Romancing the Reader: Sharing a World by Karenna Colcroft

Welcome to Karenna Colcroft who is kind enough to share with us her experience in writing in the Spellbound Treasures’ world. Today, I’ll give away five copies of her story Reflected Love to the first five people who comment on her post. Also, please come back Friday for more Flirtations 😉

Sharing a World

A few years ago, one of my publishers suggested doing a “shared world” series. Her concept was for a store which sold magical objects, existing across dimensions, that somehow caused people to find their true love.

I liked the idea, and at that point I was trying to build my backlist, so I said I’d give it a try.

Shared worlds are definitely not for everyone. My brain tends to go off on its own tangents, and I like creating an entire universe myself. Writing in a shared world, I had to use the components the publisher had stated were required for all books in the series, and I had to make sure I didn’t contradict anything she had set up or other authors had written. The series isn’t entirely connected; each book can be read as a standalone. The only threads tying all the books together were the store and its owner, and their reason for existing.

But I still found it difficult to work my ideas into a world that someone else had established. I managed it; my novella Reflected Love came out in June 2011. But that is the only story I’ve done for Jupiter Gardens Press’s Spellbound Treasures line, and I don’t plan to do anymore. For some authors, having a shared world to play in and other authors to share the ideas with works great, and I love reading stories that are done that way. I’m happy to be part of Spellbound Treasures, and someday I might do a revisit to Ralie and Listrial, the heroine and hero of Reflected Love. But otherwise, I guess I’m a little too much of a control freak to play in other people’s worlds…

Reflected Love is available from Jupiter Gardens Press, http://jupitergardenspress.com/shop/reflected-love/, and third-party retailers.

Karenna Colcroft began writing erotic romance in 2006 on a challenge from a friend, as part of her journey. In her books, Karenna shows that no matter what someone has been through, they can overcome and go on to find love and healthy relationships. Her characters may be afraid and may need to heal, but no matter what, they learn that they and their relationships are worth the effort. Love isn’t a magical cure for trauma or mental illness, but having that special person or people in one’s life can be motivation and support for healing. Even in the dark times, light and hope exist. Find out more about Karenna and her books on her website, http://www.karennacolcroft.com.
Here’s the blurb and a short excerpt from Reflected Love:

Ralie has moved into a new apartment, and the antique mirror she finds on an online auction site is the perfect addition to her bedroom.

Fae soldier Listrial has no need for the mirror he finds in a peddler’s tent while on patrol. But the mirror calls to him, and the small amount of coin he carries is just enough to purchase it.

Through the mirror, Ralie and Listrial discover each other. Is the mirror powerful enough to bring a human and a Fae together? And can their love surmount their differences?

EXCERPT:

With a gasp and a pounding heart, Ralie whirled around. No one stood behind her. Again she reminded herself that no one would be able to enter the apartment without her knowledge.

Yet when she looked at the mirror again, the man’s image remained.

He looked a bit older than Ralie, late twenties, perhaps, and wore his hair pulled back. His eyes were a shade of green she had never seen before, and lashes as long as her own rimmed them. His clothing, pants and a tunic in shades of brown and green, resembled something from medieval times, and a scabbard hung at his side. Random junk surrounded him, as if he stood in a warehouse or store.

“Hello?” Ralie said tentatively.

The man didn’t appear to hear her. He turned his head and spoke, apparently to someone beside him. She didn’t hear his words.

When he faced the mirror again, his eyes widened, and he put his hand against the glass. The image faded, and Ralie’s own reflection returned.

“It’s official,” she muttered. “Ralie, you’re losing your mind. Too much time alone.”

“You aren’t alone,” the cool voice from before informed her.

Right. Because I have a magic mirror that talks to me. “I’m not listening.”

Hands over her ears, she stomped out of the room to the accompaniment of laughter.

Her stomach growled, reminding her that she’d barely had time to eat. Maybe the voice and the man’s image had been hallucinations brought on by hunger. Food would make everything seem more normal.

She knew better, but she still needed to eat.

From the freezer, she took one of the many TV dinners she’d stocked. Never having lived alone before, she hadn’t quite figured out yet how to cook for only herself. The dinners had been an easy solution while she adjusted to her new home and job. Eventually she would have to start making real meals. For now, at least she had food.

She ate in front of the evening newscast, then channel surfed through game shows and sitcom reruns. The mirror’s presence called to her from the bedroom. She refused to respond. She didn’t know what she’d gotten herself into by buying the thing, and until she found out she didn’t know if she wanted to be in the same room with it.

The thought of seeing the man’s image again appealed to her. He’d certainly been handsome. Ralie felt like she knew him from somewhere. Like he was someone important to her.

Which was completely ridiculous, because she’d never seen him before. He was a random image in an antique mirror, nothing more. A random image that shouldn’t have been there, since mirrors only reflected what lay in front of them.