Author's Blog
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May the circle be unbroken...
May the Circle be UnbrokenEarly this week, our circle of three Lynde Elders was changed forever. For my entire life, my brother Stan and my sister Chris have been shining stars who flanked me on either side. I always felt safe and solid, knowing they were there, and I leaned on them many times. We all knew there would come a time when one of us would leave this place and go to the Other Side. But for more than sixty-five years, we stood as almost a singular entity.
Those of you who know all of us understand why we were the way we were. Growing up in the remote reaches of eastern Montana, in the foothills and the heights of the Big Horn Mountains, we only had each other for long stretches of time. That kind of history draws you close and binds you together in a way that few siblings ever experience. And we loved our history.
Somewhere between two and three o'clock on Tuesday morning, Stan departed. Cancer showed all of us that we are not immortal in this existence, and he slipped from our hands as softly as silk. He left a huge footprint on this earth and in our lives. Nothing ever will be the same. Of course, we are sad and a little lost. But we also are lucky that we had all those years together.
Now there is a ripple in the atmosphere that surrounds me and my sister. We are two instead of three. And yet...the Circle is unbroken, held together with love and memory.
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In Production!
"Willow" - The Magpie Odyssey V
I can't believe it was February when last I posted to this blog. I can only attribute this to the fact that I was consumed with getting The Magpie Odyssey V ready for production. It has gone off to the publisher and the galleys are back for editing. Now I can tell you that it is simply called "Willow" and it tells the story of that elusive woman who has haunted most of the previous books in the series. For those of you who follow such things, Willow is the younger, irrepressible sister of Mike Lorrah. She has appeared at will (Her will, not mine) at various times throughout the story of the Lorrahs. This Montana ranch family boasts four generations on the Crow Indian Reservation, and has a long history of Irish Old Religion practices supplemented by Crow Indian medicine. The Magpie Odyssey series has traced the parallels between the two cultures and their beliefs while telling the story of the Lorrahs' deep friendships with tribal members.
Willow always has defied the traditional role that had been expected of her, and this tale of her adventures serves to enlighten one of the younger Lorrah family members. Aisling Lorrah is the great-great niece of Willow, and when she undertakes some family history research for a University class project, she learns much about this ancestor -- but more about herself. How the lives and experiences of these two women weave together will make a great ride for any reader. There is mystery, magic, and danger in this new book.
Willow would not have it any other way.
Lorretta Lynde
Note: Publication is expected later in the summer.
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Magpie Odyssey Book Five Under Way
Writing about Willow - Not an Easy Task
I am well into the first quarter of the newest book in the Magpie Odyssey series. In this one, we will follow -- or should I say, we will be pulled along on -- the adventures of Willow Lorrah. Willow has proven such a strong figure in the previous books that many of my readers have expressed a strong desire to know more about her. This is not a surprise. Willow has that sort of influence on any who come to know her.
Problem is, she is not an easy character to write.
Not because she is not interesting, or because there is not that much to know about her. On the contrary, she is fascinating. But since it is my job to capture enough about her to put on paper, I can tell you she is elusive. When she is prepared for me to write, she makes her presence known, and I write headlong, racing to keep up. But then she will disappear for days at a time, and there is no way to write anything about her during that time.
I don't get writer's block. I can write pages and pages about anything else.
Just not about Willow.
Lorretta Lynde
Check out my external blog:
http://magpieodyssey.blogspot.com/