Saturday Friend - Hywela Lyn

Welcome to my friend, Hywela Lyn, who lives in a small village in England, with her long suffering husband Dave, although her heart remains in her native rural Wales, which inspired much of her writing. Her pen-name, Hywela Lyn is a combination of her first two names. She has always been known by her second name 'Lyn' and thought it was time her Welsh first name was used as well! She is a member of The Romance Novelists' Association (UK) and her local writing group, Chiltern Writers.

Although most of her writing tends to be futuristic, set among the stars, or distant planets, the worlds she creates are usually untainted by crowded cities and technology, embracing the beauty and wildness of nature. Her characters often have to fight the elements and the terrain itself. Her heroes are strong and courageous, and her heroines feisty, brave and strong minded, while still retaining their femininity. However difficult the journey, in the end, love always wins.

A keen animal lover, she has two horses, Harri and T'pau  a  'rescue' terrier called Choccy, and a  'feral' cat, Dusty, employed  to do the 'mousework' at the stable yard.

When she is not writing or reading, she can usually be found enjoying the outdoors with her horses and dog  - or just eating chocolate!

She loves hearing from readers and fellow authors and can be contacted at Lyn@hywelalyn.co.uk

A HEROINE IS BORN

‘Heroines with Hearts’ - what a great title for a blog! It set me thinking. After all, most romantic heroines do have a heart, don’t they? Take one of the most famous, for example, Scarlet O’Hara in Margaret Mitchell’s ‘Gone With the Wind’. She may have started out as rather spoilt and self centred, but as the story progressed and she encountered terrible hardships and personal tragedies, her true nature emerged. She not only had a great love for her home and family, but she proved she did have a heart, although in the end, sadly too late, she realised she had given it to the wrong man.

That is just one example, I’m sure you can think of many others. As a writer, when it comes to creating a romantic heroine, it is quite a complicated matter. I expect every author has her own method. For me it’s quite simple, to start with anyway, usually she comes to me and demands an interview!

For instance, Jess, in ‘Starquest’ arrived in answer to my mental request for a love interest for Kerry Marchant, my rather dour and intense hero. She had to be strong in order to hold her own against his dry and slightly sarcastic nature, and strong she was. However she certainly had heart, together with a rather sweet, vulnerable side to her, and to my surprise Kerry found that trait rather endearing. Jess could also be very strong willed and she left me in no doubt as to her nature, and even what she looked like. I had envisaged her as being blonde but she insisted she had flaming red hair, to match her green eyes and occasional short temper. She even changed the ending of the story, and although I argued with her, she was determined to win, and told me to “just try it my way, and see.” So I did, and of course she was right. When I thought about it, that was the only way the story could have ended. But that left me with another problem, and although ‘Starquest’ had started out as a ‘single title’ I ended up writing a second story in what was to become ‘The Destiny Trilogy.’ Although every story features some of the same characters, each book can be read as a ‘stand alone’ novel.

Tamarith, the heroine of ‘Children Of The Mist’ was a supporting character in ‘Starquest’ and although shy, gentle and unassuming, this beautiful telepath gradually assumed so much importance that she became the main female character in the second book. Like Jess, she may have had a kind and loving heart, but she soon showed her own strength and courage and her determination to face whatever dangers befell her in order to help the man she had grown to love, achieve his true potential.

Cat, the heroine in the third book, ‘Beloved Enemy’, is possibly the most complex female lead of the three. She starts off on a mission – a mission to kill Kerry Marchant. She thinks she has every reason to want to kill him – to avenge the death of her sister. However, events conspire against her and she finds herself fighting alongside the very man she has sworn to kill. She is playing a dangerous game of deception and Kerry is not sure where her allegiance lies.

They are drawn into a sinister web of events by a highly superior race with mind blowing powers, who threaten not only them and the ‘Destiny’ Kerry’s beloved starship, but the very existence of Earth itself. In the end Cat reveals that not only does she have tremendous courage and will, but she does have a heart, despite her efforts to hide it, and she is not afraid to admit when she is wrong.

Romantic heroines – however they come to you, whether fully formed, or in infancy, requiring a lot of nurturing and ‘fleshing out’, one thing they all have in common – they will always be ‘heroines with hearts’.

BELOVED ENEMY

Blurb

Cat Kincaid is obsessed with killing the man she believes is responsible for the torture and death of her sister, but when she eventually catches up with him, survival becomes a greater priority than revenge.
Kerry Marchant, haunted by memories, regret and self-blame, shields himself from the pain of the past by committing himself totally to the starship, Destiny, of which he is part owner. However, the beautiful, red haired woman who reminds him of his lost love, and who he suspects is working for a corrupt regime, represents a possible threat not only to the ship, but to his heart.
Marooned on an inhospitable planet, they need to work together to stay alive, fighting not only unknown assailants, but their growing attraction. But how can they learn to trust each other when he has vowed never to get close to a woman again, and she made a solemn pledge to destroy him.

Excerpt

His expression froze as his gaze homed in on the insignia on her breast pocket, his eyes like chips of blue ice. “You work for the Union."
“I work for myself.”
“Then why are you wearing the insignia of the Global Union of Earth and Allied Planets?"
“I have a license to requisition any enemy ship trespassing in the sectors of space over which they hold dominion.”
“A licensed pirate in the pay of the Global Union.,” Kerry’s eyes showed outright contempt. She almost preferred the icy coolness.
“I prefer to think of myself as a freelancer—doing a service.”
His expression did not change, although he did change tack. “You could have left me to die—or just shot me. Why didn’t you?”
“Call it a personality flaw. I don’t like abandoning someone who’s wounded, even to save my own skin. And I don’t kill in cold blood. If I have to shoot someone, I’d rather they were facing me, with their eyes open.”
Even if I did swear to leave their dead body for the Union to use in their hideous experiments. Keep it casual. Don’t let him guess what’s really in your mind.
To her amazement, he smiled, the most devastating smile she’d ever seen, and made even more remarkable because he didn’t look as if he did it very often.
“My own philosophy as it happens. It seems almost a pity we are on opposite sides.”
“Opposite sides?”
“I have no love for the Union. That puts us on opposite sides, even if you are just a pirate, doing their dirty work for them."
She gave him her best withering look. “Fine. And just because I decided to save your hide, don’t get any ideas. We don’t have to like each other.”

(Released from The Wild Rose Press on 11th March 2016)

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON US: http://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Enemy-Destiny-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B01BBCBYCS

AMAZON UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Beloved-Enemy-Destiny-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B01BBCBYCS

Author Page at The Wild Rose Press: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=138

 

Hywela's personal links:

Website: www.hywelalyn.co.uk

Blog: www.hywelalyn.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HywelaLynAuthor

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hywela-Lyn/e/B002BMBXH4/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1357556298&sr=1-2-ent

Many thanks for being our guest today, Hywela, and here's wishing you huge success with your new release!