21 November 2012

Sisterhood of the Travelling Blog - Round 4


And now its time for round four of Sisterhood of the Travelling Blog!
I can't believe that another week has already rolled by... however we have another round of amazing blogs for your viewing pleasure! This week I am hosting Torie N James. Please give her a warm welcome, I hope you enjoy learning what motivates her.


What motivates me when I’m writing?


Excellente question, mi amigas. It can be a multitude of things to be honest. Anything from the music I’ve got going on my player, to the movie of the moment on the television. Sometimes, even just the feel of my dog, Lacee, wrapped up at my side can evoke a mood or a setting when I’m really on my A-game. The best times, however, are when it’s a rainy day out; the clouds are thick and dark, pulsing with rain and even in midday, it can seem as though it’s night. I’ve learned, over the years, that I do my best work during the fall and winter. It’s nutty, but true. 

Something about the snap of cold in the air, the brush of a soft wind coming in through an opened window or the deep rumble of far off thunder can elicit a maelstrom of creativity within me. During the summer months, when I’m able to, I love to sit on the beach, right at dawn or at sunset and watch the sky come alive with bursts of color. The sound of the waves lapping the shoreline is a mystical motivator for me as well.

I have to say, as well, that the characters themselves can be inspiring and propel me forward when I’m tapping away on the keyboard. And depending on my mood, that’s who gets the most attention that day. When I’m feeling broody, out of control and myopic, I tend to work my male characters a lot more. The polar opposite of course, when I’m having a good day and things seem upbeat, the females get the top spot.

And as crazy as it may seem, scents can also motivate me. I’m big on the olfactory senses, so we tend to keep a lot of scented candles around the house. Just how I roll, I guess! 


Here are a list of participating blogs:

My blog is posted here this week -


14 November 2012

Sisterhood of the Travelling Blog - Round Three


Hi and welcome to round three of the Sisterhood of the Travelling Blog! Today I  would like to introduce you to author Stacy Moran. She would like to share with you the world of Blood Myth that she's created. I don't know about you but I'm already intrigued! This week you can find my blog entry at A.L. Kessler's blog and links to all the blogs will be at the bottom of this entry.



Blood Myth
By: Stacy Moran

In the heart of the Moldoveanu Region there is a world hidden from mankind, a world of myths and legends. A war is going on between two races the Misr and the Rau are his creation.

The history of the Misr and Rau began in Egypt over a thousand years ago, when Angra became infatuated with a sorceress named Baset. He whisked her away and made her his consort. The two thrived on playing games with one another. Baset beat Angra, descendants birthed from her would be stronger than anything he could create.

The Misr are a line of the most powerful witches alive, descended from Angra and Baset. Despite their blood line they are dedicated to protecting the innocents from the forces of evil lurking.

The Rau are Angra’s evil creation. A evil prophecy destines the Rau to destroy the Misr and gain the power to take over the world, handing it to their creator Angra. 

~*~

The foul smell of rotting flesh filled the air. Lilith knew she was close to the Rau Coven. She veered right toward a fallen tree. The Misr Witch stopped quickly when Takat Rau stepped out from behind a large bolder covered in moss.

He was tall with dark hair, very handsome, his shoulders wide and his eyes bright blue. Even in the dark of the forest she could see his cobalt eyes. Lilith lifted her head and scanned the area. To ensure Takat was alone. Satisfied, she did not feel any other beings in the area. Her voice was warm, musical when she asked.  “All your friends abandon you, Rau?”

He opened his arms wide and smiled at Lilith. “I was expecting you, Misr. I wanted some alone time with you. After all you did go to a lot of trouble to find my lair. The least I could do is to give you a private, personal tour.”

“I will pass on the tour. I have other plans, no time for games. The woman you slaughtered earlier tonight, she will be your last victim.” Lilith pulled her sword from its sheath and launched her attack. The sword sliced through the air toward his neck. Takat dissolved into mist, sailing away from her. She hissed into the black night. “I should have known you would act like a little girl.” She turned around to see him materialize a few feet from her. “You’re a Rau for gods’ sake. Evil, scary, terrifying and you’re afraid of a Misr witch.” Lilith continued to goad him. She needed him distracted by her words so she could attack.

Takat sneered; his blue eyes now a feral red. “Stupid bitch, you go too far. I don’t care what my father’s plans are. I’m going to kill you, tonight.”

She smirked at him. “Oh, you can think for yourself. I’m impressed you’re not just a puppet to your father or older brother.” Lilith leapt forward, going on the offensive, flying straight toward Takat’s chest with her sword guiding her way.

Seconds after she moved a branch slammed to the ground exactly where she’d been standing. The Rau parried the sword away with a sweep of his hand. He was enormously strong and the contact sent vibrations up and down her arm. For a moment she could not feel or move her body and her sword slipped from her hand.

Wind rushed over her, wings beat strongly above her head and talons materialized out of the sky. A large owl was aiming straight for her eyes. Lilith forced her body to move. She dropped to the ground; the bird flew inches from her head. She came up on one knee, inwardly she cursed, Angra. “You had to give them the ability to control animals too, grandfather?”  She looked to her right and then left, her eyes scanned the area for the owl.

She kept on the move, Lilith swept down to retrieve her sword. She moved quickly and raced toward him. Lilith lunged forward only to be met with Takat’s sword. Takat sneered, his large sword clashed against Lilith’s. “Now let’s play little girl.”

Their swords clanked against each other. Takat attempted to shift to his demon form, causing his sword to slip from his contorting hands. She took advantage of his distracted state and drove her blade into his chest, deep into his heart and leapt away. She waited. Takat heaved his partial changed claws weakly reaching for the sword.

 “Die already! Gods the least you could do is die quickly.”  Lilith sighed. She continued to taunt Takat, but she was still on high alert. She knew this would not end so easily.

Takat hissed at her, his large semi- distorted hands grasped the sword and pulled. It flung swiftly toward her neck. Lilith barely jumped out of the way, the sword whistling by her. She shrugged and grinned at Takat. “Awe, so you are not done playing?  Is the youngest Rau trying to make daddy proud? “She knew is she continued to make him angry he would make mistakes and she could finally finish the Rau.

 “I’m going to kill you,” he snapped, at her. He finished his transformation into his demon form morphing to twice his size. “You will not escape, Misr.”

 Lilith rolled her eyes and complained, though she was intimidated by his size. “You take all the fun out of fighting. You had to go and make yourself a demon. ” 

Takat hissed and lunged forward. “You need to learn respect bitch.”  His claws raked across her neck and down her chest.

Lilith had been prepared for his attack, she could sense his plans. She rammed a blade she had hidden in her sleeve into his stomach. The pain and shock from the stabbing, caused Takat to double over, giving her opportunity to drop to the ground, somersault over the mossy forest floor and grab her sword. The moment Takat turned and came at her, she swung the sword. The metal blade made contact with his throat, slicing through. His head dropped to the ground followed by his body.

Lilith heard the howls in the distance. She knew it was more Rau. If she stayed, she risked death. Takat had weakened her body and she could not survive another fight tonight. She tilted her head back to the sky, whispered. “Now there is one less Rau, grandfather.” With a wave of her hand, her body disappeared.






7 November 2012

Sisterhood of the Travelling Blog - ROUND TWO!


Wow, can you believe it has already been a week since our last round of the travelling blog? Well here we go with another collection of fantastic blogs from those same nine authors. Today on my blog we are featuring an interview from author Sherrie Henry! Don't forget to go and check out the other blogs too, they should be up within the next 24 hours or so. (Links to those pages to follow the interview)

Interview with Sherrie Henry
7 November 2012

1. What made you start writing and which subject matter do you enjoy the most?

I started writing in high school, taking a creative writing class. This was back even before computers were household items, so most of my early stuff is handwritten. My undergrad is in English, so honed my writing skills doing essays and reviews. In grad school, I got into fan fiction (that’s when the internet really took off), then my last semester of grad school I got the beginning of a novel in my head that needed to come out – during finals week no less!

I didn’t do much more than fan fiction for a few years until I met Allison Cassatta in 2011. I showed her a short story I’d written back in grad school; she liked it, even showed it to her publisher. Her publisher liked it and asked me to flesh it out and submit it. That was my first stand-alone story, “Twenty-Four Hours.” Since then have been published in two anthologies “Evernight” and “Evernight Vol. 2.” Plus working on a story for National Novel Writing Month, and have a lite novel in the editing process. Quite a lot for a short span of time.

My favorite subject matter is romance, between any two people in any time or place.

2. Is there anything that you write about that can be controversial?

My most recent one “Last of the Summer Tomatoes” is a M/M romance story. Some people don’t like gay romance, so that can be controversial. I think if two people love each other, the gender shouldn’t matter. Heck, my lite novel “A Wolf’s Bane” is a werewolf love story between a werewolf and a human, so I guess species doesn’t matter either.

3. What inspires you to write and how often do you do it?

Music can inspire me, as do pictures. I do get a lot of inspiration from my dreams; I have a very vivid imagination. I don’t write as often as I want as I’m working 3 jobs right now, but maybe some day writing can be a part-time job for me.

4. If you could only take one book with you for the next year what would it be and why?

Hmmm, that’s a toughie. I guess it would have to be Tolkein’s “Lord of the Rings” – each time I read it I find something new. Plus it’s huge, so it would take me a while to get through it, probably enough time for the year to be over and I can choose again!

5. Is there a particular character of yours that you like more than the rest?

Not really. Each character I write has a special place and a special meaning to me.

6. Who is your favorite fictional character and why?

I don’t have a favorite fictional character. I have over 1000 books, most in the fiction genre, so I couldn’t even begin to pick a favorite. I do have a couple of favorite series: the Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward and the Harry Potter series by Rowling.

7. What age did you start reading, did you have a favorite children’s book?

I was reading real early; before I went to kindergarten (which was a complete bore and waste of time, but I digress). Judy Bloom was probably the first author I ‘followed’; she’s probably the quintessential author for young girls. I went straight from her to the Star Wars novels; my reading comprehension was about 11th grade when I was in 5th grade.

8. What's the best part of being an author?

Sharing my stories with others. Learning from other authors, becoming a better writer. I like it when someone can relate to one of my characters.

9. If your current book (published or work in progress) could become a movie who would star in it?

I think ‘A Wolf’s Bane’ would make a great movie, but as for casting it, I would have no clue. I don’t really follow actors that much, with the exception of Hugh Jackman. But he wouldn’t be a fit for the story; a little too old. I like Robert Pattinson’s look, he’d make a good Kai with a little more muscle on him.

10. Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now, writing wise?

I’d like to have a couple of lite novels (around 45,000 words) under my belt, maybe a couple of novellas and short stories. I’ve got about 8 works in progress on my computer, each a vastly different idea/genre. I’m not in this to become famous, just doing it as a hobby, share my wacky ideas with the world. Although it is nice to go to Amazon, type in my name and see my stories. Warm and tingly inside. LOL

11. Anything extra you want to add….

I’d like to thank Ashley Brown for putting all this together. I think it’s wonderful we all can share each other’s work and thoughts. I’d also like to tell any aspiring writers out there to go for it! You never know where your ideas will take you.


Ashley Nemer  (My blog post will be here this round)