Welcome guest blogger, Patricia Bond

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I’d like to welcome my very first guest blogger, Patricia Bond! Patricia is a romance author who sets her stories against rich, historical backdrops. With vivid, strong heroines, and heroes you can fall in love with, her stories of love transcend time and place. Passion and history combine with just enough mystery and suspense to bring you a heart-thrilling read and a satisfying happily-ever-after ending.

Today, Patricia interviews Fenton Pierce-Smythe, hero of her newly released debut novel, By Love’s Honor Bound.

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Come meet the hero with the funny name…

The hero in “By Love’s Honor Bound” is, of course, the requisite tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome. He has wavy dark hair that simply begs for fingers to run through it, and deep, deep blue eyes. No namby-pamby cornflower blue for this man. No, his are dark sapphire and can glitter in passion just like the jewel.

He also has an. . . ummm. . . unusual name.

Patricia Bond: Mr. Pierce-Smythe, your first name, Fenton, is very different. How did you come to be named that?

Fenton Pierce-Smythe: Please, Ms. Bond, call me Fenton. It’s all right.  My name – well, you may not like this answer, but it came from a novel.

PB: A novel?

FP-S: Yes. My parents were traveling in England and my mother purchased something they called a “penny dreadful.”

PB: What’s that?

FP-S:  Apparently a poorly done, lurid novel.

PB: Sold for a penny?

FP-S: (smiling) Something like that. The story goes I was conceived on that trip and my mother took it as a sign.

PB: Fenton is such an unusual name. Did it cause you trouble growing up?

FP-S:  (holding up left hand) See this finger? (pointing to the little finger with a decided bend at the tip) It used to be straight until it met Timmy Parsons’ nose when we were ten.

PB:  Does your name still cause you problems?

FP-S: No. I haven’t seen Timmy Parsons in years.  I understand he’s quite successful now, and somewhat plump.  (smiles) I think I could still take him.

PB:  Yes. You are put together rather well.

FP-S:  (blushing)  Umm. . . Thank you

PB:  Would you come back to visit us again?

FP-S:  Anytime.  (slow, lazy smile) Anytime at all.

PB:  (fanning self)  Oh. . . my.

Book Excerpt from By Love’s Honor Bound:

Someone is killing conductors on the Underground Railroad. With a cellar full of runaway slaves, Olivia June Mathieson must decide whether the handsome Fenton Pierce-Smythe is savior or traitor.

Both Fenton Pierce-Smythe’s fiancée and grandfather were killed when runaway slaves spooked their horses. Determined no one else will face that pain, Fenton hunts runaways to return them safely to their owners. But can he remain unmoved by their plight and unaffected by the beautiful woman who risks her life to lead them to freedom?

Purchase By Love’s Honor Bound at Amazon.

Read some 5-star reviews:
I love history and stories with a setting I can see clearly in my mind. A little mystery makes it even better. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. (Georgia Grosstephan)

 By Love’s Honor Bound is a beautifully told story, full of history and romance. Bond takes the reader back to the time of the underground railroad and immediately pulls you into the lives of the characters, especially the main characters, Olivia June Mathieson and Fenton Pierce Smythe. Great job by debut author Bond. (Helen R. Jones)

About Patricia Bond:

Ms. Bond lives in the best place on earth – Western New York – not quite close enough to see the waterfront, but close enough that you’ll often find her there, camera and notebook in hand, patient, hero-inspiring husband nearby. “Only” four children, not a dozen, but count in their spouses and she’s up to eight now – and a grandchild

She may still try her hand at mysteries. She hasn’t seen a three-sided phone booth in years.

https://www.facebook.com/patricia.bond.author
http://www.patricia-bond.com/

Q and A with Miss Amabel Hawkins

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“Welcome to Emma Lane’s website, Miss Amabel Hawkins. Would you care for a cup of tea?”

“Thank you. I love the garden here. I assume the herb garden is in the back by the kitchen? I do so love working with herbs.” She brushed wisps of hair from her face.

Question: “You are always busy working on something. I heard you are all but managing the Westerton estate. How did Lord Westerton feel about that?”

Answer: “Oh, you heard about that set-to, did you? It was but a trifle. Yes, I thought the man was insane. I shouldn’t have boxed his ears. He thought I was a spy. (laughs) Did you ever hear such silliness?”

Q: “How did it come about that you were in charge of his affairs? Such a strImageange business for a woman, is it not?”

A: “It’s a long story. I know I lack social manners, but my godmother is trying to help me. I had a hard time learning the waltz until Lord…Westerton came in. (blushes) You know of course how desperately I need a husband. This distant cousin is threatening to take the guardianship of my brother, Darien, away. I suspect he only wants his hateful hands on Darien’s money.

Q: “How are you two getting along now? Is your host still uncomfortable having you visit? I heard he called you a meddling, managing female. Is that true?”

A: “We are reconciled. I try to stay out of his business. I had the people of Westerton trained by the time he returned home anyway. They are more than competent now.” She laughed and turned her head away.

Q: “How do you feel about Lord Westerton? Tell us the truth now. Wasn’t there a kiss between the two of you?”

A: “He is very handsome, is he not? But I must not bother him with my problems. Was that kiss a reality? I thought it was just a dream.” She gazed off in the distance.

Q: “Thanks you for visiting with us. Will you come back to see us again some day?”

A: “Oh for certain. My story will be here for all to read in the fall. Check for the release date in October. You will be surprised at the way things turned out for us.” She grinned and waved goodbye.

Courage for High Bush Cranberry and Authors

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One of my favorite North American shrubs, which grows no more than twelve feet high, is a viburnum trilobum, common name “High Bush Cranberry”. The attractive red berries make great jams and jellies, presumably used similar to our cranberry sauce. Left on the shrubs, the birds feed on them all winter.

I voted the viburnum as number one in usefulness: lovely white flowers in the spring, sparkling red berries late summer and glorious red foliage in the fall. I happily encouraged every seedling that volunteered on my property.

That was before I heard about the dreaded viburnum leaf beetle and its larva. One summer it seemed every shrub was infested by this dreadful beetle. In two years every single bush was destroyed. Other members of the viburnum family also bit the dust, but I mourned only the high bush. This story has a happy ending. Last year I discovered two bushes with red berries. This year they are thriving. Why they were missed I have no idea but I admire the courage for their come back from severe adversity.

In my last post, I mentioned how sensitive, creative writers must grow a skin as tough as an alligator’s. When they get a submission rejection by a publisher or agent, they find the courage to pick their wounded egos up and start again. One of the best ways to do this is to remember everyone is not going to like, approve or accept your offerings. The task is to find those who do. Reading submission requirements is probably the best way to find a fit for your work. Key word here is “fit”. A rejection is not necessarily a commentary on your work. It may be just a poor fit for that month, year and day. Or it may be that your work stinks. 🙂  In either case, it’s back to the computer to rework your story, just in case. It takes courage, stamina, and a propped up ego, but success will be well worth it in the end.

Through My Window

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAStories that live in my imagination now have windows of opportunity. I’ve loved writing all my life. Why then did I wait so long to sit down and express my imagination formally? Could it be lack of confidence? It takes nerve and sheer determination to complete a novel. After that it gets difficult. Writing is hard work, but sending stories out to be judged and reviewed is terrifying. Authors are sensitive people and the tough skin one needs has to be cultivated for survival. There’s lots of advice out in the world about handling reviews, unkind comments or worst, nothing at all. (Hint: if you have a friend who writes, please do an honest, but kind review for him/her and post it. Anyone who reviews and posts for others is a friend of all authors and readers everywhere).

Looking through my window you may see my back “kitchen” garden. At the breakfast table I gaze out at the wild flowers blooming in high summer. Since I work in a plant nursery, you may wonder why I cultivate wild flowers. I love them. Simple as that.  The yellow blossom is a plant called Elecampane, a medicinal herb still in use in some sections of the world. It’s a tall stately plant with large, dignified leaves. It will reseed but very slowly. I leave the seeds on for the birds, mainly gold finches, who visit in the winter. More on the view out my window next post.

Sweet Joe Pye

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It’s said that when Sweet Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum) blooms, summer is half over. I’ve noticed it’s definitely in bud. joe_pye_weedIt’s difficult for me with my other love to concentrate only on writing. I’m part owner in a plant nursery and our busy season is summer, of course. Still, ideas come to me when I’m out watering, selling plants, greeting customers and making bouquets for farmers’ markets, all labors of love.

Once while planting datura, an evil short story blinked into my conscious mind almost totally intact. I couldn’t wait to get home to get it all down. When I gave it out to a couple of female friends for quick beta reads, they loved it.

They still ask about it, but I haven’t found a proper home for it to be released as yet. Datura has lovely trumpet shaped blossoms but, for the uninitiated, is poison (all parts of the plant), so you might suspect a murder mystery.

Nature is a recurring theme in most of my stories. Authors write what they know and love. My Regency Romance ladies are out gathering herbs even as they plan their gowns for their coming out balls. The young women learn from their mothers how to use the “still” room to concoct formulas for household uses. Where do ideas come from for our stories? Authors borrow from real life and then take a twist or two from our imagination. It all works out somehow.

Emma Lane
soon to be released ~ THE DUKE AND MISS AMABEL HAWKINS

New stories coming up!

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Happy 2013! Lots of excitement coming up. Look for a new Regency entitled “The Duke and Miss Amabel Hawkins,” scheduled to release in September by Musa Publishing. I loved writing about this character who is a “managing” female. Imagine the duke’s face when this competent woman invades his household.

Over at Janis Lane’s Blog will be an addition to her Contemporary Suspense stories, Murder in the Neighborhood.