March 28, 2007
BLOG BREAK …
Skyward view from the sands of Waikiki.
The blog is on break for a few days …. while I catch up with a few deadlines, research, contest judging and life in general. Be good while I’m gone
Skyward view from the sands of Waikiki.
The blog is on break for a few days …. while I catch up with a few deadlines, research, contest judging and life in general. Be good while I’m gone
—Synonyms 1. muddle, perplex. 2. cloud. 3. to make obscure or unclear. 4.darken
Some days are just like that. Beautiful in their own way, though. And you know the sky will clear.
My Path: 5km, speedwalk (knee is not happy at a jog), in layers upon layers of mist that sifted the mountains in and out of vision — here now, then gone. And soft rain.
My Sound: Birds. Drips. Rivers. The snap and woosh of conifer branches releasing a winter’s worth of snow.
There’s still snow — every day. Better than rain, I suppose. My imagination, however, is in a much warmer place
Which is good, since we’re without hot water as well for a few days. Don’t ask. It’s a long story.
Start your engines people — it’s the first day of Spring. Well, it is in the northern hemisphere. The world is now balanced between light and dark, day and night, and it’s a time of fresh green sprouts, buds and eggs and fluffy baby things – new beginnings. Even the bears are awake, stretching, and looking to a new day.
I think this is the time we really should be making those new year’s resolutions. It’s more natural to start afresh at this Pagan time. The earth’s rhythms are right. The light is right. We’re done with hibernation. It’s time to move.
Or is it just me?
My Path: 5 km at a speed walk (knee handling okay)
My Music: Just the birds and the brook. And some crows — I just can’t count their squawks as bird song. They’re awfully excited by the melt at the moment … lot’s of strange looking things suddenly to be found to eat, and fight over. Noisily.

I was thinking about the muses today — those boys in the basement, as King would have it. Or the girls downstairs, as Crusie might call them. Or the connecting with the universal subconcsious in a Jungian sense. And I was thinking about the symbols some artists give their muses.
I don’t have a specific image for my muse per se, but I do have a totem — two actually — that embody my ‘passion’, my will to create or ‘do’, or ’strive’. They capture the essence of drive and inspiration and tenacity for me – when I find it — and I realized I’d neglected summoning their images this past winter.
One of my totems is a great buffalo. He thunders alongside me on my left, hooves striking earth hard. Connecting with rhythm. Forecful. Primal. Dark. Wild. Both gentle and fierce. He doesn’t judge. The other is a fire sprite — something ephemeral, mischievous, light, fast, sometimes wicked. She finds things amusing a lot of the time, she plays with meaning, and she can burn if you try and contain her. She hovers up in the air on my right.
The buffalo came to me in a dream last year. Call me weird, but I began to feel him running at my side when I ran very far, and long, and very alone in deep mountain forest. The sprite arrived shortly after. I liked their company (yes, I know, the men in white coats will be here soon), and I began to work at conjuring their images and drawing on their forces while I ran. I guess it’s because I haven’t been running for a while that they left me. But when I remembered them today, I realized why I’d been missing running so badly.
It was more than just the run. I’d lost my spirit guides. I need to get back. I start tomorrow, baby steps, to see if my knee will hold. If not, I’m going to be one sorry puppy.
What about you? Do you have a muse, or totem that inspires you?

I feel I was a tad lazy writing-wise this past weekend. I watched movies, read, ate well (too well), and went for long sunny walks. So why do I feel guilty? We need to take time to remember why we love to write, right? C’mon — someone please make me feel better about taking a weekend off.

Welcome to my slice of life in B.C.’s wild and wet coast mountains. This ’running commentary’ is less about writing than it is a small window – often visual — into the life of a romance writer, on the run.
I hope to get to know my readers this way, and I hope you get to know me … just a little better.
From The Romance Reader:
“THE HEART OF A RENEGADE is a skillfully crafted novel, packed with complex characters involved in a well-used plot line; however, it is innovatively done. Loreth Anne White’s pacing is superb, maintaining ever mounting intensity as the story plays out. This story is rich with detail, and a plot that could be expanded to a 450 page hardcover. That said, it does not feel as if it were condensed but evolves in the expected manner only to twist and turn a bit adding interest and suspense. The dynamics between Jessica and Luke are extraordinarily well handled.
White is a very gifted author and whose future novels will be sought out by this reviewer.”
–Thea Davis
A TOP PICK from Romantic Times BOOKreview for THE HEART OF A RENEGADE
“Luke Stone is just like a stone. After his pregnant wife is murdered, he closes up emotionally, until his employer asks him to protect Jessica Chan, who’s a target of the Chinese Triad Dragons for attempting to expose their atrocities. Luke doesn’t want to be responsible for anyone, and he’s surprised to find a kindred spirit in Jessica. When they’re on the run with only each other to lean on, their emotional barriers crumble. The Heart of a Renegade (4.5) is an action ride full of thrills and surprises and a love story that will make your heart beat faster.
Loreth Anne White has expanded her Shadow Soldiers series, and intriguing and dynamic characters continue to make it compelling.
—Sandra Garcia-Myers
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And a five-star review from CataRomance.com:
From the instance THE HEART OF A RENEGADE starts, one will take an indrawn breath and continue to gasp until the explosive ending. The danger is believably suspenseful with heart-pounding threats, and how they are carried out is terrifying realistic. Just when one thinks all is going smoothly for the hero and heroine, more peril crops up and they must once again fight for their lives.
Luke and Jessica are one of the most endearing couples about whom I have had the pleasure to read, and their compelling story profoundly touched me. Whether they are fleeing from the enemy or expressing exactly how they feel on a subject, their actions are authentic and make them seem very true-to-life. Ms. White had me caring for this couple and what the future holds for them, causing numerous tension-filled moments during the story. THE HEART OF A RENEGADE masterfully evokes images and feelings to create an enthralling plus emotional story which never disappoints.
–Amelia Richard
SEDUCING THE MERCENRY earns Cata award
I am thrilled to learn SEDUCING THE MERCENARY has been named a CataRomance Reviewers Choice award winner for 2007. Thank you to the Cata team!
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HEART OF A MERCENARY EARNS CATA AWARD
I am honored to have been awarded a 2006 CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award for THE HEART OF A MERCENARY.
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SULTAN is NRCA finalist
A SULTAN’S RANSOM has been named a National Readers Choice Award finalist in the long contemporary category.