The Making of… The Viking’s Witch (Part 2)
By Kelli A. Wilkins
Hi everyone,
I’m sharing Part Two of a blog series about my historical
romance, The Viking’s Witch. The book is set in Celtic
Scotland and blends a sensual love story with adventure and paranormal
elements.
In my last blog, I discussed how the book
came about, the research involved, and the conflicts that take place in the
story. Now I’ll give readers insight into the origins and development of the
characters, as well as Odaria’s magic “witch” powers.
The Viking’s Witch is a traditional
historical romance with paranormal elements set in Scotland in 803 A.D. The heroine,
Odaria, is what they called a witch back then—nowadays we’d call her a psychic
and a healer. Here’s the plot summary:
The Viking’s Witch
Scotland, 803 A.D.
About to be burned at the stake by her fellow
villagers, Odaria does what any betrayed witch facing certain death would do.
She calls down a curse. Within seconds, rampaging Norsemen raid the village,
capturing everyone except her.
But her reprieve is short-lived, and Odaria lands in
the clutches of the Norse leader Rothgar. Can she remain true to herself and
fight her growing attraction to this domineering man, or will she fall under
his influence and be used for his ambitions?
After Rothgar witnesses Odaria’s powers firsthand, he
strikes a bargain with her. The raven-haired beauty will use her magical
abilities to help him with his quest in exchange for safe passage off the isle.
But can this cunning woman be trusted, or is she using him to exact vengeance
on her village?
Together they must fight bloodthirsty villagers,
battle a mutinous band of Norsemen, find a missing Norse ship, and learn to
trust each other…before time runs out.
Order
The Viking’s Witch and read reviews here: https://www.kelliwilkins.com/the-viking-s-witch
***
Interviewers
have asked me how I can create such interesting and diverse characters for all
of my books. They want to know where Rothgar and Odaria came from. Well,
there’s no real way to answer that other than, I just made them up. (Chris
Hemsworth from Thor is pretty much what I envisioned Rothgar to look
like—even though I wrote the book long before the
movie came out!)
When
I create my heroes and heroines I always give them “baggage” and flaws—along with problems to overcome. This way, they can grow and change over
the course of the book. Odaria is a strong-willed “witch” who is tired of being
abused and ridiculed by the people in her village. She swears she doesn’t need
anyone’s help to get by. Rothgar was once a powerful warrior, but a personal
tragedy has softened him and left him broken and unwilling to love anyone
again.
When
they first meet, they each play off the others’ weaknesses. Odaria has no
qualms about standing up to Rothgar and arguing with him, and he respects her
willful and fearless behavior. Eventually they realize that they need (and
want) to be with each other forever.
I like to introduce
secondary characters and subplots into my books to flesh out the story. I’m often asked about the secondary Norse character,
Nordskog. He’s not the type of “hero” one would typically find in a romance,
but he serves an important role in the story. Where did he come from? Well…
I used to work with a woman
whose last name was Nordskog and I told her that one day I’d use her name in a
book, so I did! Nordskog is a violent, vicious berserkr and has a history with Rothgar dating from Rothgar’s old
fighting days. Nordskog’s hatred of Karnik draws him closer to Rothgar’s side
as the story develops. After Odaria helps heal his leg, Nordskog displays a protective
fondness for her, as well. He’s an impulsive brute, but he’s not stupid. He
knows that Rothgar is wealthy and will reward him for his services and loyalty.
But if readers thought
Nordskog was bad, the antagonist, Brennan, is even worse.
Brennan
has been described by one reviewer as “a perfectly evil villain” which was
exactly my intention. I wanted to portray him as an arrogant, self-righteous SOB—but
not have his character be too over-the-top. Brennan is a lying, murdering,
religious zealot—and that makes him dangerous to Odaria and the other
villagers.
Most of the terrible things
Brennan’s done happen off-page and we learn about them through Odaria. Each
time I wrote a scene for, or about, Brennan, I made him a little more unstable
and psychotic, so by the end of the book readers see that he needs to learn his
lesson and pay for what he’s done.
Odaria’s “magic” is the
catalyst that sets the story in motion and helps bring about Brennan’s demise.
When the book opens, Odaria is about to be burned alive for being a witch. She
calls down a spell and curses the villagers while unknowingly invoking a Viking
raid. Or so it seems…
Odaria uses her “powers”
for self-preservation and to get revenge on the people who hurt her. Rothgar
doesn’t believe in her “magic” and thinks she’s merely pretending to be a witch
to frighten people. But after a highly-charged interaction with Brennan,
Rothgar gets a taste of what Odaria could really
do if she set her mind to it.
I loved showing readers
(and Rothgar) Odaria’s powers of clairvoyance, telekinesis, and psychometry.
The scenes that included the “magic” elements were a lot of fun to write. I’ve
always been interested in psychic phenomena and other New Age/paranormal
subjects, so it was easy for me to incorporate what I know into Odaria’s
character.
I hope you enjoyed Part Two
of this “inside look” at The Viking’s Witch. I’m happy to say
that readers and reviewers fell in love with the characters and the book has
received dozens of excellent reviews. (And it also won a Gold IPPY Award for
best romance ebook!)
If you love historical and/or paranormal romances (or
want to learn about my other books), visit the Romance section of my site: https://www.kelliwilkins.com/romance.
Happy Reading,
Kelli
A. Wilkins
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelli A. Wilkins is an award-winning author who has
published more than 100 short stories, 24 romance novels, and 8 mystery/horror
ebooks. Her romances span many genres and settings, and she likes to scare
readers with her horror and mystery stories.
Her
twenty-fourth romance, For Love’s Sake, an epic
historical/fantasy romantic adventure, was published in January 2025.
In August
2024, she released Surreal Escapes, a collection of 7 speculative/spooky stories. Anything
can—and does—happen in this anthology.
Kelli also released her fourth gay
romance, A Thousand Summer Secrets, in 2024. This tender contemporary
romance takes place over a summer weekend, where two friends reconnect while
seeking love and acceptance.
She published The Route 9 Killer, a
mystery/thriller set in Central NJ, in 2023. Look for a follow-up story coming
in 2026!
Follow Kelli on her Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKelliWilkins and visit her website www.KelliWilkins.com for a full title list and social
media links.
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