BREATHING LIFE INTO A SETTING
Shoving away
dark thoughts, she lost herself in the joy of the find, going down to the sea
floor every so often to brush away sand from some object. Uncovering a canon
with eroded lettering on it's base, she could barely make out the name. Celestine. She had found it! Her pulse sped up, and she
frantically searched for another canon. She became so focused that, as she
backed up, she was startled again when Innis grabbed her, signaled her to stop,
and pointed to something directly behind her.
A
ten-foot-long shark. The thick body with tiger-like markings and a blunt snout
told her it was a tiger shark. She felt paralyzed, unable to move.
In
WRITTEN IN THE STARS, marine archeologist Cordelia Ward is fulfilling her late
father’s goal, to find the motherlode of the Celestine in international waters
off the Florida Keys. The contemporary half of this reincarnation story is
worlds apart from the historical half set in Elizabethan England written by
co-author Sherrill Bodine. We both have wonderful settings that we wanted to
bring to life.
To
me, settings should be something of an additional character in my stories. How
fun that I had underwater scenes, in which I try to make the reader feel like
she is there along with my characters. When I choose a great setting, I use it
for all it’s worth. I love figuring out how to use the details to make the
setting part of the story.
It
was a lot of research – what the remains of the ship would look like, how the
hunt would be organized, the equipment used both on board the salvager and what
the divers had on them in the water, the artifacts the divers would find – but
well worth my time. All those little details made the story come alive for me,
made me be able to “see” it as I wrote. Plus – big bonus! – all the danger in
my story takes place underwater. Very fun to write.
Short of breath, she realized she wasn’t
getting enough air. Her gauge showed she had nearly half a tank of air left.
What the hell?
Trying not to
panic—her lungs were already starting to protest—she knew getting to the
surface conscious would be a feat. Breathing slowly and shallowly, she
reoriented herself, and found the exit, then inched upward. Without air, the
climb was awkward, and she was feeling unfocused. Her movements became sluggish
and off-point. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, another diver grabbed onto her
and pulled on her mouthpiece.
As
a reader, how important is setting to you – and are there specific types of settings
you really enjoy?
“A passionate tale of destiny, danger and dark magic—and a love so powerful that it conquers time.” Mary Jo Putney, New York Times Bestselling Author.
‘A love so deep that it can last through centuries?
In 1601, Lady Elizabeth York’s star-shaped birthmark proclaims her a child of magic. When she arrives at Dunham Castle to marry Carlyle, heir to the Duke of Lennox, but finds enchantment in the eyes and touch of Will Grey, the Duke’s bastard son. Bewitched by Elizabeth, Will defies all for their love, and his jilted half-brother places a curse on them both.
Searching for a treasure ship sunk long ago, present-day marine archeologist Cordelia Ward is pursued romantically by both salvager Innis Foley and treasure hunter Morgan Murphy. She is haunted by a murderous nightmare where one man is the killer and the other the victim, but which man is her enemy, which her soul’s mate? Can a journal that belonged to her ancestress, Lady Elizabeth York show her the answers…in time to save her true love?
Chased by evil, two women discover their own magic to fight the villain’s curse on the Posey rings that draw them to the men they are destined to love.
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