Battle of Olustee, a Civil War re-enactment

The Battle of Olustee, originally named the Battle of Ocean Pond happened 148 years ago. Both my husband and I are Civil War re-enactors with the 3^rd Florida, Company A, a Confederate Unit. Captain Bill is with the attending medical corps and follows the troops onto the field to check for dead and dying. In reality, he checks for injuries or heatstroke, a common happening when soldiers wore woolen uniforms in the humid Florida heat.

Being a re-enactor has added richness to my writing, although I started because I love history. I’ve found friends that also love to be here.

The reasons people participate are as varied at the soldiers and their wives. Some honor their ancestors who fought bravely for a Cause they believed in. Some want to keep history alive, portraying it accurately. The men are soldiers, medical, or civilians like a funeral director, sepia toned photographer, muleskinner, blacksmith, carpenter, hat-maker, the list is as long as the occupations of men in that period.

Women portray laundresses, cooks and seamstresses. One makes lace on a hand loom, another cooks soap from lye, while mothers herd their children out of the way of drilling soldiers.

It’s a love that crosses generations.

The battle spread across miles as the Union tried to gain control of the railhead. The intention was to cut the supply lines from the south. Florida was providing beef and food to the starving Rebels. The Confederates used Cavalry to decimate the Union troops.

Almost three thousand men were killed or wounded during this battle. It makes no difference any more if they were Confederate or Union, they were all patriots, Americans to the last drop of blood.

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Ancient Awakening

Buy hyperlink Ancient Awakening http://www.wildrosepress.us/maincatalog/index.php main_page=product_info&cPath=177_136&products_id=4511

 

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002TG4NFG

 

 

#Review-Seeing Red by Maggie Toussaint

Seeing Red by Maggie Toussaint

By the time Emma meets Quentin, a man she could care about, she’d convinced she’s the latest victim a family curse. Emma is determined to avoid love. She has enough problems. Her sisters won’t agree to sign over the family home so she can convert it to a Bed & Breakfast although this is her dream. Quentin is a building contractor who volunteers his time to help her after finding his sister is her best friend.

Quentin’s lost four fiancées by jumping into relationships. Meeting Emma, he’s convinced she is the one, but he’ll woo her, not rush her. He’d determined to do it right this time.

An accident at the house hurts both women. Quentin discovers it was deliberate and insists Emma stay with him until they discover the person behind the threat.

Seeing Red is a nicely woven tale with a well developed cast of characters.

I’d recommend it to my friends.

I haven’t done a lot of reviews. I can count them on one hand, but I liked Maggie Toussaint’s book and decided to start with it. I have several books on my to-be-read pile that I’m hoping to share with you.

Drop by my website for excerpts from my books.

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Robins bring Spring

The first robin of Spring has a lot of meaning in New England. The promise that warm weather is arriving adds a note of joy to their welcome.

Spring arrives

In Florida, the promise of spring is more subtle. Green creeps across the brown fields. Red Bud trees blossom with a spray of pink/lavender flowers. Pine cones make a thunking noise on the roof as they drop from the trees. Squirrels chitter like maniacs as they chase each other around and around.

This camp is on the migration paths of hundreds of different bird species. I have an Audubon book to identify them but I’m not quick enough most of the time to see all the details.

Late this afternoon, we took a soda outside and watched the sun going down.

The flutter of wings filled the air.

A thousand robins landed in the open field in front of our camper.

Did you ever see so many robins in one flock? I didn’t know they traveled like that.

This was a gem of a moment.

We watched the birds for almost an hour. One robin yanked a fat grub from the soil and ate it with relish. They poked and pulled at the ground, hunting for more grubs or insect eggs. This is nature’s way of balancing the species. If the birds don’t stop, there can be too many insects to infest the forest.

A pair of red-headed woodpeckers pecked at the bark high on a slash pine. Then they left as quickly as they had arrived.

The robins left in smaller groups. By dark not one lingered.

So we finished our drinks. It’s nice to know that all those birds will be in someone’s yard in a few days. And a child will shout, “Look, Mommy, the first robin of Spring is here!”

 

Another Love

Check out my Historical Romance: Another Love at my website.

Some promises are made to be broken.

Caught in a web of political intrigue, graft and threats to a beloved child, Meg Warren and Drew Larkin hunt the men threatening the downfall of President Cleveland and the economic fabric of America. From a poor farm to the ostentatious world of New York’s elite, they sift lies, discover trust and an attraction they cannot resist. The last thing they expect to find is a love worth more than gold.

“Quote.” – Pat Potter, award winning author calls Another Love…“A real page turner with wonderful characters and a unique plot. You can’t miss with this one.”

Review from Romantic Times Magazine **** 1/2 (four and one-half stars)

http://www.amazon.com/Another-Love-Barbara-Edwards/dp/1590888332/

 

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Who called me primitive?

Ancient Awakening

Primitive camping is a far cry from my usual fifth wheel comfort. What are you talking about, you ask? Why aren’t you working on your book? Since everything can be fodder for a writer’s grist mill, I have to share our latest adventure.

The Osceola National Forest is a quarter million acres of pine forest, swamp and undeveloped land in the Panhandle of Florida. It stretches to the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia. The forest is dotted with camping areas. Some like Ocean Pond, a lovely fishing

Sunset at Ocean Pond

lake, offer electric and water hook-ups, the others are primitive camping.

So how did I end up at West Tower as a camp host? West Tower is primitive. There is no water on the sites, no electric and certainly no sewer. There is a single seat sanitary facility (outhouse) with a sink and exterior water faucet.

After finding the host site did have these amenities, my husband volunteered and I agreed, thinking the quiet would be good for my writing.

Firefighting equipment in the Osceola National Forest

It takes about five miles of driving on graded dirt roads to reach West Tower. We’re fifteen miles from the nearest city limits. There are times when I wonder what would happen if we broke down.  No cell phones work. That should have been a hint my air card wouldn’t work on my computer. Like most people, I take the modern conveniences for granted.

So what are the duties of a host in the real wilderness? Clean the toilet. Not hard since it’s not used much. Pick up the campsites, remove trash, and empty the fire pits. It’s a little more demanding, but not overwhelming since most people are neat campers. The camp host also clears the trails. West Tower is the trail head for more than fifty miles of equestrian trails, the blue trail, The Florida Trail and the gold trail go past. There are ATV trails marked for people who enjoy riding through the forest.

We’re not here during hunting season, but the place is packed with eager hunters and their dogs. The hunters seek everything legal in its season. There’s black powder and turkey hunting, deer, and even wild hogs. These are serious hunters who butcher and eat their prey. It gives you a different perspective than shopping in a grocery store.

I’ve found West tower to be a remarkably busy place. Forestry people stop to talk about their work. Hikers pass through regularly. Backpackers are frequent campers. Horseback riders use the trails and after parking their horse trailers stop to talk.

The nights are dark, the stars so clear you want to touch them. And something howls in the late hours that sounds like a wolf.

 

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Guest Carrie James Haynes and Daughter of Deceit

Guest Carrie James Haynes discusses her book Daughter of Deceit and ghosts.

The murdered do haunt their murderers, I believe. I know that ghosts have wandered on earth. Be with me always — take any form — drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you!

EMILY BRONTE, Wuthering Heights
Do you believe in ghosts? Paranormal activity? Whether one admits it or not, ghosts fascinates us? Paranormal activity attracts us to a story, draws us in to wanting to why. Why are we drawn to the unknown?

 Ghost stories are meant to scare. Admit it- everyone loves a good ghost story. For that matter, everyone knows a good ghost story. So is it the fear and the thrill that attracts us to books with paranormal elements? Ghosts are an unexplained occurrences to most of us, but in some aspect I believe we empathize with these lost souls. Most ghosts have a tragic tale associated with them. When I was inCharlestonlast summer, I went on one of the ghost walks and was told a sad story about a mother who lost her baby. I was touched by the story of a woman who died over a hundred years ago.

 

Daughter of Deceit

Daughter of Deceit is my second book with paranormal elements within it. So does that mean I believe in ghosts? The short answer is yes. The long answer…for another time.

When I write, I never use an outline. I let the story take me. When I was writing the first draft of Daughter of Deceit, something bothered me. Something just wasn’t right. I was at the last action scene that it hit me exactly what I needed to do. I went back and revised the whole of the book.

Can spirits cross back over from the other side? Are they searching for closure? Good or malevolent? With purpose or simply lost?

Daughter of Deceit, set in Regency England, is a historical romantic suspense book with paranormal elements. It has it all. Love, mystery, ghosts…

Blurb-

Shunned fromLondonsociety for being the daughter ofEngland’s most notorious spy, Alyce Hythe desires only to clear her father’s name. But strange things have been happening causing old rumors to be whispered of mystic ghosts and demons. Only one thing is certain for Alyce…someone wants her dead.

Long has Lord Julian Casvelyn lived with guilt brought on when his brother was murdered by England’s most infamous traitor. But one eventful night has changed everything Lord Julian believed about his brother’s death. Never did he suspect the woman he has just saved from certain harm is the daughter of that man. Now Julian is caught in midst of a conspiracy and desire for that woman.

Thrown together by fate, the two search for answers long denied them and along the way discover a love that can free them both.

Visit Carrie James Haynes’ blog- Castles in the Air

http://carriejameshaynes.blogspot.com/

Daughter of Deceit

http://www.amazon.com/Daughter-of-Deceit-ebook/dp/B0072UNDH8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1328008797&sr=8-2

 

Writing on the road

After sending an update on my writing this week to a loop, a friend seemed surprised that I write

Living the good life

when traveling. This is a no-brainer for me. I wrote half of Ancient Awakening while visiting the Battle of Olustee, in Florida. My husband loves to travel and has been known to take to the road at the drop of a hat. if I wanted to be with him, I had to learn to adjust.

I am a writer. It isn’t a hobby. I have no choice about putting those whirling ideas and thoughts onto paper. I can turn into a beast, chewing on my own leg, if deprived.
To save my sanity, I learned to arrange my surroundings to allow me to indulge.
For days when the road is long and winding, I have an alphasmart to write on. I can blockout the country music or talk-show hosts as I dive into my plot. This is also a handy tool for when I want to sit outside and take in the sun or the beach.

Reason to head South

Inside the fifth-wheel, I have a corner with a tiny table, a comfortable chair and my lap-top. I can’t say its easy to adjust, but I have a burning need to finish my latest manuscript. It won’t wait until a good time or a better place.

So I ask my husband if he needs anything at the store or if the dog need to take a walk. He can find something to keep him occupied for a few hours and I can write.

It comes down to that old question: do you write even when you’re not in the mood?
In my case, that’s a resounding YES!!!

Paranormal romance

Read excerpts from my books at my website.
Author Website: http://barbaraedwards.net
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Guest Black Rose

I’m a guest on The Black Rose today http://twrpblackrose.blogspot.com/ Read excerpts from my Paranormal Romances at The WildRose Press