Joyce DiPastena's Blog, page 6
March 30, 2017
Hug a Medievalist Day giveaways!
March 31 is International Hug a Medievalist Day and I want to share it with you with not one, but TWO giveaways, and a book sale! (Click here to read an interview with the creator of Hug a Medievalist Day.)
(Have you hugged a medievalist today?)
Prize 1 is a two-pack prize: an illustrated copy of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales plus a replica of a hand-drawn map of the pilgrims' route to Canterbury, which I picked up at this year's Arizona Renaissance Festival.
This giveaway is available to USA residents only. If you're international, check out my next giveaway below. (If the Rafflecopter form doesn't show up, just click on the link that says "a Rafflecopter giveaway")
SaveSave
a Rafflecopter giveaway
OFFICIAL RULES: NO PURCHASE NECESSSARY. Entrants must be 18 years or older. Deadline to enter is April 5, 2017. Winners will be selected on April 6, 2017 and have 48 hours to respond to an email notifying them of their win. OPEN TO USA ENTRIES ONLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Questions? Contact me at jdipastena@yahoo.com.
Prize 2: An autographed PRINT copy of my medieval romance, Illuminations of the Heart . (This is marked Book 2 in my Poitevin Hearts romance series, but can be read as a standalone novel. If you've downloaded a copy of Loyalty's Web in one of my recent giveaways though, you might want to read that one first, but it isn't necessary to enjoy Illuminations of the Heart .)
(Click on the book cover to read a summary of the book)
Autographed copies will be sent to USA residents only, but if you're international you can still win! I'll send you a print copy via Amazon Global -- it just won't be autographed.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
OFFICIAL RULES: NO PURCHASE NECESSSARY. Entrants must be 18 years or older. Deadline to enter is April 5, 2017. Winners will be selected on April 6, 2017 and have 48 hours to respond to an email notifying them of their win. OPEN TO USA AND INTERNATIONAL ENTRIES ONLY ON THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED ABOVE. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Questions? Contact me at jdipastena@yahoo.com.
Finally, I'm also holding a $0.99 sale of my medieval romance, Courting Cassandry , March 29 - April 4, so if you've been wanting to grab a copy on sale, this is your chance.
(Click on the book cover to read a summary)
Click here to be directed by Books2Read to the bookseller of your choice for a $0.99 copy of Courting Cassandry .
(Have you hugged a medievalist today?)
Prize 1 is a two-pack prize: an illustrated copy of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales plus a replica of a hand-drawn map of the pilgrims' route to Canterbury, which I picked up at this year's Arizona Renaissance Festival.
This giveaway is available to USA residents only. If you're international, check out my next giveaway below. (If the Rafflecopter form doesn't show up, just click on the link that says "a Rafflecopter giveaway")
SaveSave
a Rafflecopter giveaway
OFFICIAL RULES: NO PURCHASE NECESSSARY. Entrants must be 18 years or older. Deadline to enter is April 5, 2017. Winners will be selected on April 6, 2017 and have 48 hours to respond to an email notifying them of their win. OPEN TO USA ENTRIES ONLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Questions? Contact me at jdipastena@yahoo.com.
Prize 2: An autographed PRINT copy of my medieval romance, Illuminations of the Heart . (This is marked Book 2 in my Poitevin Hearts romance series, but can be read as a standalone novel. If you've downloaded a copy of Loyalty's Web in one of my recent giveaways though, you might want to read that one first, but it isn't necessary to enjoy Illuminations of the Heart .)
(Click on the book cover to read a summary of the book)
Autographed copies will be sent to USA residents only, but if you're international you can still win! I'll send you a print copy via Amazon Global -- it just won't be autographed.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
OFFICIAL RULES: NO PURCHASE NECESSSARY. Entrants must be 18 years or older. Deadline to enter is April 5, 2017. Winners will be selected on April 6, 2017 and have 48 hours to respond to an email notifying them of their win. OPEN TO USA AND INTERNATIONAL ENTRIES ONLY ON THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED ABOVE. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Questions? Contact me at jdipastena@yahoo.com.
Finally, I'm also holding a $0.99 sale of my medieval romance, Courting Cassandry , March 29 - April 4, so if you've been wanting to grab a copy on sale, this is your chance.
(Click on the book cover to read a summary)
Click here to be directed by Books2Read to the bookseller of your choice for a $0.99 copy of Courting Cassandry .
February 28, 2017
Tuesday Teaser
Here's a new Tuesday Teaser from Nick & Gia's story for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Sir,” she said quickly, “I assure you that we are but—”
“Brother and sister, cousins” —the man cut her off, a thread of laughter in his voice— “he is clearly too young to be your uncle.” He waved a hand that looked gloved in the air. “It is no concern of mine, signorina. I will leave you and your . . . ‘brother’ to resume your amusements, then. Buona notte!”
He strolled past them, his cloak rustling on the breeze as he whistled a light tune into the enveloping darkness.
Amadio muttered, “I warned you in the tavern that men would mistake you for a—”
She whirled on him. “Do not say that word with my name. If you had stayed home as I ordered you, I would not be so humiliated.”
“It was reckless of you to follow me, and unnecessary, as well. What, did you think Il Cavaliere Scarlatto had abducted me? I would like to see him try!”
February 23, 2017
Looking for Historical Fiction?
Remember that Historical Fiction Giveaway I told you about? Well, it's up and running now on BookSweeps! Over 45 historical novels are part of a prize pack being offered through February 27th. I can't vouch for the content of all the titles, but I'm familiar with authors L.C. Lewis, Rachael Anderson, and Rachelle J. Christensen. Each of them offer good, clean historical fiction with great plots that keep you turning the pages. Some of the other titles look interesting too. I may check them out myself! And yes, that's my romantic historical,
The Lady and the Minstrel
, there on the second row. If you haven't read it yet, go ahead and enter. You might win a copy!
Oh, and did I mention that they're giving away a Kindle Fire as a Grand Prize?
Here's a picture of all the prizes up for grabs.
That looks like 50 novels to me! Here's the link to enter: Book Sweeps Historical Fiction Giveaway.
Check it out and good luck! I'd love it if some of my followers won! (If you do, be sure you come back and let me know in a comment.)
Oh, and did I mention that they're giving away a Kindle Fire as a Grand Prize?
Here's a picture of all the prizes up for grabs.
That looks like 50 novels to me! Here's the link to enter: Book Sweeps Historical Fiction Giveaway.
Check it out and good luck! I'd love it if some of my followers won! (If you do, be sure you come back and let me know in a comment.)
February 21, 2017
Tuesday Teaser
Today's Tuesday Teaser introduces my heroine, Giacinta, as my hero, Nick Ryder, first sees her as she enters a tavern in Venice. (Keep in mind that this is 1st draft material, so there may be some clunky sentences. They should get smoothed out in revisions. This is just to give you a taste of the story I'm working on.)A woman stood in the open doorway. Not the sort of overly-primped wench with stained cheeks and lips that the harlots of Venice attempted to seduce men with. A natural elegance radiated from the crimped coils of her bronze-colored hair, to the delicate blush on the glow of her faintly golden skin, to the modest embellishments on the gown that draped a shapely bosom, and the slender, beringed fingers that somewhat tremblingly clutched the doorjamb. Nick’s gaze followed the flow of her skirts over the graceful curve of her hips to the tips of the red slippers peeking out from beneath their folds, before returning to her face. He judged her to be near her twentieth year.
Her brown eyes, warm and luxuriant as honey, stared into the tavern, round with dismay, as though she gazed upon some scene from purgatory. Her blush deepened, perhaps from all the stares of the men fixed upon her, more than a few of which had gone broadly lecherous. Her hand left the doorjamb to briefly touch her hair, as if belatedly aware that she had failed to don a covering veil. Dread flashed in her eyes, so stark Nick thought she might turn about and flee. To his surprise, a shout half-rose in his throat to stay her, for he sensed her departure would leave a blast of cold in his chest.
Then her gaze darted to some point behind Nick and he saw her spine stiffen. Her expression altered. He had seen just such a look in men’s eyes on the battlefield: an unflinching resolve to face the enemy blazing in defiance of the weakness of fear. Her sweetly rounded chin lifted with all the fortitude of an unflinching warrior.
February 16, 2017
Get your February Romance Fix with more free ebooks!
February is the month for romance, and I'm taking part in another book promotion on My Book Cave this one exclusively for clean/sweet romances. 14 romances authors are giving away FREE ebook copies of their titles, and another $10 gift card is up for grabs as well. If you're a romance lover, you won't want to miss checking out these titles! (And yes, my medieval romance, Loyalty's Web , is one of the free books again. If you wanted but failed to download it last time, here's a second chance.)
Once again you'll be asked to sign up for each author's newsletter in exchange for a free book, but you can unsubscribe from any or all of them at any time. Click here if you'd like to browse through the books and see if any of them strike your romantic fancy.
And just as a head's up . . . next week, my romantic historical, The Lady and the Minstrel , will be participating in a free giveaway centered on historical (not necessarily historical romance) novels. I'll let you know when that's up and running in case you'd like to add some historical titles to your libraries, too!
February 14, 2017
A Valentine Tuesday Teaser
I fell a bit off the writing rails in 2016. I spent the first 5 months of the year being sick and the last 7 months trying to catch up with all the things I fell behind with the first 5 months. But 2017 is starting off better (knocking on wood, let's not jinx it, shall we?), and I'm working hard to get my writing back on track. Instead of resuming a sampling of daily sentences from my daily writing sessions to share with you, I've decided to share a weekly Tuesday Teaser from my work-in-progress instead.If you read my 2016 romance, Courting Cassandry , my new story takes place 31 years earlier when the hero, Gerolt, was nineteen years old. He and his friend, Samson, play young secondary characters in this new story, but the romance centers around an English knight named Nick Ryder and the daughter of a Venetian silk merchant named Giacinta. And yes, the story takes place in Venice!
Here, in honor of Valentine's Day (which should always involve flowers, don't you think?), is a tidbit of a scene between Nick and Giacinta in Giacinta's garden. I hope you enjoy it!
These narrow, tiled gardens of Venice must not be conducive to inspiring romantic garlands or chaplets. Nick's fingers flew now as he entwined one flower after another into the braided ivy. He interspersed the bold colors of the violets, gladioli, periwinkle, and melograno with the delicate white of the gelsomino and an occasional honeysuckle, wrapping their stems around the ivy to secure the flowers in place.
“Oh, but how pretty!” Giacinta exclaimed when he tilted the wreath for a final inspection of his work.
He set the wreath atop her crisscrossed braids, then smiled. “Now it is beautiful.”
Her cheeks turned a becoming pink. She reached up a hand, tentatively touching her fresh-blossomed crown. “English ladies wear these on their heads?”
“Young, unmarried maidens do.”
She sighed. “I am not young.” She lowered her hand, but to his relief, did not remove the wreath.
“How old can you be? I guess you a mere twenty.”
“I am twenty-two,” she said, though she looked slightly pleased that he had under-guessed her age. “Nunzia Rosa has been married for seven years. If Stefano does not marry me soon, I shall end up a spinster.”
“You? A spinster? The thought is absurd!” And who the devil is Stefano?
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February 2, 2017
Warm Up Your Winter with Free Ebooks!
What goes better in the wintertime than hot chocolate and books? How about more books with lots of new authors to try, and all of them for FREE! Oh, and did I mention there are also 5 gift cards up for grabs as well?
If you’ve been wanting to try out one of my medieval romances, now is the time, because Loyalty’s Web , the first in my Poitevin Hearts series, is one of the free books being offered in the Warm Up Your Winter with Free Ebooks promotion currently going on over at My Book Cave.
There are many other genres represented there too, from suspense to fantasy to romance to mystery, and even a children’s book. The promotion runs through February 10.
There is one thing to note. You will be asked to sign up for each of the authors’ newsletters in order to download their book. But hey, if it turns out to be a book you love, learning more about the author will be a plus, right? And if it turns out the book is not for you, you are free to unsubscribe from their newsletter at any time, no hard feelings.
So why don’t you check it out and see if any of these titles strike your fancy. Because you can never have too many books to snuggle up with in the winter!
Click here to check out the Warm Up Your Winter with Free Ebooks selections!
December 15, 2016
A Medieval Christmas Dance
We don’t, of course, have balls in the Middle Ages, but we love to dance quite as much as our Regency descendants will.
We are celebrating the Holy Day of Christmas at Lyonstoke Castle, where I live with my guardian, Lord Gerolt de Warrenne. We have just finished a sumptuous feast, for Gerolt is very rich. The centerpiece of the final course (we had five altogether) was a great roast boar, surrounded on a huge platter with greenery and apples, one of the latter stuffed in the great beast’s mouth. The feast has lasted from midday until now it is early evening.
Candles and torches have been lit, while a massive Yule log flames away in the hearth, flooding the castle’s great hall with light and warmth. Throughout the meal we were entertained by tumblers, jesters, and minstrels, but now that we are all merry with food and wine (although Gerolt insisted I water mine), we seek other entertainment.
Servants whisk away the leftover food and dishes and push the tables back against the walls, though carefully so as not to harm the beautiful tapestries that hang there. Gerolt’s castle musicians alter the soft accompaniments they played while we dined and begin a lively carole dance. We hold hands in a circle and skip sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, singing as we do so.
“The holly and the ivy,“When they are both full grown . . .”
Antony de Reymes holds my left hand in his right. Gerolt has given us leave to marry in a year when Antony turns twenty-one and becomes a knight. Loving Antony makes my heart sing even more than the music we skip to, but he is a great tease. Sometimes he tugs me too hard, trying to hurry the circle, throwing us out of rhythm, or alters the circle’s direction before its time, not because he has no sense of music but because he thinks it great fun to throw the circle into confusion. The more frowns he earns from the other dancers, the more widely he grins. I adore Antony and he adores me, but sometimes his antics grow a tiny bit wearisome, especially because I love dancing best when we dance the steps exactly right.
When the carole is ended, Gerolt takes his turn with me. The company breaks into smaller circles and the drums and pipes begin again. This dance begins with the ladies being turned beneath the gentlemen’s arms and moves quickly into more intricate steps and formations than the simple carole dance. Gerolt is the best dancer I know. He always guides me so lightly through the steps that I feel as though I dance on air. My joyful heart beats as one with the music. The slender gray shell Gerolt tied about my neck when I was twelve bounces merrily against the bodice of my embroidered green gown as I skip and whirl.
Antony frowns when I wear the shell, as though jealous of the gift. He is sometimes so absurd! Though Gerolt is my guardian, he and I are as close as brother and sister. I cherish the gift even more than the jewels my parents left me for the bond that it signals between me and Gerolt, one that no one, even Antony, can ever break. Even the shell’s color matches the cloud-gray shade of Gerolt’s kind eyes. I remember how oddly they warmed with an emotion I did not quite understand the day he tied the shell around my neck.
He is twenty-five now and I fifteen. For a moment as we dance with hands raised and palms pressed together, I think I glimpse that light in his eyes again, but the smile he gives me is the smile I have known and loved since I was nine-years-old, the one that makes me feel safe and treasured. I wish I knew a gift to give him in return for these six years we have shared but I can think of nothing he does not already have. I will miss him more than I can say when Antony and I are married.
Gerolt kneels and kisses my hand as the music ends, and Antony whisks me into yet another circle. But I glance over my shoulder as we go and pray that Gerolt can see the love and gratitude in my smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Though the medieval dance in this video is not set in a castle hall, it will give you an idea of some of the steps Gerolt and I enjoyed together this Christmas night.
See how my story with Antony and Gerolt turns out in Courting Cassandry .
We are celebrating the Holy Day of Christmas at Lyonstoke Castle, where I live with my guardian, Lord Gerolt de Warrenne. We have just finished a sumptuous feast, for Gerolt is very rich. The centerpiece of the final course (we had five altogether) was a great roast boar, surrounded on a huge platter with greenery and apples, one of the latter stuffed in the great beast’s mouth. The feast has lasted from midday until now it is early evening.
Candles and torches have been lit, while a massive Yule log flames away in the hearth, flooding the castle’s great hall with light and warmth. Throughout the meal we were entertained by tumblers, jesters, and minstrels, but now that we are all merry with food and wine (although Gerolt insisted I water mine), we seek other entertainment.
Servants whisk away the leftover food and dishes and push the tables back against the walls, though carefully so as not to harm the beautiful tapestries that hang there. Gerolt’s castle musicians alter the soft accompaniments they played while we dined and begin a lively carole dance. We hold hands in a circle and skip sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, singing as we do so.
“The holly and the ivy,“When they are both full grown . . .”
Antony de Reymes holds my left hand in his right. Gerolt has given us leave to marry in a year when Antony turns twenty-one and becomes a knight. Loving Antony makes my heart sing even more than the music we skip to, but he is a great tease. Sometimes he tugs me too hard, trying to hurry the circle, throwing us out of rhythm, or alters the circle’s direction before its time, not because he has no sense of music but because he thinks it great fun to throw the circle into confusion. The more frowns he earns from the other dancers, the more widely he grins. I adore Antony and he adores me, but sometimes his antics grow a tiny bit wearisome, especially because I love dancing best when we dance the steps exactly right.
When the carole is ended, Gerolt takes his turn with me. The company breaks into smaller circles and the drums and pipes begin again. This dance begins with the ladies being turned beneath the gentlemen’s arms and moves quickly into more intricate steps and formations than the simple carole dance. Gerolt is the best dancer I know. He always guides me so lightly through the steps that I feel as though I dance on air. My joyful heart beats as one with the music. The slender gray shell Gerolt tied about my neck when I was twelve bounces merrily against the bodice of my embroidered green gown as I skip and whirl.
Antony frowns when I wear the shell, as though jealous of the gift. He is sometimes so absurd! Though Gerolt is my guardian, he and I are as close as brother and sister. I cherish the gift even more than the jewels my parents left me for the bond that it signals between me and Gerolt, one that no one, even Antony, can ever break. Even the shell’s color matches the cloud-gray shade of Gerolt’s kind eyes. I remember how oddly they warmed with an emotion I did not quite understand the day he tied the shell around my neck.
He is twenty-five now and I fifteen. For a moment as we dance with hands raised and palms pressed together, I think I glimpse that light in his eyes again, but the smile he gives me is the smile I have known and loved since I was nine-years-old, the one that makes me feel safe and treasured. I wish I knew a gift to give him in return for these six years we have shared but I can think of nothing he does not already have. I will miss him more than I can say when Antony and I are married.
Gerolt kneels and kisses my hand as the music ends, and Antony whisks me into yet another circle. But I glance over my shoulder as we go and pray that Gerolt can see the love and gratitude in my smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Though the medieval dance in this video is not set in a castle hall, it will give you an idea of some of the steps Gerolt and I enjoyed together this Christmas night.
See how my story with Antony and Gerolt turns out in Courting Cassandry .
December 8, 2016
Merry Christmas Deals!
Christmas is coming up quickly! Do you have family and friends who still prefer reading PRINT books to ebooks? If so, 6 of my sweet medieval romance titles are 20% off through December if you order your copies directly through CreateSpace! All you have to do is enter the discount code VZ7B2WGL when you check out.
The 20% discount is available for the following titles at the following links:
Loyalty's Web - CreateSpace
Illuminations of the Heart - CreateSpace
Dangerous Favor - CreateSpace
Loving Lucianna - CreateSpace
Courting Cassandry - CreateSpace
The Lady and the Minstrel - CreateSpace
Also, if you sign up for my newsletter, you will receive a FREE download of my medieval Christmas short story, A Candlelight Courting, as a thank you gift.
You can sign up for my newsletter here.
Thank you all so much for your friendship and loyalty throughout the years. I hope you each have a sweet and beautiful Christmas!
SaveSave
The 20% discount is available for the following titles at the following links:
Loyalty's Web - CreateSpace
Illuminations of the Heart - CreateSpace
Dangerous Favor - CreateSpace
Loving Lucianna - CreateSpace
Courting Cassandry - CreateSpace
The Lady and the Minstrel - CreateSpace
Also, if you sign up for my newsletter, you will receive a FREE download of my medieval Christmas short story, A Candlelight Courting, as a thank you gift.
You can sign up for my newsletter here.
Thank you all so much for your friendship and loyalty throughout the years. I hope you each have a sweet and beautiful Christmas!
SaveSave
November 17, 2016
Giveaway: Timeless Romance Anthology
Christmas is just around the corner. Do you have family or friends who still prefer old fashioned print books to ebooks? Then here is an opportunity and giveaway for you!
Four of the Timeless Romance Anthology series are now available in paperback in Seagull Books (Utah only) and Deseret Book stores (everywhere)! You can win a FREE BOOK by helping the authors to celebrate! (In full disclosure, my short medieval Christmas story, Caroles on the Green, is included in the Winter Anthology edition.)
Details for how you can win a free book as well as be entered for a chance at a $50 Amazon gift certificate are below. Don't know where your closest Desert Book or Seagull stores are located? Click here for the Deseret Book location finder for multiple states and here for the Seagull Books location finder for Utah stores.
Four of the Timeless Romance Anthology series are now available in paperback in Seagull Books (Utah only) and Deseret Book stores (everywhere)! You can win a FREE BOOK by helping the authors to celebrate! (In full disclosure, my short medieval Christmas story, Caroles on the Green, is included in the Winter Anthology edition.)
Details for how you can win a free book as well as be entered for a chance at a $50 Amazon gift certificate are below. Don't know where your closest Desert Book or Seagull stores are located? Click here for the Deseret Book location finder for multiple states and here for the Seagull Books location finder for Utah stores.
