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War
Good morning dear reader. There is a topic I’d like to write about this morning that is…not pleasant. War. When I say war we all usually have one that comes to mind. I usually think of Korea because of how the show M*A*S*H impacted me. I’m writing from the States, so I’ll be addressing the […]
Food and Spices of the Middle Ages
I just filled my new salt shaker. When I was done, I looked at the pile of salt—about 1 ounce—in my sink. I turned on the water and washed it down the drain. Down the drain. I felt sick to my stomach. Six months ago, I had finished researching the history on spices in Medieval […]
The Longships
“The Longships” by Enya The longships. Give me a moment while I sit back and ogle the memories. Tales of the Drui all started with a tantrum. I was so angry at another book I had read where the women were flaky and thrilled that they had been kidnapped and raped. I was enraged, to […]
Mindless Mutterings…
It’s 8:14…On May 4th…May the Fourth be with you, dear Reader. I’m writing because I have a lot on my mind. I had a surprise guest that kept me away from writing all day so, I spent the day in the garden…getting the last of my potted plants in the earth. Tomorrow my therapy begins […]
Interview with Monique Rangel
Monique Rangel just posted my interview! I love how well these two excerpts came out. Tell us about your up and coming fantasy novel, Dolor and Shadow. Dolor and Shadow is a dark fantasy that launches the Tales of the Drui series. It is about the elven witch Kallan, the Dokkalfar princess with magical powers […]
History vs. Fantasy
When I wrote Dolor and Shadow I wanted a Fantasy that started here on Earth…in Norway to be exact—the culture who gave us elves—and expanded into the myth from whence the elves were birthed. That drew me to Norse mythology. With Dolor and Shadow toggling between the fantasy and reality, I had to watch where […]
Jelling Stones
I adore history and decided to insert a lot of little treasures into Dolor and Shadow while I researched the project. One of my favorite scenes in Dolor and Shadow—Chapter 53—was the one I wrote around the Jelling (pronounced “Yelling”) Stones (pictured below). In the 9th Century, the king of Denmark, Harald “Bluetooth” Gormson, erected […]
Ogham Runes
One of the oldest writing system in existence are the Ogham runes from Ireland. It’s quite stunning. We have only a few rune stones with this writing. Some hypothesize that the writing itself had no sound to it. It only was used to communicate ideas instead of representing a sound like today’s writing system. In […]
Speaking of Pompous overbearing Nord Lords…
It’s 7:10. I have to run my kids out to the bus stop, refresh my coffee, grab a biscotti, then write the next scene in Bergen: Bane. I’m back. It’s 7:29. I fed my fish (Shubunkins…I named them all Fred) I have my coffee and my biscotti. Sunlight is pouring through the window onto my […]