Welcome Nancy Jardine from Scotland!

Hi Nancy!
When do you do your best writing? Morning? Evening? Or mid-day? And  how do you organize your writing time?

Since leaving full-time teaching a couple of years ago I have more daytime available for writing. I write around the occasional teaching day and other household commitments like gardening, which in the north-east of Scotland is very weather dependent.  I write best in the mornings, the late afternoon and evening. The post lunch session tends to be the garden one since I find it a dead time for writing anyway.
 I usually feel bogged down after lunch too.Are you a reader as well as a writer? What have you read lately?

Absolutely a reader. I can’t go to bed without reading something every day or I feel deprived…or disappointed that I’ve not organized my day well enough. I’ve been a romance junkie for years and years, but I do occasionally read other work. I just finished a (oops it’s a Harlequin) historical called ‘A Dark and Brooding Gentleman’ by Margaret McPhee. I’m currently reading two novels ‘Jezebels Wish’ by AJ Nuest and back to rereading Jayne Eyre before going to the cinema soon to see the newest film version. 

I loved AJ's book! How do you spend your free time when not reading or writing? Do you even have free time?

I don’t really have much that I consider free time. A cup of coffee and a book is my idea of free time or when I watch a film on TV or video, which is fairly rare. I’m into Ancestry though which does eat into my day, but I love getting buried-no pun intended- in the mire of historical facts and intrigues.  

 I love historical research as well and my mom's into genealogy. 

Since I love to travel and seldom do, I like to hear about other places. It’s one reason I love to read and write. I get to travel in my head. Much cheaper that way. Lol!  So, where do you live? What’s the climate and topography like?

Kintore Townhouse built 1747

Hallforest Castle-Kintore

I live in a village called Kintore in the north-east of Scotland, 15 miles from the city of Aberdeen, in what is usually termed ‘castle country’.  That means loads of castles on my doorstep within short car rides! It’s very picturesque, I love living here, but the weather just isn’t to be relied on. We can have all seasons in one day. This summer hasn’t made an appearance yet…we’ve had pretty constant grey skies and it’s been very cool. 53 deg Fahrenheit is not unusual for our daytime temp. If it’s a few degrees warmer we celebrate and warm up the barbeque!! Last week when hurricane ‘Irene’ hit the east coast of the US we had 65mph winds. In sympathy you might say but they’re not uncommon here, though thankfully we didn’t have much rain. We’d call it ‘just a wee summer breeze’.  That’s why my 190 year old house is made of very thick grey granite slabs!

Crathes Castle in Aberdeenshire

Wow! I love old homes. And I adore castles. We visited several while in Germany and Austria in 2008 and again in April of this year. And Scotland and Ireland are on my bucket list of places to visit one day. And these castles are definitely on the list.

Germany, Holland, Austria and the Bahamas are the most exotic places I've ever visited. And the Bahamas don't have castles. lol! So, what about you? Where are some of the places you've been?

I’ve done a lot of European and Mediterranean travel over the years. I lived in Holland for three years and gave birth to two daughters there, so I know the Netherlands pretty well.  It was also easy enough to spend long weekends in neighboring Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France, and Luxembourg. Most of those cities have been memorable in one way and another, but not exotic for me. I’ve also been to Norway, Canada and North America but again, though fabulous, not exotic.  My daughter’s wedding and combined holiday for 14 guests was on Cuba. That was great fun and very different. Cairo for me was getting closer to being almost exotic, but I guess the most exotic place was Muscat in Oman. The stunning backdrop of dark purple rugged hills against the blue sea and white sand beaches was incredible.  

That sounds awesome. Was it vacation, business, or research? And, have you ever combined travel and research?

Being a teacher of 11-12yr olds for a long time meant being tied to school vacations.  It was pretty ironic though; I’d visit places at all the wrong times.  My husband was a Computer Consultant, working mainly for oil companies or involved in ‘energy’ projects all around the globe- always working away somewhere. I only got to visit a fraction of the places he’s been to. I was delighted to visit Calgary, but since he was working there around Christmas time it was in temps of minus 30/32 Fahrenheit. It was so cold our Ski package was cancelled since the tows etc were closed down and my kids  were tickled with the fact that the polar bears in Calgary Zoo had a partially inside enclosure! That particular Christmas was followed by a summer vacation for me in the Middle East-dotting between Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi in temperatures of…wait for it…yes…humid  110 deg Fahrenheit. You get the drift, I think. Where my husband was working I’d tow my two daughters for a holiday, cold or boiling hot, but we did see quite a lot of the world that way.    

I have a cousin who lives in Bahrain. This summer, when NC had temps in the upper 90s to lower 100s for several weeks running in July, she didn't even break a sweat. lol!

  Where is your most recent release, Monogamy Twist set?

I’ve only had one novel published so far. It's a sort of contemporary history mystery set in the north of England.

8.       Tell us something about it.

     Monogamy Twist is a ‘twist’ on a Dickensian bequest theme. My handsome hero, Luke, has a surprise bequest dropped on his lap- a slightly dilapidated English estate of a woman he’s never heard of before, or ever met. Hence the mystery. To eventually inherit he has to fulfill certain quirky terms set down by the will, and to do that he needs a woman. Not just any woman though, as he also wants to unearth the secret of him being the benefactor. Enter my lovely heroine, Rhia, who just happens to be a neighbor and a family history researcher!! How convenient is that? Well, maybe not so as Rhia has some terms of her own that Luke must meet before she agrees to help him.                    

              

       Blurb- Monogamy Twist- Nancy Jardine

     Luke Salieri thought he'd seen everything. But when he inherits a dilapidated English estate from a woman he's never heard of—and with quirky conditions besides—it’s a mystery he wants resolved immediately. There must be a woman out there who can meet his needs. But how far will he have to go to persuade her? Lucrative employment for a whole year? The job of researching the old house and its fantastic contents is enticing – but Rhia Ashton can’t see herself living with gorgeous Luke Salieri and not wanting his body as well. Can she live and sleep with him for a whole year and then walk away? Rhia has her own ideas about what will make it worth her while.

     Here's the link: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=191&products_id=4613
      It's also available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Monogamy-Twist-Nancy-Jardine/dp/1601549652/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1313524579&sr=1-1 

                       Love the cover! So, what are you working on now?

I’m nail biting at present since I sent in a second contemporary novel to TWRP. No news on that yet though. (Worldwide locations and again a bit of a mystery to solve, though no ‘history’) I’m currently revising –oh dear! yet again- an historical novel that I’m determined to ‘master’ (having been rejected a couple of times already). I’m also working on another contemporary set in European locations - Heidelberg, Vienna, The Hague, Edinburgh- not sure where else yet. (All places I’ve visited). This, too, has a bit of a history mystery to it.  I’ve also started a historical ‘saga’. My ancestry research has uncovered some very interesting family skeletons that I’m using in a piece of fiction. (Oh how naughty they were!) I’m also actively trying (and not succeeding yet) to find an agent to take on my fiction novel for 9-12yrs to help me get it published. Children’s fiction in the UK is really difficult to get into as there are no publishers who will accept un-agented work as submissions. It’s the first of a potential series and straddles the contemporary/ time travel/ and history genres. It’s set in north east Scotland in the time of the Roman Occupation of Emperor Severus around 210 AD. If anyone out there knows of an agent who’ll take me on I’d be soooo pleased with you. *hugs and kisses in anticipation*

Great questions, Lilly. I just hope my answers haven’t bored the pants off you!  Thank you very much for inviting me today, it’s been a pleasure.

Thanks for joining me. I love hearing about other places. And your WIP's sound as good as your new release.

To learn more about Nancy, please visit: http://nancyjardineauthor.weebly.com/