Author: Tamara Nikolai

Dreamer. Wanderer. Writer. Just trying to find my place in the world... oh look a unicorn.

Red Sand, open land… desert dreaming

Some times work can be fun!

Last week I found myself traversing across the red deserts of South Australia. There are not enough words to explain the beauty of the Outback. I know, a funny thing for an inspiring writer to put down in text. I have always been fascinated by deserts, there is a beauty to the desolation and the loneliness, and here in South Australia, it isn’t quite bare. There are pockets of greenery everywhere, some more brown than others but it all acts as a reminder that life will continue to grow even in the harshest climate. h

I even had some time to write, I found a great writing corner in my underground hotel.

Here I am embracing the red desert and Cobber Pedy, the Opal mining capital of Australia. It was one of those tourist photos I couldn’t resist taking!

Meet the voices in my head…

Meet the voices in my head aka the characters I have been chasing for the past few months.

My current WIP is a rollicking adventure set in the not so distant future. I thought I will share some of the inspiration for my main characters and where their search for the ancient artifact leads them. Answer – around the globe…hehehe

Anyone else use Pinterest to look for inspiration ? I love scrolling down my feed and having an AH-HA moment as the vision in my head becomes reality. And I have found I love creating a board for the story, even if it has taken me down many a rabbit hole.

For some fun, I thought I would introduce my main characters.

Name: Dr. Reika Singh.

Status: Citizen (Ex-military)

Current Occupation: Bio Archaeologist

Eye color: Amber

Hair color: Dark Brown with green tips.

Tattoos: She has a sleeve (left arm)

Fact 1: Is a trained Crypto-linguist – specialty is obscure dialects and ancient languages

Fact 2: Can shoot better than Dante

***

Name: Dante Delacroix

Status: Citizen (Elite)

Current Occupation: CEO Security Firm

Eye color: Green

Hair color: Black

Tattoos: Nil

Fact 1: Reika was attached to his unit when he was in the Military.

Fact 2: Has a twin sister, Beatrix, she is set to inherit the family matriarchal business.

***

Just a quick snapshot of some of the voices in my head.

Is there anything else you would like to know?

Welcome to my little corner of the world.

Hi… I promise I don’t bite.

I have decided to do a getting to know me blog post.

During the day I work in an open plan office dreaming of other worlds and by night I listen to the voices in my head as they let me write their stories.

  • I live in Australia – hence the weird spelling variations.
  • I enjoy going on hikes and scuba diving.
  • I love reading, I devour the classics, science fiction, horror and romance and everything in-between.
  • Romance books have always held a special place in my heart… generally, I look for kickass heroines and to die for heroes with lots of action.
  • I watch anime and collect comics – sometimes I think I am trapped in the body of a fifteen-year-old boy.
  • I have always dreamed about being a writer – unfortunately, I spent most of my life being told it’s not a career and to wait until my retirement.
  • I once wrote to one of my favourite Romance authors (Sherrilyn Kenyon) and told her she was my writing idol (this was during dial-up days and pre Dark Hunter days) and she told me to keep working on my dream. And I am finally getting to meet her in March 2019.
  • I once stalked Nalini Singh at a writing conference ( Genrecon 2017) then preceded to tell her how awesome all her books were.
  • Growing up my favourite fictional couples were Rogue/Gambit (Marvel) and Sailor Moon/Tuxedo Mask (Sailor Moon) – this may explain a few things about me.
  • My favourite Romance movie is ‘The Crow’ (It’s a tragic love story if you haven’t seen it with a killer soundtrack) and the ‘Proposal’ (Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock, need I say more?).
  • I have a collection of short stories and a manuscript from when I was in my late teens – those characters still come and say hi but I am not at a stage where I am ready to write about them again. But one day I will have the experience and the skill to do them justice.
  • I have a dog, he is an Australian Kelpie named Rowdy and is very cute but super needy.
  • I am a writer.

Rowdy

Meet Rowdy – super ball focused.

Desk

Where the magic happens…ok I spend a lot of time staring at the wall and its usually not this clean. 

What about you? Do you have anything to share?