Historical Romance

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A Cantata of Love now available on audio, as well as print and ebook

A Cantata of Love is now available on audio. Enjoy Chapter One, narrated by Pearl Hewitt, the talented voice actor who narrated the other three titles in the series. Click HERE to listen now.

Not an audiobook fan? Do you prefer print books while everyone else seems to have made the jump to ereaders? Have you ever wondered why you prefer one book format over another? Believe it or not, your format preference is motivated by a number of interesting factors. Here’s what research and scientific theory have to say about why readers prefer different book formats.

A 2011 survey revealed different buy vs. borrow rates for book formats. Between 54% and 61% of print and ebook readers preferred to own copies of books, compared to just a third of audiobook listeners. Of the 61 percent of audiobook borrowers, those with library cards were more likely to borrow instead of buy copies.

Many people assume that young readers prefer ebooks, which can be accessed on digital devices, but research contradicts this assumption. A survey of 16-24-year-old readers indicated more than 60% preferred print books, most who said they liked holding a book in their hands.

Ebooks don’t offer a sensory reading experience, but they deliver a wealth of practical advantages that appeal to readers:

• Cheaper than print books
• Instant access/immediate gratification
• Convenience
• Storage space is not an issue
• Less conspicuous
• Portability

People process information differently Educators recognize seven learning styles. A person’s (combined) learning style can influence which book format they prefer.

• Visual (spatial): Preference for pictures, images, and spatial understanding.
• Aural (auditory-musical): Preference for sound and music.
• Verbal (linguistic): Preference for words, both in speech and writing.
• Physical (kinesthetic): Preference for body, hands and sense of touch.
• Logical (mathematical): Preference for logic, reasoning and systems.
• Social (interpersonal): Preference for groups or with other people.
• Solitary (intrapersonal): Preference for being alone and self-study.

Some research has been conducted on how personality traits impact entertainment preferences. The theory is that different types of content fulfill different psychological needs, such as mood, attitude and disposition.

Lifestyle undoubtedly influences what format readers prefer. One Reddit discussion thread demonstrates this in an example provided by WoodensBeard who wrote about having time in his late teens to “read books ad nauseum,” but later in life did not have space for storing books nor time to read them so he’d turned to audiobooks, listening while cooking, cleaning, traveling and using his computer.

So why do different people prefer different formats? Here are my unscientific, unproven theories:

People who prefer print books like the tactile sensation of reading, such as the weight of the book, the sound and sensation of flipping pages and the scent of books. They also enjoy the visual component of full bookshelves, catching sight of favorite titles/authors and the imagery of covers.

People who prefer ebooks are motivated by practical concerns such as cost and convenience.

People who prefer audiobooks like the convenience and accessibility, as well as the auditory “storytelling” component.

Authors know readers have difference preferences, which is why so many deliver their books in all three formats. When one of our primary goals is to connect with new readers, offering print, ebook and audiobooks amplifies our opportunities to do so.

If you would like to receive the audio version of A Cantata of Love in exchange for an honest review on Audible, please email me at Jacki@JackiDelecki.com.

5 Ways to celebrate Romance Awareness Month, including 5 romantic reads

Did you know August is Romance Awareness Month? I love the idea of “raising awareness” about romance. I don’t think people intentionally become lackadaisical about romance, but life gets busy. Between work, family and other obligations, it’s easy for romance to get bumped to the bottom of the list.

Everyone needs a little romance in their lives. Your marital status doesn’t matter. Whether you are single, married or it’s complicated, you can celebrate Romance Awareness Month.

If you aren’t sure what I mean by romance, let’s look at the definition for a moment:

Here are five ways to infuse excitement, glamour, mystery, passion, love and romance in your life. Feel free to share your own ideas by comment on this blog post or visiting on Facebook.

Flirt a little.

Buy something silky, slinky, sensuous or sexy. It could be a new pair of shoes, lounging pajamas or lingerie.

Say I Love You to everyone you love, including your furry friends.

Indulge in a decadent treat, something that will make your palate say “OMG”. Luscious chocolates, a gooey dessert, a bottle of wine or a meal at your favorite “special occasion” restaurant.

Curl up with a romance novel.

Click image to visit Ella’s website.

Click image to visit Callie Hutton’s website.

Click to visit Maureen Miller’s website.

Click to visit Jacki Delecki’s website.

Click to visit Roxanne St. Claire’s website.

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New Release Giveaway

It’s release day for A Cantata of Love, book 4 in The Code Breakers series. I’m celebrating with a fun giveaway. There are lots of ways to enter. One lucky winner will receive an e-gift card from Gyft.com, where you can shop from more than 200 retailers.

Add heart-pounding adventure, international intrigue, and sizzling romance to your summer reading list with A Cantata of Love.

Napoleonic France is no place for an Englishman, especially Michael Harcourt, the Earl of Kendal, who is on a clandestine assignment for the Crown. Already injured and facing imminent discovery by Napoleon and Fouche’s men, Michael finds his escape made even more perilous when he is charged with the safety of a young boy who must be spirited out of Paris.

Desperate to escape the terrible fate that awaits her if she remains in France, Lady Gabrielle De Valmont must disguise herself as a boy and rely on the cunning of a virtual stranger—an Englishman, no less—to smuggle her out of the country. When the Earl’s injury becomes severely infected, rendering him gravely ill, Gabrielle realizes it is now up to her to save them both.

Amazon | BN | iBooks | Kobo | Google

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Historical romance giveaway ~ win a Kindle Fire.

To celebrate July 4th, I’ve teamed up with more than 50 fantastic authors to give away a huge selection of historical romance novels, PLUS a Kindle Fire to one lucky winner!

Hiding secret messages in music

Do you know how to read music? If so, take a look at this and tell me if you notice anything unusual about it.

This is known as the BACH motif, which is an example of musical cryptography, a coded system used to create musical note sequences for names or other messages in musical compositions.

I have been intrigued by the idea of using musical scores and passages to encrypt messages for some time and thought it was a great concept for my Code Breakers Regency romantic suspense series. It provided inspiration for my current project, book 4 in the Code Breakers series, CANTATA OF LOVE.

Part of my fascination with this method of ciphering stems from my love of music. I’ve studied both voice and piano–mainly jazz– and I appreciate the mathematical complexity of music. Coding a message into a song’s musical score or the song lyrics requires a great deal of creativity and presented a tremendous challenge as I plotted the story. While researching period opera singers, such as Mrs. Elizabeth Billington, I discovered that operas were written for singers to show off their voices and allowed for improvisation. That would certainly have made it easy for musicians and performers to send coded messages to specific individuals!

Early examples of musical cryptography include Baroque composers who wove their names or the names of significant individuals into musical selections. The application found popularity with those engaging in espionage, due to the difficulty in breaking musical codes. Other examples of musical coding can be found in the songs of American slaves. Negro spirituals provided a means of communication for those who wanted to escape slavery; references to “going home” or “bound for Canaan” didn’t signify death and heaven but heading north to Canada and freedom.

In 2013, International Science Times featured a story that suggested a musical score written by composer Gottfried Federlein contained annotations that secretly documented the location of buried Nazi treasure.

One online website reports a number of “creepy spy radio transmissions” that feature suspected musical clues and/or codes broadcast over shortwave radios. This practice began around the time of WWI and continues today.

A special thank you to my friend and music composer Greg Bartholomew, who shared his expertise with me on this topic. Here is one of his compositions, Baby Blue Roses. When Daisies Pied is an example of a piece of music ladies would have sung during the Regency period.

Are there any songs you believe contain a hidden message?

A Cantata of Love, Book 4 in The Code Breakers Regency Romantic Suspense series, releases June 28^th. You can pre-order on iBooks.

Napoleonic France is no place for an Englishman, especially Michael Harcourt, the Earl of Kendal, who is on a clandestine assignment for the Crown. Already injured and facing imminent discovery by Napoleon and Fouche’s men, Michael finds his escape made even more perilous when he is charged with the safety of a young boy who must be spirited out of Paris.

Desperate to escape the terrible fate that awaits her if she remains in France, Lady Gabrielle De Valmont must disguise herself as a boy and rely on the cunning of a virtual stranger—an Englishman, no less—to smuggle her out of the country. When the Earl’s injury becomes severely infected, rendering him gravely ill, Gabrielle realizes it is now up to her to save them both.