This book of poetry is luscious, rich with words and resplendent with photographs.It inspired me to draw.
Sister Songs
This was the first poem that I remembered when I finished reading the book. It’s not long, and Merril was kind enough to send us a recording of her reciting it. So, let’s listen to it, instead of reading it!
I sent a few photos of the drawing, to Merril. Photos of art are difficult to take. They never look exactly like they do in real life, they change with the light.
Merril – It’s gorgeous in any light! Thank you so much!
Merril -One thing–that you could not possibly know–for me, the poem has three figures. That’s just me, and of course, you wouldn’t know that. [My younger sister, my niece who is like my sister, and I spent a lot of time caring for and coordinating the care for my mom.]
Resa – That’s …. beautiful. Your mom was so loved.
Time – Passing, Cycling, Enduring
This next drawing is representative of many poems in the book. Merril depicts time through nature; its seasons changing, dying and renewal, family generations, birds, waves, clouds, storms coming… going.
In this regard, she speaks much of the beauty of life. To depict that, I have drawn a beautiful woman, in an earthy gown. The gown turns into an upside down tree. Its branches depict the changing seasons, time.
Question for everyone! I’d love to see some answers in comments.
Spontaneously – What is the colour that comes to your mind when I say TIME?
Think more about it! – Now what colours do you see?
Merril – Well, you’d probably guess that I said blue.
Resa – Yes…I did figure blue!
Merril – Then I see blue–various shades, ombre kind of thing– then darkening with shimmery stars and pops of red and yellow–like space. Like a movie of space.
Resa – I asked a good friend. He said blue. Then, a few moments later he blurted out, green. Later he said he saw time as a sandy colour… not quite gold, but earthy.
Merril – I get what he said, too. I like that his changes, too, because time moves.
Clasped and Cradled
(inspired by “French Lavender Head,” an art piece by Karen Pierce Gonzalez)
In her hands-jolts of electric blue-- The incense of ocean and earth, lavender and brine, seaweed and peat. A pop of red chilies, some saffron, spring greens, roses-- this is my world, she thinks, clutches it tighter.
Resa – To me, a fascination lies in “art inspiring art”. In the case of “French Lavender Head”, the art inspired a poem, then the poem inspired art. It’s cycling:Art to poetry to art.
Merril – I like the idea of circling inspiration–art to poetry to art. Isn’t that the way? We’re all inspired by what we see, hear, smell, taste, read about. . .and then each individual interprets these things, that then get reinterpreted, and on and on.
Stormy Spirit Conundrum
The first image I drew was this flying woman against an unknown mystery background. It’s inspired by a feel in the book, and of specific lines, but not any 1 poem.
but my ancestors spread wings that covered centuries to catch me, guide me,
You can, they said, as they showed me that I have my own wings- unfold them, fly. This, too, is part of the pattern.
I took the shot on a cloudy day and closed the aperture to get a mystery feel.
Crushed beneath an un-mooned sky black shapes drift inside of grey
who finally see the shadows like storm clouds-and the bitter rain, a tidal surge,
Then I thought, but it’s too dark. People will get the wrong impression. After all, there’s lots of light in this book.
There are days I want to remember I-we- are made of starry specks, stellar dust, and feel the light we carry within.
So, I opened the aperture on a sunny day, and took more pics. Nothing seemed like “stellar dust”, so I did editing until:
Then I thought, “that’s not it either.” Having taken shots in different light, then editing all the different shots… I ended up with a couple dozen different versions of the same drawing.
Then I realized why I couldn’t get a grip! Time slips through our fingers. Only time can hold time, within its folds.
CHANGING SPIRIT OF FLYING WOMAN SLIDESHOW
Psychedelic Spirit
Blue Spirit
Periwinkle spirit
Sun Spirit
Iced Spirit
Warm Spirit
In the Mood Spirit
Natural Spirit
Dark Spirit
Time moves on, and things keep changing, changing, changing…. That is why my flying woman kept changing. She’s flowing with the spirit of this book.
About Merril D. Smith
To learn more about this amazing writer & poet, just click on her pic below and go to her website.
The plan was to read an advance copy of Detour on the Eternal Road, do some drawings of Sam and do a pre-release promo post. Well,I “took a wrong turn in Albuquerque“, hit a detour and missed the print release.
So the road trip, of a post lifetime, passes through Albuquerque? Well, no, but it does pass through 1881!
Resa – John, Detour on the Eternal Roadis set in the past, present and possible future of earth’s history and in the possible eternality of existence. You animate eternity’s goings on with non-haloed, wingless angels helping to guide souls to their eternal home. The adventures are informative, but mostly harrowing. Yet, through “it all”*, the message remains uprightly positive. I’m not talking about the ending, per se, but the body of your story. Is this purposeful, or unconscious?
John – I have always carried a positive attitude regarding life. It is no surprise to me that this comes through in my writing even in the most dire of circumstances. You mention the ending which I don’t want to spoil for folks is an example of this positivity. It does rain a question about how much responsibility each of us has to take for the existence of evil on this Earth.
Hello! I’m Sam. When not on the road guiding souls to their eternal home, I’m at home on my cloud.
CLOUD WEAR is a custom wardrobe designed especially for me by Resa, who at this point remains earthbound.
Resa – Do you, or did you ever have a crush on Sam?
John – Sam is an agglomeration of every woman for whom I have had the honor of having feelings. Of course, I love her.
PRESENTING – CLOUD WEAR
1. Windy Day (sun dial on wrist) - 2. Grecian Ode - 3. Rock'n'Roll Angel - 4. Fortune Teller - 5. Dream Away - 6. Honey7. Surprise! (all blue beads and earrings made from dew and raindrops)
Resa – Without preaching any religion, you metaphorize good and bad/evil with god and the devil. In the story our protagonists, Sam and James angels, are presented moral dilemmas. What say you to the idea that I think you are speaking to man’s “better angels”?
John – I think you have figured out the fact that I believe there are angels that walk among us. I also believe we all have inside of us the ability to behave as if we have been anointed with title ‘angel.’ On the corresponding side we all can be perfect devils at times. The control of the dominate characteristic is left up to how we were raised and our perception of what constitutes goodness.
Resa – So John, this is the third book in the Eternal Road series. I’ve read the first two and this one seems, in its fictional light, more politically predictive than the other books. It seems a pejorative on the future, on behalf of mankind’s progeny. Can you speak to that?
John – Since my books are written in the present tense it might appear as if there is a perjoritive view as the reader moves through the action. Quite the contrary the story attempts to provide human kind with a tool that can be used to continue the species forever. Yes we have to look at nuclear war as a possibility, but the essence of the story which is repeated is that all mayhem is preventable.
The one pejorative view that I will raise my hand to is the increasing dependence the average person has on Government. I believe in the government being representative of the people and not an entity that exists for itself.
“Lincoln’s Bedroom” in the White House.
What does this have to do withDetour on the Eternal Road? We go to the White House?
Yes, but which wing and what rooms ?
Below – A Made to Scale Replica of the East Wing
The replica is 60 feet long & 20 feet wide. The Artists, Historian John Zweifel and his wife Jan, took 25 years to complete it. It includes all furnishings. The clocks tick, flags wave, phone rings and TV’s work.
Looks fab when you enlarge it!
On Its 200th Birthday in 1992 –This to scale replica of the East Wing of the White House was presented in a special issue of LIFE magazine.
1 - First Lady's Dressing Room 2 - President's Bedroom 3 - Family Sitting Room 4 - Yellow Oval Room 5- Treaty Room 6 - Lincoln Bedroom 7 - Lincoln Sitting Room 8 - State Dining Room 9 - Red Room 10 - Blue Room 11. Green Room 12 - East Room 13- Library 14 - Map Room 15 - Diplomatic Reception Room 16 - China Room 17 - Vermeil Room
On the Left: Legend to all 17 rooms in the East Wing
I think you can enjoy this book without reading its predecessors. However, certain questions will come up, such as this question I asked John after I read the first book.
Resa – “Eyes are mentioned on almost every page, mostly due to travelling, but I could not find the colour of Sam’s eyes. I also searched brown, blue, hair…no luck. Thing is, I was thinking of drawing Sam as an angel, maybe no wings. This way I could do a gown.”
John – “You are not crazy. You won’t find a color of Sam’s eyes since I very seldom describe the characters in terms of physical attributes. My reason for doing this is I would rather the reader form an image in their mind of what the characters look like. So you can make her eye color whatever pleases you. She is more your character than mine since you invested your time reading the book. “
So, if you are thinking of jumping straight to book 3, you might want to read a few of the Amazon reviews on the first 2: Eternal Road &The Last Drive.OR read my Out-of-the box reviews.
“Multi-genre author Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene presents her most mysterious, magical creation – the steampunk riverboat filled with enigmatic people and clockwork creatures.”
The cover Teagan designed is every bit as charming as the unbridled whimsy behind it.
A Gift of Steampunk Gowns
When I told Teagan I was making the post an Art Gowns special feature because of the glorious steampunk gowns, she created 4 original gown designs for the post! I am so excited.
FIRST - ALL ABOARD THE DELTA PEARL
In the early days of following Teagan’s blog, I participated in Teagan’s ‘Three Things” that readers suggest that helped drive her blog serials.
Resa – I can only remember leech barometer (pedestrian name). Do you have a list of what I contributed?
Teagan – I kept a matrix of the random reader things. Yours were: flat iron, Gibson Girl hairdo, Pince-nez, Tempest Prognosticator, brooch, crochet hook, rum, and jet (as in the gem or beads).
The Gibson Girl hairdo helped inspire the “look” of the character Eliza Needleman. Jet, I used to name the character of the apprentice librarian. Pince-nez exposed a bit of vanity for the secretly nearsighted chief porter, Garnet Redford when Eliza loaned him her pair to see something in the workings of her music box.
Emeraude on deck at night
I’m honoured to say I was gifted ebook copies of “The Illustrated Delta Pearl”. Unfortunately you can’t buy one. This is a tad sad, as Teagan’s images are magnificent.
Resa – So Teagan, why can’t others buy the illustrated versions of The Delta Pearl and The Geostrophic Pearl?
Teagan – I had almost finished the illustrated version where I made a gigantic number of images — when Amazon made a change to their policy regarding internal book images which didn’t allow mine. I didn’t want six months of work to go to waste. So, I gifted illustrated copies to a handful of people.
I felt like a kid reading the books. I could hardly wait for the next chapter’s picture.
Captain Cecil Perlog with Onyx Owl
Resa – How long … months … weeks did the serial run on your blog?
Teagan – I started writing (and “finished”) The Delta Pearl in 2016. However, I wasn’t satisfied with my work. Feeling the story needed a “middle,” I put it on my blog as a serial, getting 3 random reader things from followers, which inspired new content. To my delight, the story was warmly embraced. It seemed the “end” was really just the middle of the story, and serial episodes went on from there. The Delta Pearl was my longest running blog serial at about two years.
Resa – How long did it take to put The Delta Pearl & Geostrophic Pearl into book form?
Teagan – Hummm… I had several stops and starts, mostly with deciding how I wanted to format it. The serial episodes also had to be edited to adjust for “bookizing.” After it was finished, I decided to illustrate it, and that took another six months. Then of course, I had to start over again when Amazon changed their images policy. All in all, it took a couple of years.
Emeraude falling from height
Resa – What made you decide to create a duology?
Teagan – Several things 1) I’ve gotten a lot of great feedback about writing shorter length books, like the light-horror 1920s series “A Medium’s Peril.” (By the way, I plan to have a new novelette in that series ready for Halloween.)
2) The Delta Pearl was becoming a large manuscript when I started illustrating it, and my admittedly old computer was bogging down due to the manuscript size.
3) I could feel a distinct transition point in The Delta Pearl story-line when I started to reveal more about the riverboat. With those things in mind, I decided that it would be best as a duology (even though the manuscript became smaller when I had to remove the illustrations).
Victor and Emeraude ashore
Resa – Your visions of Steampunk are vivid, exciting and appealing, It is a sub culture even today. I’ll bet those involved in today’s steampunk would go wild over your images.
Teagan – You are so kind, Resa. Thanks, that means a lot to me. My take on steampunk is not really typical. It often has a dark, even sooty aesthetic, reflective of the coal-burning that created the steam-powered gizmos. The Delta Pearl is bright, whimsical, and opulent. I hope I managed to give the words the same feelings you got from the images, since they are not in the published version.
Resa – The words work beautifully!
Airship Geostrophic Pearl controls
Resa – What drew you into Steampunk?
Teagan – In steampunk and diesel-punk you’ll usually find odd contraptions, and misfit characters. I have always loved both, so I couldn’t resist
Jaspe -elegant Victorian man with a black cat
Resa – Okay, Jaspe is a heart throb, and you did great with his character. I think most females would fall for him. He loves cats. I should be head over heels.
Teagan – I think you might be right, Resa. LOL. I kept Jaspe an enigma throughout the story. I don’t want to fully define him even now, because that makes him more interesting, and it lets the individual reader have their way about precisely who or maybe even what the Dealer actually is. Whatever the case, Jaspe has a loving and loyal soul. Giving him a cat helped anchor that idea.
Victor
Resa – However, I developed a crush on Victor. What do you say to that?
Teagan – LOL. Victor is flattered, Resa. I was fond of so many of these characters. Most of them had little flaws, and that made me feel like a parent to all of them. Although, I have definitely had crushes on some of my characters! Especially Tajín in “Dead of Winter.” (Fans self) Ha-ave mercy!
Resa – Yes! “Ha-ave mercy! (Turns up air conditioning) I read 3 instalments, and I know who that is.
Glorious Steampunk Gowns by Teagan
It’s time to say good-bye. Think I’ll take the Steampunk Speedboat to shore.
Naptha launch steampunk speedboat
About Teagan
Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene’s stories range from paranormal to high fantasy and urban fantasy, to whimsical versions of the various types of “punk,” to mysteries with historic settings… and anything else that strikes her fancy.
AND there is much more. To read ” Who is Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene” just click on the above image of Teagan and Onyx Owl!
Click on above pic of Emeraude annoyed by Obsidian to read a description and logline of the books
To buy The Delta Pearl Duology on Amazon, click on the books above!
With Hallowe’en coming up, A Medium’s Peril could be just what you’re looking for!
Is free will a reality, or a figment of our imaginations?
Diana says it’s “nefarious”. I agree! The masses are unconsciously being influenced by a powerful few, in “Catling’s Bane”.
Resa – “Influencers”- Did you make that up when you wrote the book? It’s a huge internet term now.
Diana – I used the term “influencers” in my book before it became so strongly identified with the internet. Sigh. If I were writing the story today, I would have found a different word.
I suppose my influencers are similar to internet influencers, except in my story the victims of influence don’t have a choice about their emotions being swayed. In both cases, the purpose of influence is to make someone feel a certain way and do what you want them to do.
Resa – I figured you came up with “influencers” before the term became a big deal. I can understand it ticks you off that it has become such an over used term, but in my mind it makes you somewhat prophetic. That is very cool.
Diana – Oh, the tattoo is gorgeous, and I love the photo with the slanted sunlight through your window. How artsy and gorgeous.
Resa – Yay! I believe it is correct to say no Luminescence tattoos means no power of Influence?
Diana – Yes, that’s correct, mostly. Tattooing is how luminescence enters the bodies of the influencers. and the tattoos are designed to precisely measure and inject the different colors/powers.
But that’s not the only way luminescence can enter a body. Catling’s initial strange power to block influence enters when her mother attempts to scrape the birthmark off her face and her pain is smoothed with river water. Raker gains his version of influence when an enforcer gouges out his eye and he falls in the river.
Resa – I drew Catling’s face at puberty, just before Vianne begins the transformation. She would still be living with Whitt and the family. I made her hair free, somewhat unkempt feeling.
Diana- It’s perfect! That’s just how I saw her, hair and all. I always saw her as a wispy little girl, and you captured that impression well. And fabulous job on the eye. A birthmark that looks like a rose (sort of) is a tough draw.
Because of her eye, I was never able to find a good image of her when I was writing. So she stayed mostly in my head. I like those pretty fairy lips. It’s lovely to see her come to life.
Resa – Catling has begun studying under Vianne. She is about 13 1/2. Taking bits from the book, this drawing happened. A pink jacket is mentioned earlier, boots later on. She is all prim and proper, pearl buttons and tatted lace on a white blouse.
However, some tendrils have escaped her braid, which is spread on top of her head. There is an incident with Kadan bullying Catling. Vianne comments on Catling looking disheveled.
Resa – This one is just before the tattooing. She is 15 going on 16. I grew her up. She’s been through a lot.
A red flared waist jacket is scripted around that time. Red is a good grow up from pink. This is just before her head gets shaved. Here she has taken her braid down. I wanted to show the passing of time by how much her locks had grown.
Diana -The drawings are wonderful. And I can see how you “grew Catling up.” I love the choices – the pink and red, and the braid up earlier and down later. It’s super fun to see how you interpret the character and her appearance (like a costume designer for a show!).
A major player in this book is Vianne. She is one of the most important “influencers”.
Resa – I drew Vianne’s face to start. For some reason I thought she was in her mid-late 30’s? Beautiful, but angular, sharp features, thin eyebrows are pretty, but unfriendly. She’s overly well kept, like her secrets.
Diana – Oh, Resa, that’s beautiful. Her face is just how I picture her, and her focused expression is perfect. She’s beautiful and meticulous about her appearance, but so driven by her purpose that beauty is more about power and status than femininity. Does that make sense? And you’re right – she’s around mid-thirties.
Resa – I keep seeing Vianne in longer skirts, regal, imposing. Her outfits are trimmed in her tatting.
Diana – Yes, she would be wearing her lace, and she’s very elegant and regal in bearing.
Lounging around her apartment
Resa – Why did you choose whites & pearls for Vianne’s palette?. I saw icy blue under her jacket mentioned, but it only serves to accentuate the whites.
Diana – Vianne wears a lot of white and off-white. Colors are important in this story, and Vianne prefers white for its purity and neutrality. Though she does terrible things (like torture), she believes her motivations are selfless and pure. The ends justify the means with Vianne right up to her end later in the series.
Evening attire
Resa – Could she have any Farlander blood in her ancestry?
Diana – No, she wouldn’t. The inhabitants of the cities are human, the descendants of colonists who came to this planet so long ago that they’ve forgotten most of their history, replacing it with a myth about the founders.
The original people of the planet, the Farlanders, are still around – relegated to the swamps and the far north. They are humanoid but taller and longer-limbed, and they have patterns of green spots on their skin related to the luminescence.
Business attire
There is a Princess, Lelaine, in the story. Introduced late in this first book of “The Rose Shield” series, not much is known. She is 17, and from what I took away has some royal smarts.
Resa – I began with an at home daytime outfit.
Diana- That’s perfect for Lelaine, Resa. I always pictured her as a fairytale princess without the fairytale life. It’s quite a tragic tale in the end. You captured her beauty, youth, and worldly poise.
Resa – Here’s Lelaine in a horse riding outfit. In the book, the king is in a blue robe, so I’ve made blue the royal colour.
Diana – And Lelaine in her riding attire is perfect. I’m looking forward to seeing her in her formal gown.
Resa – Here’s her all out princess ball gown.
Diana- And Lelaine looks like the princess she is, so … perfect!
As they are a key to the power, I’m most curious about the tattoos of the “Influencers”, and want to know more.
Resa – Are the tattoos are luminescent?
Diana – Oooh, good question. Though the colors used to create the Influencer tattoos are distilled from the world’s bioluminescence, I never pictured the tattoos as glowing. That said, they aren’t the flat colors of modern-day ink, and they don’t fade or become muted over time. I see them as quite vibrant.
Resa – Knives, needles and mallets are used to carve and etch the skin? Are the mallets for driving in the needles? Or is the mallet for pounding to soften lines?
Diana – Yes. I did some research into ancient/primitive tattoo methods, which are still in use in many parts of the world today. Knives, needles, and mallets are all part of the process. Aside from the pain of the cuts and punctures, she has to deal with the emotional impact of each color of luminescence.
The mallets are used for driving in multiple needles at a time. In these cases, the needles are set into various sizes of wooden blocks or paddles, sort of like a wire scrub brush. With one whack of the mallet, multiple needles penetrate the skin. It’s a lot faster than one stab at a time.
Resa – The colours are absorbed into the cuts and etchings by the coloured luminescent baths? (A sort of tie dye type of tattooing?)
Diana – Yes, exactly. One color is absorbed at a time and in a specific sequence.
Resa – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Violet are the colours of the luminescence. These are the colours of the spectrum, minus indigo. Did you do this on purpose?
Diana – Well, I wanted to limit the colors to six! One had to go, and indigo was nixed. The six remaining colors represent the six motivators that in various combinations account for human behaviour: Love, fear, pain, pleasure, death, and life. So yes, in a way this was purposeful.
The tattoos are beautiful and fanciful, but they needn’t be. The design is based on the artistry of the needler. Since each color represents a base emotion and is part of the world’s power system, they’re distinct/separate when applied to an influencer’s body. When the tattoos are healed, the influencer can use each color/emotion individually to bend another person’s emotions, or they can blend them to get a unique emotional response. Blending is part of the influencer’s training, and Catling will learn those skills in Book 2.
Resa -“Woad” … Am I right in thinking you use this word for “Tattoo”?
Diana – Woad, the way I use it, is more based on the fantasy (quasi-Celtic) tradition of painting, drawing (or tattooing, in this case) magical symbols. Woads might be symbolic, but more often they were thought to carry a magical property, offering the wearer protection or making them indomitable in battle, or a woad painted on a door might prevent evil spirits from entering. Woads in Celtic tradition were indigo, but I used it more generically to mean a magical symbol. In Catling’s Bane, not all of the tattoos are symbols. Catling’s garden is simply a beautiful design. But the tattoos on the men may be more geometrical and may include woads aligned with the colors the symbol represents.
Resa – Why does Catling’s head have to be shaved when getting poisoned/tattooed? The design is described as part of her back, and falling over her shoulder. There is no mention of the tattoos going onto her scalp.
Diana – What a great question! I always saw Markum as the artist behind the tattoo designs. His canvas is the influencer’s skin, and he proceeds with his vision regardless of any suggestions he might receive. In fact, he may do the opposite of any request, just because he can! I imagined Catling’s tattoos might extend onto her scalp, but I may not have written that. Markum likely would have wanted the option – thus the shaved head.
Resa – Will her hair grow back for the next book?
Diana – Yes, it will. Once the influencers have their tattoos, they’re good to go.
Resa – Did Vianne pick the floral design? Or is it pre-prescribed?
Diana – I imagined that most of the female influencers received some version of flowers, but they wouldn’t have been free to pick the design.
Resa – Catling gets many tattoos at once, to get her caught up. Normally, at what age would a chosen child begin getting tattoos and training?
Diana – I didn’t specify a particular age, but it would coincide with training, so perhaps the first would occur around age 14. Normally, the colors would be added one at a time, with a break in between treatments to heal and recover from the trauma. Catling is forced to endure the whole thing at once for political reasons – the influencers want her oath of loyalty before she reports to Lelaine and begins blocking their control.
Resa – At the beginning of the story we observe Influence being used in an evil way. Later, we seem to learn that it can be used for good. Is it ever used for true honest good in any of the 4 books?
Diana – What a great question! Oh, all the blurry lines in this one. Influence is part of life. In our real world, we attempt to influence each other all the time. With money, sales pitches, beauty, logic, facts and lies, book covers and blurbs, gaslighting, rebates, and yes, emotion! That one is a big one. If you change how someone feels about something, you can influence them to buy a car, move to France, adopt a puppy, or get married! Emotion, emotion, emotion. Are those good or bad choices? Depends. In the book, influence is used primarily to control others. Sometimes that control is applied selfishly, but other times it’s applied for a higher good – like the good of the nation or to save someone’s life. I tried to add a lot of moral ambiguity and motivational complexity because that’s how people make choices. The difference in Catling’s Bane is that those on the receiving end of influence don’t have a choice about it.
Resa – I see 4 books in this “Rose Shield” series. Is the series done now?
Diana – Yes, the series is done. Phew.
Resa – I’m thinking I’m going to read them all, eventually, in my turtle reading way!
Diana – Thanks so much for the fun, and the beautiful work Resa! What an honor and a treat to see my characters come to life. Hugs. ♥️♥️♥️
Resa- Welcome Diana, and it’s fun for me, too! Hugs back to you.♥️♥️♥️
A long-time reader, best-selling author D. Wallace Peach started writing later in life after the kids were grown and a move left her with hours to fill. Years of working in business surrendered to a full-time indulgence in the imaginative world of books, and when she started writing, she was instantly hooked.
In addition to fantasy books, Peach’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. She’s an avid supporter of the arts in her local community, organizing and publishing annual anthologies of Oregon prose, poetry, and photography.
Peach lives in a log cabin amongst the tall evergreens and emerald moss of Oregon’s rainforest with her husband, two owls, a horde of bats, and the occasional family of coyotes.
The sequel to “Eternal Road” once again has Sam and James traveling through time in a 1956 Oldsmobile.
Sam (Samantha) is an Angel Emissary. Her current mission: Find Ryan, a recent soul and his guide, Eddie. They have gone missing. Lucifer is suspect for their disappearance. To aide her on the mission, she wrests James from his eternal home.
DISCLAIMER: There are no gowns in this story, per se.
Resa – John, I drew Sam as her angel self. I mean, when she’s not out on missions, she would be in her angel wear. I hope you approve of the drawing. (I don’t see wings)
John – I love Sam’s Angel self. I think it is exactly what she would wear around the cloud so to speak. She doesn’t have wings so that was a good call.
Resa – To me, Sam is the star of the 2 books. I mean, if the books were a movie, I think Sam would have top billing over James. Ryan and Eddie are co-stars. What do you think about that?
John – Yes, Sam is the star. She is the glue that holds both stories together. James could be a co-star and Eddie and Ryan featured players.
Resa – Also, now that I’m into drawing Sam, I got an itch to draw her in a mid 70’s style casino gown. Yes, I know she never wears one when they go to the Bellagio, but she could, in a time warp thing. I can’t remember if she wears one in the previous book, when they go to Vegas?
John – In the previous book she did not wear a casino gown but I know she would love one. I think if they had had the time she would have insisted on getting one. Sam can be anywhere she wants at anytime.
Resa – I like that! Sam’s main ace up her sleeve is time eternal.
Forever, Sam’s seven letter word falling across a triple word score, as she, James, Eddie and Ryan attempt to outwit their underworld opponent, the biggest cheater this side of Niflheim aka hell.
Speaking of hell; John affords no comfort as Satan tries to trick Sam, James, Eddie and Ryan, by placing them in some of the most horrific times and places man has ever known. The price of a ticket back to paradise? Ryan’s soul!
Resa – I know you worked out most of the time travel mechanics in the first book. The idea of not disturbing the “time continuum” I get. I learned that in the old Star Trek series. However, there are many other time travel issues, in both your books “Eternal Road” & The Last Drive.
Did you make a chart, when working things out?
John – I do not have a chart on the time travel rules. The basics are pretty simple. You cannot alter the future when in a different time period.
Resa – How did you figure/rationalize the logistics?
Was it all worked out in book one? Or did you have to work out some new time travel ideas & issues in this book?
John – The issues in the book were handled one at a time given the circumstance at the time. For instance if James or Ryan tried to save Karen after she was hit by a car then they would have altered the future. In the same manner if James and Ryan stayed at the scene as witnesses the same thing would happen.
On the time travel question every scene in The Last Drive was worked out on it’s own. Figuring the logistics took some thought but the rule about not disturbing the future was the guide.
For example the team considered that they should try to save the people on the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. The rationale that the intended target (The Capital ) was never hit was used. All those lives lost had repercussions on families left behind so to save them would have altered those repercussions. This is how each was thought through.
Resa -I see you can obtain an object (ie cell phone) in one time frame, then take it to another time frame.
Could Sam obtain a piece of fabric from ancient Rome, and take that to Las Vegas? Then could she obtain a dress from Las Vegas and combine the fabric and dress into one garment? Then could she wear that garment in another different time and place? Or, even combine that with say jewelry from that third place? Could this go on ad infinitum?
John – Sam can haul anything from zone to zone as long as she can get it before the dump to a new zone. She can’t haul stuff from heaven but the zones are fair game.
Resa – John, I’d like to post this on “Art Gowns”, but need as many gowns as possible. As you can see I have drawn Sam in: an Angel gown, a Las Vegas gown, A Roman Colosseum Gladiatorette gown, a Tea Time on the Titanic gown and a 1912 Ball gown.
John – You are the best, Resa. Thank you for what will be a beautiful thing.
John – A prequel is a great idea. You’ll hear another idea on the broadcast that may have legs too.
John turned to writing as a full-time occupation after an extensive career in business. John writes thriller fiction novels and short stories. He has written 7 books.
To read more about John’s books and awards, click on his photo.
All of John’s books are published by Keewaydin Lane Books.
‘Tis a thrilling adventure unfurling in the Scottish highlands.
This fiery, passionate romance thrills without much graphic reference. True, Lady Kara wears a see through gown, revealed at the top of the story. However, it’s not her choice. She makes many choices, good and bad, but her gowns are imposed by her vile father.
Comments are in regular type. My questions are in italics.Shey’s answers are in bold.
1 – Shey, I want to draw Lady Kara in her gowns. It feels like 1700. Is there an exact year to this tale?
I based the Trojan horse premise of this book on the actual Glencoe Massacre. Let’s be clear that whole bit of Scotland was a law unto itself. South of the highland line was an entirely different Scotland. Anyway, the way to get into Glencoe, which was pretty impregnable at that time, was to come as friends. I liked that idea of a small clan who largely survived where they were because no-one could get in or out.
I looked up the Glencoe Massacre. It was in 1692. So, without mentioning an exact year, the flavour of your writing sets up the right time frame.
2 – Ewen and some other characters speak in a dialect that give the Scottish highlands an authentic feel.
“Whit? Can ye no see Ah’m busy.” “How is it no’? Mah horse, laddie.” Is this written by ear, or have you studied Gaelic? Or?
Now here in Scotland we probably speak English, in a local dialect. This is sometimes incomprehensible to those who are not local.
We also speak…maybe not old Scots but certainly Scots as Ewen and some of the other characters do. Gaelic would have been spoken by the clans. It was mainly spoken in the Highlands and islands of western Scotland. It is still spoken by about 58,000 people in these parts. When you’re writing dialogue and trying to give something an authentic feel, you’re torn between that and being understood which was why I didn’t have everybody speaking in some form of Scots. I think it’s fair to say we often joke that there’s more than one book set here which we don’t understand because the dialogue is not authentic. For example ‘donnae’ is a name, not the word for ‘don’t’ which is ‘dinnae’!
3 – I find certain small bits of your writing make me laugh…..such as Ewen’s talents, the description of the green dress and Callm asking himself:
Is it just me? Or do you insert this humour on purpose?
No and no. It’s not just you and no I don’t mean to do it, but it sort of comes out. I mean, I love that people have idiosyncrasies. They are what makes us. Kara’s little habit of firstly, secondly, thirdly, and her mantra about doing things that she will be happy, or not happy with, when it comes to choices–quite awful things in some instances. These are her little idiosyncrasies.
Also people can be gloriously unselfaware. As you see with Callm asking himself why he shouldn’t be considered suitable, is a rich seam to be mined. Also let’s face it too, funny things do happen to people. Things like Kara not being able to get on that horse and walking round the yard trying to, while making out she knows what’s she’s doing. Well, honestly one day in the middle of nowhere in Yorkshire of all places, this woman asked if I could hold this absolute beast of a horse steady while she got on it. She’d been walking for miles at this point trying to do just that and hadn’t come across anybody. As for asking me? Well… But hey (no pun intended) I did it.
In truth I’ve never been any good at being serious, or keeping a straight face. It’s probably why my palms have half inch fingernail dents in them. Just joking. But not actually. So I guess I don’t bung the humour in on purpose. It just appears.
4- Near the end of the story, Ewen joins Callm on the mission. It’s a wonderful twist of sorts, that solidifies the family. When asked why, Ewen answers – “Te get mah bride, Kertyn. Or Ardene. Whitever ane will hae me.
Kertyn returns with Callm and Ewen’s entourage. Does this mean Kertyn marries Ewen?
Well now… I didn’t want to ruin it entirely for the poor girl given he’s not exactly an oil painting, but I guess she is gonna be lady ruler of Lochalpin while Kara is gonna rule her glen. That’s if Kertyn doesn’t do a runner next!!!! I honestly just don’t like writing cardboardy villains. No-one is all bad. (except maybe Snotra from the Viking!)
Hahahaha! No oil painting! Just oily! Still, you gave Ewen the talents of dancing and cooking/baking!
Lol…I did!! I wanted to give him something!! Also, I wanted to explore resentment between two brothers who ultimately are still brothers.
I wanted to explore Ewen as the younger sibling, the one the lassies never looked at. As he says, no very bonnie, he’s loud, overweight, and cos he has had the glen handed to him on a plate, even down to Callm keeping it safe for him, he’s fallen in with the wrong crowd and is throwing his power around. Meantime here’s the big bro who obvi has done so much right… the wife, the child … in the past anyway.
And by the way Shey, OMG! Snotra is a total bitch!!!
On that note, I thank Shehanne Moore for answering all of my questions. I totally enjoyed this book! A+
“Never judge a book by its cover, unless there’s a gown on it.”
Genre: Historical Romance.
Much like a game of chess; this tale has moves, and counter moves. Is it checkmate, or stalemate? Read the book to experience the final play!
Although a woman in days when women were mostly property, Splendor finds a self chosen path. She will marry Gabe, the man of her breast’s heart. He will become a man of the cloth. Together they will help the poor.
Enter: the Earl of Stillmore, a chessboard, two Kings, two Queens, four Bishops, four Rooks, four Knights and sixteen Pawns.
Shehanne’s characters are vivid, interesting and all with purpose. I particularly adore the settings she recreates of time and place. I’m amused by the very appropriate, and humorously creative names Shehanne has given her characters. All throughout the novel her wry sense of humour prevails, but never assails nor assuages.
The thing is, it is romance. It’s romance with all the ardour lovers find in love’s wake. The main scene of passion is quite worth the reading and waiting for. It reaches just a tad deliciously beyond cutting to waves crashing on rocks, fireworks or a volcano erupting.
Furthermore, the Art Gown in me feels a hearty prick of the needle at the main peril Splendor puts herself in. Drawn like a moth to the flame of fine silk every time she passes Madame Renare’s shop and without means, Splendor finds herself sinking deeper into debt. T’is dire! The turnkey of the debtor’s prison workhouse is upon her doorstep.
“In italicized quotations” are excerpts from the book.
“Mrs. Ferret set the beribboned hair comb Splendor had found impossible to resist, the robin’s egg blue one with the tiny cream rosettes attached,”
A bill is presented:
“She had spent a little money, it was true. She hadn’t meant to, but now she was back in credit again. Why shouldn’t she have the odd this and that?”
Splendor is a Fashionista:
“she had perhaps gone a little far with the silk parasol and the shoes to match, but if she hadn’t, Topaz would have stolen them and ended up in Newgate. Then there was the matter of just how respectful Madame Renare had been when she’d seen the address and the name, the new one she’d furnished herself with. Lady Winterborne, Countess of Stillmore.”
Although unrequited, Splendor retains her arrogant impudence:
“And that comb, this peignoir, the new day dress with the lace insert in the bodice, were all very nice. Too nice to leave feeling neglected in the shop. And the comb had been reduced by half a guinea. She had saved him half a guinea by buying it.”
❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦
I needed to ask Shehanne, whose blog runs the tagline “Smexy Historical Romance”, a few questions.
1. What does SMEXY mean?
A…an easy one this. It means smart and sexy which I like to think my heroines are even though they can behave incredibly stupidly at times.
2. Where does the historical location inspiration come from… the castles and halls near where you live?
I squirrel. I find locations and ideas everywhere. With Loving Lady Lazuli– another book in the series–it was from visiting Mount Grace Priory, especially the monk’s cell there. It’s in Yorkshire actually and not what we’d know as a cell either. Catterton House in Splendor was based on a Georgian cottage where I then lived in Newport-On-Tay, except it wasn’t a cottage. It was a mansion build down the cliff face.
3. London Jewel Thieves – Where will I be able to read the ongoing serial?
As we speak Loving Lady Lazuli which features Sapphire as the heroine and Ruby and Pearl as her sidekicks, is being formatted for kindle.. Now I have my rights back to this series I will be giving you the stories of Diamond, Jade and Amber. I may even yet turn Ruby into a heroine. I have an idea there.
Shehanne Moore is an author who writes historical romance novels. If you visit her Home Page , you will find out about all of her books.
Click on pic for better view
Take some time to visit Shehanne’s Blog Page, and you will realize that a very cute Pack of Hamsters have hijacked her book reviews, interviews and other relevant endeavours. If you haven’t visited her blog, you should. You will enjoy the Hamsters & get to read a fab post! As crazy as it seems, I was inspired to draw a Hamster in a hamster gown, Hamstor Splendor. I hope Shehanne & all of her Hamster pals enjoy it!
You can pre-order “Splendor” in ebook format, on Amazon! It comes out October 1, 2018, with a hard copy following soon after.
Art Gowns 
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