The Mating Game Bloghop

So, I'm participating in this fun blog hop and have chosen Selene and Micah from Affairs of the Dead as the couple to answer the questions. I had a lot of fun with this because I hadn't really been inside these guy's heads for a while.

What would your character do if the one they wanted was terrified of their feelings and pushed them away?

S: I feel like whoever asked this question crawled into your head and pulled it out, Micah.

M: Selene…seriously…

S: Oh come on, don’t you think this completely hits the mark? You were oh so head over heels in love with me, but instead of telling me you decided to go the route of a first grader and be mean to me. I think that qualifies as you being ‘terrified’ of your feelings and ‘pushing me away.’

M: I was just trying to protect myself.

S: Yes, you went into your shell like a scared little turtle.

M: Would you give it a rest?

S: I love my little turtle!

M: Ugh...

Tells us about a memorable experience you shared together.

S: Are we talking good memories or bad memories here?

M: How about we aim for good?

S: But there are so few of those…

M: Selene!

S: Kidding! I think one of my favorite memories of us was when you kissed me after I got injured and you drove my car home and brought take out.

M: I was thinking of that night too.

S: It was the first time I had ever felt like I was kissing someone who really cared about me and didn't just want me for a moment.

M: I want you forever Selene, you know that.

S: I do.

What is one of the roadblocks standing in the way of you getting together?

M: I’d say the fact that Selene was having an affair with our married boss was something of a roadblock...

S: What about the fact that I’m bound to a cutie college boy ghost?

M: Seriously Selene?

S: Just trying to lighten the mood.

M: You failed.

S: I know. But come on, who doesn’t like a challenge?

M: These are so not the normal kinds of relationship challenges…

S: Normal is boring!

So, how would your characters describe the other person, using only one word at a time?

S: Turtle

M: Exasperating

S: Snail

M: Reckless (Selene, stop naming animals with shells!)

S:  (Fine!) Strong

M: Beautiful

S: Loyal

M: Brave

S: Understanding

M: Powerful

What was the first thing your main characters noticed about each other?

S: That every girl in the office wanted to get in his pants

M: That’s really your answer?

S: No, Micah dear. The first thing I noticed about you was how beautiful your eyes are. They are the weapons you used to draw all the women in the office to you.

M: And the first thing I noticed about you is how absolutely reckless you are.

S: That’s really your answer?

M: Yes.

S: Micah!
M: You’re reckless, but you do whatever it takes to get the job done no matter the consequences to yourself. You are never afraid to take risks and I’ve always admired that about you.

S: You are gonna get so lucky tonight.

The Mark of a Writer

As far as my story of why I wanted to be a writer, or how long I've wanted to be one, I'm not going to say my story is very different from a lot of others out there. There's the usual mantra "been writing all my life, always knew I wanted to write etc etc." I'm definitely a part of that; writing has been the one thing I have stuck with, and I don't see that ever changing. I know that no matter how difficult it has been and will continue to be trying to make it as an author, I will never lose my passion for it, and it's something I wanted to celebrate. I guess if I want to be poetic I could say writing is in my bones, and now it's on my skin.

A couple weeks ago I got my first tattoo, and it's a tattoo that symbolizes the thing I love to do most. I had thought about it for quite some time; getting a tattoo is not something I'd do on a whim since it's, you know, permanent, and I told myself that when I got an agent or a book deal, that would be the perfect time to get the tattoo. So when I found out that my book would be published by Etopia Press, I was excited for more than one reason. And now I have it, and I absolutely love it, and I think it will be good motivation for me on my down days, and a good reminder of who I am; a writer. No matter where my writing goes or doesn't go, I am a writer and that will never change.

So here it is! It's an abstract Quill Pen, on my wrist. Of course the tattoo had to be something writerly =)

Spooktoberfest

Here's my piece for Dani and Jackie's Spooktoberfest, in which we had to incorporate the words cobwebs, jack-o-lantern, ghost, cauldron, and razor into a 300 word piece:

The only light I had to see by came from the flickering candle inside the jack-o-lantern that sat in the corner of the room. During the day it had looked like a non-threatening, smiling pumpkin, but now the shadows that crowded around it and the flame that danced inside it made it look like it had crawled out of a nightmare. I swept my eyes around the room for the hundredth time; trying to convince myself I was safe. I would have given myself more light, but I didn’t want to give them any more reason to find me. Though really, could you hide from ghosts? I laughed softly at the thought, but it wasn’t a happy laugh, it was the laugh of someone whose mind had melted into a miasma of insanity; like a cauldron full of toils and troubles, something spun from razor sharp nightmares that cut through the defenses I had tried to build up like they were nothing but cobwebs. I had definitely lost my mind, because it was Halloween night, and here I was sitting in a dark room with a pumpkin for company, waiting for ghosts to come and claim me. They had warned me, but I hadn’t listened.

A laugh resounded somewhere outside, and it sounded like the laughter of some innocent soul who didn’t know what this night was really about. Then the windows suddenly rattled as a gust of wind slammed into them; the door shook and the candle flamed snuffed out, and that laughter abruptly became a scream. And I was next.

Urban Fantasy Bloghop + Giveaway!

Today is the start of Yelena Casle's Urban Fantasy bloghop, and I'm happy to be participating! Here's my Q&A:

1. What do you love about the Urban Fantasy genre? (reading and writing)

I love the darkness and grittiness I get to explore with urban fantasy. As much as I enjoy reading YA, I love the adult aspect of urban fantasy because of the themes I get to explore. I love the mix of action, suspense, magic, and of course the sex and romance. Kick ass heroines and sexy, supernatural alpha men? Count me in! This counts for both reading and writing. With my books, I love being able to encompass things like politics, murder, romance, and kickassness all in one. I don't have to be afraid to hold back, you can definitely push the envelope with the genre.

2. Who is the sexiest supernatural creature? Who is the scariest?

In terms of sex appeal, I think a smoldering hot were-animal is pretty sexy. The muscles, the heat, the dangerous air about them, the dominant personality -- hot! Scariest, hmm....zombies perhaps? Because they are as least sexy as you can get, you pretty much have to run for your lives to keep your brains in your head. Or of course if we're talking UF, you can stick around and kick their asses.

3. If you could make any supernatural creature, what would it look like and what powers would it have?

I like things that are not just one thing, so maybe some sort of demon/witch hybrid (I actually have this sort of character in one of my books and he's a lot of fun) So he has magic but can also suck the soul from your body. He'd be a good looking guy of course lol

4. Do you have any Halloween rituals?

I actually don't, because where I spent my childhood (Trinidad), Halloween wasn't a big deal like it is in the states, so I didn't grow up having one thought or another about it. So even as an adult I don't have anything I ritually do on Halloween, I have fun if I can, if not it's not a big deal.

5. Walking at midnight in a forest on Halloween - crazy, scary or adventurous?

All of the above!

6. What is your worst fear?

Being buried alive. Drowning also seems like it would suck.

7. What is one of your character's worst fear?

Hm, I think I'll use Selene, from my most recent novel, Affairs of the Dead. I think one of her fears is not feeling as though she is good enough to handle a healthy relationship. She might very well run from it.

8. What is your favorite Urban Fantasy novel?

How can I have a favorite! My first foray into the genre was Laurell K. Hamilton so I will always have a soft spot for the Anita Blake novels, especially the earlier ones. I've been reading Richelle Mead lately so I've been enjoying her series.

9. Who is your favorite Urban Fantasy hero/heroine?

I like Richelle Mead's Eugenie from her Thorn Queen series. Hero...hmm! Jean Claude from the Anite Blake series is one sexy vamp in my opinion, but really, how can I choose?

10. Which hero/heroine would you love to be on Halloween?

I'll be myself, just give me some kick ass powers! lol

For my giveaway, I will be giving away an ARC of "A Conspiracy of Alchemists" by Liesel Schwarz, which is to be published in March 2013. Just comment on this post and I will choose the winner at random!

Read the blurb on Amazon

A Crewel Discussion

As part of our BEA book club, we swap questions about the book, so here's my Q&A with the ladies:

Did you find the concept of weaving and all it involves to be easy to grasp or a little confusing? At what point in the book did you totally understand it?

Alexa: It was such a cool idea! I actually took a long time to understand it - it was probably towards the second third of the book that I really started getting what they were referring to. It was a bit difficult for me to visualize, but I do think that it’s pretty well-done.

Rachel: I found the concept a little confusing, however, like Alexa, I was able to understand it better in the latter of the book. It was a REALLY cool idea, and I was able to fully grasp the weaving concept in a particular scene ((**SPOILERS when Jost was explaining how his wife and baby were ‘ripped’ away**))

Shanella: I also took a long time to grasp the concept - about ¾ of the way through - and while I thought the world building was done well, I can also see the story losing readers because it takes such a long to really explain the world. A few action examples in the opening might have been more beneficial.

A.J: I was unclear about how it all worked until later in the story, and I also wish there had been clearer examples earlier on to help me understand how things worked. I felt like it was a little bit of a stretch to believe that an entire world was built using threads and looms, and I wasn’t really sure what sort of mental image to have during the scenes involving the looms where it seemed as though the characters were seeing what was going on, I thought...do the threads work like a television screen or something? Ripping was a concept that was easier to grasp, though, even though it’s kind of frightening to think that just ripping a certain thread would end someone’s life!

 For more Q&A head to:

Shanella's Blog

Alexa's Blog

Rachel's Blog