Addictive Summer Reads

One of the questions authors are always asked is where our ideas and inspirations come from. I know I've answered that here on starrwords before, but insights and ideas have been flowing well this summer. I have an over abundance, so I thought I'd share.

Rather than going on about new ideas (like how wonders can become lessons in a galaxies wide search for a mythical beast), how about some of the inspirations for my latest release--which just happens to be on sale during this Addictive Reads Summer Event. (See how smoothly I slipped that in?)

 Blue Keltic Moon is the first book in a new series, picking up the family saga about 20 years after the final book of the Double Keltic Triad. So, some of my inspiration was built in--because I knew the characters and what they needed to do. But people (human, fey, it doesn't matter) change in 20 years, so they surprised me at times. A lot of times.

That surprise led to new ideas and connections--because I thrive on making connections between stories, and series. That's probably why the world between worlds is so important to a number of my tales. A multitude of worlds and universes find connection there. The vast and differing landscapes are the home to more creatures than I've yet discovered. Who knows how many tales may find some spark of inspiration there. I certainly don't!

Music plays a huge part in both my creative and writing processes. Different types of music, or just one line of lyrics can spark a character's dreams, desires or actions. Part of the musical inspiration for this book came from Celtic bands--because it is a Keltic book, ya know. Music from India and Egypt for the hero. Probably the biggest influence was Mad World (Roland Orzabal)--the cover by Adam Lambert on American Idol. Hmm, that's an interesting combination.

Now for the fun stuff. Blue Keltic Moon is one of many great books on sale during the Addictive Reads Summer event! Follow the Linky below to visit other AR authors. You might even find some fun giveaways. Head to our event page (click on the banner above) to be entered in chances to win Amazon gift cards or Paypal cash! 

Click here to sign up for my newsletter: News from the starr! New subscribers earn 2 entries in my drawing for a summer fun stretchy bracelet--your choice of colors! Current subscribers, leave a note in the comments and let me know and you'll get one entry.

A little bit about Blue Keltic Moon  

Duty before love. As much as Breanna’s heart protested, Gowthaman would have to wait until she returned with the rescued Alfar-Sindhu prince.

Love before self. Following Breanna into the World Between Worlds, Gowthaman faces the pains of his past, risks his intellect, his sanity and his life. For her.

Destiny before all. In the time of the blue Keltic moon.

It’s been twenty years since Morghan, leader of the Alfar-Sindhu, became trapped in the desolate World Between Worlds and once again blue moons are aligning in a multitude of worlds.

Breanna has loved Gowthaman forever, but as one of the Faerie race, he continually claims their age difference is too great. Yet the soulfire shows he loves her as well. To help her family, she must set aside her emotions to lead a rescue mission to the World Between Worlds. She and her group will face the unknown and bring Morghan home.

Even devoting his life to the Fey library hasn’t saved Gowthaman from the agonies of his past, and the long moments he spent in the World Between Worlds. Now, the woman he loves stands ready to lead a rescue party into that cursed place, and only he holds the knowledge to take them there...and, with luck, safely return with the prince. The risk to his mind...doesn’t matter as long as he keeps Breanna from harm.

The World Between Worlds. Can a place filled with despair and loss also be a discovery of love and redemption? Perhaps... only under the blue Keltic moon.

And of course, the buy links for the sale!    

Amazon   Barnes & Noble    Kobo

Smashwords    All Romance Ebooks 

Google Books    iTunes

Visit these Addictive Reads authors!

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Gobsmacked and Honored

Last weekend All Romance eBooks chose one of my books as a staff pick.

A staff pick!

Yes, I was surprised. Then humbled and honored. Thank you ARe for highlighting

The Double Keltic Triad Collection, Books 1-3

The Double Keltic Triad Collection
Books One - Three
In the fey Otherworld, a half-faerie child is born. To protect him from evil and a crusade to protect the purity of the faerie race, he is abandoned in the human world, never to know of his magical heritage.
Now the boy is a man rooted in reality, and fantasy is only something from an undisciplined imagination.

By Keltic Design tells the story of this man, Jaye, and how he discovers his heritage... and love with Allyn.

Fires of a Keltic Moon is the tale of Jay and Allyn’s daughter, Lara, whose special magical talent allows her to create portals to other times. But evil travels the past and the Scottish Highlands, creating blocks to Lara and Iain’s love.

The fairy wee folk are but myth and legend, even to the faerie. In Keltic Flight, the fairy Korin falls in love with Jaye’s sister, Nanceen, and is forced to bargain with an evil king to woo her. To fulfill the conditions, he risks discovery, and his life.

By Keltic Design
Allyn Keely, Celtic artist and friend of Faerie, finally finds a man she can love. But she’s older than he is and faces the insurmountable task of helping him realize his destiny in the Otherworld.

Successful businessman, Jaye Zeroun prides himself on his realistic, but lonely, view of life. Until Allyn knots her way around his heart and fills his life with a fantasy he refuses to believe. Then danger threatens their love, forcing him to either accept a deadly battle or lose the very things he never included in his life, a family and a love beyond his wildest imagining.

Fires of a Keltic Moon
Searching…
Lara Zeroun needs something in her life, so she opens a portal in time and travels to the ancient Highlands. But, how can she become involved with a dark, mysterious man who belongs to another time?
Waiting…
Due to the matriarchal line of inheritance, Iain is no longer able to lay claim to his father's lands. He's prepared to leave--until a golden-haired woman visits the manor on the arm of a wandering storyteller. But, with no land or possessions, Iain dares not succumb to the temptation of Lara.
Finding…
Danger lurks in Iain's time and becomes a threat to Lara's present. Will Lara and Iain be able to defeat the evil and make their ways through time--finding the love they both desire?

Keltic Flight
Korin Goodfellow loves the Gentry maid, Nanceen. In order to woo her, Korin bargains with his evil king, who sets seemingly impossible tasks. The first? She must believe in him. 
But the folk of Faerie, the Gentry, don't believe in the odd assortment of beings who make up the wee folk. And definitely not in fairies. 

Nanceen doesn't know what she believes. Until Korin calls to her, then makes his way into her world, becoming a wingless man she can see, touch, believe in. 
But will the rat king's conditions drive a wedge between them, or force Korin to confrontation, to battle, into risking his life for love?

*~*
Of course I need to give you the buy link to All Romance eBooks, so click HERE!

First of the Summer of Three--Keltic Dreams

I've christened this summer as *lizzie starr's Summer of Three. That means a ton of work for me, but more importantly, it means three new books for my readers to enjoy.

Three books?

Yep, one each month. Together we'll discover the end of the tales of the Double Keltic Triad. Between the releases of books five and six is a story from the Keltic Multiverse. Turns out there's many, many more parallel worlds yet to discover that interact with the Faerie Otherworld and our own human world.

But, let's not get ahead of ourselves.

First, and now available is the fifth tale of The Double Keltic Triad, Keltic Dreams.

A spiritual quest throws Bard, naked and alone, from his world to the desert Sahara. Each grueling step through the shifting sands only adds to his questions and confusion. What did the seven Guardians mean for him to learn in this strange place? Will he discover a way home?

Burying her emotions, Kaelea retreats into the research of fey texts, searching for a clue--for anything, to protect her clan from an ever-present evil. The appearance of a stranger at the oasis is an unwelcome interruption. Her instant fascination with the man is even more distracting.

Hotter than the desert sun, attraction blazes between Bard and Kaelea, but personal concerns and that ancient evil drive a wedge between them. Alone, and together, they discover answers, and their soulfire. But will it be enough to keep Bard in Kaelea’s worlds, and at her side?

Short Excerpt

He wasn’t ready to die.

The struggle to move one leg in preparation to rise was nearly more than his abused body could tolerate. He rested his crossed arms on the top of his thigh and panted, the breath wheezing from his lungs. He would stand. Bard lifted his head.

The painful widening of his eyes made him blink and glance away from the sight before him. When he looked again, tears blurred his vision until he blinked the dampness away. There had been nothing there before—had there? Where once had been nothing but sand, and sand upon more sand, now hovered a spot of lush green. Where once he had heard nothing but the wind scraping sand from the dunes, was now the faint tinkling of water upon stone. Where once there was despair, he found a rising hope.

If the vision were only that—a vision—a trick of his exhausted mind... Bard didn’t care. If it was cool, if there was shade to shield him from the sun, if there was water...

A word of praise burst from his lips, breaking open a deep, dry crack and releasing a trickle of warm blood. Brows drawn close over his eyes, Bard licked the salty blood, winced at the stinging pain of his tender lip, and rose awkwardly to stand. He stared at the grove of trees.

He took a step. Then another. Until he ran mindlessly. Fully expecting the trees to fade from sight as he neared them, he could not tear his eyes from the splotch of green and stumbled over the smooth sand. Flailing his arms, Bard regained his balance, paused, then ran again. The trees were still there. His heart sang with the joy of discovery, of hope. The trees were still there.

Beneath his feet the sand gave way to more solid ground. The softness of patches of grass tickled between his toes, the bruised blades giving rise to a fresh, green scent. Bard smiled and slowed, listening, following the crystal sounds of water bubbling over rock.

His soul surged with the promise of renewal. Soon his body would experience the renewal as well. First, he would drink. Then, if there was enough water to allow it, he would cover himself with moisture. Then, he would drink once more.

The siren’s call drew him closer and he silently thanked the Guardians before asking forgiveness for his doubt. He inhaled deeply. Damp air caressed his nostrils and the lush scents provided him the Guardians’ response. He would not doubt again.

Rising over the sounds of the water came a new sound. Bard frowned. Singing? He stepped from under the trees onto a grassy knoll beside a wide, clear pool. The water called to him, urging him recklessly forward, but the bare back and flowing dark hair of the woman singing in the center of the pool froze him in place.

~ * ~

To read the first chapter go here

Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iTunes and All Romance eBooks!

coming in July:

Time Travel--It's All About The Bow Tie

Welcome to our International Time Travel Day blog hop. The 12 authors listed below have banded together to share thoughts and tales and...prizes on this exciting day. That is...if we can all come together during our travels through time.

I've always loved the thought of time travel, probably from the time my 6th grade teacher read A Wrinkle In Time to the class. Imagine... folding space and time to get from one place to another. Imagine...


And I suppose I did. As I watched movies I discovered other ways to travel through time. From a whirling Victorian machine to a DeLorean, scientists invented the means to transport themselves to another time. 

Or perhaps it was a blessin' to make an entire village appear for only one day every 100 years. A knock on the head takes us to wonderful places and times. Visiting a mystical castle or standing in the shadow of standing stones might find you in some other time.


Sometimes, we never know exactly what causes a passage through time. But, seriously...a hot tub? (Okay, I'll admit it, I enjoyed that movie.)


I watch all the programs I can on theories of time travel and love, love, love string theory. Now, ask if I understand it? Knowing is right there--right in the forefront of my brain, so... almost. When I attempted a physics class in college I was lost the moment the professor said, "Good Morning." In another time, I must have been a scientist---it's all so fascinating. Hopefully I understood the concepts and theories then.


Of course now--for me time travel is all about a big blue box and a bow tie!

Leave a comment with your favorite mode of time transportation or a favorite book or movie. I'll use the sibs random number generator to pick the winner of an ebook of my time travel romance Fires of a Keltic Moon.


When I decided to write a time travel romance, I chose magic as my means of transport. My Faerie folk live in a parallel world to this human earth and use magical portals to move between worlds. Once in a blue moon, a Faerie discovers they have the talent to also create portals through time. Lara Zeroun's talent is discovered when, at four years old, she loses herself in time. As an adult, she uses her ability to study different periods in history. When she no longer can find a direction for her life, she goes further back in time than she ever has, to the Highlands even before Scotland was, well, Scotland. 839 AD.

Searching…

Lara Zeroun needs something in her life, so she opens a portal in time and travels to the ancient Highlands. But, how can she become involved with a dark, mysterious man who belongs to another time?

Waiting…

Due to the matriarchal line of inheritance, Iain is no longer able to lay claim to his father's lands. He's prepared to leave--until a golden-haired woman visits the manor on the arm of a wandering storyteller. But, with no land or possessions, Iain dares not succumb to the temptation of Lara.

Finding…

Danger lurks in Iain's time and becomes a threat to Lara's present. Will Lara and Iain be able to defeat the evil and make their ways through time--finding the love they both desire?

Excerpt:

 Lara’s back was to him, her bare back. She was curled in the old bathing tub and wet, dark-golden hair straggled between her shoulder blades.

Iain could not breathe, would not be able to move to save his life. Until she shivered.

“Ooh, close the door, Beitris, you’re letting in cold air.”

Iain sank against the door and stumbled back as it slid closed. The latch fell with a finality that made Iain jump away from the warm wood. A tremor ran along his skin. He should leave, should look away at the very least. But, he could not.

Lara lifted one arm over her shoulder, dangling a rag. “I’m almost done, but could you do me one more favor? Would you wash my back?”

Forgotten, the pile of clothing dropped with a soft swoosh to the floor. Iain moved in a trance, one hand lifting to take the rag from her fingers. Lara hunched forward exposing the narrow width of her back. He knelt behind her and dipped the rag in the warm water. Lara’s other hand lifted holding a lump of soap. When his palm touched the tips of her extended fingers, the soap plopped into his hand.

A pleased sigh expanded Lara’s shoulders. “Thank you. This is wonderful. And the soap is wonderful, too. The fragrance is much like what my grandmother makes for me.”

Iain soaped the rag but hesitated with it nearly touching her golden skin. Strange thin stripes of pale, creamy skin stood out in stark contrast to the darker tan. He ached to touch those stripes and taste them with his tongue. The breath burned tight in his chest.

Lara gasped when Iain rubbed the cloth softly over her back. Then she rotated her shoulders. “Ah, yes. That’s what I needed. You have been a great help to me today. Don’t stop, please.”

If he only could. Intense concentration kept him breathing, for the swirl of suds over her back was a potent aphrodisiac. When she swiped her hair forward over one shoulder, he could see a tiny red mark at the base of her neck, a birthing mark that begged for his kisses.

The growing tightness of his loins became unbearable. He shifted position. And dropped the rag. Unable to allow the torture of reaching beneath the water to search for it, he cleared his throat.

“Oh, my God. Iain? What are you doing here?” Lara sank as far into the water as she could and tried to cover herself with her hands. Accusation glared from her eyes. “Where’s Beitris?”

Iain willed himself to look away from her nakedness, to offer her the honor she deserved. All he could do was lower his gaze to the lump of soap still clutched between his fingers. Lara turned sideways in the narrow tub, arms wrapped over her breasts, and cocked her head to one side. Her eyes were wide while she waited for his answer. The sudden hard lump in his throat mimicked the firm ache of his groin. Somehow, he swallowed and found his strained voice.

“I brought you fresh clothing.” He winced and glanced at her. Did he truly sound so dull-witted?

“Oh. Beitris hasn’t been here?”

Iain shook his head. A shy grin gently stretched Lara’s lips. He could not draw his gaze from the rosy fullness. At least it was more honorable than looking at the pink skin below the waterline.

“You will have to finish rinsing my back, then.” She turned and leaned forward. After fishing through the water, she lifted the sopping rag to him. Iain held his palms out to her in denial and shook his head. “Please, I will itch terribly if you don’t wash off the soap.”

The thought of causing her discomfort centered painfully in his chest. He sighed the feeling away and took the offered rag. Using long, careful strokes, he rinsed the drying suds from her bent back. Even when there was no soapy residue remaining, Iain continued to swipe the rag across her skin. Her breathing changed subtly, matching his.

She straightened, lifting her chest from the water. The rag slipped from his fingers, but he continued to rub his palm lightly over her back. Her damp skin glistened. Unable to draw moisture to his mouth, Iain licked suddenly dry lips

.

There was only one relief. He lifted the dripping mass of her hair and touched his lips to the birthing mark.

Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords.


Hop through time with us and visit the following authors! And don't forget to leave a comment here and everywhere. Let us know what you think of Time Travel Day.

Madeline Baker          www.madelinebaker.net

Melodie Campbell       www.funnygirlmelodie.blogspot.com

Pauline B. Jones         www.paulinebjones.com

Chris Karlsen               www.chriskarlsen.com

Laura Martello            www.la-mitchell.blogspot.com

Troy McCombs           http://www.tmhorror.blogspot.com/

Theresa Ragan        http://www.theresaragan.com

Cate Rowan                 www.funnygirlmelodie.blogspot.com

Terry Spear                 http://terry-spear.blogspot.com/

Lizzie Starr                  http://starrwords.blogspot.com

Cheryl Kaye Tardif    www.cherylktardif.com

Nicholas Wisseman    www.funnygirlmelodie.blogspot.com

Free Fall-A Writer's Personal Journey

Somewhere around the beginning of the year, I started working on a new book. And suddenly ran into a ton of issues. Let me just say, it’s difficult to think clearly when your body decides to attack itself and there’s not enough healthy red blood cells to keep you from exhaustion and carry oxygen rich blood to your brain. Hemolytic anemia. With no apparent cause. Although this condition may have contributed to some of my unclear thinking... it’s only a small part of this year’s journey.

I love to learn new things. I’m excited to hear and understand other writers’ processes. How they plot. Come up with characters. Find interesting new worlds to write about. And then I’ll take bits and pieces and add them to my own way of doing things.

So when my local writers group, Heartland Writers Group, sponsored a weekend workshop featuring the Roses Colored Glasses Writing Bootcamp, I was there. Let me just say, no matter what your pre-writing routine is, this is a GREAT workshop. If you get a chance to work with Delilah Devlin and Elle James--take it. (In fact, the next online class is scheduled for May 31-June 26--An excellent way to start your summer writing!) Granted, my brain function wasn’t up to snuff, but I did come away with a good handle on this pre-writing process.

Then... I started to write.

One chapter. Had to start it a couple times, but finally, it got where I though it would do the job, and I could move on.


Second chapter. Ripped from me word by word. Even the word ‘the’ just would not come easily. Talk about over-thinking everything. A new idea...arrgh, the stress of trying to decide where in the tale it would best fit. I was taking forever just to write a paragraph.

Finally, after a stint in the hospital, I was diagnosed, medicated (don’t even get me started on steroids. They’re doing their job--but the side effects? I can deal. I can...as long as it gets me healthy again) and getting back to some sort of a functioning normalcy.


But my writing was still as bound up as an innocent in a torture chamber. When at a place like this, it is so difficult to see past the ‘can’t’. And oh too easy to wonder if I’d used up my share of talent. Yikes, did I have talent in the first place? Is there anything left?


Then RWA (Romance Writers of America) came to my rescue. The April 2010 issue of the Romance Writers Report arrived in my mailbox. The very first article, Jo Beverley’s Once More Into The Mist, spoke directly to what I needed to hear. It’s okay when pre-plotting doesn’t work.


She calls it ‘flying into the mist.’ I like that. Fits very well with my love of fantasy and paranormal romance. Jo first gave a talk about flying into the mist at the 1999 RWA conference. You can find the text here. It’s well worth reading.


The basics--there is no right way to write. Some authors do a ton of pre-writing work while others do a minimal start up and just get right into the story. I know this--but reading the words again, at this precise moment of time and need, was liberating. And a Jo states, a validation that my process and I are okay.


I’ve always considered myself a pantser--you know, just writing by the seat of my pants--although I do occasionally do a bit of pre-panning now. You kinda got to when so many tales are series related. Usually I’ll start with taking care to name my characters, think about a couple of things that I know need to happen, and let the tale flow from that. That’s what works for me.


Each of us has to find the process that helps us create the best stories we can. I admire folks who are able to pre-plot and then write. I will continue to listen to their processes and learn from them. Who knows, there may be a book in me that needs to be more plotted before I start. And I know how to do that plotting, how to arrange goals and conflicts with appropriate motivations. You never can tell when you might use those helpful skills.


But for right now--for Take a Keltic Chance--I need to set aside my preconceived notions and take a stand next to the mist. (or perhaps in this case it’s a place next to the world between worlds.) Spread my arms. Open my mind to the tale my characters need to tell. Take that leap of faith.


But instead of flying, I think I’ll free-fall awhile and see where the story takes me.

Blue Keltic Moon Available!

My latest fantasy romance Blue Keltic Moon,

the first of the Children of the Keltic Triad, is available now!

Duty before love. As much as Breanna's heart protested, Gowthaman would have to wait until she returned with the rescued Alfar-Sindhu prince.

Love before self. Following Breanna into the world between worlds, Gowthaman faces the pains of his past, risks his intellect, his sanity and his life. For her.

Destiny before all. In the time of the Blue Keltic Moon.

Here's a tiny teaser...

~ * ~
If she touched his mind that intimately he would not be
able to disguise his feelings for her. Then she would know
how much she truly meant to him. How he loved her.
Desired her.

He froze in the doorway of the small chamber he used
as work space. Breanna stood to one side, her profile lit by
the flickering soft candlelight he preferred to the
harshness of mechanical lights. She studied a heavy stone
tablet, angling it toward the flame to peer at the faint
notches of carving.

Gowthaman avoided thinking about how the flame
brightened the golden strands of her short hair. He pushed
away thoughts of the intensity of her bright blue eyes
when she concentrated. When she traced the angled cuts
of words with her finger he shuddered as if that finger
touched him. He swallowed heavily.

“That... that is a recording of a curse.”

~ * ~

Click here for a longer excerpt and to discover all of *lizzie starr's books!

* romance with a sparkling twist!*

September's Blue Keltic Moon

My newest tale Blue Keltic Moon will be released in September...

here's a review as a teaser.

"Enter the fascinating world of Blue Keltic Moon which continues the story of The Prince of Darkness. A griping read about Breanna, the leader of Alastriona. She fights to save mankind while trying to win the love of her life, protect her family and keep an evil elemental from reentering the world.
If only we could all find the soulfire to light our life the way Breanna and Gowthaman do.~~Tina Gayle

And, be sure to check out author Tina Gayle at http://www.tinagayle.net/