Just finishing the first round of copy edits for Avelynn2!
So… close. 😉
I was fortunate enough to visit Blue Heron Books in Uxbridge, Ontario this past Thursday, June 23rd for their annual event Babes Shop Brock. What a hoot that was! I signed copies with my amazing Viking guests and chatted with all the wonderful shoppers strolling along Brock St. If you haven’t had a chance to check out this quaint bookseller (voted number #1 Independent Bookseller in Canada) you’re missing out! Tell them Marissa sent you. 😀
Here’s some photos from the event.
And always, don’t forget to support your local independent booksellers!
In gratitude,
Marissa xo
Did #Vikings have scissors? Why, yes. Yes, they did.
An excerpt from #Avelynn2
“Tell me what to do.” Angharad surveyed the room.
I pulled out the vellum and, using a pair of scissors, cut two small sections away. I handed her one, kept the other piece, and placed the rest back in my satchel.
My photo from the #Viking Exhibit at the Canadian Museum of History #Ottawa
In gratitude,
Marissa xo
An excerpt from #Aveynn2. Perhaps Avelynn would drink from a vessel such as these.
The smell of meat and broth filled the cottage with a warm robust scent, and my stomach growled. Over the hearth, a heavy iron cauldron rested on its tripod, a brew of thick bubbling stew simmered within. A platter of bread trenchers sat on the table. A jug of wine and two fine glass beakers had been set beside them. I smiled at Angharad’s thoughtfulness. I’d eaten little since I broke my fast this morning at St. Dogmael’s.
My photos from the #Viking Exhibit at the Canadian Museum of History #Ottawa
In gratitude,
Marissa xo
I have a wild event planned for Uxbridge, Ontario on Saturday, March 5th!
I’ll be at Blue Heron Books from 2-4pm. And I’m bringing friends. 😀
Since I’m going to be signing copies of Avelynn, I wanted to showcase the rich historical detail outlined in the book. In order to do that, I needed Vikings.
So, I found some wonderful young men who were willing to hangout at the store on March 5th, shirtless, whilst handing out chocolate and posing with fans.
In anticipation of the event, I had a photo shoot to give everyone a little taste of what to look forward to. Here’s a little behind the scenes peek into what my Saturday night looked like.
Hope to see everyone at Blue Heron Books on March 5th!
So much fun, I cannot wait until the 5th!
In gratitude,
Marissa xo
I feel naked without my online Oxford English Dictionary, but at $19.99US a month, I had to let it go. That leaves me with relying on free internet resources when searching the etymology of words. I still use my beautiful, hoary glue-bound 1977 copy of The Living Webster for my definitions, but the OED was handy for finding out where and when words originated and when they came into common usage. Bear with me then as we navigate the world of free sources together.
Today’s magical word is hoar: whitish grey; venerable, ancient, or old; white or grey, often referring to age. I particularly like hoarfrost, which is a whitish mist. The hoary old mule lazed about the meadow. The poor young thing is always surrounded by a horde of hoary men.
From what I can piece together, the word first appeared in the 1200s. It was in common usage by the 1500s. These dates make it a perfect word to include in my Avelynn series.
Bertram was certainly a hoary character. He might even be the hoariest in the cast of characters floating around in my head. He was an ancient druid, and he had long white hair, both particularly hoary details. I liked Bertram. He was a kind-hearted soul but had a mysterious edge about him. He walked a fine line between politics, religion, and familial obligations.
SPOILER ALERT
(If you haven’t read the first book in the series, you may want to skip this next paragraph)
We lose touch with Bertram and many of the characters from the first book as Avelynn’s journey pulls her elsewhere. In the second book, Avelynn finds herself in Wales and becomes embroiled in one of the hoariest of human conflicts: politics and power, not to mention another hoary issue: desire and deception. We get to meet an entire cast of new characters, each with their own agendas and goals. Despite the current predicament Avelynn sees herself in, she still yearns to solve problems and conflicts created in the first book. Home is never far from her mind.
Stay tuned to the series for all the thrilling details from the hoary ninth century.
In gratitude,
Marissa xo