maps on wall behind me involve the fourth Oregon historical and its region
The unexpected element, which excited me during the day, led to a scary and even horrifying dream-- one of my movie dreams. These dreams come now and again, rarely are nightmares. I might like to, but I don't control such dreams. They come when they come mixed into prosaic dreams where my main issue is to figure out what swimsuit to buy someone. I don't always remember them. This one I did, and am still trying to decide if it came out of the research or what in in the newspapers about world events.
There are two reasons I don't write horror or frightening books-- my dreams and my unwillingness to immerse myself in the negative side of life for the length of time it takes to write a book. When I am writing a rough draft, that world becomes as real as mine. I think about these characters all the time and am constantly considering what comes next. So I am not about to write stories that are depressing. Yeah, some struggle, some danger, some fighting for a victory can be energizing to me but not dark stories that have no happy outcome. As I've said many times, I can get that by reading the newspapers. I like writing a romance that engages my interest in characters and the story itself. What are these people doing, what comes next, and yeah I want to see the lovers work it out, but it's not just about them for me.
My interest in the prehistoric and Native American peoples of western North America has led to visiting sites, museums, and reading. Years ago, it inspired an idea for a romance with an Anasazi heroine and the hero a trader from one of the Pacific Northwest tribes, Haida would have worked. For those of you who know much about the Pacific Northwest tribes, they were quite interesting, and the ones along the ocean especially in British Columbia were a handsome, rugged people. They killed whales from their canoes, but they also raided and traveled widely. Some of them were traders up and down the Coast. Exploring inland is no stretch considering the goods that were found in Southwest ruins.
I never wrote that book because of my difficulty in putting myself into the mind of a woman of another culture. I write mostly heroines who are from my basic culture even if from an earlier time. I do this because I want to get into the head of my heroines. What would an Anasazi woman think about relationships, her own goals, could she choose a husband, or would that endanger her in the tribe? I had no idea because even though a lot has been found about prehistoric cultures, what is known is constantly changing with new discoveries. (If you are interested in such research, give this book a look-- Man Corn Cannibalism and Violence in the Prehistoric American Southwest by Christy G. Turner and Jacqueline A. Turner).
What I will be writing is about an archaeologist who heads up a dig into a ruin in Central Arizona at a time when that was still a very rugged and sometimes violent land. This heroine turned up first in the epilogue to Arizona Dawn. She is also in the soon-to-be published novella, Rose's Gift. Her reason for wanting to do this particular dig ties into that earlier idea I had for a book, through reincarnation dreams-- part of which I can draw from my own experiences.
The fourth historical will be called Aztec Moon. Some might wonder why Aztec; but, as I said above, there was a lot more interaction in the cultures of the Prehistoric Americas than many would expect. It can be discovered through a combination of the artifacts and legends. My intention for its underlying themes will be family, love, revenge, healing, danger, and discovery.
Back to the dream that worried me for awhile. I had been researching the significance of my title choice when I learned about a myth regarding the Aztec moon goddess and the art left behind to tell [her story]. Gruesome... If you are familiar with Aztec art, you know how often it can be violent-- at least in our eyes.
You can kind of see how that story and image could lead to a dream. I am sticking to the title and will be sure, when writing that book, to read less newspaper stories and watch only sweet movies ;). As much as the story is drawing me to it, I have other responsibilities, which come first-- i.e. editing, editing and more editing.
Oh and we got our first lambs-- twins. They beat Imbolc this year ;)
