Tag: Utah

A Long Trail Rolling–Aleks and Xavier meet…and sparks fly…

Hello All! Here’s a bit of the story from when Aleksandra and Xavier have just met… and clashed, just a little… 🙂 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ She saw the men exchange glances over her head. ‘Aleksandra, is that safe? You know about the unrest between the Pah-Utes and the settlers’ army, don’t you?’ Xavier brushed his hair back from his face …

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What a book launch!

Hello All! Thank you for coming along to the launch at Smith Flat House in Placerville, CA, on the 14 of January, 2015! A Long Trail Rolling is finally rolling! BUY LINKS:  For those of you who have asked, here are the best buy links! Softcover: CreateSpace Ebooks: Smashwords Ebooks and paper: Amazon We are …

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A Long Trail Rolling is Being Published as We Speak! Cover Reveal, Buy Links and USA Book Launch!

Hello All! A Long Trail Rolling is finally live. BUY LINKS:  For those of you who have asked, here are the best buy links! Softcover: CreateSpace Ebooks: Smashwords Ebooks and paper: Amazon   BOOK LAUNCH: Come along to our USA BOOK LAUNCH of A Long Trail Rolling! 14 January 2015 in Placerville, CA! please RSVP at Eventbrite: https://eventbrite.co.nz/event/15130485690/ Looking forward …

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NaNoWriMo TO START ON SATURDAY!

  If you’ve ever met me in person…..  (grinning sheepishly…), I probably don’t have to tell you how excited I am that NaNoWriMo (nanowrimo.org) starts this Saturday, 1 November. NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month, which happens every November. I’ve started a Facebook page for those who wish to be in a NaNo group and …

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A Long Trail Rolling

A big Thank You to Annie Featherstone, aka Sophia James, for mentoring me, my award for winning the Pacific Hearts Award. Thanks to Annie, A Long Trail Rolling is on its final edits, and the balance of The Hills of Gold Unchanging should be completed by end of November during NaNoWriMo! A Sea of Green …

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And the best news of all…..

The best news of all is that… Ta Da….. Patrick Hearty, my Pony Express Expert, is going to write the Forward for A Long Trail Rolling! Patrick and Dr. Joseph Hatch wrote a book about the Pony Express Stations in Utah, called….  you guessed it! Patrick Hearty The Pony Express Stations in Utah Patrick explains …

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Storyboard for 'Intervening Novel' Created…

Yes, you heard me right… I’ve given in… Some of my fantastic beta readers have told me things like….. “Too much has happened between A Long Trail Rolling and its Epilogue.” (Hmmm… I didn’t really think so, but your other comments were well-received, Kate…) Thanks, Kate L.   Matt’s been a bit more blunt… “You need …

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What Draws us to History?

Here’s a post I wrote for Bethanne Strasser’s Through the Heart Shaped Glasses blog earlier this month. I thought some of you might appreciate it! What draws us to history? Is it the romance of a different time from our own? Is it what history can show us about ourselves? How we’re different from or …

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Successful Completion of NaNoWriMo!

Hello All, Not only did I survive November, my month of writing for NaNoWriMo, where one commits to writing  50,000 words of a novel…  in 30 days…, but I’ve ‘Won’, or successfully completed the requirements!   Express Desired now has a sequel: A Sea of Green Unfolding Just received an email from NaNo… with the …

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NaNoWriMo has Begun!

Hello All! Well, first day, I didn’t make my goal of 1700 words on the new novel I began on 1 November, A Sea of Green Unfolding, the sequel to Express Desired, wherein Aleksandra and Xavier are still reeling from the death of their first newborn child when they discover that they have lost Rancho …

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Manuscript is DONE! A little teaser from the story, especially for you horsey-types!

Hello all, I am very pleased to announce that the manuscript for Express Desired is done! Hmmm… Let’s just say it it nice to see that I’m making progress in my writing skills… and finally implementing my new skills…. especially incorporating ‘showing’ vs ‘telling’, (and my critique partner will be so PLEASED) . It’s good to …

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The Pony Express Mochila is Headed for Ft. Laramie!

June 20, 3:54pm PDT (today in the States, for those of you in NZ!) “The mail just left Lingle,WY at 4:45 pm, mountain time, headed towards Ft Laramie.” Patrick Hearty & Joseph Hatch The Pony Express Stations in Utah Well done to all of you out there riding!  You might get a bit tired, but …

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The Pony Express Re-Ride Continues!

Yesterday’s post detailed the Pony Express 20th Anniversary Re-Ride. I have posted some handy links for you to follow the ride’s progress! Thanks to Pony Express History –18253400.nhd.weebly.com The  Re-Ride continues! The “mochila,” (the leather pad with the mail pockets, below), which is transferred between riders on the  Pony Express) has made it from Elwood, …

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Por qué Xavier tenía que ser español, or Why Xavier had to be Spanish….

Español….   …  ranks behind only China in total number of language speakers, and far ahead of English speakers.. One good reason to include it in my nearly-completed novel… Another one… it is the language of love… Xavier, born of his Spanish Californio family is, despite his challenges, able to speak this language of love… In …

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Utah and California, Here We Come!

Looking forward to our trip to the States in July! We will be visiting many sites from the novel Express Desire, soon to be completed! First, the Rancho de las Pulgas, which was the old 1795 Spanish land grant which belonged to the family of my novel hero Xavier Arguello, which today comprises most of …

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