Secrets

Good Saturday morning! Thank so much for inviting me, Sandy! My first full-length historical novel, Secret Intentions, was released from Triskelion Publishing last month and it really was a dream come true. While I write futuristic/paranormal type books for Samhain Publishing, my heart has always been with historicals.

The idea for Secret Intentions actually came way back in 2000. I was at the RWA Conference in Washington, DC (only about 25 minutes from my home) and I was moderating a workshop given by Jo Beverley. It was a fascinating workshop for the young, eager writer in me. She and her co-presenter talked a lot about England and history, including flora and fauna of the time. But it was a single sentence she uttered which started my mind turning: A bastard son of a peer cannot inherit the title of his father. He cannot sit in the House of Lords. So, while that father may offer his son money and estates, the son is not..well, entitled to the title!

Thus, my little mind went turning. What if the son grew up not knowing he was a bastard? What if his father lied to him? What if the son found out later, after he was grown and out of the house (as it were)? What if someone who knew the truth of his birth blackmailed the son?

And, of course, what kind of woman would be the worst possible match for him? ;-) And what secrets does she keep close to her heart?

Six years and several drafts later, I sold that story to Triskelion.

It seems that I'm now fascinating with secrets and how they can damage a relationship and the person holding them. My 2006 Golden Heart finalist Mark of the Monster, a dark Gothic historical, examines the pain wrought by untold secrets. Every character in this book has something to hide and a strong reason to keep it hidden!

What books have you read and loved that involved a secret? Or, can you tell of a time that the revelation of a secret changed your life? I'll choose a name from the responses and the winner will receive a downloadable copy of Secret Intentions and your choice of earrings or bath products!

Golden~

We buried my grandfather today. And, although there were tears, there were times of laughter too. Little snippets of fond memories shared, and the general family bonding that happens at times like this--Golden moments in a sea of sadness.

Grandpa Nick always seemed to have a smile on his face and a sparkle in his eye that would inevitably bring out the same in everyone around him. These past two days, I’ve spent time with family members I hadn’t seen in years and with some I’d never even met before. As a family, we shared our grief, but also our laughter.

I believe this was Grandpa Nick’s last gift to us. Those few golden moments that allowed us to see past our grief and to celebrate his life rather than dwell on his death.

Thank you, Grandpa Nick.

Sandy

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Shenanigans~

I really wanted to come up with something witty and cool. I did a search on the term and even checked the Online Etymology Dictionary. Cool site, by the way. Great for us historical authors. My good friend and critique partner, Sharon Cullen, turned me on to it.

Anyway, other than learning what shenanigans means and that its first recorded appearance was in the 1850's, I got nothing. Well, there was the image I got when I read about how one could Call Shenanigans at a carnival game when they thought they were being taken by the carnie. I immediately started thinking about how that would work in today's society. Think about it. What if you could pull up to a gas station and when you read the exorbitant prices, yell out "Shenanigans! I call Shenanigans on this gas station!", and then the owner would be taken to task. Now that would be cool.

There are so many instances when I'd use this. Like, when I'm at the movies and I take out my equity loan for some popcorn, and they try to foist the stale stuff that's been sitting in a bag under the heat lamp for like an hour! "Shenanigans!" I want the fresh stuff if I'm paying $30 per bag. And don't be stingy with the butter, either! "Shenanigans!"

But, shenanigans has another meaning...those silly, harmless pranks some people play on each other. I was never good at this. I wonder if it was my "goody two-shoes" label that kept me from honing my prankster skills. Not that I was a "goody two-shoes", but I suppose when you don't fall under the peer pressure bandwagon for smoking, drugs, and alcohol, they have to call you something. Anyway, I did attempt some shenanigans once. God! I am so lame. ROFL!

Get this, it was Halloween and I was a senior in high school. My friends decide they want to go egging. Right off the bat, I was uncomfortable with the whole thing. But, I did want to live on the edge once in my life. So, I really pushed my limits and grabbed one of the eggs from the carton. I held it in my sweaty hand (Hey! I was nervous!) and, when my time came, I threw my egg out the car window at the random house.

Only, I am SOOOOO bad at throwing things. I give new meaning to "throwing like a girl". My heart stops as I watch my badness soar through the air. What an arc it made as it descended toward the nicely sided house. I'm in awe of my bad self. I THREW and egg! It's going to splat at any moment and I am going to join the ranks of my shenanigan making peers. Yes! NO! My egg did NOT just BOUNCE off of that house! What?! Eggs are supposed to BREAK! They're supposed to goop all over! They DO NOT BOUNCE OFF OF SIDED HOUSES AND LAND SAFELY ON THE LAWN!

At the urging of my friends, I jump out of the car to retrieve my very intact egg. By now, I've had time to think about my actions. What the hell am I doing? I can't throw eggs at unsuspecting houses? Devine intervention kept my egg from shattering all over the random house. Cause raw eggs don't bounce. At least none that I'd ever seen before that night. But this one did. And, yes, it was raw. I know this because I take charmed egg and whip it down on the sidewalk to see if it's going to bounce again.

It didn't. Nope. It broke all right. All over my shoe. Did I mention I throw like the proverbial girl? I never got up to those kinds of shenanigans again. Thank you very much. I learned my lesson and embraced my goody two-shoes self.

What's the worst prank you ever pulled? Did it go according to plan? Or did it totally backfire?

Sandy :-)

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Wednesday Blog-Off...

Gah! Is it Wednesday already? Where has the week gone? And, I promised to tell you all about how we had to postpone Easter dinner because my husband finally got off his duff and went to the doctor for his wheezing. Pneumonia, strep throat, and an ear infection. Now, if that was me, I'd be willing myself to pass out. Instead, he loads up on his meds and wheezes himself off to work. Talk about dedicated! The fool. He should be in BED! Men!

Long story short, Keith sounded terrible on Sunday. Enough so, that I told him he BETTER get checked out. Off he goes to Urgent Care (They closed our ER) and they freak out because his oxygen is low. I get a call from my in-laws telling me they are bringing him home because the doctors don't want him to drive!

I have now started to get a wheezing rumble in my left lung. But, I didn't wait a God's age to see a doctor. My diagnosis was a little better, but the treatment is exactly the same, I have asthmatic bronchitis. The doctor asked me if I've been feverish. I told him I didn't think so. His response as he reads my chart? "Hmmm, looks like your running a low-grade fever right now." LOL. Guess I am feverish then?

I need a vacation!

In other news, I did not make the final cut in the 1st line contest. It was nice while it lasted. And, making the top ten out of 75 is no small feat. I am very proud of how far I got. I was up against some fabulous entries. Karin said she'll be running another one six months, and I'm already working on my next entry. I'll let you all know when to look for it.

Well, I'm off to figure out something to write for the Blog-Off. Is it just me? Or are these getting harder? Shenanigans. Sheesh!

Sandy :-)

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Happy Easter, Everyone!

It has been quite the weekend here at the Barkevich household. First, my mom and I got up very, very, VERY early on Saturday morning and drove 6.5 hours to Waterloo, Ontario to pick up an 11 month-old American Curl kitten. Hmmmm…maybe I should back up a bit.

After much cajoling and planting of seeds and, yes, I finally broke down and said please, I convinced my husband to get a cat. We had been avoiding the responsibility of a pet since having to put our dog to sleep shortly after Amelia was born. It was very hard on us. Ok, so Keith agrees to a kitten a couple of weeks ago, and I start looking at places like petfinder.com and the local humane societies. But, on a whim, I also take a peek at actual breeds. As in purebreds. One in particular stood out from all the rest.

The American Curl. Oh! They are cute! And, they have the most amazing temperaments and, holy cow, their ears CURL BACKWARDS! Did I mention they are cute? They keep their kitten-like qualities through adulthood, and they stay relatively small, the female averaging only 5-7 pounds at full maturity. I fell in love! And, of course, I had to show Keith the info on this amazing breed. And, of course, he fell in love with them too.

So, I figured, how much can they be? I mean, they’re cats. Right? Try upwards of $900.00 for a pet-quality kitten. ALMOST A GRAND FOR A CAT!? I practically fell off my chair. It was so disheartening. I really, really, really wanted an American Curl at this point. I mean REALLY, REALLY, REALLY! But, $900.00? I just can’t make that work at this point in my life.

Now, have I mentioned how much I loved and related to “The Secret”? Well, since watching it, I’ve taken to saying out loud. “I’m throwing it out to the universe.” And then, I’ll state what I want/need/wish etc. In this case, I looked at my husband and said, “I’m throwing it out there, honey. I really want an American Curl. And I’m throwing it out to the universe. I want an American Curl.” He just laughed at me and nodded. ;-)

A couple of days later, I received a reply to some questions I’d emailed to a breeder in California. She answered them and told me the price of her available kittens. Much more reasonable than the ones I’d found here, but with shipping, the price was still way out of my league. I thanked her and told her it just wasn’t going to work out right now. Shortly after that, the breeder replied, saying she might have another way.

It turned out; this breeder had sold a male and female breed pair to a breeder in Ontario. However, the little boy became ill a couple of weeks after delivery and the Canadian vet said the little girl had an enlarged heart. The Canadian breeder did not want to keep her. I’m not sure why the breeder was unable to send the kitten back to California last October or November, but the California breeder told me I could have this little girl for free if I was willing to drive out to Canada to pick her up…

Ok, fast-forward to Saturday the day before Easter. My mom agrees to go with me on a marathon 13 hour round trip to Canada to pick up a cat. We get on the road by 5:15am and things are smooth sailing…umm, until my mom starts to feel a little ill. But, hey, we’re having a great time and the conversation is great and she wasn’t feeling all that bad. We roll into the woman’s driveway at noon as predicted and my little curl is waiting at the door for me. When I sit down, she jumps right into my lap and is purring up a storm. I am totally enamored. This is my kitty!

After some small talk and a transfer of information and my payment of the rabies and international health certificate so I can get my little blue girl over the border, we head out. That’s when my poor mom’s I-don’t-feel-so-well turns into full-blown-stomach-flu. The trip back wasn’t so smooth. We had to literally stop at EVERY single rest area from Canada to my house. And my mom, what a trooper she was. It broke my heart to see how very sick she was and still she smiled and joked. I think my love and admiration for her jumped ten-fold on that trip. I don’t know that I could have held up as well.

We made it home and our little American Curl, Sasha Katherine HepCurl Barkevich, is fitting in nicely. I put it out to the universe. I couldn’t afford to buy a curl, but I was open to other options and there she was. Just waiting for me and my mom to pick her up.

Tomorrow, I’ll tell you all about our Easter and how Keith found out he’s got pneumonia, strep throat, AND an ear infection. I told you it’s been quite a weekend here, right?

Sandy :-)

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Privacy~

I had this roommate once. We didn't always get along. In fact, there were times when I really couldn't stand her. One particular time comes to mind...

There were four of us, actually. Two of which were twins. We shared a small year-round camp while in college. The tiny attic had two...I guess you could call them rooms. Mine was at the back. There was only one way into my sleeping area, and that was right through the twins' room.

You have to picture this place. It looked more like a doll house than a real one. Everything was scaled down. So, when you walked through the twins' room, your leg inevitably brushed against Sally's (name changed to protect the uhh...perpetrator??? She certainly wasn't innocent, as you will soon see. *g*) bed. It was the ONLY way in or out.

Imagine the lack of privacy with this set-up. I mean, having someone like a boyfriend over might be an awkward affair. Right? You want to get all intimate and there's Sandy, all snug in her sleeping area with her ever-present romance novel in hand--this was before I started writing them--only a curtain door between you.

Now, most people might have called through the curtain and said something like, "Hey, Sandy, mind giving us a little privacy?"

Sigh, no such luck. It started with the sloppy, lip-smacking kisses. I frowned up from my book, shook my head and thought, they know I'm here. I just spoke with them. What are a few kisses? I put it out of my mind and turned my attention to the book in-hand.

Then came the rustling...like lots of rustling. And, was that a zipper I just heard? My book lay forgotten in my lap. OMG! Sally just MOANED! And there was more rustling and more zipper sounds and I franticly looked around my room for some sort of escape, but the ONLY WAY OUT IS RIGHT PAST SALLY'S BED! As in my leg was going to have to brush up against that bed with them in it. And, they were NAKED. I know this because I heard the zippers! Eeeeewwwww! What do I do? Do I brave burning my retinas on their naked flesh? Oh, God, the bed is SQUEAKING! I can't walk right past them! I could just picture it. "Ummm, excuse me. Can I just slip...uhh, thanks. Have fun."

Yeah, so I sat there. In my room, my book completely forgotten, my stomach churning with nausea. I don't want to be there. But, I REALLY don't want to SEE what is going on. I wanted to rant and scream. I wanted to storm out there and yell, "What's the matter with you people?" Instead, I put my hands over my ears and waited. And, prayed this wouldn't be a marathon session. Oh! The horror! I think I've been scarred for life. There were nightmares for weeks after this ordeal.

PRIVACY, people. Sheesh!

Got any events you wish you weren't exposed to? Do tell.

Sandy :-)

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Blog-Off Wednesday

This week it’s to be “Privacy”. My post will be coming soon.

But first, there is the small matter of announcing a winner of my Police post. This was very hard for me. I think I’m going to have to go back to the random winner contests after this. You all had great suggestions.

However, I did have to choose...

And, because it was freakin’ funny to see my poor husband nearly smurf his bologna sandwich, the $15.00 Amazon GC goes to Courtney. “police against screwed up people asking for underwear pictures”. I laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my cheeks.

Congratulations, Courtney. Please send your contact info to me at [author] [@] [Barkevich] [dot] [com]...er, you know what I mean. *bg*

Thank you to everyone who participated. If I could afford it, I’d give everyone a gift certificate.

Speaking of contests, Round 12 of Karin Tabke’s 1st Line contest was not posted until late this evening. It was nerve-wracking, the wait. But, it’s over. You see before you one of the final 10! Or, Round Twelve’s Terrific Ten, as Karin has dubbed us. This is sooo exciting! Only 1 more line brings us to the finals. Five very talented writers will be asked to submit their first 10 pages for final judging. Wish me luck, people. The competition is fierce!

Here is my entry with the next line added. Hope you enjoy. I’d love to hear what you think:

Elizabeth squeezed her eyes tight and turned her face away from the wicked-looking blade. She’d seen what it could do. Knew first hand the destruction it could bring.

The death.

“Please,” she whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. “I...I can’t do this.”

Cold steel grazed the skin exposed by her low bodice and she flinched. Her tormentor shifted closer in the confined carriage. “Oh, but you will. You know the consequences if you don’t, Lizzy.”

Elizabeth’s stomach pitched and rolled, but she managed to jerk her head in assent. Fear could be a powerful motivator.

Stay tuned for my Blog-Off post on “Privacy”

Sandy :-)

*April 28, 2007 at Sandra's Goings On - Guest Blogger, Leslie Dicken ~ Secret Intentions

Thank you and we have a winner!

Thanks, everyone, who popped over to check out the blog and especially to the people who left comments. It was hard to pick a winner - Jennybrat was so close because Ghislaine de Lorgny really is an unforgettable heroine and if you haven't read A Rose at Midnight, you've really got a treat in store.

But the winner is....

SETON!

Because Lavender Blue sounds like a rip-snortin' read and I hadn't heard of it before.

Seton, can you please email me on annasbooks@optusnet.com.au with your snail mail details and I'll get your book and your chocolates out to you? Congratulations! I hope you enjoy CTC.

And finally, a special thanks to Sandy for asking me to blog. It's been a blast! Happy reading, everyone!

Warmly.

Anna