And Let the Gaelic Begin!



I love the sound of a velvety Scottish brogue. Frankly, it fascinates me. Dragging the clan to as many Scottish festivals around the area as possible, my ears perk up as soon as I hear the rolling tongue. 

Writing Scottish historical romance, I love to place a little flair of Scottish Gaelic into my manuscripts. I think it gives the reader a little taste of Alba. My CP's only request is that I must put in the translation. It frustrates her when the novel she's reading has Gaelic and she must inference the meaning. Donna want to upset the CP! 

Last year, I was able to attend a Gaelic class at one of the festivals. Whenever I get my hands on any material, I'm like a kid in a candy store. Hand-outs? Hand them over! Books? I'll buy them! Class? Sign me up! My kids can speak more words in Gaelic than they can in Spanish. I still haven't decided if that's good or not, but they're supporting mom's writing career. ;-)

As a pre-published author, I have attended classes on GMC, synopsis and query writing, etc. Yep, a necessary evil, but what excites me is when I get to attend a class that I know I will enjoy wholeheartedly. Gaelic class starts April 1st with one of our resident chapter experts and I am so thrilled.

To all of those attending... I'll try not to be the annoying kid in class sitting in the front row asking all of the questions. ;-) Anyone else attending Sharron's class?

Channeling Your Muse

Sometimes she deserts me. Now and then she awakens me in the early hours of the morn. At times she's my biggest obstacle and every so often she's my best friend. My muse. *sigh* What a fickle creature.

I have to admit, she does cooperate the majority of the time, but there are moments when I could literally (no pun intended) strangle her. How can the words flow out onto the keyboard as if I am a mere vassal serving her brilliant mind and then other times I have absolutely no idea where her thoughts wondered off to? What was she thinking? My 6 year-old could have written better than that.

On occasion, she surprises me. Believe me... those times are not only welcome, but treasured. The other day while riding and writing on public transportation, *cringe*, I was deep into an emotional scene between my hero and heroine. Verbal swords were drawn like daggers and disparaging words were thrown like stones. "Last stop" is announced over the speaker just as I clicked off the Alphasmart. Perfect timing.

Bypassing the herding cattle, I show my ticket to the poor agent enclosed in the metal box and climb the stairs to my car. All of a sudden, I take a mental step back? What is the matter with me? My heart is racing a mile a minute. My blood is pounding. In fact, it's boiling. I was cognizant of the fact that I'm actually angry... for no reason. 

PMS? Not quite! The muse not only kicked into gear, but she was in overdrive! Almost as if I was an actor immersing myself into a role, my characters came to life within me. Needless to say, Liadain and Declan's sparring match impacted my mood. After a few calming breaths and laughing at the depths of my creativity, I only pray she decides to grace me with such gifts again.

Tell me. Has your muse ever influenced your life?