Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writers Welcome Hywela Lyn

Hi Lyn! Thanks for stopping by today.

I first met Lyn after receiving one of the worst reviews ever. The reviewer apologized, her mom was ill and she was very down. Lyn was one of the kind TWRP authors who emailed me when she saw it. Everyone of my fellow authors was supportive, but Lyn, well she’s very special. Over an ocean away from me, she felt my sadness and her words lifted my spirits. Someone who didn’t know me from Adam took the time to care about my feelings. The goodness in her heart is worth more than gold. It’s a privilege to know her.

It shows in her writing.

Blurb: Two minds united against a common foe. Two hearts afraid to show their love: Long ago Tamarith fell in love with a man she can never have, and is convinced she will never love another. However, she cannot help but be intrigued by a handsome stranger whose psychic powers exceed even her own. Vidarh seeks only to find his true purpose in life and to win the regard of his father, who eschews his son’s psychic abilities. Thrown together by a common threat to their planet, then torn apart by an evil greater than any they could have imagined, can Vidarh save the lovely Nifl woman who has captivated him, before it is too late? Will Tamarith and Vidarh overcome the deadly enemy who threatens to destroy all they know and love? Will they find the happiness they both seek? Or are they fated to live their lives alone?

I didn’t want the same ole question and answer interview so I asked for a window into Lyn’s soul and I got it! I can picture her riding free in the hills, hair blowing behind her and the power of her steed beneath her legs.

Settings and scenery are nearly as important to me in my writing, as the characters. In fact, the settings are actually almost characters themselves, influencing the 'flesh and blood characters' in their actions and they way they live their lives. It's where the heroes and heroines live, breathe - and fall in love. I love the Welsh Mountains, their grandeur and majesty, and hours of solitary riding , taking in their beauty, was a wonderful way of letting my imagination soar and create alien landscapes, with their own mystique and appeal.

My native Wales has inspired nearly everything I've written and many of my imaginary scenes are really based on memories of actual places and the weather conditions that set them in my mind. For instance, watching the mist over the mountains inspired the creation of the planet Niflheim (named after the 'land of mist and cold' of Norse legends) that I used in my first novel, 'Starquest'. Of course Wales is not perpetually covered with snow and shrouded in mist, but that almost ethereal moment sparked the idea of a misty planet in my mind. Niflheim, planet of telepaths, takes up only a small part of the orginal story, but I became fond of the mist shrouded world and her people, especially Tamarith, who becomes a good friend of the heroine in Starquest. So I ended up writing a sequel, entitled 'Children Of The Mist', which is mainly set on Niflheim and takes place about six years after the first book ends.

I'm a great believer in having a 'rationale'. I'm not one of those people who think because it's 'fantasy' and there are dragons, the dragons should be there just 'because it's fantasy' (for the record there aren't any dragons in either book, although I've nothing against dragons.) But - if dragons are in a story, I want to know how they evolved and what their function is, their reason for being. The same thing applies to telepaths. So I decided that the Niflheim had originally been colonised by settlers from Earth. When the early pioneers settled on this new world, at first finding it very inhospitable, cold and misty, many parts covered in ice and snow for much of the year, they had to have something special to enable them to survive when scattered across the planet. They renounced the technology of Earth, with all its problems, but how would they deal with life in such a hostile environment with no means to communicate across miles of unsettled territory? The answer was simple. The colonists would include individuals who each had some extra sensory ability. Over time they would develop and increase these skills until telepathy became their usual form of communication and telekinesis was commonplace. I'm not sure when I first knew that the settlers had called their new planet Nifheim, but as the Norse 'land of cold and mist, it seemed fitting.

The settings for both my novel Starquest, and the sequel Children Of The Mist were very important for both books. It was the same with my story in the Wild Rose Press's series 'Song Of The Muses'. Although 'Dancing With Fate' begins (logically enough) in Ancient Greece, it swiftly moves on to 5th Century Wales. It's natural I suppose, that I should be so inspired by Wales, where I grew up and lived most of my life. Its mountains and lakes are beautiful and mysterious, and the country is full of its own myths and legends which add their own atmosphere to the landscape.

Much of the land is still wild and unspoiled and it was easy to picture it as it might have been sixteen hundred years ago. Why this time period? Well, I love the idea of living close to nature, without the hustle and bustle of modern living. There was another reason too - King Arthur was born around this time and some of the Arthurian legend is woven into my story. Many parts of Wales are named after him and his knights - for instance the name of the 3,000 ft mountain in Snowdonia, Cadair Idris is translated as The seat of Idris. or 'Arthur' As well as lakes and mountains, of course, Wales is full of spectacular waterfalls. A certain waterfall plays a very important part in 'Dancing With Fate'. The muses were, after all, water nymphs, and Terpsichore, the muse of dance, is no exception. In fact, she takes every opportunity to bathe in one, regardless of who might be watching!

As well as human characters I have a number of animal characters in my books as well. 'In Dancing With Fate' the two horses, Hari and Sal are based on my Welsh Cob, Harry, and my old endurance mare, Sally, who sadly I lost last year when she was thirty four years old. I thought it fitting to imortalize her in my story. There are ponies in both Starquest and 'Children Of The Mist as well, genetically modified to withstand the harsh conditions, and descended from the hardy little Fjord ponies. These are mostly sandy or 'buckskin' in color, again very similar to Sally. I also have a large, telepathic bear like creature in both this story and 'Starquest'. He's really more like a dog although he's called an 'ice cat'. The Nifls keep them as pets, and shear them like sheep for their long fleeces. No, I don't have a real ice cat, but I do have a rescued Jack Russell terrier, who, like the ice cat, is extraordinarily intelligent and understands everything I say!

Lyn’s love for her animals is only dwarfed by her love of people. She’s kinda partial to books too. One of these days I hope she is able to move back to her beloved Wales. You never know.

Excerpt;

Tamarith stopped and gazed for a moment across the water. The G-type sun, now fully risen, caused the lake to shimmer like a veil of golden silk, with scarcely a ripple disturbing its calm. The pastel-colored walls of the graceful buildings on the shore reflected the glow of both suns. In the distance, the mountains encircling the settlement reached high into the cerulean sky. The swirling mist that hid their summits was as much a part of Niflheim as the earth upon which she and Vidarh stood.

She sensed his mind discreetly touch hers and realized he was staring at her keenly. She turned back to face him, returning his questioning glance and studying him in turn. Taller than average, and broad-shouldered, today he wore a sleeveless, belted leather shirt over thick breeches, with long, icecat-wool lined boots. His upper arms were well muscled, his skin tanned as if he were used to working outdoors. His curly, dark auburn hair, kept away from his face with a plain leather band, reached almost to his shoulders. It caught the sun’s rays and gleamed like the polished dark red wood of the trees that flanked the feet of the mountains.

She took in his clear, hazel eyes, with their friendly twinkle, the long, straight nose, strong jaw line and smiling mouth. He would have been fighting off the local unattached young women if the situation they found themselves in were not so serious. Not that she was particularly interested in his looks, or those of any other man, for that matter.

No, something else about Vidarh of Ragnak excited her curiosity.

It’s about yesterday.

Thanks Lyn for blogging with us today. Lyn’s books can be purchased through the usual online booksellers, and now through The Wild Rose Press Too.

Those of us who know Lyn you are fortunate to call you friend. I am so lucky to be one of them!!