Cover Reveal for Little Witch

Jill Hughey is about to release her medieval romance novella, Little Witch, the fifth installment in the Evolution Series, and here is the lovely cover by Rae Monet. You can see from the banner below it how nicely the new cover fits in with the three main novels of the series. Little Witch is 49,000 words so it is just skirting along the lower end of a novel's word count. The book features the stableboy introduced in Vain. We get to see Nox as an adult where he is still part of the Lord of Ribeauville's world.

If you want to get started on the Evolution Series, the first two books are available in a bundle on most ebook vendors, which is like getting one FREE!  Evolution Series Bundle on Amazon

ERGOTISM, the bane of the Middle Ages - by Vijaya Schartz

For those of you who wonder what kind of hallucination-filled madness afflicts Sigefroi in Lady of Luxembourg, ERGOTISM is the answer. It was known at the time as St. Anthony's Fire, after the Saint who spent most of his life caring for the victims of the disease.

In a wet year, the grain that is not yet harvested, or already stored for the winter, often develops a fungus called ERGOT. In times of scarcity, eating tainted grain seemed better than dying of hunger. Consuming tainted grain, however, not only leads to illness, but creates vivid hallucinations and convulsions. The affected appear quite mad.

In medieval times, the suspicious grain was often fed to prisoners on purpose, not only because it was not safe to eat, but also because it made their urine extremely acidic, a desirable quality for the tanning of hides. Prisoners fed this diseased grain eventually died of kidney failure. Who said medieval societies were not practical? The prisoners of the time didn't have lawyers to protect their rights.

So you can see how such treatment in a dungeon would affect the mind. In this case, the mind of my hero, Sigefroi of Luxembourg. In this dire state, and under torture, can he keep Melusine's secret? Find out in LADY OF LUXEMBOURG.

Find this book and many others online, everywhere eBooks and paperbacks are sold. Here is the link to my author page on Amazon HERE

Vijaya Schartz

Medieval and Sci-fi Romance with a Kick

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

The Fun Part of Writing - Putting "Pencil to Paper"

I am so happy to be concentrating in earnest on writing book three of the Evolution Series, called Vain.  After spending most of May finalizing a completely unrelated historical romance, Sass Meets Class, and most of June working on promotion for it, getting back to the craft of stringing words together is a welcome thrill.  Every time I get to this point in in the writing process I literally feel a "Whee!!!" kind of excitement because the hours spent putting words in the document (I don't really write with a pencil and paper) are what I love about being an author and what compels me to continue.

I am trying a new, more disciplined approach:  writing the story in chronological order (for the most part).  I did cheat ahead twice but am now committed to taking it from beginning to end because some great threads are starting to sneak out of my brain, and I mean that almost literally since the heroine works with fabric. 

So, who is Vain about?  The hero is Theophilus (Theo), who was introduced in book one as David's best friend. Theo is dedicated to his responsibilities as a nobleman in the Carolingian Empire .  His heroine is Lily, the daughter of the town's weaver and tailor. The class difference between nobility and artisan/merchant will be one of the conflicts between hero and heroine.  Lily thinks she knows how her life will spin out, but starting from the first scene, her plan begins to unravel.

If you read book one, Unbidden, you might remember that Theo once stated he needs a wife who can sew because she will save him a fortune on his clothing.  (Theo is a bit of a clothes-horse.)  I am giving him his seamstress, and using themes of fabrics and their colors and textures in the building romance.

The writing also flows little more easily since this is the third installment in the same series, so I am comfortable with the time period, terminology, and the way I want to manage dialogue.  Now that the plotting and timelines and character names for Vain are all planned, I can let the story flow and for me, that is the really fun, really inspiring part of authorship.  Whee!!

What is your favorite part of writing, or if you are a reader, what touches can an author add to a book that really makes you appreciate their craft?

Hello fellow lovers of medieval romance.  I am Jill Hughey, author of The Evolution Series, historical romance set in the Carolingian Empire in the 830s.  The Carolingian Empire covered a vast area of Europe that Charlemagne conquered.  I think the 800s are technically part of the Middle Ages but many readers consider medieval romance anything set prior to the frillier times.

Although I read Regency and other types of historical romance, I do get tired of England.  I really enjoy romance that is set somewhere new and has more rusticity than life in the ton.  I love stories that include a little humor; that have reasonably intelligent heroines and strong but human heroes; and are not too long-winded in their descriptions of clothing.  Since this is what I like to read it tends to inform what I like to write.  I have attempted to recapture the basic elements of the classic historical romances that I loved (Judith McNaught, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Julie Garwood) with a modern voice and fast pace.

I have released two books in my series so far.  The first is Unbidden, set mostly in 831 Francia.  Unbidden follows the story of Rochelle who manages her late father's estate and vehemently resists being matched by the emperor with David, a capable soldier and second son of a Bavarian nobleman.   Rochelle  fears that she will lose her independence.  She uses every weapon and tactic at her disposal to avoid the marriage, realizing too late that she may have lost the love of her life.

In print, Unbidden is 318 pages and has all 5-star reviews on Amazon.  It is also available for Kindle.

http://amzn.com/B0067DDX1M