The Royal Ascot in Regency England

Join Sara Adrien to learn the facts about Royal Ascot and her novel with Tanya Wilde, Dare To Tempt An Earl This Spring While researching my latest Regency romance, I was captivated by the history and grandeur of the Royal Ascot. Established in 1711 by Queen Anne, the Ascot quickly became more than just a […]

Pesky Characters

Last week, as I mentioned in this blog, I started a new novella, one for a Valentine collection to be published in January. I plunged in and wrote a few scenes but bogged down by Friday. I. Could. Not. Write. Saturday morning I realized why. I hardly know the hero and heroine. When I don’t […]

Music in the night

Annie Potter has been sneaking into Woodglen Hall, seat of the absent Duke of Glenmoor, for months, using a window the steward kindly leaves open for her. She comes to lose herself in the duke’s grand piano forte, an antidote to her miserable life in her uncle’s vicarage. A week ago a stranger interrupted her, […]

WIP: Damage and Neglect

Here’s a teaser from the first part of “Charred Hope,” a novella for Love’s Perilous Road. It is the hero and heroine’s second meeting. The day before she all but threw him out when he came unannounced to bring her something. When she opened it, she was flooded with chagrin and embarrassment. She has come […]

Back to work

We crawled home—weary, pleased with ourselves, and refreshed—late Saturday night. Yesterday involved A) sleep B) laundry and C) sharing our adventures with my travel buddy’s parents. This morning I face a pile of email, the deadline to finalize my story for Love’s Perilous Road, and urgent messages from The Author’s Guild about Meta’s use of […]

Marching Along

Eighteen months ago I was hitting a goal of 2000 words a day, a pace that enabled me to finish a book every four months, a pace needed for writing a series. During my annus horribilis — hospitals, emergency rooms, funerals—I stopped writing entirely. Since February, I’ve struggled through good days and bad days, trying […]

In Which Our Heroine is Shocked

Belinda Westcott’s aunt has a terrible cook. She believes the food is better when Belinda is there to encourage the woman. She has no idea Belinda does the cooking herself. Of course it makes her late when the guests at the house party gather before dinner… She’s in for a shock. Taking a quick glance […]

Preparing for Battle

From Snowed by the Wallflower, in which our reluctant hero prepares to face his fate— “I should never have let you spend so much time with my grandfather’s valet!” John Conlyn, Earl of Ridgemont scowled at the giant of a man who had once been his batman, with no more duties than to keep his […]

It’s Up!

Snowed by the Wallflower, my contribution to Revenge of the Wallflowers is now up for pre-order. I feel like I’m waking up. Belinda Westcott doesn’t want to injure the Earl of Ridgemont. She merely wants to humiliate him. After all, one good prank deserves a payback. How could she anticipate that it would go so […]