Author Interviews

Halloween 2011 with Keta Diablo

2011-10-06T21:56:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the2^nd Annual Halloween Bash, Keta. It's always a pleasure tohave you as my guest here at Ramsey's Reviews. I have had numerousreviewers talk about how awesome your stories are and I look forwardto your new releases. Thank you for taking the time to answer some ofour Halloween questions.

Tell us yourlatest news. Do you have any current projects you’re working on?

Hi Amy, first I want to thank youfor hosting another *Fantastic* Halloween Bash. They’ve been somuch fun. And thank you for asking about my current projects (a pilethat never shrinks). I have a release coming out October 5^ththrough Books We Love Spice. Land of Falling Starsis a re-release of an erotic romance/historical with a Civil Wartheme. Watch for the release OCTOBER 5^thhere: Keta’s Kindle Page: http://amzn.to/qsrw5D

I’malso writing the first novella in the *Lone Star Series*. The titleof the first book in the series is Wakingthe Dead. I have five books planned about theBannister brothers in, of course, Texas. These are also historicalbooks . . . think HOT, HUNKY COWBOYS! Waking the Deadwill be released in November 2011. Readers can also follow my romanceblog Keta’s Keep for information about all new releases:http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com

And finally, I’m in the process ofwriting the sequel to Where The Rain Is Made (aparanormal shifter nominated for a Bookie Award by Authors After Darkin 2010). This is the story of Marsh DuVall who, like his sisterCesca, was kidnapped by the Cheyenne dog soldiers in the first book.Readers can also sign up for my newsletter for more information:http://www.ketadiablo.com.I give away three books to readers every time the newsletter is sentout.
When and Why did you beginwriting?

I’ve been writing about six yearsnow and have 21 books on the market. Like most authors, I writebecause my life would seem incomplete if I didn’t. What otheroccupation allows one to lounge around in their pajamas all day? Ilove the freedom that comes with writing, but that doesn’t mean wedon’t have to be disciplined and abide by a schedule. No booksequals no income!

Where do youget your information or ideas for your books?
Fromseveral sources. I’m an Internet-surfing junkie. In fact, there aredays when I force myself to disconnect from the web to write. Landof Falling Stars was spawned from a true-life story I readon the Internet about cousins who fought on opposite sides during theCivil War. I spun off on that story and asked myself what couldpossibly happen if two men loved the same woman, yet one fought forthe North and one for the South. You can see where this is going,right?

I also have very vivid dreams andkeep a notebook on my nightstand. If I wake up in the middle of thenight from a dream, I jot down some notes so I don’t forget. And Ialso love people-watching. One can learn a lot by watching humansinteract. Particularly helpful when it comes to writing dialogue isto take note of their expressions, or if I’m lucky enough, listenwhile they have a conversation. People don’t speak in perfectsentences, but often uses gesture, animated faces and broken words.Watch them sometime and you’ll see what I mean.

What doyou think makes a good horror story?

The same things that make allstories good, suspense, thrills, tension, dynamic characters and aplot that moves forward at a face pace. I don’t read much horror,but lately I’m taking a keen interest in the genre. When I select ahorror book, I want to be scared, but not necessarily with gore andguts. I’m much more frightened by a story like Silence ofthe Lambs or Copycat than I amNightmare on Elm Street.

What isyour favorite scary movie or book?
See above.Silence of the Lambs. For years my mom wouldn’twatch it. She was terrified of Anthony Hopkins’ voice. One nightshe was visiting and my son had the movie on. Before long, Mom wasglued to the sofa and watched the entire movie. Then she said,“What’s the name of that film?” Boy was she surprised when shefound out it was Silence of the Lambs.

What makesyou interested in the genre your write?

I cut my teeth on Kathleen Woodiwissand Rosemary Rogers. I remember reading by flashlight under thecovers and couldn’t wait to find out what would happen to Steve andGinny next (Sweet Savage Love). And Woodiwiss, well, shereally paved the way for romance. Her first books, The Wolf andthe Dove and The Flame and Flower reeled me in forever. Itseemed natural for me to gravitate toward writing historical romancewhen I started.

When youwere a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And did itpropel your creative muse to write about it later?

If I went by my childhood, I’d bewriting about angels or spirits. I had several near-misses, as inalmost died, in my childhood. The stories are too lengthy to delveinto here, but I knew I had an angel watching over me when thosetragedies took place. There’s no other way I could have survivedwithout one. I don’t know my angel’s name, but I sure know what*she* looks like. I was raised with all boys and let me tell you, ifan only girl can survive that in her childhood, she can surviveanything as a grown woman. I have the battle scars to prove it. Istill ask my mother, “Where were you??” LOL

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

I’m a chicken. I’ve never likedthe dark; don’t believe I’ve ever slept without some type oflight on in another room. I don’t know what it is about light, butI feel much safer with one on. I don’t watch really scary movies.My dreams are vivid enough, thank you very much.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?

I wouldn’t write excessive goresince I don’t read it. Suspense and scary is good, but do we needall that blood and guts to scare us? As for erotic content there arecertain words I RARELY use but that’s a personal thing. I don’tcare for words that disparage women in any respect. You know thewords I’m talking about, right? For some reason men have usedcertain words with women when they’re angry. Somehow, saying“You’re a dick, you know that?” doesn’t seem as personal andcruel as some of the words they use.

I read all types of erotic romanceand occasionally erotica (there is a difference). I don’t drawlines when it comes to other authors and their writing. They have todo what seems best for them.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?

Again, thanks so much for asking.Here’s the blurb for Land of Falling Stars (mentionedabove).

After herparents die in a fire, Sophia Whitfield struggles to save her belovedhome, Arbor Rose. The Civil War has devastated the South, and anotherblue coat has come to steal her meager possessions. Before the hatedenemy inflicts his destruction, she shoots him. And soon discoversthe soldier is Gavin, the champion of her childhood.

Gavin'sdark secret lurks in Sophia’s future. When she discovers the truth,she's torn between a burning hunger for the man she truly loves andloyalty to Jesse, their childhood friend. The despicable acts of warhave changed everything Sophia and Gavin once cherished. Yetsomewhere deep in their hearts, the mystical Land of Falling Starsstill exists.

And here’sthe blurb for Where The Rain Is Made (read thereviews here: http://amzn.to/ev0I3Y)

Adecadent-looking savage has captured Francesca DuVall and her brotherMarsh. Now she spends every waking moment planning an escape. Shedidn’t count on the powerful draw of desire interfering with herscheme while in the clutches of the brutal Cheyenne DogSoldiers.
Ethan Gray is a curator at a national museum. . . most of the time. When he travels through time to help hisbeloved People he’s Meko, leader of the most revered and fearedtribe of the plains. Their worlds are decades apart and yet Mekocan’t resist the dark beauty he kidnapped during a raid. Violentbattles loom on the horizon, but there’s only one he must win atall costs – the capture of Cesca’s heart forever.

Fromthe windswept plains of Colorado and the harsh life of a Dog Soldierto the placid life of a curator, their love was fueled by passion andkindled by destiny.

Where can yourfans go to find more information about you and your books?

KetaDiablo lives in the Midwest part of the country on six acres ofwoodland. When she isn’t writing or gardening she loves to communewith nature. Keta is a multi-published author in both erotic romanceand gay fiction. Her latest paranormal novel, WhereThe Rain Is Made,has been nominated for a BookieAwardby Authors After Dark in the Best e-novel category. In addition,Keta’s books have received numerous Top Pick, Book of the Month,and Recommended Reads awards from the top professional review sites.

Youcan find her on the Net at the following places:

Keta’sAmazon page: http://amzn.to/or7XUP

Keta’sKeep Romance Blog: http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com

Keta’sAuthor Home: http://www.ketadiablo.com

Keta’sFacebook Fan Page:http://www.facebook.com/KetaDiablo.Author

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?

From my heart: Dear Readers, thanksso much for supporting me and my books. I know without you, successcan not be achieved. Professional reviews are nice, don’t get mewrong, but what really makes my day and keeps me pushing to get thatnext book out, are the wonderful e-mails I receive from readers. Ourworld is not in a good place right now. If I can bring a smallmeasure of pleasure or escape to your world, I’ll considermy goal accomplished.

Here’s hoping all your reads inthe future take you on endless journeys of enjoyment and magic.

Halloween 2011 with Tamara Monteau

2011-10-06T21:55:00.001-07:00

Iam pleased to have the author of The Darker Path and the Haven'sRealm series, Tamara Monteau, here with us for the next couple ofdays. Tamara, thank you for taking the time to chat with us aboutyour books. I am looking forward to reading The Darker Path when it'sreleased. Readers, Tamara will be sticking around during herinterview to answer your questions, so please feel free to post.Every post you make will gain you extra entries into the October 1^stHalloween Contest for a chance to win a Halloween-themed e-book. Solet's start posting those questions and HAVE SOME HALLOWEEN FUN!!!!

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects your workingon?

TheDarker Path is in editing. My third book, Dragon Lord, andthe fourth, Haven’s King, are scheduled for release by theend of the year. I have already begun work on my fifth novel, whichwill be book five in the Haven’s Realm series. It doesn’thave a title yet, but for those who are familiar with my work, itwill be the story of Vincent, and will have a few side-trips. Itshould be a fun read.

Whenand Why did you begin writing?

Ihave always been interested in creative writing, even as a child. Ihave an overactive imagination, so the transition to writing myfantasies was inevitable. It took Dan Curtis’ revival of the DarkShadows saga in 1992 to spur me into writing for real. I feltsorry for Barnabus Collins, and began creating my own characters.Before long, I had developed my culture.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

Outof my head. Or, perhaps to be more precise, out of the heads of mycharacters, who seem to take on a life of their own not long after Istart a project. When my “friends” are less than forthcoming, Iresearch their finer points on the web. Wikipedia is only one of thesites I frequent, but I find it has the bulk of the information Ineed to fill in the blanks.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

Suspense,a following plot, and believable events. I like a story that keeps meon the edge without sending me over into disgust. Mindless slaughterdoes not a good story make.

Whatis your favorite scary movie or book?

TheHaunting. Both versions.

Whatmakes you interested in the genre your write?

Idon’t really know. I guess it has something to do with theforbidden desire aspect. I’ve always loved vampire stories. There’sjust something about an all-powerful lover, and the power ofsubmission, that appeals to me.

Whenyou were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And didit propel your creative muse to write about it later?

OuterLimits could always get my heart racing. When I was five, a bad stormhit in the middle of a suspenseful part and the power went out. Iremember looking out the front window and seeing Mom and Dadwrestling with a large metallic monster (an aerial antenna). I joinedmy sister under the bed. No, this did not influence my writing. Itwas just the most scared moment I can recall.

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

Ihave had many occasions while writing where events unfold indrastically different ways than I had foreseen. When I come up forair and read what my fingers just laid out, I find myself astounded.Sometimes I firmly believe my imaginary friends are more real to methan I want them to be. That’s the part that scares me.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?

Crass,vulgar language. I have gotten gory on occasion. (The worst was ascene at the end of Dragon Lord where a man’s head explodes.) I’vebeen known to throw in a cuss word or two. I don’t like the “F”bomb. It’s not necessary. And there are ways of making love withoutobvious and graphic language. Innuendo allows the reader to fill inthe details for themselves. I prefer reading stories that sketch thescene and allow my own imagination to pick it up from there.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?

Theonly one I can share is from my first novel, Twilight Destiny,Haven’s Realm 1. When The Darker Path, Haven’s Realm 2, isapproved, I can give you that as well. A full excerpt is on mywebsite, http://www.havens-realm.com,but here’s a taste:

“It’s aftertwo in the morning. What are you doing out here alone?”
“I was thinkingabout us,” she told him shyly.
“Oh?” Hegently lifted her face and studied her. He saw the longing in hereyes, the
uncertainty. Shenodded again and reached up to smooth a strand of hair from his eyes.When her
fingers brushedhis ear, he caught her hand and pressed her knuckles to his lips. Hepulled her
into his arms andheld her tightly against him while his own feelings waged a warwithin him.
When she raisedher face to his, his lips found hers of their own accord. He couldn’tgive her the
tender kisseshe’d held himself to. Instead, all the feelings he’d held tightlyat bay broke free of
their bonds. Shereturned his kisses hungrily and clung to him as if she weredrowning.

He wanted her.God help him, he did. He sensed her passion rising, and when herealized
she intended tolet him take her as far as he would go, his tenuous control nearlysnapped. She
touched hertongue to his lips in a tentative gesture, igniting his passion intoa raging storm that
demanded answer.He took possession of her mouth, drank in her sweet, warm depthsuntil her
knees weakened.In another moment, he’d have her on the ground, exploring everyinch of her,
making her hisown. It was only with the greatest difficulty that he managed to stopbefore he did
just that. Hepulled her tightly against him and held her while he did his best tobring his
mutinous bodyback in line. “Oh, Catherine,” he said at last, his voicestrained.

She trembled withfrustration and need. “Joshua…” Her voice sounded like a sob.She tried
to push away, buthe held her more firmly. “Joshua, I…”

He pressed hisfingers against her lips so suddenly it took her by surprise. “No,love. Be
still.” Whenher sobs started bubbling their way to the surface, he stroked herhair and tried hard
to soothe her. “Iknow how you feel,” he said softly. “I know what you want. Wemustn’t. Not
yet.”

She pushedagainst him until he reluctantly allowed her to leave his arms. Thelook on her
face spoke to himof the pain and frustration in her heart. “I’m in love with you.”Her statement
sounded like adesperate challenge.

He felt a lumpgrowing in his throat. “Aye.”

“You…you loveme too.”

“More than Ican tell you.”

“I know youwant me as much as I want you.”

“So much soit’s killing me,” he confirmed, his voice growing thick withanguish.

“Then, why…?”

He turned fromher, unable to face the strength of her pain for another moment.“There are
things you needto know first. Things I haven’t been ready to tell you. Thingsthat…” he paused

toswallow the lump in his throat, “things that may frighten you.”

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and your books?

Haven’sRealm. http://www.havens-realm.com

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?

Notreally. All my information is on the site. I’m looking forward toanswering questions.

Halloween 2011 with Cynthia Vespaia

2011-10-06T21:54:00.000-07:00

Welcome,Cynthia Vespia, to Ramsey's Reviews 2^nd Annual HalloweenBash. I am looking forward to reading more about Cynthia and herbooks. Come on in and sit for a spell and enjoy reading about herlatest releases. Thank you, Cynthia for taking the time to be with ustoday and tomorrow.

Tell us your latest news. Do you have any current projects your working on?
There have been some exciting changes. The Original Cyn, that's me, will be debuting a plethora of new and newly revised projects. Favorites like The Crescent will be getting a facelift and coming over to Kindle, etc. while new projects will be released within the next few months. Stay tuned to www.cynthiavespia.com and www.facebook.com/cynthia.vespia for all the details.

When and Why did you begin writing?
I started writing around age 8. I used to read a lot and I was fascinated with the worlds that authors created. It was a bit of an escape for me. I got serious about writing in high school when I read Dean Koontz. He quickly became my favorite author and I knew I wanted to have a writing career from that point forward.

You have great taste, I too began reading Dean Koontz at a very young age. Right then I knew I liked thrillers and the paranormal. I guess he is the reason I later took an interest in horror as well, even though Stephen King helped some too. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
The ideas for my novels come at random. I may be watching TV or reading something and it just pops into my head. I have gotten ideas in yoga class; on a trip to the mountains; and even in the shower. I try to always have a pen and paper nearby.

What do you think makes a good horror story?
Malicious intent. Seriously, the more cold-hearted the killer is the higher the stakes. But I also believe in the psychological aspect of any type of horror. If they are just slasher stories for no apparent reason that isn't really going to fly. You have to have great pacing too. Hitchcock was a master at the craft. The psychological tales are a lot scarier to me than blood and guts.

What is your favorite scary movie or book?
My first instinct is to say Misery...for both. Again, it is psychological. And as an author it is a scary, scary thought to wind up in that predicament. I'm sure that is why Stephen King wrote it.

What makes you interested in the genre your write?
I write fantasy and contemporary thrillers. It is what I like to read. Fantasy has always fascinated me because it is complete fabrication but at the same time tried-and-true characters and mythological creatures that are well known. Elves, orcs, centaurs, etc. And when an author can come up with their own classification, or language like Tolkien did, that is just brilliance at work. Then on the flip side you have the thrillers which when I write them they are everyday people who wind up in extraordinary circumstances. I refer to them as real life situations you could find yourself in but hope to God you never do. But in writing it is always fun to ask "what if."

When you were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel your creative muse to write about it later?
I've never liked ghosts. Sometimes strange things occurred in my home and they were really unexplainable. Now here I am with my thriller Life, Death, and Back that touches on that very subject so I guess, yes it fascinates and alternatively scares me at the same time to think there are spirits still lurking around.

Do you remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scared yourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?
Yes! I'll go back and reread some early stuff I did and think "who wrote that?!" Some of it is very dark and twisted.

Where do you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or erotic content?
It has to fit the story. I never just throw in sex or violence just to sell books. If a novel doesn't call for a particular scene to be overly descriptive then I leave it at that and the reader can fill in the blanks. Sometimes less is more.

Could you share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?
Certainly. Here now is an excerpt from Life, Death, and Back:

CHAPTER I

The first sojourn from life to death was very much the epitome of birth. Brilliant flashes of light were aglow all around bathing snapshots of memory, minute but hardly trivial.

When the ride stopped and the suspension of disbelief released him, Bryan was curious to find his own corpse stretched out at his feet. It lay on the grassy lawn in front of his office building, twenty feet from where he had initially been walking.

The corpse, his corpse, stared up at him through one wide eye. Sightless now it still echoed the feeling of shock that he had felt the very moment the vehicle had struck him.

Though he wanted to look away from the tragic scene utter terror and confusion gripped him still. Pedestrians and motorists surrounded the accident and sirens wailed in the distance. He was oblivious to it all.

All Bryan wanted to do was crawl back inside his body, stand up and say, "Hey, look at me, I'm fine. Not a scratch." Then there were strong impulses pulling him into the belief that this was just a nightmare. At any moment he was going to respond with a shudder and a cold sweat but he would wake, frantic at first, until he found himself in bed next to his lovely wife, Holly.

He hadn't bothered to wake her that morning. She was radiantly aglow in her pregnancy as she slept. It was their very first child and they were overjoyed to be experiencing this miracle after only one year of marriage.

Bryan had kissed her on the cheek and gone on his way to the law firm. His place of business was another joyful experience to be able to share with Holly. Bryan was the youngest of his class to seek and sustain a substantial position within a reputable law firm. Of course it helped that his father had owned and maintained the firm since Bryan had been a boy. But now it was his own, inheriting it when his father had passed away just two years after Bryan had graduated from law school.

It was an unusually cloudy day in Stanford, but nevertheless Bryan was in an upbeat mood. Whistling as he crossed the street to his offices he had never even seen the drunk driver's vehicle coming. Perhaps he had not wanted to. As the saying goes he had been looking upon the world with rose-colored glasses up to that point. No harm could befall him, he was indestructible. Throughout life Bryan had truly felt blessed, now it was all gone. In an instant his entire life had been snuffed out. His promising future was no more. All that was left was another casualty in the war of drinking and driving. He was no longer Bryan Adam Caleb outstanding lawyer, loving husband, expectant father, and genuine nice guy. Now he was just another statistic.

But Bryan didn't understand what was happening. If he was dead, why was he still on this Earth? What happened to the other side? So many unanswered questions tore through his mind.

He refused to believe it.

As paramedics encompassed the accident scene Bryan turned and ran. His mind was in frenzy and he just needed to get away, get some space to determine what in the world was going on.

His pace quickened to the point where he felt as though he had wings and could lift off. Finally he came to a stop at the end of the block and to his surprise he was not at all fatigued. His leg muscles did not ache and he was not breathing heavy. In fact, he was not breathing at all.

Still in disbelief he went to check his pulse for some sign that he was still alive. His fingers passed straight through his arm. There was no solidity to his wrist at all. He tried two more times with nothing but the same result.

Bryan looked around frantically for help. With his head on a swivel, something above him caught his eye. Lights gleamed up in the sky like as though a great crystal was wedged between two clouds precariously placed for the sun to shine off it.

He stood awed looking at the magnificent colors waning in every direction. It brought him a smile and a sense of peace. After a moment he even thought he glimpsed his loving father's face high above beckoning him to come forward and join him.

Bryan began to imagine just how nice it would be to be at his father's side again and to see his mother again in perfect and simple bliss.

The lights shone brighter and began to descend down towards him. Bryan stood stock still as they came closer and closer. The bright glare was such that he had to close his eyes but the pleasant images still remained. He felt his feet lift off the ground and he began to rise up with the jubilation.

Many wondrous memories were encompassing him now. Simple joys he new as a boy, more substantial and rich emotions of love and faith and virtue that he'd experienced as a man. Those worlds of days long since past were uniting on a grand scale and lifting Bryan up higher and higher into ecstasy the likes of which he had never known before. But with this cataclysm of extraordinary peace came relevance and a fear.

This illuminated structure of memories was a portal allowing him access to the other side. It was the ever after, bounty and life everlasting would be soon to come. Bryan's time here on Earth had been full but was now over. But he wasn't ready to leave yet.

"No," he stated. His voice was low at first as he still clung to the tranquility of the descending portal and the majesty of what it was.

He tried hard to shake it off, feeling indifference of a strong nature. Something was wrong. He did not belong here, not now. There was too much left for him to do. He did not want to leave his unborn child fatherless. The Caleb Family Law Practice was on a steady rise; Bryan needed to leave his legacy before he left this Earth.

As his will to stay grew stronger and stronger he shouted "No!" more defiantly than before and this time it broke him away from the suction of the light.

To find out what happens, order your copy of Life, Death, and Back right now.

Where can your fans go to find more information about you and your books?
I'm online at www.cynthiavespia.com or www.facebook.com/cynthia.vespia

Is there anything else additional you would like to share with your readers?
I love hearing reader feedback. That's why I write. Some people are only in it for the money. I write for the reader so thank you.

Contest:

Post your comments and you will automatically be entered into the October 1st Halloween surprise drawing.

Halloween 2011 with Susan Blexrud

2011-10-06T21:53:00.000-07:00

Readers andfans, please welcome Susan Blexrud to Ramsey's Reviews 2^ndAnnual Halloween Bash event. Susan is chatting about things that gobump in the night and go unexplained. Pull up a chair and sit for awhile. This is an author you don't want to miss and a story yourgonna want to read.

"Alpha males should have a sense of humor, whether they're vampires, Mayan warriors, or the boy next door."

Tell us yourlatest news. Do you have any current projects you’re working on?

I’m working on a Civil War storyentitled The Gettysburg Vampire. Here’s the blurb.

Studentsat Gettysburg College know the legend of the Stonewall Jackson, aCivil War ghost train. For this year’s winter holiday play,Theater Professor Abby Potter has dramatized the popular tale using alittle artistic license. She’s added a vampire. But she has onebig problem—findinga decent thespian for the leading role. She bristles at thesuggestion that Malcolm McClellan, a history professor at the collegeand a renowned Civil War re-enactor, would be ideal for the part.She’s avoided the brooding, mysterious man for years. But it maybe perfect casting.

When andwhy did you begin writing?

I can’t NOT write (please forgivethe double negative). I’ve been writing since elementary school,majored in journalism in college, and spent 30 years writing featurearticles before trying my hand at fiction, which I ADORE!

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

My ideas are usually a result ofsomething I’ve seen in the news or elements of history that attractme. For Black Fang, the genesis of the storywas a very real disease in bats called white-nose syndrome, and forThe Gettysburg Vampire, the idea came aftervacationing in Gettysburg. I was mesmerized by the battlefields andthe eerie sense of carnage that permeates the town.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

In a word—the UNEXPECTED. Horroris that element lurking around the corner that springs out at thehero or heroine when you least expect it.

Icouldn't say it better myself, Susan. =)What is your favorite scary movie or book?

Anything by Stephen Kingcan get my adrenaline pumping. I don’t really have a favorite, butCarrie and Pet Cemeterycome to mind.

What makes youinterested in the genre your write?

Life is tough, and a little escape,I believe, provides a welcome respite from the realities of ourfailing economy, children who are still struggling to find their way,poor health, etc. Escaping through the supernatural introduces newworlds and new possibilities, and I like the idea that there is morein this vast universe than the eye can see.

Whenyou were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And didit propel your creative muse to write about it later?

I was frightened of something undermy bed, though I didn’t know what it could be. I suppose that fearof the unexpected has helped me write stories about danger that liesjust below the surface.

Do youremember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

I’ve had some dreams that scaredme, but I could always connect them to something I’d seen or heard,so no, no real surprises.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?

I’m more into communicating loveand longing than raw sex, and I’m not crazy about gore. It’s oneof the reasons I greatly prefer Charlaine Harris’sbooks to the True Blood HBO series. Her booksfocus on her characters’ emotions, while the TV series seems morededicated to shock and awe.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or excerpts with us?

Here’s the blurb and an excerptfrom the fifth story in my fang series, Black Fang.

BLURB:
Someoneis deliberately infecting bats with a deadly fungus. The flyingmammals are dying by the thousands, and along with them, asignificant number of vampires in bat form have also succumbed.

EnterJohn and Lauren Wright. The vampire couple has conquered evilenemies in the past, but the perpetrator behind the bat deaths ismore cunning than any they’ve encountered. Though John initiallysuspects that werewolves are the culprits, he discovers he is upagainst a colony of Unseelie faeries. The intoxicating scent of thefaeries has been known to deceive vampires, pitting friend againstfriend—and wife against husband.

EXCERPT:

John and Teensy landedin the palace’s kitchen, where the cook promptly began beating Johnon the head with a wooden spoon.

“Stop!” He rubbedhis cranium. “We’re here to see the king. He’s expecting us.”

“Well, you have astrange way to make an entrance.” The cook, wide as she was tall,gave John the stink eye.

“My fault,” saidTeensy, dusting off her hot pink sweatpants. “I must have used onespider leg too many in the potion. I was aiming for the banquethall.”

“You’re rightunder it,” the cook said as she nodded to a vaulted doorway. “Takethose steps. I’m sure you’ll be a big hit.” She swatted Johnon the butt with her spoon as they passed her. “Or at least thegorgeous guy will.”

They hurried up thesteps with Teensy chattering instructions along the way. “Stayclose to me when we get in the hall. I may need to whisper, and I’llbe able to feel if you’re inching to the dark side.”

“I won’t let themget to me.”

“Right.” Teensytugged on John’s sleeve. “Don’t get cocky.”

They burst into thebanquet hall. John counted eight guards stationed at the doorwaysand then focused on the dais. The king was seated at his throne witha lovely, and very naked, faery maid sprawled face down/butt upacross his lap. He was spanking her vigorously with his bare handwhile two other faeries bounced around them, obviously enjoying theshow. Lauren was standing next to the seated king, a smile as big asthe Florida sun on her face.

“Lauren!” Johncalled as he walked toward her, his hand held out. “Come to me, mylove.”

She looked at him andclapped her hands. “Wow, you’re cute!”

Teensy, who wasattached to John like a pilot fish on a shark, said, “Egad, it’sworse than I thought. She has no idea who you are.”

John stopped at thebottom step that led up to the throne. He sensed the guards circlinghim and getting closer as he approached the king. Again, he said,“Lauren, come to me, my love.” His heart pounded in his ears. She looked so beautiful…so vulnerable…and so clueless.

“My, my, you gothere quickly, and uninvited, at that.” The king pushed the faeryoff his lap, rose from the throne, and put his arm around Lauren’sshoulder. John stiffened as she leaned into the king.

“This ain’t gonnabe easy,” Teensy whispered.

John waited untilLauren’s eyes met his. “Avery misses you.”

Lauren cocked herhead, and Teensy took advantage of the brief spark of recognition inLauren’s eyes to throw a handful of sparkly dust in Lauren’sdirection. She sneezed.

“Seize them,” theking shouted to his guards.

Where can yourfans go to find more information about you and your books?

Here’s where you can find me, andI love to hear from readers!

www.susanblexrud.com

www.thedarkcastlelords.com

www.embracetheshadows.wordpress.com

Is thereanything else additional you would like to share with your readers?

What really juices me iscommunicating with readers. There are so many interesting people whoread paranormal fiction, and I love to hear from them.

Susan, thank you for taking the timeto tell us about your book releases and let the readers learn alittle bit more about the author behind the books. It is an honor tohave you here with us and is a privilege to have you as my guest.

Halloween 2011 with Lynn Lorenz

2011-10-06T21:52:00.000-07:00

Pleasewelcome Lynn Lorenz to Ramsey's Reviews Halloween Bash!! Thank youLynn for taking the time to answer some of our questions. It's greatto hear you have so many releases coming out. Congrats! Readers,stick around after the interview to post your comments. All commentsthat are posted on Jane Toombs' interview session and Lynn Lorenzinterview session will be entered into a Halloween e-book surprizedrawing on October 1^st.

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects your workingon?

I’ve got a newbook in the Rougaroux Social Club series coming out Oct. 4^thfrom Loose Id - it’s a gay romance set in the Louisianabayou country. I also have a traditional romance, A Death in Katycoming out Nov. 5^th from Etopia Press.

I’m currentlyworking on several projects – a novella about Bad Boys for AmberQuill Press, a self-pub effort vampire story, and the nextRougaroux book.

Whenand Why did you begin writing?

I’ve been writingsince junior high but it never went anywhere. Life happened and thenin 2006 I started writing again. I wrote about 5-8 books before Isold my first book The Mercenary’s Tale, a gaymedieval romance, to Loose Id. And it’s beennon-stop ever since. I love telling stories, I love creatingcharacters that just tug at your heart, and then do evil and cruelthings to them as they fight for their HEA.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

Real life. Nothingis as weird as real life.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

I used to readStephen King, but also Lovecraft,Shirley Jackson, and a lot of gothic authors. Iwant to feel on edge, scared, but I don’t want to be grossed out. Ihate slasher stuff. I want more of the old campfire ghost story type.That’s what I was going for when I wrote Cemeteries,for Amber Quill Press. The kind of story thatdrags you in, then Bam! You’re hit with the ending and your heartis racing and pulse is pounding. But for this book, it had to be aromance – with a HEA. That was tough, but I think it worked.

Whatis your favorite scary movie or book?

I think some of thescariest stuff was written by Shirley Jackson.We Have Always Lived in the Castle just creepedthe hell out of me.

What makesyou interested in the genre your write?

I love to write thestory in my head at any time, and it can be contemporary, paranormal,historical are sci-fi. It’s the characters who drive the story andthe plot and the genre. I just listen to them, and they’re usuallyright.

When you were a child,what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel yourcreative muse to write about it later?

Goodness. I grew upin New Orleans, we’re et up with haunted houses and stories ofghosts – urban legends – zombies and vampires. I remember seeingHush Hush Sweet Charlotte as a kid, and being terrified. Myfriends and I had a clubhouse and we’d sit in it and tell storiesabout the cemetery on the corner and about the ghost of Mona Lisain City Park, and about the slaves that were tortured and killedin the French Quarter.

All thatstory-telling paid off, I suppose. When I wrote Cemeteries,I was inspired by all the tales I’d heard as a kid, about the mostfamous cemeteries in the world – the Cities of the Dead - that NewOrleans is famous for.

Do youremember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

Not really. Sometimes, my villains are so twisted, I wonder where that came from, butthere’s a lifetime of scary movies, books and experiences I candraw on.

I do believe inspirits – I’ve been in haunted houses, stayed in a hauntedplantation, and even had a few other-worldly moments myself.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?
I can’t stand violence against children.I hate gory stuff – people die – but no blood spewing, gutsflowing kind of thing. I like more of a mind-scare – where you’recreeped and scared, but not grossed out.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?

This is fromCemeteries, a ghost story, set in New Orleans, from AmberQuill Press, Amber Allure. Mike and Jacob meet on a busthat takes them to the Cemeteries, a cross road in New Orleans with acemetery on every corner. Mike falls hard for Jacob, but Jacob ismysterious and secretive. When Mike discovers Jacob’s secret, willit be the end or just the beginning?

Excerpt --

Everynight for the rest of the week, Mike rode the bus, and Jacob waitedfor him. And every night, during that ride, they shared a specialmoment in time, as if they were the only two on the bus...no driver,just them and what was between them.

Butalways, when the bus coasted to a stop at the crossroads where fourcemeteries met, the doors hissed open, and Mike said goodbye to Jacobwith a kiss, Mike knew he wanted more.

Theneed, the hunger for Jacob built in Mike, like molten lava builds uppressure under the earth, until fissures crack and the burning heatshoots out to dazzle the night sky. And even though he told himselfit was too soon, that he didn't really know Jacob, Mike knew he'dfallen in love with the man on the bus.

Mikeclimbed on the bus, heart hammering, and nodded to Mr. Roberts.

Jacobwaited for him.

Mikesat in the seat next to his lover and took his hand. "I've gotthe next two days off."

"Oh?"Jacob frowned.

"Yeah.I won't be on the bus."

"Oh!"Realization struck in Jacob's blue eyes. He nodded. "Iunderstand."

"Willyou be here?"

"Yes,I'm always here." Jacob shrugged. "Will you be back afterthat?"

"Yeah,I'll be back at work, so I'll be here. I just wanted to let you know.You know"--Mike cleared his throat--"in case you missedme." He dared a shy look into Jacob's blue eyes, longing to tellhim how he felt.

"Twonights. I'm going to miss you." Jacob took Mike's hand. "Ican't tell you how much it means to me, spending time with you."

"Me,too. Don't you want more? Don't you want to have dinner? Orbreakfast? Watch the sun rise? Come to my house and sleep with me inmy bed?" Mike leaned close and kissed Jacob's ear.

Jacobshuddered and closed his eyes as he bared his throat to Mike'squesting mouth, but he didn't answer.

"Don'tyou?" A wave of uncertainty passed over Mike. Maybe this didn'tmean as much to Jacob as it did to him. Maybe Jacob didn't understandMike had fallen in love with him?

Maybehe had to just tell him and make him understand.

"Mike,I want those things. All of them. It's just impossible. Right now."He gazed out the window. "Maybe never."

"What?Look, man, let's just get off the bus and go to my house. Or yours, Idon't care which."

"No,"Jacob shouted. "I can't." His eyes filled with tears. "Ican't go with you, Mike. Can't we just stay like this?"

"Ridingthe bus?" Mike wiped a fallen tear from Jacob's cheek.

"Yes.Just riding the bus."

Mikeleaned back and exhaled. Either Jacob didn't want anything more orcouldn't give him any more, and Mike got that. He didn't like it, buthe got it. Now he had to decide what he could live with, and hedidn't know the answer.

"Butwhy? If you just explained it to me, I could understand."

Jacobshook his head. "I can't tell you. It doesn't work like that."

"Whatdoesn't work like that?"

"Damnme."

Jacob'ssoft curse surprised Mike. And as Jacob straightened in his seat andturned to face him, Mike knew the blade of rejection was about to cuthis heart out of his chest.

"Idon't want more, Mike."

Jacobreached out to take Mike's hand, but Mike jerked away from him.

"Youwere just using me?" he asked, not really wanting to know thetruth.

"No.What we have is so special. I never thought I'd have this much, but Ican't have more, Mike. I can't. It's not allowed."Jacob's tears tracked down his face, and Mike reached up to brushthem away.

"Surewe can. If we lo--"

"Stopit!" Jacob shouted and jumped up. "Don't say it. Don't eversay it."

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and your books?

To my website http://www.lynnlorenz.com

You can find a listof all my books, with links to buy to the publishers.

Halloween 2011 with Jane Toombs

2011-10-06T21:51:00.001-07:00

For the next two days, author Jane Toombs will be here as our guest. Please welcome her to Ramsey's Reviews. Thank you Jane for being able to take the time to answer some Halloween questions for us. Congrats on your releases, too.

Tell us your latest news. Do you have any current projects your working on?
I have the first two books of Dangerous Darkness out from Red Rose Publishing and am working on the third, Terror From Before. When I have that finished , I'm taking a long out-of-print historical saga and dividing it up into either four or five novellas for Books We Love Publishing Partners to put on Kindle for me. They do the covers, but I have to format them and make sure there are no typos. They had been professionally edited once long ago. I have no desire to involve myself with trying to put them on Kindle myself as I am about as far from being a techie as can be imagined and am happy to pay BWLPP the small royalty fee they take. At the same time I'm doing this, I will be starting the third book for my Underworld Series, Uncanny, for Eternal Press. My most recent release from Devine Destines is The Turquoise Dragon, my first attempt at a YA and is paranormal suspense romance (on Kindle).

When and Why did you begin writing?
I began writing when I was either six or seven, because I wanted to learn to use my father's big old L.C. typewriter. He'd told me he'd teach me when I could read and write well, but when he did, I'd have to write him a story on the typewriter. So I wrote a one-page story (elite type) about how he found and brought home to me my first kitten. He read my effort and told me it was good, letting me bask in that praise for a bit before he pointed out several ways I could improve my story. I rewrote it with the changes and even at that age I could see it was better, And so he became my first critiquer, never failing to say something positive before suggesting ways to make it better.

Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
I'm sort of like a major airport with ideas circling like planes, waiting for me to let them land and turn into a story. I don't ever remember not having a new idea for a story, even if I didn't use it.

What do you think makes a good horror story?
I've actually only written one true horror story, Hugger Doll, from Double Dragon Publishing (on Kindle now). But some of my other books contain horror elements. One of my two stories in Whiskey Shots Vol. 9 from Whiskey Creek Press is "Blood Calls to Blood," which is a true horror story. (Also on Kindle.) And BWLPP put together a number of my dark short stories and poems in Ten Past Midnight, (Kindle) so I guess I do like to write dark. Except the green ghoul story in that book actually ends happily.
For me, a good horror story is one that really scares me but doesn't disgust me or overwhelm me with gore. By their nature, good pure horror stories never really end happily.

What is your favorite scary movie or book?
For me, nothing ever beat the first Frankenstein movie with Boris Karloff or the first Dracula movie with Bela Lugosi, perhaps because I was young at the time. Dracula as a book holds up, but for me, Frankenstein didn't. Much of Edgar Allen Poe's poetry is wonderfully scary and I also read that early. Both H.P. Lovecraft and Abraham Merritt were masters of horror and I devoured everything they every wrote, liking some better than other. Much of Merritt's was also paranormal fantasy, as well and he did tend to have more happy endings.

What makes you interested in the genre you write?
Since I'm writing mostly paranormal suspense romance these days you can tell that my love of paranormal and my liking for happy endings plays a part here.

When you were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel your creative muse to write about it later?
I really wasn't afraid of any real animal, even though I lived in a village surrounded by woods. Yes , there were bears in those woods, but I never carried any food with me, which is generally what attracts bears. No other animal was likely to do me harm as log as I avoided porcupines and skunks. Wolves didn't come back into Michigan until long after I left town and coyotes stayed out west at that time. We had no poisonous snakes. Still don't in the Upper Peninsula. So any scary creature I feared was in a book and was imaginary. But, yes, H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulu scared me, perhaps because he is a highly intelligent monster. Which is maybe why most of my scary creatures are paranormal.

Do you remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scared yourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?
I've come up with some wild things, and, yes, some were scary, but no creature I ever conjured up truly scared me. I read scary books as a child because my parents allowed me to read anything I wanted to, and got scared reading them, but not afterward. I haven’t a clue where my monsters come from.

Where do you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or erotic content?
I can't write erotica. Whether it's because I'm a nurse and can't bring myself to use slang terms for body parts or because it's not my favorite thing to read, I don't know. I can write sensual scenes with no trouble, so sensual sometimes that occasionally one of my books will be labeled erotica. But I generally read and write only m/f. As for gory, nurses see a lot of blood, so that's not a problem. but I generally don't go into great detail on horrific scenes.

Could you share some of your blurbs or excerpts with us?
Dangerous Darkness Series
Book I Shadow On The Floor

Blurb:
As a former secret op turned lawyer, Dev is suspicious of the reason Natalie has fro coming to work for his elderly uncle as a companion. Is she hiding from something or someone? And why can she see the shadow on the floor in his uncle's den and avoid stepping on it when no one but family has ever noticed it?

Excerpt:
Natalie made a polite acknowledgement of the introduction, gazing at the tall auburn-haired late thirties or so man standing by the windows. His jeans and sweatshirt showed an athlete’s body, but seemed surprisingly casual for a lawyer type. Maybe he didn’t work on Wednesdays. Since he wasn’t seated, she remained standing. Always better to face the opposition eye to eye.

Dev assessed her. At least thirty, brown hair and eyes, slim, her loose shirt and baggy pants hiding any curves she might have. Pale lipstick, no other makeup, hair pulled back in a ponytail. Even then attractive, though it seemed obvious she’d done all she could to play it down. Why? One to keep an eye on.
He walked over to her, avoiding the shadow by long habit, and held out his hand. When she responded he clasped hers firmly and got the shock of his life. She broke the contact so fast he knew she’d felt the same jolt of—what was it? Some kind of recognition? Yet he knew he’d never seen Natalie West before.
“Please sit down,” he managed to say. When she did, he took a chair himself. Forget what just happened. Stick to business.
“I understand my uncle has hired you as what he calls his house assistant.”
“Yes. I told Charles I could do no personal care, since I had no nursing experience. I will cook and take care of the house, as well as helping him in other than personal areas.”
“Are you from around here?”
“Not until lately.”
“Stop being suspicious, Dev. In case you didn’t notice, she didn’t step on the shadow.”
Dev glanced at his uncle, then at the body-shaped shadow on the floor that had been there ever since he could remember, even though there was nothing in the room to cast a shadow like that. He’d never stepped on it either. Nor did Charles. Most others never seemed to even notice it. But then, no one, not even his uncle, had ever detected the faint tinge of evil the old place exuded, only Dev. He’d never found anything to account for it.
“So you can see she’s the right person for this house,” his uncle insisted.
“You’re not bothered by living in this creaky old place?” Dev asked her.
“Not at all.”
Natalie might or might not work out, but he could tell his uncle was set on her, and she wasn’t nervous about the house. It’d taken him months to get the old man to agree to hire anyone, and she was the first of the few applicants they’d had that Uncle Charles approved of. Hiding her looks was no crime, and he couldn’t see anything else to object to. Amazingly, she’d seen the shadow and walked around it. As for the evil, his uncle had never been harmed by whatever it might be, so she was probably safe enough.
“I’m pleased my uncle’s found a house assistant,” he told her. “I hope this works out for both of you.”
His agency training had taught him to identify reactions. Though her facial expression didn’t change, he caught her slight relaxation. For some reason she badly needed this job. In an area she wasn’t from, in an isolated house. Gotcha! She’s hiding out. No telling what from, but he’d damn well do his best to find out. And he sure as hell didn’t mean to act on whatever had connected them for that electric moment.Book II Watcher At The Door Blurb: Sarah came home to take care of her young brother after their home was destroyed in an arsonist's fire that killed their parents. They’re temporarily living in a summer cabin in the woods. The last person she expects to see is Mal, her once lover. Worse, she has the feeling she and her brother are being secretly watched. But is the watcher human or an animal?

Excerpt: Sarah Volek stopped on the deer trail feeling watched. Her twelve-year-old brother, Ivor, had complained of the same thing a couple of days ago.   She glanced around. The pines were tall to the right, their shade discouraging undergrowth. To the left, grew young maples mixed with birch and ash, plus lots of bushes, all with new green leaves of mid-June. Which hid human or animal from view. She shrugged and hiked on toward the cabin she shared with Ivor. Probably what she felt watching was a deer or other wild animal wary of humans.
     She’d always loved the woods. Under any other circumstances, she’d be happy to be back home in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula wilderness. Three weeks ago, the house in town where she’d grown up had burned to ground, killing both her parents. If Ivor hadn’t been away at a Boy Scout overnight camp-out, he’d have died as well. A lump rose in her throat as she remembered his tearstained face and the lost look in his eyes when she’d arrived from downstate and picked him up from his friend’s house. Worst of all, the sheriff suspected arson.
     Just as she reached the cabin door, she heard Ivor call her name. He burst into view, waving papers. “I got the go-ahead for my project on fishers. And guess who’ll be helping me?”
     “I can’t imagine,” she said as she let herself in, Ivor at her heels.. “I can’t imagine. One of your teachers, I suppose.”
     “Nah. Come on, guess. You know him.” Ivor stopped beside her, showing her the okay from the school superintendent.
     “Hey, guy, you forget I haven’t lived in Ojibway for going on eight years now. Tell me who.”
     “The DNR district officer, Mr. Martin. He said he knew you in college.”
     “Mal Martin?” Good grief, she’d figured if she never saw him again it’d be too soon. “He’s the Department of Natural Resources officer here?”
     “Yeah. Lucky for me.”
     Not so lucky for her. If Mal was going to help Ivor with his project, though, she’d have to be polite.
     “Mr. Martin thinks it’s a great project and says his department will be interested in looking at it when I finish.” Ivor grinned. “That oughta impress my teacher when she grades me on it.”
     “Sounds like it.”
     “So it’s okay with you if Mr. Martin comes by the cabin sometimes?”
     There was no way she could refuse. “Of course.” After all, they were no longer college kids. No big deal. The past was just that. She’d moved on and he certainly must have as well. After all, it’d been a long time ago--going on ten years.
     He hadn’t been the best looking guy she’d ever seen, but he’d sure been the hottest. She’d never forgotten the night they’d… No! she wasn’t going there. Over was over.
     “What’s for supper?” Ivor asked as they entered the cabin.
     “Macaroni and cheese. Brownies for dessert.”
     “All right! Mr. Martin said he might drop by after he got off work, So maybe you could ask him to eat with us if he’s early. If he isn’t, he still can have some brownies.”
     Great. Ivor was working up to an acute case of hero worship, and she didn’t dare do a damn thing about it. Sarah knew she could never fill Mom’s shoes, but Ivor did have her to look after him. As she recalled Mal, he was about as far from the ideal father figure as she could imagine. But he was a man, and Ivor needed one around right now.
     But she didn’t. She glanced down at her grungy jeans and faded sweatshirt. No, she was not going to change on the chance Mal might drop in. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and needed washing. She wore no makeup. So what?
     As she fixed the meal, Ivor hung out in the cabin’s tiny kitchen area. “You know what he said about fishers?”
     Meaning Mal, of course. “What?”
     “Take a weasel, cross him with a wolverine, that’s a fisher.”
     “Sounds like a pretty mean animal.”
     Ivor grinned. “Yeah.”
     In college Mal had been mean and lean himself, showing off on his hog, usually with some gal hanging onto him. Even Sarah Volek. Scared the hell out of her, but exciting, too. Like he’d been.
     Ivor had just finished setting the table for them when someone knocked at the door.
     “It’s him!” Ivor dashed to open it.
     Sarah didn’t look up as she set the salad on the table, already annoyed at herself because she’d weakened and put on lip gloss. But when Ivor brought Mal over to her, she had to face him.
     “Sarah. Been a long time.” His voice was the same, deep and sexy. He held out a hand. Good manners made her respond, but she broke the contact as quickly as possible. “Yes, hasn’t it?” she said, noting the tartness in her voice. Damn. She’d tried for neutral.
     He looked surprisingly neat in his DNR uniform. Not like a different man exactly, but it took away from the bad boy image of him in her mind. His brown hair was still curly, but tamed and short. Eyes the same startling blue, though the devil-may-care glint was missing. Conscious she’d stared at him far too long, she looked back at the stove.
     “Sarah says you can stay for supper,” Ivor said. “It’s macaroni and cheese. With brownies for dessert.”
     “Sounds good to me. Thanks for inviting me, Sarah.”
     She hadn’t, Ivor had.
     To her relief, her brother took charge of the conversation at the table, firing questions at Mal that kept the topic fixed on fishers. They were finishing dessert when the phone rang. Ivor jumped up to answer, muttering into the phone as he carried it off to his bedroom.
     She rose to carry the dirty dishes to the sink. Before she could reach for Mal’s plate, he was on his feet, plate and utensils in hand. He set them on the counter by the sink. “You wash, I’ll wipe,” he said.
     “Wiping is Ivor’s job.”
     “It’ll be my thanks for a great supper.“
     No way to refuse without being ungracious. But the kitchen was so small, the enforced intimacy unsettled her. No way did she want him to touch her.
     Sarah groped for something to say. “I felt like I was being watched when I walked in the woods today,” was all she came up with. “Ivor’s mentioned the same thing. But I figure it’s maybe a deer or other animal. “
     “Likely to be. We did have a rogue bear in the area, but I haven’t spotted him anywhere close lately. Not that he’s dangerous to humans who aren’t carrying food. But awhile back he killed a calf at a farm a mile up the road from here. I’ll keep an eye out.”
     Great. Now she’d given him a reason to hang around the cabin.
     “Sorry about your parents,” he said.
     She nodded, not wanting to get into what happened.
     “Sorry about us, too. More sorry than you’ll ever believe.”
     “You got that right.” The moment the words were out she regretted them.
     “You’re not into bygones?”
     Saying no meant the past meant more to her than it really had. “You’re welcome in the cabin any time to help Ivor. I do appreciate you helping him. But I’m off limits.”
     He grinned at her, that same old rakish grin that used to make her heart pound. And still could. Ignoring her speeded pulse, she frowned.
     He dried the last pan and slid it into the lower cupboard she indicated.        “Thanks again for a real home cooked meal.” Ivor reappeared and he turned toward him. “You about ready, partner?”
      Sarah retreated to the bedroom while the two of them co-opted the table to lay out papers. So she was a coward. Safer to be. Despite turning on her CD player to listen to her current favorite, The Ghoul Dogs, she was all too conscious of the man on the other side of that closed door. Neither could she get involved in any of the books stacked on her dresser.
     Instead, she stood, hugging herself, looking out the window into the dusk. Dad had kept the trees cleared around the cabin, but the woods pretty much surrounded the cabin, except for the front, which faced onto a dirt road. The place was fine for the summer and even into the fall, but there was no way she and Ivor could winter here.
     Sarah well knew she should be making plans for their future. Instead her mind persisted in wandering back to those college days. Mal had been three years ahead of her at Michigan State. Thank heaven she’d never had another episode as violent as the one at the party celebrating his graduation. They’d all had a bit too much to drink, but, damn it, even if the guys were cheering him on, he shouldn’t’ve made such an effort to seek out every girl in his class and kiss her, some far too passionately.
     She never was at her best during her time of the month, but the vodka had taken care of her jitters. Unfortunately, it also quashed all her inhibitions. She shuddered to think of the exhibition she’d made of herself. Not that she remembered it clearly, but her so-called friends made sure to dump every detail on her the next day.
     “You went weird crazy, showing your teeth and snarling, “Mine! Mine!”
     “You landed on the poor guy’s back like a cat with all its claws out.”
     Worst of all, she remembered Mal’s comment as he hauled her out of the place. “You’re acting like some wild animal. What the devil got into you?”
She snapped that she never wanted to see him again. He’d left the next day without saying goodbye to her.
     The back of her neck suddenly began to prickle, jerking her back to here and now. Nothing moved outside her window, no animal or person was visible in the gathering darkness, yet she knew absolutely that something out there watched her.
Something dangerous.

Where can your fans go to find more information about you and your books?
My web site at www.JaneToombs.com Or www.JewelsoftheQuill.com , click on authors, then my name and my pages will pop up. JOTQ is a closed group of twelve authors who promote each other. Also we do a lot of giveaways, so check us out.

Is there anything else additional you would like to share with your readers?
I do like to hear from readers. If you care to email me it’s jtoombs( at) jamadots (dot) com and I‘ll certainly answer, Furthermore, If you don’t mind sharing your snailmail address with me I’ll be happy to send you a read-only CD with excerpts from all my recent books and their cover on it.
Jane

Halloween 2011 with Augusta Li (and Eon)

2011-10-06T21:50:00.000-07:00

Augusta Li (and Eon) it's wonderful to have you as a guest again for Ramsey's Reviews 2nd Annual Halloween Bash. I see you have been busy creating more stories to entertain your readers with. Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for us.

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects your workingon?
I've beenfortunate enough to have quite a few new releases in the last coupleof months! Silver Publishing released my urbanfantasy novel Epiphany on August 13th. It's thestory of two young men, Elijah and Dust, trying to make a place forthemselves in the tumultuous climate of 1970's America, while tryingto secure a dangerous enchantment that will save Dust from the forcestrying to destroy him. It's the first in a series called Ensorcelled,and a novel-length sequel will be forthcoming. In the mean time, I'llrelease a series of novella-length works about Dust and Elijah'sadventures working as freelance wizards. Those are titled,appropriately, Ensorcelled Adventures.The first is my Halloween-themed story, The MidnightChildren, in which Dust and Elijah are hired to seek out alocal legend that's targeting magic-users. The second, Wispand White Hart, is a holiday story, but it's anything butsweet and fluffy. The Midnight Children will beavailable at Silver on October 29th, and Wisp and WhiteHart in December. Read on, and I'll post some excerptsfrom Epiphany and The MidnightChildren!Epiphany isavailable now:https://spsilverpublishing.com/product_book_info/new-release-c-1/epiphany-p-445Inother news, I released Boots for the Gentleman,an epic steampunk adventure written with Eon de Beaumont,at Dreamspinner Press. It isn't a horror story,but there's plenty of fighting, magical creatures, faeries,zombie-like automatons, and an adorable clockwork boy called Frolic.On September 19th, I'll be releasing a solo-written spin-off set inthe same universe, about a young pickpocket named Robin who's tryingto protect himself from the dangerous faeries living in thewilderness around him, even as he's falling in love with one. It'scalled Snowdrop, and will be available here:http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/

You can read Bootsnow!http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2483

Whenand Why did you begin writing?
I've only beenwriting for a few years now, and I really do it out of love for mycharacters. I feel like these great people exist out there in theether, and just need me to help them be born.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?
Alot of my work is set in made-up worlds, so that just comes from myhead! When I do need to do research, I find it best to go to thesource. Epiphany is set in 1974, well before mytime. The most valuable information I got was from people whoexperienced that era first-hand. I do the same with locations, tryingto find someone who lives or lived there who is willing to let mepick their brain.

What do youthink makes a good horror story?
Originality. Themarket is flooded with vampires and werewolves, probably due thesuccess of Twilight and similar books. A few ofthem are handled by their authors in a unique way, but there's a lotof similarity. I like to read a book where the unexpected happens,whether it's because a new creature or threat is invented, or becausea traditional monster is portrayed in a new and different way. I liketo take chances in my books, and I like books that take chances aswell.

What is your favorite scarymovie or book?

When I was a kid, I lookedforward to watching the old black and white horror movies on TV. Myfavorite was Bela Lugosi's Dracula. I lookedforward to Halloween in a large part because I knew it would be onlate at night. I never missed it, and I still don't. I love that theactors and the writing conveyed the mood without the need for flashyspecial effects.

What makes youinterested in the genre your write?
I write across alot of genres. The common themes are action and adventure. I like aface-paced, unpredictable story, be in a realistic setting, an urbanfantasy, a steampunk, sci-fi, or fantasy world. Most of my storiesare pretty hot, too, though they're often nowhere near traditionalromances.

When you were a child,what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel yourcreative muse to write about it later?
I'll behonest and give everybody a good laugh. I've always had an irrationalfear of narwhals. In attempt to get past it, a wrote a rathertouching scene in my novella Neskaya where myprotagonists bond while watching a group of narwhals swim by. I stillthink they're really bizarre and kind of creepy, though.

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?
Theblood rituals in Neskaya were pretty intense. Idon't think I slept more than a few hours over the weeks that I wrotethat one. And it was originally intended to be a Christmasstory...

Want to read it?http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2124

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?
Heh. I don't.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?
FromEpiphany (Ensorcelled 1)

1974. When theresidents of the backwater town of Epiphany, Nevada drive off a hurtand hungry young man because he has long hair, timid diner cookElijah Tupper can't find the courage to stand up to them. Later, bothguilt and strong attraction compel Elijah to seek out the drifter whocalls himself only Dust. He finds him camped in the Mojave, and Dustand Elijah agree to travel together, though Elijah can't possiblyimagine the task that awaits them.

Dust's painful past hasleft him mistrustful of people and the world. He also possessesmysterious powers, though hunger and injury have left him weak.Elijah vows to aid and protect him, even if Dust can't believe thatElijah has no ulterior motives. A fragile trust slowly forms betweenthem, despite Dust's cynicism and Elijah's insecurity. As they seekto recover the magic that will save Dust from the forces trying todestroy him, they must enlist the aid of the county sheriff whooriginally banished Dust from Epiphany.

Though Sheriff SamWoodward doesn't approve of Dust or his blossoming relationship withElijah, he agrees to help the young men to protect his town fromDust's enchantments. In order for the three men to succeed andsurvive their dangerous, magical journey, each of them must adapt andgrow. They'll need all of their skills to survive the corrupt city ofLas Vegas and the twisted, supernatural realms beyond.

Here'san excerpt. Enjoy!

Thewhole frigid, lonely time he'd spent walking from Epiphany, Elijahhad imagined various scenarios. He'd pictured Dust hugging him withgratitude and inviting him to be his companion. He'd anticipatedbeing greeted with happiness and surprise by the other man. Untilnow, it hadn't crossed Elijah's mind that Dust might not want to seehim. After all, Elijah hadn't defended Dust when the townspeopledrove him away hungry. Elijah had been too scared of his mother andthe sheriff to speak up. What if Dust thought he was a coward? Elijahfelt queasy. He was sure, now, that he'd misinterpreted the look Dusthad given him and the way he'd stroked Elijah's hand. Nobody likeDust would be interested in somebody like him: an insignificantperson from an insignificant place. Elijah had been fooling himself.

Asmuch as he wanted to turn back and save himself the hurt andhumiliation, Elijah kept walking. The least he could do would be toleave the coffee and sandwiches. Dust would certainly appreciate theblanket. Elijah would set them down, apologize for what had happenedat the diner, and start the long trek back home. Hopefully, he'd beable to sneak in the back door and through the mud room without hismother catching him, grilling him, and eventually pummeling him withwhatever was closest to her hand. Whatever unpleasant thing befellhim, he would accept as penance for not speaking up against what hadbeen done to Dust.

Thedrifter sat in front of his tiny fire, hugging his knees. His darkhood covered everything but his nose, lips and chin. His frozenbreath hovered in the stillness like a ghostly companion. Elijah tooka deep breath and said, "Hello."

Dustturned his head quickly toward Elijah, the fire reflected in his eyesmaking them look like glowing embers against his shadowed face. Hishand shot out in Elijah's direction as if he held a weapon, but hispalm was empty. It groped the cold air, the way a person felt aroundfor a pair of lost spectacles. He slid the hood back and squintedinto the darkness. Seeing Elijah, he dropped his hand and relaxed.

"You'rethe cook from the diner," Dust said.

Elijahnodded. "I brought you some sandwiches and coffee."

Dustrose stiffly and walked over to where Elijah stood just at the edgeof the ring of fire light. He looked amazed. "You mean youwalked all the way out here to bring me sandwiches?"

"Yeah,it's no big deal," Elijah said.

"Thankyou," Dust said.

Elijahslid the bag from his shoulder and held it out to Dust. "There'sa blanket in there too. I thought you might be able to use one."

Dustseemed too stunned to even reach for the offered provisions, soElijah set the bag down by the drifter's feet. "All right then,"Elijah said, "guess that's it. I'm sorry about the way everybodytreated you. It wasn't right, and I do apologize. Take care." Hethrust his shivering hands back into his pockets and turned.

"Wait,"Dust said, and Elijah faced him.

"Youneed anything else?"

"No,"Dust said. "Why did you do this?"

"Well,you were hungry," Elijah said. "And it's cold out here."

"Youmean that's it?"

"Whatelse would there be?" Elijah asked.

"Comesit down," Dust said. "At least warm up before you walk allthe way back to your town."

"Okay,"Elijah said, and he followed Dust to the fire. They sat cross-leggedon the hard-packed earth, looking at each other over flames. Dustunzipped the gym bag and stripped the foil from the sandwiches. Hesmiled at them as if they were priceless jewels before starting toeat. Then he silently tore pieces of bread and meat into chunks andshoved several of them into his mouth at a time, looking over hisshoulder now and then as if Elijah's mother might appear from behinda cactus and snatch the food away again. Elijah had never seen ahuman being eat like that. He was reminded of the stray dogs theysometimes had to drive away from the dumpster behind the restaurant.Dust's rapid swallowing, an occasional grunt of pleasure, and thesoft crackle of the fire were the only sounds. In less than tenminutes he'd finished three sandwiches. Elijah poured some coffeeinto the thermos lid and handed it to the drifter.

"Hopeyou like lots of sugar," Elijah said.

Dusttook a long gulp. "You have some too," he said to Elijah."To warm up." He held the little metal cup to Elijah's lipsand tipped it forward. As Elijah drank from the cup in his hand, Dustslid closer until their shoulders touched. The sudden warm solidityagainst his arm shocked Elijah. When he realized that Dust hadtouched him, he almost choked. Dust lowered the cup but didn't pullaway. Elijah wiped the coffee from his chin with his sleeve.

"Youdon't have a cigarette, do you?"

"No,sorry," Elijah said. Questions raced and collided in his mindlike bumper cars. He wanted to ask Dust where he was going, wherehe'd come from, and why. He wanted to know how the drifter had beeninjured, how long it had been since he'd eaten. The biggest questionalso remained: Would Dust let Elijah go with him?

"Yousaid there's a blanket in here?" Dust asked as he rummagedthrough the pack. He found the corner of the blue quilt that had beenon Elijah's bed and unfolded it. He threw it over his shoulders likea cape and said "Well, get under."

Elijahhesitated and pulled away. He hadn't been expecting this level offamiliarity so soon. It confused him and scared him a little bit. Hehad almost no experience with such situations, but Dust smiledsincerely, and Elijah took a deep breath, forcing himself to say,"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"Comeon," the drifter urged, holding the corner of the blanket outfrom his shoulder. "We'll both be more comfortable if we share."

Elijahspread the blanket across his back and tucked the satiny edge underhis chin the way he did when he went to sleep at home. Dust's warmthbeside him after his long walk acted almost as a sedative. Herealized, to his surprise, that he felt completely safe andcomfortable around this stranger. He poured another cup of coffee andlaid his cheek lightly against Dust's shoulder.

"Dust,"Elijah said, barely above a whisper. The drifter's blue-gray eyesstayed fixed on the fire. "Dust?" he said again, a littlelouder.

Theblack-haired young man turned. He looked so beautiful and mysteriousin the amber glow that Elijah inhaled sharply. "Dust, can I askyou something?"

"Dust?"

"Yousaid, at the diner, that you were Dust," Elijah said, blushingand feeling stupid. "What should I call you?"

Dustplaced a soft kiss on Elijah's forehead that made him tremble fromhis ears to his freezing toes. "Call me whatever you want. Callme Dust if you want to, and ask me whatever you want."

Elijahswallowed hard. "I want to help you. Whatever you're trying todo, I want to help."

"Why?"

"I—"

"It'sokay," Dust said. He put his arm around Elijah and pulled himcloser. "I'd like it if you came with me. It's pretty rough,though, as you can see." He pointed at his camp: a backpack fora pillow and a pile of burning twigs and brush.

"Idon't know what I'll be able to do," Elijah said. "I don'treally have any talents, except cooking."

Dustnestled his face into Elijah's thick hair and spoke softly into hisear. "That's not true. You have a pure, innocent soul. Realgoodness is rare, rarer than riches, or power, or anything. It's atreasure. Besides—" Dust gripped Elijah's chin between histhumb and finger and inclined his head so their eyes met. "—you'rereally cute."

Andhere's a sneak peek at The Midnight Children, my Halloween offeringthis year! Dust and Elijah have been hired to investigate the murdersof several magic-users. They've just arrived in town, and are stayingat the home of their employer...

Hours later,Elijah and Dust lay sleeping together on one of the narrow beds.They’d opened the window to the fragrant, night air and their roomsmelled of pine, wet maple leaves,damp soil and wood fires. Dust’s eyes fluttered open, and he becameaware of Elijah’s bare back against his chest. The toasty meetingof their skin beneath the blankets contrasted with the chill breeze.Soft snores drifted from the other man in a slow, peaceful cadence.Maybe he’d dreamed the faint laughter he’d sworn he heard. Hisnightmares came less frequently now, but they still came. Odd that hehad no memory of this one; normally it took him hours to banish thevisions from his mind. Maybe his imagination played a trick on him.Still, Dust lay awake with his arm draped over Elijah’s ribs,listening.

Somethingdisturbed the gravel outside; it sounded like a person running.Pushing himself up on his elbow, Dust leaned closer to the window.Another person ran past the house, and another. Squinting into thenight, Dust perceived almost a dozen small, dark silhouettes flittingabout, racing and skipping up and down the dirt road that ran next tothe house. He heard high-pitched, tinkling laughter: a young girl.More voices joined hers in merriment. Some of them sang an oldnursery rhyme: “Boys and girls come out to play. The moon dothshine as bright as day. Leave your supper and leave your sleep. Joinyour playfellows in the street.” Dust shuddered.

What the hellis going on? It must be three in the morning.

“Elijah.”Dust shook his shoulder gently, and Elijah grumbled and stretched hisarms over his head.

“Hmm?”

“Wake up. Putyour clothes on and get your sword.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Something’sgoing on. Hurry.”

They dressedquickly and crept through Jonas Kehler’s silent house to the frontdoor. Outside, a chill mist obscured the bottoms of the trees andmade the ferns and berry fronds appear to float, disembodied, fromthe vapor. Cold wind whipped up eddies of brittle leaves and smalltwigs. The gibbous moon had fallen below the mountain peaks, and mostof the residents had long since turned off their porch lights andHalloween decorations. The small town didn’t have streetlights, oreven traffic lights. Dust looked up and down the narrow road,straining to discern what direction the eerie laughter came from.“Can you give us some light?” he asked Elijah.

Elijah opened hishand and a sphere of warm, golden radiance formed over his palm. Itfloated into the air, level with their shoulders, and drifted alongwith them as they walked. A shriek pierced the night; not a scream ofterror but a child’s exclamation of delight. More laughterfollowed. Something rustled the bushes about a hundred yards ahead ofthem before a few small shadows darted across the path.

“What are kidsdoing out here?” Elijah wondered aloud. “Some kind of Halloweenprank?”

Dust shook hishead. “They seem way too young for that. Listen, they’re singing.I think most of them are up ahead, near those houses.” He pointedto a semi-circle of modest homes arranged around an old, stone well.In the high grass of the round lawn they shared, a group of childrengiggled, jumped and frolicked.

“This is reallycreepy, Dust,” Elijah said.

Withoutresponding, Dust cautiously moved closer. He and Elijah had almostmade it to the edge of the grass when all of the children stood asone and rushed toward the door of a brick house. Still laughing andsinging, they beat against the door, kicked it, and threw the weightof their small bodies against it until it gave way. Dust heard thewood splinter just before the group poured into the building. Glassbroke inside, and a woman screamed.

“Oh, shit,”Elijah said as he unsheathed his katana and ran for the house.

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and yourbooks?
http://www.yaoimagic.com/

My blog:http://augusteli.blogspot.com/

Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/Ninja.Gus

Twitter:http://twitter.com/#!/GusAndEon

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?
Have a Happy Halloween! Thanks from thebottom of my heart to those who support me! Thanks to Amy for havingme!
<3 Gus.

Halloween 2011 with Tracey Mitchell

2011-10-01T15:54:00.001-07:00

Tracey, welcome to Ramsey's Reviews 2^ndAnnual Halloween Bash. I am thrilled to finally have you here as myguest. You have been working extremely hard lately and yourpublishing company, as well as your writing has really taken off foryou, which is extremely awesome!

Tell us your latest news. Doyou have any current projects you’re working on?

Currently I’mworking on another rewrite of Dawn of kNight (Book 3 of the kNightSeries) and also a very adorable YA Contemporary Romance calledSound of Thunder.

When and Why did you begin writing?

I began writingat the age of sixteen. Mr. Wilson, my English teacher gave us anassignment to write a short story based on the starting sentence…”Onedark and stormy night…”. I couldn’t think of anything towrite, and stared at the blank paper for at least an hour, rollingaround any thoughts that could possibly make a story. When I put thepen to paper and wrote the beginning sentence what followed was thebeginning of what later became a writing career. The short storyimpressed my teacher enough he asked me to stay after class so hecould tell me that I really needed to consider writing for a career.Of course he recommended several books, mostly by StephenKing…because he told me I wrote in the same gory style as Kingdid.

Okay, that wasmy first attempt at writing, and the short story I wrote turned outto be a dark horror. At sixteen, I was a major horror buff ,and lovedany horror movies. So was it a wonder I wrote a horror story thatscared half the class?

LOL. I too, love my dark horror genre.Lately I have been watching back to back horror movies on Netflixjust to get my fix. Haha. Where do you get your information or ideasfor your books?

It depends onwhat I’m writing. If I’m writing a story that is based on aspecific legends I might go to a library for books about the legendsand also use the internet as another source of information. My storyideas pop up at any given time. Sometimes I might just get a piece,one scene and write it down. Months, or years later I might pull thatlittle nugget out and see if I have anything else to add that mightmake a novel.

What do you think makes a good horror story?

I love a horrorstory that has the old school stuff, blood, guts, gore, and suspense.I really like a book to read like watching a movie, if that’s atall possible, and to keep me sitting on the edge of my seat until thelast page.

That is how I visualize any type of books,like watching a movie. If while reading a story I don't get thatmental movie picture in my mind, then usually the writing isn'tprogressing like it should – smooth flowing scene execution isvital to a 5 star review. What is your favorite scary movie or book?

I would stillhave to say my favorite scary movie of all time is Howling,which is tied with Silver Bullet. Although, I have to givecredit to Hell Raiser. My favorite scary book- The Shinningby Stephen King.

Ahh Silver Bullet. I never thought Iwould ever find another soul who liked this movie as much as I. Oneof the best short stories and movie, IMO, ever made. What makes youinterested in the genre your write?

I believe thatthe genre chooses the writer and not the other way around. A story iscrafted from the imagination of the writer stemming from somethingfamiliar. For instance, I love cutting off the lights, climbing ontothe sofa with a blanket and pillow to watch scary movies. If I laughat a scary part, it didn’t thrill me. My early writings in horrorwere dark, and twisted, probably due to the fact I enjoyed darkthrillers. My paranormal romance, Dark of kNight, meant to bea horror novel titled Beast Within. The story still revolvedaround the two main characters, but the horror factors were dominateand the ending graphic, gory and violent.

When you were a child, what creature orstory scared you the most? And did it propel your creative muse towrite about it later?

My favoritecreature- werewolves of course. I think I’ve seen every horrormovie made about werewolves, even the cheesy ones! (LOL!Me too) I believe it did propel me to become a little creativewith the muse.

Do you remember ever coming up with anythingso wild that you scared yourself, leaving you to wonder where thatcame from?

Oh- yes, andthat story is still hidden somewhere in a file and I haven’ttouched it since. It was one of those tidbits I started and put awayfor a later day to be revived. I am hoping to return to the horrorgenre and write more dark horror.

I hope you do soon. I would love to readwhat type of horror goes through your mind. Where do you as an authordraw the line on gory description and/or erotic content?

Blood, guts andgore, I think is pretty normal for horror. I would have to draw theline on the age of the characters, I can’t write any harm to babiesor under age children…just can’t do it. But adult wise, it goes.As far as erotic content, yes, I’ve read some horror books thatscared you stiff, (no pun intended), and yet they had really eroticcontent on the sex scenes. I think I would have to draw the linethere with creature and human sex.

Could you share some of your blurbs orexerts with us?

Sure. I’llgive you an excerpt from Silver Moon.

Jennifer pulledthe Mustang over on the opposite side of the road. A sudden reliefswept over her when the car door opened and the old man stepped out. The crazy evening and conversation would end. She opened the cardoor and stepped out onto the road. If the story he told her wastrue about the mutilated bodies then she didn’t want the same thingto happen to him. Cautiously she followed him across the road to thetruck. Her eyes darted around the darkness, searching for anythreatening signs of danger.

“Awe MissJennifer, you don’t have to watch over me. I can fend for myself,”he forced out a smile. He raised the gas container, placing the tipinto the truck.

“I knowyou can Ben,” she returned a warm smile. “I just want to makesure you are not in the news tomorrow.”

Old Benchuckled. He finished pouring the gas into the truck and turned toJennifer who stood anxiously with her arms folded across her chest.

“I wouldlike to give you something in return for helping an old man,” hesaid. He placed the empty container in the back of the truck.

“No- no. Really, I don’t expect anything. I wanted to help.”

Ben openedhis mouth to say something and froze. His eyes focused on theapproaching car. Suddenly his eyes narrowed and his grey eyebrowsburrowed together. The car slowed down to a stop behind the Mustang.

The motorturned off on the shiny black Porsche. The dark tinted windowsprevented Ben and Jennifer from seeing the driver. A second or twopassed before the driver’s door opened. The hair on the back ofJennifer’s neck prickled. Chills swept over her arms when thedriver climbed out of the car.

The driverof the fancy new sports car wore black jeans and a black silky shirtwith the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. The black color of hisclothing enhanced his dark appearance.

“MissJennifer, why don’t you get in the truck?” Ben whispered softly.

Waves offear rushed through her body, rendering her thoughts helpless. Allreason had left her in that moment. She clearly heard the warning inthe old man’s voice.

“Iseverything alright? Car problems?” The smoothness of thestranger’s voice mellowed in Jennifer’s fear.

“I justbrought him back from the gas station. His truck ran out of gas,”she stated firmly.

Thestranger moved closer. Jennifer’s breath caught in her throat. Hewas breathtaking. The smooth way he walked across the road broughtout a gasp in her breath. The long black leather coat he wore flowedquietly with each step he took. He walked as a man who had power andcontrol. Confidence.

“Missy,please…” Ben whispered again.

“I thinkthe old man is fairly concerned about your well-being my dear,” thehandsome man held out his hand to her. “My name is Joshua.”

“Joshuathanks for your help, but I think we are finished here.” Jenniferreached out to take his hand.

Ben grabbedher hand and forced it down by her side. His sudden move startledher. Joshua’s eyes immediately darted towards the old man.

“I don’tthink I’m the one she needs to fear tonight, old man,” Joshua’svoice turned icy.

Jennifer’sheart suddenly slammed against her chest. Her pulse raced. Her mindswirled with horrifying thoughts and images. Tiny beads of sweatmoistened her hands. Her life was in danger, she thought as she tooka step away from the two men. How could the old man hurt her? Orwas it this stranger that threatened her life?

“Missy,just do as I tell you and get in the truck.” The old man’s voicebecame harsh and rough.

“He planson killing you.” Joshua stated firmly. “Come with me and I willsave your life.”

“HE’SLYING!” Ben spat out. “He plans on taking you for himself! Youdon’t want to be what he is!”

Words werenot coming to her. Jennifer’s mind jumbled with confusion. Whatis Joshua? How did Ben know him? She didn’t have the answers tomake a rational decision. At this point the only choice she had wasto run away from them both. She darted for her car. Before she hada chance to take two more steps, she heard a clicking sound of arevolver behind her. The sound of a single gunshot filled the air.The next second she felt something hard hit her shoulder, sending hertoward the ground. The burn. It burns! Her eyes closed tightly asthe burn turned into excruciating pain. She released a scream whenshe realized she had been shot.

Her earsrang with fear. Her heart pounded loudly. Adrenaline rushed throughher veins. Pain flooded across her body. A pain of fire floodedthrough her body. This was not a normal gunshot wound, she thoughtas her eyes closed tightly. Her whole body convulsed with the wavesof a raging fire. For a moment, she thought her body was going tocombust into flames. Her death would be by fire, she just knew it.

The nextfew seconds were blurs of a horrifying nightmare. Her eyes flickeredopen long enough to see Ben holding a gun and Joshua wrestlingagainst him. It didn’t look like a fair fight. Jennifer knew shehad to move, get to her car and call for help. Her hands clawed atthe ground. Dirt filled underneath her fingernails. The waves ofburning pain crashed against her veins again. The world swirledaround her. She lost control of her body and fell toward the groundagain. A bloody scream released from deep in her throat as anotherwave of pain momentarily blinded her. Darkness enveloped her eyes,preventing her from seeing the two figures as they fought. She couldstill hear them. Their bodies slammed against the truck. Their feetrustled against the grass on the ground. The grunts and growls ofthe two men were loud and clear as they continued with theirstruggle.

Her visionreturned. Not clear, but clear enough for her to see Joshua hadrelieved the old man of his weapon. She wished she had closed hereyes as she watched Ben grab something from the back of the truck andhit Joshua alongside of his head. She watched the handsome man fallbackwards to the ground. He didn’t move. He must be dead shethought. Jennifer wondered if she would be next.

That was suspenseful indeed. Wow, I know Iwant to read more. What happened to Jennifer? And is this handsomestranger, Joshua, going to spring back up? Is he good or evil? Or isit the old man that the evil one? Guess I will have to read the bookto find out. =) Where can your fans go to find more information aboutyou and your books?

My website ishttp://www.darkofknightseries.com

Is there anything else additional you wouldlike to share with your readers?

I mentioned Ihave several books in the works, and several short stories on theburner. If you enjoy my work please visit the darkofknightseriesweb site to keep track on what I’m writing. Some of my workwill be turned over to my literary agent, such as Glisten anurban fantasy, may be under a pen name. I’ll try to keep the fansposted on any news of new releases. Also, news updates on anythingrelated to the Dark of kNight screenplay to movie.

Thankyou, Tracey, for allowing me to interview you and thank you even morefor all the fantastic information on you and your books.

All commenters will be entered into the Halloween Contest ending on October 31st. Make sure you leave your email address. Post away. We would love to hear your comments. What's your favorite scary movie of all time? How intense do you like your horror content?

Halloween 2011 with Regan Taylor

2011-09-21T02:27:00.001-07:00

WelcomeRegan Taylor to Ramsey's Reviews 2^ndAnnual Halloween Bash! I am excited about hosting you for the nextseveral days and I know your readers would like to know what you havebeen up to lately.

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects you are workingon?

Always!Okay, with several of the Awe-struck and Mundania authors we’redoing a blog tour – 7 authors, 7 weeks and surprises along the way.You can find out more info at my website at www.regantaylor.com

I’malso going to be doing a book signing with fellow authors MaryMartinez,Tawny Weber,Dee Briceand JuliaBarrett atthe Rios Winery in Calistoga (Napa Valley), California from 6-8 onOctober 20. If you are in the area, come by, have some wine, chatwith us and enter to win a gift basket from the 5 of us!

Andas to current projects, I am completing edits on NeverendingDreamwhich is the fourth book of my FourCups serieswith eXtasy(www.extasybooks.com). Thisone is a little different for me and was inspired by my 85 year oldaunt who happens to be a major Facebook aficionado. Major into thegames.

Followingthat I’ll be in edits for Devil’sDetails,also with eXtasy.Pretty much at the same time Jennifer Cloud and I will be in editsfor HerEyes,coming with Awe-struck(www.mundania.com – theparent company for the Awe-struck imprint) this fall.

AndI’m always writing. It’s my escape from my day-to-day life whichis actually pretty cool. Currently I’m writing TheWorld,a romantic suspense.
Whenand Why did you begin writing?

Myfirst two books were non-fictions. The first was in response to myown experience with carpal tunnel and coming close to losingeverything – literally everything. The second was a textbook forcollege students with disabilities, primarily learning disabilitiesand to be used in a class teaching skills to help those students makeit through university. I began writing fiction in 2005 as a way ofdealing with my job as a police dispatcher.
Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

Oheverywhere. Not a day goes by that I don’t see or hear somethingthat is either a potential story line, a quote that is just too goodto pass up or event that would make a good scene in a book. Life isso full of what seem to be isolated or even mundane incidents thatcan be transformed into a story if you just tune into them.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

Ican answer this best by giving an example. My co-author for HerEyes,Jennifer Cloud writes chilling horror. It’s not just scary –Jennifer takes your worst childhood nightmare, brings them intoadulthood and you soon find that the monster under your bed was real,is alive, well and coming to get you.
Whatis your favorite scary movie or book?

WhatEver Happened to Baby Jane.
Whatmakes you interested in the genre your write?

Imainly write time travel, but it often has a twist with a hint ofreincarnation or past lives reaching out to pull you back in. Withtime travel I can, at least in my imagination, go to any place, anytime and meet anyone I want. The possibilities are endless.
Whenyou were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And didit propel your creative muse to write about it later?

Igrew up in a family of psychics. We believed in ghosts andcommunicating with the dead. What scared me most was actually prettysilly – the open scenes of the original Zorrowhen Guy Williams would make the Z in the opening sequences. For somereason it terrified me. It wasn’t the scary part of it that got mewriting but the dashing hero Zorro was.

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

Yes,but not the normal kind of scared. When I wrote a scene in TheGlass Cagewhere someone dies it scared the hell out of me because I’d neverbeen that much in touch with my own dark side. It came out again inWithAll Dispatch(book 2 of my TreasureAntique seriesdue out in spring 2012 with Awe-struck)when I wrote a scene with someone dying in a particularly brutal way.
Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?

No.Not really. I believe in telling the story that needs to be told. Youknow how we hear we use, for the most part, only 10% of our brain? Ibelieve that when we write, if we let the story unfold the way itwants to be told, we tap into at least a part of that other 90%.
Couldyou share some of your blurbs or excepts with us?
Sure!

Mylatest release is America'sHero, a timetravel that features Marine Corps F/A -18 pilot Cass Winter andHollywood Hottie, Austin Quinn. CJ Hollenbach was my ideal for Austinwhen I was writing the book and talk about thrilled when DCL signedAmerica's Hero and he agreed to be on my cover. He is everythingAustin is -- if you ever have the occasion to chat with CJ you'llfind he is a very warm, caring and interesting person.

Thisbook is special to me on several levels because I have Marine's in mylife. There are elements of those Marine's in Cass and even inAustin.

Wehave a bit of a trailer for you:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0ofkupYQA

Onthe heels of a dramatic rescue, Hollywood Hottie Austin Quinn decideshe's the man to play United States Marine Corps Major Cass Winter'srole in the film. The problem is the Major wants nothing to do withthe actor -- no matter how many men and women swoon over him. WhenQuinn wrangles a ride in the Major's F/A-18 Hornet, they land in atime and place neither ever expected.

** * * *

TreasuresAntique Series

Mylatest release with Awe-struckis The Photograph, book 1 of the TreasuresAntique series. The series is set in nearbyNapa, California. Well, nearby to me .If you’ve ever been there you know Napa is an interesting blend ofrural wineries and small town charm.

I’msure I’m not the only avid reader, or even reader, who foundherself imagining what it would be like to have one of our romanceheroes come to life. Okay, I will admit, my personal romantic hero isin my life and has been so through good times, rough times, happy andsad. He was my first beta reader, a former Marine and U.S. Marshal.With The Photograph Itook that imagination of having a hero walk off the pages in adifferent kind of way. You also meet a few other characters, onewhose real identity is revealed in future stories. I recently signedbook 2 of this series, With All Dispatchwhich has a special place in my heart because I wrote in the lastdays of my 22 year old kitty Molly’s life.

Oh!And you do meet my own kitty Maitai in the guise of Taister.

Buton to The Photograph:

Fromthe time Carrie Taylor discovered the magical worlds of romancenovels, she has devoured them one right after the other. She not onlythrilled to each new hero, one more dashing than the one before.Carrie clearly saw herself as each beautiful heroine waiting to berescued by each daring hero. And then one day, she brought home aphotograph. A very special photograph and suddenly her imaginary heroturned into a living and breathing man. Or did he? At one time BlackEagle scoffed at the girls of his village wishing on a falling star.And yet his one great wish, that of a woman of his own, was neverrealized. And then one night, he wished upon a star. Can the love ofa man from the past help a modern woman with her modern problems in amodern world?

backedher against the door, holding her firm in his embrace. "You aremine, Cassandra, mine and mine alone."

Asthe stunningly handsome blond-haired man took the dark-haired beautyin his arms, his oh, so sensuous lips coming closer and closer to herown, Cassandra knew he would take her in a passion that only grewhotter and hotter with each taking. She felt him hot and hard againsther, leaving no doubt what he wanted of her. "Yes, Erek, yes.Now and always."

Hereached for her, pulling her into his embrace, knowing this was thelove he had waited a lifetime for. No man, no army could keep themapart. Never again would they be torn from each other. This would bea love for all time. "I love you, Cassandra. I will love youforever."

** * *

CarrieTaylor sighed and closed her eyes as she held the book to her chest."Why don't they make men like that in real life? Why can't Imeet my own Erek? A man who's not only totally gorgeous on theoutside with a fabulous chest and nice butt, but a really nice guy onthe inside? A guy who you can tell anything to and he'll listen andhelp you do whatever it is you really want to do?"

Whilegood for company on a dark, cold, rainy winter night, Taister's'meow' didn't really answer her question. She scrunched thelong-haired black cat's ears before turning off the light beside herbed. As she snuggled under the covers, she heard Taister's purr fromthe foot of the bed. At least he was faithful, not like that jerkDean. "Dean Welman--what an absolute loser," she told thecat. "The porker. Taister, tell me this, just because I hung outwith him--all right, dated him--am I a loser?"

Whenthe cat didn't respond with more than a louder purr, Carrie thoughtback on the man she'd recently broken up with. Dean had come on allcharm and kisses, promised her the moon and then went and two-timedher. Such was the story of her life. "Hell, he wasn't even thathot in bed!" Chalk up number--well whatever number he was. Andcome to think of it, hewas definitely the loser. "I'm well rid of him, Taister, that'sfor sure."

Driftingoff to sleep, Carrie replayed the last few chapters of HerKnight inher mind, seeing herself in the role of the heroine, Cassandra. Erek,of course, looked just like the model on the book cover. She couldalmost feel the soft velvet of the deep burgundy gown worn byCassandra on that same cover, her cheeks warming at the thought ofthe bare-chested Erek with his long blond hair flowing over hisshoulders, his powerful hands kneading her breasts. Erek was the besthero she'd read in a long time. As a dream lover, he was ideal. Atleast in her dreams someone loved her.

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and your books?

Mywebsite at www.Regantaylor.com
Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?

No,just thank you for having me!

Halloween 2010 with Ashlynn Monroe

2011-09-21T02:26:00.001-07:00

Please welcome Ashlynn Monroe to Ramsey's Reviews. Ashlynn is one of the many talented authors we have visiting during the 2nd Annual Halloween Bash. It's nice to have you here Ashlynn. Thank you for taking the time and sharing some of your news with us today.

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects your workingon?

I’vebeen contracted for my romantic paranormal Christmas story: ADaddy for Christmas. Silver Publishing will release myfun romance about a social worker, three little boys, and a werewolfthis December.

When and Why did youbegin writing?

I’vebeen writing since I was thirteen but didn’t have the courage topursue publication until my thirtieth birthday. I guess that’s howI dealt with the big 3-0 *wink*. I first tried to find an agent butwas told my work was too short, so I researched and founde-publishing. I sent my first novella, Hidden Magic, to WildHorse Press and was delighted to be contracted by the publisher avery short time later. I was contracted at the end of February 2010and on June 4, 2010, I became a published writer. This is a muchcherished anniversary date and this year I took my kids out to aspecial supper to celebrate. It was a birthday of sorts for me as Iuse a pen name. I’ve been blessed with finding multiple publisherswho are willing to believe in me. It’s expanded my friend base andmy knowledge about the craft I love. The first person who boughtHidden Magic changed my life and filled a hole in me I didn’teven know existed. Whoever you are, thank you so much, everyone whobuys my work gives me a wonderful gift and they don’t even know it. This has enriched my life tremendously. I’m just a working momstruggling to make ends meet and make life better for me and mykiddos. Having the validation the people enjoy my creativity reallygives me a special joy that helps me get through the tough times.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

Mydaydreams, nightmares, music, but most just randomly pop into mybrain.
Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

Abelievable yet terrifying tale, any horror story that makes me think“duh” isn’t one I enjoy.

Whatis your favorite scary movie or book?

TheStand, by Steven King, Considering how sickly my kids and I are we’dhave been the first ones done for lol.

Whatmakes you interested in the genre your write?

Ilove romance, but anything unique such as werewolves just enhance thestory and the power to create so much more that I can’t imaginewhat I’d do if I couldn’t write paranormal or urban fantasyagain.

Whenyou were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And didit propel your creative muse to write about it later?

TheHeadless Horseman, The idea of a body without a head really freaks meout. I often had nightmares about him and still cringe at the ideaof reading Sleepy Hollowagain. Honestly, he hasn’t inspired anything specific.

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?
I’vehad a few scenes that scared me badly enough to stop writing them. I’m a pansy lol.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?
Erotic content I’m not shy about, but Ithink gory should stop at any description that turns the reader’sstomach.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?

I’mso excited for my October 30^th release ofDon’t Take Candy from Werewolves!

Here’sthe blurb.

JenicaBradley isn’t ordinary. She’s the seventh daughter of a seventhdaughter and one of the last of the Atlantian race. Now, to save herpeople, she must complete a pact her people made long ago, and matewith the Alpha-male of the local werewolves.

MaloneLuna returns to lead his father’s pack. He soon finds himself witha confusing need to protect the little Atlantian witch—bitch—who’sto be his mate, but all she wants from him is freedom. He’s prettymuch sure he can give her that, but not before he’s had her.

Thisstory was a blast to write and the title still makes me smile. Thisis a fun Halloween tale of courage, duty, and passion.

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and your books?

http://www.ashlynnmonroe.com

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?

Halloweenis one of my favorite holidays. Everyone gets to be someone else forone day. This year I hope you’ll go wild and be everything you’vedreamed to be. If you decide to take some me time after you take thekiddos out trick-or-treating I hope you stop athttps://spsilverpublishing.com/and download a copy of my book.

Ihope that if you haven’t read me you’ll take a look at myback-list, but Don’t Take Candy from Werewolves is one ofthe very best things I’ve written. I love this story!

Visither website at http://www.ashlynnmonroe.com to learn more about the worlds she imagines.

WildHorse Press-http://www.wildhorsepress.webs.com/

HiddenMagic-Wild Horse Press-Urban Fantasy Romance

TheMirage High series-YA Paranormal-Wild Horse Press

DarkMiracle-Wild Horse Press-Erotic Paranormal

Bloodand Bondage-Wild Horse Press-Erotic Paranormal

WildHearts-Wild Horse Press-Paranormal Romance

TheMirage High series-YA Paranormal-Wild Horse Press(print anthology orindividual eBook shorts)

Bloodand Bondage-Wild Horse Press-Erotic Paranormal

MySoul to Keep-Wild Horse Press-Urban Fantasy Romance

KissMe, Kill Me, Bite Me-Wild Horse Press-Dark Paranormal Romance

RealityStinks-Wild Horse Press-Urban Fantasy Romantic comedy

CobblestonePress-http://www.cobblestone-press.com/

ChemicalLust-Cobblestone Press-Science Fiction Erotic

SilverPublishing- https://spsilverpublishing.com/

Passion'sEscape-Silver Publishing-Science Fiction Erotic

LostHeart's-Silver Publishing-Science Fiction Erotic

Wish-SilverPublishing-Urban Fantasy Erotic

JustOne Night-Silver Publishing-Paranormal Romance

Vampiresand Mistletoe-Silver publishing-Paranormal Romance

CapturedHeart and soul-Silver Publishing Erotic Anthology

Don’tTake Candy From Werewolves-Paranormal Romance-coming October 30^th2011.

ADaddy for Christmas-Paranormal Romance-Coming December 2011

kNightRomance Publishing-http://knightromancepublishing.com/

ClockworkHearts Series-kNight Romance Publishing-Paranormal steam punk ComingSoon

WickedInk Press-http://www.wickedinkpress.com/

BloodKin-Keith Publications-Paranormal Romance

TheTemplar Vampire Series-Keith Publications-Paranormal Romance

EvernightPublishing-http://www.evernightpublishing.com/

FallenAngels-Evernight Publishing-Steam Punk Romance

ProtectorMine-Evernight Publishing-Paranormal Romance

IndecentEncounters-Evernight Publishing-Erotic Romance Anthology

Masterof Mine-Evernight Publishing-Erotic Romance Anthology

WillowMoon Publishing-http://www.willowmoonpublishing.com/

DreamMists-Willow Moon Publishing-Paranormal Romance

DecadentPublishing-http://www.decadentpublishing.com/

TheVengeance Series-Decadent Publishing-Urban Fantasy

Backin the Saddle-Paranormal 1 Night Stand Series Short

SelfPublished-http://ashlynnmonroe.com/

Denae’sLesson-Seven Deadly Sins Anthology-self-published group effort withsome of my favorite small press authors.

EternalCommitments-Paranormal Romance

BeachwalkPress-http://www.beachwalkpress.com/

Slaveto his Desires-Beachwalk Press

Pleasedon’t pirate books, buy them from a legitimate vendor and not froma thief. Please don’t download from file sharing sites because Ican guarantee if it’s for sale anywhere, the author isn’t makingthe choice to “share” it with you. That’s theft. Also, pleasedon’t upload an ebook to these sites and only borrow themlegitimately using the library or Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Thereare tons of free books on Amazon, All Romance Ebooks, One Place forRomance, and various publishers. Night Owl Reviews offers free readsever Thursday, and there are many wonderful giveaways on small pressauthor and publisher blogs and websites. You’ll not only get awonderful free read but you’ll get to establish a connection to thefantastic men and women who write independent fiction. We don’thave assistance politely declining facebook requests and sending outform emails, we are real people who get up and put on our biggirl/boy panties one leg at a time. I’d love to hear your opinionsand ideas about my work at authorashlynnmonroe@gmail.com. Join my website as a member too because I often send out goodies. Iappreciate my reader and author cyber friends and you guys are asmuch a part of my life as my living and breathing see-ya-at-lunchpals.

**HUGS**Ashlynn Monroe

Halloween 2011 with Michele Hart

2011-09-21T02:24:00.001-07:00

Fellow readers, I am please to have author Michele Hart with us today. Michele shows her incredible spirit through her vivacious writing. Welcome Michele to Ramsey's Reviews Halloween Bash.

Michele: Greetings, Halloween Bash, Ramsey’s Reviews, and readers of passion and fright!
I love Halloween, Samhain to me, and it’s always the funnest time of the year. I love costumes, keep a couple dozen on hand, in case I might need to go shopping as a Jedi, check the mailbox as a dark fairy. You never know when these needs come up. There just aren’t enough costumed events for me.

Tell us your latest news. Do you have any current projects you’re working on?
Michele: I’m thrilled my newest release, the sizzling, gritty, high-action Paranormal/Sci-Fi Romantic Adventure, Gangbusters, is coming out this November. Angels, demons, lasers, secret technology, demonic possession, microchips, fist fights, teleportation, unholy resurrection, forbidden passion, assassination, doomed missions, daredevil antics, a battle for love against a Hell-spawned horde. The usual. :-)

When and why did you begin writing?
Michele: In 1990, I’d met a gorgeous mohawked punk rocker named Torch with big blue eyes and more earrings in his ears than I had. He was a wildly creative being of light with a smile like the Devil’s own. He taught me how to be creative. I penned a story of a hero just like Torch in Luminous Nights. Helping someone learn they are creative is one of the greatest gifts a person can bestow upon another, and I was very lucky Torch came into my life and gave me that. He’s still one of my best friends.

Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
Michele: If I’m writing a Sci-Fi Romance, I start with a science that intrigues me. I speculate the people who will work with it, then it’s on. I’m MIA for a few months writing the story.

What do you think makes a good horror story?
Michele: Suspense. Surprise. A good dose of revulsion, but not too much. Dark characters that insidiously crawl into and nest in my mind.

What is your favorite scary movie, book, or theme?
Michele: I LOVE to be scared! I have favorite themes. I lovelovelove the monsters, but real-life scares get me better. Serial killers, UFOs, and government super-weapons. Apocalyptic views of the future. I love to write them, too. The fear of possible horrors sends lightning through me! Any story with those scenarios make me peek out the drapes to the sky, consider how much the government is watching me, plan for a zombie apocalypse. :-) Those thoughts are so fun and challenging.
Have you given thought to what you’d do in the event of a zombie apocalypse? Maybe you should. The Center for Disease Control thought of it. While you’re planning your survival during a zombie apocalypse, plan for a natural disaster: http://emergency.cdc.gov/socialmedia/zombies_blog.asp

Favorite monster movie: Alien vs.. Predator. It’s overgross for my taste, so I cover my eyes at those moments. I love the Predator technology. AvP is a very good and suspenseful story, contains mythology, and a butt-kicking female protagonist. I am compelled to love it.
What makes you interested in the genre you write?
Michele: A love of science, technology, adventure, and twisty surprises. An affection for hot chemistry between lovers. A worship of the alpha-male.

When you were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel your creative muse to write about it later?
Michele: I’d been twelve years old and alone in my home when I saw the Scars of Dracula. Scared the pants off me. Too old to believe in vamps, I was so nervous, and I walked to my mother’s job just so I wouldn’t have to be alone. I loved vampires before that, but that movie scarred me for life, and gave me a curiosity/love for horror. As much as I love them, I haven’t written a vampire story. But I probably will. It’s just too irresistible. I love monsters.

Where do you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or erotic content?
Michele: I like straddling fences. I write Mainstream Romance that snuggles up to the erotic. I almost always write about crime, so my stories end up being a bit violent and peppered with nasty talk from criminals. I try to ratchet down the gore, figuring if the reader wanted gore, they’d read Clive Barker. I’m not a big fan of gore, so it’s not my focus, but my stories do have foul language, blood, bodies, fist fights, gun battles, and horrible deaths. Not for the faint-hearted. I know I’ve given my publisher a headache considering the warnings my book might require because my stories might straddle a couple of those fences in a way that it becomes an opinion if it’s too gory/sexy/violent to earn some kind of warning. Interestingly, my readers have told me my stories were not too gory/sexy/violent. I’ve walked away with only adult language warnings. Woo-hoo! I want to haunt the gray area, ride that fence.

Could you share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?
Michele: Here’s a scary scene from my Paranormal/Sci-Fi Romantic Adventure, Vigilant:“Did you execute my men, Marshal?” the demon Morosi asked the seething cop he held caged for the revenge show playing out before his eyes.
Yadira shivered in her shackles, chilled for the horror Morosi would put her through. She stayed quiet, afraid the only sounds she could utter were cries of fright.
“Your men had attempted suicide by coming to take me,” Weber deadpanned from behind bars, his vision focused on her lying chained to the bed. “One’s still alive, but he wants to die. I don’t think he’ll return to your employment.”
“I’ll have him killed before his trial.”
“That would save Alliance citizens a fistful of money.”
The I-Marshal began to slam his big combat boot into the cage lock she’d failed to pick.
Slam!
She desperately prayed Weber could weaken the bars.
“If you think I’m going to let this go your way”—slam!—“you’re wrong.”
“You’ll grow old, Dokiel, kicking those bars. It’s a bomb-worthy metal.”
Rising horns blended into Morosi’s black hair, creeping her out His black eyes rimmed in red cruised her body with clear intention to anger the I-Marshal’s more base instincts. “Does it sicken you, son of fire, to witness me ruin her? You won’t want her after this.”
Slam!
Yadira fisted the small spike in her hand to conceal it, dreading the size of her only weapon. She didn’t know that Morosi possessed a heart to stab or even if he were alive in any way that made him killable by a mere mortal. Would Morosi find the spike in her possession and beat her bloody for it? It would no doubt be foreplay for the monster.
Slam!
“I’m going to destroy you, Morosi.”
“People in Hell want ice-water, Marshal.”
Slam!
Pleased with the cage’s strength, the demon grabbed Yadira’s ankle and yanked her harshly to stretch her body the length of the bed. She fought, but his grip cut the blood flow to her foot. He cuffed that ankle in leg chains to the bed footboard. She shuddered again, and worked to be brave and think clearly. Or fake it.
“More likely, I’ll teleport off this planet in an eye-blink while you stand trapped in a cage, watching her bleed, listening to her weep. Her buyer will collect her afterward. Another thing you can’t prevent.”
Slam!
“Returning to the abyss you came from, you ghoulish fucker?” Weber taunted him.
Laughing, Morosi grabbed her other ankle, and her most vigorous fight was fruitless. He chained her other leg to the footboard.
“There’s no place like home. As you ignorant mortals are fond of saying.”
Yadira’s hands were cuffed together on one side of the headboard, and the demon would have to unlock her right hand to reposition it for his ultimate act of revenge.
Slam!
“I’ll hunt you down, Morosi, and drain your demon body of your corrupt blood. I’ll see your carcass go up in the blue flames you deserve.”
Slam!
“But the two of you will have this memory forever. She’s never going to recover.”
Her limbs secured, Morosi straddled her hips in morbid domination, despite her awkward position. His rough hands stripped the remnants of her blouse from her body, leaving her bra and topazes to cover her. His awful eyes drilled into the sky-blue jewels Weber had given her, as though the demon needed to concentrate to rid her body of them. Morosi hadn’t complained of pain when Weber had busted him in the mouth or had burned a beam through his head, but the monster feared a gift of love around her neck. He’d ordered his men to remove the jewels in an attempt to avoid them.
“I’m going to uncuff your hand, and you’ll remove the jewels,” the demon gunman hissed above her.
Slam!
“Take them off yourself!” Yadira screamed at him. “If you aren’t powerless in the face of goodness!”
Bare-handed, the demon snatched the topaz necklace from her neck, scattering the jewels in all directions. She heard the sizzle of his flesh, and he howled aloud, gritted his teeth to bear the pain. His blood-red lips curled up to reveal sprouting fangs. Her mind warped in consideration of all the horrible things he could do to her.
Slam!
Crazed Morosi shook his horned head and seemed to grow bigger. Tendrils of smoke rose from his nostrils. His fangs flashed, white and sharp. His black vision roved over her, and his mood changed to a sick glee.
“Yadira, you’re the most marvelous piece of art I’d like to crush. The helplessness, the fright in your eyes makes them sparkle. The paleness terror gives your flesh is delicious. You’re so weak, you’re beautiful. Your buyer should want to see it often.”
“I’m not weak!”
Slam!
“I can see what the I-Marshal took, and that was supposed to be mine. I’ll wipe away the triumph for him while he watches. Considering all the revenge you represent, I’ll make this last a very long time. What do you say, son of fire, to watching the repercussions of stealing Yadira’s innocence from its rightful owner? It was something I’d murdered for.”
Slam! Weber’s only answer was another slam of his combat boot into the cage lock.
Having her chained and pinned beneath him, the man transforming into a beast removed his stiffly pressed shirt, revealing carvings on his lithe and darkening body growing bulkier in his slow shift. Steel-girded muscle expanding told her she’d not escape the demon.
Slam!
Yadira repulsed at the thought of this damned creature violating her so hideously. She began to weep, hoping to convince her captor she’d given up on a rescue, that his infliction of fear worked, and she no longer had fight in her. She surrendered. Weeping was easy.
Morosi delighted in her loss of hope.
Slam!
“I’m going to destroy you, Morosi,” the I-Marshal promised the demon again, his concentration focused on breaking the cage lock.
“You’ll want to, especially after this.”
Yadira tried not to shudder, but the fear controlled her. He had her stripped down to her bra and panties, and those barriers wouldn’t last long.
The demon’s lascivious inspection stopped at her bare thighs. He growled, “I see your handprints burned into her, Weber. I don’t care that you’ve marked her for your possession.”
Weber’s handprints seared into her thighs? She’d fantasized his touch had melded into her flesh. It was the vision he’d given her and a wish she’d made in the shower with his scorching, pleasuring hands stroking her thighs, water droplets sizzling away.
Slam!
“I care, Morosi, that you’re violating my property. You’ll meet holy fire for touching her.”
When the filthy demon uncuffed her hand concealing the spike to recuff it across the headboard and maximize his access, his grip was overconfident. She yanked her hand from his grasp and stabbed at the throb in her tormentor’s neck.
***
Check out my Web site for more.
Where can your fans go to find more information about you and your books?
Michele: Visit me at http://www.ILoveShapeShifters.com/ for steamy, peril-packed excerpts, 5-star reviews, and suspenseful book trailers. Angels and demons and lasers. Oh my...

Is there anything else additional you would like to share with your readers?
Michele: Look out for Gangbusters, coming November! Investigate I-Marshal Stories. Where do the mortals fit in the war between the angels and demons? Who can save them? The sons of the Fallen, sons of fire, of course. Read more: http://www.MicheleHart.com/b28-book.htm
Explore angels, demons, and lasers...oh, my. http://www.MicheleHart.com/series-i-marshals.htm

Thanks so much, readers, Ramsey’s Reviews, and the Halloween Bash for spending a few minutes with me.

Have an exciting day,
Michele Hart
Paranormal/Sci-Fi Romance Author
~ Walk Another World ~
GANGBUSTERS - Coming Nov '11 - Hide From the Demon Horde.

Want to get scared this Halloween?
   Follow the shadow, risk, and mystery.
   How about a sssexy and dangerous shape-shifter escaped from a prison-planet for your summer affair? Can I interest you in a brawler with a badge who can read your thoughts? Are you ready for a risky mind-control adventure battling the CIA? Feel like fighting the Mob today? Do you desire to be frightened by demons, rescued by angels? Would you like to be trapped on a space station with your high-school crush? A gangland hit man named Heretic awaits you…
   Discover passion, dare, and adventure under all-new moons and stars.
   Investigate Michele Hart. http://www.ILoveShapeShifters.com/

Thank you, Michele, for taking the time to show us your vibrant and talented writing. I look forward to hearing more about your upcoming releases.

Got a flavor for scary?
Beware avenging angels.
***
Cop or convict?
How many faces can one man own?

   An assassin wearing a holographic mask and a prison tattoo boards Rachel’s freighter during a prison riot, intent on collecting gadgets capable of changing a man’s identity from the black-market gang who'd stolen them. Rachel’s never sure of Jack's identity nor his goal, but he claims to be an Alliance I-Marshal. Cop or convict? The clues never stop contradicting. She's horrified to find the bright holographic mask conceals the gruesome face of a monster. And the badge doesn’t slow him from murdering people right before her eyes.
   When Rachel learns Jack will trade innocent lives for the digital miracles, she determines to make the mercenary grow a heart. How could a stone-cold killer kiss her so hotly? How could she kiss such a dangerous deceiver?
   Jack has done years in prison to learn who’d stolen the remaining Gemini ticks, 3-D magic. Nothing will keep him from gaining extreme technology capable of unleashing galaxy-wide chaos. Forget feelings for Rachel. She can’t stop him from killing everyone involved.
***
a 2011 Golden Quill Contest finalist!
Read passion-filled excerpts and a tense first chapter,
explore 5-star reviews, watch a book trailer:
http://www.michelehart.com/b15-book.htm
***

One surviving hijacker is charged with the murders of a hundred citizens.
One cop sees her innocence.

   Alliance I-Marshal Weber hauls Yadira to her home planet and infiltrates the human-trafficking ring controlling her. But he finds himself unbearably attracted to his witness. A gift for detecting deception reveals she’s the next victim of a criminal industry.
   Descending into shadowy worlds of slavery, Yadira endures a dark angel stalking her dreams and watches the quiet I-Marshal become dangerous in her defense. Everything about him moves her…except the memory of seeing him execute the most important man in her life. Shouldn’t she take vengeance? Delusions of a heavenly guardian affect her mind.
   Slavers and demons plan to snatch her from Weber’s custody while he is uncovering connections, and Weber won’t hesitate to execute the guilty surrounding Yadira. Who but a son of fire can save her from fiends harboring hardcore fantasies of harming her?
***
Discover hot, peril-packed excerpts, a perilous first chapter,
check out the 5-star reviews, watch a mysterious book trailer:
http://www.michelehart.com/b27-book.htm
***What would any man do, holding the secrets to mind control
while the woman he wants resists his charms?

   Jon Paige discovers his employer is developing illicit mind-control techniques. He quickly learns how to hijack the system and breaks down his beautiful assistant’s persistent walls. Will Holly forgive him for sneaking into her mind, if she ever learns of it?
   Holly Maddox is determined not to dip her pen in the company ink, a policy that’s served her well…until Jon comes along. He steals her mind when he’s in the room, weakens her fortitude with every flash of his flirty eyes and secretive smile. How will she keep herself from falling in love with her boss when he melts her impulse control?
   When Jon and Holly decide to sabotage the brain-washing experiments, they learn they’re up against a greater power than they’d bargained for. Doing the right thing risks lives. Will the truth of their beginnings wreck their sizzling affair?
***
Explore cool excerpts, find fabulous reviews, watch a suspenseful book trailer:
http://www.michelehart.com/b26-book.htm

Run from the monsters.

Read and live an adventure.
Have an exciting upcoming weekend,

Halloween with Zenobia Renquist

2011-09-16T19:25:00.001-07:00

Please Welcome, Zenobia Renquist, as my quest for the next severaldays. Zenobia, it's great to have you here with us. Vampires are oneof my favorite “creatures of the night” to read about. I wouldlove to read how you incorporate these creatures into your ownwritten realm. Thank you for taking the time and sharing some ofyourself and your stories with us.

Tell us your latest news. Do you have any current projects you'reworking on?

I recently signed a contract with Ellora's Cave for amainstream sci-fi interracial romance that should be coming out inthe next few months. I'm currently working on a dragon, non-shifterromance that is about half way finished.

When and Why did youbegin writing?
I started writing in high school because I wantedto see fantasy/paranormal romances with a black heroine. Not onlythat, I wanted said black heroine to be in an interracialrelationship. Since I couldn't find any at the time, I decided towrite my own. I started writing to get published in college.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?
My ideas formy books come out of thin air. A sound or the way someone says a wordwill trigger an idea that evolves into a story. There's no rhyme orreason for it. I simply write it all down as it comes to me.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?
I'm all about thepsychological. Something has to screw with me mentally to get mescared. Slasher, blood-and-guts horror usually makes me laugh.Because of that, I'm more prone to watching Asian horror thanAmerican horror. American horror goes for gross out and jump moments.Asian horror is about mind games. There are no set rules. A personcan die from simply looking at the window of a house, and the maincharacter won't always make it to the end.

What is yourfavorite scary movie or book?
My favorite scary book is Phantomsby Dean Koontz. That had me turning on the light to sleep at night. Iplan to read it again just for the thrill of it. The movie adaptationwas very underwhelming and not nearly as creepy as the book. Myfavorite scary movie... I'm not sure. There are several horror moviesI like to watch, but not because they scare me. I need thelaugh.

Dean Koontz is one of my favorite authors, too. I beganreading his books when I was in high school, and actually had a verygood collection of almost everyone of his books. What makes youinterested in the genre you write?
I love created worlds andcivilizations and then tossing my characters (usually the heroine)into that world and making her deal. Fish out of water stories iswhat I do best. That probably stems from me growing up as a militarybrat. I moved around a lot, so I know how it feels to be tossed intoa new town, a new school, and having to adapt or be left out.

When you were a child, what creature or story scared you the most?And did it propel your creative muse to write about it later?
Thecreature that scared me the most was a toss up between Freddy Krugerand the red-eyed gnome from Cat's Eye. Nowadays Freddy makes melaugh. But that red eyed gnome still haunts me a little. I plan todabble in horror romance in the near future. When I do, I hope tocapture that childhood terror on the page for my readers toenjoy.

Oh, and when you do, please let me know, I shared thatsame nightmare of the creepy little gnome sucking the life out of me,when I was a child. Cat's Eye was one of the best short stories ofStephen King, along with The Mist. (IMO) Do you remember ever comingup with anything so wild that you scared yourself, leaving you towonder where that came from?
I did not. However, I had anightmare that scared me silly just a few months ago. When I finallygot myself to wake up (just before the monster was about to grab me),I sat in bed breathing hard and tense for a few minutes before Iscrambled for my computer so I could write it all down. Wes Craven ison to something when he writes down his nightmares.

Where doyou as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?
I describe enough to get a feel of the situation and thescene. I'm not trying to gross anyone out or give anyone an anatomylesson.

Could you share some of your blurbs or excerpts withus?

CAVEAT EMPTOR SERIES

-- CE1: Charmed Lover --
Ryver isone of the many humans who owns a vampire. She purchased Theron forhome security. When the magic charms keeping the vampires docile andsubservient suddenly start failing, Theron goes from protector tothreat. A nationwide, mandatory recall of all vampires is in effect.Ryver is ready to comply, but a night of passion spent in Theron'sarms changes her mind.

It's only a matter of time beforesomeone figures out Ryver and Theron's secret. With the threat ofmages bearing down on them, Ryver has to decide if she's willing togive up her lover -- or her freedom.

Read Chp1 -http://dreneebagbypresentsfirstchapters.blogspot.com/2011/04/charmed-lover-by-zenobia-renquist.html

--CE2: Trapped Lover --

Ryver knows she can never go home again.That's fine by her, since she's with Theron, the vampire she loves.Now living in vampire territory, she's learning more about Theron,and not all of it is good. The more she sees, the more she'sconvinced that the man she fell in love with, the man who can makeher body sing with a single touch, might not be the man she thoughthe was.

Read Chp1 -http://dreneebagbypresentsfirstchapters.blogspot.com/2011/06/trapped-lover-by-zenobia-renquist.html

--CE3: Provoked Lover --

After an attack leaves Theron's alliesscattered, Sicily finds herself in the care of Lamon, a vampire wholooks like he would rather kill her than protect her.

Theunlikely pair must become very close -- sexual energy is necessary todisrupt the spell the mages are using to track Sicily.

Emotionsbecome confused as their bodies entwine. Sicily finds herself fallingfor a man she can't have... or can she?

Read Chp1 -http://dreneebagbypresentsfirstchapters.blogspot.com/2011/07/provoked-lover-by-zenobia-renquist.html

--CE4: Anguished Lover --

Sicily has volunteered to put herself onthe front lines in the vampires' fight against the mages. Lamon hasno choice but to go with her to keep her safe. When the worsthappens, Sicily has to find out just what she's willing to sacrificeto save the lives of her lover and her friends.

Read Chp1 -Coming to http://dreneebagbypresentsfirstchapters.blogspot.com/ on 12September 2011

Where can your fans go to find more informationabout you and your books?

Website:http://zenobiarenquist.com

Blog:http://dreneebagby.blogspot.com/

Twitter:http://twitter.com/dreneebagby

Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/Author.DRBagby.ZRenquist

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?
I'm an avid anime fan and my storytelling style issimilar. Even when something seems out of place or inconsequential,pay attention because it might become important later. It's a wildride. All I ask when reading my books is that you Leave Your RealityBehind.

Halloween with Desiree Holt

2011-09-16T19:23:00.001-07:00

Welcome,Desiree, to Ramsey's Reviews 2^ndAnnual Halloween Bash. Your new releases sound so thrilling that Ican't wait to have our readers read about them. I especially likeyour upcoming release featuring a Chupacabra. That sounds veryinteresting.

Tellus your latest news. Do you have any current projects your workingon?

Septemberwill see the release of Book 4 in my Phoenix Agency series, F Stop.There are 5 books in the series, all about alpha ex-military men whomeet women with a special psychic ability. Each ability is different.In F Stop, Kat Culhane is a remote viewer, with the ability to focuson things such as geographic coordinates and “see” thingshappening there. I’m also at work on Branded By Lust, Book 4, NightSeekers. Eight team members, six of them shifters, hunter thelegendary devil beast, the Chupacabra.

Whenand Why did you begin writing?

I’vealways had the desire to write, even spent some time working forweekly newspapers. And in college I did sports reporting. But itwasn’t until 2004 that I finally had the time to sit down andactually pull all those plots out of my notebooks and see what Icould do. And I haven’t stopped since then.

Wheredo you get your information or ideas for your books?

Mybrain never stops working, picking up pieces and bits and whirlingthem into some kind of story. I meet great people to interview, I doa lot of Internet research and I use a lot of my life experiences.

Whatdo you think makes a good horror story?

Somethingthat scares me to death! But this is not a genre I either read orwrite. I can take paranormal to the edge but that’s about it.

Whatis your favorite scary movie or book?

Psychois still the icon for me. It still scares me to death but I watch itanyway!

Whatmakes you interested in the genre your write?

Ilike to explore different areas of the imagination. Books are a greatplace to create my fantasies and live them out.

Whenyou were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And didit propel your creative muse to write about it later?

Istill remember my sister, who was older than me, reading Little RedRiding-hood. For years I couldn’t even look at a picture of a wolf.Odd that today, wolf shifters are among my favorite characters. But Istill remember diving under the covers when I heard that big, badwolf voice.

Doyou remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scaredyourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?

Oh,yes. And it’s still in my Ideas folder on my computer. Maybe one ofthese days I’ll be brave enough to write about it. It had to dowith mind control.

Wheredo you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or eroticcontent?

Firstof all, whatever it is, it has to fit into the plot and the characterimages. Gore and sex just for the sake of gore and sex, don’t workfor me. And of course, my stories are always romances, so that initself, sets certain boundaries. So whatever it is, it has to fit theromance and the story and not detract from it or be jarringlydifferent.

Couldyou share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?

Blurbfrom Joy Ride:

Emma,the good girl poster child, is running from a life she suddenly seesas gray and suffocating—a life where she’s successfully buriedall her hopes and secret dreams. Until the night she wanders intoAftershock and is immediately drawn to the hot bass player. Theelectricity of his performance, the powerful music he coaxes from hisguitar, the heavy vibration of each note reaches out to somethingdeep inside her and wakes an Emma she didn’t even knowexisted.  Marc doesn’t much care for the groupies who hangaround the band. He needs a woman he can create a future with that’sa counterpoint to the craziness of the rock music business. When hesees Emma for the first time, something inside him cracks wide open.Just one sizzling glance between them, and he’s sure he’s foundthe woman to complete his life.  But as the relationship grows,there’s a huge stumbling block: Emma won’t tell him her name. Thesex is fabulous but he wants more….  Although Emma is finallyfinding her true self, her fear of everything falling apart builds abarrier she can’t seem to cross. Marc is taking her on the joy rideof her life, but will her own insecurities destroy everything? 

Blurbfrom Delicious Danger:

KellyMonroe was shocked when her dog, Xena, a Caucasian Ovcharka seemed tobond at once with Rick Latrobe, a partner in the high profile PhoenixAgency. Ovcharkas are known for linking with only their owners. ButXena is picking up Rick’s wave length, very much aware when anattempt is made on Rick’s life, and driving Kelly crazy withsignals of danger regarding Rick’s current project, ferrying ashipment of arms to a private security cadre in Iraq. Rick is nearlykilled when the shipment is stolen by terrorists who are hot in histrail. Only Kelly and Xena, coached by members of The Lotus Circle toexpand the psychic link between the three of them—can keep himsafe. As Rick scrambles to learn who’s behind the whole mess, therelationship he and Kelly have deepens. But Xena is the real star,not only signaling when danger is at hand but “sniffing” out thekillers.

Wherecan your fans go to find more information about you and your books?

www.desireeholt.com

Theycan also join my mailing list there

Isthere anything else additional you would like to share with yourreaders?

Yes.They can also find me on Twitter @desireeholt and Facebookwww.facebook.com/desireeholt

Thankyou, Desiree, for taking the time to answer some of our questions. Ireally enjoyed having you with us for this Halloween Bash. Good luckwith all your books, and maybe one day you will finish that scarytale. =) Happy Halloween.

Halloween with Stavros

2011-09-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

Stavros, welcome to Ramsey's Reviews. Thank you for taking the time to share a piece of yourself and your books. I have been looking forward to your interview for a long time and excited to finally meet the man behind the writing.

Tell us your latest news. Do you have any current projects your working on?
Yes, I’ve just released Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie tale of Revenge and this September the sequel to Blood Junky is coming out. So, I’m very excited about that.

I have been reading Blood Junky and the world building is amazing. There is so much detail to the main character's life that you feel as though you are really connected to them. When and Why did you begin writing?
It’s always been something that I’ve done. I like to tell stories and create characters. Though, I began writing poetry and short essays. This started when I was in my early teens, and as I grew, sharing my work with friends, family, teachers, I noticed that they seemed to like what I wrote. So, I continued to work on it.

Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
Mostly, the idea springs internally and I research the rest. Life experience adds a flavor and direction to any piece, but I like to get out of my head with a character or story and see where it wants to go.

What do you think makes a good horror story?
Good writing, good characters, and good situations. Horror is so diverse that literally you could apply a broad technique. As long as the piece is consistent and well written I’m hooked.

What is your favorite scary movie or book?
Too many favorite horror movies to mention really. I grew up reading science fiction long before I got into horror, and then my horror tastes were limited to mostly werewolves and vampires. Mostly werewolves. But I read The God Emperor of Dune twice, and I love Patrick Suskind’s Perfume and Wilde’s Picture of Dorian Grey. Of course, Dracula and Interview with a Vampire were seminal. The works of Ray Bradbury, Douglas Adams, Piers Anthony, the Conan books, Isaac Asimov, and Sir Author Cannon Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes were enjoyable and influential reads.

What makes you interested in the genre you write?
I love horror. I grew up on it early. My Dad used to wake me up at night to watch Creature Feature with him, so I learned at an young age to appreciate the strange and unusual.

When you were a child, what creature or story scared you the most? And did it propel your creative muse to write about it later?

Night of the Living Dead had me terrified. I was too scared to walk through the house. John Carpenter's The Thing made a deft impression, and I still love those special FXs! I love all of those black & white Universal monster films and had model kits for all of them, including the Hunchback and Invisible Man. And the Hammer films and all of Vincent Price’s movies fed my hungry for the macabre. So, yeah, its fed the coffers of my creative muse.

Do you remember ever coming up with anything so wild that you scared yourself, leaving you to wonder where that came from?
I always wonder where it comes from, and give thanks to God.

Where do you as an author draw the line on gory description and/or erotic content?
For me that’s easy. It all depends on the nature of the piece I am writing and the characters involved. I tend to write as my character thinks. If a particular character is having sex or killing or disfiguring a person or plotting something wicked my motivations are all character based. My personal interests and feelings about it are completely left out.

Could you share some of your blurbs or exerts with us?
When I buy a book I always read the first page. So, here’s the first or so pages of each book.

Blood Junky:

Lin looked out over the tawdry lights of the city of lost angels. A million pinpricks that filled the moonlit night with brilliant noise. There’s no real dark anymore. The earth is crowded; guttersnipes and trash. Breathing smoke, a tattooed dragon on the slag stone balcony, she pulled hard from the cigarette. Its glowing red tip briefly added to the twinkling as Santa Ana winds grabbed the ashen embers and ferried them through the streets like little glowing devils seeking fuel to ignite the desperate pith of the city. The cancer-stick was stale, at least three years old. Stuffed in a drawer the last time her thoughts fell on Dominique.
Dull bitterness, in mind and body, a steady ache; the smoky flavor sent spasms through her parasite in angry shudders. It despised the smoke and pushed it out of Lin’s nostrils, screaming for blood. Her thin, white robe floated on a breath of air.
From up here, where all the smog gathered around this west coast haven, in her castle in the sky, her deluxe apartment far from the throttle and choke of the world, she could hear the chaos clashing below. Crushed under the soles of her bare, waxen feet, sounds drifted up to her. Called to her. Pleading for scant recognition, each lonely voice clamored in the din, each a single cell in the red tapestry proclaiming its mortality. A cacophony: pointless conversations, bleating car radios, hookers on their knees in alleys, police thrusting a robber to the ground, a baby’s cry, a drug addict haggling price from the meager metal protection of an idling car, and an old man’s last breath – all circulated into the drumming mood of this sanguine night.

One hundred years ago it wasn’t like this. The town still held some glimmer of magic. Hell, it wasn’t like this fifty years ago. But who’s counting? Who even notices that the magic is gone, leaving in its wake the lingering remains of an extinguished black wick on an old dusty candle held waiting in the breast of one who still mourns its passing? Lin sighed. This used to be such a fun town. Now there’s just too many people breeding like a damn disease, infecting every living cell, spreading out like a well-fed cancer. Viral.

Dreaming of bygone nights lit by the pale glamour of the same moon blinking down time after time, Lin placed her alabaster hands on the stone railing of the balcony terrace as she jettisoned the soft cotton cargo of the cigarette into the Santa Ana air. She watched it tumble and turn, spiraling to the fetid street below. The blood parasite within writhed along her spine and ribs. It caused her jungle tattoo to quiver into inked life. Toucans took flight across her back, into that blank spot where Lin was thinking of putting a city scene. Nature vs Man. The epitome of progress. Living on the Pacific Ring of Fire, nestled into the big shoulders of skyscrapers and movie stars, it only felt right to finish the elaborate design with a monument to the civilized state. Not until Three Hundred, though. That’ll be a seminal year. I will finish it then.
Lin curled a finger around the hand-carved spirits glass, swishing the red liquid within. Her parasite, her Jadaraa Soo, wound around her wrist, pushed into her fingertips with love, and cradled the cup. It was hungry. It wanted to go out into the illumined night and drive its tendril features into a warm body. It yearned, unceasingly, to be fulfilled. Lin opened her mouth and kissed the cup for a hefty dose. The parasite cringed at the blood’s cold temperature. Withdrawing at first into its veiny legs, it receded back to its full girth, seeping throughout Lin’s body like a wave on a beach. To the painted host, the chilled hemoglobin felt good against this warm, dry night. It cooled her stillborn flesh and fucked with the Jadaraa Soo. A ‘lil kick for the bastard to make her smile. A not-so-brutal reminder to the beast within that she does what she likes despite what it wants. Lin didn’t feel like going out tonight or calling The Service to have a Sanglant delivered. So, this cold plate would have to do for them both.
A few seconds after ingesting the blood, the veins of her captor began to purr like a giant, caged cat. Softly. Just softly, mimicking the jungle beast tattooed on her left calf. After all, blood is blood. That’s all the thing wants: blood. An endless cycle of self-consumption from the day that Lin let it consume her vital fluids, let the vile thing be born in her body, let the blood become beast and beast become being; the Jadaraa Soo ended one life, and began another.

“Blood. Blood eats Blood. That is the rule. It is as simple as that.”

Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie Tale of Revenge:

Jamie Lund didn’t hear the splash when her body hit the water. She didn’t feel the cold grip of swirling liquid engulf her or lift her back up to the surface minutes later. Jamie never noticed a murder of crows perched on the railings of the dilapidated concrete bridge. Or, the way moonlight reflected off their coal black wings, shimmered in the rippling river, or her wet hair. Jamie Lund didn’t see, feel, or hear much of anything anymore. Because, at twenty-two...Jamie Lund was dead.
The water carried her like a baby and birthed her to the grassy bank on the other side of the bridge. A branch grabbed the black, mini-skirt she wore that night and held it against the tug. A thousand ebon eyes watched her body drift and moor like a boat. A cold wind bent the tall grass on the river’s edge and filled the night with wings. Against the churning bubble and the damp lights of the city in the distance a cacophony of beaks erupted. Caws like locust fell from the sky.
As if struck by a hammer to the chest, breath fueled Jamie’s lungs. An awakening gasp burst through icy, cold lips and teeth that were filled with muddy leaves and liquid. Jamie’s back arched and her head rose from the water with a jolt. Her eyes were milky white and distant. She sucked in a gulp of air with the grate of a straw searching for that last drop of soda under the ice; raspy like thorns – broken as the wind in the hollow of a tree. Her arms pushed up and drove her hands deep into riverbank mud. The chips and cracks in her once red polished nails were getting dirty. Crows swarmed above her as a single mood. She coughed the river from her throat and pulled her shaking body from the frigid wet.
Ebon eyes glared at the wretched girl from the sky, from the trees, and their concrete perch on the dilapidated bridge as she struggled with stiff limbs to drag her sore and aching body through the tall weeds to the road. Jamie sat at the edge of the busted tarmac and looked around as her vision slowly tuned into her surroundings. The moon smiled down on her, a faint yellow, illuminating a patch of earth that she had never known or been to before. Nothing was familiar. Everything felt wrong. Fog peeled back from her memory like Russian dolls, opening into itself, getting smaller and smaller with the same affect, revealing nothing. She didn’t know how or why she was here. Worry blossomed inside her chest like a fruit basket.
She tried to call out. To simply speak, to utter a sound, to work her feeble voice, but her throat burned hot nails all the way down her windpipe. A tiny squeak parted from her icy blue lips and she placed a hand to her throat. It was fraught with pain. She struggled. She worked her jaw to loosen her voice box, wind the organ up to play, but a flash of memory slammed into the back of her skull. It shook her shoulders awake, repeating on a loop. Scorching Jamie’s cerebral cortex, her eyelids fluttered.
She was looking at herself in the freestanding mirror - getting dressed. A column of jet-black hair fell past a bare shoulder, framing her pretty face. She had a lithe, curvy shape, sensual lips, and thin fingers that pulled the zipper of her skirt up the side of her hip. She turned the cute, little black number around so that the fastener was in the back. She straightened her black lace bra, smiled, and then did her make up. She was going out...

But, where?

Suddenly, Jamie felt wet and shivered. Fear crept past her damp clothes and crawled under her skin as she lifted herself onto the road. Every muscle rebelled. Her knees argued at the thought of bending. The joints in her fingers and elbows ached, popping with movement. Her back felt as if someone had surgically implanted a slab of concrete and a blinding pain ran from her neck down her spine. Her shoes were missing, toes numb, the sides of her feet scrapped along the busted edge of the tarmac as she rose crooked and wobbly onto two weak legs. It was a horrible dream, unspooling limbs for the audience of the blackbirds. Nothing was clear, nothing was familiar. A dull ringing filled Jamie’s ears and she felt cold. Bitter and deep, that sprang from her center. Jamie Lund felt the cold that no one ever feels, but which, we’re all made to visit. Somewhere vaguely in the coils of her mind the little lost dead girl was reminded that it was July. Its not supposed to be this cold out! Slowly, Jamie wrapped her arms across her chest and lumbered toward the distant lights of the city.

Might I say that you are truly an author who knows how to wrap one's soul around emotion. I will be reviewing Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie Tale of Revenge very soon. It's one book that I am dying to read. =) Where can your fans go to find more information about you and your books?
www.bitemereallyhard.com – affectionately known as BMRH. You can go beyond the books, download art and other fun stuff, read short stories and poetry, see artwork and illustrations, get tips on how to survive the zombie apocalypse, keep track of conventions and shows, buy cool stuff at the Arti(s)fact Store, and generally peek behind the wizard’s curtain to see how the magic happens.

Is there anything else additional you would like to share with your readers?
Thank you for reading. I will write more.

Interview and Contest with author Stephanie Amox

2011-03-01T05:34:00.000-08:00

Tell us a little about yourself.I am a huge hockey fan. We have season tickets to the Dallas Stars and watch games on tv whenever possible. I have two children, Caitlin – age 17 and Brady – age 10. Caitlin has been involved in competitive cheer for almost 10 years and Brady plays select ice hockey. My husband, Mike, is my cheerleader and drill sergeant all rolled into one. He picks me up when I’m feeling down and whips me into shape when I’d like to slack off. I’ve always lived in the North Texas area and absolutely love it here.

How long have you been writing?I have doodled on the edges of paper for years. I talked about a storyline I had in my head for years and my husband finally convinced me to sit down and get it onto paper.

What inspired you to write your new release, Painfully Ordinary?My kids are a huge inspiration for me. How can I tell them to shoot for the stars and chase their dream, if I’m not willing to do it myself? Having them around and experiencing their interactions with their friends first-hand make the conversations between my characters much easier to write and more believable.

What is the strongest character voice you have had while writing?Caitlin is by far my strongest character voice. I wanted her to be independent and strong-willed – able to stand on her own two feet. At this point, her personality is so developed, I can almost hear her voice when I am writing.

What are your future projects?Painfully Ordinary began as a single book. However, the characters simply weren’t done telling their story and since – 2 additional books will be released. The second book in the series, Family Secrets, will pick up where Painfully Ordinary left over. Many questions will be answered and a few new questions will arise. I believe the fans will enjoy the second book even more than the first.

After hours of intense writing, how do you unwind?Unwind? What’s that? Seriously though, I have a hammock in my back yard and love to spend time there just relaxing. Sadly enough, my brain keeps on firing and those “relaxation” moments usually end up triggering a writing marathon.

How many books do you have in print/e-book now?Right now Painfully Ordinary is the book in the series to be released. Family Secrets is tentatively set for a Fall/Winter 2011 release.

Would you leave us with an excerpt, video, blurb?
Excerpt from Painfully Ordinary:
I tapped my pencil on the edge of my desk, impatiently waiting for Mr. Von to start class. Sometimes I wondered how he managed to get himself dressed in the morning. Suddenly, my pencil slipped out of my hand, rolled off the edge of my desk and clattered to the floor.
Crap.
I bent down to pick it up and found myself looking into the face of the most stunning guy I had ever seen. He had rugged good looks, instead of being the “pretty-boy” male model type. Vin Diesel might have some competition for my attention with this guy.
Holy crap! This must be one of the guys Leah was talking about this morning. Whew, she wasn’t exaggerating. No wonder she was all wound up.
I had no idea how long my internal monologue went on, but I realized he was still holding my pencil out for me.
“Thanks.” I mumbled, blushing to the tips of my ears.
Oh man! Why hadn’t I straightened my hair this morning and worn something cute?
Tami turned around looking at me through narrowed eyes. I heard her laugh and then mutter “retard”.
I had never been able to stand her, so I just stared and raised an eyebrow in challenge. She looked from me back to where he was sitting directly behind her, and it wasn’t until that point I realized he was still watching me.
Tami turned all the way around in her chair and placed her hand lightly on his arm, giving him a bright smile.
“Oh, you’ll have to excuse Caitlin,” she said in a sickeningly-sweet, baby voice and giggled. “She is just so uncoordinated.”
Oh, no she didn’t! Who was she calling uncoordinated? Unfortunately, my emotions tend to show all over my face. When I’m pissed, everyone knows it, and I was all kinds of pissed at her. She looked me in the eyes, daring me to do something. Normally, I would just blow her off. I really don’t care what she thinks, and quite frankly, she is a waste of energy. However, this time, something inside me snapped. Perhaps it was the whole lack of sleep thing again. I turned back to face the newcomer, giving him my brightest smile. He looked startled and gave me a grin in return that took my breath away.
“Oh, ignore Tami. She’s just mad because someone dropped a house on her sister.”
He looked down at the floor and, to his credit, didn’t actually laugh, but I saw his shoulders shake.
Tami glared at me.
“Caitlin, you are such a freak.” Leaning closer to me and dropping her voice, she continued. “You can just forget about him. He won’t want some little nobody like you. He will be mine. I’ll tell Ryan you were looking at him, and that will be the end of that, won’t it?”
This was exactly the kind of thing that always set Ryan off. Ex-boyfriends are the absolute worst. She fixed a fake smile on her face and turned back to the newcomer.
Tami always used the exact same tactics, and he would probably fall for it just like all the others before him–and believe me, there were plenty before him. I turned just in time to see him scowl and remove her hand from his arm. I laughed out loud, couldn’t help myself. He turned, giving me a conspiratorial wink. Mr. Von decided to start class at that exact moment, so I never got to see her final reaction, but I could assume it wasn’t good, since this was the second time he had blown her off. Throughout class, I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. I felt someone watching me, but the only person sitting behind me was the new guy. I really needed to find out his name, so I could stop referring to him as “the new guy”.
Why would he be looking at me? I am painfully ordinary. A guy like that could have anyone he wanted.
I couldn’t figure him out. Then I experienced a moment of sheer panic, remembering how I had left the house in such a rush that morning.
I seriously hoped I didn’t have some sort of Alfalfa-thing going on with the back of my hair.
I rubbed my necklace between my fingers, as I always do when I’m upset. It’s a dark-gray stone cut into a unique pattern, like a flame, held on a long, black cord. My mom gave it to me when I turned sixteen, and made me promise to wear it every day. I never take it off, except when I’m at tumbling. The stone has been worn smooth by the constant rubbing, as holding it always relaxes me.
The bell rang, signaling the end of class. I must have completely lost track of time, but what else was new?
Tami got up from the desk placing her arm in new-guy’s . She looked up at him, batted her eyelashes and said, “Talon, will you walk me to second period?”
I rolled my eyes.
Sorry, I am meeting up with Jace,” His voice was deep and smooth and he had the bluest eyes I had ever seen. He fixed his gaze on my necklace then smiled, pivoted on his heel, and left the room.
A trill of laughter escaped my lips. Strike three.
Tami’s face turned an ugly shade of purple. She threw her purse over her shoulder and glared at me.
“I’ll say hi to Ryan for you.”
Crap. This is exactly why I don’t normally banter with her. It’s just not worth the trouble in the end. She was really going to make me pay for this. I laid my head on my desk and waited for the ground to open and swallow me whole.

Do you have any internet site that fans can stay in contact with you? Twitter, Face Book, My Space, etc.Painfully Ordinary has a Facebook fan page. I check it regularly and respond to comments and answer questions as often as possible. You can also reach us on Twitter at painfullyordin.

Face Book:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Painfully-Ordinary-by-Stephanie-Amox/236354753901?sk=wall
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/painfullyordin

Interview and contest with Melanie Nowak

2011-02-14T20:43:00.000-08:00

Interview with Melanie Nowak

Author of the venomous vampire series ALMOST HUMAN

Important Note: If blogger will not allow you to post, please email me your questions and comments and I will post them myself. I am sorry for the inconvenience this may cause you, but please don't hesitate in joining the conversation.

Email: trinagon@bellsouth.net

After the interview post your comments to enter Melanie's contest for a chance to win a free signed set of Almost Human~The First Trilogy. (International entrants will have to pay shipping)

Tell us a little about yourself.

Melanie: I am a happily married mom of 2 boys. My wonderful husband and I have shared almost 20 years together, and we are a very close family. We live on Long Island in N.Y., but hope to be moving upstate into the Catskill mountains very soon.

As far as things you can’t read off the back of the book cover in “About the Author”… basically I just love fantasy – I love it. Whenever possible, my childhood was spent roaming the forest alone imagining that I was a shape shifter or a faery. When I was at home or at school, I was buried in a fantasy book or daydreaming out the window.

Now that I’m supposed to be a grown-up (LOL), I can be a practical mom, keeping everything on schedule (mostly) and running smoothly, doing what needs to be done. I do very much love spending time with my family. We have great fun together and I feel very blessed in my life; but at heart, I am still a dreamer. I always will be. Having the opportunity to escape into my fantasies while writing ALMOST HUMAN is a passionate obsession I greatly treasure.

How long have you been writing?

Melanie: I never thought that I would be a writer! As a child I was forever playing “Let’s Pretend”, and throughout school, I was an avid reader who aspired to be a singer and actress. I always had a creative imagination for stories, but I wanted to act and live them, not write them!

Although still very active in drama classes during college, I became a teacher. Eventually I received my Masters in Library and Information Science to be a school librarian, but after my children were born, I was fortunate to be able to stay home with them. During the day while doing housework, I found myself thinking up ideas for venomous vampires, and a story involving characters I created. It was unlike anything else I had seen or read, and I felt badly to think that my ideas would just be forgotten. So one night, I sat at the computer and decided to just write them down for myself. That was the first time I ever wrote something that was not a school paper, but a work purely for entertainment. Before I knew it, I'd been writing for hours! It started in a sort of ‘screen-play’ format, because I was used to dealing with that in my drama classes, but I soon started expanding on that to add the characters’ thoughts, and I eventually converted it to a novel. So I guess I started writing at the age of 34… call me a late bloomer :-)

I wrote the books originally for myself, so although I copyrighted them in 2004, they were not officially introduced to the public until I put them on Kindle in 2008. The series was then released in print in 2009.

What inspired you to write your Almost Human series?

Melanie: A few things came together to bring ALMOST HUMAN to life. I’ve always been interested in bats. Vampire bats have a anticoagulant in their saliva called “draculin” (named after Count Dracula!) that keeps blood from clotting. I had the idea that such a thing would be useful for vampires as well. It would also be useful if they had something to keep the victim calm, like a drug.

I always wondered about a vampire’s ability to put victims in thrall. In old movies, vampires are always able to hypnotize people, and it’s never really explained. People are just ‘under their power’. I always wondered – why? How does it work? I put those questions together with the anticoagulant/drug idea, and took it further. What if vampires could inject their victims with venom – like a snake? Only the venom would not be deadly poison, but a combination of drugs that kept blood from clotting, kept the victim calm and even willing, and also could mark territory for the vampire, leaving a mark that other vampires could see. The vampire could then use the existence of this ‘drug’ in their victim’s system, to put them in thrall as well.

The idea of venomous vampires seemed so logical to me, that I assumed for sure that someone else had done it already. I began searching my library for a book like that, so I could read it! This was probably in the late 80’s and there weren’t very many vampire books around at that time. I never found what I was looking for, and I filed the idea away. It never occurred to me to write it myself, LOL.

Around that time, I had discovered Anne Rice’s vampire chronicles and absolutely loved them. That was the first time I read something from the vampire’s point of view. The way that she captured emotions and described surroundings was mesmerizing to me, and I really connected with her story. I’m also a huge fan of the T.V. series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”. Joss Whedon is a genius! That said - towards the end of the show, I started disliking some decisions the writers made. I understood their vision, but I also saw missed opportunities. I would have done things differently.

That started me thinking of my own storylines and my own characters, incorporating my venomous vampire idea. None of this was written down, just daydreamed during housework. Then one day I realized that a lot of the ideas I had were really good, and it depressed me to think that it would all just be forgotten. So, I sat down one night at the computer, to write out a few things so I wouldn’t forget, and could look back at them one day. The scenes just came pouring out and before I knew it, I’d been up writing almost the whole night! That’s when I realized that I had a real story to tell, and wanted to write it all out from beginning to end. That is how my ALMOST HUMAN vampires were born.

What is the strongest character voice you have had while writing?

Melanie: Each of these characters has been taken from the seed of something within myself. I’ve been lucky enough in my life never to have been sexually abused or addicted to drugs, but everything that goes into making up the personalities for my characters, how they feel and react to things, has come from some little grain of dealing with something in my own life - magnified. At some point in my life I have totally identified with and "been" these people. Even if it didn't outwardly show, this is how I felt and wanted to react. Writing through my characters is extremely cathartic for me, and I feel each of them very strongly when writing for them.

Outwardly I’m sure my friends and family would say I am most like Felicity. Physically, I’ve modeled her after myself; intellectually and emotionally she is very much the girl that I was at that age. I was usually pretty quiet and shy, constantly reading my fantasies rather than trying to live them out. Because of that, I identify very closely with Felicity, but I have to admit that it’s often more fun to write for my other ladies, Allie and Sindy. They are the characters that will tend towards the ‘unexpected’ in a scene; times where I will suddenly know that they will do something I hadn’t planned on, but that is their nature and what I need to let them do. Allie is much more sassy and daring than I have ever been in life, and Sindy… well let’s just say it; She can be an evil bitch – and who wouldn’t think that was fun to write? Sindy was my most insolent character, as far as straying from her planned story.

I plan out the general outline of my books well in advance of writing a single word. There will be 12 books to the series, and I do have them all loosely outlined at this point (Including a 13^th book that will be a spin-off novel). There are times the story evolves a little differently as I write it, but it never truly strays from the overall outline. I have some complexly intertwined storylines leading from one book to the next, and one trilogy to the next, some of which have not even really been introduced yet, but have seeds and foundations sown throughout all of the prior books. To change anything drastically would alter the overall plan for the entire series.

When I write, I get very immersed in my characters, often going over a ‘scene’ several times, to look at it from each characters perspective, and be sure their actions and words ring true. Sometimes I make a choice because I know it’s what one character would do – but it messes things up for the other characters. I find myself very against altering an event once envisioned; to change something feels like a lie – like I am not telling what really happened. So I relate the events as I first envision them, forcing the other characters to adapt and react as they must. Eventually things come back to the original outline again, they’ve just taken an alternate path than I first planned. Difficult occurrences are opportunities to show character growth. Things don’t always happen the way we expect them to in life, and we have to learn to deal with that.

What are your future projects?

Melanie: I have been thinking about my characters and their story for years, and have already planned their future for many books to come. I have decided to write my ALMOST HUMAN series as a succession of trilogies. The series will continue chronologically with the same characters throughout, but each trilogy will have a new focus and storyline that follows through its three books.

Writing the series as a succession of trilogies gives readers the opportunity to feel a sense of completion during points in the story, even though the series will still continue for many books to come. I have planned 4 trilogies for the ALMOST HUMAN series, meaning 12 books in all, and then I have plans for a spin off novel, which may result in a series of its own.

At the moment there are 4 books available in the series, and I am now writing Volume 2: Descendant of Darkness, for the second trilogy, and hope to release that book later this year.

After hours of intense writing, how do you unwind?

Melanie: I spend time with my husband and kids when I’m not writing. We have video game tournaments, and enjoy outdoor activities like hiking, canoeing and skiing. I also make beaded bracelets (stringing beads is very relaxing) and I breed tropical fish for pet stores. My other favorite recreational activity is singing. I sing all the time around the house, and once in a rare while I will slip away for a girls night out of karaoke.

How many books do you have in print/e-book now?

Currently there are 4 books available for the series, all of them out in paperback and e-book:

ALMOST HUMAN ~ The First Trilogy

Volume 1: Fatal Infatuation

Volume 2: Lost Reflections

Volume 3: Evolving Ecstasy

ALMOST HUMAN ~ The Second Trilogy

Volume 1: Born to Blood

ALMOST HUMAN ~ The First Trilogy was featured in the New Title Showcase of Book Expo America in May 2010. At that time, the series became available Internationally in ebook and paperback, online and in your local bookstore – if it’s not on the shelf – ask for it!

You can purchase ALMOST HUMAN online through Amazon at:

http://www.amazon.com/Melanie-Nowak/e/B002BRGYWS/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Or at a discount through my website, where you can also read free sample chapters:

http://www.MelanieNowak.com

What else would you like to share with us?

Melanie: ALMOST HUMAN is an independently published series, meaning that I handle every single aspect of it completely by myself with no outside help. There are of course pros and cons to that: I don’t have financial backing for a large promotional campaign, and I’m called upon to do things for the books that I don’t have much experience with, but it has been an incredible journey for me, and I am extremely proud to be able to present my vision for the series to readers without it being changed to suit the ideas and formats of a publisher. This series is my raw emotional relation of these characters and their lives.

Like most of my readers, I am a working mom with humble ambitions. However, I have this story inside of me that is just burning to be told, so I am following my heart and putting it down on paper to share with others. As a reader, my favorite aspect of a story is being able to connect with a character or idea and take it with me after I’ve finished the book. As a writer, I hope that my story resonates with my readers, and gives them something to take with them in life – an interesting new idea, a comforting thought, or even just a friend to take off the shelf and visit when you need them.

My favorite quote that really sums up the part books have played for me in life:

"Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers." ~Charles W. Eliot

I hope that my characters are a ‘constant friend’ to others as they are to me.

Would you leave us an excerpt, video, blurb?

Melanie: I would be happy to. Here is a little excerpt from the first book of the ALMOST HUMAN series:

Taken from chapter 5 of FATAL INFATUATION

------------------------------------------------------------

Felicity hadn’t seen Cain since that night. She kept telling herself that was a good thing (he’s a vampire stupid!), but in a strange way, she was kind of disappointed. Now that she had gotten over the initial shock of it all, she felt terrible. This was not some nameless creature of the night, lurking in wait for her. He was a real person; and even though he frightened her, she couldn’t help but feel that somehow she was the one who had betrayed his trust.

Cain said he had thought she’d known what he was. Could it be, that he hadn’t sought to deceive her at all? She knew she ought to worry that it was all part of some elaborate lie, but somehow she just couldn’t bring herself to believe that. It wasn’t even really what he said, but more the look in his eyes. It hurt him that she was frightened, she knew it did. She was almost anxious to see him again. The other night felt surreal, but to see him again, without the moonlight and the drama; would he look the same to her? Would there be warning bells going off in her head?

Felicity sat down on the floor behind the counter, next to the box of recently arrived romance fantasy novels. She pulled one out to look at the cover. It depicted a knight in shining armor on his noble steed, standing over a fallen dragon. Behind him rode his fair damsel, no doubt recently rescued from distress. If only life were that simple. How did she know the knight was any safer than the dragon? At least the dragon was forthright in its intent.

She put down the book. This train of thought was getting her nowhere. Time to get some work done. She straightened up from behind the counter and let out a yelp of surprise. He was standing right there. Cain.

He tried not to smile. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”

“Well…” She was annoyed that he had caught her off guard. “I had finally stopped expecting to see you every time I turned around,” she said defensively. She studied him a moment. No alarms in her head, just her heart trying to pound out of her chest. He seemed quiet, a little sad. “You haven’t been here the last few nights.”

He gave a little shrug. “I thought it best if I stayed away.”

“Then why are you here now?” she asked him archly.

“There aren’t very many places to go in this town at night, and I don’t like crowds.”

“Well, if you don’t like the town, why do you stay?”

“I’m not finished,” he stated matter of factly.

“Finished with what?” She realized that she was firing a barrage of questions at him, but she couldn’t help it.

He raised an eyebrow at her directness. “Something I set out to do.”

She let out an exasperated sigh, rolling her eyes. “Fine, be all cryptic and mysterious. Does that mean you didn’t come in here to see me?”

He had to smile. “Well, now that is a loaded question, isn’t it? I think I’ll decline to answer for now, for I do need your help.”

She leaned toward him over the counter and lowered her voice, looking around to see if anyone was near. “Are you looking for the other vampires?”

He looked at her quizzically. “No,” he answered in a conspiratorial whisper, “I’m looking... for a book.”

She leaned back, feeling pretty silly. “There’s an OPAC computer right behind you. Just type in the author and title.”

“Yes, the thing is… computers, they don’t really like me. Besides, my typing is horrific. Help me out?”

Felicity looked at him in assessment. If she didn’t know better she would think he was just a regular guy, trying to get a little extra attention. She wished she knew what was really going on in his head. She let out a little sigh, and decided to play along. “Fine,” she said with a tight smile. Perhaps he really did need her help; and if not, a little flirting never hurt anyone, right? She came around from behind the counter to the computer. He turned to look over her shoulder as she addressed the keyboard. “Author?”

“Max Lucado.”

“Title?”

“It’s not about me.” She gave him a questioning glance. “That’s the name of the book, I swear,” he said, smiling innocently.

She entered it. “That’s weird, it’s in the Christian section.”

“That makes sense, it’s a Christian book.”

Now she turned fully to stare at him. “Are you kidding?”

“Is that a problem?”

“Not for me it isn’t. But... what if there’s a big cross on the cover?”

“Guess I’ll have to wear gloves,” he said with a twinkle in his eye.

He made her think of a remembered line from Alice in Wonderland... ‘Curiouser and curiouser’. “So what, you’re like… a religious vampire?” He smiled, but before he could answer, she remembered something. “Your tattoo!”

“What about it?” He almost sounded self-conscious, very unlike him so far.

“Genesis... what was it?”

“Genesis 4:7,” he admitted

“That’s from The Bible, right? Was that from, before you... died?”

“They didn’t do much tattooing back in 1692,” he said with a little grin.

That took a minute to register. “Wait; did you say 16, like in 16 hundred and 92?” He gave her a little nod. “But that would make you over 300 years old!”

“Truth be told, I’m 340. What’s the matter, don’t you like older men?” he asked playfully.

She had a hard time assimilating that, so decided to put it away for later thought. “What is it?” She gestured toward his arm, though it was covered by a light denim jacket at the moment.

“A reminder.”

“So what’s it mean?”

“I think it’s pretty self explanatory,” She gave him a blank stare. “Been neglecting your studies have you?”

“It wasn’t in my curriculum,” she said with a sarcastic smirk.

“Shameful, that. Then let me enlighten you,” he said, with a resigned sigh. “The Lord is speaking to Cain, and says ‘If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.’ Something I thought worth remembering.”

She pondered that a moment. “I’m assuming you’re not the original, so what kind of name is Cain, anyway?”

“One that fits,” he said with a little shrug.

“But not the one you were born with?” He gave his head a little shake. “So what’s your given name?”

He looked into her eyes, and then wrinkled his nose at her. “I forget.”

She laughed. “I know you’re supposed to be one of the ‘Great Pretenders’ and all, but for a vampire, you’re a really rotten liar.”

“I can accept that. Are you going to get me my book, or do I have to cry prejudice?”

“One Christian book, coming up. Maybe I should have you pay first, in case you make it burst into flames or something.”

“Very funny. It’s true words can carry power, but not in that way. Perhaps I should point out the fact that my arm is still here, burn free.”

He followed her to the book in question. No cross on the cover, just a pretty sunset, or maybe it was sunrise. Would that be scary to a vampire? Too weird. She led him back to the register where she scanned the book and handed it over. “$14.95.”

He gave her a twenty. “Keep the change; call it a tip for friendly service.”

She put his change on the counter. “I’m not allowed to accept tips.”

“Then consider it payback for ice cream accepted under false pretenses.” He broke eye contact to look down at his book, as she recalled the night he’d bought her the ice cream. Had he really thought she’d known what he was? She felt bad for being so freaked the other night, even if it was justified.

She studied him for a moment as he read the inside jacket cover of the book. He looked like an ordinary guy. Okay well, maybe not ordinary. He looked like an extremely attractive guy. Early twenties probably, broad shoulders, very nice build. His hair fell down into his eyes as he looked at the book and he absently swiped it aside, although it fell back again almost immediately. He was a little pale, but he certainly didn’t look supernatural. He looked up from the book to find her staring at him. She quickly searched for something to say. “I suppose you’ll be taking it over to the cafe?”

“Mr. predictable, that’s me.”

“Right.” She had an odd thought as she swept the change from the counter into her pocket. “Do you actually drink coffee, or is that just for show?”

He seemed to find her question amusing. She supposed such a direct question might be considered rude, but she couldn’t help but wonder. “I can drink what I like.”

She came out from behind the register and began walking him over to the cafe. She noticed Ben staring, but ignored him. The presence of the man beside her commanded her full attention. “So what do you do besides drink coffee and read?”

He looked a little sobered by that one. “Fight.”

“Other vampires?” she asked quietly.

He eyed her seductively. “Temptation mostly.” She wasn’t sure whether to melt or shudder.

------------------------------------------------------------

Do you have any other internet sites that fans can stay in contact with you? Twitter, Facebook, My Space, etc.

Melanie: I love being able to keep in touch with readers!

There is a group page for the series on facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=88000657954

You can also find links to my personal pages on facebook, Twitter, MySpace & Goodreads in the “About the Author” section of my own website, where I post series updates, and I also have book discussion forums and ask the author message boards! Become a member for free at:

www.MelanieNowak.com

Thank you, Melanie for being our guest author for this month. Best of luck with your books.

It has been my pleasure! I would sincerely like to thank Amy of Ramsey’s Reviews for giving me the opportunity to introduce everyone to my venomous vamps! Thanks for having me & happy reading!

~ Melanie Nowak

Post your comments below. If blogger will not allow you to post a comment then email me at trinagon@bellsouth.net with your comment and I will post it myself. I am truly sorry for the inconvenience.

Interview with K.A. M'Lady

2011-02-14T20:39:00.001-08:00

www.kamlady.net

Welcome, K.A. M'Lady, to Ramsey's Reviews. I am happy to have you with us today. I have read several books in your Faith Savage series, and let me tell you, I love them. What a great idea you have centered around Angels and Archangels. Faith Savage is such a strong and determined protagonist and your two rivals fighting over her attention really steams things up. Now, let's get to the questions because I am dying to find out more.

How long have you been writing?

I've been writing as long as I can remember, really. My mom recently had brunch for the holidays with some old childhood friends and even they commented that I was always writing -- even as a kid. It's something I've always loved - words. They take us to such wonderful places. Help us escape, create, dream. Inspire us to greater things. I've always thought there has to be more to life and there is -- I just have to create it...

How many books/e-books do you have published?

Wow, you're going to make me go look this one up. Um, let's see -- since I took that first leap I've had published 4 novels, 9 novellas, and 2 poetry chapbooks. I've also been included in 2 anthologies and recently put together 2 additional anthologies - one being for charity for the Armed Forces Children's Education Fund, and I've have had approximately 30+ poems published locally and on the internet.

How did you come up with the idea of Faith Savage and her ability to mingle with the angels of Light and Darkness?

I don't think it was so much of an idea of mingling with the angels of Light and Darkness as more of a matter of fact. It goes back to that savage faith thing. When I was sorting out the idea of Faith and what I wanted her story to portray it was a bit personal. More of 'what leads us to have or not have a savage faith.' And no, this isn't a 'get on my soapbox and make you a believer.' It's more a question -- what happens in each of our lives that gets us through the darkness kind of thing. What or who has gotten me/us through the dark times? And believe me, we all go through them. Most days I swear Murphy sits outside my house, leaning against my porch, legs casually crossed, smoking his cigarette and blowing smoke rings into the cold morning air, waiting for me to walk outside so he can stalk me -- the rotten s.o.b. Tell me he's not a demon in disguise.

So, I wondered, if I were to write about a character who'd been through hell but God had a master plan for her what would she choose to do about it. (Free will and all.) And does He have this sort of plan for all of us -- even the non-believers? I know, sort of deep. But it's things like that I wonder about sometimes.

I've always been fascinated by faith and religion and what people believe and don't believe and the why's behind things. And I find it fascinating that in every culture in the world that angels and demons have a reference - long before the onset of Christianity. It's things like that which spark my imagination.

Give us some behind-the-scene information on how you come up with your stories and the process of the books development.

Some of my stories just steamroll me. Rihker from my Realm series was like that. I'll get a name or an opening blurb and I'll have to write it down and before I know it the first page or chapter is written. Sometimes I have no idea where some of this comes from. I've tons of story ideas and not enough time to sit down and write them - full time job and all. But the day will come eventually that I can just sit with my laptop and write away. Then my publisher should be worried if she can keep up - .

As far as how the stories progress; I generally don't do story plots. It's just not my thing. I tried it once and I literally felt like my characters were laughing at me. Saying, "yeah, riiiight. We are soooo not doing that." So, I tend to have the idea of where the story starts, where I want it to progress, and how I want it to end. I get to a chapter and have an idea of what I would like to happen. The rest of the time I let the characters and my story lead me. It's a whole lot more fun that way. And I get to be surprised when I get to the end, too. Usually by the time I get to the finished product I'm completely amazed that this was something I accomplished. That this was a story that I, in fact, wrote. The whole process is amazing and I'm always grateful for the gift.

The main heroine, Faith Savage, is a head-strong and independent character. How do you identify yourself with your characters as you create them?

I'm a Taurus, so I'm completely head-strong and stubborn. I don't think I'd be capable of writing a whiny, wimpy, floor-mat of a character. It's not in my nature. I suppose I could try - write the opposite - but they'd not be able to be my heroine. I think a heroine can have their flaws, have their weak spots and moments of tenderness. But to me, heroines plunder on, drive through, never say die and never give up -- even if they want to. They can cry, they can groan but they just can't quit.

Who is the most difficult character you have written thus far?

I don't think I have any one character that is any more difficult than any other. The creatures in Realm keep me busy as there are so many. From Rihker, who is a half-breed human-pixie that is becoming so much more than that. To the Trolls, Ogres, Vamps, Were-creatures and so on. I have to keep a list of them. Their names, features, powers. Rihker's Tells grow with each new story in the series so I keep a list. I hate reading series that in one book the character has blue eyes and is a Werewolf and in the next the author has forgotten and the character has green eyes and has suddenly become a Were-jaguar.

I'll probably have to start making a list for Faith and her crew as the series progresses. But for now there are still just a handful to keep track of.

What are your future projects for this year?

I just released for Christmas the Just Another Paranormal Christmas Anthology (for Charity) and my story, Once Upon A Dragon, so I'm still in promo mode for it. Then later this year - early spring I'm hoping - I'll have the next three installments in my Faith Savage series released. Book 5 ~ The Ash Collector, Book 6 ~ Wicked's Kiss and Book 7 ~ Sinner. All of the proceeds from the sales of Book 7 ~ Sinner will go to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters so I'm very excited about the release of it.

Other than that I'm just working. Right now I'm working on the completion of Realm - Book IV ~ Blood Oaths - Warrior Rising. Then it's on to my story titled, Bride -- kind of a twist in the Bride of Frankenstein story but a bit more contemporary and a bit darker. I haven't quite sorted all of it out yet. She's still in the rough stages. I'm also working on Tiffany Trance and the Temple of the Dog Mummy; an archeological, time-travel, fantasy series. Tiffany is fun, horribly book smart but absolutely lacking in the street-smart department. She gets herself in all kinds of trouble in all sorts of different time periods. And lastly, I'll be wrapping up my year with another installment for Faith Savage - Book 8 ~ Messenger.

I know that's a lot but I'm, a planner from hell, and I like a challenge. If I'm not busy I'm bored. Besides, this keeps me out of trouble.

Do you have any other internet sites that fans can stay in contact with you? Twitter, Facebook, etc.

You can find info about me and my work on my website - http://www.kamlady.net on Myspace - www.myspace.com/kamlady or on my blog - The Otherworld - http://kamladyotherworld.blogspot.com/

and of course you can hook-up with me at Facebook under K.a. M'Lady. Or just send me an email - I always respond to all of my mail - mladyfair12@yahoo.com

Where can readers find your books to buy?

The easiest place to buy my books is direct from my publisher - Mojocastle Press - http://www.mojocastle.com

I'm also at All Romance eBooks, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and of course links are on my website - www.kamlady.net.

Thanks so very much, Amy for letting me spend time with you and your readers today. I had a great time.

K.A. M'Lady, It's been my pleasure having you here. Thank you for your time.

Contest

Starting Jan. 15th and Ending Jan. 31st.

One lucky commenter will win 2 of the Faith Savage stories: The prequel to Faith Savage~Temptation and the first book~Faith Savage: Demon Huntress. These are a great addition to anyone's TBR pile and you will enjoy them. I know I have!

All you need to do to enter is post a message. If you want 5 extra entries into the contest, then spread the word of this event to your friends and family on different social medias: Facebook, Twitter, My Space, etc. and email me to let me know.

trinagon@bellsouth.net

Until then, good luck and happy reading!!!