Banish Boredom with Guest Blogger: Nina Croft

Meet Entangled author Nina Croft and win a copy of Break Out.

She's here to share her sure cures for boredom and here's what she had to say...

Anti-Boredom Month (Sure Cures for Boredom)

I thought I’d pick this subject, as it’s quite relevant to my recent release, Break Out.

My novella, Break Out, is a combination of space opera, paranormal and romance. It takes place in a future where man has fled to the stars and there discovered the secret of immortality—Meridian—extremely rare and only available to the very rich. Everyone in the civilized universe wants to earn enough to be able to afford the Meridian treatment and live forever.

Everyone that is, except the hero of Break Out, because he’s already immortal.

Ricardo Sanchez is a vampire. Born on Earth in the Middle Ages, he’s lived nearly two thousand years, and he’s learned that the biggest danger an immortal faces is boredom. Boredom saps the enthusiasm and makes eternity seem like an unbearable burden rather than a gift. Boredom can suck the will to live right out of a vampire.

So Rico makes it a point never to get bored. But why should he be. There’s a whole universe out there to explore.

I make it a point never to get bored as well.

I live on an almond farm in the mountains of southern Spain, between the Sierra Nevada and the Mediterranean. The summers are very hot, so any activities that require energy, including chores around the farm and riding my horse, need to be done in the early morning, leaving the rest of the long, sultry days free.

It’s a very isolated area, so many of the diversions available to most people just aren’t an option here—we’re a long way from any shops, cinemas, or restaurants. But it’s also a very beautiful area—a dramatic mix of mountains and steep rugged gorges—and I never get bored of just sitting and gazing at the scenery (especially if I have a glass of the local vino in my hand).

But we can’t spend all our lives just staring at the scenery, so here are a few things I’ve found work well to keep the dreaded boredom at bay.

* Obviously, the first sure cure to boredom is reading a good book. And this month, that’s got to mean downloading your copy of Break Out, getting a comfy seat in the shade somewhere (or floating on the pool perhaps), and settling down to read it. Once you’ve finished that there’s a whole load more great stories out there.

* And if you want something a little more challenging, then there’s the option of writing. If you’ve never tried it—give it a go. Take a few on-line classes. Delve into your imaginations and create new worlds. And if you’re already a writer, then start a new story. One you’ve been thinking of writing for a long time. Maybe one you thought was a bit silly, and would never sell, so you’ve never tried. Write it and see.

* I’m a killer sudoku fanatic—I’ve found this site that issues a new one every day. And ever since I read somewhere that doing puzzles like Sudoku, uses ninety calories an hour, I’ve felt it’s a legitimate form of exercise.

* Walking your dogs. If you don’t have one, get down to your nearest rescue centre and put that right. I have three, and they all like walks.

* Long lazy lunches, with a jug of sangria followed by a siesta, and then a swim to wake up (I limit this one to the weekends as it has a habit of eating into the day.)

Okay so that’s my list—not very long but the reading and writing take up the vast majority of my time.

So do you suffer from boredom in the long, hot days of summer? And if so what are the best cures? Comment and let me know for a chance to win a digital copy of Break Out.


A Note from the Book Boost: Nina, your life sounds like a romance novel come to life! Color me jealous. :-) For me, I don't have a chance to get bored. With 4 children (ranging in ages from 16 months to 20 years) I can barely remember what "bored" felt like. I can also barely remember what this thing called "sleep" felt like. Thanks for joining us!


Blurb:


The year is 3048, Earth is no longer habitable, and man has fled to the stars where they’ve discovered the secret of immortality—Meridian.

Unfortunately, the radioactive mineral is exorbitantly expensive and only available to a select few. A new class comprised of the super rich and immortal soon evolves. The Collective, as they’re called, rule the universe.

Two?thousand?year?old Ricardo Sanchez, vampire and rogue pilot of the space cruiser, El Cazador, can’t resist two things: gorgeous women and impossible jobs. When beautiful Skylar Rossaria approaches him to break a prisoner out of the Collective’s maximum security prison on Trakis One, Rico jumps at the chance. Being hunted by the Collective has
never been so dangerous–or so fun!



Excerpt:

“Umm?”

“You taste…” She licked her lips again and a tremor of residual pleasure shot through him, jerking his hips. “…delicious.”

At the word, another hunger rose, and his gums ached with the need to taste her. “Come here.” He tugged her to her feet, pulling her close against him. Everything was hot and wet. He kissed her mouth, her cheeks, burrowed his face in the curve of her throat, licking the moist skin, finding the point where the blood flowed close to the surface, touching his tongue to the pulse.

She wasn’t fighting him off now, and he knew he could have her. His hunger rose as his fangs grazed the tender flesh. It had been days since he had fed, but still he couldn’t bring himself to make the final move.

If he tasted her, what would he discover?

Right now, he only suspected what she was. If he knew for sure, would he have to put a stop to this charade? Put a stop to Skylar? And even if he did prove she was a liar, it wouldn’t explain what she was really up to. He doubted he could make her talk, and he wanted to know.

Actually, he wanted her to tell him of her own free will, and for that he needed more time.

When he didn’t move, she wriggled against him. His hunger roared, straining against the fierce hold he had on his control. If she moved again, he knew he would lose it, take her. And then she ground her hips into him, and his control slipped away. There was only one sure way he could stop himself now. He stared at the red button on the wall beside him.

Dios, he hated cold water.

He shifted Skylar so he held her in one arm, and taking a deep breath, he slammed his other hand onto the button.

The effect was instantaneous.

Skylar screamed, and this time it wasn’t from pleasure.

Want More Nina?

Visit her website here: http://www.ninacroft.com

Pick up a copy of her book today! Click here.

Contest Time:

So do you suffer from boredom in the long, hot days of summer? And if so what are the best cures? Comment and let me know for a chance to win a digital copy of Break Out.


**Winners for Book Boost prizes are drawn the first week of the following month and posted in the Recent Winners box in the right hand side of the blog. Check back to see if you are a winner and to claim your prize! Please leave your contact information in your blog post!**