Her Dollmaker’s Desire
By Gina Wynn
A Beyond Fairy Tales story
Length: approx. 65K
Heat: 3 ish
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Coming 4th September from Decadent
Publishing
Blurb:
Rule number
123: Once upon a time is for fairy tales, not for broken ex dancers who live at
home with Daddy and a textbook evil stepmother, and who only manage to get
through life by counting every single step.
Amy knows her rules inside out…who to spend time with,
what to eat, what to drink and what to do - until danger shows up in a leather
jacket on a shiny chrome motorbike. Suddenly, breaking the rules seems to be
all she can manage no matter how hard she tries, and her rigid control starts
to slip.
Peder’s violent past has shaped him into the man he
is, much the way he has learned to shape dolls with the help of his
grandfather. He used to have only one rule in his life, courtesy of his absent
brother and their shared gang past. When Amy is sent to write an article on his
grandfather and his history of doll making for a paper her father’s company
owns, she captures Peder’s interest and his heart. After his brother makes an
ill-timed return and issues an instruction that threatens his future with Amy,
Peder becomes trapped in a fresh web of lies and family ties. He must decide if
he should start breaking the rules he didn’t know he lived by to take a chance
on a future with Amy while knowing he could still lose her if she finds out.
Is Amy brave enough to put her faith in Peder, and can
he overcome his past and convince Amy to follow their destiny, rather than her
rules?
Excerpt:
Lost in her thoughts of the past, Amy reached to grasp
the ballet dancer’s tiny form.
“I’ve brought the cake, if you want to come and sit
with us for your cup of tea?” A new male voice, deep and confident, startled
her.
She jumped and straightened, coming nose to nose with
the unhinged grin and vacant leer of a circus clown.
A gasp tore from her lips. “Oh, my God.” She backed
into something warm and solid, and shrieked before spinning round.
“Sorry. Sorry…it’s just me.” The man’s eyes, rich with
the colours of wild woodland moss, held an unexpected glint of danger. She
shivered as an electric jolt shot straight through her when she met that green
gaze. It glimmered with mischief and laughter, and he didn’t look quite as
sorry as he should have.
Reflex led to her almost leaning into his strong grip
as he reached out to steady her. Almost. She tugged her arm away and held out
her hand.
“Pleased to meet you.” Superficial manners and years
of rules kicked in, and she averted her gaze from the man who hadn’t introduced
himself, and especially from his dangerous eyes. Her heart continued to race
over her close encounter with the clown…yet the warmth in her arm lingered
where the man had wrapped his strong fingers around her.
“Quite,” came his polite reply, and the obvious
disinterest in his tone echoed through her, but what had she expected? Rule Number 15: Know your place, always.
She sneaked a quick look at him, and his very
attractive lips upturned in an amused smile. One she almost returned, while
wishing he’d speak more words once she could hear him over the rushing of blood
in her ears.
His voice melted her, creating sparks and exploring
long-forgotten depths of attraction. It made promises for ways they should
spend time together he couldn’t even be aware of, and she wanted him to talk
forever. She took an uncertain step away. Space seemed necessary…safe.
Tweets:
To come later. J With buy links.
Guest
Blogs (Choose one to suit your blog, or ask me
to write a custom post.):
1. My writing Process
It’s a little too much to label the crazy way I cram short
sections of writing into my day as a ‘process’, but, essentially, I write
stories by theft. I steal time from being an active parent, or an attentive
wife…but mostly from doing my housework. Unless I’m procrastinating. Then my
house is a shining example worthy of Stepford, my children sparkle and are
fully entertained, and my husband experiences the contentment of a full stomach
and being able to find the remote control.
I usually set out with a germ of an idea. A niggle of a
thought gleaned from a sound, an image, a random thought or a snippet of
conversation. For example, while I sat with my daughter in the still of her
bedroom the other night, I heard a strange high pitched whining outside…what if
that sound signaled the end of the world? Or, my husband drove me through the
centre of Birmingham, and I looked out between two tall tower blocks. What if a
dragon came swooping between those right now? I have no idea if normal brains
work this way. I can claim a lot of things, but normal has never been one of
them. :-D
I’m a definite ‘pantser’ for the start of the ride. I take
that tiny idea and let it take me as far as it can. Then, I might need to work
back into the beginning to get a solid idea for the next bit, or take a walk.
Even washing up works—it’s amazing how many ideas spring to mind when I can’t
grab a pen to write them down. As I near the end, I might grab a notebook and
pen (I have a collection, but mostly look at them and buy more, rather than use
them) to write down remaining scenes and check everything ties up as it should.
My second go through is generally for “weaving”. I weave bits of plots that
occurred to me later into the start, I pick up dropped strands and continue
them to the end. That is usually the bit I like most. Rounding out the story
and making the characters real. By the end of the book, I know them much better
than at the start, so I can usually add to them.
I always write bones the first time around. Always. So I
usually have to add my showing, and my nuances after I’ve committed the story
to paper, even if I do it stages where I write a section, then revise it. My
writing also takes a fairly long time. I know people who can sneeze them out…and
I feel appropriate envy for that skill. But, in comparison terms, my stories
are more like hacking up a loogie. Sorry about that.
Where
to find Gina:
Website/Blog: http://www.ginawriteswords.com
Twitter @Gina_Wynn
Pinterest: Her
Dollmaker’s Desire https://www.pinterest.com/ginawriteswords/her-dollmakers-desire-inspiration-board/
About
the Author:
Gina has fly-away
hair that has always done its own thing, doesn’t feel as old as she looks, owns
three children (aged 2, 5 and 7) who can’t be tamed, and writes in spare –
stolen – time. ‘Her Dollmaker’s Desire’, published by Decadent Publishing, is
her debut book, but she is brimming with further ideas and is willing to invest
money in the first person who is able to add extra hours to a day.
She has a second
book, ‘Her Undercover Christmas’ contracted with Decadent Publishing, and ‘What
You Wish For’ contracted with Three Worlds Press and due for release September
2015.
Her love of the written word extends to owning a To Be
Read pile that is probably longer than the rest of her natural life (more
investment available for anyone who perfects anti-aging, then) and editing for
a small press, as well as co-hosting a free promotion website for writers and
their books at http://alwayswrite.club
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for commenting!