ve learned good stuff even from my failures.

More women seek to age gracefully, what’s your advice? Stay out of the sun. Accept and learn from all the things you’ve lived through, triumphed over and survived – you’re unique! Make the best of each hour of each day. Celebrate yourself.

And that was it for the More quiz! No More LOL! The magazine didn’t come right out and ask what I always want MORE of but it would be good books, anything purple, chocolate….oh and sparkly stuff, especially earrings.

???????????????????????????????

Jan 5 2014

Will He Apologize? DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwa

Continuing on with my paranormal romance set in Ancient Egypt. Nima the dancer and Kamin, one of Pharaoh’s warriors, are traveling with the caravan for a few days as they seek to escape the pursuing enemy and get vital information to Pharaoh to stop an invasion. Nima is being exposed to various temptations involving her future as a dancer and Kamin realizes how much she means to him. But he’s got secrets he can’t share…

Today’s excerpt follows onto last week’s,  after the Minoan dance master Andrios provoked an argument between Kamin and Nima, after which she danced with the troupe, spending the night in their company, while Kamin kept a self-imposed watch over the area to be sure she was safe.  I’m skipping some further contemplation on Nima’s part and banter with the Minoan dancers. I’ll start with Kamin’s greeting to her. There’s been some editing and odd punctuation to meet the eight sentence rule.

Giving her a bow, as if she was some grand lady at Pharaoh’s court, he said, “One of the camels has given birth this morning, out of season, but the calf appears healthy.”

               Surprised by his choice of topic, she went along with it, “Is that the source of the delay in departure?”

                “Yes, Ptahnetamun doesn’t want to abandon a perfectly good camel, so we’ve waited for the mother to give birth. I—I thought you might like to come see the baby – it’s a cute little thing.” He rubbed the back of his neck as if suddenly uncomfortable with the notion.

                “I’d love to, thank you,” she said, pushing away from the stone wall, and they walked together out of the center of the oasis, down the caravan line.

                “I want to apologize for my words last night,” he said as soon as they were well away from the cluster of Minoans. “I never meant to spoil your pleasure in the dancing.” 

egypt postcard

So my plan is to share the rest of this conversation in snippets over the next two or three weeks and then perhaps leave you on an action cliffhanger (sorry, but the book IS available if you just have to know what happens next LOL!) and switch off to my new book, MAGIC OF THE NILE, which is in edits right now. Hopefully MAGIC will be out in February…

I  love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here  to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read  an amazing variety of  terrific excerpts…

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400The story: 

Egypt, 1500 BCE

Nima’s beauty and skill as a dancer leads an infatuated enemy to kidnap her after destroying an Egyptian border town. However, she’s not the only hostage in the enemy camp: Kamin, an Egyptian soldier on a secret mission for Pharaoh, has been taken as well. Working together to escape, the two of them embark on a desperate quest across the desert to carry word of the enemy’s invasion plans to Pharaoh’s people. 

As they flee for their lives, these two strangers thrown together by misfortune have to trust in each other to survive.  Nima suspects Kamin is more than the simple soldier he seems, but she finds it hard to resist the effect he has on her heart.  Kamin has a duty to his Pharaoh to see his mission completed, but this clever and courageous dancer is claiming more of his loyalty and love by the moment. Kamin starts to worry, if it comes to a choice between saving Egypt or saving Nima’s life…what will he do?

Aided by the Egyptian god Horus and the Snake Goddess Renenutet, beset by the enemy’s black magic, can Nima and Kamin evade the enemy and reach the safety of the Nile in time to foil the planned attack?

Can there ever be a happy future together for the humble dancer and the brave Egyptian soldier who is so much more than he seems?

DANCER OF THE NILE, an Amazon Best Seller, is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks iTunes   Smashwords