Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

One thing I love about the Victorian Age is its epic scope. Choose any decade, any year, even any month, in that era and you can find something important--whether political, social, or cultural--happening and not only in England. My current project is a novella set in 1879, a prequel to my just-finished manuscript, which takes place in 1888. To get the ball rolling, I entered the date on Wikipedia to see which events had shaped that year--with fascinating results. Here are just a few important things that happened in 1879. 1) The Anglo-Zulu War: Given the spread of colonialism and size of its empire, it was no surprise to learn that Britain was at war, somewhere in the world. This conflict involved the Kingdom of Zululand in South Africa, was marked by a number of bloody battles, and lasted from January to July, when the British defeated the Zulus at Ulundi. But one of the most notable casualties of the war was Napoleon, Prince Imperial of France, the twenty-three year...

by Gina Conkle (new author to Sourcebooks) By nature, I’m 99% calm and contemplative, but, oh, my impulsive 1%. Maybe that’s why I write romance? Nothing beats the vicarious thrills you find on the page…all experienced from the comfort of your favorite reading spot. After a dating life that can best be described as a roller coaster, my own true love story began around the ripe old age of 26. I was ready for real adventure, and my 1% genetic material kicked things up a notch with a fabulous idea that had nothing to do with love: Why not leave my comfortable biotech job in southern California and teach in parts unknown Africa? My plans stayed a secret, except for telling my mom (who was not thrilled), but I forged ahead, finding an international school service. They sent an information packet with jobs in places like Mali, Mozambique, and Mauritania. So, I started making plans. That’s when happy hour happened.  I was late…the last one to arr...

My parents and I went to visit my older sister when she was in college, I was about 15. Shortly after my arrival, she noticed my preoccupation with my new wrist watch. It even had one of those outer timing dials you could turn for purposes that were never quite clear, but I was deeply enamored of it. It also had that cool little AM/PM window where the "3" was supposed to be (the date window didn't come along until later). (And, yes, this was even before LED and other digital watches, waaaayyy before portable phones.) This is about the right age. (Cool shirt hunh?) So, the first thing my sister did after my parents weren't in the room was grab my watch and set it some random amount ahead (or way behind). "There!" She handed it back to me, quite pleased with herself. "That's Matthew time. You aren't allowed to calibrate it to real time, or anyone else's. Or explain what's going on for the duration of your entire visit." I soon le...

Posted by Samantha Grace When I started writing Lady Vivian Defies a Duke , I knew I wanted an adventurous hero, and Luke Forest, Duke of Foxhaven, met my requirements nicely. I’ve always had a case of wanderlust too, but not as much opportunity to indulge in world travel. I did, however, take a trip after I graduated college that changed my outlook on life. I had the chance to visit Zambia, Africa for 9 weeks. (My mom lived there for three years with her husband who was working for a British company keeping their equipment running.)   It was such a different lifestyle. Everything was slower and you had to find enjoyment in the little things like going to the open market for veggies and playing games together. And there weren’t as many choices for anything – soda, chocolate, etc. You know, the important things. LOL. I learned to appreciate what was available. Top left: Guards allowed people in & out of the home. Broken bottles were imbedded in the cemen...