Fireflies and Chocolate, my next historical novel

Posted on March 26, 2020 by ailish

Fireflies and Chocolate, the new historical novel from Ailish Sinclair

GWL Publishing have accepted my next historical novel, FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE, for publication in Spring 2021. I am lucky to have a publisher who is so understanding about my current health issues; all the deadlines for various edits are flexible.

The book was inspired by the 600 children who were kidnapped in Aberdeen during the 1740s and sold into indentured servitude in the American colonies. You will meet the Manteith family again, and see the castle and the stone circle, though the story doesn’t stay there long.

There’s some real historical figures again. There’s a love story again, though it’s quite different from the one in THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR. And, this time, there’s chocolate, in the form of hot chocolate 😀

I hope you’re all staying safe and well during these strange times of lockdown and isolation. I’m posting photos of #goodthings from my phone archives on Twitter and Instagram each day at the moment.

sunset over the loch — Sunset over the loch, from 2014

THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR is now free to download on Kindle Unlimited here.

The Mermaid and the Bear by Ailish Sinclair

Social Distancing and Kindle Unlimited

Posted on March 20, 2020 by ailish

It feels like the world has changed dramatically since I last blogged at the end of February. I very much hope you are all safe and well. My pneumonia experience last year has left me with a damaged lung, so I am social distancing. Being at home. Writing. Editing. Actually getting round to cleaning the cooker!

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Oh, to wander in the woods…

Posted on December 3, 2019 by ailish

That is my favourite bit of path in the woods by my house. It’s also the most productive. When I get stuck with a storyline or a finicky little plot detail that just won’t iron out, that’s where I go, and solutions become clear. Big epiphanies about characters and back stories happen there too. Maybe it’s because it’s a timeless landscape. Or maybe I just feel relaxed and at peace there.

Just now though, I am recovering from flu and can’t walk in the woods. Soon, I tell myself. Soon. I can sit up and write so I may really need to go there soon!

I’ve been deeply touched by how much thought people have been putting into their reviews of THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR.

Local Quine Kate the Quiet Knitter’s review “This wonderful magical tale then takes a deviation towards the darkness and from here Sinclair’s research and writing really shines. Her portrayal of 16th century Scotland is entrancing, and the details of the witch-hunts taking place in that time are fascinating.”

On the Mum, Write NOW blog “Overall the characters are lovable, I found it interesting that their lives intertwined slightly with Shakespeare and also touched on LGBT culture and attitudes at that time. It really felt that there was a depth of historical knowledge informing the narrative which I always enjoy.”

And the Wee Writing Lassie wrote about the book and asked me 7 impertinent questions! “Another inclusive detail in Ailish’s novel is the fact that her heroine – Isobell – is a plus sized woman, and this is never treated like a problem, or something about her that needs to be fixed, by the narrative. All body type inclusion, yeah!”

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The same path, though the other end and other direction, in the woods, in summer:

Things I Stole From Castles

Posted on November 4, 2019 by ailish

That’s the earthen floor of the medieval great hall at Drum Castle.

I love it.

So I took it!

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Rocky Shores for Release Day

Posted on October 18, 2019 by ailish

We’ve moved North and round the corner from the golden sands of Fraserburgh beach, and arrived at the rocky shores of Broadsea and a beautiful rock pool, the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses in the background.

But the book is out! Released! That’s all that’s really on my mind today… though I can be momentarily distracted by shells:

It’s a strange feeling this, like opening a window and letting something precious and secret fly away to where it can now be seen by anyone who wants to see it!

That’s my favourite little house at Broadsea, right beside the rugged rocky coastline.

So… deep breath…

Set in a fictional castle in Aberdeenshire, THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR blends an often overlooked period of history, the Scottish witchcraft accusations, in particular the 1597 Aberdeen witchcraft panic, with a love story.

And it has a castle.

And a stone circle.

And medieval Christmas.

Out in paperback and Kindle NOW!

Universal links:

Kindle

Paperback

A Fairy Scene, an Opening, and an Article

Posted on September 12, 2019 by ailish

I came across this rather lovely little scene in the woods on a rainy day last week. It made me think of fairies…

Yesterday Paragraph Planet revealed the opening of The Mermaid and the Bear on their site. It’s gone now, but I took a screenshot, below. It was while walking in the same woods pictured above that the first line of the book came to me.

Women Writers, Women[‘s] Books have published my article Researching Historical Fiction: Immersing Oneself in the Past in which you can read about me setting off smoke alarms and eating primroses (yes, really) in the name of research.

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Staring Out to Sea from Dunnottar Castle

Posted on September 7, 2019 by ailish

Dunnottar Castle sits high on the cliffs near Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire. It’s scenic and sprawling and, though peaceful now, it boasts a turbulent history.

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Clouds and Reindeer in the Cairngorms

Posted on August 19, 2019 by ailish

There were dramatic skies the last time I ventured into the Cairngorms. Beautiful though. These were skies to stand and stare at.

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Down the Rabbit Hole… to a Book Cover!

Posted on July 19, 2019 by ailish

At first it doesn’t feel quite real… where is the white rabbit leading?

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Love, Dance, Obsession, and Chocolate

Posted on May 16, 2019 by ailish

An aesthetic for TENDU, a novel by Ailish Sinclair

2019 continues to be an exciting year for me on the bookish front! My contemporary novel, TENDU, is coming out in 2020 with Black Opal Books.

Some aspects of the story:

It’s a tale of unconventional love, dance and obsession.
Much of the book is set in Scotland.
There’s a stone circle and a castle.
The central relationship is deeply tempestuous.
Ballet!
Dark and terrible happenings!
Hot chocolate and cake. Depending on era, you can’t always include chocolate in historical writing and, given all that I put them through, my characters both need and deserve it. So there’s lots of chocolate in this contemporary title. LOTS.

And there’ll obviously have to be lots at my desk too 🙂