from C.D. Hersh
Many books require research, and The Mercenary and the Shifters was no exception. We had to research a bunch of things for this book, but our favorite was the Hebrides Islands in Scotland. It’s a lot of fun when your book requires you to visit other countries. In The Mercenary and the Shifters-Book Four of The Turning Stone Chronicles, our hero goes to the Hebrides in Scotland.
We have never been to Scotland, but it’s somewhere Catherine has always wanted to go, so we set off to discover these remote islands with our hero, Mike Corritore, who lands in Benbecula airport in the Hebrides in the early dawn.
From the airport we headed south for South Uist, crossing a causeway lined on both sides with white boulders. Back on land, the road periodically narrowed into a lane and a half, the bulged-out lanes barely big enough to hold a vehicle. Houses dotted the landscape, surrounded by fields of low, green grass. Squat, wire fences penned in white sheep, grazing contentedly. Along the edge of the road, bushes leaned into the pavement, the tips of the branches sporting white blossoms.
En route for Loch Baghasdail, we crossed a second causeway. Just past the end of the causeway, a series of small, deep blue lakes dotted the countryside. As the road moved inland the landscaped changed. Fewer houses appeared along the roadside. Bleached, white boulders jutted from the ground like cemetery markers. The flat, slightly curvy road became straight, with low, rolling rises. Gray mountains, their tops ringed in matching gray haze, lay against the horizon on the left. The scenery was beautiful, bucolic, and stark at the same time.
Do you want to know the best part about this trip? It didn’t cost us a dime.
We went via Google Maps to the Scottish countryside. Ain’t the internet wonderful?
Maybe someday we’ll get to see the Hebrides in person. In the meantime, we hope you’ll enjoy our hero’s trip to Scotland, the exciting action-packed story, and the results from the fun research we did for this story.
Putting words and stories on paper is second nature to co-authors C.D. Hersh. They’ve written separately since they were teenagers and discovered their unique, collaborative abilities in the mid-90s. As high school sweethearts, and husband and wife, Catherine and Donald believe in true love and happily ever after.
Their paranormal series is titled The Turning Stone Chronicles.
They are looking forward to many years of co-authoring and book sales, and a lifetime of happily-ever-after endings on the page and in real life. 
Good memories of our family trip: we crested a hill and there was a bagpiper in full dress playing to the rolling hills. Surely a plant from the tourist bureau, but it was very effective. Loved the scenery.
ReplyDeleteBet you got to smell the grasses which we missed. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteI do the same thing when researching for my time travel books, C.D.! Love how Google has made it so easy for the price of your internet. Plus, you're always traveling first class. Wink. Fun post! Cheers and all the best in all your writing and researching ventures!
ReplyDeleteWe know many writers who do. Sure saves on expenses and shots. Or next trip is “in time” so not much googling.
DeleteSloane thanks for sharing our stories.
ReplyDelete