Interview with M.L. Tyndall

Captain’s Log, Stardate 07.07.2006

Arrrrr me hearties! Today I have M.L. (MaryLu) Tyndall with me! Her pirate historical romance, THE REDEMPTION, releases today, which also happens to coincide with the opening of the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest! Johnny-alert! Johnny-alert!

THE REDEMPTION

Lady Charlisse Bristol sets off on a voyage in search of a father she never knew, only to find herself shipwrecked on a desert island. Near starvation, she is rescued by a band of pirates and their fiercely handsome leader, Edmund Merrick. Will Clarisse win her struggle against the seductive lure of this pirate captain?

While battling his attraction to this winsome lady, Edmund offers to help Charlisse on her quest--until he discovers her father is none other than Edward the Terror, the cruelest pirate on the Caribbean. Can Edmund win this lady's love while shielding her from his lecherous crew and working to bring her father to justice?

Now here’s MaryLu!

Tell us what inspired the storyline and characters of THE REDEMPTION.

The Redemption is a story of an abused girl, Lady Charlisse Bristol, who sails to the Caribbean in search of a father she has never known. She is shipwrecked and rescued by the handsome pirate captain, Edmund Merrick, who falls in love with her and then finds out the father she seeks is the most vicious pirate on the Caribbean and the man he has vowed to bring to justice.

The Redemption was born out of a difficult, personal journey. Like the heroine in my story, I too grew up without a father’s love and spent many years searching for acceptance and value in all the wrong places. I rejected God and didn’t realize that only in His arms would I find what I was searching for. There is a deep part of my soul written in the path Charlisse must take to find God’s love—a path that I hope will provide a healing touch to many lives.

So what started your love of pirates? And how many times have you seen Pirates of the Caribbean?

My love of pirates began when I was a child growing up on the balmy white beaches of South Florida. There is nothing more exhilarating than those gorgeous tall-masted ships, the men who commanded them, and the tempestuous seas they sailed upon. And uh hum, I'm embarassed to say that I saw Pirates of the Caribbean 13 times in the theaters. Yes, you heard it correctly.

So does your hunky husband look like Johnny Depp? Give us the scoop on how he stole your heart.

My husband is even more hunky than Johnny Depp (to me)! He had my heart with only one wink of his baby-blue eyes. My husband is the perfect hero, courageous, honorable, wise, and strong. And best of all, he treats me like a princess!

Any other pirate movies that inspire you as you write?

Absolutely, Sea Hawk, Captain Blood (Erroyl Flynn made a great pirate), Master and Commander and the whole Horatio Hornblower series put on by A&E, to name a few.

Finish this sentence: Writing a novel is like...

living in a dream world all day long.

Do you have a favorite scripture verse for your writing?

Yes, Psalm 37: 23-24. "The steps of a man are established by the Lord, and He delights in his way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the one who holds his hand."

If you were a pirate ship, what name would you be christened?

The Wacky Warrior, because most people think I'm a bit crazy, and I feel like I spend my life in one big spritual battle.

If you were a pirate captain, who would be your crew members?

Argg, me crew would have to be me husband, George the fierce, me kids, Josh the conqueror, and Crystal the valliant, and then I'd be takin' on me friends, if they had enough guts to come aboard.

If you were a pirate captain, where in the whole world would be your port of haven and why?

That would have to be Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, where I grew up. It still feels like home to me, and besides, its just a day's sail to the Caribbean!

What would be the name of your parrot?

Sassy, because if he hung around me long enough, he'd for sure have a smart mouth on him.

You're off the hotseat! Any last words before you walk the plank?

Only my sincere thanks to you, Camy, for taking the time to interview me, and my prayer that everyone that reads The Redemption, will not only find it an exciting and romantic adventure, but that they will be truly blessed by it also.

Camy here: Thanks muchos, MaryLu! Do you know what’s really cool? When I checked Amazon, they only had one more copy left in stock!

And for all you jealous cats, we’ll be seeing Pirates 2 ourselves here in San Jose on Monday July 17th!

One-Skein Pyrenees Scarf knitting pattern

I got into using antique patterns when I was making the scarf my hero wears in my Regency romance, The Spinster’s Christmas . I wanted to do another pattern which I think was in use in the Regency period, the Pyrenees Knit Scarf on pages 36-38 of The Lady's Assistant for Executing Useful and Fancy Designs in Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work, volume 1, by Jane Gaugain, published in 1840. She is thought to be the first person to use knitting abbreviations, at least in a published book, although they are not the same abbreviations used today (our modern abbreviations were standardized by Weldon’s Practical Needlework in 1906). Since the book is out of copyright, you can download a free PDF copy of the book at Archive.org. I found this to be a fascinating look at knitting around the time of Jane Austen’s later years. Although the book was published in 1840, many of the patterns were in use and passed down by word of mouth many years before that, so it’s possible these are

Excerpt of The Wedding Kimono

I posted an excerpt of my Christian contemporary romance novella, The Wedding Kimono , on the Sweet Romance Reads blog. Click here to read the extended excerpt. Already one of my newsletter subscribers? Click here to get The Wedding Kimono free!

What I’m writing in The Year of the Dog

This month, I have decided to focus more on my Christian Contemporary Romantic Suspense novel, Year of the Dog , so I’ve been spending more time working on it. It’s actually an old manuscript that I submitted to Zondervan but it was never bought, and I’m rewriting/revising it as a (second) prequel novel to my Warubozu Spa Chronicles series set in Hawaii. Here’s a little bit of what I just rewrote/edited. This morning, her mom was about to tackle the attic when Marisol put her foot down. “Mom, I have to go to work. I can’t spend the whole day helping you clean the house.” “You have plenty of time. What can you possibly do all day now that you quit your job?” “Oh, I dunno. Renovate my new facility?” “You’re only going to have dogs there. How much renovation do you really need?” “It would be nice if the roof didn’t leak and the windows opened and shut. Oh, and I kind of need a floor.” I guess Marisol’s relationship with her mother isn’t getting better anytime soon …

Phoebe’s Muffatees knitting pattern

In Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 4: Betrayer , Phoebe wears a pair of lace muffatees, or gauntlets/arm-warmers that hide a rather deadly surprise. :) I actually got the idea of having her wear muffatees because I saw a lace manchette pattern in Miss Watts’ Ladies’ Knitting and Netting Book , published in 1840, page 20. However, after doing some research, I found that they were called muffatees in the Regency era, and the term manchette did not arise until a few years later. They were essentially arm-warmers worn under those long sleeves on day dresses, which were usually made of muslin too thin to be very warm. I decided to knit Phoebe’s muffatees using a Leaf Pattern originally suggested for a purse in Mrs. Gaugain’s book, The Lady’s Assistant, volume 1, 5th edition published in 1842, pages 234-237. I think there was an error and row 36 in the original pattern was duplicated erroneously, so I have adjusted the pattern. The original manchette pattern called for “fine” needles a

Camille Elliot's March newsletter

My Camille Elliot (Christian Regency Romantic Suspense) newsletter went out last week, but in case you missed it, the link is below. In my newsletter this month, I posted a link to a knitting pattern for the muffatees/arm warmers worn by my character Phoebe in Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 4: Betrayer as well as a blog post for the cover character for Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 2: Berserker . I also posted an update on my health and my next upcoming release. Click here to read my Camille Elliot newsletter for March.

ひとり寿司第３１章パート３

「ひとり寿司」をブログに連載します！ひとり寿司寿司シリーズの第一作キャミー・タング西島美幸訳スポーツ狂のレックス・坂井 —— いとこのマリコが数ヶ月後に結婚することにより、「いとこの中で一番年上の独身女性」という内輪の肩書を「勝ち取る」ことについては、あまり気にしていない。コントロールフリークの祖母を無視するのは容易だ —— しかし、祖母は最終通告を出した —— マリコの結婚式までにデート相手を見つけなければ、無慈悲な祖母は、レックスがコーチをしている女子バレーボールチームへの資金供給を切ると言う。ダグアウトにいる選手全員とデートに出かけるほど絶望的なわけではない。レックスは、バイブルスタディで読んだ「エペソの手紙」をもとに「最高の男性」の条件の厳しいリストを作った。バレーボールではいつも勝つ —— ゲームを有利に進めれば、必ず成功するはずだ。そのとき兄は、クリスチャンではなく、アスリートでもなく、一見何の魅力もないエイデンを彼女に引き合わせる。エイデンは、クリスチャンではないという理由で離れていったトリッシュという女の子から受けた痛手から立ち直ろうとしている。そして、レックスが（１）彼に全く興味がないこと、（２）クリスチャンであること、（３）トリッシュのいとこであることを知る。あの狂った家族とまた付き合うのはごめんだ。まして、偽善的なクリスチャンの女の子など、お断り。彼はマゾヒストじゃない。レックスは時間がなくなってきた。いくら頑張っても、いい人は現れない。それに、どこへ行ってもエイデンに遭遇する。あのリストはどんどん長くなっていくばかり —— 過去に掲載済みのストーリーのリンクはこちらです。 *** ＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊「ダメだ、早すぎる」エイデンは別のエクササイズボールをつかんで彼女の横に寝転がり、ボールの上に足を置いた。「僕の真似して」ブリッジのエクササイズ——肩を床につけたまま、床から体を持ち上げた。彼女は彼の真似をした。できる限りゆっくり降りてくる。ハムストリング筋が燃えている。「いいよ」十五回の一セット目、彼がペースを決めた。それが終わると、彼女は息苦しいのに、彼は汗もかいていない。すぐに彼はまた位置についた。「行くよ？」彼女は位置について、うなずいた

A List of my Free Blog Reads

Curious about what my writing is like? Here’s a list of all my free books and the free short stories, novellas, and novels that you can read here on my blog. I’ll update this post as I add more free reads. Christian Humorous Romantic Suspense: Year of the Dog (Warubozu Spa Chronicles series, Prequel novel) (Currently being posted monthly on my blog as a serial novel) Marisol Mutou, a professional dog trainer, finally has a chance to buy a facility for her business, but her world is upended when she must move in with her disapproving family, who have always made her feel inadequate. When she stumbles upon a three-year-old missing persons case, security expert Ashwin Keitou, whose car she accidentally rear-ended a few weeks earlier, is tasked with protecting her. However, danger begins to circle around them from people who want the past to remain there. Can they shed light on the secrets moving in the shadows? Christian Romantic Suspense: Necessary Proof (Sonoma series #4.1, n

Tabi socks, part deux

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Camy's Blog Tour!

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

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