Ute Carbone
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Inside the Writer's Garret

On writing and life, with a little chocolate thrown in from time to time.

#8Sunday. The End. To the Wind

10/25/2015

1 Comment

 
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Welcome to #8Sunday, the blog hop where writers post eight to ten sentences of  their work. I've started a new #8Sunday series called the end, where I'm posting the final lines from some of my books. Last week, I posted the end of Sweet Lenora, the first book of the Sweet Lenora series. So to follow up this week I'm posting the end of To the Wind, the second book of this four book historical series. 
The story of To the Wind is told by Anton who has become the love of Lenora's life. In the end, the couple have settled in San Francisco. They're happy, though there are more challenges and adventures to come. 
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I should have expected no less from her. By day’s end tomorrow, she would be in charge of repairs. I minded only a little.
I minded less later that night, when she ran to the bed and jumped in beside me.
“You see, it all works out in the end,” she said, kissing my shoulder.
“It is not the end yet, I hope.” I touched my lips to the tender pulse at the base of her neck.
“Nay,” she whispered, unbuttoning the last button of her dressing gown. “It is just the beginning.”

 Find out more about The Sweet Lenora Series here. 
Be sure to visit Weekend Writing Warriors for more #8Sunday  snippets.
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#8Sunday. TheEnd. Sweet Lenora

10/18/2015

6 Comments

 
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Welcome to #8Sunday, the blog hop where writers share eight to ten sentences of their work. Last week, I started a new series called the end, because satisfying endings are essential to a happy reading experience.
Today's ending, from the novella Sweet Lenora,  is happy, but it also leaves a lot unfinished. That's because it's the first part of a series and only the beginning of Anton and Lenora's adventures. They've escaped from Rio and sailed away, but with half a crew and miles of dangerous ocean between them and their destination, San Francisco. 



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 “We have done it.” My heart, too, sailed on the wind.
“Aye the wind is with us. We have but half a crew and we may be pursued, but we will no doubt outrun them.”
“We are here, alive,” I took hold of his waist, “tis all that matters.” I meant those words with all my heart.
The land soon disappeared over the horizon. I had found my true place in the world. If I could sail on the wind with Anton at my side, commanding my ship and holding my heart to his, I could want for nothing. 

Find your next great read! Visit Weekend Writing Warriors for more #8Sunday snippets.
6 Comments

#8Sunday. The End. All Things Returned

10/11/2015

2 Comments

 
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Hi Sunday eighters. Over the past few months, I've posted the opening lines of my books. So what next?  A wise writer once said (and my apologies both for failing to remember who said it and for paraphrasing because I can't remember the exact quote, either) " Beginnings sell a reader on your book. Endings sell them on your next book." Over the next few weeks, I'll be posting some of my book endings.
I'm starting in the middle, though, with All Things Returned, the third novella of the Sweet Lenora Series. There is method to my madness--I'm celebrating this novella, because it recently came in first place in the colonial/Civil War/western category of Hearts Through Romance's Romancing the Novel Contest. 
Readers, myself included, love a satisfying ending. My books almost always end happily--if not forever after, at least for now.  Even though Anton and Lenora Boudreaux, the characters whose love story is at the heart of this series, will have more trials to face in Sweet Auralie, the last book of the series, they are content in each other at the end of this novella. 

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“Three years perhaps. Enough for the gossip over Jacob Lowell to have faded.” Anton ran his hands along my back then circled them round my waist. “At any rate, we shall go to Edward and Meifeng’s for dinner this evening, to celebrate and speak further of our plan.”
“I should like that a good deal.”
“In the meanwhile, Mrs. Boudreaux, I should like to spend the day in my wife’s company.”
“Would you? What shall we do?”
“Make up for lost time,” Anton said, before putting his lips to mine. 

Be sure to visit Weekend Writing Warriors for more Sunday snippets. 
2 Comments

One Step Back and Two Steps Forward

10/9/2015

2 Comments

 
Earlier this week,  I signed a release form giving the rights to  three of my titles back to me. As has been the case with many small presses these days, my publisher, Turquiose Morning Press, has had to close its doors. 
I've loved working with Kim Jacobs and the staff of TMP. I am indebted to my wonderful editor, Karen Block, who made my work shine. I'm sad to see the place where I'd found a home for my women's fiction no longer in business.
Kim Jacobs has been gracious and generous throughout my TMP time, and she remains so even as she has had to step back. There are many horror stories of small presses closing shop in the middle of the night and running off with whatever remains in the coffers. I hear those stories, and am grateful to have a publisher who has made this transition as smooth as she possibly could and who keeps her mailbox open to those of us looking for advice and guidance.
Two books, Dancing in the White Room and The Tender Bonds, along with the short story trilogy The Lilac Hour, are impacted by this transition.  Kim was kind enough to revert rights to the fully edited books and gift the covers. So, soon as I'm able, I will self-publish them and bring them back to readers. 
I'm leaning towards, or being pulled towards perhaps, the hybrid model many authors are pursuing, with some books published traditionally and some independently. I've not decided yet, but I may publish more titles independently in the future. If there is a silver lining here, it's that I've found a wonderful support staff, a great editor in Karen and fine cover art from Kim, which I'll be able to connect with if I decide to go this route.
So, I ask your patience. Stay tuned and hopefully, I'll get these books back out quickly and then  move forward again. With luck, my books and I will  come roaring back. As long as you want to read my stories, I will continue to write them.  
 
Thank you for reading my stories and for all of your encouraging reviews, comments and notes. They mean more to me than I can say. They keep me going .
With Love
Ute
2 Comments

Announcing Sweet Auralie!

10/5/2015

0 Comments

 
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It's time to break out the birthday cake and funny hats! I'm pleased to announce the arrival of my latest book, Sweet Auralie. This is the last part of Anton and Lenora's story, which began with Sweet Lenora and continued through two more novellas,  To the Wind and All Things Returned. 
The series represents a lot of firsts for me--it's the first time I've written a series, for one. It's also the first time I've written something in a time other than our own.  
This book, set in the mid-eighteen hundreds, takes the reader on both a physical and an emotional journey. It begins with a trip to Shanghai and ends with a race around the tip of South America in hopes of breaking the speed record from Boston to San Francisco in a sailing vessel. As Anton and Lenora face challenges, the love they share strengthens and grows. In the end, it becomes the very heart of a legacy.
I hope you enjoy this last installment of the Sweet Lenora series and all the other Sweet Lenora books.
You can purchase an e-copy at these locations:
All Romance e-books_
​Amazon
Champagne Books
​
Barnes and Noble_
0 Comments

#8Sunday First Lines--Sweet Auralie

10/4/2015

0 Comments

 
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Welcome back to #8Sunday, the weekend writing warrior's blog hop where writers post eight to ten sentences of their work.  Since we often talk about the importance of opening lines, I've been posting the openings of my books over the past few months.  What better way to finish this series of openers than with the first lines of my brand new book. 
Sweet Auralie is the final book of the Sweet Lenora series. Unlike the other three books in the series, it's a full length novel rather than a novella. It begins where the last novella, All Things Returned, leaves off, with the hanging of Cyrus Abercrombie, hated former first mate on the Sweet Lenora. Anton Boudreaux narrates this part of the story--

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The sun shone bright the morning of the hanging as though it were a perfect day for a picnic. When I had ridden past the public square with Lenora’s brother, Edward, the day earlier, there were already booths being hammered together by local merchants making ready to sell their wares at the spectacle.
“Will you attend?” Edward asked.
“I would not like to put Lenora through such an ordeal,” I answered. I should myself have liked to see Cyrus Abercrombie receive the justice he so richly deserved, but I did not hold with turning sober occasions into celebration.
“Aye. We shall stay home as well.” I wondered if Edward might have gone had he not wanted to protect his wife, Meifeng.
​“You are quite right, ladies should not be subjected to such things. Perhaps no one should.”

Sweet Auralie releases as an e-book tomorrow, October 5.  You can preorder it on Amazon
Find your next great read! Check out all the authors at the #8Sunday Blog Hop
Read More About Sweet Auralie
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    Welcome 

    This writing journey, this life,  is a long road full of pitfalls and wrong turns. Also, incredible beauty, kindness and friendship with those I've met along the way.I'm so glad you're here to share the road..


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