Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

Thursday, February 8, 2024

Valentine by J.S. Marlo

  


 


The Red Quilt 
Sweet Christmas Story
 Click here to buy


 

 

  

I have lunch at my local Sr. Centre once a week to visit with my friends. This week is Valentine's Day, and ahead of that Special Day, someone shared surprising facts about that day. I don't know how accurate these facts are, but they are nonetheless interesting.

- Valentine's Day became a holiday associated with love and romance in the 1300s. Prior to that, it was celebrated by sacrificing animals and smacking women with animal hides to encourage fertility.

- First valentine was sent in 1415 by a 21-year-old medieval Duke named Charles who was imprisoned in the Tower of London. This is one of the lines of the note he sent to his wife. "I am already sick of love, My very gentle Valentine."


- Giving flowers only became a popular gesture in the late 17th century. It started with King Charles II of Sweden when he learned red roses symbolize deep love.

- Nearly 250 millions of roses are grown in preparation of Valentine's Day every year.

- In 2023, Americans spent $26 billions on Valentine's Day gifts. Candy is the most popular gift.

- Americans send 145 million Valentine's Day cards each year.

- First heart-shaped box was introduced in 1861 by Cadbury.

- February 14th is one of the most popular days for mariage proposals after Christmas and New Year.

- Apparently, Valentine's Day horror movies are a thing... though definitely not on my personal list of things to do on Valentine's Day, or any other day.

- Lovebirds are actual birds. A lovebird is a type of parrot found in the eastern and southern regions of Africa. The lovebirds typically travel in pairs. Aren't they adorable?

Hugs,

J. S.

Wednesday, December 6, 2023

If Wishes Were Magic -- Holiday Romance Especially for You

 

My Christmas books are 50% off at Amazon.com!

Recently I purchased a creative writing book titled “642 Things to Write About”. Some were full pages to write on, some pages were divided into quarters for small comments, or even pictures. The prompts were everything from a single word to a sentence suggestion and most were very thought provoking. Since it wasn’t set up to write from page 1, I flipped through it and jotted things throughout the book as a particular suggestion triggered a thought. Until I came to this one:

“You are a fifty-three year old woman living in Chicago. Write a letter to Santa.”

 You might think “well, isn’t that a fun twist on an old theme – grownups writing to Santa.”

My thoughts were along very different lines. You see, I had actually written that story; the one sentence writing prompt could be the tag line for my book. So my question is—did someone make that up or did they submit the suggestion after reading my book, “If Wishes were Magic”?

 People have said there are only so many plots, but what are the odds that this writing prompt and my story are EXACTLY THE SAME? I mean, it could have been a different town, or a different age groupnor a different plot line. I don’t consider it plagiarism as it’s only a sentence descriptor. If it was, in fact, based on my book, I consider it a compliment that whoever wrote this (and the book was a compilation of many writers’ submissions) considered my story to be one worth using.

“If Wishes were Magic” was a fun book to write, with lots of ‘feel good’ scenarios such as rescue dogs and cats, volunteerism, connecting with parents in the Service and best of all—making kids’ Christmas wishes come true. Add all that to a developing romantic relationship between my two main characters and you have my kind of story – happily ever after! Here is a little more about this story:

In Chicago, Chantilly Morrison is set to launch Chantilly Frost, a new cosmetics line, by holding a “Dear Santa” contest to make women’s fantasies come true. But because of an error in the ad copy, she’s inundated with letters from children, whose scribbled wishes tug at her heart. She hires an investigator to find the letter writers so she can throw a huge Christmas party and make the children’s fantasies come true.

AJ Anderson can find the unfindable, whether it’s lost artifacts or people, and he’s very good at his job. But when Chanti dumps hundreds of letters in his lap with the directive to find the children-- before Christmas Eve-- he knows the request is impossible, but the woman is irresistible. Should he use his skills to make her Christmas wish come true, or can he use the countdown to Christmas to find the key that unlocks the lady’s heart? 

You can purchase this fun Christmas book at your favorite online bookstore by clicking this link: https://books2read.com/If-Wishes-Were-Magic. 

If you’re looking for more Christmas magic, I have also written “Always Believe”


https://books2read.com/Always-Believe
and “Snowflakes and Kisses,https://books2read.com/Snowflakes-and-Wishes, and all three holiday books are currently on sale for ½ price at Amazon! Happy Holidays! 

Barb

http://www.authorsden.com/barbarajbaldwin

https://bookswelove.net/baldwin-barbara/

 


Friday, November 17, 2023

Writing - Choosing a Plot by Janet Lane Walters #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Plot #Mystery #Horror writer #Demise #romance

 

Back to my way of writing.  When I begin, I decide what kind of book I plan to write. This time, I wanted to start a new mystery series and several things were buzzing in my thoughts. I decided rather than a straight mystery, I wanted this series to have a developing romance along with the mystery. Then came the idea for the first one in this series. I needed a title before I began.

I'm funny this way, but I need to have a title before I can begin the book. I knew the dead man was a horror writer. A number of titles flashed in my thoughts. Finally I decided on the Horror Writer's Demise. Not sure why that stuck in my head. Then the planning for the book began. 

Setting became the Hudson Valley and one of the places there was a house that had been turned into a place where writers and other people involved with the arts couldrent a space where they could write. There once was such a place not far from where I live. Not sure if it still exists.

Te Characters came next - Not all of the but they will either increase of combined in versions of the story. The heroine is Valentina Heartley. With a name like that she thinks she should writea romance, especially since there have been no good ones in her life. She does research for professors, attorneys and authors. Her interest is Dane Grant, a local detective and widower. Theyboth have five year old sons. She has a mother who helps her and he has a sister.

What happens next will be my taking these two characters and writing a synopsis of the story. For good or not, I organize my stories completely. At present there are a few questions I need to answer before I can start writing.

That's how I work and the system has evolved over the years since 1968 when I soldmy first story.

My Places

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 http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com

https://www.pinterest.com/shadyl717/

 

Buy Mark

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Monday, November 6, 2023

Good Food and Good Reading

 

purchase at https://books2read/Prelude-and-Promises

Now that November is here, I begin thinking of holiday meals and can’t wait to fix such favorites as honey glazed ham, cherry salad, turkey and stuffing, sweet potatoes and all the desserts we’re always too full to appreciate until later. In fact, I was just talking to my son today about what salads and bread he wanted. What is your favorite holiday food? He said I needed to make bulgur wheat bread, for sure.

As a writer, I’m sometimes surprised when reading my rough draft because the question occurs to me, “did they eat?” I write romance, so I pay the most attention to my characters and their relationships, and I sometimes forget they need to eat and dress and go about daily business. These things add detail to the story and make the characters more “alive”, especially if one of them has an aversion or allergy to a food or has a particular way of dressing. However, details such as this are normally background and shouldn’t take over the story. (Example: have you ever read a story with page after page of furniture description and you find yourself skipping over it?)

Once in a while, though, food and/or eating play a fun part of the story, such as in my contemporary novel “Prelude and Promises”. A restaurant--Brenda Kay’s -- is the site for several conversations between Cheyenne and Jake, so while it is story background, it also gives insight into the characters and their budding relationship. To give you an idea of how I use this in my story, here is the cover blurb and some excerpts at Brenda Kay’s.

Blurb:

            Pianist Joseph Donovan was tired of his uncle’s interference in his career. In fact, he was tired of his career, even if it had made him a millionaire. The concerts, recording sessions, and pressure to compose new musical arrangements meant he never had a minute to himself. He left it all behind, using his given name of Jake Smith to hide out on Lockabee Island, trying to be just an ordnary guy. And that worked very well, until his uncle’s executive secretary came looking for him, issuing an ultimatum and deadline for his return home. In the process of negotiating his “capture”, he found himself fascinated with her. More surprising was that the passion he felt inspired him to start composing again.

            Cheyenne knew Jake resented her presence on the island at first, but he soon sparked a passion that made her forget why she was there. When she discovered the real reason for his leaving Chicago, did she still want to convince him to return? As the days and nights swirled together in a symphony of passion, she was torn between her responsibilities to her employer and what her heart desired. If she had to return to Chicago without him, could she survive the heartbreak?

Excerpt 1: (He ran away when she found him and now he is trying to apologize)

“I’ll tell you what you want to know if you’ll have lunch with me.”

“It’s three in the afternoon. That’s too late for lunch.”

“Well, I haven’t eaten.” He put a hand to the small of her back and gently guided her into the restaurant they were passing, which was Brenda Kay’s, his favorite place to eat. She didn’t resist, which he took as a good sign.

Brenda Kay came over to wait on them as he slid into a booth opposite Cheyenne. She was a nice looking, middle-aged woman and had a friendly, outgoing manner. Jake had liked her from the first time they met.

“Hello there, Jake. Ever get that boat of yours running? Harvey thinks he’s ready to go fishing.” Harvey, her husband, had health problems, which was one of the reasons they had retired and moved to the island.

“It puttered clear across the sound today,” he said. “Old Hank wants to fish, too. Maybe I should start a fishing service. Might be able to make myself some money.”

He heard Cheyenne give a choking sound and turned her way, narrowing his gaze. He didn’t think she would give him away, but you never knew what went on in a woman’s mind.

“This is Cheyenne, a…friend of mine. We’ll have the fish and chips.”

“Excuse me, but I think I can order for myself.” She turned to Brenda Kay. “May I see a menu, please?”

Brenda raised a brow at Jake as though wondering where he had found her. He grinned and winked.

“You must be a tourist,” Brenda Kay said as she pointed to a chalkboard above the bar, which contained only three items—hamburgers, barbeque ribs, and fish and chips.

Cheyenne sighed. “Fish and chips will be fine, and whatever light beer you have.”

Jake was sure the surprise showed on his face. He was beginning to understand that the woman sitting across from him was extremely complex, and thought it might be fun to try and unravel and peel away the layers.

To begin with, he couldn’t let her out drink him. “One for me, too, Brenda, but not the light.”

She didn’t say anything until their beers arrived. She took a sip, set it down and stared at him across the table. He had never realized how blue her eyes were; light in the center with dark rims. They were framed by dark lashes.

“Ok. You’ve got me here, now talk.”

“We keep having the same conversation. You tell me why you’re so dedicated to my uncle that you would fly half way across the country to find me.”

“It’s my job, and unlike some people, I take my responsibilities seriously.”

“I have always taken my responsibilities seriously; until I decided enough was enough. Everyone’s entitled to change jobs.”

She sat with her mouth pinched as a waitress brought their food and another round of beers.

“May I have silverware, please?”

“You don’t need it and we don’t have it,” the young girl said. “Nothing served requires it.”

“Are you serious?” She gingerly fingered the brown paper wrap which crinkled as she opened it.

“It soaks up the grease,” Jake told her. “Enjoy.” He tipped his beer bottle toward her in salute.

He bit into a piece of the crisply fried fish and watched her eye the battered fish and golden French fries. She probably never ate fried food. Finally with a sigh she picked delicately at the fish.

“It is flaky and tender,” she admitted.

“Brenda Kay’s is the best around.”

Sans silverware,” she retorted with a laugh, picking up a piece of fish and finally eating. She licked her fingers free of tartar sauce.

Jake watched her tongue snake out and everything in him tightened. 

Excerpt 2: Cheyenne has found it hard to maintain a professional demeanor around Jake, thus causing a bar fight and a night in jail:

Cheyenne took a last glance in the mirror before heading downstairs when Jake texted that he was waiting. The floral sundress she had purchased fit snuggly across her breasts and flared from the waist to end just below her knees. Her heels didn’t seem quite appropriate so she settled on sandals. She would have worn her linen slacks and cashmere sweater but after his comment about her clothes, she had decided to dress casually. The bright red, blue and yellow flowers suited her, she thought, as she touched up her lipstick, this time a pale pink shade.

She was glad for the sandals when he insisted they walk. She was happy to be casually dressed when he turned into Brenda Kay’s.

“Again?” she asked as they slid into a booth near the back.

“It’s rib night,” he said in explanation as Brenda came to the table.

“Well if you don’t look a sight.” She set water glasses on the table. “Heard there was a ruckus at the Pelican. Damn it, the one night I didn’t get down there, but it was too busy for me to get away.”

“You didn’t miss much,” Jake said and Cheyenne coughed.

Brenda looked at her and back to Jake’s bandaged hand. “I can see that. How are you going to eat ribs with a broken hand?”

“Carefully.” He smiled, then grimaced and touched his bruised cheek.

Cheyenne was surprised by his good nature. Granted, he hadn’t spent the night in jail, but he had been injured and she didn’t know if he had gotten any more sleep than she had. He sported his wounds like a banner, almost as though he were proud of the fight he had been in.

She could only shake her head and shrug when Brenda looked back at her.

“Beer?” she asked.

Cheyenne shook her head again. “Not for me. I’ll stick with water.”

Jake laughed lightly and ordered a soda.

While they waited for their meal, which Cheyenne assumed was ribs whether she had ordered them or not, she studied Jake more closely. The split in his lip looked better, but she could see the fingers on his right hand were slightly swollen. She reached over to lightly touch the scabbed knuckles.

“Does it hurt badly?” She felt so guilty at having caused him injury.

“Cheyenne?” He didn’t say any more until she raised her gaze to his. His brown eyes were intense, his smile gentle. “None of this,” he gestured with his other hand, “was your fault.”

“But I—”

“You were being accosted. Every other man in the bar would have done the same thing. I simply got there first.” Irrationally, she heard pride in his voice.

“Your hands are your life, you idiot,” she said without thinking, but he only smiled wider.

“You have no idea what I am capable of with only one hand,” he whispered across the table and she could feel a blush rising. Honestly, she had never blushed so much in her life until she encountered him.

“Whatever are you thinking, Miss Tucker?” he teased. “I might have simply been implying I was ambidextrous.”

She changed the topic instead of bothering to comment. “Tell me what happened after I was hauled off to the slammer.”

Their ribs arrived, served up on brown paper as had the fish and chips. The waitress set down a pile of napkins, refilled her water and took Jake’s glass to get him another soda. Jake waited until she left before answering her.

“The excitement was over by the time I came to.”

She gasped. “You were knocked out completely? Damn it, I told the sheriff to let me see to you, but he hauled me off like a common criminal.”

He grinned as he picked up a rib. “Well, actually…”

“You know what I mean.” She looked at the pile of ribs, wished for silverware, then with a sigh, picked up the sauce-slathered meat and took a bite. A moan of pleasure escaped. They ate in silence for several minutes. When the waitress brought another serving of ribs, Cheyenne looked at her in surprise.

“All you can eat,” she replied as she set that down along with Jake’s soda.

“One serving is all I can eat,” she said.

Once again, Jake was silent as he cleaned off rib after rib, licking his fingers in-between bites. By the time he was done, he had barbeque sauce smeared all over his bandage as well as his mouth.

She bit her lower lip as he licked sauce off his lips.   

Excerpt 3: Things are getting serious!

Her phone pinged.

Jake: Have dinner with me tonight.

Cheyenne: Come back to Chicago with me.

Jake: It wasn’t meant to be a negotiation. L

Cheyenne: I had to try. ;)

Jake: Please have dinner with me?

Cheyenne: Can we go somewhere that has silverware?

Jake: J See you at eight.

 

To find out whether Cheyenne can entice Jake to return to Chicago, get your copy of “Prelude and Promises” in print or eBook today at: https://books2read.com/Prelude-and-Promises.

Being thankful, today and always,

Barb

http://www.authorsden.com/barbarajbaldwin

https://bookswelove.net/baldwin-barbara/

PS – If you’re in the mood to start your holiday reading, “Snowflakes and Kisses” my Christmas novel, is on sale in eBook format at Amazon! Amazon.com: Snowflakes and Kisses eBook : Baldwin, Barbara: Kindle Store.

 

 


Sunday, January 29, 2023

The Writer's Goals~~Then and Now




All My historicals @
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How did we ever get into this writing business/hobby/obsession? 

Motive varies from writer to writer. Some of us wrote to escape, to create alternate worlds in which to live--worlds where we can control the outcomes. Some of us wrote to tell the stories that natter away in our heads incessantly, stories that entertain us so much, or engross us so deeply, we simply HAVE to share them.  There are many so motives for writing a book.  

When I began writing fiction seriously, by which I mean with an eye to publication, back in the late 1970's, there was a path in place to follow. We learned about the stamped, self-addressed envelope, the eye-catching cover letter, the one page synopsis, and the perfect, not-too-long first chapter, which we slaved and sweated over until finally, with great trepidation, we submitted to a carefully selected editor at a publishing house into which we thought our beloved "baby" would "fit." There were long waits for the mail and for some harried assistant editor's attention, followed by, over the years, perhaps a thousand rejections. Aiming at an ever-shrinking mid-list, acceptance into the "published writer" club became ever harder.



When we weren't working on our latest book or day jobs, we went to conferences and learned about genres and the rules which governed those genres, that is, writing to the expectations of your future readers. If your story was a love story, it had to have a happy-ever-after ending. If you wrote mysteries, you'd probably have read dozens of books by the all time greats, authors like Agatha Cristie, Earl Stanley Gardner, John Dickson Carr and Rex Stout. You planned your story and outlined a twisting plot, because "who dunnit" requires the reader to be engaged by the puzzle you've created, and, you, the author, has to remain always a step ahead. 


Back then, you had to be a master of your craft in order to mix genres, and, as a new writer, you did so at your peril. Over time, much has changed. One example would be the old genre, "Romance," which is now split into many many, many categories. The hard-and-fast rules governing genre writing are out the window. 

Moreover, what the ambitious writer of today dreams of is not only the traditionally coveted book deal, but also a movie deal, a TV show, or a series available on one of the many new hungry-for-content streaming platforms, such as Netflix, HBO or Showtime. 


These days you can cross all the genres you can imagine in film. Look at the success of Lucifer, which started on HBO, and, then found a new home at Netflix. Into what genre would you put this show? Lucifer had a Comic book genesis (via Milton's  poetic sermon, Paradise Lost, via Neil Gaiman's Good Omens. Now the title character is a witty, urbane modern celestial escapee from Hell, but added to that, we've got a mash-up of romance, comedy, police procedural, adventure, soap opera and kung-fu fighting + gunfire, all crammed into a fantasy-fast-lane of sex, drugs and rock'in'roll inside the entertainment world of modern Los Angeles. (How's that for a run-on sentence!?)


666



One of my cross-genre books:
Black Magic
Vampires, Shapeshifters, Historical, Adventure, Family Saga, set on an 18th Century 
Alpine estate that's nowhere near as placid as it appears.


Writing, now that we've crossed into another century, remains a labor of love/obsession that may or may not ever pay off. It's probably even harder than it once was to get published in the 21st Century, and ever so much harder to attract an audience with so much material clamoring for attention. 

Still, if the madness is upon you...well, all I can advise is "Go for it."

~~Juliet Waldron





Friday, April 29, 2022

Love, Madness & Mozart


 

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0089F5X3C




 

That persistent character who keeps coming back; I think most writers have a few of them. Sometimes they inhabit a book that can’t, or won't, ever be satisfactorily finished. These conundrums are in every writer’s desk drawer and on every hard drive. 

My particular dark horse always returns around her birthday, at the end of April. She’s here, hanging around, just behind the curtains, even during day-light. I’m once again re-re-imagining scenes I’ve already visited many, many times. I’ve journeyed to her world for forty years now.

My Mozart is the first book I ever completed. A satisfactory ending, I think, still eludes me. Like Konstanze of Mozart’s Wife, this young heroine insists on speaking in the first person, which both narrows and deepens her POV. It’s like writing while pinned inside her dress. 

I’ve heard authors talk about having a “channeling” experience with their characters. There are many accounts of automatic writing and spirit dictation, some sounding as if they should be taken with salt. At least that's what my day-light self thinks. However, after the experience of writing this initial, and, perhaps never-to-be-finished story, I believe other-worldly communications can happen. Ordinarily it takes a period of concentration and study to make your characters  ("the dolls") get up and move independently, but in the case of a channeled story, they arrive fully realized, walking and talking.

So here's what I've learned, forty years after my attempt to tell this ghostly story. For a while, at least, after Mozart's death, Miss Gottlieb coped with her tragedies, until, in a final cruel blow, she lost her voice. After that, she appears to have lived on, among of the walking wounded, enduring a life of poverty until her death. Such was the fate of the first Pamina, pure heroine of The Magic Flute.

I'm glad I hadn't known her true ending before I wrote the one for this story. I was willing to follow the fantasy of a limited kind of HEA , not only for my sake, but also, the rational self argued, for marketing reasons.  Any darker ending was too painful--for me, for prospective readers--and, no doubt, for my spirit informant herself.

Wild Tulips 


 
So now it’s tulip-time April, and Green May is on Her way again. Tomorrow is Miss Gottlieb’s birthday, and once more I have glimpses of her spring-time, numinous world, animated by youth, love, and music. It makes sense that the “old” holidays too are upon us, Saint Brigitte’s Day, May Morn, Saint Walpurga’s night, Beltane, and all the other Divine Feminine Maidens who rule the second Cross-Quarter Day of the year.
   
My Mozart is “romance” in the original sense of the word, in the much the same way Romeo & Juliet  may be called "romance." Not romance in the commercial sense, but the old-fashioned bloody insanity of love, the madness which can, so easily, end in tragedy. The true domain of "Romance" is Castle Perilous, which makes drawing a final line under a tale of a hopeless passion so very hard to do. 


~~Juliet Waldron



All my historical novels @ Amazon:   http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B004HIX4GS  





https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?Query=Juliet+Waldron
https://www.smashwords.com/books/search?query=Juliet+Waldron
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Thursday, February 17, 2022

February is for Lovers and Chocolate by Janet Lane Walters #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #romance books

 

In a curious moment, I started looking at all the series I've written and how many of them are strictly romance. Part of this was done in connection with how many series I've written. There are seven of them but not all are romances. While doing this research, I enjoyed a mug of mocha. Thus the chocolate.

Opposites in Love is the oldest of my series. These stories follow six young women who trained as nurses together. Each story is different but some appear in each others books and each finds their opposite - Astrologically,

Haunted Dreams is from the Moonchild series. There are a variety of careers but all the characters live in the same town. The heroines are all born under the Astrological Sign of Cancer.

Then for a little different take is the Island of Fyre fantasy series. Here each of the heroines belongs to one of the princedoms of the world. There are magical jewels, flying dragons and evil magicians.


Finally comes the Seduction series. The first four books in this series are two sisters and two brothers. The last two of the books belong to friends of the four siblings.

Now, I have other books that could fit into this category but they are trilogies. I don't consider those as series. For me there has to be four.

My Places

   https://twitter.com/JanetL717

 https://www.facebook.com/janet.l.walters.3?v=wall&story_f

bid=113639528680724

 http://bookswelove.net/

 http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com

https://www.pinterest.com/shadyl717/

 

Buy Mark

https://bookswelove.net/walters-janet-lane/



Thursday, February 10, 2022

Love Lock Bridges

 

Available at Books We Love

           


The other morning on my Google feed I found an article about the Old Red Bridge, which I wouldn’t have thought at all interesting except it is a love lock bridge. And it is in – what, this can’t be right – Kansas City? That’s less than five miles from where I live.

            The first time I heard about “love locks” bridges was during my trip to Paris five years ago. The Pont des Arts or Passerelle des Arts is a pedestrian bridge in Paris which crosses the River Seine. It links the Institut de France and the central square (cour carrée) of the Palais du Louvre. For years, lovers come to the bridge and profess their undying love by locking a padlock to the bridge, sometimes with their names engraved, sometimes with other poetic messages. Then they would throw the key into the River Seine. Unfortunately because over 700,000 locks have been secured to the bridge, with an additional 7,500 every year, the bridge cannot handle the weight. So in 2015, the grilles were removed and replaced with glass panels so locks couldn’t be attached. When I was there, metal grilles were again in place but separate from the structural part of the bridge.
Pont des Arts in Paris

 My picture looks rather forlorn as I seemed to have captured a day when love was just not in the air. At one time, sections of grille and boxes of locks were auctioned off, so even if your lock no longer appears on the bridge, it may be out in the universe somewhere standing guard over someone else’s love, or perhaps it has been melted down to become part of another artist’s representation of love.

Although Paris is known as the city of love, it is not actually the origin of this loving tradition. The first notion of love locks appeared in a poem titled “Prayer for Love” by Desanka Maksimovic, a Serbian poet. The poem takes place before the First World War and is about a soldier and young woman who were madly in love and secretly met every night at the Most Ljubavi Bridge in a town called Vrnjačka Banja. When the young soldier was sent off to Greece, he eventually met the love of his life. When his first love found out, she died of heartbreak. Out of superstition, local women started hanging love locks on that same bridge, the Bridge of Love, in an attempt to safeguard their love.

The popularity of love locking really took off after the release of the Italian movie “Ho Voglia di Te” (I want you) in 2007. It was inspired by the same-named novel from Italian author Federico Moccia, which was published in 2006. One scene features the protagonists locking their love by attaching a padlock to a lamppost at the Ponte Milvo in Rome and throwing the key into the Tiber River.

I began to think there had to be more to the tradition than just these two incidents – a poem and a story, so I researched and found a link to twenty love lock bridges, of which not all are actual bridges. 20 Love Locks Bridges Around the World (brides.com) Some are sculptures, others are trees and yes, some are bridges. They all appear to be inspired by the original poem or movie. There are other internet sites that list numerous places in the United States with love lock bridges, sculptures and places of tradition, none of which have much of a history, except perhaps for the people who live there. Places like Loveland, CO use the idea as a promotion of its town and name.

I wonder at the significance
 of a combination lock.

But what I did not find was information on the one particular love lock bridge that had appeared on my Google feed just this morning – Old Red Bridge, in my own back yard. So back to the original reason for my research. Although the original Red Bridge was built in 1859 by a Scottsman, it was wood and was replaced twice over the years. Then in 2011, the New Red Bridge opened, so the previous one became called the Old Red Bridge (because they are both painted red, of course). It was designated as a love locks bridge in 2013, so its “history” isn’t even as old as that of many others around the country.


One significant difference is that after locking in their everlasting love to some appropriate spot on the bridge, people are requested to put their keys in a designated box instead of throwing them into the Blue River. The metal from the keys is bad for the environment, especially the fish. Instead, these keys will be used by the organization Monarchs on the Move to create a sculpture of the iconic Monarch Butterfly that travels through Kansas City on its amazing multi-generational migration. That’s a rather romantic notion, don’t you think?

           


For wonderful romantic reads, visit my page at Books We Love. Be sure to sign up before February 12 for a chance to win one of the luxury spa packages!

 

Love to all,

Barb

http://www.authorsden.com/barbarajbaldwin

https://bookswelove.net/baldwin-barbara/

 

 


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