Short Stories – Page 2

Music Monday: Siúil a Rúin (Ella Roberts)

PUBLISHED TO YOUTUBE BY ELLA ROBERTS ON FEBRUARY 25, 2020.

“Siúil a Rún” is a traditional Irish song, sung from the point of view of a woman lamenting a lover who has embarked on a military career, and indicating her willingness to support him. The song has English language verses and an Irish language chorus, a style known as macaronic. (source: Wikipedia)

The same Wikipedia article later said that some say the lover in this song was given a choice to either choose a military career or permanent exile, and he chose exile.

No matter what the reason, this song is about separated lovers and is a beautiful (though sad) piece of music.

I have chosen to pair this song with a story that might be very familiar to you if you read my Sweet Tuesday stories or read this story as a Thursday’s Three Hundred when I first began doing those stories.

In “Hope at Dawn”, the hero (Nicholas) and heroine (Kathleen) have been separated for a year. His suit was refused by her father and brother, and she was taken to Ireland, along with the match her father hoped she would settle on, while the hero remained behind in England.

I would imagine Kathleen’s heart cry during her separation from Nicholas sounded something like this song — beautiful and sad. However, Kathleen and Nicholas’s story does not remain sad — I write happily ever afters, you know. 😉

Hope at Dawn, Ch. 1

Hope at Dawn is one of four novelettes included in my *First Blooms and Second Chances* anthology.

As the sun slipped below the horizon, leaving its fiery glow resting upon the gently rolling black waters, Nicholas Sidemore spotted the boat for which he had been waiting, bobbing just on the edge of the sea ─ where the water dropped away and could be seen no longer. His heart raced at the sight of her, and he swallowed the fear that rose inside him as the vessel drew closer. It would not be long now ─ a few hours or perhaps a day ─ until he knew his fate.

Using the glow of his lantern to light the way, he carefully picked his way around the rocks lining the shore. Choosing a large one with a smooth top, he sat down. From this vantage point, he could easily see the entrance to the harbour and past it to the sea beyond.

The Saturday Broadsheet: Announcing the Arrival of Cherishing Kitty

Can you believe it is already May? In some ways, time seems to be clicking along really quickly for me, and in other ways, it is dragging its feet. Personally, I am looking forward to the warmer temperatures and new life that May brings to my part of the world, and I am hopeful that soon, we will all be allowed to go out and enjoy the loveliness that is May by taking drives and visiting parks and beaches.

Writing News

There’s not much to say here this week, although I think what I have to say is pretty exciting.

I put all my writing projects on pause except for Matching Mr. Darcy because I knew I was close to the end of that story, and I wanted to get it finished. I have. Matching Mr. Darcy is complete and is now in line behind His Irreplaceable Belle, waiting to be reread and then sent on through the getting-ready-for-publication process.

Since Cherishing Kitty has been published, I plan to begin working on rereading His Irreplaceable Belle this coming week. (I’d like to have it ready to publish by the end of the month.)

Publishing News

Cherishing Kitty

is now available for purchase in ebook and print.

Thank you to those who pre-ordered and have already purchased this book.

Purchase Cherishing Kitty at your favourite retailer

Book Promotions

These two books will become exclusively available on Amazon on May 11, 2020. To highlight this move, I have put these books on sale.

There are seven novelettes between the two books. Thunder, Mist, and Frost contains three Austen-inspired novelettes while First Blooms and Second Chances contains four sweet Regency novelettes.

You can find out more about these books and links for were they are available to purchase by visiting the landing page at this link.

Book Review

This review is for First Blooms and Second Chances.

Thank you, f4ewso45, for reading and reviewing both First Blooms and Second Chances and Thunder, Mist, and Frost. I’m pleased to know you enjoyed them both.

I really like that last line about the stories being engaging and using an economy of words. 🙂

Kindle Unlimited Changes in May

A Dash of Darcy and Companions Cottage Collection 2 will be leaving Kindle Unlimited on May 13, 2020. The following books will be moving to Kindle Unlimited. See my Books Currently in KU page on my blog for links to all the books currently available to read with your KU subscription.

Something Extra

I thought I would share a video with you this week. As you can see from the image below. I shared it on Tuesday on my Facebook page. There is information both about food and an interesting Georgian Era character in the video. The video is about 23 minutes long.

Have a good weekend! Be safe and well. I’ll see you on Monday.

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Pride and Prejudice Ch. 15 Illustration (C.E. Brock)

Pride and Prejudice Chapter 15 Illustration by C.E. Brock (public domain) via Wikimedia Commons

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An officer stood near the youngest Bennet sisters, while two other gentlemen stood on either side of Miss Elizabeth. The first was dressed in the dark garb of a parson and the second–Darcy clenched his jaw to keep from speaking.

[from Two Days in November, A Pride and Prejudice Inspired Short Story]

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Two Days in November can be found in Teatime Tales.

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A Meeting by the Stile (Heywood Hardy)

This attitude in this picture is a brighter than the one in the first part of Two Days in November, but the title was perfect. :) This painting also has too many sisters in it because there are two, not three, sisters in my story and only one of those sisters is sitting at the stile when Darcy comes upon her during his morning ride.

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She hoped he would exchange a few more pleasantries and be on his way, but he stopped, swung down from his horse, and came to stand across the stile from her. “Please, be seated. I do not wish to take you from your repose. Might I join you for a few moments?”

[from Two Days in November, A Pride and Prejudice Inspired Short Story]

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Charles: To Discover His Purpose is FREE in the Kindle store until tomorrow.

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Engraving from La Belle Assemblée, February 1, 1817

The couple in the two lines below are not in the ballroom where the assembled masses are dancing, but rather tucked away in a music room where they can have a private conversation. This story, A Music Room Meeting, is one of six short Austen-inspired stories that comprise the book Teatime Tales, which is one of the books given as a welcome gift to those who join my mailing list. (It is also available for purchase so look for it at your favourite ebook retailer.)

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She moved to stand near him. “Is this why you play instead of dancing?”

He closed his eyes. “How can I dance when others cannot?”

[from A Music Room Meeting, An Oxford Cottage Inspired Short Story]

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