Tag Archives: Nima

Dec 1 2013

The Game Is On DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwaContinuing on with my paranormal romance set in ancient Egypt…Nima and Kamin have been captured by a caravan master who plans to sell them to the pursuing enemy. Nima challenges the man to a game of senet, with her life and Kamin’s as the stakes and a blood oath between herself and the caravan master that they’ll each honor the outcome. Ptahnetamun, the caravan master, brings out a gameboard and they play, with Kamin, all the caravan workers and many of the caravan passengers watching. I  thought you might like a glimpse of the game.

Based on my research and my consolidation of the differing views, painted sticks rather than dice were thrown to determine the number of spaces moved by a pawn. My sticks are black-and-white and earlier in the book I explained the points scoring system. Each player has five pawns. I actually played this game between Nima and her opponent several times to make sure I’d gotten the moves and counts right!

              …it seemed the audience admired both the gaming and the cheating skills on display and was content to accept the outcome. The betting odds evened out, although still slightly favoring the caravan master to win.

                Thunder rumbled as Ptahnetamun marched his fourth pawn off the board. His fifth was ten squares back, and Nima passed him by. There was an audible gasp from the crowd as she threw four white sides, sending her next-to-last pawn to safety. Now the game sat with one pawn belonging to each player still on the board. The wily caravan master was a few squares closer to claiming victory, but Nima was gaining on him, until finally both pawns sat crowded on square twenty-six, the House of Happiness, one of the few spaces that could be so shared.

                “Yet only one of us will have happiness within their grasp this night,” Ptahnetamun said.

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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

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

                

Nov 17 2013

The Warrior Answers DANCER OF THE NILE Weekend Writing Warriors

better wewriwaAs promised last week, here’s Kamin the Warrior’s answer to Nima’s expression of her dreams for a better life (please excuse the interesting punctuation choices):

Such simple dreams shouldn’t be out of reach. He tilted her chin, reached to take the now-wilted flower from her ebony hair as he said, “Well, then, we’ll get the nomarch who rules this province in Pharoah’s name to issue you a fat reward – genuine gold of valor – for saving my life, and you can make your way anywhere you choose.” He blew the limp petals off his fingertips.

Watching the tiny yellow fragments spiral away in the slight breeze, Nima half smiled, “You dream big, soldier.”

Actually I dream of you now. Kamin took a deep breath and said, “Nima—”

She set her fingers on his lips, “I don’t think we should tempt fate by talking of the future.”

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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

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

Nov 10 2013

A Dancer’s Dreams Weekend Writing Warriors DANCER OF THE NILE

better wewriwa

Continuing on with DANCER OF THE NILE for a few more weeks…last week we had  Nima dreaming about the night she was captured.  Kamin manages to waken her and as part of his effort to help her calm down, he starts a conversation about her life as a dancer and her hopes for the future. The troop she belongs to is on the shady side and raised her after her mother, who was a disgraced temple dancer,  died. Lately the troop leader and his wife have been pressuring Nima to do some things she  finds repugnant.  Nima is speaking:

“…I’ve no desire to be someone’s concubine, no matter how pleasant he may be or how good a lover. I won’t be a possession, discarded when I’m too old to dance.” Her voice rang with contempt. She played with the frayed hem of her dress, braiding and unbraiding the raggedy strands. “I want to be in charge of my own life, never perform again, unless for an audience of my own choosing. I want to see more of the world than the same border towns and taverns. I want to be respectably married someday, have children, be mistress of a household. ” Her voice trailed off, but after a moment she shook herself and straightened, saying as she did so, “First, I have to escape the life I’m trapped in.”

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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

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

Nov 3 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors And the Fire Burns DANCER OF THE NILE

better wewriwaContinuing on with DANCER OF THE NILE for a few more weeks…last week we had a moment of humor as Nima the Dancer and Kamin gthe Warrior were escaping their captors. This snippet today is from further on in the book, after “some events” (no spoilers!). They’re holed up in a cave, waiting for nightfall before they travel onward. Nima is dreaming about the night she was captured:

               Cherry-colored flames with yellow and violet cores crackling everywhere, above and below. The blackened roof timbers groaned, glowing from the inside out. How much longer would they hold? Small pieces were falling away each moment, burning embers igniting new blazes wherever they fell. Wind generated by the fire itself blew sparks in a mad whirl.

Her skin hot, dry as the desert to the point of pain. I’m baking alive.

                The screams from every direction had stopped or were muffled by the roaring flames….she couldn’t stay where she was, but if she broke cover and ran, the attackers would see her. 

(A small historical note here – the Egyptians are generally agreed not to have eaten cherries until Roman times. I decided since Nima danced on a circuit in all the border towns, she might have seen them 1200 years before Rome got there…or not LOL. I do take a few deliberate liberties with my Ancient Egyptian time frame.)

fire by moniquef12

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

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

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Oct 27 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors Steal a Chariot in DANCER OF THE NILE

better wewriwa

Staying with my latest release, Dancer of the Nile, which takes us back to Ancient Egypt. This follows last week’s snippet where Nima warned Kamin not to eat the stew. Avoiding spoilers, I’ve moved ahead a little, skipped a bit,  as they’re trying to make their getaway from the enemy. A little creative editing to stay within the eight sentence rule. The story blurb is below the photo.

                She’d already gotten one horse hitched to a chariot. Kamin set the sword and shield in the vehicle and grabbed the halter of another horse. “Where did you learn to harness teams?”

                Nima was following the line now, loosening the straps holding the animals to the tether and flapping her arms in an attempt to make them shy and bolt. She frowned over her shoulder at him. “My family travels by oxcart – I figured ox, horse, four legs, not much difference.” Impatiently, she shoved at a horse nibbling her sleeve. “These damn animals won’t move.”

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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…

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

Oct 20 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors Is there a plan? DANCER OF THE NILE

better wewriwaSwitching this week to my latest release, Dancer of the Nile, which takes us back to Ancient Egypt again. This is the second night, when Nima the Dancer has been forced to cook dinner yet again for the enemy soldiers. We’re in Kamin’s viewpoint. A little creative editing to stay within the eight sentence rule. The story blurb is below the photo.

                Tonight’s meal smelled even better than the stew the night before. Sundown breezes brought a whiff his way, causing painful cramps in his gut, which grumbled.

                Finally, after the officers and the soldiers had been fed, she scooped a bowl full of stew from the kettle and sauntered in his direction, her walk unhurried. Kamin enjoyed the view, realizing with a little jolt of dismay how eagerly he was anticipating even the most fleeting contact with her.

                She set the bowl in his outstretched palms and looked him straight in the eyes, her own gaze intense. “Don’t eat it,” she said in a barely audible whisper, before walking away without a backward glance.

              The guards watched him so he made a show of fumbling with the bowl, as if trying to get a better grip. He allowed it to slip from his fingers, struggling against the ropes in a convincing show of desperation, attempting to catch the rim as it rolled off his fingertips, shattering on a rock, splattering him with stew.  

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…

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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 is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks iTunes   Smashwords

Oct 13 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors DANCER OF THE NILE

better wewriwaSwitching this week to my latest release, Dancer of the Nile, which takes us back to Ancient Egypt again. The story blurb is below the photo. This is from the beginning of the story, as Nima the Dancer tries to help another prisoner who has been denied water.

  “Here,” she whispered, holding the mug out to him. “Drink quickly.”

                When he raised his head, she recoiled from the intensity in his eyes. However defeated he may appear, this man isn’t giving up. Unsmiling, the warrior glanced at her bound wrists then at her face, saying nothing.

                Why doesn’t he trust me, can’t he see I’m a prisoner here, too? Nima placed the mug against his swollen, split lips and tipped it up. Swallowing in greedy gulps, he kept his eyes focused on her face.

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…

egyptian patterns copy

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?

I’m ecstatic to say DANCER OF THE NILE hit the Amazon Best Seller list the first day, in the Romance=>Ancient World category. Thank you to everyone who purchased the book, giving it such a terrific head start,  and I hope you’ll enjoy the story!

DANCER OF THE NILE is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks  iTunes

 

Oct 7 2013

Release Week DANCER OF THE NILE

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400

 

I’m very excited to be releasing my third book in the Gods of Egypt series – DANCER OF THE NILE!

They always say you should write the book you can’t find enough of on the shelf and for me, that would be romances set in Ancient Egypt, with the gods actively taking part in events. I write in the 1550 BCE time frame, a period of great change for the Egyptians as they threw off a foreign invader. The true events of history create many plot opportunities. I do tons of research in order to put my characters in a setting which feels real and evocative of the time but I also take some deliberate liberties with history.

One of the best things about employing the Egyptian gods as characters is that there were many varying legends and beliefs about each deity, so I can pick and choose the aspects that work best for my story. For DANCER OF THE NILE, I really enjoyed working Renenutet the Snake Goddess into the story, to help my heroine, Nima the dancer.  Renenutet was particularly involved with the harvest in Egypt but as a woman with the head of a cobra, she has her deadlier aspects, believe me.

Kamin, the Egyptian soldier who stands beside  Nima as they fight for Egypt, is sworn to Horus the Falcon, so he plays a role in events too. Here’s the story:

Ancient Egypt:

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?

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I’m proud to say DANCER OF THE NILE hit the Amazon Best Seller list the first day, in the Romance=>Ancient World category. Thank you to everyone who purchased the book, giving it such a terrific head start,  and I hope you’ll enjoy the story!

DANCER OF THE NILE is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks  iTunes

All the other outlets will be coming SOON!

Sep 5 2013

Cover Reveal Dancer of the Nile

DancerOfTheNile_1600x2400I’m really pleased to share the cover for my upcoming October release in the “Gods of Egypt” series: DANCER OF THE NILE. It was so much fun to work with the amazing Frauke of Croco Designs again (she did the cover for PRIESTESS OF THE NILE in 2012).

I’m making a few last minute edits on DANCER so expect to see this title available toward the end of October. (You can sign up for my mailing list to be alerted of new releases, if you like. I promise to be very respectful of your mailbox!)

Here’s the story for my DANCER:

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?

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And of course we’re getting really close to the September 16th release date for WARRIOR OF THE NILE, which is available for preorder at Amazon. Lots going on, but I like it that way! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

Feb 5 2012

Six Sentence Sunday

From A Work In Progress, Dancer of the Nile

Nima the dancer and Kamin, the other Egyptian prisoner, have escaped the Hyksos in a stolen chariot. The  chariot crashes and their pursuers will be upon them any moment.

Putting his hand under her elbow, Kamin pulled her to her feet and gave her a gentle push toward the overturned chariot. “Crawl under there and stay put, you hear me? They won’t be able to get at you without fighting their way through me and I won’t die easily.”

                Nima scrutinized the oncoming chariots, hearing the guttural war cries of the Hyksos warriors. “You can’t possibly defeat all those men – “

                He stopped her with a kiss, tugging her body against his for a brief moment, as he said, “If I’m fighting for you, I can.”

Go to http://sixsunday.com/ to find all the other great excerpts!