A Season to Remember

Eva Scott – Elizabeth Ellen Carter – Susanne Bellamy – Noelle Clark

A Season To Remember

 

Tell us about your current release/or new release?

A Season To Remember is the first anthology each of us has worked on that’s been a true collaboration between authors. We took the theme of the sea and Christmas as our starting point. Each story is so different and yet complimentary. It’s been a great experience. (bit.ly/1ynJsTZ)

Are you currently working on a new project? If so can you tell us what it will be about?

Eva: I am currently working on what will be my first foray into self-publishing. It’s the last book in my Ancient Roman historical romance trilogy. Untamed Celt follows the story of Alexa who appeared in The Barbarian Bride (Harlequin Escape) and features the delicious Celtic barbarian, Drust.

Elizabeth: I’ve just finished a short story sequel to my debut historical romance Moonstone Obsession and I’m just about to submit a full length sequel called Moonstone Conspiracy.

Susanne: A romantic suspense in Nepal for Entangled Publishing. The first book in a series, Her Mountain Man (working title) sees Jake and Marcy in grave danger on the trail to Mount Everest. They are both pursued and pursuing.

Noelle: Following on from Honor’s Debt, I am writing Book 2 of the Robinhill Farm Series. All the quirky characters who live on Robinhill Farm have their own stories to tell. So right now I’m writing Honor’s Promise – Liam’s Journey.

Do you have a book in your house that is destroyed because you've read it so

much?

Eva: The Bone People – it’s travelled around the world and had many owners. I acquired it in a traveler house in London in the 1990s. It had lost its back cover and the front cover is taped on. It had been so well loved by so many travelers who’d taken it to India, Thailand, all through Europe and then it was given to me. I chose not to pass it on but to retire it and be its custodian until the time comes for it to be given to the right person.

Elizabeth: Sadly so destroyed I had to throw it out. Rose of Rapture by Rebecca Brandewyne, the first historical romance I ever read. I was 17.

Susanne: I love my books so much and I treat them tenderly so no, I haven’t destroyed my favourites J Some look and are very well-handled though.

Noelle: Well, not really destroyed, but dog-eared and tea-stained perhaps. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve read The Evening Class by Maeve Binchy.

Do you outline your stories or just go with the flow?

Eva: Both. I get a lot of flow in the initial, jot it all down then try to put it into some kind of framework that will keep the pacing tight and make sure the reader is kept intrigued by the character’s antics until the end.

Elizabeth: I outline the story just a little bit. How the characters reach each way point is up to them.

Susanne: Broad brush strokes with a few key details. As I write and get to know my characters, they take over anyway so what’s the point of too much plotting!

Noelle: I outline, plot, do character bios, basically I write the synopsis before I start writing the book. However, as with all best laid plans, I usually get taken by the characters along a completely different path than intended. I just hang on and go for the ride.

Do you read reviews of your books? What do you do when you read a not-so-nice one?

Eva: I don’t read my own press, so to speak. Occasionally I’ll stumble across a review but generally speaking I don’t go looking for them. I’ve had one really awful one where the word “barf” was used. Horrific! So I packed up and went on a weekend visit to my critique partner who lives in the Hunter Valley. What else was girl supposed to do?

Elizabeth: I do read reviews, even the ‘less than glowing’ ones. I try to stay sanguine about it. If some of the criticisms are valid, then I try to take it on the chin and learn to improve for next time.

Susanne: I was ‘devastated’ when the first review for a new release was a one star; I’d never had a ‘one’ before and, while I respect that not everyone will like my stories or style, the comments made no sense. After a minor meltdown and sympathy from more experienced writer friends, I regained perspective. Now, I shrug it off and re-read some of the lovely ones!

Noelle: Oh yes. Receiving feedback is a very important tool in helping to improve our writing. The craft of writing can be learned, honed, improved. There are lots of courses to help with that. But reader reviews provide a point of view that authors don’t always see, and that is the overall enjoyment, or not, of our story. Was it a good read? Did it make someone laugh or cry? That is just as important to me as being technically and grammatically correct. The not-so-nice reviews? Luckily I haven’t had any scorchers yet. I guess I’d be upset but I have to appreciate that not everyone will like my stories.

 

What's your favorite thing to do when you're not writing?

Eva: Currently I’m in to paddle boarding in a big way. I’m hopeless but enthusiastic.

Elizabeth: Spending time with my amazing husband and playing with our two cats. And Shopping.

Susanne: If it involves wine or cocktails, I’m in!

Noelle: I like to kick back and watch a movie, garden, play my guitar, hang out with family and friends.

Eva: Barbarian Bride http://www.amazon.com/Barbarian-Bride-Romancing-Romans-Book-ebook/dp/B00HQ5ZEHG

 

On the bloody ground of the Colosseum, she fights to save her life. In the treacherous boxes above, he fights to save their love.

 

Though Klara didn't love the man who was to be her husband, she didn't want him murdered, and she vows to track down the man who committed the crime. Sickened that she'd been attracted to the mysterious Roman, Klara tracks Lucius Aurelius to the fringes of the Roman Empire, only to find that they've both been trapped in a clever plot to overthrow Klara's father, the Chief of the Huns.

Klara is separated from Lucius, captured by slavers and sold to a gladiator school. She is the only one who can save herself, by fighting for her freedom. Lucius can ensure her battle is easier, but only by sacrificing himself. How much is he willing to give up for the fiery woman he's come to love?

Elizabeth: Warrior’s Surrender http://www.amazon.com/Warriors-Surrender-Elizabeth-Ellen-Carter-ebook/dp/B00PAXKS4K

A shared secret from their past could destroy their future…

 

Northumbria, 1077. In the years following William the Conqueror’s harrying of the North, Lady Alfreya of Tyrswick returns to her family home after seven years in exile. But instead of returning victorious as her dead father had promised, she returns defeated by Baron Sebastian de la Croix, the Norman who rules her lands.

 

To save her gravely ill brother's life, Alfreya offers herself hostage to her enemy. As Alfreya gets to know her new husband, she finds he’s not the monster she feared, and their marriage of convenience soon becomes a bond of passion. But Sebastian is a man with a secret—one that could destroy him.

 

As a series of brutal murders haunt their nights, the man who betrayed Alfreya’s father returns claiming to be her betrothed. He has learned Sebastian’s secret and will use it to further his own ambition—using Sebastian’s own family—which will destroy Sebastian and mark him a traitor, and plunge an unprepared England into war with the Scots…

Susanne: Engaging the Enemy http://www.amazon.com/Engaging-Enemy-Susanne-Bellamy-ebook/dp/B00LGDXHZA

One building, two would-be owners and a family feud that spans several generations: all relationships have their problems.

Andrea de Villiers can’t lie to save herself. But when developer, Matt Mahoney, buys the building she and a friend have established as a safe house in the Melbourne CBD, she decides that protecting The Shelter is more important than her aching heart. She will confront Mr Mahoney, and she will emerge victorious. There are no other options.

But Matt has other plans for Andie, and she soon finds herself ensnared in a web of well-meaning lies and benevolent deceit. To protect the building and the families that depend on her, Andie agrees to play the part of Matt’s fiancée, and play it convincingly.

But lies soon bleed into truth, and what was once a deception starts to feel all too real. Can Andie accomplish her goals and protect The Shelter, without losing her heart to the charming Irish developer?

Noelle: Honor’s Debt – Book 1 of Robinhill Farm Series http://www.amazon.com/Honors-Debt-Robinhill-Farm-Book-ebook/dp/B00P9G3QF6/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1415835192&sr=1-1&keywords=noelle+clark

On a quest to make amends for a long-ago indiscretion, Honor unexpectedly discovers the one thing she’s been missing in her life.

Alone in the world, Honor Quirk arrives in Ireland excited—and a bit anxious—about meeting up with the estranged family of her late great-grandmother. She has a promise to fulfil, a debt to repay.

At Robinhill Farm, she finds herself amongst an extended family who are very different from, yet similar to her, and she is keen to get to know them better. However, the welcome from the residents of Robinhill, Dermot and Bryan, is confusing and far from comforting. One is warm, the other aggressive.

The tie to the old family farm is strong and Honor falls under its spell, never wanting to leave. When love eventually finds her, it arrives in unexpected, and perhaps unwelcome ways.