I'd like to extend a warm welcome to Jan DeLima, author of the Celtic Wolves series. Writers find inspiration everywhere, but we all have our favorite places. Like me, Jan finds lots of inspiration in nature.
Nature
Provides Inspiration
by Jan DeLima
Thank you so much for participating in my first blog tour,
and for inviting me to discuss my Celtic Wolves Series!
For
those of you who aren’t familiar with my series, just imagine a world where the
legends of Celtic lore still walk among us in secret. It’s a place where warriors are also wolves
and reality isn’t always what it seems. Set
in modern day, the stories are a mixture of both urban fantasy and
romance. Written for adults, each
installment has strong fantasy elements built around Celtic folklore, with a
secondary romance between two new characters.
Nature was, and still is, an important influence for
Celts. While my world is fictitious, the
setting is very real, and I often let nature provide inspiration for my
characters, as well as the environment they live in. Celtic
Moon, the first book in the series, is set in my home state of Maine, at
the end of the Appalachian Trail. Our
mountain region is sometimes referred to as the Highlands of Maine, at least by
romantics like me. J
When I began Summer
Moon, Luc and Rosa’s story, I knew it would be set in New Hampshire, on an
island surrounded by mountains and rivers—which this beautiful state has an
abundance of. I’ve been for several visits and hikes, simply because I don’t
like to write about an area unless I’ve experienced it firsthand. For me,
writing inspiration can be found in tactile exploration, muses are fed, and any
setting can be exciting when accuracy is woven within the fiction.
My inspiration for Rosa, the heroine in Summer Moon, came from one of
my hikes in New Hampshire. Even though it is my neighboring state, I found
slight differences. The paths were well traveled, and many of the trees had
exposed roots from erosion–and I thought, “Survivors, like my heroine.” The
paths were packed clay and gravel, unlike the trails around Katahdin, the
setting for Celtic Moon. Katahdin trails are less traveled and remain
wild. The colors were even different, more muted. I used these differences to
build the motivation and environment of the story.
They followed her
through a well-traveled path colored in sepia and muted browns—not the lush
emeralds, blues and golds of Rhuddin Village.
No saplings lined
the forest edge, too malnourished to survive tender beginnings. Only the elder
trees provided minimal shelter, with roots exposed by years of erosion. Many
grew around rocks and boulders and stretched their gnarled feet into a barren
forest floor—survivors, like Rosa, he realized, refusing to die under the rule
of a greedy king.
Elen from Autumn Moon
is my only heroine with magical abilities besides shifting into a wolf. She can manipulate nature, and therefore
surrounds herself with gardens and forests.
I’ve used my own gardens for inspiration for descriptions.
The pain was like
a fistful of heated needles shoved under her skin, greater than anything Merin
had ever done to Elen in her childhood. Power did not like to be contained. It
wanted release. Unfortunately, her body was the vessel that held it. Her nerves
screamed with its force.
Elen winced as she
undid the latch of the iron gate Koko had designed for her, an intricate weave
of faeries on lilies that offered both beauty and privacy. Following the stone
path, she stumbled toward the hidden gardens behind her beautiful little house.
She regulated her breaths through clenched teeth, much like modern childbirth
techniques.
With a broken moan
of relief, after a day full of suspicious glances and avoidance from the
villagers, Elen finally allowed the power to consume her. She collapsed in a
bed of anise hyssop and let its vengeful pressure bleed from her skin and into
the ground. Purple flowers bloomed around her and a licorice scent filled the
air like a basketful of candy, offering treats and bellyaches of a more noxious
variety.
The villagers
thought she was this power-hungry freak, when in fact she was only a conductor,
a mere rod of transference. She was a puppet of a merciless master, no more in
control now than when it had first begun, when the gods had reached out their
hands of vengeance with their unwanted gift.
The following photo is a bed of anise hyssop in my garden, similar
to what Elen would have fallen into. It
has a strong black licorice scent and bees love it.
And so I shall end with the bane of my garden: poison ivy. I’ve had to do full rounds of antibiotics
twice because of this toxic plant. It
surrounds my yard and keeps trying to creep in.
Like many authors, experiences in life can influence my writing. These are the very first lines of Autumn Moon, although what’s creeping in
is far more dangerous than poison ivy.
It crept from the forest under a blanket of
morning mist. Elen felt its approach like a brush of poison ivy across her
skin, smooth to the touch until its toxins seeped in.
“Leaves
of three, let them be.” To be sure! Some people are lucky enough not to be
allergic, but I am not one of them. There
are quite a lot of harmless plants that grow with “three leaves.” But notice the extra “thumbs” on two of the
leaves. That’s how you can identify
poison ivy if you’re ever on a hike looking for inspiration. I just took the above photo, but it will be obnoxiously
beautiful come autumn, turning shades of bright orange and gold.
Thank
you again for inviting me to discuss some of my inspirations!
Celtic Moon
Celtic Wolves, Book One
Jan DeLima
Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
Ace Books
September 24, 2013
Read the first chapter:
http://jandelima.com/CelticMoon_Chapter1.html
Amazon | B&N
Like father, like son...
Sophie Thibodeau has been on the
run from the father of her son for more than fifteen years. Now her son, Joshua, is changing, and her
greatest fears are about to be realized.
He's going to end up being just like his father----a man who can change
into a wolf.
Dylan Black has been hunting for
Sophie since the night she ran from him----an obsession he cannot afford in the
midst of an impending war. Dylan
controls Rhuddin Village, an isolated town in Maine where he lives with an
ancient Celtic tribe. One of the few of
his clan who can still shift into a wolf, he must protect his people from the
Guardians, vicious warriors who seek to destroy them.
When Sophie and Dylan come
together for the sake of their son, their reunion reignites the fierce passion
they once shared. For the first time in
years, Dylan's lost family is within his grasp.
But will he lose them all over again? Are Joshua and Sophie strong
enough to fight alongside Dylan in battle? Nothing less than the fate of his
tribe depends on it...
Summer Moon
Celtic Wolves, Book Two
Jan DeLima
She won't be ruled again...
Rosa Alban has been obedient her
entire life. But when her alpha husband dies, she seizes the opportunity to
flee the oppressive Guardians—the rulers of the secret shapeshifter world. Her
flight instantly brands her as a pack traitor, and she has no choice but to
seek protection from a neighboring tribe by marrying one of their sons.
Known as the Beast of Merin, Luc
Black loyally plays the part of unwanted son and devoted brother. He realizes
marrying Rosa will strengthen his tribe’s territory, but he has no intention of
loving ever again. Still, he’s unprepared for the intense physical need the
wild she-wolf awakens in him.
When the Guardians hone in on
Rosa, Luc must fight to protect his new bride. And as war descends, the
unlikely allies discover their destinies are irrevocably entwined…
Autumn Moon
Celtic Wolves, Book Three
Jan DeLima
Expected Publication: September 29, 2015
Prequel
for Autumn Moon:
The
heart of a warrior, the soul of a wolf, and the desires of a man…
For centuries, Cormack has lived
between worlds—a man trapped in the body of a wolf, shunned by humans and
shifters alike. Only one person has ever welcomed his company: Elen, a kindred
outcast who is feared by others of her ancient Celtic race for her strange
healing abilities.
Cormack has always valued Elen’s
kindness and understanding, but after a desperate act of friendship causes Elen
to free him from his curse, he realizes he wants more. He wants all of
her—completely and forever.Except before Cormack can win Elen’s heart,
Pendaran, the evil leader of the Guardians, captures her, determined to
manipulate her incredible power to aid him in his twisted war against the
shapeshifting tribes.
Now Cormack must use all of his
skills as a warrior and a wolf to save the woman he loves—before Pendaran’s
vile schemes destroy them all…
About the Author
Jan DeLima is the author of the
Celtic Wolves novels, including Summer Moon and Celtic Moon. She lives in Maine
with her husband and their two sons. Unlike many authors, Jan didn’t pen
stories at an early age, but she has always been a dedicated reader. She loves
stories and storytelling. It wasn’t until after her children entered school
that she began writing. Raised in a military family, she lived in different
countries such as Thailand and Germany, but home base has always been Maine.
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