Clair Brett's Blog, page 3

My Favorite Place to Travel

Welcome to my blog and Romance Writers Weekly blog hop! Today’s topic is one near to my heart. Travel.I love to travel. If I had the money, I would travel the world experiencing everything there is to experience. My favorite place thus far has to be hands down Sanibel Island, Florida.Something changes in me when we drive over the causeway onto the island. I can feel all my stress float away. I have not driven over the causeways without seeing dolphins playing in the water. When you drive onto Sanibel the main road is named Periwinkle way, and everyone is so kind and welcoming. There are many beaches to choose from, but one of the most popular is Lighthouse beach. We spent an afternoon finding whole, living, sand dollars. They were beautiful!When I think about where I feel the most me, it is Sanibel island. My newest fur baby is even named Sanibel.I love warm weather climates. I have lived in the cold weather my entire life and am sick of the winters and the cold. Many people I know do not understand my love of travel, and my desire to move away. They warn me that I will miss the change of the seasons. I am certain I will not.How do I know this? As I write this blog post my office is a balmy 54 degrees. Outside my office window it has warmed up to 0 degrees. When I woke up this morning it was -11 degrees. That is how I know I will not miss the change of the seasons. I promise!Because I write Regency Historicals and I haven’t been able to visit England, yet I have not put any of my travel experiences in my writing. I do hope to visit England in the near future. Also, my plotting group has a trip to Scotland planned to celebrate our 10-year anniversary.Do you have a favorite place to vacation? I’d love to hear about it and maybe put it on my list for a future trip!Up next is A.S. Fenichel http://asfenichel.com/blogAnd check out A Lady’s Past (Everton Domestic Society Book 4) in Kindle Unlimited right now. HERE

New Year Goals

Happy 2020! Are you sick of hearing that yet? I’m getting a bit sick of it myself, but yet here we are. Being a 70’s baby I’m having a time wrapping my head around it. My house will be paid off next year, I never thought that would happen! Like most people every year I reflect and consider what the previous year was like, then I try my best to forge a plan for a better ‘next year’. I used to be very specific and I would announce my resolutions at midnight, hoping that the magic of the hour would put some good mojo into the mix. It never worked. By March I hadn’t lost the weight, or finished the book, etc. Don’t get me wrong I still make plans and write down my goals, but instead of treating all my desires like a wish from a birthday cake, I spend time making a plan for how it will happen, at least for my business. I’m still hoping there is a weight loss unicorn out there and I’ll find it someday.Last year I chose to have a word guide my existence. The word was Stability. I was coming off a decade of big changes and life swings. All I wanted out of life last year was to be able to know what was around the next corner. For the most part I accomplished that, and I also was able to create a more stable environment for my business. I am writing on a regular schedule, and I don’t put a manuscript away for… well, let’s not say how long, before I take it out to edit it. This year I am hoping to build on the momentum I found in 2019. My word that is driving me in 2020 is Abundance. I want to see abundance in everything about my life. What does that look like? Well, as one would expect it looks like more money, but it also looks like more published works, it is setting up challenges to push what I can do, and who I am. I am only a week [image error]into 2020, and already life is trying to take a whack at my goals, but along with abundance, I have been forced to see what I already have. Gratitude is a huge part of abundance in my mind. Yes, the kids and family can drive me crazy when I am trying to work on my business, but I have a family to drive me crazy. I have been blessed with a supportive husband who lets me work on this crazy author business, instead of going out and earning a regular paycheck. I could go on, but when you are thinking about abundance you have to think about gratitude. It all fills the well, and if we thought about all that we don’t yet have it would make reaching for our goals more difficult, because we would think it not as possible. So, I encourage you to consider abundance in your life in 2020, don’t forget all those things you have from all those other decades that helped you grow and become the person you are now. If you love free stuff, shoot over to my book pages where you can read chapters of my books for free! And check back for upcoming releases! https://www.clairbrett.com/homeNow hop over to see what Brenda Margriet has in store for this new year! One thing she has for her readers is a sale! Mountain Fire, a romantic suspense is on sale now until January 15th, for .99https://www.brendamargriet.com/blog

Failed Writer My @$%

There was a post this week in a Facebook group I belong to. The poster said she had just published her first book and was very excited, until someone in her life told her she was a “failed writer”. Then, I was reading a non-fiction book this week, where the author used a friend as an example about having to give up old ways of thinking, because this person wanted to write a book, but his teacher in 5th grade told him he was not a good writer.Hold on, let me drag my soap box over to the mic. It’s a heavy little sucker. Just a sec, ok here we go…I would say if you haven’t experienced some sort of failure, be it as little as a typo you are not a writer. It is part and parcel of the job. Writing is one of the most subjective mediums on the planet and EVERYONE has an opinion. In fact, it is one of the few mediums I can think of where the top critics can be people who have never actually done the thing they are commenting on and still be considered an expert in the field.I would also say, that until you can admit your work could be better, you are not a writer who will advance in their career. As writers we depend on our readers and their comments and suggestions to propel us forward. As a very new author it is sometimes difficult to see where we could have done better, or to acknowledge the plot hole in the sagging middle. If we can’t see or at the least acknowledge where we can improve, we will not, so failing is a requirement for moving up the rung of the ladder in this field.No successful person can say they got where they were without failing along the way. Life is a learning process and as long as we learn from our failures, they become building blocks of who are at present.Now, as for the man who won’t write today because his 5th grade teacher told him he was not a good writer, I have this to say.No 5th grader is a good writer by adult publishing standards. But, also, I am going to assume that this gentleman didn’t drop out of every English class he was offered from 6th grade up. If any number of extraordinary people stopped trying after one person said they were not good at what they did, it would be a very sorry place to live.I used to teach and there was a saying that teaching is 85% performance and 15% content. Well the same could be said for talent vs. passion in writing.At the end of the day, you will never be everyone’s cup of tea. For every fabulous review I get there are reviews about the same book that say it is not well written, or the characters aren’t believable, etc. Look up the reviews on Harry Potter and read some of the one stars. I assume J.K. Rowling isn’t shuffling around her mansion eating a pint of ice cream because she is devastated over them.Critics and haters are a reality in our world today, and social media sometimes gives them a stage making them appear to have more power than they do. And, in the writing world in particular there seem to be an overabundance.You can’t control how people are going to receive your work. What you can control is that you put out a book that you love, one you are proud of. You will be a better writer tomorrow, so there is no perfection, there is only the best it can be today. People are going to love it and people are going to hate it.Dote on the ones that love you and your work, they are the ones who will [image error]help you through your career. For the ones who still see you as your 5th grade self, nod at them for their effort as your 5 star fans carry you across the internet on their shoulders shouting “we want the next book!” and smile as you pass the haters. They hate that.At the end of the day, as long as I love my story, and I know it was the best book I could put out on that day I am fine with that. I hope every book isn’t my best book. I hope the next one will be better, but this book is who I was today.So, go out and fail today. Write that 5th grader’s story. It doesn’t matter, just write. If you do that you haven’t failed at anything.

Christmas Goodies!

Happy holidays! As a trained chef, turned romance writer this is my season. Between Thanksgiving and Christmas is my happy place. I can easily spend days in the kitchen making fun things for my family and friends.I have never participated in a cookie swap, but my family does have a tradition of making Christmas goodies plates for everyone on our street, and certain other friends around town. We make around 20 plates each year with various different yummy things. It is our tradition that we drive around and pass them out as we head out to the Christmas Eve service at our church.I am going, however to share with you the one treat I wait all year for. I only make this dessert for Christmas dinner, but do think it is on the list of my “last meal” items if ever I am in such a position. What is it you ask?English sticky toffee pudding with hard sauce. During Christmas I am all about family and where we have come from. I’ll be honest on my dad’s side we are English all the way. There is still a little church somewhere in the middle of England that has a pew with my family crest on it. Funny thing though, the family member that took the trip across the pond, did so to avoid prosecution as a thief. Go team, way to represent. LolMy mother’s side of my family has a very strong Irish contingent thanks to one brave lass who took the leap. Any other McGuires out there?To pay homage to both cultures I make the caramel sauce a “hard sauce” by adding whiskey to it so it warms you all the way down.Below is a link to the recipe I use, except for the whiskey in the sauce, but I usually add about 1/4c. to the sauce at the end. If you try this I’d love to hear back from you. https://www.rockrecipes.com/perfect-english-sticky-toffee-pudding/Also, I am including a link to my Pinterest board which has a load of yummy Christmas goodies. Please check it out and follow me on Pinterest.https://pin.it/k5dqf37hxljjneNext up is Jenna Da Sie. I can’t wait to see what she has in store for us in the way of yummy treats! https://jennadasie.comHappy Holidays!

What Holiday Decorating Style am I?

Wow, can you believe December is here? I am still trying to wrap my head around the fact Thanksgiving has come and gone. Today’s topic is our decorating style and more importantly a favorite holiday decorating item to us.I have always loved Christmas. I am not a fan of the snow, but I love everything else about it. It was a time when our home had a stead stream of relatives and friends coming and going. My parents would hold parties for both sides of my family and I would get to play with my cousins that I didn’t see throughout the year.When my husband and I met and moved in together in college we had nothing to decorate with. I remember we put our pennies together and went to a local Kmart. We bought the cheapest tree, that was considered floor style, I was taller than it, I think. We also bought the cheapest ornaments and garland they had. It was a sad little tree, but it was my first tree as an adult. We did not, however have the money for a tree topper. I had mentioned that to my mom on a call home.A few days later, my dad was in the area for business and I got a knock on my door. He made a special trip to my apartment to give me a light up angel he went to the store and bought (he hated shopping!). He said his little girl couldn’t have a tree without an angel.That would be my last Christmas with my dad, as he died of a massive heart attack that January.It wasn’t an expensive item. It isn’t even the prettiest and I could have swapped it out now 26 times, but my tree will never go up without that topper on it.This picture is not the exact topper, because we are decorating this weekend and the boxes are still in the basement, but this is a good likeness.As for the rest of the house, I guess I am a traditionalist. I use green garland where I can, we always have colored garland and tinsel on our tree, with colored lights (I would love white, but my husband isn’t into the holiday as much as I am, so I give him his colored lights).I collect snowmen and have over 100, so they make appearances all over the house. I used to display them all on the mantel of the fireplace, but that now holds our tv, so they are spread out.My husband and I have a neighborhood party each year and invite our friends and neighbors, so I want them to feel welcome and be in the spirt when they enter my house.I do have to admit, as excited as I get to decorate for the season, I am just as excited to undecorate after. I get overload sometimes toward Dec. 27 and will be ready for it to all go away until next year.How do you decorate? Do you like to leave it up, or do you take it down as soon as the holiday is over?By the way, today is release day for my newest book Marked for Love! I’d love to hear what you think of it! https://clairbrett.com/marked-for-lov... up is Caro Kinkead, check out how she decks the halls for the season.https://carokinkead.com/messinprogress/

My Foreign Language Experience and My Characters

Welcome. I’m so glad you stopped in. Today at Romance Writer’s Weekly we are talking about speaking foreign languages. The short answer for me is no.I took French in high school, but because of hearing problems I just never did understand it very well. I managed to pass the class but I wouldn’t say it was successful. However, when I got married I moved to the place my husband grew up which was the northern most town in NH. Pittsburg, NH has a close relationship to the neighbors in the north, not to mention at the time the exchange rate was in our favor and I actually did my grocery shopping at a Costco in Canada.As I spent time driving and interacting with the citizens of Quebec, Canada’s only French speaking province, I was able to pick some up. If a person speaks very slowly, and I mean VERY slowly, I can get the gist of what they are saying. I can function well enough to read road signs and the like as well, oh and we used to go up there to some clubs, so I was taught the phrases to listen for that would require a slap across the face. Not to mention I could throw out a string of French swears if it was ever called for.As for my characters, I actually have written two characters that speak a different first language than English.In Dealing with the Viscount, the only servant to the heroine in her father’s home is French. When Devon finds his heroine he, unbeknownst to her, took in the maid and set her up in a cottage by way of a pension. He then uses her loyalties against the heroine to aid in his cause to win her back. I did not have her speak long lines of French. I used French words splattered in her dialogue to give the effect of a French accent.In Visions of Pleasuremy hero, Bastion Niall Dialais Guaire, 4th Count of Lugar De Sueno is from Spain. He has traveled widely, so I did not use Spanish very much. I did use it in a few high emotion scenes where he forgets himself and slips into his native language because he is so taken by his heroine. He has a few terms of endearment that I sprinkle in.When I was thinking about this topic for the blog post, I decided I take a Gomez Adams tact with my characters and their native language. For you youngsters, Gomez Adams would slip into speaking French when the love of his life, Morticia would get frisky with him. As a child I never knew what he was saying, but I did know that Gomez loved Morticia more than anything in the world.That is how I want you to react to my characters. I want their emotion and love to come out from what they say and how they say it. What better way than to have them speak in the language that is most comfortable and hence most unscripted.I hope you found my rendition of foreign language use to be interesting. Up next is Brenda MargrietAnd, check out Brenda’s new release Crossroads corner now available!

Book Covers I Love

I am so excited to be talking book covers today! Many of us choose books by their cover. I will admit to being drawn to a book, because the cover was beautiful or intrigued me, but in the end if the blurb doesn’t suck me in the rest of the way, I’m out.In my category of beautiful covers, this one tops the list: Luring a Lady’s Love, byTammy Andresen. Isn’t is gorgeous? It ticks most of my boxes for a cover that will draw my eye. Not to mention I love fairy tale re-tellings.Not to brag, well I’m not bragging I guess because it was my cover designer not me, but I am in love with my latest book’s cover. I wanted the reader to get a feel for the back story, as well as getting a glimpse of the story proper. It is mysterious, and pretty all rolled into one. Marked for Love is on pre-order now. You can grab it on Amazon here.I’m not sure where you are at with shirtless heroes or not. I am on the fence with this debate. I think it depends on my mood when browsing books, but if you like contemporary reads, I would suggest Picture Me Naked, by Lisa Olech. Not only is the cover yummy, it is an awesome read.That’s all I have for you today; next up we have Caro KinKead. Go check her and see what covers she loves. http://carokinkead.com/messinprogress

My Favorite Playlist for Writing

I love this topic for the Romance Writer’s Weekly blog today, my favorite playlists for my writing. It is always interesting to see how other people set up their world to be creative. Since I write historical romance, I can gain inspiration and ideas from current music and lyrics. I love it when I listen to a song and an idea pops into my head. Unfortunately, for me current music does not set the tone when I am getting in the mood to write a new scene. When I sit down to write I love almost anything instrumental. I can’t have other people’s words floating through my thoughts. I will listen to light jazz, classical, even some ambient music . One play list I love to use on Spotify when I am working on a new piece is the Jane Austenesque Films Soundtracks. It sets the mood for my Regency world to come to life. When I am editing, I find I need something a bit more powerful so my go to editing playlist, also found on Spotify is the Music for Writing and Editing soundtrack. It has everything from Star Wars themes to the James Bond Theme song. It is all instrumental, but is powerful and strong, which is what I need to power through my edits.As an 80’s girl I can remember endless hours making mix-tapes, so I can’t tell you the excitement for me to now have places like Spotify where I can find what I am looking for at the drop of a hat. You youngins’ will never know the pain of waiting all morning for one song to come on the radio so you can record it, and you end up missing the beginning in the recording.What music do you like to listen to when being creative? I’d love to know.Thanks for stopping by, please go now and check out Brenda Margriet’s blog post today. http://www.brendamargriet.com/blog

What Great Book Have I Read Recently

Today’s blog post topic for Romance Writers Weekly is brought to us by the wonderful Leslie Hachtel. Check out Bound to Morocco. Book one in her new series on Amazon.I loved this week’s topic, what is the best book I’ve read recently. As many authors, I came to writing via being a reader. In the past I have had more than one book going at a time. I would have one in the bathroom, one in my work bag, one in my car, and often that traveled with me in my pocketbook. Let’s just say I was never bored, because I always had a book to read. Now with e-readers I always have my phone, so I am still never bored.More recently, I use reading for pleasure as my reward for getting my own work finished, so I have been in a bit of a dry spell trying to get two books ready to publish. That being said, I have the third book in this series all loaded and ready to go when I get to a point where I can take a breath.The book/series I am talking about is Eloisa James’ Wildes of Lindow Castle series. I have read the first two, but today I’m going to gush over book 1 Wilde in Love.Lord Alaric Wilde arrives back in London after years of adventuring. What he doesn’t realize is that he is famous, for the books he wrote chronicling his travels.Miss Willa Ffynche is friends with one of his admirers. She has no desire to become acquainted with such an egotistical author with such an extravagant imagination just to get attention.This book has everything you would expect from Eloisa James, wit, well rounded characters, and of course sexual tension. It even has a crazed super fan.The second and third books are just as fun to get lost in. I am so excited about book four, because it is about the youngest Wilde, Lady Betsy Wilde, who I am sure is not going allow her brothers to best her in living up to her name.Have you been reading this series? Did you enjoy it? I’d love to hear from you!Now, I will pass you along to Leslie Hachtel.http://lesliehachtelwriter.wordpress.com/?fbclid=IwAR3E4f320ZZa5-VpR560lBXbTmD4crANsSCaZK1Ps4E4pm8uo8dz3vq2_dk

Romance Writer's Weekly Blog hop: Something Interesting I Learned in My Research

Welcome! I was just accepted into a new group called Romance Writer’s weekly. I am very excited to jump into the fray this week and be part of the weekly blog hop. Each week a member comes up with a topic and we all write on the same topic, then we put a link to the bottom of our post sending the reader to the next blog. This week’s topic is thanks to A.S. Fenichel www.asfenichel.com. Her question was what some interesting things are we learned while doing research for our books.I write historicals so I am always having to research something. For a book that I am in the throws of plotting as we speak my heroine has chosen the life of a courtesan instead of the life of a Duke’s daughter.When I first got the idea my logical brain said, no. This will not work, who chooses to become a courtesan when they were born into the highest echelons of society. I questioned this because I knew my readers would question this. As I read about the women who are famous for their industry, I realized why it might be something to draw a young woman of privilege, but also of expectations for her life. Expectations that might be counter to their own desires about life.We Americans like to think we invented the reality tv star. Those people who are famous for being famous and nothing else. We are glued to the tv or Instagram watching what they will do next. Many of them have increased their own fortunes for capitalizing on their fame and creating clothing lines, or makeup collections.The interesting thing I learned in my research was that the Regency Courtesan was the reality stars of their day. They were watched and ogled by the masses to see what they wore, where they chose to spend their time, who they spent their time with, and what they did. In fact, a few of them saw the publicity they got and would do outlandish things for the attention it would garner.Kitty Fisher was a prime example. She was so popular crowds would gather just to watch her eat dinner in her private box at Vauxhall. She even became embroiled in a very public feud with Lord Coventry’s wife Maria Gunning, who came into the marriage by way of a scheming mother. There is an account of the two of them meeting in public by chance and Lady Coventry asked her the maker of her dress, by which Kitty told her to ask her husband, because he gave it to her as a gift.Harriette Wilson is another famous courtesan, along with two of her sisters as well. Harriette became famous when she published her memoirs in 1825 naming names and taking no prisoners. It is reported that she chose to publish because she felt she had not been paid enough to afford her retirement.One other interesting thing I learned was that many young women came to the profession, because it was one of the only ways a woman could be independent and not withholden to a man. Harriette Wilson came from a very unhappy home and she decided at the age of 10 that she would “live free as air from any restraint but that of my conscience.” Kitty earned enough she had liveried servants.While the life of a courtesan was fraught with danger, pain, and heartbreak these women took it on and though they were never invited into the drawing rooms of haute ton for tea, they surely influenced the fashions, politics, and other cultural things of the day.I am excited to bring this new heroine to you all, and I will share other interesting things as I find them out.Now, let’s keep this blog hop rolling, shall we? Next up is my fellow Haute Ton Reader Society author, Christina Alexandra. She has a cover reveal happening on Monday in the Haute Ton Reader Society Facebook group. If you want to check it out come join us for all sorts of historical fun, here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hautetonreadersociety/https://christinaalexandra.net/blog/But, make sure you also pop over to Christina’s blog and see what interesting things she has learned from her own research.