I love 5 Secrets because you just never know what you're going to find out about a person...read on and meet Hannah Meredith.
Thanks L.A. for hosting me on your blog. I suspect this is just a bit weird rather than a secret. I gave up writing at a desk years ago. Instead, I use a laptop and sit in a big rocker-recliner. The ability to easily change positions really saves my old back. I have to be very careful if I’m tired, however. It is too easy to doze off, in which case I wake up to pages and pages of D’s or K’s. I guess the letter depends on which hand is lying the heaviest on the keyboard.
Hi, Hannah, please tell us Five Secrets we may not know about Song of the Nightpiper or you, but will after today!
1) Although I used to write fantasy short stories, I’ve been trying to concentrate on historical romance set in the 18th and 19th centuries. But the characters of Faulk and Anlin kept yammering in my mind. They were most insistent and wouldn’t get out of my head until I put their story on paper. They came complete with a quasi-medieval world where magic was possible. And so, Song of the NIghtpiper is a fantasy romance—and perhaps one of the truest stories I’ve written.
2) Magic has been disappearing from the two bordering countries of Fallucia and Rennic. Antagonists for centuries, each country blames the other. Both warp their societies in an effort to protect the magic that is left. Since the hero and heroine of this tale are from Fallucia, it would have been logical to make the Rennish the enemy. To a degree, they are, but I tried to temper this by showing Rennish society developed from good intentions that produce bad results. It is a case where the cure is worse than the disease.
3) In a word where status is inherited, Faulk started life as an orphan of unknown parentage and through hard work raised himself to the position of knight. He’s now the consummate warrior, battle-hardened and shrewd. But he’s retained a soft core that longs for love and acceptance. This dichotomy is apparent immediately. His ambition brings him to a tournament where he can win a fief of his own and marriage to the daughter of one of the Lords of High Places. The daughter, Anlin, should just be a means to an end, but he is hopeful a relationship can be forged.
4) Lady Anlin is a poor candidate for any sort of relationship. Years of slavery in Rennic have left her emotionally damaged, but she will do what is necessary to placate her new husband so he will accompany her on a quest to find her half-Rennish son. Her strength lies in her determination and her ability to admit her world view might be skewed. I found her a difficult but rewarding heroine to write. Her innate love for her child is tested when she finds someone very different from the little boy who was taken from her.
5) As I frequently do, in Song of the NIghtpiper I’ve placed competent people in positions where they are incompetent. I think this more clearly illuminates character and shows the difficulty of the choices they must make. Faulk and Anlin are two very average people who are confronted by extraordinary circumstances. While this takes place in an imaginary world, I hope it gives the reader insight into the world in which we now live.
Blurb:
In a world where Magical Talent is prized above all, Lady Anlin and Sir Faulk lack any ability—yet the unlikely alliance of this disillusioned knight and determined woman will reshape nations and challenge long-held beliefs through the magic of love.
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