Janet B Taylor- Writer of YA/HisFic/Time Travel

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Posted on February 14, 2013 by Janet

I am so excited! Today and tomorrow, I’m participating in the fabulously fabulous Heather Webb’s:  Where’s the Love Blog Hop!

Here are the DEETS:

WHEN

• The hop goes live February 14th & 15th

 WHAT YOU GET OUT OF IT

• Free feedback on your scene from readers, plus the fun of being enraptured by all of those love-ly scenes. Meeting writer friends is a bonus!

• There will also be a random drawing for a chocolatey and delicious prize.

 

My contribution is from my YA Time-Travel novel, THROUGH THE DIM.

The scene is close to the end of the book, when the heroine, Hope finally comes to terms with something about her past she’s long denied. She’s with Bran, who once betrayed her and her whole family. The two of them–abandoned in the year 1190–have fought and struggled together, to try to get home. 

 

“You kept it?” I spoke in a voice that was less than a whisper. “All this time?”

Flakes fell in the space between us, and melted on our cheeks, our lashes.

He bit his lip—uncertainty written across his features. Once again, I saw the face of the little boy. The child he’d been the first time I saw him. The earth shifted beneath my feet and I nearly sank back to my knees on the frozen cathedral steps.

Bran held me up. As he always had. With infinite tenderness, he brushed a strand of hair back from my face, his fingers slipping through my hair to cradle the back of my head.  His almost unnatural heat burned into my skin.

I leaned into him and for the first time, gave myself completely into his strength. “I remember.”

“I know,” he murmured, his mouth inches from mine. “And now, I believe I get to kiss the almost-bride.”

His lips brushed over mine, soft as a baby’s hair. I breathed him.  A warm spiraling began deep and low in my gut, as a groan rumbled from somewhere deep in his chest. He crushed me to him, and the warmth exploded into shooting sparks.

His mouth seared mine, our kiss deepening until the world became nothing but Bran’s taste and heat.

A crash from inside the church pulled us apart. We stood gasping, staring at each other in wonder.

“God, you’re so hot,” I whispered.

“Well, you’re not too bad yourself.”

My eye-rolling was almost painful as he waggled those ridiculous eyebrows.

“No, you idiot.” Though I plastered on a smile to soften the words, I couldn’t hide the worry that froze it in place. The back of my fingers brushed his forehead, his cheek. His skin was scalding. For the first time I noticed his eyes were glassy, glazed. “Bran, you have a fever.”

I’d appreciate any feedback! And please also go and visit other these other awesome Blog Hop participants: Candie Campbell, Kris Waldherr, Tonia Marie Harris, Janet Oakley, Donna Barker, Julianne Douglas, Betsy Ashton, Jess Shira, Arabella Stokes, Megan Hennessey, Barb Taub, Rae Ellen Lee and Laura Kenyon

Happy Valentines Day, everyone. And may the LOVE be ever in your favor!

Posted in SFWG, Uncategorized, Writing | Tagged blog hop, fiction, heather webb, valentine's day, wheres the love blog hop | 19 Comments

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Janet

Do you go all squishy and starry-eyed about Valentines Day?  Or are you one of the “I’d rather punch my fist through that stupid heart-shaped box of candy” ilk?

I’ve never been one to turn all gooey on Valentines Day myself, though I totally respect all you Valentines freaks…er…fans. It’s sweet, fun, and boy don’t our floral brothers and sisters make a buttload of money? I would probably get more shmoopy about it, except both my hubby’s birthday and our anniversary happen to fall on the same week. There’s only so much sugar one person can take, right? Because of all that, our family has always just kinda phoned in V-Day.

Don’t get me wrong. Hearts and flowers are awesome.

 

But given the choice–I’ll take gory over moony any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

Which is my not-so-subtle segue into the true story of St. Valentine. His story is one of  torture and beheading and… Sorry. *sniff* That always gets me right in the old soft spot. 

There’s a tangled amount of legend on St. Valentine. But the most prevailing tale (according to  Catholic.Org, and Newsfeed-Time.com ) is that Valentinus was an early Catholic Priest who was persecuted for secretly marrying Christian couples. (awww.) When he was caught, he was beaten with clubs and beheaded.  (aww–erp– I mean… eww…)

Here are some of the murky facts surrounding good old St.V.

Fast Facts:

• One Valentine was a Roman priest and doctor who was persecuted by the emperor Claudius II for marrying Christian couples.  Claudius took a liking to Valentine, but Valentine overstepped his bounds when he tried to convert the emperor, and Claudius sentenced him to death – and an ugly death at that.  Lore suggests that he was beaten, stoned, and finally beheaded.

• Some accounts state that this priest had fallen in love with the blind daughter of his jailer, and signed a letter that he wrote to her “from your Valentine.”  Another tale says that after his brutal death, he performed the miracle of restoring the sight of his jailer’s daughter.

• There is another Valentine who appears in early martyrologies: a bishop of Terni, Italy, who was also allegedly persecuted in Rome.  It’s been proposed that this man was one and the same as the Valentine executed by Claudius.

• St. Valentine was said to be interred north of Rome on February 14, though this date may mark his death instead of his burial.

• The feast of St. Valentine was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496.  Some say that Valentine’s feast day is celebrated in February because the church wanted to Christianize an ancient Roman pagan festival called Lupercalia, which centered around fertility and purification, and also took place in February.

• Valentine’s feast day has been celebrated as a lovers’ holiday and a day of romance since the 14^th century, when the date was thought to be the beginning of the mating season for birds.

{{Psst–Lupercalia sounds cool, right?}}

The true story of Valentine may be lost to history, but we can at least choose to enjoy the fruits of his legend. Go have that romantic dinner. Smell those roses. Get yo’ chocolate on, girl! Or.. Go crawl in your recliner in your rattiest sweats and chuck bologna slices at the wall for fun. Whatever floats ya, babe!
Which are you in the box of chocolates?  Do you have a gooey center? Are you all hard nut inside?

I’m a bit of both–maybe leaning toward nut.  (Of course, that nut thing is a whole other story.)

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in author, fiction writing, Uncategorized, YA Books | Tagged aspiring author, Author, historical fiction, novel writing, saint valentine, valentine's day, YA fiction, YA hisfic, YA time travel, young adult time travel | 1 Comment

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