Blog

Note: "The House on Black Lake" has been adapted to screenplay. To view provocative cinematic trailer filmed by Sundance winning cinematographer Frazer Bradshaw, go to Home Page.

I recently attended a horsemanship clinic led by Buck Brannaman. Buck is well known as the figure the novel  The Horsewhisper was based on. He also worked as stunt double for Robert Redford  in the movie of the same name. In addition he is the star of indie movie audience favorite "Buck", a documentary about his extraordinary life.

When I attended the Sundance Film Festival this year I met a woman on a shuttle bus who informed me that scenes in "Buck" had been filmed on her ranch. She advised me I must see the film, then take one of his clinics. Years ago, after a dangerous ride nearly took me over a cliff I developed panic attacks whenever I rode. I considered myself a fairly expert rider but the attacks led me away from riding, although it had always been a passion of mine. So, I took her advice and viewed the film (which I loved), then signed up for a clinic when I returned home. I believed that if there was anyone who could cure my affliction it was Buck.

The clinic was help on gorgeous Stonybrook Ranch, in Stonybrook, North of Sacramento, California. The owners and other partipants were wonderful, and I found Buck to be very kind, charismatic, strong, focused, and clearly a master of horsemanship. I felt completely confident and competent under his tutelege, and look forward to riding some wild horses. And if I should fall off, then I'll just get back on a wilder one!

The following are pictures with me in clinic with Buck. To learn more about Buck Brannaman, or to schedule a clinic, go to his website at http://www.brannaman.com/.

There is something very intriguing about a horrible alpha hero. No matter how distusting and depraved, if they have an ounce of good looks and charisma there is a desire for redemption. When I was watching the HBO Deadwood series on DVD recently  I became entranced with the brothel owning anti hero played by (Ian McShane) who was utterly disgusting and deplorable, and a most beautiful foil for the good looking sheriff (played by Timothy Olyphant), who, dispite his upstanding integrity, falls for the seduction of infidelity. I desired to know what terrible childhood had created such a tough shell.  The show is filled with such cruel alpha males seeking to survive and find their fortunes in a brutal environment. None of the women featured were saved a measure of heartbreak, if they made the mistake of opening their hearts to these men.

When I began writing "The House on Black Lake" I had no idea how my hero would take shape. His background was clear to me - wealthy descendant of old Montreal family, blessed with preternatural good looks, raised with the finest education and social experiences, taught to be a man by shooting big game in the wilds of Africa and learning to tame animals from native descendants on Black Lake. Hero Ramey Sandeley was not strictly of my imagination, as I have known similar men. But once he came alive in my novel he had a mind of his own.

There are many scenes in my book where I believe he is cruel and selfish with heroine, Alexandra Brighton. But it is also clear to me that his intense connection with Alexandra terrifies him, as well his her role in his unfolding fate. The fact that his mother abandoned him by taking her own life and his wife, Ruth, is an alcoholic who tricked him into marriage, makes him terrified of being emotionally close to a woman. So, the cruelties he exhibits appear to me more as boyish ways to fend off his own feelings of vulnerability and abandonment, as well as a fierce desire to help Alexandra grow out of her cocoon into a worthy counterpart -rather than the desire to hurt or destroy her.

Ramey has inherited a position within the power elite. He knows the ways of international commerce and government. His perceptions are skewed do to the nature of his position in society. Although Alexandra, world weary and reeling from a cruel divorce, is literally his captive during her stay on Black Lake and he is involved in her transformation inside the French Canadian underground, his goal is to release her from the psychological imprisonment of  society. In a dramatic scene in a shed behind the old Victorian on the island on Black Lake Ramey picks up a length of rope and asks Alexandra to tie his hands and do whatever she likes with him, so she can feel the power that drives her suppressors. When she declines and tells him he's acting crazy he responds: "How do you decide what's crazy? How do you determine what's good or bad unless you've tried it? Whose rules do you live by, anyway?  Who tells you how you should live your life or feel about anything. Is it you, Baby? Or is it your parents, your husband, your priest, or some fucking magistrate. Don't judge me until you can ask those questions of yourself and be completely honest with the answer." Ramey believes that by breaking Alexandra's shell her soul will be set free - but she does not share his insights. There is a tremendous power struggle between the two, and this struggle marks the beginning of Alexandra's growth as a woman.

On the other hand, the character of Georgie La Point, Ramey's cousin, a prominent French Canadian rock star, is another matter altogether. Also emotionally broken in childhood (his mother left his father for the stained glass craftsman hired to inlay the family crest in their front door), he is cruel and evil to the bone, with no hope of redemption. The man is a supreme narcissist who grooms his hair in the reflection in the eyes of his admirers, makes love to his own singing, and has never been with a woman more than once. No woman can tame this man and those who try will become damaged goods. So, Georgie is the villain in my story, and I had great fun having Alexandra challenge him in very provocative settings.

I have made a list of the top ten cruelest, meanest, most horrible heroes in romance novels (thanks to the Amazon Romance Community for their input).

1. Domenico, The Silver Devil, by Teresa Denys

2. Felipe, The Flesh and the Devil, by Teresa Denys

3.  Sean, Stormfire, by Christine Monsoon

4. Dillan,  Into the Fire, by Anne Stuart

5. Bastian, Black Ice, by Anne Stuart

6. Gray, After the Night, by Linda Howard

7. Steve, Sweet Savage Love, by Rosemary Rogers

8. Rodrigo, Fearless, Diane Palmer

9. Rolf, Risk Everything, Sophia Johnson

10 Dominic, Wicked Loving Lies, by Rosemary Johnson

Please Note: The House on Black Lake has been adapted to screenplay. To view provocative trailer by award winning cinematographer in gothic setting, go to Home Page.

In the last year since my novel was published I have spoken with many readers who crave gothic novels and movies, but are tired of the paranormal variety - particularly those with a vampire slant, since it is so overdone. It is hard to find good gothic literature these days, but the classics are still just as powerful as they were when written by the best gothic writers.

When I set out to write "The House on Black Lake" I had no intention of writing a contemporary gothic romance/suspense. In fact, I was shocked when my editor told me that is exactly what I had written. Only when I went to the specific description of the genre did I realize that my novel was clearly contemporary gothic in all aspects.  It contains the dark, brooding hero, remote location, heroine in distress, deserted Victorian, hints of the supernatural, dark secrets, transgression, heredity curses, mystics, gypsies, and supersticious rituals. To inhabit this world is to leave leave behind modern cultural mores and venture to a place where lessons about life are learned on a much deeper level. It has been asserted that early gothic literature gave a voice to women's deep rooted fear about their own powerlessness and imprisonment within patriarchy. I can also assert that my story reflects this concern, centuries later. It has also been asserted that too much of the rational can leave one blind to supernatural truths. A tale is also a  source of empowerment,  a safe place to fight the villains, face fear, and potentially win. Gothic romance has been described "a pleasurable terror". In my case I perceive it as "enticing danger".

I have listed the best authors from this genre, some also write in different genres, but all are excellent in their craft. So, whichever book you read, you will be satisfied with the journey.

1. Victoria Holt

2. Mary Stewart

3. Jennifer St. Giles

4. Daphne Du Maurier

5. Charlotte Bronte

6. Emily Bronte

7.Eve Silver

8. Lisa Kleypas

9. Barbara Michaels

10. Anne Radcliffe - Her novel, the Mysteries of Udolpho is said to the a classic archetypal gothic romance that was to inspire many others.

I must also single out a male who is said to be the father of the genre. Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto in 1764, and it is said to be the first gothic romance.

Scene from House on Black Lake Trailer.

Please Note: The House on Black Lake has been adapted to screenplay. View provocative cinematic trailer, filmed by Sundance/Spirit/Venice/Gotham award winning cinematographer, on Home Page.

Chris Hemsworth offers up the best alpha male in movies with his break-out performance in "Thor". Blessed with a gorgeous physique, resonating baritone, aqua blue eyes rimmed with black lashes, and lush fair hair, he is also a powerful actor, who overshadows one the most venerated actors of all time, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and makes  acadamy award winner Natalie Portman appear a novice.

With screenplay for "The House on Black Lake" in development I have visions of Chris playing the part of Ramey Sandeley's arch rival cousin Georgie La Pointe.  Born to wealth and status, Georgie is a narcissist rock god with charismatic good looks, who has never bedded a woman more than once, stages concerts designed like extra terrestrial launching pads that have him flying through the air and performing satyrical acts with thundrous special effects, grooms his hair in the reflection of his admirers, and uses his own music as background for his seductions. He also has more than one dark secret and is as dangerous as he is alluring.  Georgie La Pointe is an alpha male that few actors could fulfill, and certainly Chris tops the list. This one is rated R.

Check the sexy actor out in trailer for movie, "Thor":

http://youtu.be/JOddp-nlNvQ

Please Note: The House on Black Lake has been adapted to screenplay. Visit HOME PAGE to view provocative trailer, featuring reunion of hero and heroine, filmed by award winning cinematographer.

Ramey Sandeley and Alexandra Brighton Reunite in Scene from Trailer

Reunited romance is popular in fiction, as it is in real life. Often a highly charged attraction cannot be realized as one or both are committed to another. Or, one spurns and then returns to woo or be won. Time apart can bring great change in individuals and offer opportunity for grown and maturity. Fate usually has its way, one way or another, so if an attraction is strong enought generally there will be a reunion at some point in the future.

In The House on Black Lake Alexandra Brighton meets Ramey Sandeley months after they have each married another. When he first takes her eyes she experiences a powerful connection, a feeling she has never before experienced. That night she makes love to her husband and pretends she is making love to Ramey. Nine months to the day she gives birth to a son and suffers Bell’s Palsy. The doctor’s give her little promise of recover and she becomes a recluse, as her paralyzed face causes great torment.

A year later she visits St. Josephs Shrine in Montreal and makes a vow at the alter - Truth for Beauty:  a promise to follow her manifest destiny in return for an unmarked face. As her husband ushers her from the basillica she sees her image reflected in a stained glass window. Her face has begun to thaw, and now she has a price to pay.

 As she struggles to follow her righful path her life falls into shambles. Nearly 12 years later, now in the throes of a vicious divorce battle, she decides to make a journey to the Sandeley’s summer home on Black Lake. She does not make the journey to seduce Ramey Sandeley, as he is married with 5 children.  Rather, she makes the journey to release herself from him. However, she does not bargain on the fact that he is just as obsessed and tormented by the fateful evening, and has other secrets that endanger the safety of Alexandra and her son.

 Other popular novels featuring second hand love (thanks to Amazon romance form for input) are listed below.  None of the heroines are easily won back.

 1. Libertine’s Kiss by Judith James – the couple were childhood playmates/sweethearts and got separated, she went on to get married and widowed and finds the H again when she goes to petition for her lands, H helps her

2. Devil Takes a Bride by Gaelen Foley  -H spurns h, then has to woo her back

3. The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Moran - h thinks the H abandoned her, H thinks the h is dead, when they meet the h doesn't want to rekindle because it brings up bad memories, so the H pursues

4. Tempt Me Tonight by Toni Blake - H and h were high school sweethearts, H cheated on h and they broke up. Years later she returns to town and they rekindle, lots of groveling by H.

5. Edge of Sight (The Guardian Angelinos) by Roxanne St. Clare - H and h hook up and then split up due to H. Three years later h needs help in a situation and H becomes bodyguard. 

6. Forget Me Not (Navy Seals, Book 1) by Marliss Melton - H is solider captured for a year, presumed dead, then returns with amnesia. h has moved on with life.

7. Lady Isabella’s Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley - H and h separated for years, after H treated her badly. H wants to reunite.

8. The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter - H and h intrigued by one another, but circumstances prevent them getting together. They meet up again and he pursues.

9. Three Nights by Debra Mullins - H and h have arrangement for three nights of sex to forgive father’s dept.  h gets pregnant and thinks H abandons her, but actually he is captured away for years. When he gets back and finds out about the child he wants a real relationship.

10. Wild Card by Lora Leigh - H is a Navy Seal who is forced to assume new identity. h believes he is dead, but when he returns to protect her from trouble, they must pretend to not know each other.

 
11. The Sweet Gum Tree by Catherine Allred – Couple meet as children and friendship turns to love. H suddenly departs after death of father. H has fifteen years of struggles and family heartbreak, then one day H shows up in town.
12. Addicted by Charlotte Featherstone - historical – Young friends and lover find their relationship ruined by H’s opium addiction, h later tries to help him get over his addiction.

14. A Place to Call Home by Deborah Smith – Star crossed lovers meet as children on opposite side of tracks. H is son of abusive father, h is his champion. Twenty years pass until they meet again. 

15. The Missing by Shiloh Ward - psychic, paranormal about troubled young woman with psychic powers and young man who helps her define her gifts by befriending, then leaving her, and returning when he needs help

15. To Die For: a Novel by Linda Howard  - H breaks off with her because he thinks she's "high maintenance". He's a cop and when he thinks she's been killed at her place of business, he realizes he loves her. Light hearted.

More to come . . .

To view trailer with Tosh Yanez filmed by esteem cinematographer Frazer Bradshaw go HOME PAGE.

International model and actor Tosh Yanez is featured in "The House on Black Lake" trailer for novel/screenplay. The handsome star can be seen in magazines, billboards, and on commercials throughout the world.

Trapezepro was host at Sky Ranch in Sonoma for "Dangerous Games" music video. Aerial artists Tanya Henkle-Hoover and Marek Kaszuba are featured in video.

Normally, it is the alpha man that is associated with romance novels. However, there are plenty of alpha females, and their presence in a novel generally takes it to the next level. In the wild, with all social animals, there are alpha males that rule alone, with other males, or with a female. The alphas are the first to eat and mate and the others in the group will usually follow them anywhere,  so they determine fate of community. A king and queen would be the most obvious examples of male/female in the human community.

When I began to write "The House on Black Lake I desired to plot the evolution of a woman worn down by society who had no idea she possessed an alpha spirit. Rather than forging a story of a weak woman who became strong, I chose to illuminate the struggle of a strong woman who had been weakened by society.  In the case of heroine Alexandra Brighton, it was her alpha power that had caused her to be subjigated and left bereft of her rightful place in society. In her case the empowered alpha males of society did not wish female empowerment to intrude - and the entire societal infrastructure, the church, educational system, judicial system, and other women reinforced keeping her down rather than supporting Alexandra. I realized as the book evolved that Alexandra's only possibility of freedom from psychological and emotional imprisonment was an alpha male that had gone renegade from the pack.

Alexandra's relationship with Ramey Sandeley and her transformative journey through the French Canadian underground recounts the process of reclamation of spirt and ultimate empowerment. She goes from outcast at story's beginning to alpha at story's end. And the two sequels to The House on Black  lead her to fulfill her ultimate potential. But, she is not the kick-ass kind, although she can be ruthless if pushed to the edge. Her strength lies, as with all true alphas, in intelligence, wisdom, integrity, inner and outer beauty, spirituality, comfort with sexuality, and an an unwavering belief that she is following her manifest destiny. If challenged she will fight to the death to defend her god give rights.  True strength, as with true beauty, lies in belief in oneself and a greater spiritual purpose. The fact that she is confronted and challenged to grow by a male of her own breed gives her the added thrust that only a soulmate connection can offer.

Following are the top ten alpha females in romance novels. List was culled from romance forums. Thanks to readers for your insights.

1. Eve Dallas, In Death Series,  by J.R. Robb

2. Sabine, Kiss of a Demon, Immortals After Dark Series by Kresly Cole

3. Sam Jellicoe, Flirting with Danger by Suzanne Enoch

4. Thalia, Warrior, Zoe Archer

5. Gillian, Crazy Sweet, by Tara Jantzen

6. Xher, Lover Mine, from Black Dagger Brotherhood Series, by JR. Ward

7. Elena, Angel's Blood, Guild Hunter Series by Nalini Singh

8. Claire Day, Shadows at Midnight by Elizabeth Jennings

9. Catherine (Cat) Crawford, Halfway to the Grave10. Renata, Veil of Midnight, Night Huntress Series by  Lara Adrian

10. Angarad of Meriel The Tide of Destiny,  paranormal, Druids of Destiny Series by Shanna Murchison

Quidam, a Cirque de Soleil show featuring a lonely soul navigating the course of life. The show is an extravagant spectacle of first rate aerial arts and acrobatics. The scene design is exquisite and the music original and inspiring. It is a show not to be missed. I saw the show at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, which I believed to be a very bad choice for the show. However, I found the grand size (with lights low to not see vast seating areas) gives breathing room for the aerial acrobatics. Those who have never seen such a show are left speechless at shows end.

After touring California it moves on to other states. Get your tickets now!

To view dramatic trailer and purchases tickets go to: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/quidam/default.aspx

THE HOUSE ON BLACK LAKE HAS BEEN ADAPTED TO SCREENPLAY. GO TO HOME PAGE TO VIEW PROVOCATIVE CINEMATIC TRAILER.

Enjoyed  conversation with Clive Own and Tabitha Soren at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco last night. He is in town filming Hemingway and Gilhorn with Nicole Kidman for HBO. He's just as suave and guarded in public as he is onscreen. I've yet to see an another actor best him in a scene, although one might call it a draw with  Denzel Washington. Easily one of the top ten men I'd like to work with in the future. It would most definitely be a duel to the death, as I never allow myself to be bested by a another actor. Can't recall a grovel scene with Clive, what a treat that would be for all the women fans out there. I've always believed Clive to be a good choice to play charismatic Ramey Sandeley. Ramey enters first scene fresh from branding animals, torn and sweaty, excuding feral virility. Would love to see Clive as both manipulative and charming and utterly frustrated at his vulnerability in the face of love and duty.

More about Clive and lots of pics at: 

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0654110/