A White Halloween

I know, how odd that it looks like a white Christmas here when it is actually Halloween, right? I had to share some of the pics I took yesterday when we rode our ATV in the beautiful snow we had here in NC up the side of a mountain and along another road. It was definitely a winter wonderland!

We don't usually have snow this early but this is off Hurricane Sandy. I was so sad to see the devastation in the north east. I hope all of you, your families and homes are okay or that you will bounce back soon. I'm thinking of you.

Best wishes for a happy Halloween!
Vonda
www.vondasinclair.com

P.S. My book, My Fierce Highlander is an Epic Award Finalist in historical romance!

P.P.S. My story, My Brave Highlander takes place in a winter wonderland also, in the icy north of Scotland during November.

Battle-hardened warrior Dirk MacLerie isn't who everyone thinks he is. He's Dirk MacKay, heir apparent to the MacKay chiefdom and Dunnakeil Castle on the far north coast of Scotland. When he returns home after a long absence, will his clan know him and will the duplicitous enemy who tried to murder him twelve years ago kill him in truth this time?

Lady Isobel MacKenzie is a beautiful young widow betrothed to yet another Highland chief by her brother's order. But when her future brother-in-law accosts her and threatens to kill her, she is forced to flee into a Highland snowstorm. When she runs into a rugged and imposing man she thought dead, she wonders if he will turn her over to her enemy or take her to safety.

Dirk remembers the enchanting, dark-eyed Isobel from when he was a lad, but now she is bound to another man by legal contract—an important detail she would prefer to forget. She wishes to choose her own husband and has her sights set on Dirk. But he would never steal another man's bride… would he? The tantalizing lady fires up his passions, testing his willpower and honor at every turn, even as some of his own treacherous clansmen plot his downfall.

Settings in Stories!

Next week we're supposed to talk about settings in stories, but I wanted to jump into the topic today. Right now, I'm in the middle of trying to get my house ready to sell, and I've had one trouble after another. Two weeks of trying to get a painter to paint my garage--I've painted the rest of the house on my own, thank the heavens, or it would be ten years before the house was ready. But I go out to check on what the guy has done, professional painters with professional prices--cracks not plastered over, holes not plastered over, and the worst? Peeling paint just painted right over!! I could have done that! And not paid a fortune for it. But the thing is, I wouldn't have done that.



So how does this relate to setting? I would rather be in a different setting right now!!! In another world, just about anywhere. So I've been working on a winter wonderland for my fourth wolf book, Allure of the Wolf, and it's a challenge, but it's a nice break from painting woes!


It can be difficult to write about a place you've never been, but as a writer, it's fun learning new things and taking on the challenge. So, I take all the experiences I've had living through snowy winter storms in Wisconsin, Oregon, Colorado, Maryland, and even St Louis, and ski trips to Colorado, New Mexico, NY, and Pennsylvania, and then do tons of research.


I've learned so much about the Canadian Arctic and it sounds like a fun place to visit, though I'm more of a tropical paradise kind of person, but no wolves in the tropics.


So where would you like to go if you wanted to get away from it all and money was no object?



Terry Spear
Heart of the Wolf, Don't Cry Wolf
www.terryspear.com