What's in a Name?

My contemporary romantic suspense "The Longest Pleasure" is published now in print and e-book form. It had me musing about the hero and heroine. The heroine is the more intriguing as she starts off as Olivia and becomes Viola. Top marks for getting that I stole those names from one of my favourite Shakespearean plays "Twelfth Night" I love both women in that play, especially Viola who has to make a new life for herself. Not only that but she disguises herself as a boy too, making for a lot of confusion and fun. Viola in my novel has to make a new life for herself too. Originally she called herself Olivia because the Police had advised her that if she changes her name, change it to something that is familiar to her. It had me thinking about names and why we choose them. The late actress Beryl Reid always said she could not get into a character until she found the right shoes. I can sympathize with that. I can't write a word until I have the names of my main characters. Olivia/Viola was easy but my male character was a little more problematical.I wanted a manly name but something short and memorable too. I don't know where the name Jed came from. Is it short for Jedadiah? Who knows? I never have to get into that.Jud I know is short for George but what could Jed's full name be? The first correct answer can obtain an e-book copy of the novel. In the main I do like old fashioned names. I have a Saul and an Edward, and also Jesse. I am particularly fond of Jesse from A Poisoned Legacy, and similarly Saul from His Other Wife. Oh be truthful girl, I am fond of all my heroes, that's what they are heroes. Also I am fond of rather old fashioned names for my gals too. Girls like Belinda, Flora, Roxanne and Charlotte. It might be fun to try and match the names to the books - a visit to either www.whiskeycreekpress.com or www.amazon.com will give you the answer. Happy reading!

The Longest Pleasure

The Longest Pleasure is due for release in March, and I so wanted to share the beautiful Nancy Donoghue cover with you. Nancy again captivates the essence of the story and I am so delighted with this. A friend and colleague, Paula Martin, was doing an interview the other day, one of the topics was titles and where they came from. It was affirming to see that Paula, like me when stuck for a title, reverts to quotations. I was really stuck on what I should call The Longest Pleasure, as it is a duel edged story. I went into my quotations book and came up with the perfect one - by Lord Byron, himself quite a rogue! "Now hatred is by far the longest pleasure. Men love in haste but they detest at leisure." Lord Byron.

It is so perfect as The Longest Pleasure is about love and hate and revenge. I am so happy that I found it. Considering what Paula had written about, I looked at my other titles and mused over when I had used quotes before. "Fortune's Folly" straight out of Romeo and Juliet and perfect for that book. However apart from a book I wrote years ago "Fond Deceiver" I realized that I had not actually used that many quotations. Coincidentally Paula revealed that she too had written a book some time ago called Fond Deceiver and dang it but she had found the same quote too. Great minds thinking alike. At the moment I am reading the proofs for The Longest Pleasure, it is serving to confirm to me that the title is more than perfect. Finding that quote was a stroke of luck!

25th January 2012

This is a special day. It's Robert Burns' birthday. All over the world people celebrate this wonderful poet with a special supper. The menu always has haggis, and there is a toast to this simple but delicious dish. Its wonderful when someone reads "An Address to the Haggis" in a rip roaring Scottish accent. There are lots of other things to eat too and last but not least, there is the Immortal Memory, where someone will talk about Robert Burns.
This is my first year without a Burns supper to go to. Last year I went up to Scotland and stayed at a lovely hotel and enjoyed a Burns Supper and dance with lots of like-minded souls. It was wonderful. When John was here we used to have our own Burns Supper We had regular guests who came every year and we also invited two new people. These people only came once but it made each Burns Night different and special. I know that everyone enjoyed it.In our little house there was no room for "the dance" but there was lots of good, Scottish music and the food was wonderful, all prepared by John.
It was John's idea to have a Burns supper many, many years ago. He maintained that things went flat after Christmas. He loved Scottish dancing and used to be good at it too. His dad was in The Black Watch Scottish regiment, hence his love of all things Scottish. I had a closer connection to Scotland coming from a long line of MacLennan and MacDonald and McKechnie.
Burns deserves this remembrance, he was a brilliant poet, who can forget his wonderful poem A Man's a Man for All that which has such relevance today. He was a handsome devil too and a man for the lassies too. I visited his family home in Alloa what a tiny cottage it was and yet it is full of atmosphere. If you are ever visiting Scotland this is a place you should visit.
So for the sake of Auld Lang Syne have a toast to Rabbie Burns.He deserves his place in literature.

Review at Amazon

I am conscious that I have not been keeping up with this blog.However, I was in Florida for Christmas and that is my good excuse. Basking in the warmth of that lovely Florida sun, but importantly, basking in the company of my family. The latter always the very best thing about my trip.

While I was away I was contacted by a reader who had read A Sprig of Broom and who had also been kind enough to put up a review on Amazon. Such a treat and one for which I am very grateful to AC and especially for the five stars. I thought I would share the review with you here.

In the meantime please let me with you all a very Happy New Year.

5.0 out of 5 stars ONE OF THE VERY BEST IN THAT GENRE !!!, December 29, 2011
By
AC - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Sprig Of Broom (Kindle Edition)
One more time Margaret Blake delivers a powerful tale full of danger at every corner. The action takes place at the end of the civil war between two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York; one of them won. Now is a time of reckoning, there will be no mercy for traitors. In these very uncertain times the life of a man means nothing, and the life of a woman even less.

This is the story of a noble young woman, Lady Cecily Hadfield, courageous, strong but also willful; who like many other women at that time is only a little pawn on a big chessboard, where no matter what happens, men always win. Power and greed is their creed. Caught in the world of political ambition and intrigue she tries desperately to navigate on troubled water.

The new king "gives" her to a Welsh barbarian, Thomas Cadwallader, and she can do nothing about it. She is utterly powerless and quite alone, no one will come to her rescue. The only thing she can do is to stay true to herself no matter what. She will have to be the wife of that man, there is no way out of it. He will own her body but he will never own her mind and her soul, never! She sees this new king and her new husband as murderers and usurpers, nothing more, nothing less.

Cecily and Thomas clash at first and this is an understatement. She taunted him each and every day tirelessly. I was not sure at the beginning if I was going to like her or not, but on the other hand I could understand why she acted this way. All I can say is that Thomas's tolerance to his wife was pretty high but only up to a point! Behind his cold demeanor Thomas is a good person but his pride is often a hindrance.

Page after page something happens, there is no rest. Each time Cecily says something outrageous to her husband, he reacts of course and it is an unending spiral opened to anything. Tension is very high!

Cecily will learn the hard way that willfulness is never a solution, on the contrary it can be extremely dangerous.

Margaret Blake created captivating characters. She has become an expert at mixing fiction with history, each time craftily balanced. This book is an action-packed plot full of twists and turns. What a wonderful book.

A Sprig of Broom

I am happy to tell you that A Sprig of Broom is published today. Initially in e book form at www.whiskeycreekpress.com

I should be quaffing champagne or at the very least doing something really exciting, yet no, I am off to Pilates. I have to come back home later and do some cleaning, check if my laundry is dry enough to put away and, oh you know all those mundane tasks that we mortals have to do. I think I would rather be Cecily Hadfield, my heroine in A Sprig of Broom, she has the mercurial Lord of Llanaber to tame, or is it he that must tame her? To find the answer get hold of a copy of A Sprig of Broom, it will certainly while away a chilly December afternoon!

Guest Blogger Today - Welcome Pauline Holyoak

Award – Winning, Canadian Author Pauline Holyoak
Merryweathger Lodge – Malevolent Spirit. Book 2 . A trilogy inspired by the authors own experiences at a remote little cottage near Stonehenge.

“This author paints each page with fantasy, colorful characters, and haunting events that would light up a movie screen.”

Thank you for inviting me to your blog, Margaret.

I grew in Southeast England, in a coal mining village lovingly nicknamed, “The place that time forgot.” Go to my website, click on ‘Articles’ and find out why. I immigrated to Canada when I was 21 in search of adventure and a new life. I currently live in Alberta with my sports crazy husband, adorable sheltie dog and cantankerous ginger cat. I am the proud mother of two grown children.
The first book in my Merryweather Lodge trilogy Merryweather Lodge – Ancient Revenge, was the Readers Favorite 2011 Silver Award Winner for paranormal fiction. I have also written two children’s books and had twenty five articles published.
I often get asked. “What inspired you to write this trilogy?”…
Every summer, when I was a child, we would visit my aunt and uncle at their quaint little cottage on Salisbury Plain. It was called Scotland Lodge and was situated not far from the historical Stonehenge. My uncle worked as a farm hand for the local squire. My aunt tended the manor house. It was there as I roamed free, deep within the English countryside, that I experienced joy, enchantment and some very strange and frightening occurrences. It was like a fairytale kingdom with a sinister twist. The memories of my summers at Scotland Lodge stayed with me, as a sort of nagging unsolved mystery all my life. A few years ago I revisited my childhood wonderland (the old place still emanates a strange and eerie essence) and was lead by some mysterious force into concocting this story and writing this trilogy. It is from my mystifying experiences at Scotland Lodge that this story has emerged.

Blurb: It’s Christmastime at Merryweather Lodge. Emily has returned to the old cottage from her home in Canada; after the untimely death of someone she loved. Will she be able to celebrate a traditional English Christmas in her aunts enchanting little cottage or will she be tormented by the hideous creature, again? Was Emily’s attempt to banish her unearthly adversary successful? Will her aunt disclose the secrets she has been concealing for so many years? What will happen when Emily’s best friend comes to visit her? What secrets will she reveal? Will Emily ever get to make love to the man of her dreams? A chilling tale of love, passion, sorcery and sacrifice; laced with mystery and tied with humor.

Excerpt: I could hear the shrill sound of my mother’s disapproval as I closed my eyes, wrapped in the warm arms and sensual body of my very best friend.
Suddenly, I woke up to a strange sound, and darkness, total darkness. I listened intently, my gaze scouring the inky void, my heart picking up pace. It was a ghostly child’s voice, a repetitive menacing echo from far away. The voice came closer, its ominous words penetrating the darkness, ringing in my ears, pounding in my head; “Emily, Emily two by four. I saw you at the cellar door. I pushed you on the dirty floor and cut you with a chainsaw.” I recognized the unearthly voice.

Merryweather Lodge – A quaint little cottage, steeped in history, shrouded in secrets, its aura a paradoxical essence of heaven and hell. Come with me to the West Country in England and experience my protagonist’s strange and eerie journey there.
Merryweather Lodge – Ancient Revenge and Merryweather Lodge – Malevolent Spirit
Available at www.whiskeycreekpress.com – www.amazon.com – www.amazon.co.uk
Visit Pauline at her website www.paulineholyoak.com

Introducing Cara Cooper

Welcome to Cara Cooper

Hi Cara, I remember when we first met at a pink castle in Scotland; both of us were attending a writing course. It proved to be a lot of fun, did you gain anything useful from it? That castle was SO romantic and the food delicious.

Hi I did gain lots from that course. As you recall it was about writing for Mills and Boon. Although I haven’t been successful with them yet, they really know how to give their readers what they want. Above all, that course explained to me how internal conflict which is the baggage that we carry around from our own personal histories helps to prevent us forming relationships sometimes with people who are perfect for us, our own personal heroes! Working through that baggage is the life blood of many romances.

Cara you explained internal conflict perfectly.
You write Pocket Novels, for those in the States who might not know what these are, could you tell us a little about them?

They are novellas, around half the size of a mainstream book so you can happily sit down and polish one in an afternoon over a cup of coffee and cake and get an instant romance fix. Some have elements of suspense – maybe a crime that has to be solved. Some are historical – the Regencies are very popular. They are sweet romances, stopping at the bedroom door but they still have passionate moments and the contemporary ones are about today’s women. In ‘Leaving Home,’ my heroine faced the challenge of planning a new life in New York but had to deal with the sudden arrival of her estranged sister’s baby as well as choose between two men vying for her affections. In ‘Tango at Midnight’, another heroine with her own cupcake company has a dark secret hidden for years which the hero threatens to uncover. Pocket novels are always feel good stories that give the reader an instant lift and which you could happily share with your mother, grandmother or teenage daughter. What’s more, they fit very nicely in a handbag for that long journey or morning at the beach. Many are now being published as e-books.

Writing Pocket Novels you have to be strict on the word count, do you plan your story within the time frame or do you have to cut, and then cut some more?

I think I’ve got it down to a fine art now having written six and with a seventh in the pipeline. I tend to be very strict with myself and keep the word count way down so that I can add if necessary. Adding I always find easier than taking elements away!

Funnily enough it is the reverse with me. I hate adding, much prefer taking away.
I know you sometimes write historical romance. Regency is very popular, why do you think that is? I write Medieval but the Regency period surpasses any other period in popularity.


You’re so right Margaret. I often visit relatives in Hampshire, very close to Jane Austen’s house. Even the buildings with their red brick and beautiful gardens ooze the charm of the Regency period. I think the popularity stems from the notion that it was a gentler time, a slower time but where people faced considerable challenges – women to make their mark in a male dominated world and men to fight for what they considered to be right. There is endless fascination too in thinking what a world would be like without cars, planes and computers – all the stresses and strains of the modern world can be lost in the fantasy of historical novels.

You are so right about stresses and strains. I find the mobile phone is something to struggle with in contemporary suspense novels. Makes it far harder than when writing an historical.
When did you first start to write – what was your inspiration to be a writer?

Gosh I don’t know, I just always have written. I think it really stems from a love of books and reading in general. I am never without a book in my handbag or a notebook to write down ideas, character traits or descriptions of settings. I was in St James’s Street the other day visiting the Carlton Club, a genuine gentleman’s club in the heart of London. The best bit though was the shops around it which were perfect for a historical setting. There was William Evans, ‘purveyors of country clothing, gun and rifle maker’ established in 1883, the club itself with its bootscraper at the door and even a man smoking a cigar on the pavement. I’d only have had to close my eyes and I would have been back in the past. I guess, to answer your question, London is a huge inspiration it’s so full of life and people there’s always something to write about.


You have such a busy life, a career, a husband and daughter, you are a prolific writer, how do you fit it all in?

I wait until they’ve all gone off to work and school and make sure I have nothing to do for an hour each day but write. Little and often is better than huge dollops of writing every now and then. You have to be disciplined and the writing muscle is one that has to be exercised regularly.


I do know that you met your husband while learning the tango. I think that SO romantic, was it really romantic? The Tango is the dance of love, meeting like this is straight out of a romantic novel, was it like that?

Amazingly, yes! Some of the music is wonderful and we have actually tango’d across St Mark’s Square in Venice in the rain - very badly, we’re not terribly good but the music was drifting out of a nearby hotel and we couldn’t resist it


How wonderful, that is real romance, Cara, you lucky lady.
I believe you are setting up a blog, perhaps you would like to give details here.

Yes, I have recently got together with other Pocket Novel writers to set up thepocketeers.blogspot.com we welcome all visitors and comments and have posted about anything from our favourite romantic heroes to where we get our ideas from.

What have you going at the moment?

At the moment I am busy with the third installment of a serial for the magazine People’s Friend set in Sorrento in Italy and am doing edits for a pocket novel with a desert island setting. It’s no surprise that it’s cold and rainy in London at the moment so I guess I am escaping to the sun! Thank you so much Margaret for the opportunity to appear here at the Lark Journals, it’s been a real privilege and I hope to welcome you to the Pocketeers blog soon.

Ah wonderful Sorrento, I went there too, such a romantic city. Thank you so much for being here today, have really enjoyed talking with you and wish you lots of luck with all your writing ventures.

www.caracoopers.blogspot.com