Patricia Sands

Author

The Promise of Provence

April in Paris … come on along

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …1.DSC07107

I’ve been off the radar a bit, attempting to catch up on everything  in my writing life, after the fabulous Indie ReCon 2015 last week. I hope you had a chance to drop by some of the sessions and any you missed can still be accessed. Congratulations to ALLi (the Alliance of Independent Authors) and everyone involved all around the globe for a job well done!

Once again the worldwide community of indie authors demonstrated that contagious spirit of collegiality and information sharing that defines them!

But now I have to admit there’s only one thing on my mind!

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Tomorrow my husband and I leave for our annual stay in the south of France.  We’ll kick it off with a few days in Paris and a road trip to some places we’ve wanted to visit for ages. Ask me if we’re excited!

I’ll be researching and taking photos and writing and savouring every moment. So come on along with me! I’m hoping to post a special image every day on Instagram and Facebook, if I don’t totally mess up the technology. Unlocking my phone this week was a challenge!

This week has involved a lot of family time for goodbye hugs along with organizing, packing, and taking care of all those details we all have when we’re about to go on a trip. That was all squeezed in whenever I was able to tear myself away from working on my Love In Provence Book #3 (okay, we’ll have a title contest in the next newsletter like we did for #2 ~ get ready!)… all I want to do right now is write! Some of our stops on this trip will be part of the story, but I’ll tell you more about that on the road. It’s going to be magnifique having you along!

Do you subscribe to my monthly newsletter? If you haven’t yet, you can do so by clicking right here or over in the column to the right .  If you are one of the enormously supportive and enthusiastic subscribers (who inspire me every day!), I wish you good luck with this month’s giveaway of a box set of 7 novels … yes, SEVEN  !

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The talented writers of Triskele Books generously offered this for my April giveaway. Here are the details … and, may I say, each of these books is an excellent literary experience,  spiriting readers to exotic locations and capturing imaginations with unique story lines.

Crimson Shore by Gillian Hamer
Rats by JW Hicks.
Behind Closed Doors by JJ Marsh.
Wolfsangel by Liza Perrat.
Delirium: The Rimbaud Delusion by Barbara Scott-Emmett.
The Rise of Zenobia by Jane Dixon-Smith.
Ghost Town by Catriona Troth.

Pop on over to their website for more information. Details of the draw are in my April newsletter. Bonne chance!

unnamedI’ll end this post (because I really should be sleeping …) with the surprise news I received last week. I had forgotten The Promise of Provence was entered in the eLit Book Awards 2015, and was pleased to discover a Silver Award in Popular Fiction and a Gold Award in the category of Travel-Essay! It’s always satisfying to have your work recognized! Congratulations to all the prize recipients and also to everyone who entered! If you’ve published a book, you’re already a champion! Write on!

We’re still having the odd snow shower in Toronto! How’s April in your part of the world? I hope you’ll join me for a few days of April in Paris! On y va!

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Nikos’ niche

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Greek writer and philosopher Nikos Kazatzakis (18 February 1883 – 26 October 1957) and his wife settled in Antibes in 1948. The beauty here reminded him of Greece and inspired him to write his most famous novels including Zorba The Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ.

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I do share a lot of photos of Antibes on my blog (you know how that breathtaking town inspires me too …), but this is one of my favourites. I climbed up on the ramparts to include the palm in the foreground. Nikos’ house is just a few minutes walk from this point.

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Coming upon this simple memorial to him, just outside their former home, is both touching and inspirational. I think he would be pleased. Don’t you?

I’m spending a lot of time in my own “writing cave” at the moment. The deadline for my current manuscript is June 1. I think I can …  I think I can …

It’s easy to be motivated in Antibes as the ghosts of artists come to you in the narrow streets lined with shuttered houses, many hundreds of years old. As early back as 1500 BC, writers left their work in caves in the area. In the last few centuries a long list of influential authors, beside Kazatzakis, found inspiration here, including Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, DeMaupassant, Edith Wharton, Somerset Maugham, Graham Green, James Joyce, Nabakov, Gertrude Stein, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Pound, Sylvia Plath.  No doubt, I’ve missed some names. Van Gogh, Monet, Matisse, Renoir, Chagall, Picasso, Bracque, Miro are just a few of another equally long list of painters and sculptors who found the special light and air of the south of France irresistibly inspiring.

In June, I’ll be back in Antibes for a refill of the kind of inspiration Nikos and other writers treasured there. I’ll spend some moments sitting on that bench. When it’s not possible for me to be there, I lose myself in my photos. Is there a significant place where you find inspiration? Can you physically go there or is your special niche something spiritual? What works for you?

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Let them eat crêpes!

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I didn’t want you to miss celebrating La Chandeleur, so am reblogging my post about it from last February. Bon appetit!

Sweet or savoury?

Now that we’ve finished celebrating in January by eating la galette des rois, the king’s cake, it’s time to sweep away those crumbs and haul out the crêpes pan!

February 2nd, is La Chandeleur, Fête des Lumières,  Jour des Crêpes. You might know it as Candlemas.French-Candlemas-La-Chandeleur-Crêpe-Day

Churches will celebrate the tradition of the lighting of candles.

Then it will be all about … what else, this IS France … food!

Crêpes and cidre. Unlike our apple cider, this drink has a touch of alcohol.

The day is often accompanied by fortune telling and in many kitchens, crêpes are flipped in the air with the pan in one hand and a coin in the other. If the crêpe lands back in the pan, the year will be a prosperous one. Children hold their breath in anticipation!

Similar to our North American, Groundhog Day, there’s a prediction about winter. “Rosée à la Chandeleur, hiver à sa dernière heure.” If  there is dew at dawn, winter will soon be over.

As the French do so well, the day is a fun-filled, family time. If you’re tempted to celebrate your own Jour des Crêpes, they are delicious and light  and easy to make. Click right here for a recipe.

images-2There are crêpe stands or crêperies everywhere in France and on Sunday there will be few people not enjoying this simple and delicious food with a filling of choice ~ sweet or savoury.  Crêpes have a history that goes back to Biblical times and in France, Britanny is said to have established the true crêpe recipe.

Get in line right here! Bon appétit!

Have you ever made crêpes? Which do you prefer, the French crêpe or it’s slightly heavier English cousin, the pancake? Are you a fan of sweet or savoury?

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Just for you ~ a Reader Appreciation Event

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Have you heard? Have you dropped by yet? Did you know that hundreds of readers have stopped in to chat and enter giveaway contests? We’ve been having a grand time getting to know each other at our =====>

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I’ve teamed up with 16 friends, who write in all different genres, to offer a January Reader Appreciation Event. Readers are the reason we write and we wanted to say thanks. Book Rhythm has put together a Rafflecopter for us and we are all offering giveaways of our books for two weeks beginning January 15th.

I’m looking forward to seeing you there and you will no doubt see some old friends, as you make some new ones.

There’s no rush! You can take your time working your way through the Rafflecopter. The more you visit, the more opportunities you have to win one of these gift cards:

1st prize – $250 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
2nd Prize – $75 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
3rd Prize – $50 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
4th Prize – $10 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
5th Prize – $10 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
6th Prize – $10 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
7th Prize – $10 Gift card (Winner’s choice)
8th Prize – $10 Gift card (Winner’s choice)

Enter the Rafflecopter and try your luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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