Please join me today in welcoming multi-genre author, Tracie E. Hall from Florida. From YA Paranormal to Historical Romance, Traci has nearly a dozen books to her name and it doesn't look like she's slowing down! Welcome Traci!
Tell us a little
about yourself.
My name is Traci Hall, I am a Gemini, I detest broccoli and deliberately
make up words to rhyme with orange.
Did you plan to be
a writer or did it just happen?
As a kid, I was always telling stories -
sometimes downright lies to get out
of trouble, lol, and sometimes entertaining my little brother and younger cousins.
I would do just about anything to get a laugh, or see a look of pure terror in
their eyes.
Is writing a
full-time career for you? If not, how else do you spend your work day?
I work
at Starbucks, twenty hours a week for full insurance benefits. I spend 5:30 to
9:30 am selling/drinking coffee, and spend the rest of the day writing. I had
to train myself to take a nap, but I do, an hour a day so that I don’t fall
asleep in the spaghetti. Entertaining for the family but hard to get the pasta
out of your hair!
If you had to sum up The Queen’s Guard: Violet in 30 or less words, what would you say?
The Queen’s Guard: Violet is a medieval
romance set in Constantinople during the second crusade. Isabella de Lacey is a
spy, and Raoul Laskaris is her target.
What inspired the
idea behind your book?
The idea for the
book came from research I did for my Boadicea series. One of those little
nuggets that claimed Queen Eleanor and her ladies dressed as Boadicea, or
Amazon warriors, before leaving on crusade. That always stuck with me. I wanted
to write a series about the women on crusade.
Do you have a
favorite character in the book? Who and why?
Queen Eleanor fascinates me.
She held power through so many kings and in her own right for decades – she had
to have a huge network of spies! She is the main character throughout the
Queen’s Guard series, though each individual book is named after the spy. For
example, Isabella de Lacey goes by Violet. The next book is Peony, and the one
after that Rose. Eleanor is the master mind!
Is anything in your
book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?
The challenging
part of writing this series was staying true to real life/real time events.
Queen Eleanor really did go on crusade, and she really did bring a group of
ladies with her. What I have them do is completely fictional.
What kind of
research was involved for The Queen’s Guard: Violet?
The research is very
intense because I try to stay within the reality of what happened back then,
even so far as to check words and phrases in use at the time. That said, I
admit that I freely use creative license. I don’t want to write in medieval
French, and readers wouldn’t understand it, lolol
Do you have to be
alone or have quiet to write?
I prefer quiet, but once I am in the zone it
doesn’t matter. I could be in the middle of an airport and still write.
As a multi-genre
author, how do you juggle going back and forth between the different genres? Do
you have a preferred genre?
I write YA paranormal as well as medieval romances. I don’t
have a hard time switching because the books are so different, and for me it is
about being in the character’s head. This year I’ve been a Boston Socialite
turned reluctant miner in 1881, an 18 year old virgin in a dystopian future, a
female spy in medieval France, and a teenage girl with psychic powers and a
Wiccan family. At this moment I am in the head of a thirteen year old girl with
a camera and an orange skateboard – wish me luck!
What has been your
greatest pleasure or personal success as an author?
I love fan mail. Love it!
What type of
heroine do you like best?
The spunky kind! She can be shy, or outgoing, or a
bookworm – so long as she has grit, then I am a fan
Is there any place
and time in the world and in history that you would like to visit?
Egypt. I
would love to go back to the time of Cleopatra…
How do you unwind
after a long writing session?
A glass of wine and reruns of Storage Wars. The
mind just rests, lol.
What is the best
piece of writing advice you’ve received?
Never quit!!
When did you write your first book and how old were you?
Five,
and I used crayons and a pen. I had a pet ant named Blip, who looked like a
baked potato, lol
Laptop, desktop or notebook and pen for writing?
I need them
all at some point in the process. Notebook for notes that I keep in my purse.
Laptop for editing and marketing. Desktop for Serious Writing.
What do you have in
store next for your readers?
I just finished writing the second Queen’s Guard
book, QG:Peony, which will be available January 2013. I am writing a middle
grade mystery, and next I am writing the second book in my Mile Post 42/zombyre
series, which comes out 10/31/2012. After that is Wiccan Dream, the fifth book
in my Rhiannon Godfrey series, which should be available before December.
The Book
In 1147, Queen Eleanor and King Louis VII traverse to Jerusalem for the
Second Crusade. Along with her fancy bedding and wine, the wily, young
queen brings five lovely and talented women—spies identified by a
signature garden scent. Among them is the beautiful widow Isabella de
Lacey, aka Violet, whose duty is to infiltrate Emperor Manuel’s inner
circle and skillfully extract information. Will he aid the queen’s
cousin or betray the alliance for one with the Turks? To find out
Isabella must woo the emperor’s man, Raoul, whose soul is as black as
his eyes and passion both terrifies and captivates her. Set in
Constantinople, this historical romance is the first in a series about
the clandestine network of female spies beholden only to the powerful
Eleanor of Aquitaine.
The Excerpt
The Queen’s Guard
Second Crusade,
1147
Chapter One
The relentless October sun beat down on
Isabella de Lacey’s head, and for a fleeting moment she wished she’d never left
France. Though barely twenty, she felt
as old as Methuselah. Oui, she was a
dried, tired husk who couldn’t spare the moisture to cry.
In the past four months she’d traversed
France, Hungary, Bulgaria and now Greece with King Louis and his strong army of
Crusaders as a member of the Queen’s Guard.
Bella squinted ahead to see if she could find the King’s Standard, but
the limp banners were indistinguishable from her position so far back in line.
She and the other ladies in the queen’s
retinue had discovered crusading to be less of a romantic adventure to save the
Holy Land from the heathen Turks, and more of a pain in the derriere. Adventure promised; blisters gained.
Shifting uncomfortably in her saddle, Bella
thought longingly of a violet-scented bath and a cup of Bordeaux wine. She licked her dry lips and urged her mare
onward, letting her mind wander to past pleasures. Honeyed almonds. Crisp, tart apple slices. Whispers with a dream lover beneath the oak
tree in Queen Eleanor’s castle garden.
A familiar masculine voice intruded on her
thoughts. “Not long now, Bella,” Jonathon
said as he rode toward her from the front of the caravan.
“You lie, monsieur.” Isabella attempted a smile, but it tugged at
the sensitive skin around her mouth.
Grit crusted her brows and lashes, yet Jonathon seemed impervious to the
dirt. Not a single smudge of road dust
marred his handsome flesh.
She glanced at his lean, muscled form as he
turned his mount, taking his place at her right. His blond hair shone in the sun, and his
hazel eyes crinkled with laugh lines at the corners. “I would never lie to a lady,” the knight
said in such exaggerated chivalric tones she laughed despite her dry
throat. There was much to admire about
Jonathon.
“What news, then?” Bella’s stomach tightened with
anticipation. Adventure was one thing;
danger another. She’d walk if it would
hasten the end of this journey. “Are we
close?”
On behalf of the Pope, Abbot Bernard of
Clairvaux had preached for France to take up arms against the Turks so
convincingly that it was no surprise King Louis and Queen Eleanor had agreed to
wear the red cross and gather an army of vassals and soldiers to save Edessa.
What was surprising was how fast she had
gotten caught up in the whirlwind of it all, pledging her loyalty to Jerusalem
and God. And above all, to Queen
Eleanor. She would give her life for the
queen, although Bella hoped it wouldn’t come to that. At
the moment, I haven’t the strength to save a kitten from drowning.
“Oui,” Jonathon said. “We’re close.
Breathe deep, and you will catch the scent of ocean water instead of foul
corpses.”
Isabella took a hesitant sniff. Their army had the misfortune to follow the
land route behind Emperor Conrad III.
The devastation the German Crusaders had wrought left the inhabitants of
the Eastern Roman Empire wary of soldiers, no matter what banner they
bore. Some Greek towns had barred the
French Crusaders completely, while others charged exorbitant amounts for what
food and water they would sell, not honoring the even exchange rate promised by
Emperor Manuel Comnenus.
Worse, the Greek natives had killed
straggling German soldiers, and left the bodies unburied by the roadside as a
sign of their contempt. Queen Eleanor,
during her evening wine with her ladies, said that the king’s chaplain, Odo de
Deuil, feared sickness, and possible treachery.
Yet King Louis remained faithful as he led them toward Constantinople
and Emperor Manuel, who he hoped would remain an ally.
“Doubtless the emperor has cleared the
stench away from the city walls,” Bella said.
“Did King Louis send someone ahead to announce our arrival?”
“No need.
Just wait until you see the city, Bella. The towers on the wall are so
high the guards have most likely been watching our caravan since yesterday.”
Isabella shielded her eyes and stared
toward the front of the slow moving line as if a miracle would appear in the
form of shady trees and a picnic. “Would
that we were there already.”
“My beautiful petite belle,” Jonathon
whispered for her ears alone, sending a delicious shiver up her tired
spine. “Your courage will soon be
rewarded with a bath, fresh food and drink, and a real bed.”
“I’m not brave,” she scoffed. “Determined, perhaps.” Her life in the preceding years hadn’t been
about beauty or courage but survival. She
found it ironic to be praised for what amounted to a roll of destiny’s dice.
“You guard the queen with skill, and
beauty.”
Bella glanced at Jonathon and acknowledged
the gallant knight’s pretty words with a slight smile. “I am one of five, and we but complement the
queen’s strength.” Before
meeting Eleanor, Bella had honed her ability to hit any target in her deceased
husband’s dungeon, where she’d thrown rocks at mice before they could nibble
her toes. Now she proudly carried a quiver of arrows at her back.
“Calling
you tenacious isn’t very romantic,” her attentive knight teased.
Bella’s
hand immediately went to her dry cheek as she remembered the quick kiss he’d
placed there a month before – but not since. “Romance?” She fidgeted in her saddle. “This is not the place for it.” Besides, she’d been given a duty more
important than playing at love.
“Ah, but
does the queen not advise chivalrous behavior at all times?” Jonathon leaned closer, so that his leg
brushed hers. “A knight must always
honor his lady fair.”
Bella
decided a subject change was prudent. Jonathon’s words led to confusion, when she
had need of a clear head. “Why do you think
the king is so certain Emperor Manuel can be trusted? If the king’s advisors seem suspicious, should
he not listen? What will happen if
Manuel has changed his mind? After what Emperor Conrad has done to his country,
he could imprison us, or worse, have us killed.”
The Author
Best
selling author Traci Hall believes in happily ever after. She likes mystery, thrills, chills and love
songs so whether she is penning her adult historical romances, or her teen
paranormal novels, or her coming of age stories, one thing is guaranteed – a
happy ending.
Connect with Traci!
Website: www.traciehall.com
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/traciella
Twitter: @tracihallauthor
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/traciella
The Queen’s
Guard: Violet is ebook only, most of the others are available in print or ebook.
Also from Traci E. Hall
18 year old Lolita Howard is one of the last uninfected humans on earth,
and Valdric has six hundred years of vampirism under his cloak when he
faces medical evolution, or extinction. He chooses to survive and
becomes part vampire and part zombie. His duty is to protect the human
race. He wants to save the world. She wants a boyfriend who doesn't
think of her body parts as appetizers. Zombyre, My Love is a post
apocolyptic survival story about a girl and a new breed of monster – or
hero?
