Monday, November 14, 2016

Which Fictional Characters Best Reflect You?

Last month, one of my Facebook friends posted a challenge to come up with four fictional characters that I identified with. It was great fun putting my list together. You should try it. It's a great way to tell your readers more about who you are and what you enjoy reading or watching. I am a brand new cactus rose. Following are the ones I selected as most like me.


Jo March in the novel Little Women--Like Jo, I grew up in a financially challenged home. Jo works outside the home to help support her family. I worked at any job I could get—babysitter, tennis instructor, car hop, waitress, store clerk. Jo and I are both strong and determined; although I am better at controlling anger than she is. She spends some time in New York City. I worked there for twelve years during my thirties and forties. Jo is a writer. I am, too. It wasn't my profession, but I wish it had been.

Jing-mei Woo (June) in The Joy Luck Club—I remember identifying with June throughout the novel, notably when her mother praises her for never taking the best quality crab. I try to respect the needs and wants of others which includes bypassing crab claws for body meat, or taking the smallest piece of cake on the plate. Like June, I was pushed to excel (at school rather than piano). My mother and Suyuan Woo were both critical mothers. Mine was especially critical when it came to socially acceptable behavior and physical appearance. I came to realize this wasn’t because she was mean, but because she wanted the best for me and my sisters. I know she loved me, and I loved her with all my heart.

Mary Richards in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”--A single woman who, at age 30, moves to Minneapolis after being jilted by her boyfriend of two years. I, a divorced woman of 30, moved to New York City after being cheated on by my husband of seven years. Mary ends up with a career in TV; whereas I worked in the apparel and cosmetics fields. Mary becomes friends with her next door neighbor in the boarding house she lives in. I became friends with one of my roommates in the New York apartment I rented. We are still friends to this day.

Anna from the movie “Frozen”--Although I am the oldest of three sisters rather than the younger of two, Anna is as devoted to her sister Elsa as I am to my sisters Karen and Susan. I am also optimistic and caring like she is and have her never-give-up attitude. I, too, was separated from my sisters for a long time, not because we had grown apart, but because I lived across the country for many years. Now we spend as much time together as we can.

Ginger Dehlinger




Monday, November 07, 2016

Secrets of Sandhill Island


If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be - mountains, beach, desert, in the middle of a forest, or the heart of a big city? Many people would say the beach with the constant ebb and flow of the tide, sea birds screeching overhead, and the smell of saltwater.

In Secrets of Sandhill Island, Meg gave up her life in a big city for a tumble-down beach house on the shore that brought her happiness as a child.  It also gave her a chance to hide out from the high society world her father pushed her into.  The only thing in life precious to her besides her son, was her garden. She toiled in the dirt daily bringing forth life where once there was nothing.  She mixed the sandy soil with loamy topsoil and expanded her garden each year bringing forth more plants and beauty. The sound of the waves nourished her soul like the vegetables nourished her body. And she shared the garden’s bounty with her neighbors.

But life was not always so serene for Meg.  Her father, a tyrant who thought nothing of cheating his neighbors to feather his own nest, disapproved of her one true love, Evan.  Then Evan died, leaving her to raise their child alone.

Just as she had settled into her everyday life of growing and selling vegetables, along came Alex. A man with a past that might be the key to her future. He was an artist, fired from the university because of a fake sexual harassment charge, who wanted to paint her beach house. And then he found a new medium for his painting – organic – from her garden.

Set on a tiny tourist island off the coast of Corpus Christi, Sandhill Island has many secrets, and if you stick around long enough you’ll learn who holds the key to unlock them. Just as the secrets are heating up, so is hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico. Secrets of Sandhill island is a mainstream suspense novel with plenty of twists and turns.
Secrets of Sandhill Island
by Peggy Chambers
             https://amzn.com/B00R9YR23I          

Saturday, November 05, 2016

Hello Readers and Fans from Sandra Masters

The Duke's Magnificent Bastard has arrived worldwide as of November 4th, 2016! Get your copy for 1/2 off through Monday November 7th at The Wild Rose Press!

This months newsletter: Q & A with Sandra


Sandra_2014 50 percent pictureA (3) copy

 

What is the genre of your new story The Duke’s Magnificent Bastard?

Sandra: This novel is a multi-cultural Regency romance story of a seventeen-year-old Anglo-West Indian bastard, Thorn Wick, now acknowledged by his father, The Duke of Althorn, who was never made aware of his birth. Our hero admires the ward of his father from afar, an aristocratic flirtatious English lady, Alicia, who has designs on him until the reality of loving Thorn too much almost destroys her. Throw in our noble Duke, an evil witch doctor, a Barbados tribal chieftain intent on redemption, horse racing for the Regent, amazing “heavenly” Argamak Turkmen horses, a conspiracy to bring down the monarchy, and our plot thickens. Lust, desire, passion all conflict to epic proportions. Honor, truth, and justice test his values. Just when he starts to believe in fairy tales, another obstacle looms to thwart his plans. And then there’s love!

Where did you get the idea for this story?

Sandra: Ever since I can remember, the subject of bastardy fascinated. I read John Jakes eight-book series that spanned generations and centuries and decided I wanted to create a ‘magnificent’ bastard of my own.

How does Thorn react to the stigma?



Sandra: Yanked from the West Indies, the half-breed, is transported to London, England where he is considered illegitimate. Can anyone imagine the emotions that consumed him? Except for the noble duke’s recognition and that of the family who supports him, acceptance though difficult is made easier. Thorn fights against all the odds. He wants to be regarded as an honorable man, like his father.

Prepare to be transported from island life in Barbados to aristocratic England and then back to Barbados where stunning revelations wrack our hero’s world.

What stunning revelations?

Sandra: Without spoiling the story for readers, all I can say is that there is a native uprising against foreign plantation owners, the discovery of the truth about Thorn’s mother’s death, and a flight to save his life as he swims out to a waiting ship bound for England and a bad storm.

Why did you decide to write Regency Romance?

Sandra: I was an only child whose parents both worked. Before and after school, I was alone, and the only reading materials my parents had was the book Heidi and The Encyclopedia Britannica. You can imagine that the Encyclopedia was dry reading. History intrigued me, particularly the historical period of the Regency era. At the age of thirteen, after a brief stint in a convent in New Jersey, I accepted that the life of a novice nun was not my calling. Interestingly, when I arrived there in Morristown, the convent was an old historical mansion with parquet floors and grand staircases, not to mention a soaring ceiling, usually found in Regency mansions.

My first task was to wash the parquet floors, dry them, polish with a special formula, and then shine them. But that was not the reason I left. It had to do with a glass of evaporated milk. No cookie could disguise the taste at the 3:30 afternoon sessions. I pleaded not to be forced to drink the odiferous liquid, but I was to be an example. I drank it, threw up on the Sister’s garment, and then requested I go home to my parents. My reckoning was simple. If I was meant to be a nun most surely the milk would not be a problem. In those days the convents had strict rules, and they did their best to train and teach us, but my heart was elsewhere.

Visions of dukes, duchesses, viscounts, earls, danced in my head. So I kept on writing. I sometimes think that in another life, I was born during the Regency period. I’ve never created a duke I couldn’t love.

Online classes, seminars, conferencing, monthly meetings, networking, etc. over the past five years made me realize I had to study the craft. Decades later, when I decided that to see my name in print was a goal before I left the planet, I broke through the ceiling. My debut novel was Once Upon a Duke, released July 14, 2015. I’ve been on a marvelous journey ever since, with my fourth book in The Duke Series whose release date is November 4, 2016, The Duke’s Magnificent Bastard.

When do you write?

Sandra: Writing to me is not a pastime or a way to make money, it is an obsession. I write ten to twelve hours a day, every day, and then I read in the wee time of a morning, which doesn’t leave too much time to clean the house. The dust puppies will always be there.
 

About The Duke’s Magnificent Bastard

After three years in England, Thorn Wick, the duke’s bastard son, perfectly flawed, still fights for acceptance in his father’s world as a renowned golden horse trainer. Just when he starts to believe in fairy tales, another obstacle looms to thwart his plans.

Alicia Montgomery, ward of the duke, is in love with Thorn. Strong willed and adventurous, she determines she can convince him to admit his feelings until the reality of loving Thorn too much almost destroyed her.

On a dangerous mission to Barbados at the request of his father, Thorn is stunned when secrets are revealed about his mother. Will Thorn extract revenge for the foul deed?

Can Alicia quell Thorn’s demons and prove to him love can pave the way to their happiness?

Can Thorn relinquish his past because he now has a present and a future? Will he accept the man he has become? Will he return to his father and Alicia and fulfill their destiny?

About the Author

From a humble beginning in Newark, NJ, retired business executive Sandra Masters had a short stay at a convent in Morristown, NJ, to the board rooms of NYC to the ballrooms of the Regency period. Spicy Sensual Seduction with Swagger.

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THE DUKE’S MAGNIFICENT BASTARD  is available now at Amazon.com as of November 4th.  If you have any questions, simply email me at:  sandramastersauthor@gmail.com. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

Sandra Masters


Sandra Master's Novels:
Once Upon a Duke, Debut Book

My Divinely Decadent Duke, Book 2
Thorn, Son of a Duke at 99 cents - Prequel Teaser, Book 3 (A must read before you buy book 4.)
The Duke's Magnificent Bastard
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Book 4, releases worldwide on November 4, 2016, and reunites many of the characters in Book 2, MY DIVINELY DECADENT DUKE. Stunning events have happened to affect the future of the dynasty.  Consider it a family reunion.