Falcon’s Eye View of the Fury Falls Inn Property #visual #layout #FracturedCrystals #FuryFallsInn #HistoricalFiction #HistFic #amwriting #amreading #books #novel

Before I launch into today’s topic, I’d like to share that you can nab the first 3 books in the Fury Falls Inn historical fantasy series at discounted prices through 9/27/21. See below for more details! And of course, Fractured Crystals releases on 10/12/21, so now is your chance to catch up for less moola. Enjoy!

Let’s talk visuals, shall we? Writers I know use a variety of visual media to help them layout their stories, their fictional towns and floor layouts, and more. Some use vision boards where they make a collage of the clothing, cars, furniture, whatever to refer to as they write. I have shared before the map I created for my A More Perfect Union historical romance series of where my characters “live” in Charleston, South Carolina. I went a little deeper for the Fury Falls Inn series, so I thought I’d share my visuals over the next few weeks before Fractured Crystals releases next month.

I strive to be consistent in my stories, from one to the next. I am compiling a series bible, updating it after each story I write to include any new characters, places, descriptions, etc. That way when I write the next story, I have a quick reference for all the details associated with the people, places, and things. So to ensure I have the property layout consistent, I started with my overall vision of the entire property.

Now, don’t laugh at my amateurish mapping technique! It’s not something I would ever publish, other than to show you my behind-the-scenes tools. The mere process of creating this aerial view, from what is now the falcon’s eye view—you’ll have to read Fractured Crystals to understand his presence, though—fixed the property layout in my mind. Now when my characters are walking from place to place, I know what they’re seeing, what buildings are where, and what animals, too.

I enjoyed playing with the “drawing” tools in PowerPoint to create my layouts. The trees in particular. Note the road at the very bottom of the image. That’s the Winchester Road that goes from Huntsville, Alabama, to Winchester, Tennessee. Winchester Road still exists, by the way. My husband and I drove it a couple of years ago so I could experience the road as it is today and try to imagine what it might have been like 200 years ago. That’s a tough thing to do!

One of the interesting things about doing this is that the property changes occasionally due to events in the stories. So I’ll need to update some of my layouts going forward. I’ll probably share the before and after of some of the layouts over the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned!

Now, go grab a few books before the prices go back to their regular one. Happy reading!

Betty

P.S. If you haven’t already, please consider signing up for my newsletter, which I send out most every month, including news like new covers, new releases, and upcoming appearances where I love to meet my readers, along with recipes and writing progress. Thanks and happy reading!

Visit www.bettybolte.com for more on my books and upcoming events.

Amazon Fury Falls Inn Series Page

The Haunting of Fury Falls Inn (Free or $.99)

Fury Falls Inn in 1821 Alabama. A place for ghosts, witches, and magic. A place of secrets and hidden dangers. Cassie Fairhope longs for only one thing: to escape her mother’s tyranny. She has a plan, too. Seduce the young man, who is acting as innkeeper while her father is away on business, into marrying her. He’s handsome and available even though he doesn’t have feelings for her. Marriage is her only escape. Despite her mother’s strenuous objections.

But Flint Hamilton has his own plans and they don’t include marriage, even to the pretty temptress. He’s focused on securing his reputation in the hostelry business to make his father respect him. He quickly learns that running a roadside inn in northern Alabama in 1821 means dealing not only with the young woman and her hostile mother but also with horse thieves and rogues.

When tragedy strikes, Cassie and Flint are forced to face unforeseen challenges and dangerous decisions together in order to attempt to rid the inn of its newly arrived specter—who doesn’t have any plan to leave…

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Under Lock and Key ($1.99)

Fury Falls Inn in 1821 Alabama. A place for ghosts, witches, and magic. A place of secrets and hidden dangers. Giles Fairhope reluctantly journeys to the Fury Falls Inn for one reason: his beloved sister Cassie needs him after their mother was murdered.

His father and three brothers are far away, so she’s alone, without any family, in the wilderness of 1821 northern Alabama. He plans to find his mother’s killers, ensure Cassie’s safety, and then go home. Cassie begs him to stay until their father returns, but Giles has absolutely no desire to see him. When Cassie tells him their mother’s ghost haunts the inn, he suddenly faces his dead mother amidst shocking memories from his past and unexpected changes in himself.

His mother’s ghost insists he find not only the killers but a stolen set of keys. Keys which unlock more than an attic door but also surprising and dangerous family secrets. The revelations change everything he thought he knew about his family and threaten his sister’s safety and perhaps even her life…

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Desperate Reflections ($2.99)

Fury Falls Inn in 1821 Alabama. A place for ghosts, witches, and magic. A place of secrets and hidden dangers. Abram must protect his vulnerable sister from all of it. Before the dark side of magic ensnares her.

When Abram Fairhope grudgingly travels to the inn at his beloved sister’s request, he has no idea of the dire revelations about to upend his life. His only desire is to fulfill his familial duty and then get back to his job as senator’s aide. But the shocking truth of his very nature destroys all of his carefully laid plans. Worse still, he must use his newly revealed ability to shield his sister from terrible danger. Threats exist from within and without, especially the surprisingly pretty woman his jaded heart can’t seem to ignore. Can he keep his sister safe and still protect his heart?

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Fractured Crystals ($3.99)

Fury Falls Inn in 1821 Alabama. A place for ghosts, witches, and magic. A place of secrets and hidden dangers. A place where Daniel Fairhope’s family kept life-changing secrets from him.

His sister’s magic is coveted by two powerful, angry witches intent on her willing compliance with their demands. Worse, a witch hunter is on the loose, determined to rid the area of all witches. Struggling to cope with those threats, Daniel discovers his own unique and powerful ability as well as those of his estranged brothers. Abilities they’ll need to unite to protect their sister and the family secrets. But these challenges all pale in comparison to convincing the captivating woman he meets at the inn to trust him before she breaks his heart.

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If you’d like an autographed paperback, personalized to you or someone you want to give it to, and mailed to you for only $18, you can order one directly from me here. Be sure to give me the name you want it made out to and your mailing address and I’ll send it out as soon as possible.