Weekend Writing Warrior 8/2/20 #8Sunday

How is it already August, yet it seems as if 2020 has lasted forever and probably will never end? Anyone else feeling that way too?

Regardless of what kind of timeless alternate timeline we’ve found ourselves in, today is Sunday which means I’m again participating in the Weekend Writing Warrior blog hop.

This week’s excerpt is from “The Maiden in the Tower,” my retelling of Rapunzel set in the Viking-infused world of The Heartsbane Saga. This skips forward from last week’s excerpt, to Carys’s new life sold into servitude to pay her father’s debts.

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And so the years passed, until one day when Carys was fifteen and her mistress was once again gone. A gentle spring rain was falling outside, pattering against the tin roof overhead as she dusted her lady’s chamber. On an impulse, she threw open the shutters and stuck her head out the window. She giggled as the water dripped down her upturned face, bringing back muddled memories of running through the rain in Orllewinol. So caught up was she in this long-forgotten memory, she relaxed her grip on her duster.

“Hey there, watch what you’re doing!”

An angry shout roused her and she quickly looked down at the street below, at the young man rubbing his head.

“I’m quite sorry, sir! It’s the rain’s fault though, and not any ill will towards you.”

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And here’s the rest of that scene:

As he looked up at her, the man’s face broke out into a smile. “The rain, you say?”

“Yes, the rain! I hadn’t felt it on my face in so long, and I suppose I got caught up in the sensation and lost track of what I was doing.”

“I suppose then it’s best it was just the duster that fell and not you.” He paused. “At least four floors to fall past.”

“It is a long ways down.” Carys frowned. “I dinnae suppose you could throw the duster back up?”

“Wouldn’t it just be easier for you to come down and get it?” he asked.

“Perhaps if I were a bird and could fly down.” She laughed at the image. “But I’m just a girl, and I can’t leave my mistress’s chamber.”

Now it was the man’s turn to frown. “Are you a prisoner then?”

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Read the rest of “The Maiden in the Tower,” just $.99 at Amazon, then post a link to your eight-ten sentence blog entry or join the fun at the Weekend Writing Warriors website. Also, book 1, Captive and the Cursed (which is Beauty and the Beast – with Vikings!) releases September 1st and is available for pre-order now.

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About “The Maiden in the Tower:”

Rapunzel – with Vikings!

Carys barely remembers her life before her father sold her to pay his debts. Locked away in her mistress’s chamber, she doesn’t dare to dream of anything better for herself, until a chance encounter with a traveling merchant changes her life forever.

Storm has traveled the lengths of the known world, yet when he sees a servant girl locked in a tower, he knows he’ll do anything to rescue her.

Can Storm and Carys overcome the obstacles in their path and reach the happily ever after they both want?

The Maiden in the Tower is a standalone short story that accompanies a series of fairy tales retold in a world of Vikings. If you like sassy heroines, adventures spanning the medieval world, and a touch of romance, you’ll love The Heartsbane Saga, E.D. Martin’s new historical fantasy series.