The Secret is Out

Here is the cover of my new book HENRIETTA'S HOAX.

If you are familiar with my last book, DEVERELL'S DILEMMA, you will recognize it as a sequel.
Here's a teaser:

     Henrietta has a secret. for five years she's hidden behind short hair and scruffy trousers, ducking down alleys and working odd jobs with the other orphaned street lads. But it's only a matter of time before her true identity is discovered. And when her uncle finds her, she'll pay for her defiance.
     Nathaniel Bromfield also has a secret. Under his dusty , disheveled exterior, Nat is a young man of wealth and respectable lineage, hiding from the Bow Street Runners and fleeing a bogus murder accusation. He must find a way to survive until his innocence is proven... not so simple without the help of his young orphan friend, Henry White. 
     Together, Henry and Nat face dangers in the brutal streets of London and learn to rely heavily on each other. But no thieving uncle or murderous street bully can prepare Henrietta for the biggest challenge of her life--telling her best friend she's a girl.
   Sparks fly in this lively Regency tale of mistaken identity and hidden affection. Will Henrietta and Nat uncover true love with their friendship ? Or will it remain hidden behind Henrietta's Hoax?

The book should be out in a week or two on Amazon and soon to follow on Kindle.

BTW my blog header and book cover are by Selestiele Design at selestiele@gmail.com

Four writers, Cecily White, Jean Rosenow, Kaye Calkins,
Beth Carter from Ozarks Romance Authors, will be signing
books at the First Friday Art Walk in Springfield, MO.

Place: Park Central Branch Library, 128 Park Central Square.

Date: August 2, 2013

Time: 6:00 - 9:00  

Immersed in History

   Williamsburg, Virginia was the capitol of the state from 1699 to 1780. It was here men like George Washington helped decide the fate of our first thirteen colonies. Several buildings give you the taste of the times and lives of those who lived during the revolution.

The Capitol Building

   The Capitol Building housed the Council Chamber, General Court, and the House of Burgesses. Patrick Henry delivered his speech against the stamp act, and George Mason wrote the Declaration of Rights for Virginia here. Jefferson was governor during the Revolutionary war. Later when the capitol moved to Richmond, the British took over the town.
   Virginia declared independence from England on June 29,1776 just five days before the nation did so in Philadelphia on July 4th, 1776.


   The Bruton Parish Church was attended by the governors, whose names are on a plaque in the narrow auditorium. The governor had a very ornate chair set aside for him. Others from the House of Burgess also attended. George Washington's pew has his name on it. There was an excellent pipe organ concert the night we visited.

Bruton Parish Church

 
   The governor's Mansion was decorated in the style and colors of the period. Bright greens & blues dominated the drawing room. Heavy ornate white wood surrounded windows and doors. A tour was conducted by a lady in colonial dress and knowledgeable of the people who lived there and the times. The gardens were large and done in the English style of hedges and flowers.
   
   We heard a speech by a man dressed as George Washington and he also answered questions from the crowd. There were several acts put on in the streets and before the capitol in the afternoon. They were entertaining and informative. The man on the horse is Aaron Burr after he defected to the English.

The traitor - Aaron Burr

Governor's Mansion and Gardens

Vacationing in DC & Virginia

   I have spent a lot of time writing and editing over the last few months. But that's not all I have been doing. My husband and I had a delightful trip to Washington DC. We visited my younger daughter and her husband

Capitol Dome and Fountain

 who are living there.  

   I had always wanted to see Williamsburg and Jamestown, Virginia. We spent two and a half days there exploring and watching re-enactments.

   To stand on the shore of James Fort [later Jamestown], where the first permanent English settlers arrived in 1607 was a heart-pounding moment.
   The harsh ordeal they  faced over the next few years would take all but fifty- one of the five hundred lives by illness, starvation and exposure. They were gentlemen and business men and were totally unprepared and sometimes unwilling to commit to the hard manual labor of building  in this swampy marsh. At first the Indians provided food and support for them as the colonists knew little about farming. But relations with the Indians disintegrated over the first year, and conflict arose.

Jamestown Shore line

        
The endeavor was chartered by a group of investors, the Virginia Company of London. They expected a profit from their money and became anxious as they sent more and more supplies with no return. In 1608 a group of men from Germany and Poland arrived and started the first manufacturing -- Glassware.
    We spent a great deal of time watching these men blow glass. They make the same items, pitchers, glassware, etc that were sent to England in the 1600's.

Glass Blowers - Furnace behind

pitchers & small containers

Old Church on Jamestown Island

  Conditions were still deplorable until John Rolfe brought tobacco seed with him from the Caribbean, and a marketable product was harvested in 1614.                                   
   Jamestown was the capitol of Virginia until 1699.

   You can tell I love history. I hope you enjoyed this very short version about Jamestown.
Next time Williamsburg.

HENRIETTA'S HOAX --- Coming Soon

   It has taken a long time, but I hope to publish my sequel to Deverell's Dilemma in the next month. Several readers had mentioned how much they liked a couple of my characters. I felt the same way about them, thus Henrietta's Hoax was written.

    I sent Henrietta's Hoax to Avalon Publishing in late 2011. At that time the owner was working on a deal to sell the publishing business. Many manuscripts sat in their office until April of 2012 when it was announced Avalon had been sold to Amazon. I told you about this earlier.

  The manuscripts that had not been contracted by Avalon were turned over to Amazon. The good part of the sale was our published books were put into paper back and Kindle. The hard part was my manuscript for Henrietta was now on a desk waiting -- again.

The first of this year I got a refusal from Montlake, the romance publisher of Amazon. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with my book but decided to do a complete edit with the help of my critique partners, Barb, Cecily & Diana. After much thought I decided to e-publish on Kindle. For the last six months I have made royalties on Deverell's Dilemma from Kindle sales, so it seemed like the best place for it.

 Keep your eyes open for HENRIETTA'S HOAX.

 IT'S A DELIGHTFUL ROMP THROUGH THE REGENCY ERA.
   

Exciting news! My book DEVERELL'S DILEMMA is now in paper back and on Kindle.
Several of you, who are Kindle owners, have asked about it in the past.

I am down to the last few chapters of my new manuscript, BELOVED. I have woven a story from several verses in Ezekiel 16. It has been a different journey in my writing than my Regencies. When you are using the Bible as your background you want to get it right. It's a love story that starts in 14th century France and moves to the Middle East. The research, though fascinating, involved a great deal of time. More than once I wanted to give it up, but the basis of the tale had been in my heart for over seven years. I knew it had to be written.

Kaye Calkins & DEVERELL'S DILEMMA

Cecily relaxing

This was the 25th Anniversary of the Ozarks Romance Authors Conference. Fabulous job and many thanks to all of  the conference committee and especially to Chairman Cecily Cornelius-White.
Some of the Author sessions were on Self - Publishing, Publicity, Writing Emotion, and Plotting. The two agents gave tips on how to negotiate the Agent/Author Relationship.
The day was informative and fun. You should be there next year.

I've selected a few pictures to share.            

                                                                                            

Author & Publisher: Steven Law

Two of our speakers: Authors Leigh Michaels

 & Jennifer Brown 

Agent: Lucienne Diver Author: Rob Thurman Agent: Corie Deyoe Author: Jennifer Brown