The Duke's Daughter - Guest poster Sasha Cottman

THE DUKE'S DAUGHTER is the third in Sasha Cottman's Regency 'Duke of Strathmore' series. It is a challenge for any author to find something new and different about this period, which is why I particularly like Sasha's stories.

The stories are about real people (admittedly of 'the ton') - the heroes and heroines are of the right age to be courting couples of this period and most importantly, for me anyway, they come from families who love them. To read most regencies you would think the characters were immaculate conceptions, untramelled by inconvenient parents or siblings.  In Sasha's books, there are mothers and fathers who may not always agree with the way their offsring are erring and are not above teaching them the occasional life lesson, but at the end of the story you are left with the feeling that Christmas at the Duke of Strathmore's estates would be rowdy, happy, family times.

This story revolves around the Strathmore daughter, Lucy, sister to the heroes of Book 1 and 2.  We have met Lucy in the preceding two stories (LETTER FROM A RAKE and AN UNSUITABLE MATCH) and we are familiar with her interfering ways. With both her errant brothers happily settled it is Lucy's turn to find love...

THE DUKE'S DAUGHTER

When handsome army officer Avery Fox unexpectedly inherits a fortune, he instantly becomes one of the season's most eligible bachelors. More accustomed to the battlefield, he has no patience with the naive debutantes who fill the ballrooms of London.

Honest and impetuous Lady Lucy Radley is a breath of fresh air, guiding him through the season and helping him to avoid any traps. So when Avery is left with little option but to marry Lucy, he can't help but feel he's been manipulated. Nor can he shake the feeling that a duke's daughter should be out of his reach.

From the wildly beautiful Scottish Highlands to the elegant soirees of Paris, Avery and Lucy go on a journey that is full of surprises for them both.  But will their feelings for each other be strong enough to overcome the circumstances of their marriage and survive the ghosts of Avery's past?

Read an excerpt from THE DUKE'S DAUGHTER....

Chapter One

By every measure of her own behaviour, Lady Lucy Radley knew this was the worst.

'You reckless fool,' she muttered under her breath as she headed back inside and into the grand ballroom.

The room was a crush of London's social elite. Every few steps she had to stop and make small talk with friends or acquaintances. A comment here and there about someone's gown or promising a social call made for slow going.

 Finally she spied her cousin, Eve. She fixed a smile to her face as Eve approached.

'Where have you been, Lucy? I've been searching everywhere for you.'

'I was just outside admiring the flowers on the terrace.'

Eve frowned, but the lie held.

Another night, another ball in one of London's high-society homes. In one respect Lucy would be happy when the London social season ended in a few weeks; then she would be free to travel to her family home in Scotland and go tramping across the valleys and mountain paths, the chill wind ruffling her hair.

She puffed out her cheeks. With the impending close of the season came an overwhelming sense of failure. Her two older brothers, David and Alex, had taken wives. Perfect, love-filled unions with delightful girls, each of whom Lucy was happy to now call sister.

Her newest sister-in-law, Earl Langham's daughter Clarice, was already in a delicate condition, and Lucy suspected it was only a matter of time before her brother Alex and his wife Millie shared some good news.

For herself, this season had been an unmitigated disaster on the husband-hunting front. The pickings were slim at best. Having refused both an earl and a viscount the previous season, she suspected other suitable gentlemen now viewed her as too fussy. No gentleman worth his boots wanted a difficult wife. Only the usual group of fortune-hunters, intent on getting their hands on her substantial dowry, were lining up at this stage of the season to ask her to dance. Maintaining her pride as the daughter of a duke, she refused them all.

Somewhere in the collective gentry of England there must be a man worthy of her love. She just had to find him.

What a mess.

'You are keeping something from me,' Eve said, poking a finger gently into Lucy's arm.

Lucy shook her head. 'It's nothing. I suspect I am suffering from a touch of ennui. These balls all begin to look the same after a while. All the same people, sharing the same gossip.'

'Oh dear, and I thought I was having a bad day,' Eve replied.

'Sorry, I was being selfish. You are the one who needs a friend to cheer her up,' Lucy replied. She kissed her cousin gently on the cheek.

Eve's brother William had left London earlier that day to return to his home in Paris, and she knew her cousin was taking his departure hard.

'Yes, well, I knew I could sit at home and cry, or I could put on a happy face and try to find something to smile about,' Eve replied.

Eve's father had tried without success to convince his son to return permanently to England. With the war now over and Napoleon toppled from power, everyone expected William Saunders to come home immediately, but it had taken two years for him to make the journey back to London.

'Perhaps once he gets back to France and starts to miss us all again, he shall have a change of heart,' Lucy said.

'One can only hope. Now, let's go and find a nice quiet spot and you can tell me what you were really doing out in the garden. Charles Ashton came in the door not a minute before you, and he had a face like thunder. As I happened to see the two of you head out into the garden at the same time a little while ago, I doubt Charles' foul temper was because he found the flowers not to his liking,' Eve replied.

BUY THE DUKE'S DAUGHTER...

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About Sasha Cottman...

Sasha Cottman’s debut novel was published in 2013. Letter from a Rake, was a Ruby finalist in 2014 and won the Book Junkies Choice Award in 2014.

Her books are centred on the theme of love, honour and family. Her current book series, The Duke of Strathmore, covers the story of the love lives of a group of siblings and their cousins.

Sasha’s second novel An Unsuitable Match, was a four time ARRA finalist in 2015. The third book in the Duke of Strathmore series, The Duke’s Daughter, was released in August 2015.

Sasha divides her time between the city of Melbourne, Australia and her family beach retreat at Torquay. She and her family have discovered all the places the family cat disappears to whenever it realises they are about to head home on a Sunday night.

Before accidentally enrolling in a course for romance writers a number of years ago, she had always had a love of history. While her writing career may appear at odds with her professional career as a finance executive, it means she can spot a poorly written company board report at twenty feet.

A self-confessed ‘hopeless’ cook, she writes a blog, In the Regency Kitchen, where she recreates recipes from the Regency/Georgian era. Her family have so far managed to survive being the test subjects of her culinary efforts.

The little time she has left during the week and weekends is spent trying to beat her husband at Fitbit challenges and trying to find where the pair to that sock really went.

Sasha is published by Destiny Romance a digital imprint of Penguin Random House.

Connect with Sasha at... http://www.sashacottman.com, Twitter and Facebook 

For her In the Regency Kitchen Blog where she attempts to recreate Regency Recipes with mixed success http://www.sashacottman.com  

When the tribe roars...New releases from Downunder!

One wonderful aspect of being a writer (and maybe it is a romance writer thing!) is the generosity and the friendship of my fellow writers. Apart from my wonderful, amazing Critique Group (who are always ready with tea and sympathy over all aspects of life, not just writing), I am fortunate to belong to another group of published writers who meet every few months for lunch and laughs!

In an amazing coincidence, nearly everyone in the group has a book out or just coming out and I would like to introduce you to the varied talents of this incredible group - we are as different as the books we write!

First up is Nicki Edwards who writes medical romances set in remote parts of Australia.

EMERGENCY RESPONSE

Intensive care nurse Mackenzie Jones is no stranger to running. As a teenager she fled her family home with a tragedy in her wake. Now, after fifteen years alone in Sydney, with the strain of working in a city hospital wearing her thin, she's tempted to run again.

Mackenzie jumps at the chance to work in a mining town in the West Australian desert – anything to lift her spirits. Though she barely dares to hope, she wonders if she might find the kind of love that can ease her loneliness.

In the outback, Nathan Kennedy is at a loose end. He's been making money in the mines for years, and pressure from his family to return to the east coast, settle down and get married is reaching fever pitch. The problem is, he hasn't met the right woman.

When Mackenzie turns up in town, there's an instant attraction between her and Nathan, maybe even true love. But tragedy's not done with Mackenzie Jones – the past is about to catch up with her in more ways than one.
Can Nathan convince Mackenzie to stop running, or is this just another tragedy in the making?

Perfect for fans of Fiona McArthur and Melanie Milburne.

Recent releases from the tribe:

I have written before about Fiona Lowe's lovely Contemporary romances. Her latest series is set in Montana in the fictional town of Medicine River.  Her latest release is TRULY MADLY MONTANA

Romances set in the Australian bush are popular at the moment and Lisa Ireland has just released FEELS LIKE HOME (and I hum that song every time I step on a Qantas plane!). 























Coming soon...

And if you like your reading on the hotter side Delwyn Jenkins sexy, sensual paranormals are for you. Book 3 in the Watchtower series will be released on September 24. KISSED BY WATER

Sasha Cottman is a fellow historical romance writer and Book 3 in her Regency Romance Duke of STrathmore series, THE DUKE'S DAUGHTER will be released on 11 August. Sasha will be my guest later this month.























... and of course me... THE KING'S MAN will be released on September 8 but watch this space next week for news about that release!

Boxing for Gentlemen with Sasha Cottman (and a book review)

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Last week, over a couple of glasses of very nice French champagne, good cheese and the wedding episode of Outlander, I badgered Sasha Cottman into joining me on my "Fun Facts" blog to talk about her new book, AN UNSUITABLE MATCH.

I am a huge fan of Sasha's charming Regency Romances. I love them because they are about real people (they may happen to be Earls and Lords) but at heart they behave like normal human beings. The younger generation bicker and hanker after unsuitable young men, or women and, most importantly, for all their faults their parents (yes they have parents) love them and want what's best for them.

In AN UNSUITABLE MATCH (which I have just finished reading - see review below) Sasha creates a particularly obnoxious villain who cheats at boxing... obviously no gentleman. I know the degree of research Sasha goes through and this charming little vignette reflects exactly what I mean when I say good research shines through unobtrusively.

BOXING FOR GENTLEMEN

Boxing at Gentleman Jacksons Boxing Salon

While writing AN UNSUITABLE MATCH I wanted to write a scene where the hero and villain of the book could encounter one another, outside of a normal Regency period social setting.

Boxing was a perfect way to show the contrast in character of the two men. David Radley, the hero, conducted himself as a gentleman should. Thaxter Fox, in turn, behaved exactly how a man with a shady and sordid past would conduct himself.

One fact I discovered as I researched boxing was that bare knuckled boxing was frowned upon by London’s elite. If you wished to join and box at establishments such as Gentleman Jackson’s Saloon in Bond Street, you had to wear mufflers. Wool stuffed, mufflers were the early 19^th century forerunner of the modern boxing glove.

Excerpt from AN UNSUITABLE MATCH

Thaxter Fox strode confidently over to where David stood and stopped. Rolling his head from side to side and doing a small jig on the spot, he gave the air of one who had seen more than his share of fights.

Neither of them bothered with the social niceties of a formal greeting.

‘Damn nuisance, these muffler things; what happened to being able to fight a man with your bare fists? I didn’t realise how many fops there were in London. I should not be surprised if they allowed girls to join this club,’ he sneered.

‘House rules, Fox,’ David replied, refusing to take the bait. A quick nod to his second and David was ready.

He punched his gloves together, mentally rehearsing for the moment he intended to land a solid whack to Thaxter’s head.

Lord knows you need a good thrashing.

AN UNSUITABLE MATCH

The Favourite Heiress…
 
Once engaged to the future Duke of Strathmore, the beautiful Lady Clarice Langham now finds herself in the humiliating position of celebrating his marriage – to another woman.  As a result of the scandal, it seems her reign as London's most eligible debutante has come to an end.  But things begin to look up when handsome and charming rake David Radley makes it clear that, at least as far as he's concerned, she's still the catch of the season.
 
The Illegitimate Son…
 
The eldest son of the Duke of Strathmore, David Radley has been raised alongside his father's legitimate children.  But while he is generally received as part of the family, not everyone thinks he should be, and especially not Clarice's father, the Earl of Langham, who forbids her from having anything to do with him.
 
An Unsuitable Match…
 
David's been in love with Clarice for years, and it isn't long before the attraction between them develops into something deeper. Yet he senses Clarice is hiding something and until she reveals her secret, she won't be free to follow her heart. Despite everything, David will not give up on Clarice, not even when another seems set to claim her…

AN UNSUITABLE MATCH is available from Destiny Romance  and at all good estores... AMAZON

Connect with Sasha Cottman on her WEBSITE, FACEBOOK and TWITTER

ALISON'S REVIEW of AN UNSUITABLE MATCH

I rarely do reviews (mostly because I am the world's slowest reader - 2 pages per night and I'm asleep)... but I devoured this story.

As I said above the one aspect of Ms.Cottman's story I love is the humanity of the characters.

This is the second in the Duke of Strathmore series and although we meet our old friends from Book 1, the book stands alone. 

The hero, David Radley, is deeply loved by everyone in his family, including his stepmother and despite the "stain" of his illegitimate birth, he has the confidence to move easily in society. Like David we met Clarice in the first book (LETTER FROM A RAKE) and there is nothing loveable about her... she dresses like a dowd, she is gawky, prickly and an unlikely contender for the love of David, who has something of a reputation with the glamorous married ladies of the ton.

But love her he does and this fact she has accidentally discovered. Unfortunately her father Lord Langham, who we did not form a good opinion of in the first book seems determined to keep these two young lovers apart and push Clarice in the direction of his heir, the ungentlemanly and thoroughly unpleasant Thaxter Fox. 

Clarice has her own secrets and the path of true love is destined not to run smoothly, despite the help of her own wise and scheming grandmother and the couple's loving friends.

Thoroughly recommended to anyone who is looking for something a little bit different in Regency Romance.  Oh... and don't expect it to be 'sweet', the couple have to earn their time together but when they do, the pages (and the sheets) sizzle... 5 stars!

Sasha and Alison dressed for a wedding... Outlander Wedding Ep!

Writer's Life: The Critique Group*

On the weekend my "critique group" met. It was loud, excited and fuelled by champagne but oh, so terribly important! Goals were re-established, current works in progress assessed, a new member welcomed, we brainstormed and a story opening was critiqued. They are my tribe and an absolutely integral part of who I am as a writer.


Writing is by nature a solitary past time but the trope of the writer in the freezing garret scratching away to the light of single guttering candle has been supplanted in the digital age by computers and internet. We are no longer alone, there is a whole writing community out there with whom to connect. Online workshops, elists, forums, blogs… but one thing remains constant: around the country, at any given time there is a little group of writers sitting around a table with printed paper clutched in one hand and a pen in the other. (There are also online critique groups but I have no experience of those so I will just talk about the “actual” critique group as opposed to the “virtual” critique group).

Most writers are introverts, so it takes a great deal of motivation (and courage) to join a critique group. Not only are you putting your writing on the line but also yourself and it’s that very vulnerability that either makes or breaks your experience with a critique group.

I started off as the lone wolf, driven partly by a need to keep this part of my life “secret”. It was only when I moved to Singapore with my husband’s work and found myself utterly stranded without direction or identity. Like a drowning woman I reached out and joined the ANZA Writers Group. In that group I found a core of wonderful women of different ages and different interests. As writers we were all different which meant we had to find some common ground on which to share our passion for writing. We found it in short story writing. Every month our convener would set us ‘homework’ of some kind which would more often than not translate into a short story. (Ironically my current release SECRETS IN TIME began as ANZA Writers Group homework). Because we were so different, critique was gentle but encouraging. That experience ended in the publication of two volumes of short stories by a local publisher (these days we would probably just have self published them and put it out as an ebook – how the world has changed). For a recent article about this group and what became of us all click HERE.

The ANZA Writers Group in 2002 at the Launch of NOT ALL PINK GINS

On return to Australia, I went back to lone wolfdom but having had the taste of what a good crit group could be, I went in search of another and found it. Through Romance Writers of Australia, a group had just been formed in my area. A bad experience with a potential new member had made the group a little wary but they invited me in and I now count them amongst my dearest friends.
What makes or breaks a critique group?

The members. It does matter that you find a group of people with whom you have something in common. There would be little point in me joining a group of science fiction writers. We would have very little common ground. Although the group in Singapore were quite disparate in their writing interests, we still found common ground in our writing. Universally we were women writing for women. My current critique group are romance writers but within that broad genre our interests are quite different but there is enough room to tolerate difference - although I will say in all honesty I don’t know whether we would operate so comfortably if a member who wrote erotica joined us. That’s not where any of us are or want to be. It is terribly important that the members of the group mesh together. So much of what makes a good group is trust.

How critique is delivered. Each member of the group needs to be clear about how they want to receive critique. We tend to use our face to face meetings for brainstorming, setting of goals and writerly business. We can circulate writing for critique by email but occasionally we have specific face to face critiquing sessions. It is here that the main danger of critique groups lie, I have heard stories of young writers whose spirit has been broken by harsh critiquing. I try to couch critique in the form of “suggestions only” and I would advise any writer to take from the critique the bits that are useful to you. There is a danger in absorbing everything – after all it is only someone’s opinion and I have seen young writers whose voice has been lost in a welter of over critiquing. Have faith in your own writing.

A good critique group has a range of experience within its members from experienced writers through to newbies. A good group will nurture and encourage new writers and even “experienced writers” need the support and encouragement of other people. Since I joined my little group, one of our members has had “the call” (Sasha Cottman's LETTER FROM A RAKE - out now!). We watched that story go from brainstorming to publication. It is OUR book! And my own, SECRETS IN TIME, was read and critiqued by the group members. I am no longer a lone wolf…I have my little pack to run with.

Alison's "tribe" at work on a writing retreat

How do you find a critique group? That is a surprisingly hard question to answer!

• If you are a member of Romance Writers of Australia you can contact the Group Liaison who can either help you start your own group or find a group in your area. groupliason@gmail.com
• Your local community centre may have details of local writing groups but expect to find a wide range of writing interests within such a group. The larger the group the more structured you will find it.

Looking for suggestions: What makes a critique group work or where/how do you find a suitable group?

(*based on an earlier post appearing on Long and Short Reviews May 13, 2013)

RWAus13 Day 3 - Exhausted but Happy

First an apology for not getting this out last night but quite honestly, Ms. S is ashamed to say that she didn't make it make to her room until late and then had to pack with an early start on Monday. So the Day 3 report is coming to you live from chilly, damp Melbourne (apparently the weather in Perth is perfect today).

First the Awards ceremony on Saturday evening. Traditionally this has been a formal dinner but this year the conference committee went with a late start, dessert and champagne only affair. This left us free to have an early meal with friends and it was a delight to share fish and chips with Nina Bruhns from Entangled Suspense. A charming and delightful visitor to our shores.

Pretty tables :-)

The room looked stunning with blue swirly spotlights over tables groaning with rich desserts and Baci chocolates. I don't have that much of a sweet tooth and I have to admit, having been awake since 4.00am and surviving a workshop, a roundtable and my traditional role at the AGM...I was actually quite weary! Our little writing group celebrated Sasha Cottman's First Sale

The awards winners can all be found on the RWA Blog but I do want to mention a very special award for an old and dear friend, Bronwyn Jamieson who was awarded Honorary Life Membership. Bronwyn and I met at our first conference in 1997 when she won the Emma Darcy Award and I came second. We have been friends ever since and she has worked her heart out for RWA. Well done, Bron!

RWA's Honorary Life Members:  Alison Stuart, Kez Delaney and Anne Gracie with newest member, Bronwyn Jamieson

Following the Awards was an "After Party". I managed a bad rendition of the "Nut Bush" and went to bed!

Sunday morning kicked off with a Harlequin spotlight. Great supporters of RWA, Harlequin Australia stuck with us through thick and thin. Interesting to see the new lines and move towards Single Title.

The next session was "Survivor Submission Island"--a panel comprising Abby Zidle, Laura Bradford, Nina Bruhns, Margaret Marbury, Joel Naoum and Alex Adsett, publicly appraise anonymous submissions.mThe entries are read out and the panel have a choice of putting up signs that say STOP or MORE and then gave reasons why they stopped when they did. Very interesting...the themes coming through seemed centred on pacing, scenes starting in the wrong place, too much exposition, labored dialogue. One thing that became very clear is the importance of establishing the genre of the story immediately and exactly WHY the synopsis is so important. On more than one occasion the panel members said "If I had the synopsis and could see where this was going...". I've heard of these sessions but never seen one live and kudos to the brave souls who submitted their work. One thing that struck me is how important hearing your work read out loud can be illuminating. It became so obvious where the passages dragged or the writing seemed clunky. One of the best sessions I have seen at a conference for many years.

Nina Bruhns had the next keynote. She has a "post it" on her computer "What is the WORST thing you can do to your characters?". It served as a healthy reminder to stick your characters up a tree and hurl rocks at them! Nina also gave permission to write what you want to write (but don't expect to pay the bills!). It is a question of WHY you are writing (which sort of echoed some of my self discussions of the past few weeks).

We then moved into the Breakouts. So much choice! I had a pitch so I was late coming into Sarah Wendell's workshop on Blogging 101. Actually it was on social media generally. Sassy and funny, Sarah may not have imparted any new information to me but what it did do is confirm that what I am doing in the social media space is about right. Indeed I found myself "tweeting" madly all through the workshops and flattened the battery on my iPad by the end of the day. A few tips I tweeted.

• Facebook is privileging images so if you want your post seen attach an image.
• Watch auto tweets...the timing could be inappropriate.
• Pinterest is about aspirations, doing and being. Not the best place to promote your writing.
• You MUST have a website because you own the content and it is your professional window to the world.
• Make yourself available to your readers by providing a way for them to contact you privately.
• You don't have to have a blog but if you do the key to good blogging is generosity, authenticity and consistency.

On to the Self Publishing Panel with Nina Bruhns, Kandy Shepherd and Cathleen Ross. Why? Well I am looking at plunging myself into the self publishing morass by the end of the year (watch this space!). Key take aways:

• Have a fabulous book, cover, formatting and most importantly an EDITOR
• Don't spam people on FB and Twitter with "Buy my book"
• Reviews are critical
• Self publishing is a business. You have to invest time and money.

Finally I rounded off the day with a discussion on psychopaths given by Ken Milling. Masters of lies and deception, psychopaths can be charming people. What they lack is empathy. They exist everywhere and can be found in the corporate world (know any? Think James Bond!).

The "Stand ups..." with Anne Gracie

Into plenary for the wind up. A few final words from guests Kim Hudson and Sarah Wendell and the announcement of next year's conference in Sydney (7-10 August 2014...get it in your diaries NOW). Best part of the weekend "the stand ups" orchestrated by Anne Gracie. "Stand up if you...published a book/submitted a manuscript/entered a contest" etc. Always gives me goose bumps!  

An evening of social catch up which I won't go into...suffice to say I shall be glad to be tucked up into my own bed tonight :-)

Thank you for the comments and joining me vicariously in Perth. Until next year :-) Can't wait.

Writing Craft - Scrivener Love

I am in love...my heart beats a little faster, my breath stops in my throat as I reach out my hand and switch on the computer and there it is waiting for me...my Work in Progress in glorious technicolour. Every nuance, every trashed word, every unused word or scene...all carefully filed away in the writing program that changed my life...Scrivener.

It is only three weeks until the Romance Writers of Australia conference where my partner-in-crime and critiquing, Sasha Cottman and I are presenting a beginners workshop on Scrivener. I do not hold myself out as any sort of great expert on Scrivener- just a simple user - but  I have written my last few books using this amazing product and like all converts I have become a prosletyser. I will preach Scrivener's virtues from the mountain tops...or at least to a room full of writers and computers.

If you want "the expert" then go to the wonderful Gwen Hernandez (who has generously donated a couple of door prizes for our Workshop). Not only has she written the bible ("Scrivener for Dummies") but she runs regular courses. 

This brings me to Scrivener's one big failing... You look at the interface screen and, if you are not technically minded or have a shortage of time, it will send you screaming back to Word. You will see words such as "Inspector", "Binder" and the dreaded (and still to be fully understood by me) "metadata". I think a lot of writers, like me, went to the hands on interactive tutorial given by one of the creators, who knows and loves his product so well. Unfortunately he knows and loves it too well and after the first 5 minutes (and the first mention of the words "meta data" and "scrivening") I had given up on him. So what I know is what I have taught myself (with a little help from Gwen's book) and I thought I would give you the 5 things I love most about using Scrivener.

1. (and this one took me ages to work out) There is no one right way to use Scrivener. It is completely flexible and adapts to your own writing methods. So if you put two Scrivener users  side by side their interfaces may look completely different. It is totally customisable and (almost?) impossible to break.

2.  Project targets. If you are starting a new project you can set the goal number of words and the date on which you would like to complete the draft eg. 80,000 words by 30 September. Scrivener will then give you your daily target and in the Mac version you can watch the little line turn from red to green as you approach your daily target. The daily target then readjusts according to how many words you write (ie a few great days writing and it will come down, a few missed days and it goes up).  It will even send you a message when you have reached target. This was brilliant when I was doing Nanowrimo (50,000 words by 30 November...too easy!)

3. Label Colours. I write my stories in two points of view, hero and heroine. In the helicopter view (called the Binder) where all my scenes are listed, I can label each scene according to the POV (I use red for hero and green for heroine - Sasha uses pink and blue...). In one glance I can instantly see where one POV is predominating.

4.  Research:  With Scrivener you can store all your research (including importing photographs, videos and web pages) directly in the Binder with your story.

5.  Templates.  I am writing what I  hope will be a series. Because I can store all my character and research in the same file, I can create a template for use with the next books in the series to incorporate the research done on the first book - a sort of portable bible.

That's just 5 of my favourite things I love about Scriv (we are on abbreviated name terms now). If you are a Scrivener user, what are a few of your favourite things and if you are not a Scriv user and want to ask a question, try me...

In the meantime if you are coming to the Romance Writers of Australia conference, Sasha and I are running a hands on workshop...bring your own computer. Sadly we only have an hour and it will be a very basic introduction to Scrivener but if it overcomes your fear of the dreaded interface then our work will be done... (and rumours of us getting Scrivener tattoos are quite unfounded!)

Taking Tea with...SASHA COTTMAN

It is my great pleasure to have as my tea guest this week, "new to you" author, SASHA COTTMAN. Sasha is not "new to me" because we have been members of the same writing group for a couple of years now and like my fellow group members, we have journeyed with Sasha and her wonderful characters Millie and Alex ("the Great") from their first conception through to publication.


One of the aspects of her lovely Regency Romance, LETTER FROM A RAKE, that really struck me was Millie's love of tea, particularly a good chai. Now I have to confess I am not a fan of chai (although I do drink it black)...spicy tea with milk seems somehow wrong to me, so I have asked Sasha to explain to me what the lure of a good chai tea is all about!

Sasha Cottman

Thanks for having me over for tea this afternoon Alison. Unfortunately I forgot the champagne and my family decided they liked the look of the cake I had baked, but at least I remembered the chai. 

A "good" chai

I must say the milk and spices in the chai are a change from my usual Earl Grey. (Alison:  Errk...Early Grey again?)

It’s funny because when I say I am having a cup of chai; my Indian friends often shake their heads. Many people in the west are under the misconception that chai is a type of tea brewed with spices such as cardamom and ginger, when in fact chai is simply the Hindi word for tea.
(Alison - it is also the swahili word for "tea" - deriving as it does from the Indian workers brought to Kenya to build the railway)

Masala chai is the true term for the beverage made with spices. Depending on where the chai is sourced, it may come with the spices already mixed in with the leaf, or added later. Milk or sweeteners may be included as parts of the preparation, but my Indian friends assure me that there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to chai.

I understand tea was not the drink of choice for everyone in Regency England.

We all have the image of people in England sitting around a dining table taking tea, but only the wealthy could afford good tea. During the Regency period, tea still came predominantly from China, and it was not until the Victorian era that the Indian tea crops took over as the major source of tea in England and the continent. Since tea had to travel a long way from China and was heavily taxed, it was very expensive. The ordinary citizen of London drank a horrible concoction of used, redried tea leaves, often mixed with all manner of foul additives.

How does chai feature in LETTER FROM A RAKE?

When Millie’s family in Letter from a Rake arrive in London, they are dismayed to discover they cannot source good Indian chai leaf. Alex Radley, Marquess of Brooke has a trick or two up his sleeve and manages to lure Millie Ashton into accepting a late night rendezvous on the promise of real tea from her homeland.

Excerpt from LETTER FROM A RAKE: 
Alex turned back to the stove and after locating the tea canister; he took it down from the shelf and brought it over to her. He lifted the lid and waved the tin under Millie’s nose. ‘Marsala chai, Miss Ashton,’ he announced with a certain degree of smugness.

Her eyes lit up with delight and she eagerly took hold of the canister. She held one finger up to signal that she had yet to judge his offering. Then she put her face over the opening of the tin and took a deep breath. She sat back in the chair, still clutching the tea canister and closed her eyes. 

‘Oh Alex, you have no idea what that aroma does to me and how much it reminds me of home,’ she murmured. ‘I had forgotten how wonderful it feels when the sharp edge of the tea finds its way to the back of your throat. I have missed it so much.’

About Sasha:

Born in England, but raised in Australia, Sasha has a love for both countries. Having her heart in two places has created a love for travel, which at last count was to over 55 countries. A travel guide is always on her pile of new books to read. 

Five years ago, Sasha accidently enrolled in a romance writing course. Other than Pride and Prejudice she had never read a romance book before. She soon discovered that the world of historical romance allowed her to combine her love of history with the passion of romance writing. 

Sasha has an MBA as well as post graduate qualifications in electronic media. Having worked as an accountant in a media group for many years, she now finds herself in the unique position of having seen both the business and creative sides of publishing.

Sasha lives in Melbourne with her husband, teenage daughter and a cat who thinks sitting on the keyboard is being helpful. Her family have managed to find all but one of her secret chocolate hiding places.

When not writing, she is busy working full time as a Chartered Accountant. On the weekends Sasha loves walking on the beach while devising new ways to torture her characters.

Letter to a Rake is Sasha’s debut novel.

FIND LETTER FROM A RAKE HERE:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Letter-From-Rake-Destiny-ebook/dp/B00DGLWEYK

Kobo http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=letter+from+a+rake

iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/au/book/letter-from-a-rake/id662840513?mt=11

Also available at Google Play, Readcloud, Angus & Robertson and Booki.sh

In the excerpt Sasha gave us, the smell of chai reminds Millie of "home". Smell is a powerful sense: the smell of cinnamon buns reminds me of a cold winter's morning in Harper's Ferry, the smell of Frangipani immediately brings back memories of my childhood home in Kenya......are there any smells in your life that bring back strong memories...?