[New post] Guest post: Sarah Rodi, Escaping with Her Saxon Enemy
jennifercwilsonwriter posted: " Escaping With Her Saxon Enemy Her tempting enemy is a chink in her armour! Viking shield maiden, Svea Ivarsson, would far rather face Saxon warriors than be on the run with the fiercely captivating Lord Ashford Stanton, protector to th"
Viking shield maiden, Svea Ivarsson, would far rather face Saxon warriors than be on the run with the fiercely captivating Lord Ashford Stanton, protector to the Saxon King. Reaching Ash's family castle, Svea must swap her chainmail for life as a Lady. She can wield a sword like an expert, but no training has prepared her for craving the touch of her greatest enemy…
They say write what you love and I have read hundreds of Mills & Boon books. There are various lines, depending on what kind of setting or hero you're looking for... Modern, Medical, etc, but I've always loved history, so it made sense for me to go down the Historical route.
I think it all began with watching swashbuckling 1950s movies with my granddad on rainy Sunday afternooons: The Crimson Pirate, Rose Marie, The Desert Song... I loved the escape that they offered. It's the same with a Mills & Boon series romance - you can lose yourself in them completely for a few hours. The Mills & Boon Historical series features emotionally intense novels set across a wide range of historical periods—from ancient civilisations up to and including the 1950s. So what era to pick?
I live in Cookham, a village on the Thames in Berkshire. In the 8th century, the river here divided the territories of Mercia and Wessex. Cookham was built around a Saxon monastery and many names in the area are still linked to the Vikings, after they rowed up the river in 870. I am also a huge fan of the TV shows Vikings and The Last Kingdom, so I settled on basing my books in the 9th century.
When I think of the Vikings I picture fierce warriors with ink covering their skin, their hair in braids. But they were also simple farmers and skilled craftsmen and sailors. We can learn a lot from them and their Saxon counterparts.
I am acquiring quite a collection of research books on Vikings, including some of the kids' Horrible History books, which have been so useful. Much of my inspiration for my setting in my books also came from being a journalist on magazines for 20 years, and I currently work full time for Archant's county life titles, often learning about the history of those counties. When writing I was thinking of the glistening salt marshes of Essex and Suffolk and the sweeping sandy bays in Kent, the tumbling tides rolling onto the shore. I can just picture those raiding Vikings sailing across the ocean into the bays here, where the Saxons can see them growing ever closer. I like visiting historical places, such as Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, where a ship burial containing a hoard of Anglo-Saxon artefacts were discovered in 1939, which changed our understanding of early England, or Viking Bay in Kent for research. We're off to the Jorvik Viking Centre in York this week, and have a trip booked to Holy Island in Northumberland, where the Vikings first invaded in England in 793. As I write this I'm on my way to visit Bamburgh Castle and I'm hoping it will inspire me to write Book 4. Watch this space!
About Sarah
Sarah Rodi has always been a hopeless romantic. She grew up watching old, romantic movies recommended by her grandad, or devouring love stories from the local library. Sarah lives in the village of Cookham in Berkshire, where she enjoys walking along the River Thames with her husband, her two daughters and their dog. She has been a magazine journalist for over 20 years, but it has been her lifelong dream to write romance for Mills & Boon. Sarah believes everyone deserves to find their happy ever after. You can contact her via @sarahrodiedits or sarahrodiedits@gmail.com. Or visit her website at sarahrodi.com
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