Author: Cora Lee

Cora Lee is a National Bestselling author of Regency romance. She went on a twelve year expedition through the blackboard jungle as a high school math teacher before publishing Save the Last Dance for Me, the first book in the Maitland Maidens series. She then followed it up with six other novels and novellas ranging from sweet and traditional to spicy and suspenseful. When she’s not walking Rotten Row at the fashionable hour or attending the entertainments of the Season, you might find her participating in Regency Fiction Writers events, wading through her towering TBR pile, or eagerly awaiting the next Marvel movie release. If you’d like to find out more about Cora or her books you can sign up for her newsletter, or connect with her on Facebook, BlueSky, Bookbub, or Goodreads.
Contests & Giveaways, Writing Life

Naming Characters: Like Naming Children? A Giveaway

Cora Lee

Okay readers, I need some help.

Publisher Elora’s Cave is looking for sweet Regency novellas for their Christmas anthology, and I’m going to give it a shot. It will be good for my brain and creative process to work on something else for a while–and it will be good for my work ethic Almacks_with_Brummellto have a deadline that I can’t move!

Without giving too much away, I can tell you that the idea I have is for a male wallflower story. He’s a science geek who has been out of society on archaeological digs (things like excavating the Elgin marbles in Greece), and has only recently returned home. She is a duke’s daughter and a social butterfly who is being forced into a betrothal to a Bad Guy.

But neither of them have names.

Naming my characters is always one of the hardest parts of a story for me. I don’t Hello_my_name_is_stickerhave children of my own, but I imagine this is what it would feel like to name them (except that I get to know my characters as adults first 🙂 ). I agonize over baby name books, comb through lists of important and historical people. I dissect my family and friends–would I name a character after any of them?

This time, I’m enlisting help. Your help. I need a first and last name for my hero, Mr. Archaeologist. I also need a first and last name for my heroine, Lady Butterfly. Leave a comment on this post with your suggestion(s), and if I use yours you win a Kindle book!

Official Rules:

  • You may suggest first names, last names, or first + last names for either or both characters.
  • Repeated names will not be counted–please scroll through the comments to make sure someone else hasn’t already suggested the name you had in mind
  • You must be able to download e-books from Amazon.com (as opposed to Amazon.fr, Amazon.co.uk, or another of Amazon’s regional sites) [NOTE: This is not because Amazon in any way sponsors or endorses this giveaway, but simply because that’s where I bought the books.] If you don’t have a Kindle, Amazon has free reading apps for various computers and tablets.
  • One book will be awarded for each first name and each last name I choose, for a total of 4 possible winners
  • One person may win more than one book
  • Comments must be left on this post by 11:59 pm EST on Friday, February 28, 2014 to be eligible for this giveaway

Prizes:

spy-wore-blue-300Royal Renegadewinningabride-300The Hanover Square Affair

Books, Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites: Prue Batten’s Guy of Gisborne

Cora Lee

I write Regency romances, but I also adore medieval novels–and this week’s Favorite is a series I can’t seem to get enough of. Based on an alternate history where Guy of Gisborne looks like Richard Armitage and has nothing to do with Robin Hood, Prue Batten’s Gisborne series is one of my favorite medieval stories. She saw the good in a “bad guy” (if you’ll pardon the pun) and gave him a chance to be the hero, with wonderful results!

Read here about the evolution of Prue’s version of Guy of Gisborne. Click on the pictures to learn more about each book.

Book of PawnsBook of Knights

Books

Cora’s TBR Challenge Check-In

Cora Lee

IMG-20140212-00027

Okay, so it’s been almost exactly a month since I posted my TBR Challenge. How’s it going? How many of you have begun reading books long forgotten? How many of you forgot your pledge?

My own first action was to take stock of my supplies, so to speak. I am one of those compulsively organized people, so my books are already grouped together based on their subject matter. But I have so many still to read, I wasn’t even sure what books were in each group!

IMG-20140214-00028I did find a couple of duplicates–I’d bought a book twice not realizing that I already had it at home. Happily, these were books from the local library used book sale, so I didn’t spend much money. And the duplicate copies will go right back to the library for re-sale, so it works out 🙂

One thing that surprised me, though, was that I found whole series on my Kindle I didn’t know I possessed. I’m notorious for buying the first book in a series when it’s on sale, but forgoing the rest until I’ve had a chance to read the first. I discovered a lot of those as well, but I also found the first five books in Julie Ann Long’s Pennyroyal Green seriesPennyroyal Green series, all of Annette Blair’s Rogue series, all four of Jacquie D’Alessandro’s Regency Historical series, and several “boxed sets” that I bought and didn’t remember I had.

Once I had figured out what was here, the tough part began: which book do I read first? I have more time for reading now, because I’m still not working. But it was really difficult to pick a book–too many choices is almost worse than not enough choices! I finally just grabbed one without looking…and was rewarded with Ellis Peters’ lovely Brother Cadfael 🙂

So how are you fairing this month? What has been the hardest thing about this challenge? Any surprises so far?

You can also check out my TBR Challenge page to monitor my progress or add your thoughts on the books I’m reading.

Friday Favorites, Society

Friday Favorites: The Waltz with David Tennant

Cora Lee

Happy Valentine’s Day! How many of you are going dancing with your sweetheart this weekend? Or have read about a glorious waltz at a Regency Valentine’s ball?

How many of you have actually danced the waltz?

For those of you that haven’t, here’s a look at the modern process. Actors David Tennant and Jessica Hynes learn together for a scene in Doctor Who.

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And here’s a look at the finished product, set in England just before the beginning of the First World War.

Society

Philip Astley: Equestrian, Showman, and Entrepeneur

Cora Lee

Ever read a Regency romance involving a visit to Astley’s Amphitheater? My good friend and Regency novelist Susana Ellis has written this wonderful post about the life of Philip Astley and his equestrian show. Check it out:

amphitheatre

Early Life

Philip Astley was born in Staffordshire (about 150 miles from London) on January 8, 1742. When he was around eleven years old, his family moved to London, where his father had a carpentry shop near Westminster Bridge. In 1759, he went to be trained in horsemanship in Wilton at Lord Pembroke’s estate, where he showed extraordinary promise. Soon after, in search of excitement, he left his family and joined a regiment of light dragoons called Eliot’s Light Horse, later the 15th Light Hussars.

Astley’s Military Service

Astley was assigned to care for and train the horses to be “bomb-proof”, i.e., not to take off in fear at the sound of gunshot.

Read the rest of the article at Susana’s Parlour.