Category Archives: Interviews and Guest Posts
Antithesis by Terra Whiteman: Playlist Edition
Title: The Antithesis
Author: Terra Whiteman
Series: Antithesis Series
Source: FMB tours
Pub Year: 2011
Purchase: Amazon
Blurb from Amazon:
This is a story about God and the Devil, but not how you were taught to believe.
This is also a story about love and hate, and the suffering both can bring.
This is about rights and wrongs, and all of the spaces in between.
This is about revenge, courage, death, passion; with no villains, no heroes… only those left scorned.
This is a story about Heaven, Hell, and the Jury that holds them together.
This is The Antithesis.
THE ANTITHESIS #1: Justice Alezair Czynri is the newest recruit of the Jury, a group of powerful beings who reside in Purgatory and enforce the Code between Heaven and Hell. However, Justice Czynri could not have come at a worse time. A storm lays just over the horizon… One that brings with it a war.
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2nd playlist in a row, lol, but it could not be more different. This playlist is very instrumental with little vocals. It is a fantastic playlist because sometimes lyrics can detract from the emotions that a song can bring. It’s about what the music brings to the table and knowing what scenes the music accompanies just enhances the reading experience.
- Schwarze Sonne (Klassik Version) by E-Nomine (Opening)
- Antikythera Mechanism by The Algorithm (when the Jury attends Archdemon Belial Vakkar’s masquerade party at Durn Manor in Tehlor, the 5th layer of Hell)
- I Know You Are But What Am I by Mogwai ( Chapter Six, Ergo, when Alezair is in his room, working on his theory of ‘Multiversal Atomic Resonance’)
- The Frail (Things Fall Apart version) by Nine Inch Nails ( Chapter Eight, The Queen and the Violin, when Alezair discovers the violin and cello hidden in Leid’s bedroom)
- Hello World by Two Steps From Hell (When the Jury attends Archdemon Belial Vakkar’s masquerade party at Durn Manor in Tehlor, the 5th layer of Hell)
- Shadow Drift by The Interbeing ( Chapter Twelve, Contrivance, when the Jury is sent to the world of Tal Ayen and ordered to eliminate the demon army invading the city of Najudis)
- Make Me Real by She (when Leid and Alezair spend the night in the Deadlands, within the dying world of Atlas Arcantia)
- Metamorphosis by Blue Stahl
- Decoy by Retrosic (Closing)
Dust by Devon Ashley: Playlist + Giveaway
Blurb from Goodreads:
4. The number of times my delicate wings have been broken and clamped behind my back.
68. The number inked upon my skin, marking me the sixty-eighth pixie to be stolen.
87. The number of days I’ve been wrongfully imprisoned.
88. The first day the faeries will regret stealing me.
Healthy. Cheery. Vivacious. All traits Rosalie has before becoming enslaved by the faeries to make an endless supply of pixie dust. Now that Rosalie has been traumatized by slave labor, extreme desolate conditions and multiple deaths, this hardened pixie is anything but. When this rebellious teenager attempts an escape, she’s isolated in cramped quarters until she learns her place. Just as she begins to let go of all that hope, she finds an unlikely friend in Jack, the faerie assigned to guard her. Interspecies dating is forbidden in the fae world, so their growing attraction is unacceptable. And even if Jack can find a way to free her, they know the prison is the only place they can truly be together
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Below is the list of songs that can be listened to while reading the book. Or after you are done reading, think ” This song really goes with the book.”
- Unbroken by Demi Lovato
- We Found Love by Rihanna
- Fixed at Zero by VersaEmerge
- Fall To Pieces by Avril Lavigne
- Part of Me by Katy Perry
- Fuckin’ Perfect by Pink
- I Won’t Give Up by Jason Mraz
- Misguided Ghosts by Paramore
- Numb by Linkin Park
- Missing by Evanescene
- Dog Days Are Over by Florence + The Machine
And there you have the songs can best explained the mood and emotions of Dust. My favorite songs are the ones that I posted videos to.
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GIVEAWAY: Follow this link to the Rafflecopter and filled it out. You can win signed bookmarks, e-copies of Dust, and a Grand Prize (that includes body glitter). Fun times with glitter, lol.
Good Luck.
Also, Come Back on the 17th to read my review of Dust. With a soundtrack like this one, I’m looking forward to reading it.
Guest Post + Giveaway with Denise Verrico of Immortyl Revolution
Let’s give a warm welcome to Denise Verrico. She is the author of the Immortyl Revolution. She is here today to discuss the biology aspect of vampires and to give away a collection of short stories.
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Vampires as Biological Creatures
by Denise Verrico
When I set out some fifteen years ago to write a vampire novel, I did a lot of research into vampire lore and read some of the classic stories. I found that almost every culture has some form of vampire legend. At that time, there weren’t nearly as many novels about vampires. Now they have their own sub genres in urban fantasy, romance and horror.
I wanted my vampires to be different from other writers’, but still be recognizable as vampires. I don’t mind vampires as sympathetic leading men and women. My vamps are very human in many aspects. They have hopes, dreams and aspirations. They fall in love. However, I want them to be somewhat alien creatures.
Everyone knows about old vampire legends and the movie and pop culture clichés. Fantasy is the realm of make-believe, and there is much room for interpretation. The idea of “science fiction” vampires appealed to me. Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend is the classic example of these. Graphic novels like Ultra Violet and Aeon Flux have also explored this idea. My series plot, the race to capture the secrets of immortality, was inspired by articles I’ve read on biotechnology.
However, Immortyl Revolution is focused on the adventure, intrigue and relationships between characters. The premise behind the series is that vampires are human beings with a unique mutation. Immortyls are biologically altered men and women, so they behave a lot like mortals in many respects.
I hit upon the idea of a symbiotic organism passed through blood. This organism, like a virus would rip apart DNA and bond with it, but instead of destroying cells, it would allow them to replicate perfect copies of themselves forever, preventing aging and death. Human DNA is programmed to only produce so many copies and these grown less perfect as we age.
Immortyls have enhanced physical abilities, can’t go out in the sun, and can drink only human blood. Why do vampires usually choose to operate in the dark? There is really no reason I could find in folklore, other than it’s easier to sneak into peoples’ houses and drink their blood when they are sleeping. Some contemporary stories don’t follow this convention and in fact, this is something that started in the movies. Dracula went out in the daylight, but he was weaker. Vampires didn’t destruct in the sun until the silent film, Nosferatu, but I wanted my supermen to have their “kryptonite”, so I created a biological reason to keep them out of the sun, more in keeping with my set of rules. In a biological “world”, they wouldn’t burst into flame or dissolve into dust. This set me to thinking. Cancers are cells that grow unchecked to the point where they destroy neighboring structures in the body. I remembered seeing a program about flesh eating bacteria, (necrotizing strep). In a matter of hours this virulent bacteria can devour body parts. I thought this might be a way to describe the effect the sun has on a vampire’s body. Perhaps the ultra violet light could mutate the DNA and cause the cells to grow erratically.
Although some of my vampires are sympathetic, like Mia, Kurt and Cedric, my heroine and heroes, I still wanted them to be dangerous, because they obey a biological imperative. They still have a human psyche, but the mutation causes them to behave like a predatory animal and turns on their senses. This, of course, messes with their brains and many of them have difficulty dealing with their condition. I looked into psychological studies on violent behavior in human beings. Sociopaths lack empathy, which allows them to objectify others. Certainly some of my vampires fall into this category and don’t agonize over killing human beings. Most of them compartmentalize their emotions. Human beings under duress or expediency will treat others abysmally or even violently if the behavior is “permitted”. They begin to categorize people as “others” or less than human, therefore their violent behavior is acceptable to them under the circumstances. However, there are those individuals for whom this is unacceptable or who can’t successfully make this disconnect who will rebel against the idea that violence is okay. I try not to write characters that are just plain evil. Usually his or her agenda conflicts with the heroine and hero.
My vampires eat and drink like other people, but they take small, frequent meals because they metabolize energy faster. However, the symbiote depletes compounds in the blood, which must be replenished. My vampires couldn’t survive on animal blood, only human, but they can live on the donated variety and many do.
It’s fun to play around with myths and legends and come up with reasons behind them or find
alternatives to them. Creating the world of Immortyl Revolution was a lot of fun for me. I hope you’ll find it fun to read.
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Blurb from Amazon:
Can an Immortyl society survive in a modern world?
From the ashes of the first battle of the Immortyl Revolution, vampires Mia Disantini and Kurt Eisen set out to build a new Immortyl society. Trouble arrives in the person of Cedric MacKinnon, a runaway adept of the ancient arts, who brings tidings of upheaval at the chief elder’s court that threatens everything Mia and Kurt have accomplished. Mia finds it hard to resist when Cedric pledges his service and tempts her with the legendary skills he learned as an Immortyl courtesan. Facing opposition from both within and out, Mia begins to doubt Kurt is up to the task of leading their followers to his vision of an Immortyl Utopia. Torn between her loyalty to Kurt and Cedric’s insistence that she is the earthly manifestation of the Goddess Durga and destined to lead, Mia confronts the greatest challenge of her life.
Servant of the Goddess can be purchase at Amazon and Barnes & Nobles.
Denise Verrico can be found at her Facebook, Twitter, Website, and Blog
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Denise is going to give away a collection of short stores. It is called Annals of The Immortyls.
Blurb from Barnes and Nobles:
Forget the fairytale vampire romance…
Mia Disantini thought she found the man of her dreams, but is trapped in a nightmare from which she can’t wake up.
Kurt Eisen makes a monstrous bargain to survive a Nazi concentration camp and begins to understand what a monster truly is.
Cedric MacKinnon was once a celebrated vampire courtesan. Now he’s a deadly assassin, who has cheated death too many times.
GIVEAWAY TIME: Just leave a comment along with your e-mail. Everyone who leaves their e-mail will receive the book.
Interview +Giveaway with Kathy Logan of The Ruby Brooch
Let’s give a warm welcome to Kathy Logan. She is the author of The Ruby Brooch, a historical time-traveling novel.
Katherine is a distance runner and an avid reader who turned her love of reading into a passion for writing and has completed a sweeping time-travel romance The Ruby Brooch, Book 1 in the Celtic Brooch Trilogy. She is currently working on a contemporary story with a spin off character who demanded his story be told before she completed the other two planned time travels.
A graduate of Rowan University in New Jersey, she earned a BA in Psychology a minor in Criminal Justice. Following graduation, Katherine attended the Philadelphia Institute for Paralegal Training earning a General Practice Certification. She returned to Central Kentucky and worked for twenty years as paralegal. She currently resides in Lexington and writes full time.
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In a sentence or two, please tell us why readers should read your novel.
The Ruby Broochhas an entertaining allure with amazing, non- cardboard characters, great storytelling, and constant action that will keep the reader riding an emotional roller-coaster while either laughing or crying.
Who do you imagine as the reader of your novel?
I’m going to answer with a line from the book. “People like me.” I’m a 62 year old widow and grandmother training for my first marathon. I’m very focused on nutrition, health and fitness. I’m a full-time writer, dating a fantastic man I met on Match.com, and I’m also my ailing mother’s full-time caregiver. In short, a woman who takes care of others, has two full time jobs, is in a relationship, and runs for exercise and health.
I believe that as busy women, we all want a few hours to ourselves to escape from our own worries and concerns and live vicariously through someone else’s troubles with a guaranteed happy ending. I think we’re looking to connect with a strong woman who’s been dealt a bad hand and has the gumption to play it out even though she’s scared to death, and in the midst of her fear, finds her true self. I believe those types of women exist in all genres from time- travels to vampires to regencies. It’s the journey, not necessarily the road. As a reader and as a woman, we want that journey to resonate and in a small way learn something that will make our life fuller and more productive.
How does Celtic mysticism play into The Ruby Brooch?
I’ll share a couple of snippets that aren’t spoilers.
The heroine’s Scottish godfather tells her, “I’ve studied our folklore most of my life, and I believe there are forces in the universe we can’t see or understand. If Sean [the heroine’s father] said this is magical [the ruby brooch], I have no reason not to believe him.” Elliott turned the brooch over and studied the back of the stone. “My grandfather used to say, ‘Some see darkness where others see only the absence of light.’”
Kit drew in a breath. “Meaning?”
Elliott placed the brooch in her hand and curled her fingers around it. “Keep an open mind.”
Later, when she meets the hero they have this exchange. The racing challenge died on the balmy breeze blowing in from the river as they strolled down the rickety sidewalk in silence. By the time they reached the end, the western sky had turned lavender with approaching dusk.
“In Scotland they call the meeting of the day with the night—”
“The gloaming,” the widow [the heroine] said. “Do you believe the time of two-lights is mystical?”
He lifted his eyebrow. “According to Scottish folklore encounters between the visible and invisible worlds occur then.”
“That must be why ghosts sometimes appear at twilight?” Her eyes were as dark and full of mystery as they had been when he first met her.
“And dawn,” he added. “That’s the time of day I saw the lady riding her mighty steed—”
They are interrupted at that point, but Cullen’s childhood vision is very much a part of the story, intertwining the past and present and future, as are Kit’s sightings of Cullen as a ghost that began when she turned 10.
What type of research did you do for the book?
I read dozens of journals written during the Great Migration, a time in our country’s history when women had small voices but indomitable spirits. I talked to experts on topics from carbon dating to rattlesnake bites. I read extensively about the suffragettes; the thoroughbred industry (breeding and racing); genealogy, paramedics; and 19th century legal education, property rights, wines, medicine, childbirth, cooking, oxen, cholera, and dozens of other topics. And, most importantly, I drove the Oregon Trail from Independence, MO, to Portland OR, following mile markers and wagon ruts and talked to people about the land and their family histories. Research, I think, is my favorite part of writing.
What was one of the most interesting data that you stumbled upon?
A week before Christmas 2010, I was researching guns and decided to visit one of our local gun shops. I walked through the front door of a very crowded gun store and stood there not sure where to go. A young man working the cash registered asked if he could help me. I said, “I need a gun that will shoot as many cows in the shortest amount of time.”
The store fell silent. A couple dozen men stared at me like I was crazy. I cleared my throat and explained that I was a romance writer and that my heroine was caught in the middle of a buffalo stampede and needed a weapon. The shock wore off and answers started flying. I still laugh when I think of that visit.
Was there a scene that you absolutely had to have in the book?
I fought (well, disagreed) with editors, dozens of contest judges, and critique partners who nixed the opening of the story. I wanted to show the heroine galloping across the pasture on her thoroughbred. The scene was vividly implanted in my head, and I refused to let it go. Finally, after taking on-line classes, reading, and studying the craft of writing, I slowly began to understand what everyone had tried to tell me. Riding her horse was not where the story action started. It was disappointing to let the scene go, but ultimately I knew it was the right thing to do.
There is a scene about half way through that story that couldn’t be left out. It’s a conversation between the hero and heroine about wearing all sorts of masks to hide who we really are. He asks her who she is down deep inside where no one goes. It was a hard scene to write but one that had to be included.
Quirky Information
Gil Grissom of CSI: Las Vegas or Jethro Gibbs from NCIS?
That one is easy. Jethro is Elliott Fraser, Kit’s godfather.
Captain America or Iron Man?
Captain America – a fish out of water.
If you could be a god/goddess, which one would you be?
Athena: a warrior, protector, working woman, and full of wisdom
Thank you so much for stopping by and doing the interview. Kathy has kindly offered to giveaway an e-book of her novel but first the blurb.
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And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. ~Anaïs NinCan a 21st century paramedic find her heart’s desire on the other side of time?
Upon arriving in the past, she meets Cullen Montgomery, an egotistical Scotsman with a penchant for seducing widows. The San Francisco-bound lawyer happens to resemble the ghost who has haunted Kit since childhood. She quickly finds the Bach-humming, Shakespeare-quoting man to be over-bearing and his intolerance for liars threatens her quest.
If she can survive his accusations and resist his tempting embrace for seventy-three days, she might be able to find the answers she seeks, and return home to a new life without changing history or leaving her heart on the other side of time.
Guest Post with W.J May of Rae of Hope
Let’s give a warm welcome to W.J May, author of Rae of Hope. May is here to introduced us to the world of tattoos.
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Tattoos
What’s your take on Tattoo’s?
Ink-art? Tramp stamp? Marine marker? Passing phase? Beauty art?
Or, are you comments along the lines of:
I would NEVER get one!
It looks nice on other people.
Should I get ONE more?
I don’t want one when I’m old with grandkids…
Rae of Hope, the first book in the Chronicles of Kerrigan is a story based on getting inked. At the age of sixteen, each of the students at Guilder Boarding School gets a tattoo– girls on their lower back, boys on the forearm. They refer to it as getting inked. Now, unlike us normal human beings who head off to the tattoo parlour to choose our design, these kids wake up with ink ark mysteriously appearing. To top it off, their ink gives them a type of supernatural power.
I’ve always been fascinated with tattoos – from the designs, the choices people make, the location, the size, the number of tattoos a person has, the reason for their ink art – all of it. I competed in athletics and one thing I always said was that if I made the Olympics, I would get the rings… well, I did represent my country (Canada) internationally but unfortunately not at the Olympics. I have many friends with those five wonderfully joined rings inked on their ankle, or calf, or wrist, or shoulder. It’s a wonderful sentiment – like a Marine’s marker (silly name I made up, but it does sound a little cool imo). It’s a mark well earned in my opinion.
For some, they are easily addictive as well.
With Rae of Hope – I wanted to give the characters something that people pre-judged before knowing who they were. A sixteen year old with ink across her lower back was more likely to be labelled a tramp before knowing any reason why a young girl had the tattoo. It created pressure and “judging a book by its cover” from the onset. Once you get to know the characters and story line you understand the importance of the ink and that pre-labelling is totally off. Hey, I had fun with the story and with coming up with unique tattoo (tatù in the book) that create unique abilities for my characters. I also love challenging readers to come up with a tatù that would be perfect for a villain – or a good guy too!
Regardless of your own personal opinion on ink art, it’s still fun to look and try to figure out the reasoning behind someone’s tattoo.
Hmmm… Now I’m curious if you could be a character in Rae of Hope – what tattoo would you have, and what supernatural ability would you possess?
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Thank you W.J May for stopping by and giving us an insight into tattoos and their importance in your novel, Rae of Hope.
Blurb from Amazon:
How hard do you have to shake a family tree to find out the truth about the past?
Fifteen-year-old Rae Kerrigan never questioned her family’s history. That is until she accepted a scholarship to Guilder Boarding School in England. Guilder is an exclusive, gifted school. Rae has no idea what she is getting herself into or that her family’s past is going to come back and taunt her.
She learns she is part of an unparalleled group of individuals who become inked with a unique tattoo (tatu) on their sixteenth birthday. The tatu enables them to have supernatural powers particular to the shape of their ink-art. Both of her parents were inked, though Rae never knew, as they passed away when she was young. Learning about her family’s past, her evil father and sacrificial mother, Rae needs to decide if there is a ray of hope in her own life.
W.J May can be found at her Website, Facebook, and Twitter
Rae of Hope can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes & Nobles
Guest Post with Wendy Laharnar of The Unhewn Stone
Let’s have a warm welcome for Wendy Laharnar, author of The Unhewn Stone. She is here to give a tour through one of the legend of Switzerland and how it plays into the novel.
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Behind the Scenes of The Unhewn Stone
By Wendy Laharnar
Having decided to write a story set in the Middle Ages, I chose to base it on the Swiss legend of Wilhelm Tell (1307AD), because I knew nothing about it, other than some tyrant made Tell shoot an arrow through an apple on his son’s head. I wanted to learn more.
I studied everything I could find about the legend made famous by Friedrich Schiller’s play and thought perhaps History had short-changed the tyrant, Governor Gessler. After all, he was responsible for law and order; just doing his job. In fact, I got to wondering about Wilhelm Tell’s nature, too. He killed the ‘tyrant’, so was there really much difference between Freedom Fighters in the medieval world and the Terrorists of today?
The best way to examine this question, in The Unhewn Stone, was to place my hero, Stefan, on the wrong side of the heroic scene, making him a Gessler descendant, and then I sent him back to 1307. Stefan, a modern youth, bore the stigma of the hated name, even in his home town, because he came from Tell’s own village.
The story grabbed me by the throat and held me for the length of a 94,000-word novel – actually, for 117,000 words, which I chiseled back while editing and polishing.
Hohle Gasse
By means of a magic orb and a wormhole, I transported Stefan back 700 years, so he could try to prevent the legend from happening and restore his family honour. Stefan was reluctant to go, at first. He was comfortable being a loner, hiding behind fancy costumes to cover his lameness and his scarred face. After I ‘introduced’ him to the time-travelling alchemist, who is Governor Gessler’s brother, Stefan takes up the challenge and becomes the Chosen One, the Messenger, on a mission to warn Hermann Gessler not to arrest Tell, because Tell would kill him at the Hohle Gasse, the Hollow Way.
What a joy for me to play in the medieval era, but what a dangerous place for my Stefan with only a Swiss Army knife and a PB100 (Swiss screwdriver) for protection against a shape-shifting sibyl, and an evil knight, who were both determined to kill him.
When my story stalled as early as chapter eight, I knew I needed more information…about the area. I travelled from Australia to Switzerland, with my husband and granddaughter, Sara. We spent a lot of time in Bürglen and around Lake Luzern in Central Switzerland.
Burglen in Winter
Sara, at fourteen, felt intimidated by the towering mountains and the threat of an avalanche. She wanted to get away from there. Also, in beautiful Bürglen, there was more evidence of guesthouses and hotels than farms. So, I re-evaluated Stefan, a farmer’s son who loved this narrow valley. He became claustrophobic, like Sara, and I changed him into an innkeeper’s son who wanted to be like the tourists escaping to greener pastures. He escaped all right, on the promise he’d lose his complex and gain his heart’s desire. He desired his unrequited love, Ursula. But, oh dear…poor Stefan.
Since I was reinventing the legend, my main problem was in not offending the lovely
Swiss friends I made while in Bürglen. They treasured the Wilhelm Tell legend.
When they learned my hero was a Gessler, they were horrified and sought reassurance I’d give the story a happy ending. Well…this is Stefan’s story, so The Unhewn Stone has the inevitable ending, but I hope they won’t be disappointed if they get to read the novel, which would need to be in German translation for them.
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Thank you Wendy for stopping by and giving us an insight into the background of The Unhewn Stone.
Blurb from Amazon:
When teenager, Stefan Gessler, answers the call to restore his family’s honour, he discovers it takes more than superior education and pride to equip him for life in the Middle Ages. His dangerous adventures threaten his courage and challenge his beliefs.
Immersed in the turbulent events of the Wilhelm Tell legend, Stefan pretends to be a wizard when an avaricious sibyl mistakes him for an alchemist. The shape-shifting sibyl and an evil knight have diabolical reasons to want the wizard dead.
Faced with his own demons and those of medieval Switzerland, how will Stefan complete his mission and escape the fourteenth century…alive?
Life in the Middle Ages is a dangerous game, even for Üserwäälti, the Chosen One.
Wendy Laharnar can be found at her Website.
The Unhewn Stone can be purchased at Amazon, Smashwords, and MuseItUp Publishing.
Images were provided by Wendy Laharnar.
Interview with Jacqueline Gardner of Thoughtless
I’m really glad to have Jacqueline Gardner here. She is the author of Thoughtless, a young adult paranormal novel.
Jacqueline Gardner works as a Story Editor for the production company, Labragirl Pictures. Her love of storytelling began at an early age when she would make up stories with her grandmother before bedtime. In early 2010, she completed her first novel and has been stuck on writing ever since. She resides in Colorado and loves hiking, writing, fantasy fiction, and all things cupcake.
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The Interview
In a sentence, please tell us why readers should pick up your novel.
It’s a fun and entertaining read that lets you see what it’s like to be a high school mind-reader!
Why did you decide to have a main character that could read minds?
It was a thought I had one day, and I went with it! I write what I love and I had a lot of fun with the main character
What was one of the most difficult scenes to write in Thoughtless?
Probably the ending I wanted to leave things open for book two, but at the same time I wanted readers to feel like most of their questions had been answered.
Bridget and Terrence’s first “date” was more of a blind date, would you ever consider going on a blind date?
I’ve never been on a blind date. I was always the one who set up my friends. But first dates are awkward, blind date or not!
Bridget is going to attend Hartfield Manor in England, would you mind giving us a sneak peek into her new life?
Yeah! Bridget is about to become the “new kid” in a school with students just like her. We’ll meet new characters, see Bridget’s powers develop and learn more about the coven. Yes, they’re planning a comeback!
What advice would you give to an inspiring writer that is interested in being self-publish?
Find a solid critique group and don’t be afraid to put yourself out there.
What has been the most rewarding experience regarding Thoughtless?
I learn a lot about myself with every story write. I drew on my own high school experiences when I wrote Thoughtless. Looking back, there are a few things I would have done differently. But Bridget is all about moving forward. She’s realized that dwelling in the pasts gets you nowhere. I believe that too 🙂
Quirky Information:
What is the oddest tasting cupcake you have ever had?
I haven’t come across one yet! I know some people aren’t fans of savory cupcakes but I like both sweet and savory. A cupcake is a cupcake.
If you be a goddess, which one would you be?
I love the ocean. I’ve always felt comfortable underwater. Is there a female sea goddess who could take Poseidon? I would be her.
The counterpart to Poseidon would be his wife, Amphitrite, goddess of the sea. Excellent choice.
Last quirky question, Ferret or Chinchilla?
Chinchilla. Ferrets are stinky.
Thank you so much for the interview.
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Blurb from Amazon:
When Bridget finds a dead cheerleader in the janitor’s closet, she becomes the killer’s next target. High school just got worse. It’s bad enough that she can hear the shocking truths that pass through her classmate’s heads. Now she has to worry about staying alive, and all clues point to the one person whose thoughts she can’t read – her boyfriend Terrence. Someone is taunting her, threatening to expose her secret. And when Bridget tries to single out her blackmailer, she’s nearly beaten to death by a mind controlled minion with fiery eyes.
But when Bridget finally comes face-to-face with the killer, suddenly a horde of brainwashed students programmed to destroy her life doesn’t seem so bad.
Jacqueline can be found at her Website, Twitter, Facebook
Thoughtless can be purchased at Amazon and Smashwords
Guest Post + Giveaway with Bella Street of Kiss Me, I’m Irish
Let’s give a warm welcome Bella Street of Kiss Me, I’m Irish.
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Love and Mischief With Cornish Pixies
by Bella Street
The ideas of sweet, child-like faeries are largely a product of the Victorian age. In ancient lore, faeries were a mischievous, and sometimes downright murderous, lot.
And Cornish pixies (or piskeys) could be be the most magical and evil of all.
According to Pixie Folklore and Legends by Enys Tregarthen, God once called on Adam and Eve after they’d been driven from Eden. Eve was washing the children (she had a lot by then) but still had some unwashed. She presented the clean children to God, and when He asked if she had other children, Eve said no because she was embarrassed that some were still dirty. God was upset at her deception and so decreed that the children Eve hid must remain hidden. The children went away into the forests, hills, and remote places where they remain invisible from man, ‘not good enough for heaven and not bad enough for hell’.
So maybe they have a reason to be annoyed. But a quick note to the kids—don’t fight bath time!
When they’re in a good mood, pixies might clean your house when you’re not looking (please come to my house—see I left out milk for you!), and have parties complete with tiny horses and chariots when you’re asleep. If you happen to wander into a ring of stones or toadstools, you’ll be pixie-led, destined to wander aimlessly, speaking jibberish (or maybe that was too much whiskey—which oddly enough rhymes with piskey—but I digress).
Truly evil pixies are called spriggans and have been known to steal babies from their cribs, leaving behind one of their own kind called a ‘changeling’. A formerly sweet, perfect child grows into a sullen troublemaker. Who’s with me in saying they’ve met one? I know, right?
Kiss Me, I’m Irish explores a bit of this world against the perhaps not-so-magical backdrop of a jaded musician trying to break into the music business coupled with a young lady with a weakness for Irish gentlemen and romance novels.
Bella has been kind enough to offer a paperback or E-book copy of Kiss Me, I’m Irish so let’s have a giveaway but first the blurb.
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Emily Musgrave is heading a direction she never wanted to go in Regency England–namely a convent to turn her from her waywardness. But it’s more loneliness than rebellion that motivates her to escape her certain fate.
Liam Jackson is going nowhere fast in modern-day Tennessee. Playing his Dobro in seedy bars and backward dives along with his fiddling sister, Tinker, is doing nothing for his music career–and even less for the dark places in his soul.
Pixie dust and thieving mischief can not only change time-lines, it can change hearts–because a girl can only get so far without a little magic in her life
Giveaway Time (International): Winner can choose between a paperback copy or an e-book.
Contents end on April 17.
Giveaway is now CLOSED. Thank you to everyone who participated.
That’s it. It’s a simple entry. Following is not required but it is appreciate it.
Bella Street can be found at webstite, blog
Kiss Me, I’m Irish can be purchase at Amazon, B & N, Smashwords
Guest Post with Peter Anthony Kelley of Paraglide
Let’s give a warm welcome to author Peter Antony Kelley, author of Paraglide. He is here today to discuss the importance of locations in novels.
Peter Anthony Kelley is the author of the young-adult novel, Paraglide. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife, two daughters and a cranky nineteen-year old cat named Brownie. When he’s not writing he loves travel, biking, watching soccer and jumping on Venetian gondolas.
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Location, Location, Location
In real estate location is king. In fiction, not necessarily so much. At best, the setting of a story snags the role of a prince behind King Plot and Queen Character Development, occasionally slipping to lowly duke or even vanishing entirely. Think of stories that could happen anywhere, a bland small town, an anonymous big city. Yet a stellar sense of place, an evocative description of the landscape, even a singular building can send a novel soaring. How much does Hogwarts add to the work of Harry Potter. What about Dickensian London? The very term evokes such vivid imagery, it’s impossible to imagine Oliver Twist or The Christmas Carol with it.
What’s your favorite literary location? Do you prefer a fictional universe, a world that bears little or no resemblance to the one we inhabit, a place to really get away from it all? Perhaps Middle Earth from Lord of the Rings or the sprawling creations of George R.R. Martin. Do you enjoy known places that are turned on their ear: New York City as a giant prison, super volcanoes erupting in Yellowstone, gods and goddesses living in country bungalows or city tenements?
Some writers anchor their stories in real places. In my own novel, Paraglide, the main characters start in modern-day London, travel to Italy and end up trekking through the Swiss Alps. Their adventures are shaped and at times, guided by actual buildings and topographical features. Is it easier to imagine a place that actually exists?
Occasionally place does rise to the top, becoming a character in its own right. In Erin Morgenstern’s recent novel, The Night Circus, the title character overshadows the rest of the cast. The Amazon jungle nearly takes over Ann Patchet’s State of Wonder. Frank Herbert’s Dune is so vivid, it inspired a host of sequels and spinoffs, movies and miniseries. Do these places take away from the plot or add to it?
What do you think? What fictional world would you like to explore or live in? Is it real or imagined, somewhere exotic and exciting or comfortable like a favorite sweater? What do you tell that real estate agent to look for?
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Thank you Peter for stopping by and providing a great guest post. Here is Paraglide.
For siblings Jim and Erica Winters, a summer vacation to London promises adventure and a bit of freedom from their overprotective mother. But once they arrive, they end up with more excitement than they bargained for. Their mother is kidnapped and her captors demand the one thing they can’t produce – their long-absent father. Unable to trust the authorities, Jim and Erica set off in pursuit of their father, racing across Europe and fending off mysterious assailants. As the trail of clues dries up, help arrives in the form of a raven-haired beauty. Is she the answer to their prayers, a romantic distraction, or something more sinister? With the kidnapper’s deadline looming, the truth about their father’s shadowy past is revealed. In a last ditch effort to save their mother, Jim and Erica must climb high into the Swiss Alps where a perilous choice confronts them. Can they trust their father who has repeatedly betrayed them? Their family’s survival may depend on it.
Peter Anthony Kelley can be found at his blog and Facebook.
Paraglide can be purchased at Smashwords, B&N, Amazon
Persephone's Winged Reviews 