Guest Post by Terry Spear and Giveaway

Why Do We Read?
- From a Confessed Readaholic!

By Terry Spear

To learn something? To be entertained? To leave our own mundane lives behind and find somewhere and something unique to immerse ourselves in?

But even when we’re at some exotic place, somewhere on vacation away from the mundane, after you’ve sight-seen, and hiked, and whatever else you’re enjoying doing, do you ever just curl up with a good book? Maybe sit poolside, or at the beach, or overlooking a mountain scene?

Even in paradise, reading is every bit as much of a luxury to me as being somewhere new and different in real life.

On the trip to Scotland, I read on the way over and back. When I was in my room alone at bed-and-breakfasts at night after exploring castles all day, I read a book. When I visited South Padre Island before everyone got up in the morning, I read for pure pleasure. I listen to an audio book back and forth to work every day. I love listening to or reading stories.

Yep. I’m a confirmed readaholic, no matter whether I’m at home or abroad.

My love of reading stories at a very young age evolved into my love of making up my very own stories when I was very young.

I am eclectic so I love to read just about everything. With my own storytelling, I’m much the same.

Sometimes world events shape my storytelling, like when I wrote Wolf Fever, the World Health Organization said we could have a flu epidemic, and I wondered how that could affect my werewolves. When I wrote Heart of the Highland Wolf, we’d had some scam artists take major banks and individuals down with horrible financial thefts, and my coworker at the time mentioned I had never written about a poor werewolf. At the same time, I’d been wanting to write about a Highland wolf pack, so the three concepts ended up being Heart of the Highland Wolf.

When I wrote A SEAL in Wolf’s Clothing (due out Mar 2012), that was based on my editor’s saying how cool would it be if the To Tempt the Wolf’s pack leader had been on a whole SEAL team of wolves? With Dreaming of the Wolf (due out in December), I had to write a dream mating scenario after a few fans asked if I’d do that again!

In the beginning, I wanted to write about werewolves who were based on real wolves, but that had a human’s thought process still even as a wolf, and wolf senses when a human. The two are one, rather than a situation where the man takes off his wolf coat and now he’s strictly human, or he puts on his wolf coat and he’s strictly wolf.

Creating a new world is lots of fun, but it can get you in a bind. What if such and such happened? I’ve had fans ask and then I have to come up with a scenario, because I hadn’t thought of that!

I try to make my world as realistic as possible, basing some of it on werewolf lore and some of it on my own newly created world, and some of it based on real wolf behavior.

For instance, werewolves change during the full moon. That’s when they’re chewing up people and howling at the moon. Mine change anytime but during the new moon, unless they have so few human roots, they can change then too. But the original werewolf lore is the full moon comes out, the man shifts. In one of the old movies I saw, I remember that it wasn’t just when the moon was full, but only if it was exposed. If a cloud passed over it, no more wolfman.

Why did I make the change? Most of the month, the werewolf wouldn’t be able to shapeshift. The window of opportunity would be too small. I decided to have the week of the new moon when they couldn’t shift. That creates more conflict also as readers will learn in Heart of the Wolf.

As for real wolf behavior? They don’t howl more during the full moon.

Here’s an excerpt from Heart of the Highland Wolf, hoping to show the wolfish side of a Highlander hunk, who’s trying to determine if the object of his fascination is a wolf, too.

Excerpt from HEART OF THE HIGHLAND HERO by Terry Spear:

“Are the two women wolves then?” Duncan asked Ian, his voice hushed as he hurried to join his brother while they headed for the women, Julia pronouncedly limping and clinging to Maria as they followed MacNamara to his van.


“I don’t know.” But Ian intended to find out.


“What exactly are we doing now?”


“We’re taking them to their cottage.”


The road that led to Argent Castle was a short distance after the turnoff for Baird Cottage, so they wouldn’t be going out of their way, but the manner in which Duncan asked the question indicated he believed Ian had some other notion in mind.


An elusive smile curved Duncan’s lips. “MacNamara’s giving them a lift wouldn’t do.”


Ian didn’t need his brother’s humorous take on the matter. He had to know if the women were lupus garous and if one of them or someone else had been running through his pack’s area as a wolf. If the wolf had been one of his own people, he’d take him to task. If it had been someone else, he had to know who.


But he couldn’t deny that the redhead’s actions and looks also had grabbed his attention, and he wasn’t ready to let her go. He couldn’t quit thinking about how her wet curls had looked as if she’d just taken a shower fully dressed; the way her green eyes had both glowered at him and eaten him up; how she had stiffened her spine, showing off her tantalizingly perky breasts even more; and how her lips framed a mouth meant to soften under a man’s kisses. Attempting to shake loose of the image of her lush pink lips pursed at him when she had caught his gaze, he ground his teeth.


Being a human, MacNamara didn’t hear Ian and his brother’s silent approach, but the redhead must have sensed or heard them. She glanced over her shoulder, eyes widening when she saw Ian and Duncan closing in on them.


“I’ll take the lasses to their cottage,” Ian said to MacNamara. Once the words left his mouth, he thought he had sounded a little too insistent.


MacNamara turned and gave him a knowing smile, his face crinkling in amusement. “I’d best return to the pub to finish my business. ’Night, my laird, lassies, Duncan.”


He didn’t wait for the ladies’ objections—if they had intended to voice any. Giving Ian a polite nod, he hurried back to the pub.


The other men would have a good-hearted chuckle when they learned Ian MacNeill had stolen MacNamara’s catch for the day.


“Ladies,” Ian said, bowing his head a little and motioned to his car. “I’ll take you to Baird Cottage since it’s on my way to Argent Castle. I’m Laird MacNeill, and this is my youngest brother, Duncan.”


Both women stood still, not saying a word. Without waiting for either to respond, Ian stalked toward them and, without invitation, swung the redhead up into his arms. She gave a small cry of surprise. The other woman’s mouth parted in astonishment.


“Scottish hospitality,” Ian ground out, annoyed with himself for not leaving the women in MacNamara’s able care but unwilling to tolerate any protest. In that instant, he smelled Julia’s scent—an elusive floral fragrance that couldn’t veil what she truly was. The fragrance of exotic flowers enhanced the tantalizing feminine smell of her—appealingly all wolf.


She was soft and curvaceous and all delectable woman, and she felt damn good against his body.


He tightened his grip on her almost imperceptibly, like a male would a female, already wanting to keep her—in a strictly wolfish way—and not with any thought of whether she’d be the right kind of woman for him or not. He didn’t even know if the redhead was mated.


Hell. He glanced at the other and took a deep breath, smelling the air. Maria was a wolf, too.


Both women must have realized he was a wolf in the same instant, the way they took deep breaths and their eyes widened. He smiled. His expression had to appear as predatory as he felt.

- Heart of the Highland Wolf, Terry Spear

oOoOoOo

So you see, you can’t take the wolf out of the man, even when he’s shed his wolf coat!

What do you think? Would you love Ian’s Scottish hospitality, or be more of a wary wolf?

Thanks so much for dropping by and answering my question!

Terry Spear
http://www.terryspear.com/
http://www.facebook.com/#!/terry.spear
https://twitter.com/#!/TerrySpear
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/tspear

** The contest is now closed.  The winner of Terry's book is Krystal (edysicecreamlover18@...).  Congratulations, Krystal!

One reader who comments will receive an autographed copy of Heart of the Highland Wolf, or any of the earlier books, winner’s choice. Must be a US or Canadian address.

Thanks so much for dropping by and commenting!

And if you’re looking for another - Dreaming of the Wolf is coming in December, and I’ll be here with another giveaway, compliments of Sourcebooks and our terrific host, Diana!