The Dandridge Estate

Friday Flash -- I Knew I Was In Trouble When...

2012-03-08T18:45:00.000-06:00

It's one of those nights.

No, not really -- I don't really know what kind of night this one's gonna be. I haven't had one like it before, though. I'm sure about that.

It all started with that bottle of wine I shared with my neighbor, Rainbow. Yeah, her parents were hippies. Red wine, the only kind we wine snobs drink in winter (we save white for summer. Hey -- I said we were snobs.). This was a new brand, kinda like that "Vampire" wine, which the store is ALWAYS sold out of, but this one promised to be just as good if not better. "Nosferatu". Yeah, I know, I had my doubts, and I knew I was in trouble when the cork crumbled halfway out of the bottle, but it was a long day and I was so looking forward to kicking back with a glass and chatting with Rainbow...

While waiting the 5 minutes for the wine to breathe (I know, we needed to wait longer, but Rainbow and I are never big on patience!), I perused the back label. "First pour from a bottle corked tight, and you shall have an endless night!" Wow, stealing from Shakespeare to promote wine -- gotta love it! Hoped it wouldn't taste as bad as Lambrusco.

It didn't. Not at all. It was surprisingly good, and we both loved it. The whole bottle, and then the second bottle (which was supposed to be for next week). Totally regretted it, when the sun hit my eyes the next morning. I wore my shades all the way into my work building and even into my cubicle, not even bothering to turn on the desk lamp. Damn overhead lights were so bright!!

And I was so thirsty! All day long, couldn't get enough water. Weirdest thing -- my headache got worse as the day went on, the more water I drank. Usually, hangover headaches got better with the H20 consumption. Halfway through the day, my boss got a look at me and sent me home. "Don't be bringing that flu in here. Jesus! You look terrible! Go home and get some rest, and keep whatever germs you have to yourself!"

That was perfect, because I was feeling really tired. Like, totally dragging tired. My throat was getting sore, too. Great -- strep? Flu? And that closing on Friday, followed by Rainbow's big birthday bash. Awesome, I get sick now?

Not so awesome was the 2 o'clock sun -- I wore two pairs of sunglasses on the way home, my eyes hurt so bad. So here I am, holed up in my bedroom on a gorgeous June day, birds singing outside, driving me insane because my head can't stop pounding!

Oh wait -- that's the door. It's Stephen, Rainbow's boyfriend. She's not doing so well at all, either, and he's here to borrow some aspirin.

"Ok," I mumble, backing away from the door. "Come on in."

"What the hell are you doing wearing sunglasses in your apartment? Shit! It's so dark in here, you don't need them. Ow! What the fu-- aw, great, I'm bleeding. Hey," he held up his and, and I could see the beautiful, ruby-red liquid running down it, even in the darkness, even in my shades. Such a delicious shade of red...

"Don't just stand there, dumbass!" he yelled. "Get me a band-aid, or a tourniquet!"

God, I am so thirsty.

Flash Friday -- The Chair

2012-02-10T09:00:00.001-06:00

What on earth am I doing here? I know dealers got some quirks, but really – dead pig fetuses in a jar?! Too freakin’ freaky…

“I don’t he likes our collection, Slink,” the guy in the corner laughed. Mick, that was his name, or nickname, more likely, as this business dealt in fake identities and anonymity.

“Nah, it ain’t that, man,” Joe replied, casually turning his head to hide his lying. “It’s just been a while since science class, ya know? Ha ha,” he laughed, shaking off the feeling that the eyeballs in the glass beaker were really staring at him.

“Yeah,” Mick said, counting the dollars Joe had just handed him. “Why don’t you have a seat, Joe?” Moe nodded to a leather chair in the corner. Right past a collection of dead spiders, pinned to corkboard, hanging on the wall.

“Uh, sure,” although Joe was anything but. Gotta keep up appearances, though, and he was certain he was doing that. He’d always been a good actor; he didn’t even break a sweat when he was nervous, and no funny hand or eye movements, no ticks to betray him.

So I’ll sit, Joe thought, moseying over to the chair, pausing to look at the giant tarantula hanging on the wall, making sure his face displayed awe, not fear.

“You just relax, man. That’s right, take a load off,” Slink encouraged, moving over to the table where Mick sat. “Comfortable, ain’t it?”

Joe had to agree – the chair was very comfortable, surprisingly comfortable. It was an armchair, stuffed, but firm in the seat so he didn’t sink into oblivion. The back, however, was like a pillow. Joe imagined sitting on a cloud must feel this way.

And the leather, oh the leather! Soft, like velvet – softer even. Buttery, melting against his skin. Supple, not old, or dry. Joe felt the idea forming in his head when he saw Mick count the last dollar in the pile.

“Hey, where’d you guys get this chair, and how much does it cost?” Joe asked.

“Knew it; he likes our chair, Mick,” Slink grinned.

“They all do,” Mick agreed, nodding without lifting his head to look. He was focused on measuring the granules on the scale.

“Yeah, shit – this leather – what kinda leather is this? Seal? Chinchilla?”

Laughter erupted from the table, scattering some dollars and shaking powder from the scales.

“Nah, Joe – something a big more special,” Mick answered.

“Yeah?” Joe said, running his finger down the length of the arm. “So what is it? And is it expensive?”

Silence. The guys were being cagey. Silence was a rule in this industry, but over a chair? Really? Joe let his impatience show, rolling his eyes, glancing from the white package on the table to the doorway where Slick now stood.

“It’s human.” Mick said, looking Joe dead in the eyes.

“Huh?!”

“The chair you’re sitting on, the chair you want to buy. It’s made from human leather.”

“Yeah,” Slick said, drawing the gun from behind his back and pointing it directly at Joe. “And I think we need an ottoman to match.”

Friday Flash -- Mardi Gras Memories!

2012-01-28T15:03:00.003-06:00

Hey Gang -- there's great stuff this week over at Vamplit -- click to find out!!!

Mardi Gras Memories, (C) Nicole Hadaway 2012

And so it begins, the Mardi Gras madness…. she thought.

“Damn!” Kit exclaimed aloud, as large, pink plastic beads nearly whacked the side of her head.

Really! Can this holiday be any more ridiculous? Year after year, drunkenness, beads, boobs – get a life and get over it, people!

None of that was said aloud, of course, as Kit didn’t have the guts to anger the two beer-soaked frat boys standing right next to her, waiting for the float to pass so that they could cross the street. Krewe d’Etat wasn’t as famous as the Muses, Komus, or Bacchus parades, but it still drew large crowds on the Friday before Mardi Gras.

They should all just wrap themselves up and take it elsewhere. Brazil. Away from where I live, for sure.

Now, where’s my apartment again? St. Charles and … which cross-street?

“Can’t remember where you live, eh?” the old, fat gentleman behind her said. She’d not noticed him before, but there he was, hovering behind her, his whiskey-breath and sweaty hair making her nose wrinkle in disgust. Kit wanted to smack that smug smile right off his face.

“That’s the sign, you know. It’s been more than a year,” he nodded, shuffling his hands in his pockets, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Not nervous, though. Not exactly.

“Get away from me!” Kit yelled, not caring what the frat boys thought, but looking in their direction anyway. They didn’t notice her one bit.

The sweaty man caught her gaze. “They won’t notice you. Some still will, but after a year, it’ll get harder and harder. Best move on, honey. You’re not happy here, I can tell.”

“What the fuck do you know about me?” Kit retorted, hands on her hips, ready for a full fight now. She’d make those frat boys notice her. She’d make everyone on the neutral ground stare at her. Because no one did that anymore, no one talked to her, smiled at her, or walked out of her way on the sidewalks as she wound her way through town. No one. Not anymore. Not since that night…

“That’s who you are!” the sweaty man exclaimed, jabbing his pinky finger at her as he held his beer. “The girl from last year’s Mardi Gras, what got herself killed right behind Jacques-Imo’s restaurant. You wanted some beads, showed what ya got to a guy, and then he strangled ya. They hushed it up, though – woulda been real bad for business. City still strugglin’ after the hurricane and all. Dumped your body in the Mississippi, didn’t they?”

Kit knew she wasn’t crying, because ghosts shed no tears, but she thought she felt them anyway, hot and salty, coursing down her cheeks.

Yes, Yes I Have Not Forgotten

2012-01-25T21:03:00.002-06:00

About this blog! I've been completely remiss, I know, but fear not -- a short Friday Flash is on its way this weekend!!

Blood on Christmas Snow

2011-12-16T10:01:00.000-06:00

She lived in the woods, far from others. At her age, solitude was preferred over gossip and having to do things for others.

The people in the town had first thought she was quaint, the little old woman who lived in the wood cabin, built out of the base of the gigantic oak tree. Some thought of her as a wise woman and they sought her advice, while others went so far as to say she was a witch that they dared not cross. Everyone sent her gifts, things to eat, while children decorated her door with flower wreaths.

But times changed, and so did people. What was once cute became weird, then a downright nuisance. More people moved to the town, which sprawled out from the valley into the hills. The woods remained, but not as dense as before such that it was much easier to see the weathered cabin, now an object of vandalism and ridicule.

Yet, the cabin remained. And the old woman within.

"I'll not be scared off by some teenaged hooligans," she muttered as she poured herself some tea. It was Christmas Eve, and she was having her traditional tea with gingerbread cookies with her only companion, Hopscotch the the calico cat. Hopscotch agreed by licking up the drops of spilled cream from the table.

"See, we are unworried," the woman nodded, her tone soft, satisfied. She sat back in her chair, listening to the crackle of the fire while watching through the single window the fresh flakes of snow gently falling outside in the woods.

Hopscotch stopped mid-lick, her head turned towards the front and only door of the cabin. "Hissssss!" she screeched, ears flattened against her head, a stripe of raised fur decorating her back, which was moving swiftly towards the teacup.

"Hopscotch! What on earth..." the woman started, then reached out her hand to stop the teacup from sliding off the table.

Crash!

Knock! Knock!

"Damn!" the woman swore. "Who can be visiting me at this time of night? Oh, that's right. No one eats dinner together as a family any more, they all send their offspring to those fast-food places. Grease and chemicals, that's what's wrong with the world today."

Knock! Knock!

"Oh, alright! I'm coming," the woman abandoned her task of picking up chards of the china cup, instead, she pushed them under her chair with her foot.

"Who's there, might I ask?" her voice took on an older tone now, with more than a hint of frailty to it.

"It's alright, Mrs. Grimm; I'm not hear to harm you, I promise. It is I, the mayor. I have a business proposition to discuss with you," came the reply, from a voice that sounded confident, self-assured, and if Mrs. Grimm was honest with herself, very attractive.

"A business proposition?" the woman squeaked, her brow furled in worry. "What business...?" she wondered, her voice barely a whisper, putting her thin, white finger to her lips.

"Yes, Mrs. Grimm," came the voice on the other side of the door. "I thought it auspicious, to bring you this proposition, the night before Christmas, during a snowfall, no less. It will mark the solstice memorably, making next year a very good one for you. You've languished too long in this cabin by yourself, you know."

The woman could stand it no longer, she thrust the door open wide. "My name!" she demanded. "How do you know my name!"

The man stood in shadows, though his profile was handsome. "Yes," the shadows around him nodded. "It has been quite a long time, since your name was spoken aloud. You used to be revered, but now you are derided. Life here has changed, Mrs. Grimm. I'm afraid it doesn't need the kindly old woman in the wooden cabin any longer."

"Then what does it need?" she answered, thin, elderly hands on her hips, shivering in the winter air, but not cowering.

Moments passed, marked by the snowflakes which fell on the woman's face, her hair, her feet on her threshold, resting there, lightly, not melting. Any snowflakes that fell into the shadow of the man were not seen again.

"I need to see your face, young man!" the woman said, frustration deepening her voice, making it lose its frail edge.

"Yes, of course you do," came the reply, in a most seductive tone. "Why don't you invite me in?"

"I don't think that's wise...," Mrs. Grimm said as curiosity won over caution. She stepped off her threshold, a slippered foot into the snow.

"Oh Mrs. Grimm, that was a huge mistake!" the stranger's voice laughed as her arm, neck and torso were all encased in the iron grip of a the stranger.

"Yes, it is time for you to move, on, Mrs. Grimm. In your younger days, you never would have made such a foolish move. Time isn't kind to witches, is it? They lose their reflexes, their senses, and their cunning. Which is why you will be gone from this land. Your cabin will be demolished, and this land will be cleared."

"For what? Why? Who are you?!" the old woman answered, her voice scared, but resigned to her fate. She had lost. He was right, her time was over.

The stranger moved his face over her shoulder, turning her head towards his. Blood pounded through her heart, her head, down to her frozen toes, while her whole body tingled with feelings of long-forgotten lust. The man was impossibly handsome, and his eyes, so mesmerizing...

Then he smiled, showing his teeth.

"A vampire!" she cried. "But your kind, you're not supposed...!"

The man shrugged. "Times have changed, I told you." Then he opened his mouth wide, those sharp canines lengthening, and the woman felt a sharp pain as he bent her head down, stretching her neck wide.

"How pretty it looks," she thought as she saw the drops of crimson blood on the freshly-fallen snow.

****************

"Well, well, well, Merry Christmas indeed!!!" Dan Johnson, stood in the mayor's office, having just finished his Christmas dinner. The deal was done; his company now had a new, lucrative construction project that meant he could put that new pool in his backyard. Jacuzzi and slide, too.

"Knew you were the right man for the job of mayor -- I was worried, ya know, not being from the town and all. But Mr. Ruthven, we've been trying to get rid of that old bat for years. The fact that she sold her land to you -- well, we're starting on that football stadium January 1st!"

"Yes," answered Mayor Ruthven, from behind his desk, his chiseled face half-hidden in the dim light. "Progress, is sometimes, the worst form of horror."

Before Mr. Johnson could question the mayor's choice of words, the mayor stood from his desk and swept around from behind it. "And now, I've got some celebrations of my own planned. Thank you, Mr. Johnson."

Dan followed the mayor from the office, his thoughts on football games and swimming, with nary a thought to the old woman who had stayed in that cabin for over 500 years...

Flash Friday -- A Damned One (scene from Return)

2011-11-17T20:41:00.000-06:00

Yes, I know, I thoroughly apologize for my absence -- time has simply slipped away from me. However, I am here, this Friday, cheating a bit for my Flash Fiction in offering one scene from Release. It can stand alone, but do you really want it all by itself?!?!!

I do not know how long it took us to reach the charon, for time in Hell doesn’t pass in the same manner as on earth. My first time I visited, it seemed as if only three days had passed, yet it was indeed over a year that I had stayed in this realm. On the contrary, my sister, when she came to rescue me, was gone from the earthly realm for only a week, though to her it seemed as if no less than five sun-cycles has passed. After what seemed about an hour of mortal time, weaving our way in and out of the condemned souls, parrying questions from a few of them, avoiding others, slipping on the snakes and skulls beneath our feet, and enduring the stings and bites of wasps and spiders, we were finally standing before the great Acheron River.

At first glance, the Acheron resembled nothing more than molten lava flowing through a wide chasm. Upon closer inspection, however, one could see the tortured souls who were condemned to swim in its fires, at least for a time, before their true punishments occurred. Demons and dragon-fish lurked in the fiery depths as well, tormenting the souls floating within, even grabbing some off the boats of the charons. I did not think that we had anything to fear from the Acheron, but having waded in its torments once, I’d no desire to waste my energy in it again, or chance that the demons wouldn’t come after me this time.

“Denny, the obols please,” Mirrie said as we stood before the skeleton, his bony hand held out to us. The bones of a dead man, reanimated to life through the magic of the Fallen Ones. The charons had no souls or personalities of their own, being more akin to what mortals may term robots, though I thought I spied a glimmer of …something… in the dark sockets of their eyes. After all, Denny and Ness were Nephilim spirits tied to human flesh through Fallen magic, and they had definitely developed personalities and wills of their own throughout the centuries.

“Of course,” Denny said as he reached into his leather pouch to retrieve the obols, the three bronze coins we’d had made specifically for this journey. Gold would be too soft for the heat of Hell, silver too, though iron would not be precious enough to be accepted as quality fare by the charon. Bronze it was, though we had mixed our copper with iron instead of tin. The charons did love the look of gold things moreso than silver. As Denny placed the coins in the charon’s hand, I breathed a small sigh of relief when the bones closed greedily over the offering and placed it in the purse that hung off its hip. We wouldn’t be forced to wade through Acheron and its torments.

Yet we would be, very soon, in front of the Gates of Hell, and all that lay beyond them. Thankfully, we would only have to go through the First Infernal Realm, or Dis, before we could reach Tartarus, where the Fallen Ones resided, watching the torments going on in the other sections of the damned abyss.

“Come along, Brother,” my sister said, bringing me out of my thoughts of what lay in wait for us on the opposite shore of the Acheron.

Flash Friday -- Trick Or Treat!!!!

2011-10-07T11:58:00.000-05:00

So, I'm trying this as part of the Flash Friday meme going around the internet -- like it and want to see more? There's loads of awesome authors participating over at Vamplit.com!

Here goes: Trick or Treat, copyright 2011 by Nicole Hadaway

Emma was alone.

And that's just how she liked it.

By herself, walking, whistling down the street, passing by the clusters of costume-clad revelers enjoying the Halloween night. Emma was ten, after all -- nearly old enough to stop the nonsense. But one more year of free candy, then she'd hang up her costume and be a grown-up.

It was all about the free candy for Emma. That's why she didn't go in a crowd; people pitied her, all by herself, and gave her a little bit more, especially the good chocolate bars.

One house left, and then I'll call it a night, she thought, pushing her Red Riding Hood cloak over her head. Mrs. Dugan always gives me a ton of stuff when I tell her I'm going home after her house because I'm too afraid to be out here on my own.

Emma walked resolutely to the house all the way at the end of the lane. Her mom told stories of "back in the day", the house was reported to be haunted. Mom was never sure by whom, though; some said it was built on sacred burial ground, others reported slaves had been tortured in the basement, while Emma's grandmother maintained that a warlock had lived there before being stoned to death by hysterical townsfolk.

Such silly stuff people believe, honestly! Emma thought to herself. The whole idea of Halloween, dressing up to scare away "evil spirits" was childish and immature, in her ten-year-old opinion. Free candy is what it's all about, she affirmed as her boots clomped up Mrs. Johnson's steps, a little more loudly than she'd planned.

"Temper, temper, Emma!" Mrs. Johnson surprised the girl by opening the door before there was any time to knock. "You really need to make friends; it's no good for you to be out by yourself. Things can ... happen."

Emma stood, silently, unable to think of a reply. Mrs. Johnson had always been so doting, so understanding. This lecture was most unexpected. Unsure, Emma thrust her bag in towards the middle-aged teacher and began her song.

"One little, two little, three little witches,"

"Oh, I've heard that one about a hundred times tonight," Mrs. Johnson interrupted, rolling her eyes. "Here, this is all I've got left," she said, dropping a few measly bubble gum pieces into Emma's bag. "The other children, the ones who play together, got my other candy. The good stuff," the woman emphasized.

"Uh, okay," was all Emma could say. The two then stood, staring at each other, each waiting for something. Emma knew what she was waiting for -- Mrs. Johnson to be her nice, sympathetic, indulgent self. But what could this teacher be waiting for? Emma wondered.

"Be off, then," Mrs. Jonson said, motioning with her hands that Emma should leave.

The girl stumbled as she turned around, her cloak falling into her eyes. Making her way unevenly down the steps, Emma tried to make sense of the suprising behavior of this usually nice lady.

Not to mention the fact that scoring three pieces of bubble gum had totally made the visit worthless. So caught up was she in lamenting the strange, fruitless visit, that Emma didn't notice the fog that rolled by. Nor the silence. Nor the darkness that grew with each step she took down the street.

It was only after she'd been walking for at least 15 minutes, by her estimation, did Emma pull herself from her angry thoughts towards Mrs. Johnson and look about her.

Nothing. No kids, no laughter, no Halloween decorations. It was her street, alright, but not as it had been just half an hour ago. What had happened?

Emma clutched her bag to her chest and quickened her pace towards her house, there, the fifth one on the left. But as she walked, she didn't get any nearer. She broke into a run. She was still where she'd been 15, 20 minutes ago -- five feet from Mrs. Johnson's porch.

Emma vaguely became aware of rattling sound -- it was her Halloween bag, shaking against her body. She held it tighter, but to no avail. Fear made her body quake, her breathing shallow and loud, her heart beating as if it would burst through her chest.

A breeze blew by her, gently at first, then stronger, stronger, pushing her hood off her head as it hit her head on, right in the face.

Slam! Emma managed to turn her head, pushing her body into the gust which threatened to sweep her off her feet. Mrs. Johnson's door was open!

"Help! Mrs. Johnson!" Emma cried, her heart slowing at the thought that a grown-up might save her.

"We like the ones who travel alone!!!!" a harsh cacaphony of voices rushed out the open door.

"NO!" Emma screamed, to no avail. The wind pushed her and pushed her, forcing her up the stairs, across the porch, and into the pitch black doorway.

Slam! The door closed. The wind died down, the streetlamps came on, Halloween decorations gaily covered the bright, lit-up houses, the children laughed and ran in the streets, adults openend doors and passed out candy. All was as it should have been.

But no Emma.

#FlashFriday -- 'Til Death Do Us Part

2011-09-23T13:05:00.000-05:00

Something new I'm trying....

Til Death Do Us Part, by Nicole Hadaway (copyright 2011 Nicole Hadaway)

"The blush, do you think it's too dark?"

"No, Henrietta. In fact, I think we'll need a bronzer because she's so fair..."

"It's the sickness, you know."

"Yes. At least's she's not complaining."

"Oh, but what bride would complain about marrying Keith Chandler on their wedding day?!"

"True, true."

Outside the door to the Bride's Room in the church, Keith smiled. He so wanted a glimpse of Helga on her wedding day, just a second, so that he wouldn't be utterly taken aback at how beautiful she looked walking down the aisle. He didn't want to cry in front of everyone -- that would destroy his staid, cool-guy image. Not on his wedding day.

Just a glimpse...

He leaned on the door, his forhead pressing against the wood, eyes wide open to take in his future wife's...

"Keith! NO!" Helga's Aunt Amelia screamed.

"It's bad luck," the mother of the bride wailed, but from the looks of things, nothing was going to help poor Helga today.

Keith knew it, by the way her head was tilted at such an unnatural angle. But it was those eyes, Helga's beautiful, green eyes, that really gave it away -- wide, staring, lifeless. He looked accusingly at Helga's mother and aunt.

They shrugged, makeup in their hands, the folds of Helga's chiffon and satin dress spilling over their feet.

"Fifty-thousand pounds, if you're her widower, Keith. Please don't let everyone think she died an old maid..." Helga's mother implored him.

"What a monster!" Keith thought, then decided it was better to join the club. Fifty-thousand pounds, after all....

Vengeance of the Vampire Bride now available!!!

2011-09-22T15:32:00.000-05:00

Hey gang! Some of you may remember when I featured The Tale of the Vampire Bride on my former website -- honestly, it was a book I wish I'd written, it was that good. Well, author Rhiannon Frater has now finished the sequel, and it's just as good as the original! I happened to have the honor of being a beta reader for the unedited copy, and I'll be ordering my copy so I can re-read and have that gorgeous cover:

Click here to order!

Welcome To Fright Night, 2011

2011-09-03T22:22:00.001-05:00

Okay, where do I start?

I guess I should admit that when they first announced a Fright Night remake, I nearly spit blood. I mean, how could they take something sacred and re-do it?! Especially in this day and age, when many films seem to be brain candy and vampires have lost their bite (literally -- the Meyer vampires have no fangs, and they sparkle).

But then I learned of the cast and crew -- Buffy writer Marti Noxon was on board, as well as Colin Farrell (a great actor, and hawt!), Toni Collette, Anton Yelchin, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and the Tenth Doctor himself, David Tennant (playing the beloved Peter Vincent). Alot of great actors in there, and it seemed like the modernization of Charlie's mom might be a good thing. Then, when I heard that Jerry would be scary (the shark in Jaws), I changed my mind about the remake, so much that I was eagerly anticipating it, even making it my birthday outing.

Honestly, I was disappointed. Let me preface the rest of this review by saying that when I first saw True Grit (2010), I wasn't sure I liked it, because it differed from the 1969 movie (and novel). However, on my second viewing, I appreciated the movie in its own right. While I tried looking at Fright Night as its own flick, I couldn't help but make comparisons to the original, and I think that's where the disappointment lies.

Some may argue that the original, by now -- some 25 years later -- is dated. I say that a good story is never dated; look at Hitchcock's films. And Fright Night (1985) is really Vertigo with vampires. Everything about it is perfect. You have an average, ordinary teenager, Charlie, staying up late watching horror shows, when.... he sees his neighbor with fangs about to bite into a girl. And the missing prostitute had just gone into that house the other day!!

Of course, no one believes the poor kid, they all think he was dreaming after watching too many Hammer horror flicks. Even his good friend, who is into the occult, earning him the nickname "Evil" Ed, laughs in Charlie's face and calls him a fruitcake.

The vampire, Jerry Dandridge, is handsome, charming, and suave -- but underneath, he is evil to the core. He shows this to Charlie, but gives Charlie, "something he didn't have -- a choice." Dandridge is evil, but in those words, there's a bit of longing, which becomes more pronounced when it's revealed that Charlie's girlfriend looks exactly like a long-lost love of Jerry's (a theme that Vampire Diaries totally stole!).

I could go on and on about the first one, but I'll stop there for now and get into the remake. This movie, instead of telling a good story with believable, interesting, and most importantly -- likeable -- characters, was more a collection of scenes. The scene in which Charlie, his mom, and Amy meet Jerry. The scene in which Evil is turned. The scene in which Charlie goes to Peter Vincent for help. The scene in which Charlie deliberately makes Jerry wait on the back porch (not inviting him in) for beers (this scene, I have to say, was actually pretty good). And the scene in which Chris Sarandon, the original Jerry Dandridge, makes a cameo. A collection of scenes, which, while some were good and suspenseful, didn't really make up for a spectacular movie.

Why? Well, they messed with the characters and the dynamics, too. Charlie is still an average kid, but now he's cool and popular 'cause he's dating the school Hot Chick. Good for him, but I identified more with the old Charlie. Jerry is handsome, but he's not socially adept; he doesn't woo and charm Charlie's mom or Amy, as in the first one. Jerry had a motive back in 1985, to recapture lost love. It made his character interesting and sympathetic. But he was still a vampire, and killed to feed. This time around, it was great to see a scary, out-for-blood vampire, but Dandridge had no depth, really. For me, part of the vampire's allure is that they are so seductive and tempting -- you want to be with him, but you can't, because he's evil.

A big disappointment was Evil Ed. His character is whiney and a petty blackmailer. Yes, he's a nerd who's been dumped by his BFF, Charlie, so that Charlie can date the Hot Chick, but blackmailing Charlie to go check on a former friend by threatening to have childhood videos go viral does not make him a sympathetic character. Yes, he did have a line, "You just think you're so cool, Brewster..." and thank goodness that the delivery was not meant to be like the first one, because no one could pull off Stephen Geoffreys. In the first one, Ed was likeable. This time, he's not.

The biggest disappointment is Peter Vincent. While David Tennant's performance was great -- the character was completely unlikeable; crass, cowardly, and not actually necessary.

In the original, Charlie goes to Peter because he's got a vampire living next door to him, one who's sworn to kill him, and Peter is, after all, the Great Vampire Killer. This is akin to the story of Dracula (later adapted into numerous Hammer films) in which a vampire moves into town, and it's up to Van Helsing to kill him. The wrinkle -- the 1985 Vincent was actually a washed-up actor who was about to lose his job, which was third-rate at best. He didn't believe in vampires, nor had he any intention of fighting them. But the character was likeable, even as a coward, and he is completely redeemed when Vincent bucks up and fights side-by-side with Charlie.

There were details in this movie that also were unrealistic -- YES, I know it's fiction, with vampires, but if you're going to have a vampire move into town, I think, even in transient areas, he won't be taking out entire families in a single evening. Nor will he make them into vampires so that they could do his bidding or take over the town. And if he's got a kid in his house, the old Jerry would have sniffed him out in half a heartbeat and taken him down, splat!

There was just something ordinary and very human about all the 1985 characters. Little details that were lost in the remake -- no Billy Cole (no homoerotic undertones, no treating Jerry like some aristocrat with servants), the loss of love interest between a vampire and his reincarnated love, the fact that vampires can love, despite being demons, that Charlie was just an ordinary kid who had something extraordinary happen to him, a fading actor who gets to be the hero he always played in films. Also, in 2011, entire families are wiped out in a single night. True, the area is transient, but -- doesn't anyone notice this (besides Evil Ed?). The original had prostitutes missing -- no one would really care about them. , and the dynamics between the characters -- it was just perfect. Fright Night 2011 is two-dimensional, whereas the original was fleshed-out and completely 3D.

Maybe, like True Grit (2010), I'll see this one again and I'll like it as a movie in its own right. But compared against the original, it was a disappointment.

Yes I Saw Fright Night (2011)...

2011-08-31T21:29:00.000-05:00

And I promise I will have a review up this weekend.

The special thing about the showing? I saw it on my birthday, and one of my awesome photographer friends took this pic --

Not too bad for an old lady, eh? Hope everyone out in the beloved blogosphere is well and I will talk to you soon...

Hey Everyone!! Some Awesome Music Over At...

2011-08-09T10:05:00.004-05:00

Suburban Vampire today -- thanks, Catherine, for reminding us what real vampire soundtrack music sounds like (a la 80's....!!).

I have to confess that I actually prefer the Fright Night soundtrack to the Lost Boys one -- gasp!!! Not that anything could top this song.... (and no, Hollywood -- don't even think of re-making Lost Boys. Twilight came close with a "vampire family" of sorts and Edward Cullen can't hold a candle next to the bad-boy-awesomeness of David...."

I don't like this song as much (nothing against Lou Gramm), but this video rocked as well -- loads of Lost Boys scenes, which considering it's summer, makes me want to hop to the nearest boardwalk...

Summer Reading Program!!!!

2011-07-22T16:14:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I know this posting is a month late in coming, but hey -- better late than never! And you still have a good 2 months to get some serious reading done.

My publisher, Vamplit, is hosting a summer reading challenge, in which Vamplit titles (of course) are featured, including Release. We are shooting for a September date for Return, so hopefully that can make the tail-end of the list ;-)

The purpose of the Reading Challenge? To get our names out there -- basically, you buy a book, pay with a Tweet or Post, and then give a short review of the book when you've finished it.

Not bad, huh?

And because I mentioned RETURN, well -- here's a peek at the cover. Originally, my awesome brother did the cover artwork, but it was lost last summer (laptop troubles), so Sue Midliack stepped up and produced this wonderful gem:

Children's/YA Books -- Where It's At?!?!

2011-07-05T21:32:00.000-05:00

So, I've got Pretty Little Liars on tonight (yes, guilty pleasure), and what do I see? A James Patterson commercial. He's hawking his latest murder novel, but he's also advertising --- a children's book.

Yes. Specifically, a Middle Grader's book.

Way.

I've been saying this since the recession hit (and I joined the publishing industry) -- in hard times, parents will cut their budgets, but will still spend $$ so their kids can read.

So what does it say about the publishing industry, $$, and the Big NY Publishing Houses if world-reknowned author James Patterson joins the ranks of the kids' authors? Are adult book sales that low? Are NY profits not what they should be? Or he just wanted to try a new market? Enquiring minds, and things that make you go hmmmm... Please feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts below:

Calling All Kindle Owners!!!!! -- Check Out Digital Digest!!!!

2011-07-04T08:47:00.000-05:00

Hey Gang, there's a new subscription for your Kindle -- Digital Digest!

The brainchild of C. J. Ellisson, Marissa Farrar, Danielle Gavan, Suzanne Johnson, Boone Brux and 10 other authors (can you say talent -- and loads of it?!) -- Digital Digest is a daily blog that features short stories in varied fields such as Para Romance, Horror, Urban Fantasy, as well as reviews and even some non-fiction pieces (ever wonder how writers research -- this will uncover certain facts about your favorite topics/time periods).

A new story, slice of history, or part of a serial. On your Kindle. Every.Day. For the low, low price of $1.99/month.

Who can resist that?! Click the beautiful cover below to start your subscription today!

Summer Reads!

2011-06-06T20:54:00.001-05:00

So, what to read for the summer vacays, when you're laying by the pool, ocean, or just chillaxin' at night?

Well, my new short story, Brooklyn, 1830 is out now on Smashwords and Kindle. It's not light summer fare, despite the fact that it features children -- there's ghosts and a very not nice person in it. Suffice it to say that the ending is satisfying, but it's horror, there's no doubt!

Speaking of horror, I've just finished reading The House On Blackstone Moore by fellow Vamplit author Carole Gill. I LOVE The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins, and this novel starts out very much like it -- a great, gothic atmosphere. In this day and age when many vampires roam high school hallways (perish the thought -- whatever happened to playing hooky and riding up and down the Santa Carla Boardwalk all night?!?!), it's great to see a return to the original, creepy setting of vampire tales -- lonely houses. There is a romance, but this is not Twilight at all. It explores deeper themes such as child abuse, and how mental illness in women was treated pre-21st Century (not very well, mind you!).

And another story I've been meaning to blog about for 3 months now -- Ring of Lies by Rachel Lynne. I've admitted many times before that the Romance genre just doesn't grab me, but this has more than a hero trying to win the heart of the heroine. It's smart, the heroine is very likable, and there's a mystery -- kudos to Ms. Lynne for delving into my favorite genre in which to read! Definitely a good one for the summer!

And now, I'll leave you with one of my favorite summer songs:

Movie Review -- Pirates of the Carribbean: On Stranger Tides

2011-05-23T16:33:00.000-05:00

So, I was lucky to see this much-anticipated (by me) movie this past weekend. I LOVED the first Pirates, thought the second one was very dark and over-the-top, and the third one, well, that last scene was cool, but by then I'd had enough of the same lines ("why is the rum gone?"; "It never would have worked between us", and Orlando falling all over Keira Knightly (who sounded like a harpy in the last one).

When I saw the trailer, I was really excited for this venture -- same characters I loved, Jack Sparrow and Barbossa, a new Penelope Cruz, and even Blackbeard -- with zombies and mermaids?!

It was entertaining, but didn't have the magic of the first one. I was left wanting something more, and that's saying something since the movie is a good 2 hours (maybe even longer).

It started off pretty good, and there was a nice cameo by Keith Richards. Basically, Jack is in London, and apparently there's someone who is using his name to recruit sailors to look for the Fountain of Youth. King George also wants to get to the Fountain and has enlisted Barbossa to race the Spanish to its mystical whereabouts. So who will get there first? Sparrow, Blackbeard, Barbossa, or the Spanish?

Well, by the end, so much has happened that you're not really sure you care anymore. There was too much action, not enough development. Like, Blackbeard has zombies on his ship -- it would have been neat, instead of doing one of Depp's escape scenes, if they showed a scene where a zombie was made. And Blackbeard's sword obviously has some magic to it, connected to the ship, but that was never fully explained. There's also a romance between a cleric and a mermaid -- heck, I didn't even get the cleric's name, that's how it was thrown in. They threw in alot of things (a cute scene between Barbossa and Sparrow in Ponce De Leon's ship, a scene at the Spanish camp), that I found myself not caring for, and instead I wanted to know more about Blackbeard, the magic surrounding his ship, and some meaningful relationship between Sparrow and Blackbeard's daughter (Cruz), instead of the sexual innuendo lines that were bantered back and forth (and kinda cheesy, too). "Oh, I am fond of the missionary's position." or "How come we can't meet without you pointing something at me?"

All in all, it started off really good, and it wasn't as over-the-top as the last one (or two), but it could have been tighter which would have made the plot and characters stronger.

Do stick around after the credits for the final scene, which seems to set up a fifth installment.

Return, the sequel to Release

2011-05-15T09:47:00.000-05:00

Got turned into my publisher about 2 months ago.

What happened?

SHE LOVES IT. "STRONGER THAN RELEASE"; "BEST SEQUEL IN THE HISTORY OF SEQUELS"; "HASN'T READ A SEQUEL QUITE LIKE IT, EVER," she said.

YAY!!!!!!!!!!

Of course, you all know how ecstatic and elated this makes me, especially since Return was so difficult to write, from a plot point of view and considering the major life changes that happened while I was writing it. I wasn't happy with it for the longest time, though when I finally handed it to her, I did think it a pretty good novel. We are shooting for a Summer 2011 release, so stay tuned!

Here's a snippet:

Unfortunately, he did not have a clear, unobstructed path to his car. Eric didn’t know who – or what -- they were, the beings that stood on either side of the two-foot wide fissure in the pavement, into which half of his car had disappeared. But one thing was for certain: Eric knew that death was staring at him, from a distance of about six feet away.

There were five of them, and they resembled humans in that they had a head, two arms, two legs; the standard homo sapien characteristics. One resembled Billy Idol in that he had bleached-blonde, spiky hair, though his entire eyes were black. The other four, their features were something like Eric had only seen in movies; not even on Halloween had he ever seen people with such dead-looking skin, green-grey in color. More fantastic -- talons on the end of their hands, and short, stubby horns protruding from balding heads. Their eyes looked somewhat normal -- except where the whites should have been, there was yellow. And the yellow looked like it was glowing.

Glowing!

“Denny?!” Eric followed the clear musical voice that rang out to his right, and was surprised to see that the strange, brother-sister couple had remained. They stared in wonder at the five beings, although the brother must have had some of his wits about him, for he drew a small sword from behind his back.

“Miranda? Cray?” the Billy-Idol-being responded, looking around him as if he was just as surprised at his presence as Eric.

A scream turned his attention to his left, and Eric couldn’t believe what he was seeing. One of the horned beings who had long, ropish braids behind him – or her, as the form somehow looked female – was straddling Denise and appeared to be biting into Denise’s neck. Denise was struggling, but didn’t seem to be able to shake the thing off her.

“Oh my God, my Aunt’s stories were true! This can’t be happening!” Amy squeaked from behind him, just as the other horned humanoid looked at them with hunger written all over her face.

“No, we can’t let them!” the sister called out, and the creature turned its head to look at her, before sneering and continuing its advance towards Eric and Amy. He thought he heard Amy tell him to look away, but Eric’s gaze was sucked into the glowing eyes and ugly smile that showed two rows of pointed teeth. He struggled again to breathe as Amy gripped his neck even more tightly, shooting her left arm out. Eric saw that she held her strange little cross as if she were trying to ward off the advancing evil, like the vampire hunters in the movies did.

Hey Fellas -- Why Should You Date a Girl Who Reads?!

2011-05-02T08:56:00.000-05:00

Please stop on by Gina Leigh Maxwell's blog today to find out -- lovely piece from some fresh talent!

http://gina-maxwell.blogspot.com/2011/05/guest-piece-date-girl-who-reads.html

What's Next For Our Heroine?

2011-04-19T10:24:00.000-05:00

So, Return is done and off to the publisher. I haven't gotten it back yet (and am I the only one who's like -- "Oh no, they didn't breeze right through it! They don't like it! Aaaaahhhh!"? I'm certain there will be editing before the finished product hits the virtual shelves, so in the meantime....

I've got to start the short story, India, 1870. It's the tale of how Fredericks and Mary-Louise became friends with Cray and Miranda. I've also got to get Brooklyn, 1830 ready for publication on Smashwords (and perhaps Kindle). That was a story I hadn't planned on, it just sort of happened. I was writing a ghost story for an anthology that never came to be, and I couldn't leave Cray and Mirrie out of it. Think Let the Right One In meets The Lovely Bones. Yep!

In the meantime I've got to keep in shape -- summer is here (can you believe how the year has flown?!!)

Take care, gang!

Just horsin' around!

Movie Monday -- The Next Three Days

2011-04-11T08:47:00.000-05:00

I'm a bit late reviewing this one as it's out on DVD. I had high hopes for this Russell Crowe flick, as he's usually in something good, and I like Elizabeth Banks. All I have to say is:

Don't bother.

I hope I'm not losing my attention span, but this movie took forever to get going. We see in the trailer that he's got to break his wife out of prison in "The Next Three Days", and it feels like it took 3 days to watch the film. Let me just say that -- ALOT of planning goes into breaking someone out of prison, and not all of comes to fruition.

Lara Brennan meets her husband, John, and his brother and wife out for dinner and drinks. She complains about her boss and the fight between the two of them at work today; the next thing you know, Lara is fighting with sis-in-law. Lara and John leave, have hot sex in the car, and go home to the babysitter. The next morning, it's business as usual BUT -- the cops burst in to catch Lara washing blood from her raincoat, and they arrest her for the murder of her boss.

Three years later, we see Lara, who's natural hair color has grown out in prison, being visited by her husband and her six-year-old son. It's a sad scene as the son is clearly having trouble with the fact that mom's in prison for murder. And it doesn't look like she's getting out, either -- a visit by John to Lara's lawyer shows that the appeal was denied; the blood on Lara's coat, her fingerprints on the murder weapon, they can't find the homeless woman whose button popped, and a co-worker saw Lara leaving the garage right before he found the boss's dead body -- what would you think?

But Russell doesn't give up, and thus begins the plot to break his wife out of prison. This is where the movie drags, and it takes a while because he tests out each and every part of his scheme -- which normally would happen, but I have to say, it's slow to watch. He also fails several times, losing money, getting beaten up, and nearly getting arrested.

I won't spoil you with whether the plot was successful or not, but suffice it to say -- maybe watch the beginning, and then come back 2 hours later and see the last 15 minutes!

We've Got Fright Night (2011) Images!!!! Colin Farrell as a Vamp!

2011-04-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Special thanks go to Count Basarab who posted a link to these gems (I've been dying to see Farrell as Dandridge, haven't you??)

Here's Evil Ed -- I like Christopher Mintz Plasse, but he's got huge shoes to fill 'cause Geoffreys just made the original:

And finally, Charlie and Amy:

Imogen Poots is gorgeous -- I hope they don't dumb-down her role. Amy in the original wasn't the prettiest, but she sure had a personality....

There you have it, gang -- enjoy Fright Night Friday!!!

Yay!!!! It's Done And Off To the Publisher!!!!

2011-04-05T21:32:00.000-05:00

So, Return is done. Like a dinner. Is it perfect? Probably not. Personal issues kept coming up (and down, and up, and down), which made working on it rough. Not to mention -- starting the sequel was hard. I had an idea of where everyone needed to be at the end of it, but not really an idea of how to get there. So I wrote alot of stuff, which needed some serious editing and changing around when I went back over it.

The good news is that I got my groove on, and I'm really happy with the final work. There will probably be mistakes, and it might not be as polished as the draft of Release I submitted way back when to Vamplit, but it was time to turn it over and get the juices flowing for Redeem ;-)

Yay!!!! And here's a sneak peek (from Cray's POV, if you couldn't tell the voice ;-)

It’s a common misconception that vampires intermingle with humans, courting them and seducing them, in order to feed regularly. The fact is that the majority of my race prefers to find, feed, and disappear all rather quickly, with the humans retaining no residual emotions or memory of the encounter. In the latter half of the 20th century, we’d stopped killing, although lately, my sister and I had killed our prey merely out of convenience -- we had demon friends who could burn the remains, thus greatly lessening the questions and superstitions that arose when bloodless bodies were found. The only humans we allowed into our daily lives had been cursed by voodoo and dark magic, thus giving them a taste of what our lives as vampires -- as outcasts -- are like. These cursed humans have become our friends, our family. For my sister and me, the two – friends and family – have become one and the same.

Movie Monday -- Super 8

2011-03-20T16:54:00.002-05:00

So, I saw this preview when I went to see Little Red Riding Hood. Starring kids, produced by Steven Speilberg, and directed by J.J. Abrams. It looks like E.T. got a HUGE attitude since he was last here, and I like it! Can't wait to see it!

Movie Review -- Little Red Riding Hood

2011-03-18T21:07:00.000-05:00

Over at Para Posse and Something Wicked:

I think I may have found my Halloween costume for this year!

Rutger Hauer -- From Vampire to Hunter...

2011-03-10T11:12:00.000-06:00

First off, 1 year ago today, Corey Haim sadly passed away. This was quite a blow to me, as he was one of my first childhood crushes, and his work, The Lost Boys, had a HUGE influence on my own writing. Even though I never knew him, I felt like a friend had died. RIP, Haimster, and know that we're still missing you.

Okay, and now -- wow, Rutger Hauer has quite the resume, doesn't he? I love him when he plays the baddie, like in The Hitcher, Nighthawks, and of course, Blade Runner (although, was Roy Batty really the bad guy? Wouldn't we all behave the same way if we found out we were androids and wanted more life?).

He also played one hell of a vampire in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I remember being excited because 2 of my crushes were in that movie -- Luke Perry AND Rutger); as well as the big, bad, super-mean vampire in the 2004 rendition of 'Salem's Lot (along with another 80's hottie, Rob Lowe).

Now, he's set to play the (in?) famous vampire hunter, Abraham Van Helsing, in the Dracula 3D.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. Look, I love the Dracula tale, but what about something new? Don't we have enough versions for right now? If you're yearning for Dracula, how about The Tale of the Vampire Bride by Rhiannon Frater? Erotic mystery lovers would like to see Vampire Vacation (by CJ Ellisson) on the big screen. And of course, we'd ALL die to see an awesome tale of vampires who kill Nazis and save children during WWII, ahem, right?!

I'm also not sure about the whole 3D thing. It's good for IMAX films (Sea Rex), and possibly children's movies (Yogi Bear). But is it necessary? The Haunting (1963) is quite a chilling, scary tale and that's in B&W with no special effects. I'll admit that CGI for Lord of the Rings was amazing and really brought the story to life, but CGI werewolves -- give me Howling or AWIL effects any day over that. I even prefer the muppet yoda to the CGI-created one.

Yeah, I know this has nothing to do with vampires, but HAWT!

That being said, I'm sure Hauer will do a fantastic job -- he's got the acting chops (and he's Dutch, too!). His performance will probably be on par with Laurence Olivier's turn as Van Helsing in Dracula (1979) -- and I do love that version, even though they changed the plot up.

In the meantime, us Hauer (and 80's) fans will get to see him in Hobo With a Shotgun -- an homage/parody to/of 80's action flicks (I'm so there. That and Take Me Home Tonight -- homage to 80's teen films -- love it!).

Take care and enjoy your St. Patty's day, gang!

Movie Monday -- The Oscars!

2011-02-28T10:00:00.002-06:00

I know, this blog has been sorely neglected....

In other news, I'm like 50 pages away from finishing editing Return! Yay!

Okay, so the Oscars --

Was it just me, or are there alot of boring categories? I only watched right at the very end, with Best Actress (now I really need to see Black Swan! I'm sure Portman deserved it, but I thought the actress in Winter's Bone was incredible, too). I think that the Cohen Bros. should have won Best Director for True Grit, and I completely and wholeheartedly agree on Best Actor/Picture -- Colin Firth/The King's Speech, because he and the movie was wonderful, just wonderful.

Christian Bale is a damn good actor and although I didn't see his movie, I'm glad he got the Oscar because he's just incredible (and kinda hot!).

And that's what I thought about the Oscars. Love you and miss you all, now back to the edits...!

Witches Wednesday!!!

2011-02-16T06:00:00.004-06:00

Hello Everyone! Welcome to an extra-special edition of Witches Wednesday, featuring the blogosphere's own Erin Cole (whom I really do suspect is a witch because she's so talented and beautiful. Just sayin' ;-).

I had the pleasure of reading Erin's debut novel, Grave Echoes, which blends the extraordinary world of magic with the modern, ordinary world. Erin truly has a gift with words -- her prose paints the scene so vividly that you really feel you're there, in the book. Which is sometimes scary ;-)

(awesome photo to the left found at The Book of Shadows Blog. I'm wondering how they got such an accurate description of what happens when Erin, Jodi MacArthur and I get together ;-)

Now, without further ado... Erin:

Witches, witches, witches! They are seeped into our culture: “Wizard of Oz,” “MacBeth,” “Charmed,” “Snow White”—“Sleeping Beauty”—“Little Mermaid”—“Tangled” (okay, most every Disney movie ever made), “Buffy,” “Drag Me To Hell,” Elvira, “Practical Magic,” Halloween, Salem Massachusetts 1670! So what is the fascination with the dark, wicked women?

I believe it is their versatility—evil, good, ugly, beautiful, nasty, charmer, destroyer…the witch is anything and everything. There is a certain magnetism to things not easily understood or defined, like witches. The desire for control is in all of us, and witches. Most people are attracted to things dark and sexy, again, witches. She can even be a he (warlock/witchdoctor).

In fact, my favorite witch of all time is Eric Schweig in the movie, “The Missing,” with Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones. He is powerful and horrific, conjuring spells in a way that is so

frighteningly real, I wonder if magic really does exist, to a certain degree.

In my book, “Grave Echoes: A Kate Waters Mystery,” one of my favorite characters is a witch. Her name is Thea Wright, and I wanted to depict her with similar brooding qualities as Eric Schweig. She is not drop-dead gorgeous, but she definitely has a pull of her own. She is smart, cautious, dark, and a risk-taker. She knows more than she should (through dreams and intuition) or would probably like to, and for this, she knows magic is not good or bad. Like nature, it encompasses both yin and yang, and all the gray in between. That is Thea. Much of her coven (Thea is the priestess of the Blue Moon Coven) is continuously suspicious of her because she practices both light and dark magic. I dive further into this aspect of witchery in my next Kate Waters Mystery novel, “Wicked Tempest.” A witch, as well as the coven priestess, is chosen by higher forces, and when there is a curse foreshadowing deaths, higher forces will collide.

Until then, here is an excerpt from my novel, “Grave Echoes: A Kate Waters Mystery”—

CH. 15

* * *

“What can I get you,” she said to him.

Wells pulled out his badge. “My name is Detective Orwin Wells. Are you Thea Wright?”

“Yes.” She didn’t appear a bit nervous as most civilians were after seeing his badge.

“I need to talk to you about Jevanna Waters.”Her face hardened, and she stopped cleaning.

Her eyes peered into him, as if searching his thoughts. “What about?”

“Some matches were found in Jev’s home. They are from your club.”

“That sounds terrible, detective.”

Sarcasm now. She seemed overly brave. “The house was locked up, but her house key is missing.”

“Any one of her friends could have dropped them in there.”

“But only one of them can get in. The one with her house key,” Wells challenged her.

Streetlights pierced into the dark tavern like flashlights in a dusty coffin. Wells twisted around, noting the two burly-looking men who had walked into the bar. He turned his attention back to Thea. “I wouldn’t be making a big deal of it if we hadn’t discovered fingerprints on the deceased’s neck where one would take a pulse.” He noticed a sign of worry flash across her eyes and straighten her mouth. “And the sister believes someone might be following her.”

Thea motioned to the detective to wait while she filled a pitcher full of beer for the two customers. Then she came back over and stood in front of him. “I don’t have a key to Jev’s house if that’s what you want to know.”

“Was there anything unusual with Ms. Waters before her accident?” He spoke of the victim professionally to stress his seriousness.

“She was acting different,” Thea replied, combining half-empty liquor bottles together. “I don’t think she was getting along with her boyfriend at the time.”

“Sean?” Wells clarified. Thea nodded. “Do you know what they were fighting about?”

“She never told me. Jev liked to try to solve her own problems, even though she wasn’t very good at it.”

Wells admired her honesty. “Were you two close?”

“I’d like to think so.”

“Close enough to practice witchcraft together?”

Thea set the bottles on a glass shelf behind her and then turned to him. “Sometimes.”

Wells looked around the joint while she helped another customer at the register. She moved with confidence and grace, and he imagined she probably made a good penny in tips. She came back to him with a shot of whiskey. “On the house.”

Even though he was on duty, certain situations required a slack attitude if the truth was to be revealed. He lifted the glass and winked at her. Then he downed the smooth, golden liquor, enjoying the burn down his throat.

“Are you supposed to be drinking on the job?” A smirk drifted over her face.

“You going to tell on me?” he replied, motioning his empty glass to her for another.

She reached to the glass shelves behind her and filled his glass, handing it back to him, her face hardened. “Only if you quit investigating Jev’s accident. Her sister is in danger.”

Wells nearly coughed up his drink. He set the glass down. “Why do you think that?” It came out more of a whisper than he wanted it to.

Thea’s eyes probed the bar for eaves-dropping ears. “I have a bad feeling.”

“A bad feeling?” Wells repeated.

Her venomous eyes locked onto him. “Ever since my dog died. I know someone killed Cernunos.”

“You think someone murdered your dog?”

“The vet said he was poisoned.”

“Any reason why someone would want to kill your dog?”

“I don’t think it’s that hard to figure out, Detective,” she said, cunningness magnetized in her shrewd smile. “Someone obviously doesn’t like me, and I’m not exactly popular.”

Wells gathered that much. “How about the boyfriend? He have a good reason to dislike you?”

“You could say we had mutual feelings of dislike for each other, but I don’t think Sean had anything to do with Jev’s accident. He adored her, like a puppy.”

And maybe that made you jealous, Wells thought to himself, but Thea stared at him, as if she knew exactly what had just crossed his mind.

* * *

There’s a lot more witchcraft and witches in, “Wicked Tempest,” due sometime in 2012. I also have a few writes about witches, if anyone is interested, they are on my website under Online—“Inevitable Encounters”, “Barracuda Hearts”, and “Black Soul Bitches.”

Witches will always thrive in our culture. They give us fear, mystery, and hope if we are on their side! I’d love to hear about the witches that you like and why. Thanks for reading, everyone, and thank you, Nicole, for the invite!

It is totally and completely my pleasure, Erin! Please check out more of Erin's work on her awesome blog right here. Grave Echoes is available on Amazon.com and Kindle - buy it!

And the Winner Is....

2011-02-14T07:41:00.002-06:00

Julie S!!!

Congrats to Julie and HUGE THANKS to everyone who stopped by and commented, and extra-HUGE THANKS to Kerri Nelson for the post and the awesome book.

Julie -- please email me at mirandadandridge@yahoo.com so we can get your prizes on their way to you!

Happy Valentine's Day Giveaway!!!!!

2011-02-11T07:51:00.004-06:00

Today is an extra-special day here at The Dandridge Estate -- not only are we giving away Godiva Chocolates and Bath Junkie Bath Salts, but one lucky Winner will also receive a copy of Kerri Nelson's Vegan Moon!

When a vegetarian werewolf falls for a celebrity chef, will his appetite for her cause him to stray from his vegan ways?

Santiago Salazar is a reformed werewolf living in sunny Beverly Hills, California. When he catches sight of celebrity chef Gabrielle Connor on television, he’s soon drooling in his tofu burger.After they meet at one of Gabbi’s book signings, Santiago is thrilled to discover that the attraction is mutual. The two hit it off in a major way but when the night takes a dark turn…Gabbi must decide if she can live with the new world that she’s discovered and Santiago must ultimately answer to the werewolf code of conduct.

Take one hungry werewolf and mix with one lonely chef, stir in some hot sex and Vegan Moon delivers a tasty treat that will keep you coming back for more.

To win all three of these lovely goodies, please read Kerri's thought-provoking post and leave a comment below. Winner will be announced on Monday. Thanks for playing and Happy Valentine's Day!!

Slow and Steady Wins the Race?

By: Kerri Nelson

I was thinking about the children’s story of The Turtle and The Hare and how it relates to being an author.

Are you the turtle or the hare?

The parable teaches us that “slow and steady” wins the race. So, if we apply this to our writing careers…some might think that we should focus all of our attention on one manuscript. Pour our heart and soul into it. Languish over every plot detail day and night and edit it inch by inch until it is pure perfection. Then we should search for the perfect agent submitting query after query and wait until the perfect contract is offered by the perfect publisher. Right?

Huh.

Guess I didn’t learn much from that parable after all.

In my writing career, I’m much more like the hare. Not that I believe it should be a race or that I should brag about being the best (like that pesky rabbit did in the story). But I don’t believe that slow and steady is ultimately the best tact to take when it comes to publishing. I believe that you should write, get published, and strive to STAY published.

If this means selling a shorter work (a novella versus full length novel) in order to get your name out there and start to build a following, then so be it.

If this means selling to a small or mid-size publisher versus a “traditional” New York publisher, then so be it.

And, yes, even if it means doing all the work yourself and self publishing in order to get your voice heard sooner and in your own way, then so be it.

Maybe this will work for you and maybe not. But all I can tell you is that based on my personal experiences—if I had written this parable—the hare would be sitting at the finish line counting his royalty checks while the turtle waited for yet ANOTHER agent rejection. Perhaps one reading, “this just doesn’t work for me.”

As authors, shouldn’t WE be the ones deciding if and how our voices are heard?

As a reader, would you prefer to wait a long time between novels from your fave author if it meant a longer book or would you prefer more frequent releases but shorter in length?

Kerri Nelson has always been passionate about reading books but when she wrote her first poem in the second grade, she discovered her love of writing. At the age of sixteen, she became a columnist for her local newspaper as the high school correspondent for the weekly "Panther Tales" column. She won the Outstanding Young Journalist of the Year Award for her efforts.

After an education and career in the legal field, Kerri began to pen romantic suspense novels with a legal or law enforcement theme. She is a true southern belle and comes complete with her dashing southern gentleman husband and three adorable children. When she’s not reading or writing, you’ll find her baking homemade goodies for her family. Kerri is an active member of Romance Writers of America as well as numerous Chapters including Celtic Hearts Romance Writers , Futuristic Fantasy & Paranormal, and Outreach International Romance Writers.

Read more about Kerri’s books at her website: www.kerrinelson.com

Follow her on Twitter here: www.twitter.com/kerribookwriter

Visit her industry blog here: www.thebookboost.blogspot.com

Whatever Wednesday -- Your Touch by The Black Keys (and giveaway)

2011-02-09T11:42:00.003-06:00

Hello Gang! I was going to post something specific on Witches and Practical Magic, but that sorta fell by the wayside as real life took precedence this weekend.

Please stop back on Friday, though, as I'll have an extra-special giveaway for Valentine's day -- Bath Salts, Chocolates, and a copy of Vegan Moon by Kerrie Nelson!

For today, I'll just post a video that's been rockin' my guts out -- these guys are SO GOOD! And the dialogue in the middle is hilarious!

Movie Monday -- The Last Exorcism

2011-02-07T08:30:00.004-06:00

So, since I saw The Rite last weekend, I thought I'd give this movie a go. I remember when it was released that it looked like it might be kinda good, but I wasn't sure.

Well, if you have an hour and a half to kill, you might consider renting this movie. It's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it does contain some jump-out-of-your-seat scary parts.

The premise -- this is filmed like The Blair Witch Project, in that it appears to be an actual documentary. A cameraman and sound person follow minister, Cotton Marcus, to the Sweetzer farm down in Louisiana where the Dad has written to Cotton, pleading the minister to help his daughter, Nell.

What's really interesting is that Cotton doesn't believe that demons really inhabit or possess humans. He's been performing exorcism for years, simply because he feels that they help the "possessed" -- after the exorcism, the possessed no longer have problems, thus, what Cotton does must be a good form of therapy. He has a bag of tricks that he brings to the Sweetzer farm, and it appears to be another routine exorcism. You feel a bit for the family, who pays good money to Cotton for what they think is a true service, when really, it's a very unusual form of psychotherapy.

BUT -- when Nell shows up at Cotton's hotel room on the night she was exorcised, well -- there's more to this case than meets the eye. We follow Cotton and the camera crew back and forth from the Sweetzer farm to hospital and former preacher's house, all the while Cotton insists that Nell needs a doctor, not an exorcist. Things get really scary for the camera crew when Nell draws pics of them, chopped to bits, and she's filmed killing a cat (sorry, spoiler there, but I wish someone had warned me -- poor cat!).

Just when things get good and a little scary and intense, the ending descends into a bit of WTF-ery. Nothing is tied up -- it's definitely a Blair Witch ending. But like I said, if you've got a bit of time to spare and you want to jump out of your seat a few times, you should give this flick a go. And then write me and tell me what you think of the ending!

FreE-Book Friday-- Rude Awakening

2011-02-04T10:24:00.003-06:00

I'm kind of cheating here -- there's no fancy giveaways, no intricate questions to be answered -- just simply follow this link to Smashwords and download my latest short story, Rude Awakening -- FOR FREE!

What's the premise -- a woman wakes up in the middle of the night -- she thinks her husband's snoring made the noise -- boy, is she ever wrong! Full moons are very, very devious, is all I can say...

Writing Wednesday!!! What I'm Reading

2011-02-02T11:44:00.002-06:00

I know, I know -- one day I'll introduce members of the Dandridge Estate (MaryLouise, Ruth, Fredericks, and Haddif -- mortals who were once just like you and me, but then tangled with the wrong black magic). But not today.

First off, there's loads of interesting and fun things going on in the blogosphere in February:

1) Suburban Vampire is featuring guest bloggers (and giveaways) throughout the entire month -- stop by and show the love!

2) Lily Childs has collected fourteen amazing women writers to post short pieces on everyone's favorite February subject -- Femmes Fatales. The first two entries have blown me away, and I can't wait to see what Erin Cole and Marissa Farrar come up with!

3) C.J. Ellisson is looking for authors to submit pieces to her blog, C.J.'s Daily Grind, and she'll edit them for free -- stop on by her blog and check out Pay It Forward Friday to see how a few changes can sharpen your writing.

4) New blog promoting e-books! Up All Night E-Books. Want to submit your book for some free promo? Just email: upallnitebooks@gmail.com.

Okay, now -- what am I reading? I know -- you guys are turning blue from waiting with bated breath, right? Well,

First off, I'm so totally psyched because yesterday, in addition to 2 of 3 Skippyjon Jones books I ordered for Kiddo, 3 of my French books came. Therese Desqueyroux par Francois Mauriac, Huis Clos (c'est une piece, non pas un vrai roman) par Jean-Paul Sartre ("l'enfer, c'est les autres"), et Stupeur et tremblements par Amelie Nothomb.

Yes, they are written completement en francais. I should have bought them when I lived in France, but, j'etais si sottise! (I was so stupid!). I read part of Therese and Huis Clos (No Exit) in college, and always wanted to finish Therese -- the story of a woman who tried poisoning her husband and ends up his prisoner. It's a study in psychology -- why did she do it? She seemed like such a nice, normal woman. Do we all have the capacity for murder inside us? Or are just some people born that way?

No Exit is Sartre's existentialist classic play famous for the idea that "hell is other people". I don't know if I'll read the whole thing, but I just wanted to have it in my collection.

Amelie Nothomb's work was published after I graduated college (and stopped studying French in a classroom setting). I saw it on Amazon and it seems like it's a Bridget Jones-ish tale -- funny and hapless. It got good review so I thought I'd try it.

Next, I must apologize to Rachel Lynne, Marissa Farrar (2 times here, 'cause she's got 2 books out!), Carole Gill, and C.J. Ellisson -- I have your books downloaded on my iPhone to be read, and I know my TBR pile just got bigger, but really guys -- I will get to your works, I promise!

For now, I'm making it through Anne Rice's The Witching Hour. I absolutely love this story so far -- I'm addicted! I like Rice's prose, and as for the idea that backstory shouldn't be in a novel, well -- the story starts off in the present, but then Rice always explains how the character grew up. Then there's a large section in the middle of the book devoted to the history of the Mayfair Witches, starting in the 1600's. Quite frankly, it's fascinating! The imagination of Rice is excellent, and all the characters -- and there are alot, an entire family of brothers, sisters, children and cousins -- each one comes to life in their own way. If you haven't read it, I suggest you do because it's just such an engrossing story so far.

Finally, and certainly not least here -- I'm blogging every other Tuesday over at Para Posse -- please feel free to stop by and show me and the other paranormal writers the love as we share our thoughts on scary and fantastical books and movies!

Movie Monday -- Winter's Bone

2011-01-31T07:00:00.001-06:00

First off -- my review of The Rite is over at Para Posse right now!

So, when the 2011 Academy Award nominations were recently announced, Mom and I anxiously watched as the nominees were announced. We were happy that we'd seen many of the flicks mentioned (True Grit, Inception, The King's Speech, and Mom saw The Black Swan). But we'd never heard of one film that received a Best Actress and Best Picture nod, Winter's Bone.

Quick to remedy our ignorance, we rented it and watched it. Yes, we even missed the sure-to-be-Oscar-nominated-next-year SyFy flick featuring Debbie Gibson AND Tiffany -- Mega Python vs. Gatoroid (I know, I know -- epic fail on our part to have missed that gem!).

So, Winter's Bone, what can I say about it but OMG you NEED to see this movie.

And I usually don't watch movies like this. They feature real-life problems, very dark and gritty, and I prefer the escapism of comedy, fantasy, or horror in my flick

s. But this one -- I was riveted.

Winter's Bone is based upon the novel by Daniel Woodrell, an author who actually lived in the area in which the book is set. The story centers on a few weeks in the life of seventeen-year-old Ree Dolly. Ree lives in the Ozark mountains

with her mom and two younger siblings, a brother, Sonny, who's 8 or 10, and a 6-year-old little sister, Ashlee. Ree does not go to high school -- she's needed at home to take her siblings to school and perform the necessary chores for them all to live, like chop wood, hunt dinner (squirrels), and take care of their mom, who is near-catatonic from a nervous breakdown and medication she now takes.

Uhm, yeah -- this is not the teenagers on Glee, that's for sure. No, this is rural Missouri, where people are dirt poor, hunting for meat and making money illegally -- by making crystal meth. Ree's dad has been arrested and charged with this crime, and therein lies Ree's problem. His court date is next week, the Sheriff cannot locate him and -- if Jessup doesn't show for his court date, then the family house and timber lands go to the bail bondsman.

Ree, her mom, Ashlee and Sonny will all be left out in the woods.

So, in Mattie Ross fashion, Ree takes matters into her own hands and attempts to locate her daddy, going to her uncle, Teardrop, and then various cousins in her quest to save her family. Unlike True Grit, which has elements of tall tales and larger-than-life-characters (Rooster Cogburn and his reins-in-teeth-shoot-em-down approach), there are no Texas Rangers or US Marshalls who help and protect Ree. She soon learns that she is all on her own, and these people, even her cousins, don't take kindly to her prying into their money-making activities.

Aside from Jennifer Lawrence's performa

nce as Ree, which is spectacular -- it's really the life of these rural people that makes the story. This is a quiet film -- there is action, but most of it depends on the characters of the people in the story. This is a world where, whether or not you're a teenager -- people may call you "child", but they won't hesitate to curse at you or throw you around like you're an adult. There are no kid gloves used in this movie. The men rule the families (Ree has to ask permission from her friend's husband before she can enter her friend's house), and they say things like "I told you to shut up with my mouth already."

The women listen, but when it comes to other women, they won't hesitate to throw hot tea in your face and whack you so hard with the mug that you lose a tooth. It's brutal at times, and all the more so because these are not caricatures, but real people do live this way.

I can't really say more about the story without giving away spoilers, and trust me -- you don't want to be spoiled here. But suffice it to say Ree eventually does get help from a close relative, and the ending is surprisingly satisfying.

All in all -- if you've seen the other Oscar-nominated films, you need to see this one. It's quite worthy and definitely well-acted.

And now here's to hoping SyFy will re-run the Python-Gator/Tiffany-Debbie movie!!!

Fictional Friday -- Are There Different Rules For Different Genres?

2011-01-28T07:00:00.001-06:00

Wow -- another Friday here at the Dandridge Estate! I keep saying that I'm going to start introducing characters to the Dandridge household -- I think I'll do that next Wednesday, on Writer's Wednesday ;-)

So, my dear friend and fellow author Suzanne Johnson gave me a startling revelation earlier this week -- you're not supposed to put backstory in a novel.

This had me pondering the whole "writing rules" thing. Is it different for each genre? Because the murder mysteries I grew up on (and still read -- Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Laura Joh Rowland, Anne Perry, Martha Grimes, Ruth Rendell, P.D. James), well -- the backstory is the motivation for murder. I've also seen in in the works of Wilkie Collins, Anne Rice (The Witching Hour has chapters dedicated to the history of the Mayfair Witches), and even Bram Stoker.

When I wrote Release, I was inspired to write a story I wanted to read. This was in part after I'd read Tasha Alexander's tale of how she penned And Only To Deceive. She wrote her Victorian tale of romance and suspense based on the same principle -- writing a book she'd like to read herself. And of course, we're all familiar with Stephenie Meyer's tale of how she wrote Twilight after she dreamed it.

Neither of these authors really talked about the rules of writing, show don't tell, backstory, alpha males etc. They just saw the story in their heads and wrote it. So, what about the rules?

Suzanne had a GREAT posting yesterday with her literary agent, Marlene Stringer. Ms. Stringer said something to the effect of: those who like to write, can write whatever they want, but those who want to write for a living need to focus on markets.

True, so true. Of course, the big breakouts can happen -- you can write the book you want, and maybe, just maybe, someone big will read it and you'll be rich and famous and on the cover of Vogue (yeah -- can you tell this is my dream? ;-)

Or you can analyze the markets and adapt your writing to them. This sounds easy but can actually be very hard, especially if you don't read alot in the genres that sell.

So what's a writer to do? The answer to this one, is the favorite answer of law school professors.

It depends. ;-)

James's latest novel, The Private Patient, delves into backstory in detail in the first few chapters. It's the reason why a patient is having surgery -- which ends up killing her. It reveals something about her -- what motivates her as a character, to do something that someone would want to kill her.

But for action-packed novels like Urban Fantasy and Romance, the rules are very different. I hate to admit that I'm not exactly sure what the rules are, because I really don't read in those genres. BUT, I can tell you that writing for those genres is equally as challenging as writing fiendish mystery plots or tales of suspense.

So in the end, it's whatever floats your boat. After all, we read because we want to, so we should write for the same reason, non? ;-)

Witches Wednesday!!!

2011-01-26T07:00:00.000-06:00

Welcome back to Witches Wednesday everyone!!

Last time, we went way back and deep down into Shakespeare with the three witches from Macbeth. Today, it's another Power of Three we're discussing. As you can guess from the awesome pic, today I'm talking about The Charmed Ones (yeah, I know, it's a big leap. But fun! ;-). Three sisters whose powers combined to fight all kinds of evil, including, the Source of All Evil.

Prue, Piper, Phoebe, and Paige -- yep, all P names -- had individual powers. Prue (then Paige, after Prue died), had the power to move objects with her mind; Piper could freeze (and later blow up) things; and last but certainly not least, Phoebe had the power of premonition (which later developed into empathy, the ability to tell what people were feeling as they felt it).

I fell in love with Charmed during its second season (like, when it was first run back on the WB somewhere around 2000!). I think season 2 still remains my favorite, with "The Painted World" being my favorite episode, although a close runner-up would be "They're Everywhere". Yes, that's Misha "Castiel from Supernatural" Collins there!

Why do I love Charmed? I can't quite describe it, other than to say it's definitely a guilty pleasure. The episodes didn't have deeper themes or the character development of Buffy, but week after week, I'd be drawn into the witchy world of the sisters -- always glamorous with their outfits and makeup, and boy troubles. It was just good supernatural fun.

Sure, Charmed wasn't Buffy, but you know what -- the series lasted an amazing 8 seasons. Way! And it survived the death of a main character, eldest sister Prue, in Season 3. So you have to give it props. Plus, it featured strong, sensitive women in the lead roles -- funny how Aaron Spelling did both Charmed and Charlie's Angels ;-)

So there you have it -- Witches Wednesday featuring The Charmed Ones! Who's next? Stay tuned... ;-)

Movie Monday -- it's a flashback to 1984 with Dreamscape

2011-01-24T07:00:00.001-06:00

Okay, with all the buzz surrounding the mind-bending movie, Inception, I thought I'd revisit an old classic which was called to my mind as I recently watched the Leo DiCaprio flick.

Dreamscape was a 1984 film starring Dennis Quaid, Kate Capshaw, Max von Sydow, and Christopher Plummer. I remember it being a novel theme at the time, and cutting-edge special effects, which of course are so outdated that a 4-year-old might laugh at them today. But still, I stand by this movie as being good, mainly because the 1980's, IMHO, can do no wrong ;-)

What's the plot? Well, there is this institution which houses several psychics, of which Dennis Quaid is one, who can enter a person's mind through their dreams. Usually this is accomplished in a lab, with the dreamer and the psychic being hooked up to machines. The point of this? Say you're a kid whose having nightmares about the same snake monster over and over again. Dennis Quaid steps into the dream and helps the kid stand up for himself against the monster -- bingo! Self-esteem has been instilled, and the insomnia from nightmares goes away.

But here's where the bad guys use the technology for wrong. Unlike Inception, in Dreamscape, if you die in the dream, you die in real life. The bad guys intend to use this technology as a weapon to assassinate people in their dreams, making it look like they died in their sleep from heart failure.

How does it all turn out? It's just a fun movie to watch -- suspenseful, decent plot, good performances (who can resist Dennis Quaid when he smiles), and good, cheesy saxophone music during the love scenes. What could be better? ;-) So if you've seen Inception and liked it, or maybe even if you didn't, you might want to try Dreamscape (trust me, it's not as complicated a plot! ;-)

Can Historical Fiction Turn You Into Doctor Who?!

2011-01-21T07:47:00.001-06:00

Hey guys -- I'm a guest over at Rachel Lynne's site today blogging about historical fiction -- please stop by and tell me if you feel like a time traveler when you read HF!

Goodness -- It's Gothic!

2011-01-20T07:20:00.003-06:00

My take on Gothic Romance, it's heroes and heroines over at Write In the Shadows today.

And huge thanks to Rachel Lynne for the compliments on my novel (and writing in general) over at her blog! Looking forward to tomorrow, Rachel!

Don't forget that tomorrow is the last day to vote in the Savvy Writers Legends contest -- please stop by Kerri Nelson's site to see how you can become legendary for your vote!

And just because I love seeing Sting in all his Gothic glory (wish I had a better image, but this was the best I could find!)....

Writing Wednesday!!! Inside the Mind of a Male Vampire

2011-01-19T07:00:00.002-06:00

BREAKING NEWS: My dear friend Kerri Nelson has an Irish legend story up in a contest, and I'd appreciate it if you guys went over and voted -- please visit her blog right here as she's offering things to sweeten the vote! Good luck Kerri!

I was inspired to write this post after a friend of mine read the first chapter of Release and commented, "I really liked Cray's point of view. I mean, he's cynical towards the human race, but I could see his point of view and I still liked him all the same."

Ah, yes, the bad boy vampire. Why are we so drawn to them? Of course, Cray started off as a Gary Stu to Miranda's Mary Sue-type character in my head, but as I wrote about him, he filled out and became more 3-dimensional.

Sure, he's cynical towards humans. They are God's favorite species, after all, yet so inferior to vampires in nearly every way, physically, anyway.

But emotionally, well, that's another matter. While Cray's been on the earth alot longer than humans, there's likely to be a 60-year-old mortal who's got more wisdom than the nearly-200-year-old vampire. Cray's been burned in love, and by a big mistake he made in the 1870's. He's also very, very jealous, deep down, but will not admit that to himself. Not yet, anyway.

Despite his harsh critiques and disdain for God's favorites, Cray is fiercely loyal to those underworldlings that he loves, namely, his sister, Miranda, and his best friend, Denny. He even might go out of his way for his sister's best friend, Vanessa (who's served as Cray's sex partner on more than one occasion).

Cray's attitude towards humans ends up being somewhat justified in Release, which sets the characters free of certain ideas. In Return, well, there is just that -- a return to what was. Cray's return, that's a bit more complicated, but suffice it to say, he doesn't stay cynical through the entire novel. Love does come through, and trust me -- everyone needs all that they can get in Return!

PS -- This song helped inspire Cray's character, way back when....

Terrific Tuesday -- I'm Introducing Myself At Para-Posse!

2011-01-18T08:35:00.002-06:00

Jo-Anne Kenrick was kind enough to ask me to join the team at Para-Posse, and as I love blogging about the supernatural and paranormal with lovely and talented writers, I jumped at the chance! Today is just an introduction, you can read all about it right here!

Movie Monday -- Flawless

2011-01-17T07:00:00.001-06:00

First off -- HUGE THANKS to Carole Gill, who donated her novel, The House On Blackstone Moore, and to Rachel Lynne and Taliesin who won e-copies! Thanks and congrats, guys!

Okay, so this movie is 4 years old (wow -- 2007 is now 4 years ago. How on earth is that happening??!!), but I happened to catch it over the weekend and, as I hadn't heard of it before, thought it should be talked about since it's a pretty neat flick.

Flawless stars Demi Moore and Michael Caine (I know, right? Who'd a thunk at putting those two together?). I remember seeing Half Light with Demi Moore (2006 flick); she must have hit the English studios to do some quality work and stay out of the Hollywood limelight for a bit, maybe?

Anyway, Flawless is set mainly in 1960 London. Moore stars as Laura Quinn, a 38-year-old, single, childless manager at the London Diamond Company. Laura is the only female manager in the company -- quite a feat back in those days. Yet, despite all her dedication to the company (first manager to sign in when she arrives at work, the last one to sign out as she leaves), Laura has been passed over for promotion to executive level 6 times within the last 3 years.

The latest passover leaves Laura disappointed, but she vows to keep pushing, convinced she will get her coveted executive position. Her drive and dedication are noticed by Mr. Hobbs, the janitor, who has the chance to interact with Laura when he cleans her office as she's so often at work late. Laura doesn't think too much of Mr. Hobbs being nice to her, but when he approaches her about her own job, saying that she's not going to be with the company too much longer, then Laura starts to think about forming the alliance that Hobbs has proposed to her.

Hobbs lost his wife 16 years ago to cancer. He's about to retire from his post as janitor at London Diamond, receive his pension, but it's not enough. He wants something more for all the years he's put in, and for the fact that while he worked hard to support him and his wife, the paychecks couldn't cover her cancer treatment, leading her her early death.

So he'd like to go out with a bang. And as Laura Quinn is about to receive a huge blow of injustice to the career she'd sacrificed her life for, Hobbs invites her to participate. Her part is easy -- she's to get the combination for the diamond vault, while Hobbs, during his cleaning shift at night, will steal a thermos-full of diamonds.

Ms. Quinn hems and haws, but finally agrees. The morning after the heist -- everyone is shocked, including Laura -- the entire diamond vault has been emptied!

This film is a very stylish (love the clothes and jazzy soundtrack featuring Take Five), but it's also not a straightforward heist. It's tense, with unexpected twists -- Laura even makes a connection with the private investigator hired by London Diamond to find the thief. Caine's character is particularly good -- he starts off seeming one way, but as the movie progresses, you realize there's alot more under the surface. And I'd never really gave much credence to Demi Moore as an actress, but her performance in this film is really quite good and fitting.

So, if you're looking for something a bit different, a stylish, tight, suspenseful flick, Flawless is worth checking out.

FreE-Book Friday-- The House On Blackstone Moore By Carole Gill!

2011-01-14T09:03:00.005-06:00

Carole Gill has been a friend of mine for some time now; we met over on Vamplit Writers, and recently Carole's first novel, The House On Blackstone Moor, has been published to rave reviews.

Just the fact that she's got "Moor" in the title should tell people -- gothic. Yay! Think Jane Eyre with supernatural, devil worship, and of course, everyone's favorite -- vampires. Carole doesn't just tell a tale about characters interacting with vampires, she also explores some all-too-human, and upsetting, issues such as child abuse and madness.

So, what exactly is Blackstone Moor about? Here's the blurb:

They say my father was mad, so corrupted by evil and tainted by sin that he did what he did. I came home to find them all dead; their throats savagely cut. My sisters only five and eight were gone as well as my brother who was twelve. My mother too lay butchered in her marriage bed. The bed her children were born in.

I discovered him first, in the sitting room, floating on a sea of crimson, the bloody razor still clutched in his hand.

How pitiful I must have looked, bent down trying to wake him. Calling to him over and over: “Papa please, please wake up!”

He could not waken of course. No more was he to open his eyes, not in this world, had I not been struck mad I would have realized.

Yet madness is sometimes a mercy when shadows come to take the horror away. Please do not pull away in terror, please. I have much to confess. Just be patient, for I promise I will tell you everything. The only thing I ask in return is for you not to judge me until you hear my entire story…”

So begins a tale of vampirism, madness, obsession and devil worship as Rose Baines, only survivor of her family’s carnage, tells her story.

Fragile and badly damaged by the tragedy, she obtains a position as governess at a desolate house on the haunted moors where demons dwell.

The house and the moors have hideous secrets and yet there is love too; deep, abiding and eternal…but it comes with a price, the loss of her soul.

Taught, suspenseful, and a sure to-be-edge-of-your-seat read, right? Interested in winning a free e-copy? Then please leave me a comment below telling me your favorite gothic novel!

For more information on Carole (who is planning a sequel to Blackstone Moor, please visit her blog here, and she's also blogging with several very talented writers right here!

Witches' Wednesday!!!!

2011-01-12T07:00:00.006-06:00

Welcome to Witches' Wednesday everyone!!!

Who will be the lucky witch featured today? C.J. Ellisson? Erin Cole?? Marissa Farrar?? Kidding -- neither of those ladies have supernatural powers (at least, that's what they told me, but I have my own thoughts on that ;-). No, we're going a bit further back in time to Scotland to discuss, ever-so-briefly (because no doubt theses have been written on these three Weird Sisters): the witches in Shakespeare's play, Macbeth.

I wish more people would re-do Macbeth, as it's one of my favorite plays, moreso than Hamlet (which seems to have like 5,000 film versions out there). Maybe one of the reasons I'm fond of it is because it does feature supernatural elements like witchcraft. This serves as a plot device in and of itself -- witchcraft goes agains the natural order of things. And according to the world order view which Elizabethans held, when one thing gets knocked out of whack, then everything goes. "Fair is foul and foul is fair" and all that good stuff.

In the play Macbeth, the only "witch" who is named is actually a fourth witch, or more likely the queen of the witches herself, Hecate. Apparently, in Shakespeare's later works, he refers to the witches as Glenda, Ursula and Medea (and you thought the names of the evil witch in Disney's The Little Mermaid and the good witch in Wizard of Oz were original, did you? ;-).

Three witches, three being an important number in various mythologies and religions. No doubt the idea upon which Shakespeare in part based his vision of witches is actually the representation of the goddess of witchcraft, Hecate, who has three forms: maiden, mother, and crone (three phases of womanhood), although I don't think the play ascribes any ages to the characters.

Macbeth, although repulsed by the witches, finds them intriguing and eventually pays them a visit in his obsession over their prediction that he will become king. Of course, this was the theme of the play -- how much of our lives is mapped out for us versus the free will to choose another path. Macbeth heard the witches' prophecy, but did he have to act on it and fulfill it?

Anyway, though the witches are likely to get a bad rap for their role in Macbeth's mischief, it's very fun to study and talk about them (and imagine them as pretty as the witches on Charmed!).

I'd be a bit remiss in this post if I didn't post some of the lines made famous by the Weird Sisters, like these:

Round about the couldron go:
In the poisones entrails throw.
Toad,that under cold stone
Days and nights has thirty-one
Sweated venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first in the charmed pot.

Double,double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

TV Tuesday!!

2011-01-10T21:24:00.005-06:00

Hey Gang,

Remember that TV series, Profiler?

I watched the re-runs of it back in 2000-01 (and I'm going to be completely honest here -- I watched it because Julian McMahon was in it -- he was, at that time (2000-01) playing Phoebe's hot demon-boyfriend, Cole, on Charmed). Anyway, what brought this tv gem out from the recesses of my mind? I saw former Fratelli Brother, Robert Davi, (OMG please tell me you know who the Fratelli brothers are?!?!) on a Criminal Minds (my mother is addicted to that show and cannot go one night without watching it. Help!) ep last night. And you know when things just hit you? It hit me then and there, "Hey Nick, remember that that tv show, Profiler?"

(I'm going to skip the whole lament my brain does when it realizes that 2001 was not just 2 years ago!).

Profiler centered on an FBI team who specialized in capturing serial killers. They were looking for one in particular, Jack-of-All-Trades, who was the nemesis of the FBI profiler Dr. Samantha Waters. Sam had the ability, as the Profiler, to look at things from Jack's point of view (I always thought this was a kind of second-sight thing, but I could be wrong there. Sometimes my imagination gets away from me and puts supernatural stuff everywhere ;-). In some ways it was a good precurser to Bones or Criminal Minds or even CSI -- you have a crime, and an FBI team who tries to catch the perp by the end of the episode or in some cases, series arc.

The only weird thing about Profiler is that its main character, Sam Waters, well -- she leaves after the first three seasons. Season 4 featured the same premise, but a new Profiler. Just weird to have a show centering on a Profiler who is then replaced, you know? Kind of like Hex, which started out with all the focus on Cassie, and then in the second season, we had a totally new protagonist. I mean, if you're going to make a show centering on a main character, and calling it after said main character... just sayin'

But overall, Profiler was a good show and the protagonist in it reminded me of the tough Vicki Nelson from the gone-but-not-forgotten TV show Blood Ties (sigh!).

Anyway, this was just a blast from the past of my memory banks and I thought, "What better place to talk about this than my blog?" Thanks for reading and check back tomorrow as it's not Writer's Wednesday, but Witches' Wednesday -- I'm inspired by Anne Rice's The Witching Hour that I'm currently reading to focus on the lovely ladies who've been so often misunderstood throughout time.

Which witch will be featured tomorrow? You'll have to stop by to find out!

Stylish Sunday!

2011-01-09T09:28:00.005-06:00

So, I've been nominated for an award! Yes! Only about 2 months since this blog has been running -- I'm so tickled! And very thankful to Carole Gill, who nominated me for the Stylish Blogger Award.

Okay, so now I must nominate 10 people, and tell 7 things about myself. First, I'll start with the Seven:

1) I still watch episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess -- I have them downloaded from iTunes.

2) I can be a huge wine snob but find myself preferring Beringer White Zinfandel these days because it's sweet and doesn't give me headaches (old age!)

3) I've been lightening my hair since I was 16!

4) Still hold out hope that I'll have a horse of my own one day :-)

5) Wishes I could make the time to learn Italian

6) Visited Dublin for a week -- it rained the whole time but I had a blast, such a fun city!

7) Most beautiful thing I've ever seen -- the face of my daughter <3

AND NOW, for the moment you've all been waiting for -- 10 Bloggers I've nominated:

1) Taliesin Meets the Vampires

2) Jevron McCrory's Blog

3) Vampire News

4) Suburban Vampire

5) Erin Cole Writes

6) Preternatura

7) Rachel Lynne

8) The House of Basarab

9) Zahir Blue

10) David Barber's Fiction World

Whew!! There!! Huge thanks to Carole and congrats (and thanks) to all I've nominated -- couldn't be blogging without you ;-)

FreE-Book Friday Again!!!!!

2011-01-07T08:46:00.003-06:00

This time, it's not on this blog, but hop on over to Suzanne Johnson's Preternatura Blog, which is beautiful and very popular -- over 200 followers (Rock on Suzanne! Or I should say, War Damn Eagle!!! ;-)

I am giving away 2 Free E-Copies (yes, paperback is coming soon, Julie S.! ;-) of Release. I know many of you have read it, and if you have, please feel free to pop on by and tell everyone on Preternatura how awesome it was ;-)

Also out in the blogosphere today, please stop by PIFF on CJ Ellisson's blog -- her first ever Pay It Forward Friday, and Carole Gill has nominated 10 bloggers for the Stylish Blog award (including moi!!! Who will I nominate? Stay tuned....;-).

Thanks and Happy Friday, everyone!!

Writing Wednesday!!!

2011-01-05T17:27:00.004-06:00

I just don't think I'll ever make it through Return. I'm on page 191 out of 387, have to re-write a whole scene because it'll be better from someone else's viewpoint and I'm missing the motivation. I think it's because -- Release was so different and novel -- vampires out for a Greater Cause during WWII.

Return is far more personal. Miranda's getting married. Yes it's set during 9/11, and that does affect her wedding, but I'm not sure people will like it as much as they liked vampires who kill Nazis. (Who doesn't like vampires who kill Nazis?!). Wedding Woes vs. Vampires Who Kill Nazis.

Oh, okay, it's not quite that, and it's certainly not the angst of Twilight. Nor are there any half-breed children that erupt from Miranda a la Aliens. There are dark moments, and the infamous Anack Algothru finally makes an appearance. How bad is Anack? Well, half the victims attributed to the bubonic plague were actually probably his. What?! He's a vampire, and certainly no sparkly one!

Speaking of anti-Twilight, my good Aussie friend Gabriel has taken up blogging again -- yay!! He's here, at House of Basarab. It looks classy and dark and scary, so stop on by!

Also, since it's Writer's Wednesday, I need to feature my two good friends and fellow writers, Marissa and C.J. Ellisson. Marissa recently re-vamped her blog because her old format wasn't allowing for all the works she's got published (ahem -- mwror, yes, sorry, I couldn't help but bring the claws out because I'm a bit jealous that she's been so successful!). It's now called, Ramblings of an Unkempt Mind and it looks fantabulous, seriously! Marissa, you know I love you!!!

And C.J. Ellisson, who had a rough year last year to say the least, is turning the tide of Karma and doing something new each Friday -- PIFF. Pay It Forward Friday. I've known CJ for over a year now, and she's been very selfless and helpful to my own career, so I really want to encourage you guys to stop by for PIFF this Friday. What's it about? Read all about it right here!

That's all for today, folks -- edits are calling. Yes, I will finish Return, it will be as good as Release -- different, but good, and then it's on to writing Redeem (the final in the Miranda trilogy!!).

Movie Monday -- True Grit (2010)

2011-01-03T08:24:00.010-06:00

Hey -- How cool was it that Richard Page's brother stopped by my blog on Saturday?!?!?! Wohoo!! New Year off to a great start so far -- yippee!!

Okay, so, over the Christmas/New Year's holidays, I got to take in a few movies. The King's Speech was one of them, which James Garcia, Jr. has blogged about today -- I don't know if I'll review it or not, but let me just say this -- GO.SEE.IT.

Was The King's Speech as good as Inception? Well, they're both very different movies, although they both contain personal struggles that we hope the heroes will overcome. Inception is over on Something Wicked This Way Comes -- Marissa and I did a joint review.

But back to the topic of this post, True Grit. I remember, a little over a year ago, when I visited Billy Bob's honky tonk joint in Forth Worth, Texas -- they were holding castings for Mattie Ross. I have to say I was a bit horrified that they were doing a re-make of True Grit, until someone pointed out somewhere that the John Wayne movie was based upon the book, True Grit by Charles Portis (1968). So, technically, it's not really a remake.

Okay, that was a bit of a long-winded way of saying that (1) I'm tired of remakes and (2) there is a novel, True Grit, which I recently read before I saw the 2010 movie and -- it's really good. The narrator, Mattie Ross, has quite a distinct voice, and much of the old-fashioned dialogue in the movie(s) was taken from the book -- nice to see them being authentic to the time period. It's also nice to see that there are books in which the "show don't tell" rule doesn't always apply -- whew! (I always have trouble with that rule!!).

Anyway, as the 2010 movie got closer to release and I saw the trailer, I was really very excited about it. Oscar winners galore -- Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, the Cohen Brothers and of course, former Goonie Josh Brolin (is being a Goonie better than being an Oscar winner -- hell yeah! ;-) -- what could be better?! Even newcomer Hailee Steinfeld looked good (and honestly, I'm glad that they didn't choose Abigail Breslin or Dakota Fanning for the role -- not that I dislike either of those actresses, but fresh faces, fresh faces, especially with all this older material).

So -- was True Grit, 2010, as awesome as I thought it would be? I have to be honest and say -- no. Was it terrible -- no. It was very good, but there were bits and pieces that were done differently from the book and the 1969 version which made it fall a bit short of my expectations.

Of course, I knew it would be vastly different from the 1969 version -- this is a Cohen brothers vehicle, and they're not known for cheery movies. Remember all the shots in the original in which the sun is shining? I don't think the sun came out once in this film! Not a bad thing, just different.

I guess the biggest difference was that they changed some things from the book. Like when Matt Damon's character, a Texas Ranger called LaBoeuf (pronounced "Labeef") leaves Mattie and Rooster twice in the movie -- he didn't in the book, and this made me like him less in the movie. There were some lines taken out that I thought should have been left in ("No grit? Rooster Cogburn? Not much!"), and a weird scene with a medicine man, Rooster, and Mattie that wasn't in the book and didn't really serve a purpose other than to show that there were weirdoes back in the Old West.

Things I liked:

Bridges did an excellent job as Cogburn. He had big shoes to fill, after all -- the original character was enhanced in the 1969 version as a vehicle for John Wayne to win an Oscar, which he did, so it would have been very difficult to take the role and make it one's own, but Bridges did that. The garbled way he spoke at times got on my nerves, but he made Cogburn into a three-dimensional person, a strong yet flawed human, a hero and a drunk, that couldn't have been very easy to do.

Hailee Steinfeld made Mattie Ross into a more three-dimensional character as well. Kim Darby in the original was all pluck and grit, whereas this Mattie, she does get scared a bit from time to time. It was nice to see the character as someone a bit more realistic and it made me like Mattie all the better.

As a matter of fact, all the performances were good -- Damon brings the right amount of humor to his role, and Brolin played Chaney as the dirty coward he really was. Even Ned Pepper and his friend Moon -- I didn't recognize the actors who played them (in the 1969 version, it was Robert Duvall and Dennis Hopper) but that didn't stop them from doing really good jobs. And the Cohen brothers did a good job with the first part of the movie, when Mattie arrives in town and tries to convince Rooster to go after the outlaw Chaney -- in the book, that part was loooong and slow -- entertaining -- but still, it was good to see them get through it well on the big screen.

Finally, one of the things that thrills me about the 1969 version and this new version -- when Rooster takes the reins in his teeth, a six-shooter in each hand and charges at Ned Pepper's gang, four against his one. This is explained in the book and movie as "[y]ou go for a man hard enough and he don't have time to think about how many is with him, he thinks about himself and how he may get clear of the wrath that is about to set down on him."

I always thought the John Wayne scene was a bit cheesy, despite its awesomeness, and I have to say that the Cohen brothers and Bridges really took the cheesy out and turned it into something just full-on awesome!

So, True Grit 2010 -- best movie in 2010? Nope, but it's still a really really good rendition of "how [Mattie Ross] avenged Frank Ross's blood over in the Choctaw Nation when snow was on the ground."

Happy New Year!!!!

2011-01-01T13:44:00.004-06:00

"A long December and there's reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last..."

Okay, so December wasn't really very long for me, but as most of you know, this year hasbeen fraught with ups and downs -- major life changes for myself. Things were depressing and upsetting and downright crazy for a while, but honestly, right now, I'm been feeling better than I've felt in a long, long time. I rang in the New Year last night with some very fine, fun people, and we listened to 80's music (I know -- you're all jealous!! ;-)

This year is looking up already -- one of Vamplit's titles, Dance on Fire by James Garcia, Jr., is available in paperback, which means Release should soon follow (yay!!). Egypt, 1906 is now available on Kindle, and New Orleans, 1842 is still on Smashwords. I've got Return about halfway edited, and Brooklyn, 1830 in the works (it's done I just need to re-edit that short story. What's it about? Features Mirrie and Cray when they were

kids -- a cross between Let the Right One In and The Lovely Bones).

And of course, there's the music. My all-time favorite band ever, Mr. Mister, has a new album out. Yeah, remember them? "Hey soul sister, ain't that Mr. Mister on the radio, stereo..." -- They're back!! You're probably familiar with their smash hit album, Welcome To The Real World, from which Broken Wings, Kyrie, and Is It Love came, but let me tell you, their 3rd album, Go On... is awesome. Very underrated. Anyway, I just remember that their music meant so much to me when I was a teenager, growing up . Listening to their songs helped me find the strength to get through some of life's tougher teenage moments (and you all know how hard those are!). So, when I found out that Mr. Mister was releasing their 4th album, Pull -- I knew that my own personal struggles this summer and fall would turn out okay. Call it synchronicity, fate, karma -- just weird how the universe can work that way. And wonderful.

Pull was completed back in 1990, but the record company felt that it was too "progressive", and didn't really fall into any categories that they felt were easily marketable. So they didn't release it. Richard Page, the lead singer and bassist of Mr. Mister, recently started up his own record company, Little Dume Recordings. They bought the rights to Pull, and it's out now. AND IT'S AMAZING!!!! I can see how in 1990, the radio stations wouldn't have known what to do with it. Very atmospheric, sophisticated, and just plain awesome. I love music like Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel, songs you can feel wrap around you and through you, and Pull's music definitely fits very well into that category. So, kudos to the Misters -- Richard Page, Steve George, and Pat Mastelotto, and thanks for providing me with an awesome 2011 soundtrack!!!

And on that note, here's to hoping that my readers and my blogosphere friends all have a rockin' 2011!! Yay!!

Calling All New Kindle Owners -- Egypt, 1906 now available for Kindle!!!

2010-12-30T10:50:00.003-06:00

For the low, low price of $.99!!!

What happens when Miranda and her brother, Cray, encounter something older than the Egyptian pyramids? Find out right here!!

Writing Wednesday -- It's All In the Music!

2010-12-29T17:26:00.005-06:00

I know this post is a little late, but I've taken advantage of the Christmas holiday to sleep in late -- er, I mean, get lots of other stuff done. Yeah, that's my story ;-)

Nothing like seeing True Grit to inspire on a rainy day like today! What did I think of True Grit? Please tune in on Movie Monday for the review. But, I will mention I saw a preview today and all I have to say is that thank the gods that a good exorcism movie is back! Check it out:

Yay!! I mean, I know we've had exorcism movies throughout the years, but this one looks really, really good. Anthony Hopkins, Ciaran Hinds -- stellar cast so far. And demons! Yay!!

Okay, so -- music. I just cannot imagine my life without a soundtrack. Have you ever been in a real-life scene, like a family gathering, or a moment with your child, significant other, or friends, and if said moment had been played out on the Big Screen, you know just what song would go with it? Yeah, me too ;-)

So it's no secret that music has been a big source of inspiration to me, not only as I write, but it's also helped develop characters and plot itself. "Cry Little Sister" gave me the idea for Miranda's big brother, Cray. No really -- it's true! "Long, Long Way From Home" and "Gallow's Pole" by Led Zepplin put Cray in jail, to be rescued by Mirrie. It feels so weird to write that out loud -- who would have thought that a song could inspire a significant point in a character's development, but there it is.

As far as what I listen to when I write, that runs the gamut. I'm not really into alot of modern music -- I could trip over a Maroon 5 or Muse song and not know it. I'm an 80's girl (like you couldn't guess!), so The Lost Boys soundtrack, and the Fright Night soundtrack have heavy rotation at the Hadaway house. Also songs like:

Middle of the Road
Boy In the Box
Addicted to Love
Notorious
I'm Alright
Hurting Kind
She Sells Sanctuary

When I edit, though, or when I'm really concentrating on a scene in a story, I can't listen to heavier music, or music with alot of words to it. I might switch to classical, or something a bit softer, like Kate Bush or my all-time favorite band -- Mr. Mister (who just recently released their 4th album, Pull -- it got shelved back in 1990 but the guys banded together, bought the rights, and it's out now!! It's awesome!!).

Speaking of writing and editing, I should be getting back to that now, but I just wanted to share a post today as to where some of my ideas come from, and to whom I listen as I'm spinning my tale. Oh, and this song, like 25 years later, never fails to get me revved up for a night out:

Happy Holidays!!!!!

2010-12-21T16:02:00.000-06:00

Okay -- yes, Jamie, I still need to email you and get your addy so I can send you The Tale of the Vampire Bride -- I haven't forgotten!

Company is coming into town tonight so I'll be busy with them, editing, and writing, and holidays, so I'm signing off for now until after the Solstice. I hope you guys enjoy your holidays, whichever one you celebrate, and take time out to do something good for yourself ;-)

Free Book Friday Winners (And A Slice of My New Work, Return)!

2010-12-17T10:00:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to Jamie and Northern Frights Publishing -- the two lucky winners whose names were picked from a hat by Kiddo and her playdate friend (nothing but the best scientific methods over here, gang! ;-)

Okay, so with the holidays coming up and I'm taking a break from Free Book Giveaways because I know blogging will be slow while people celebrate time with their families and another year on this wonderful, crazy planet we call earth.

In the meantime, I'm still editing Return. Why is it taking so long, you may ask? Well, I'm still getting my writing groove on, and I've not been working on it every day. I know, I know -- but I am doing my best and still on target to hand it to my publisher by Jan 1 (heaven help her!).

So here's a slice from Return. This scene appears at the beginning of the novel and features two characters from Release -- Denny and Ness (Vanessa). Vanessa is Miranda's best friend, and Denny is the best friend of Mirrie's twin brother, Cray. Both are Nephilim (not vampires).

I'm also introducing this scene because it was edited by Boone Brux, and Alaskan herself, and she was very helpful in showing me what I did right and things that might need to be changed (you can do research but sometimes, the internet and books don't tell you things that the natives know, ya know? ;-).

So here it is, from Chapter 2 of Return:

“Still don’t understand what the hell we’re doin’ here, Den,” Vanessa cracked her mouth as if she were partaking in that most annoying human habit, chewing gum.

“We are here, my Nephilim sister,” Denny held his annoyance in check as he answered her, “because Cray told me he wanted to spend a few days with Miranda, alone. We are to go back before Matthew’s arrival-“

“Yeah, yeah.” Crack! Snap! “I get all that malarkey. And of course I’m gonna be good when Matt gets into town -- I won’t make any jokes about his drowned rat of an ex-wife an’ all.” Denny rolled his eyes at the characterization of the deceased wife of Miranda’s fiancé. “But why the hell are we in Anchorage, Alaska? Jeez, Den – there ain’t nothin’ up here? Give me Times Square any day. Not to mention that we fit in much better now ‘n’ we ever did, with all those people dressed in black with the dyed hair and eyes and all. Awww look, I just got some of this sea-mud on my nice leather boots!”

Denny sighed inwardly. It was bad enough that major changes were coming to their “family” -- Mirrie getting married, finally, and moving away to start a family of her own. Then there was the boredom, the purposelessness Denny felt inside his own self. Added to that he had to entertain Vanessa -- no mean feat, considering her tastes -- he only hoped that stray teenagers would wander down to the inlet to provide some amusement.

“I thought you might enjoy the fact that we get to stay on earth while there’s a bit of daylight around before the sun comes up, Vanessa. Besides, the water’s nice,” he gestured to Cook Inlet, just off to the right from where they stood on the beach. Although the sun didn’t rise for another 2 hours at least, the northern latitude allowed some semblance of daylight to filter through the atmosphere, giving the appearance of early day, without the deadly rays of the sunshine actually burning and destroying their Nephilim skin.

“It’s nice to pretend we can walk around in the daytime,” Denny continued, “considering Sheol has been pretty hateful there, of late, if you hadn’t noticed.”

Vanessa shrugged. “Still not the same as actually seeing the sun.” She scraped mud off of one boot with the toe of the other, giving the impression that she was done with that conversation.

How can she and I, both beings of the same nature, be so entirely different? Denny mused as the water lapped against the shore. It’s almost as if the more time she spends on earth, the less she feels. Quite the opposite of my own emotional development. Lucky her! Mine have increased to the point where I almost cannot stand myself at times.

“Hey, Den,” Vanessa’s black eyes looked into his own, and Denny was surprised to see that there was some semblance of concern on Vanessa’s pretty visage. “Don’t be so glum about Sheol. You know that place has its ups and downs. Remember during the wars in Asia? Crazy then, too!” She patted his shoulder awkwardly. “It’s gonna be okay. I know it doesn’t have anything to do with Mirrie’s God-forsaken wedding, that’s for damn sure!”

“How do you know that?” Denny’s brows furrowed together.

“Duh? Because I listen for it!” Vanessa answered him as if he were the least intelligent being on the planet. Amazing how quickly she picks up and assimilates vernacular expressions into her conversations.

“Yes, I do remember the wars in Asia, Vanessa. But this time around, it seems different, doesn’t it? Like something’s about to happen, not any reaction to worldly events already going on.”

“What could possibly happen?!” Vanessa held out her arms, the still water of the inlet behind her emphasizing her point: Nothing!

Just a second later, however, big ripples coursed across the water’s surface, as if something big had just been dropped into the middle. Denny looked to the left, and then the right, but saw no disturbance that would create such waves.

“Whoa! What the hell… Did you feel that, Den? An earthquake?” Vanessa tottered on her elegant, muddy boots, trying to keep her balance as if the ground beneath her feet were shaking.

It wasn’t. Denny was feeling tremors too, yet the trees and buildings all stayed steady, immobile.

“The ground, it’s giving ‘way!” Vanessa pointed to his feet, which were being sucked into the silt.

“That can’t be, there’s no earthquake, nothing else is moving but us!” he argued to no avail, as his knees were now locked in the mud. Vanessa held out her arms to help him, but the tremors wracking their bodies prevented them from touching.

BOOM! What sounded, and certainly felt, like an explosion to Denny rocked through his body. He saw Vanessa try to move towards him but failing, having been knocked off her feet, landing on her stomach.

She flung her hands out to him and he tried to grasp them in his own, but it was as if she were being dragged away by some unseen force. His last vision, before being sucked completely under the mud, was the look of absolute terror on Vanessa’s face as she screamed, “DENNY! NOOOOOO!”

Movie Monday -- The Tourist

2010-12-13T08:00:00.000-06:00

Hello Everyone! Hope you guys had a refreshing weekend!

First off -- if you're looking for my thoughts on The Walking Dead, please head on over to Something Wicked where they are posted today!

I want her dress. And her date ;-)

I finally got out to see some movies, and The Tourist was top on my list for two reasons: Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp (not necessarily in that order ;-).

Before I get into the movie, I have something interesting to share. I went to the movie with my mother. Mom and I typically enjoy the same movies, however, there are times when she says a movie is great and I'll see it and think, "Well, maybe she's got the maturity to appreciate it more than I do." Another Jolie vehicle, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, was like this. Mom swore it was so very good and stylish with excellent quips, and I didn't see any of that at all (sorry Mom!).

So I'm sitting there in The Tourist thinking, OMG, this is so stylish, and slick, and classy -- Mom has to be loving this! Au contraire, ma soeur -- she hated it. So you can take my review with a grain of salt if you'd like ;-)

What's the plot? Well, Angelina is being watched by, from what I can tell, pretty much every police power in Europe (though mainly the Brits are at the head). Apparently, she's the girlfriend of a man who stole ALOT of money from a gangster. The British government want him to pay taxes on all the dough. The gangster wants his money back. And Jolie gets summoned by said boyfriend, after two years of not hearing from him, to meet him in Venice. On the train, she's to pick someone who looks like him -- height and build -- and pretend that the Tourist is really her boyfriend. She picks Johnny, a teacher from Wisconsin (who likes reading spy novels), and the mistaken identity of course, causes problems.

Okay, the main reason Mom didn't like this movie, and I sort of agree with her on this point, is this -- the movie is basically you looking at Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp on the screen. Angelina looks beautiful, wears perfect makeup (she's got the smokey eye down pat -- one time she even paired it with red lips, which I've always heard is a no-no, but she made it work), and the clothes are to-die-for. The ladies of Sex and the City didn't look that good!

Yes, really, alot of the movie is watching Angelina walk around like she owns the movie (and if I had those clothes and makeup artist, I would too!). Johnny Depp is interesting -- his character is more humorous than I expected, much more "down-to-earth" than I'd expected.

Actually the movie was not what I expected. I thought there would be more action, I thought Depp wouldn't be so "American-bumpkin-tourist"-ish, and there were some slow parts (though now I see the point of them).

In addition to Depp and Jolie, Paul Bettany and Timothy Dalton and Rufus Sewell round out a very impressive cast. Is the movie, with all the hype and cast, really that good?

Probably not. There are slow parts, and I totally saw the end twist coming. However, it's a good movie, fun to watch if you like watching Johnny Depp play down-to-earth and Angelina Jolie play femme fatale, gorgeous clothes, lots of British accents, and a few sparing, but good, action scenes.

Free-Book Friday -- Winner and New Giveaway!!!

2010-12-10T10:40:00.000-06:00

Congrats to SandyG265 who has won a free e-copy of Erin Cole's Grave Echoes (you won't be disappointed in the least, Sandy!!). Please email me your contact information to: mirandadandridge@yahoo.com. And a huge Thanks to Erin for offering.

Today is going to be a bit different -- I'm actually going to giveaway a print version of a novel, and that novel is one of the best I read last year -- The Tale of the Vampire Bride by Rhiannon Frater.

Ms. Frater is currently getting her zombie series, As the World Dies, ready for publication through Tor (it was originally self-published and a huge hit). She's also working on the sequel to vampire bride, which is an extremely well-done novel in the tradition of Dracula, but with a stronger, more modern-minded heroine. It's got everything -- old-fashioned vampires (they don't sparkle), character-development, plot, intrigue, romance, action. Can you tell I loved this novel? (Yeah, when I first reviewed it on my old blog I had to confess that I wished I'd written it myself!). Here's the blurb:

All Lady Glynis Wright ever wanted was the freedom to live her life as she pleased. Unfortunately, her aristocratic parents want her to marry well and settle into a life of luxury. When her family becomes guests to one of the most fearsome and powerful vampires of all time, Glynis finds her fate is far more terrible than an arranged marriage. Trapped in the power of her new master, she fights for freedom, revenge against her creator, and the chance to be with the one she truly loves. Bloody, horrific, romantic and rich in gothic atmosphere, The Tale of the Vampire Bride is sure to thrill fans of the terrible, yet romantic vampires of literary past.

So, for a copy of The Tale of the Vampire Bride, who can tell me -- what's their favorite female vampire and why? Please leave a comment below (as well as you'll also need to follow this blog to be entered in the contest), and the winner will be announced next Friday.

I also want to mention two of my buddies have giveaways going on throughout the blogosphere:

C.J. Ellisson is giving away her much-anticipated, finally-published genre-crossing, ground-breaking (do I have enough hyphenated adjectives there?) novel, Vampire Vacation. This book was published originally for free on Facebook and got a HUGE following. It's a mystery featuring a vampire protagonist, her husband, and hot sex -- so it's got plot AND fun rolled all into one novel. You can check it out right here on Immortyl Revolution.

And Marissa Farrar is blogging over at Preternatura (which is a beautiful-looking blog, by the way), and giving away not one but two of her novels -- The Dark Road and Alone. I can sympathize with Marissa -- people expect horror writers to be Rob-Zombie-looking types, when really, we're people just like you and me. At least, we pretend to be -- that's part of our cover.... ;-)

Jo-Anne Kenrick is at Fang-tastic books today giving away her new release, When a Mullo Loves a Woman -- don't know what a Mullo is (I know I didn't!) -- stop on by and read all about it!

Whew -- that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by and reading and hope you guys have a great weekend!

Thoughtful Thursday -- Who Inspires Me?

2010-12-09T15:30:00.000-06:00

Yes, I know, I've been remiss and completely missed Writing Wednesday yesterday -- sorry everyone! The good news is that I spent it writing!

I'm blogging today over at Write In the Shadows about my heroes -- I didn't put the clips to the movies, but I'm posting them over here because, well, just because ;-)

Yes, this one is 10 minutes long but it is so worth it and you will get these 10 minutes back in spades in inspiration:

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From The Electric Horseman:

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And for my Australian fans:

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ETA -- Okay, for some reason, the video embed codes aren't working. So here are the links:

Black Stallion http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fVZOCw_TEs
The Electric Horseman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEKd4MxenBg
Man From Snowy River http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZBXLYJwgt4

Movie Monday -- The True Grit Remake

2010-12-06T07:00:00.000-06:00

Back when I blogged at All Things Smart and Scary, it was about this time last year that I'd taken a trip to Dallas, TX, and visited the legendary Billy Bob's -- it's a restaurant, bar, gift shop, and there's a rodeo arena in it, too (yeah, it's Texas!).

When I'd arrived, the place was populated with 13 year-old girls, their moms, and their profile pics -- turns out, they were casting that day for the True Grit remake.

Now, I'm kind of over the remakes. It's bad enough they're re-doing Fright Night (sacred!), and now Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the 1992 movie) -- can't we have something fresh and original?? So on the whole, I'm opposed to remakes.

However, my interest in True Grit was piqued when I found out that it was being done by the Cohen "No Country For Old Men" Brothers and starred Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin. I have to say, that's quite a cast. I'd only hoped they would retain the iconic scene wherein Rooster Cogburn takes the reins in his teeth before bearing down on the bad guys with a revolver in each hand (yeah, it's cheesy, but it gives me goosebumps nonetheless!).

I'm thrilled to say that by the looks of this teaser-trailer -- they've kept it! Yay!! Also, I'm in love with this song by the Peasall Sisters -- very well done teaser and I can't wait to see the movie now (I'm even reading the 1969 novel by Charles Portis -- very good read, highly recommended)!

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Sunday Night -- Yay! (And a bit sad -- The Walking Dead and Dexter finales)

2010-12-05T18:19:00.000-06:00

Okay, so tonight I'm psyched up because the season finales of two very awesome, edge-of-your seat shows are on -- first off is Dexter (who is thisclose to getting caught by bad PI Peter Weller) -- is it wrong of me to hope Dexter doesn't get caught and he finds true love with Lumen and they rid the world of evil rapists?

[ETA -- ooops! So last night wasn't the season finale of Dexter -- it's next Sunday. Still a great, edge-of-your-seat episode and next week's looks even better!]

And then, The Walking Dead. I have to say that I wasn't going to watch this show because I'm just not into the zombie genre (unless it's funny like Zombieland or Shaun of the Dead). However, mom was watching this and it got me hooked -- you just can't wait to see what's going to happen next (and let's face it -- it was nice when the guy who beat his wife got eaten by a female zombie. Yeah, I've got a mean streak that way! ;-)

I was going to blog about Walking Dead over on Something Wicked this week BUT it's on Fridays over there, and I don't want to spoil Marissa or Jevron's week by announcing what happens. So stay tuned for my analysis later this week on the Dead, and quite possibly I'll be posting Dexter's doings on Tuesday.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

FreE-Book Friday -- Winners and New Giveaway!!!

2010-12-03T08:10:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to:

Dawn
Rob M. Miller
PoCoKat

who are the lucky winners in the first giveaway on this blog!! Please email me at mirandadandridge@yahoo.com so that I can get your free e-books on their way to you (Happy Early Christmas) and thank you guys so much for participating!!

This week we've got one e-book of Grave Echoes to giveaway from author Erin Cole. Erin and I have been blogging friends for a year now, and I can say that her novel is honestly quite spectacular. It's a mystery involving the supernatural (or does it?? ;-), and it's a very well-written, character-driven story involving Kate Waters, a reluctant protagonist who becomes convinced that her sister's death wasn't just an accident.

Erin's writing, and you can view more of it over at her blog, Erin Cole Writes, (on which she's got an awesome holiday book list!), is just wonderful -- she's got a way of describing the scene that puts you right smack dab in the middle of it. You can feel the words move around you, and through you, so that you're in the story, which I love.

Okay, so, to the one lucky winner of the e-novel of Grave Echoes, who can tell me -- who's your favorite witch/sorceress in history/mythology?

Thanks for stopping by, thanks to Erin for offering a free e-book, and have a happy Friday, gang!!

Thoughtful Thursday -- Do I Believe in the Supernatural??

2010-12-02T08:21:00.000-06:00

OMG, last night's Twin Peaks-inspired episode of Psych was Puh-riceless!!! They even had Julee Cruise re-do the Psych theme in the Twin Peaks style!!! The pie, the coffee, the people breaking down and crying -- it was all in there! I LOVED it!

As Twin Peaks featured supernatural elements, it's always interesting to explore what writers actually believe (do we believe that crap we write and watch?! ;-) Today I'm blogging about just that over in Write in the Shadows -- stop on by!

Writing Wednesday -- What's in a Sidekick?

2010-12-01T11:07:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I'm still playing around with the content of this blog. I'm back to blogging over at Something Wicked This Way Comes, on which I'll be posting mainly movie/book reviews (I'm currently discussing The Walking Dead and Dexter right now), and I'll be back on Write In the Shadows tomorrow (yay!!).

Typically I feature other writers on Wednesday, but I'm also trying to make this blog into something a bit more about my characters and my work (hence the title Dandridge Estate). And since Psych (one of my favorite TV shows) is doing an homage to Twin Peaks (one of my all-time favorite TV shows), complete with many of the regulars from said show, well, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about Miranda's best friend, Vanessa.

I conceived the character of Miranda back when I was about 15 years old. She started off as an alter-ego to myself, being good at everything I wasn't. By the time I was a senior in high school and Twin Peaks was on the air, well, I'd decided that Miranda needed a BFF. And thus, Vanessa, or Ness, was born.

I was inspired by the Twin Peaks relationship between Laura Palmer and Donna Noble. In my mind, Miranda was more like the "good" character of Donna, while Vanessa represented the "bad" girl, Laura (I know, in the series it was a bit switched up, with Laura getting the focus while Donna was the sidekick). However, Miranda was more complex, like the character of Laura (who had both good and bad in her -- hey look I read The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer -- that's how into the show I was!).

As time went on, Miranda's character evolved, especially when I was writing Release (I didn't realize I'd created the perfect Mary Sue until I started writing a novel, LOL!). She's now a bit more balanced, and no longer my alter-ego.

Ness, however, is still Ness -- still bad to the bone, with a heart of gold. And I love her that way. She has her shining moments in Release, but it's in Return that she faces trouble. What kind of trouble? Well..... ;-)

Take care and be sure to tune in to Psych tonight!!!

Terrific Tuesday -- I'm back to blogging at Something Wicked This Way Comes!!

2010-11-30T10:39:00.001-06:00

Hey gang -- stop on by Something Wicked This Way Comes to see what I've got to say about Dexter and The Walking Dead!

Movie Monday -- The Expendables (and RIP, Leslie Nielsen)

2010-11-29T17:39:00.000-06:00

I promise gang, one day soon I'll be reviewing The Deathly Hallows -- just didn't get to see it this weekend yet -- urgh!!!!

So I popped on over to Vampire Wire to see an article about the re-make of the movie, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (yeah, not a fan of these remakes. Enough already!!! Plus, I really liked Luke Perry and Rutger Hauer in the original ;-), and I saw that Leslie Nielsen has passed away. He was such a staple in parody movies -- everything from Lethal Weapon parodies even to Dracula. And he had the most classic lines in Airplane. RIP, Mr. Nielsen.

Speaking of 80's hits, it seems as though everything 80's is coming back again -- Buffy (okay, that was early-mid 90's), Fright Night, and last week I reviewed Predators, a sequel to the 80's hit movie franchise. This week it's The Expendables, featuring all those great 80's action heroes -- Sly Stallone, Bruce Willis, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Stone Cold Steve Austin, along with some newer stars like Jet Li and Jason Statham.

Okay, so, it's basically Stallone's vehicle, since he wrote, directed, and stars in it. He does a pretty good job with Statham as his main co-star -- I was a bit disappointed that some of the stars, like Bruce and Arnie, are in "blink-and-you-missed-it-roles".

So what's the plot? You know, I can't even really explain it -- I wasn't quite sure myself! ;-) Something about Bruce Willis hires Stallone and his crew (featuring Statham, Li, Lundgren and a few others) to take out a dictator on a remote Gulf island (hey, you know Angel Batista from Dexter??!!). Turns out, the dictator is financed by baddie Eric Roberts, and even though Stallone and Statham escape the first time, they go back to save the dictator's daughter.

Hey look, these movies aren't known for their plots, I mean -- you tune in to basically watch a bunch of tough, muscly, guys with big guns beat up other guys, right? Which indeed does happen. I have to say though that this wasn't as good as I thought it might be -- there are slow scenes in the middle, and the plot goes this way and that, losing focus at times. It's not as tight as Die Hard, First Blood, or True Lies, and therefore, wasn't as entertaining for me.

It was neat, however, to see the old guard of Stallone, et. al. hold their own against the newer guys like Statham and Li, and the scene between Arnie, Bruce, and Stallone was priceless. All in all -- about a C+ -- if you need to go to the bathroom, do it during the talking segments, cause the action scenes are ones you want to watch ;-)

FreE-Book Friday (and Football Friday)!!!!

2010-11-26T13:52:00.000-06:00

So, I'm extending my Writer's Wednesday contest featuring Marissa Farrar's new release, The Dark Road. Look -- this is the Best Seller on Smashwords in the Fantasy category, so you really want to snap it up, and you can do so on this very blog, for FREE!!!

Just read Wednesday's post and leave a comment accordingly -- I'll be announcing the winners next Friday!

Aaaaannndd, here in the US, today is the day after Thanksgiving and so most people have the day off, are probably sleeping right now after having been up ungodly early to get shopping deals on Black Friday, or just chilling out after a ginormous food coma yesterday (or possibly both ;-)

I had the immense pleasure of being in Dallas Stadium yesterday for the Saints/Cowboys game, and honestly, even though I sported my Saints gear, I didn't really care who won (and I actually used the opportunity to purchase some really comfy Cowboys gear too!). It was just being with my mom, a life-long Cowboys fan, and she finally got to go to her first NFL game, and see her team nearly win, live, in person, after only having been able to watch them for years and years on the talking pictures screen.

I've been to college football games, and but never an NFL game myself, and I have to say -- it's a huge party. The Stadium itself is beautiful, with big-screen tv's galore, plenty of places to get food and drinks (and bring your entire bank account because a soft pretzel and two beers cost me $22!), seats, and sports-bar-type atmospheres inside the stadium. We were in the nosebleed section, but it's a stadium in which there are no bad seats.

And, I get to tell people that I spent Thanksgiving with Nicole Kidman (whose hubby, Keith Urban, performed at halftime)!!

Writer's Wednesday featuring Marissa Farrar and Giveaway -- The Dark Road

2010-11-24T15:24:00.000-06:00

Hey Gang!!

Sorry this is a bit late -- I had to travel this a.m. to Dallas because the family and I are spending Thanksgiving in Dallas Stadium watching the Saints beat the Cowboys (or, as my mother and brother say, the Cowboys beat the Saints, LOL!!!)! (For those of you who are not American, watching the Cowboys play on Thanksgiving is a HUGE tradition).

So, today, the first Real Writer's Wednesday of my new blog, is actually very special -- Marissa Farrar is here to introduce her brand-new novel, The Dark Road, recently published by Vamplit Publishing. And something else -- a giveaway!!!!

When I asked Marissa to give me some information about her new novel (which sounds amazing, btw -- I don't have it yet as I'm waiting for it to be available on iBooks as I simply love reading books on my iPhone), here's what she had to say:

My new novel, The Dark Road, is set in Cambodia, which is a pretty unusual setting. Often I get asked if I’ve ever been to Cambodia myself, and the answer would be a resolute ‘absolutely’. When I was twenty-three, I went off backpacking for a year with my best friend Sam (to whom, incidentally, the novel is dedicated). We spent the first three and a half-months backpacking around South-East Asia; travelling from Thailand, down through Cambodia, into Vietnam, right up through the country, into Laos, and then back into Thailand again. It was, without doubt, the best time of my life.

But it wasn’t all smooth sailing and the journey into Cambodia was certainly one of the more hair-raising experiences. We’d only been away for a week and getting the bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap (just as the characters in my book do) was an eye-opening experience. Just like in my book, we quickly discovered that when people say there are no roads in Cambodia—there really are no roads in Cambodia! Then night fell and the most incredible electrical storm I have ever seen in my life started up around us. The lightning was like a strobe, and we were literally in the middle of nowhere. We had to cross some of the most rickety bridges I have ever seen, and every half an hour or so the driver would stop the bus and peer underneath it with a torch (to this day I have absolutely no idea what he was looking for).

So while this was all happening, I was sitting in my seat, watching the light show going on around me, wondering what the hell I had gotten myself into, when I thought I saw something long and black, loping alongside the bus.

Of course it was just my over-active imagination playing tricks on me, but it got the brain cells whirring, and I thought, what would happen if a group of backpackers got stuck in this situation? What if there was something out there chasing them, something that was unnatural and desperate for their blood?

And so The Dark Road was born.

Here’s the blurb:

When a group of backpackers are thrown together on a bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap, Cambodia, they have no idea of the journey ahead of them.

Shortly after crossing the Cambodian border, one of the group disappears off the side of the road, and they quickly discover they have more than the threat of land mines to worry about. They are plunged into a terrifying world of ancient temples, curses and long-dead kings and, one by one, they start to lose both their minds and their lives, as what was supposed to be an adventure turns into a fight for survival.

Now, doesn't that just sound SO GOOD???!!!! And I love that Marissa based it on her own experiences (well, maybe not -- but maybe so??? ;-). For those of you who'd like to read the Dark Road, it's available on Smashwords right here but hey -- I'm giving away copies to the first five poster who can tell me in the comments: where was the most exotic or inspiring place they've ever been to? (And if you have your own blog, we'd love to see a review of The Dark Road on it!).

Thanks and for those of you feasting tomorrow -- be sure to stuff yourselves!! I'll be waving to you all from the Stadium!!

Movie Monday -- Predators (2010)

2010-11-22T08:59:00.000-06:00

Hello and how was everyone's weekend?!?! Mine was great -- nice weather, fun with the kiddo -- couldn't ask for anything more. I did not make it to Harry Potter (although apparently everyone else did -- I have to say, the HP movies are not my favorite since they deviate and leave out my favorite things from the book, but the trailers for #7 have me positively drooling and I can't wait to see it!).

I did finally rent Predators, which was out earlier this summer. Now, I'm a bit skeptical of keeping a 20+ year-franchise rolling, but Adrien Brody is awesome and I really liked Splice, so I trusted Adrien and gave this a go.

Adding to the cast are Laurence Fishburne, Topher Grace, Danny Trejo and Alice Braga (the niece of Sonja Braga, for those of you old enough to remember her from the 80's).

Basically, the premise is this: Brody and others awake to find themselves in a freefall -- yeah, they've no idea how they've got where they are, but if they don't act fast and pull the parachute line, well -- SPLAT, right in the middle of the jungle.

What jungle you may ask? Alice Braga says she's been to nearly all the jungles and doesn't recognize it. Brody notices, after some time, that the sun hasn't moved -- gasp!!! What kind of strange planet are they on??!?!?!?

One where they're being hunted, that's for certain. Brody and the rest are a motley crue of very dangerous soldiers, gang and mafia members, and a .... doctor. Wait, what's he doing there? Maybe he's supposed to help the wounded?

Okay, so none of them know each other, but Brody et al figure out that there's safety in numbers so they band together to try to fight.... whatever it is that's hunting them. Of course, WE know who's hunting them, so we need to wait for them to figure it out, which they do, all the while guns fire and body parts go flying.

I'll admit it right now -- I LOVE the first Predator movie. A group of big, burly Alpha males in the middle of the jungle being hunted by some alien thing -- it's just plain awesome. Arnie, Carl Weathers, Jesse the Body Ventura -- I remember one interview where Jesse said that the actors were all in the weight room trying to outlift each other, LOL. Sure, it screams Testosterrrrrooooone, but I like it anyway.

I can tell that they tried to make Predators like the first one -- a group of people being hunted in the jungle, with some new life forms on the planet to jazz it up (apparently the Predators now use hunting dogs to flush out their prey). Laurence Fishburne makes a quirky, funny performance as a guy whose survived for 10 hunting seasons, so you think it's going to make for a really good showdown when he gets on the scene.

However, this movie just didn't do it for me. Look, I went to go brush my teeth at the end and actually missed .... well, I won't spoil it, but suffice it to say that in the last 5 minutes, you know whose going to live and whose going down, and I really didn't care how it happened.

It's just.... none of the characters are likeable. They're not soldiers or cops (like in Predator 2) who are out to save people -- this cast has been taken from all over the globe, and many of them operate for whichever side pays the most. I have to say I was actually rooting for a few of them to get killed because they were so annoying. Laurence Fishburne's appearance could have been so much more, but looking back on it, while it was a nice diversion, it didn't really move the plot forward. Too many slow moments mixed in with predictable action, wherein the Predators aren't nearly as resourceful as you remember them.

There's a neat twist with the doctor character, but by that point in time, it was as if the makers of the movie didn't really know what to do -- they wanted to make a movie like the first Predator, but with different twists, only there were too many twists and they ended up fizzling out when they could have been used to make the story and action better.

I'll give it a C -- worth a watch, but don't bother pausing it if you need to go to the bathroom!