We’re a bit pet crazy in our
house—two cats, a Sheltie dog, and we’re adopting another dog next summer, a
little Welsh Springer Spaniel.
So nothing warms my heart more than a book that
includes an animal.
And I’m not talking about those stories that are
specifically about animals such as Black Beauty or Old Yeller.
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| Christine Lindsay with Welsh Springer |
But often a
historical or a romance has that added dimension of scenes with a critter.
That’s one of the things
I’ve appreciated about author MaryLu Tyndall. I get such a kick out her cats as
they twitch their tails aboard the pirate vessels in her novels.
One of my favorite old
novels from the seventies was by Mary Stewart, an English author who wrote
Romantic Suspense. Here’s a small excerpt from Madam Will You Talk by Mary Stewart.
“I even sang to myself as I put the car away, and when I found
they had given me a room with a balcony overlooking the shaded courtyard, I was
pleased.
And when, later on, the cat jumped on to my balcony, there was
still nothing to indicate that this was the beginning of the whole strange,
uneasy, tangled business. Or rather, not the beginning, but my own cue, the
point where I came in.”
Later in that same book the author develops a sweet friendship
between the main character, Charity, and a confused boy of fourteen who appears
to be running away from his father (who ends up being Charity’s romantic
interest). The scene where Charity, meets the boy David, he’s befriending a
stray dog and putting a bit of string
around his neck to keep him safe.
I’ve never forgotten the way the author phrased that—a bit of
string, not a leash, but something softer, something at hand. These scenes written
in the 1950’s have never left my mind. The author had such a tender way of
incorporating the innocence of animals into her stories that I could feel the
heartbeat of the human characters.
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| Author Christine Lindsay's cat Scottie |
When I first saw my cat Scottie, his color reminded me of a
cream-sicle. Orange on the outside, vanilla on the inside of his belly. My
husband and I were looking to adopt an abandoned pet, and in the corner of the shelter
I found a little Noah’s ark basket. Inside that basket, trembling, was Scottie,
the most frightened cat I had ever seen.
Someone had to love this
scared little guy. It took Scottie about four months to trust us, but these days
Scottie is happiest lying on the couch with me as I write my books. In fact
he’s been given the promotion of Chief Editor on all my work.
Like my favorite author Mary
Stewart, I always try to incorporate an animal into my novels. In Shadowed
in Silk it was two war horses. But it’s my very own Scottie who made his
debut in Book 2 of my British Raj series Captured by Moonlight.
However, I took my love for domestic Scottie one big
paw-step further. I wrote Scotties personality into the role of Hector...the
tiger cub.Watch the book trailer for Captured by Moonlight to get a glimpse
of Hector the tiger cub.
Please drop by Christine’s
website www.christinelindsay.com
Thanks, Christine, for this lovely glimpse into your life and the way you incorporate your beloved pets into your writing. Great photos too. God bless!
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