Guest Blog by KaraLynne Mackrory and Giveaway of Haunting Mr Darcy!!!!

Hello everyone, I am so very excited to have KaraLynne Mackrory on my blog today for a guest post entitled Pink Gloves. Plus a giveaway for one paperback copy and one e-book copy of Haunting Mr Darcy! Kindly brought to you by Jakki at Leatherbound reviews! (Unfortunately this post did not get published this morning as scheduled, after speaking with Google it seems it could have been a glitch in the system I can only wonder at what that means!!! However I would like to apologise profusely to everyone for this untimely delay and offer my own theory that maybe this glitch meant my blog was also HAUNTED!!!!)

Pink Gloves by KaraLynne Mackrory

About six months ago I started a kickboxing slash cross fit slash I-want-my-mommy workout class.  When I started it with about a half dozen other people I didn’t know, I was at a fitness level that would make Mr. Collins look buff.  I started it because I wanted to be stronger.  Stronger physically for sure, but stronger mentally and emotionally as well. 

The first time we used the punching bags I remember tentatively hitting the bag, with all my hesitation taking any real oomph out of the strike.  I was still having fun as I learned to trust in myself, my ability and growing strength though.  I eventually invested in some gloves.  They were not actual punching gloves at this point but they protected my knuckles some and so I allowed my punches to be a little more spirited. 

More recently I have furthered my investment in some actual, bona fide punching gloves – and hot pink to boot.  They felt funny at first, because they were heavier and stiffer.  They made me feel a little conspicuous and exposed even as they were more protecting.  I felt silly wearing them because I thought with my amateur skill, I was fooling myself to get real gloves.  I was sure people would look at me in my gloves and think I was overreaching my skill.

But I used them anyway and slowly over the course of a couple more weeks I found myself punching harder. Pushing myself and testing my strength.  I would swing my arms with all I had and strike the bag over and over until my arms felt like jello and I didn’t know if I wanted to hug the bag or punch it again in satisfaction. 

And then it happened.  A few days ago we were doing stations and one was at the bag.  I started going through the routine ascribed.  Jab, cross, kick.  Jab, cross, kick.  Harder and harder, smother and more controlled.  I was in my element and I was feeling adrenaline begin to course through me – pushing my muscles faster, harder and more powerfully.  After a long while the outside sounds around me began to trickle into my awareness again and I realized there was silence in the room.  I thought maybe it was time to change stations and I turn around to see the half dozen or so people I work out with, who by this time have become my friends, look at me and cheer!  They joked that they didn’t want to meet me in a dark alley and that my kicks scared them.  What a liberation I felt when I finally let myself go and gave myself permission to really see what I could do.  Of course, I blushed at the unexpected praise and attention.  But inside I smiled.  I am stronger.

Writing was something I always enjoyed.  It was something that I used to work through ideas in my head.  When I began writing novels I gave it all I had then – not realizing that I was probably a lot like my beginner boxing self.  Tentatively holding myself back, hesitating unconsciously from taking too much of a risk.  I still enjoyed the process and loved the result.  I was learning to trust myself and my ability.

As I continued writing though, I learned things and grew more confident in my literary strikes. I was willing to push myself harder because my kid gloves protected me a little.  My kid gloves being the experience I had gained and the wonderful support of readers who liked my work. 

With Haunting Mr. Darcy I found myself a little scared throughout the process of writing it.  It was different in a way I could not quite put to words.  The way it needed to be written, the way the story inside my mind demanded it be told was terrifying in what it required.  It was a scenario that was farther fetched than I had written before and I wondered if anyone would even like it.  It was a plot that pushed my abilities harder than I had ever tried before and I wondered if perhaps it was beyond them.  I may have acquired some actual writing punching gloves (hot pink too I hope) but that didn’t mean that I felt safe to let go completely. 

And yet… it was one of the most liberating writing processes I have ever experienced.  There were moments where I felt like that time a few days ago when I was punching the bag.  I felt like I had lost myself in the process and by giving myself the freedom I had also given myself a great power.  Now that it is released I find myself feeling exposed again - did I make the unbelievable believable? Constantly wondering if people would like it and deciding if in the end it matters if they do.  Because in the end, what matters is that I got stronger in the process.

That being said, I do hope you all like it!  ::wink::

Haunting Mr. Darcy book blurb:

What happens to the happily ever after when the ever after has already happened?

A spirited courtship indeed! Jane Austen’s much adored Pride and Prejudice is transfigured in this regency adaptation.  That fickle friend Fate intervenes when an unexpected event threatens the happily ever after of literature’s favorite love story.  The gentlemen from Netherfield have left, winter is upon the land and after a horrifying carriage accident, Elizabeth Bennet finds her spirit transported as if by magic into Mr. Darcy’s London home.  Paranormally tethered to the disagreeable man, it doesn’t help that he believes she is a phantasm of his love struck mind, not the real Elizabeth.  Somehow they must learn to trust, learn to love and learn to bring Elizabeth back to her earthly form before it is too late.

Click here for My Review of Haunting Mr Darcy!!!

Author bio:

KaraLynne is an amazing mother who never makes mistakes, never gets upset with her children and never ever has a dirty house. Ever. She always has her dishes done and the floors spotless and dinner is always prepared and ready on time. Her kids are always clean, polite, respectful and loving, especially to each other. She never gets irritated with her husband when he doesn’t turn his socks right side out for the laundry and they always agree on everything. She delights in nothing else but to serve her family and never wants or needs time for herself. She takes great care to shower every day and put make up on so that she is always beautiful and presentable. She never wears her pajamas all day or for days in a row and she is the epitome of womanhood. Most of all, she has a great sense of humor and loves to write.

Falling for Mr. Darcy (2012) is KaraLynne’s first venture in to the world of book authorship.  Bluebells in the Mourning (2013)  came next and coming in the spring of 2014 is, Haunting Mr. Darcy: A Spirited Courtship.  Although, admittedly a Darcy addict, she enjoys many things, such as: Mr. Knightly, Edmund Bertram, Captain Wentworth, Mr. Tilney and John Thornton.  She is happily married to her own Mr. Darcy and together they share the insanity inducing responsibility of raising four children.

Links:

Blog: http://karalynnemackrory.merytonpress.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaraLynneMackroryAuthor?ref=hl

Buy on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Haunting-Mr-Darcy-Spirited-Courtship/dp/1936009358/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395838570&sr=8-1&keywords=haunting+Mr.+Darcy

Buy on B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/haunting-mr-darcy-a-spirited-courtship-karalynne-mackrory/1118956235?ean=9781936009350

Giveaway!!!

To be in with a chance to win a paper back copy or an E-book copy of Haunting Mr Darcy, simply leave a comment below. The lucky winners will be announced on the 18th May 2014!!! The winners will have 36 hours to contact me. If a winner does not contact me within that time, then I will choose a new winner. Good Luck!!!