A Quick Thank You, Square Warning, & Artist's Way Update

This week I wanted to post a thank you to the folks who hosted me for my book launch the last couple months, so I'm sharing some of their recent releases below. First, I'll do a quick update on The Artist's Way. 

I took last week off from following the book, because I had a jam-packed schedule with my book launch and several appointments, including one long one in Denver that had me heading up there an hour north directly after my launch party to stay in a hotel so I could get to the early morning appointment without dealing with the awful commuting traffic.

The launch party went well! My Square wouldn't work, so my husband ended up signing up really quick and handing me his phone to use with my apparatus. (This is where I warn you to sign into your Square account if you haven't since January, because earlier that day I'd found a notice in my account that I wasn't emailed about saying they needed some information from me and deposits would be paused until I gave it. I filled out all the information. It said I could use the Square as usual, but deposits wouldn't start up again until they'd evaluated the info. But when I got to the party, every card we tried was declined. I got the approval that same night from them. So go check your Square and make sure the same thing doesn't happen to you! Because it sucked!) But I got to see some friends and chat with folks. In fact, I was so nice and busy chatting with folks that I forgot to take any photos, and never got a bite of my food until I ran home to get my suitcase that night. The only picture I have is from the owner of Lebowski's Taproom, where I had the party. (And yes, it is themed after The Big Lebowski -- it's a new place, with a great laid-back atmosphere).

Artist's Way Update: I'm in Week 6: Recovering a Sense of Abundance. This section is about questioning how you view money, considering "luxury" and self-pampering in small ways, and cutting out space for yourself. An assignment this week that I'm looking forward to is sending postcards to some friends. My artist date will be going out to find those postcards. If I'd realized what an easy week this one was for the tasks, I might not have skipped it? Okay, I probably still would have. While it's not covered in the lesson, I feel like the tasks are also helping to recover a sense of wonder, as two of the tasks are finding rocks and flowers; these tasks are labeled "Natural Abundance." It also calls for tracking your spending each day of the week to see what you're spending it on, and whether any of that spending is for things that make you happy or pamper you. So far, I've bought groceries and paid a couple medical bills, so, uh, I need to work on that, ha!

Okay, time for some books! Thank you so much to everyone to helped with the book launch!

iTunes

Amazon

B&N

Kobo

Scribd

Goodreads

Alex's Website

Universal Link

H.R. Sinclair's Website

Universal Link

Jonathan & Kristina's Website

Amazon

Sandra's Website

Universal Link

DeAnna's Website

Amazon

Patricia's Website

Amazon

Toi's Website

Amanda's Website

I hope you see a book you might like to check out!

Do you feel money stands in the way of your creativity? Do you pamper yourself ever? Did you get the same notice from Square?

May you find your Muse.

IWSG - Blogging Memories & Old Friends

It's time for the April Insecure Writer's Support Group!

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the IWSG brings writers together to share their insecurities. Anyone can join; simply click on Alex's name and sign up on the IWSG linky list.

This month's co-hosts are Janet Alcorn, T. Powell Coltrin, Natalie Aguirre, and Pat Garcia. Thanks for co-hosting!

The optional question for April is: How long have you been blogging? What do you like about it and how has it changed?

I looked back and it looks like I've been blogging here since January 9, 2011. I did have a monetized blog called Not a Test Tube Baby in 2005 through maybe 2007 (it's long gone, so I can't check). The blog was about parenting a child conceived through IVF (which is no different than parenting any other child, lol, but certainly the experiences before birth were very different).

I had quit my job two weeks before my son was due, but had him about a week after quitting. I was working as a sub primarily in three schools at the time, as I'd narrowed down who I took jobs from, and the folks I subbed for were so awesome that they ensured they took their non-emergency time off to keep me employed nearly full time leading up to my last few days.

So when my son arrived, I wanted to have some income. I scrambled and got several work-from-home positions, on top of the Mary Kay business I already had (yes, I know - they roped me in while pregnant with promises of having an income...). The monetized blog was one. I had to send a pitch and once they accepted my pitch, I was given the URL matching my blog name and had to post consistently. I wish I still had access to those posts, because they were all stories about my son as a baby then as a toddler, plus pregnancy stories once I became pregnant with my daughter. I'm sure there were some gems.

I also worked for text answering services ChaCha and kgb, where people would text in questions and I answered via a portal on my computer.  

Those familiar with how busy I typically keep myself are 0% surprised that I also felt I needed to be productive as a new, stay-at-home mom. I was also volunteering for a local writer's group and starting my writing career.

Back to this blog, I started out posting weekly, discovered various blog hops, and at one point was posting daily, even outside the A-to-Z Challenge (which is currently happening)). There was a ton of interaction then, and I had more time to visit others, as well. Then I thinned to three times per week, with Wednesdays being something I called Wordless Wednesday, where I posted photos I'd taken since photography is also a hobby of mine.

There was a time where I helped with the A-to-Z Challenge, which all sprung from working with a friend I met blogging named Tina to create a road trip after the challenge to visit all the blogs and keep that community going. We did it from 2011 to 2015. Our graphics at the time were created by another friend, Jeremy. Both Tina and Jeremy are sadly gone now, but revisiting my past blogging brings back good memories with them.

This is from year 2, 2012

Here's one of the road trip posts from those fun times.

We were joined by a third person, Nicole, in the second year!

Then I was part of the IWSG! I don't remember when I started, but I handled the newsletter for a while and quit in 2019ish (may have been the end of 2018) while helping care for my dad, who had ALS, and dealing with a lot of health issues myself.

Ultimately, of course, blogging became less popular and people pulled back, including me. I went to posting once per month for the IWSG. Recently, I started blogging weekly while I work my way through The Artist's Way, though I skipped this past week and will catch up on the missed weeks next week.

Blogging introduced me to a fantastic community of folks where I've made so many friends. So while blogging has slowed, the friendships have continued, many of them on social media more than via our blogs. I wouldn't change any part of my blogging past other than to have saved my posts from the parenting blog for my personal memories and photos.

That ended up way longer than I intended, so I'll save anything else I was going to say other than to say a big thank you for those who helped with my book launch via your blogs, social media, and newsletters. I'm always grateful for this community! My debut novel came out last week, so now it's back to writing until the next book launch!

Universal Link for e-book and paperback

What are your insecurities? How long have you been blogging? Was it always on your current blog or did you have others?

May you find your Muse.

IWSG - Book Tour & Amanda Casey Book Launch

It's IWSG time! And I'm excited I didn't have another gap since I was running every other month there for four months.

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is a place for writers to air their insecurities and support each other. Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, it occurs the first Wednesday of every month. Anyone can join. Simply click on his name and sign up on the IWSG tab.

The co-hosts this month are Kristina Kelly, Miffie Seideman, Jean Davis, and Liza Salerno.

The optional question this month is: Have you "played" with AI to write those nasty synopses, or do you refuse to go that route? How do you feel about AI's impact on creative writing?

I'm not touching it with a 10-foot pole. I write because I enjoy writing.

I've also been seeing the harm it's causing from an angle maybe some folks haven't. Short story markets have been having to shut down over the last few months because they're being absolutely flooded with AI submissions from non-writers. Markets are having to figure out how to pick out the AI submissions. A highly respected speculative fiction magazine, Clarkesworld, had to shut down for a bit because they were featured in one of those articles on how to make easy money, with the pitch that you could use AI to write short stories and submit them. Since it's a pro-pay market, it was considered a great target. I'm sure others have been featured similarly. 

Because of all this, speculative fiction markets keep shutting down, at least temporarily, so it's already impacting short story authors. But even novelists are going to be impacted. The RWA is doing a workshop on using AI to help with your books, taught by an author who openly uses AI to mill out books already. Self-published authors were already constantly under attack from some traditionalists, and now self-published "authors" who use AI are going to make that worse by putting up poor quality novels that compete with the real books and make a joke of self-pubbed folks.

So that's how I feel about it. It's already impacting my worlds.

BOOK TOUR

My book tour is going on right now, though I'm still looking for help if you're willing and able. You can sign up by clicking HERE. Below is the current schedule:

March 4 - Patricia J.L.'s blog Twisting the Myths: I write about the background of Wendigo in Michigan Isn't Safe From the Wendigo

March 6 - Alex J. Cavanaugh's blog: I write about my favorite childhood myths in movie form in Childhood Magic

March 8 - Roland Yeoman's blog: I write about Sasquatch in A Sasquatch by Any Other Name

March 13 - Anna at Elements of Emaginette, where she'll be writing about her favorite mythological character

March 15 - Jonathan and Kristina will be writing about their favorite mythological creature(s)

March 15 - Sandra Cox at Sandra's Place: I write Three Character Foodie Facts with Selina Moonstone

March 15 - Nate at Habitual Hobbit: Topic TBA

March 15 - DeAnna Knippling at Wonderland Press: I write about Ogopogo

March 18 - Steven Arellano Rose at Far Out Fantastic with a Q&A

March 20 - Toi Thomas at The Toibox of Words

And in April, Mary at Dimensions in Fiction

Thank you to the following people who shared out in other ways: HR Sinclair, Amanda Casey, and Natalie Aguirre.

Speaking of Amanda Casey, she has a new book out, as well! You can find out more at her website.

I was a guest at Geeky Gamer Podcast. I can't even sum up what we discussed--creatures, books, Dreadlore (the game), voice actors, and more.

Do you listen to podcasts? What are your insecurities? How do you feel about AI? What's your favorite mythological creature? How do you feel about online book launches?

May you find your Muse.

Craft Book Recommendation & The Vibes Podcast Appearance

It's been a while since I read a craft book, and I felt like I needed something inspirational, so I found Ray Bradbury's Zen in the Art of Writing.

This is exactly what I needed, so I wanted to pass it along. It's a collection of essays about writing and being a writer. They're realistic, rather than being like those books written by folks who stumbled into some massive piece of luck and then pass it off as the norm in books, just making you feel crappy. Plus, I'm fascinated by the snippets of his life and history that come through in the essays.

Don't come to these essays expecting to be told how to write or anything that straight forward, but do expect to be inspired and entertained.

The random days in the upper 60s we got that were full of sunshine also didn't hurt. In the picture above, I was enjoying the sun on my front porch with a cup of warm chai and Bradbury's book. I haven't finished it yet, but was eager to pass it along.

I was also interviewed on The Vibes podcast, which you can check out in the following places:

YouTube

Rumble

Odysee

Koyote was a great guy to chat with, super chill and interesting. I really enjoy getting to meet new and interesting folks on these podcasts. It's a little less than 30 minutes long.

And, of course, I'm still looking for folks to help get the word out about my upcoming book launch in March! You can sign up at this LINK.

Or if you like to share on social media, this image has the universal link on it so people can find the book at their favorite online bookstore. Feel free to share, and much appreciation for any help!

Have you ever read this Bradbury book? Are there any other inspirational craft books you'd recommend? Do you listen to podcasts?

May you find your Muse.

Giveaway Winner, New Release, Podcast Appearances

First up, the good news! The winner of the Wendigo Nights bundle is Autumn Miller. Congratulations to Autumn, and thank you to everyone who entered and supported me!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I also have a short story in the horror anthology Dismember the Coop. All the stories are inspired by Alice Cooper songs, and proceeds will go to Solid Rock Teen Centers, Alice and Sheryl Cooper's charity in Phoenix, AZ.

It can be purchased at Amazon in paperback and e-book, plus there's a large print version available.

The paperback of Wendigo Nights has finally hit Amazon, as well as several other online stores!

You can access all versions now available at the universal link. More are coming soon!

This month's episode of the Mysteries, Monsters, & Mayhem is out, with guest Kameron Claire. We discussed Shen Yun and the related cult, Betty Neumar (a possible black widow), and the Menendez Brothers (there's new information!). You can click the link above or look for it on your favorite podcast platform.

You can find Kameron Claire and her romance books at any of these places on her Linktree.

And I was a guest on the Ye Olde Crime podcast, a super short bonus episode in which I try to guess Victorian slang.

Finally, if you're interested in helping me get the word out about Myth Stalker: Wendigo Nights, you can CLICK HERE to go to my sign up form.

Have you ever listened to Ye Olde Crime? How about Mysteries, Monsters, & Mayhem? Have you read anything by Kameron Claire? Are you interested in signing up to help me with my book launch?

May you find your Muse.

IWSG - Projects & Gary Robbe New Release

 

It's IWSG time!

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer's Support Group serves to give writers a place to air their insecurities and support each other. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and sign up, then post the first Wednesday of each month.

This month's co-hosts are: Natalie Aguirre, Kim Lajevardi, Debs Carey, Gwen Gardner, Patricia Josephine, and Rebecca Douglass.

We're in my favorite time of year, though it's been so hot and rainy that the trees haven't really started changing near our cabin in southern Colorado, but they're changing farther up north. Temperatures are still in the 80s right now, so this was not a year where we saw our first snowfall in September. I'm not placing any bets on October.

I finished the first draft of the big project I was hired for, so now comes the waiting part for edits or a rewrite request. I definitely proved to myself that pantsing or "discovery writing" is where it's at for me. Preparing an outline in advance then trying to stick to that outline is simply not how my brain works, but it was required for this, so just another aspect of the learning experience. The entire thing has been very interesting.

And, of course, until that final acceptance, I remain insecure about the whole thing.

But while I wait, it's back to finishing up work on my March release. My first novel will be coming out March 2024. More news in the coming months, but it feels nice to be so close. Add it to the list of insecurities! Once I have more info, I'll likely be putting out a call for help getting the word out. 

Until then, I have Gary Robbe's new release. Not Buried Deep Enough was released this past Monday, October 2.

We all have nightmares buried in our psyche. Gary Robbe has uncovered thirteen terrifying stories that weren't buried deep enough. WWI soldiers encounter ghouls in the wastes of No Man's Land. Siblings in rural Appalachia are haunted by their dying mother's last request. A family discovers that tearing down an old house doesn't make it go away. And the dreams get darker from there...

Gary's striking and unnerving tales - ranging from folk horror to supernatural to weird western - have been scaring readers for many years. Not Buried Deep Enough is his debut collection of horror stories. 

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Gary Robbe is a retired educator, and a not retired writer, currently living in Colorado. His dark fiction has appeared in numerous ezines, magazines, anthologies, and podcasts, including Dark Corners Magazine, Sanitarium Magazine, and The Best of the Horror Zine - The Middle Years, Screaming in the Night Vol 1, Terror at 5280', and the NoSleep Podcast. Gary is a member of the Horror Writers Association, the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and a founding member of the Denver Horror Collective. He is also an associate editor with Bewildering Stories. 

What are you feeling insecure about? Are you a pantser or a plotter? Have you ever had to switch to the other? How did that go? Have you checked out Gary's book?

May you find your Muse.

IWSG - Supportive Communities & Rebecca Douglass Book Launch

 

Here we are in September, with another Insecure Writer's Support Group!

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the IWSG serves to provide a forum for writers to discuss their insecurities, of which we have many. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and add your blog to the linky list.

The co-hosts this month are Sonia Dogra, J Lenni Dorner, Pat Garcia, Sarah - the Faux Fountain Pen, and Meka James. Be sure to drop in and thank them for co-hosting!

The optional question this month is: The IWSG celebrates 12 years today! When did you discover the IWSG, how do you connect, and how has it helped you?

It's been years since I discovered IWSG, but I can't say exactly when. I believe I found it after participating in the A-to-Z Challenge. In both the A-to-Z and the IWSG, I found such a wonderful community here online. I'm not able to visit folks as much as I would like, yet when I do get those visits in, it's like I was never gone. Writers need each other. We need support from those who understand the particular, unique issues writers face. The IWSG helps us attain that and gives us the opportunity to offer our support and experience to others dealing with similar issues. We have lost several members through the years and banded together to support our fellow bloggers through the loss of family, health issues, mental health crises, and more.

I also was one of the admins for a while! It was a lot of fun being a part of the team.

Speaking of supporting each other, a place I've gotten help and offered help is with new releases. And Rebecca Douglass has a new release to help with right now!

Retired science teacher Seffie Wardwell has moved to coastal Maine looking for peace, fresh air, and an accepting community. So far, she's enjoying the sea air. When a corpse shows up in Seffi's flower garden, she can't help asking questions about the victim and his death. Police officer Miah Cox doesn't want her assistance, but Seffi's curiosity is what made her a scientist.

The more she learns about the dead man's background, the more she wants to know. Estranged from his wealthy family, and a village pariah for something that happened years before, the dead man had plenty of enemies. At least one wanted to make him disappear forever, and they're all eager to see this case wrapped up and forget about him.

The way Seffi sees it, somebody has to care about him, and as a fellow outsider, she's it. But all of her poking around is stirring up trouble in the village. It's up to Seffie and Miah to figure out whodunit before they strike again, and before the locals decide the handiest scapegoat is Seffie herself.

Find "A Coastal Corpse" in the following places:

Smashwords | Kindle | Amazon Paperback | Amazon Large Type | Barnes & Noble | Apple Store/iTunes | Kobo

Rebecca M. Douglass has lived and worked around the American West for more years than she'll admit, while raising two children to adulthood and dreaming up interesting ways to bump people off. Thanks to good friends in Maine, she has also spent time on the other side of the country and has fallen in love with that coast. Since retiring from work at the library, the author of the Ninja Librarian series for younger readers and the Pismawallops PTA mystery series lives in Seattle, where she is writing the Seffie Wardwell mysteries. She has also had short stories published in a variety magazines and anthologies. When she isn't writing, Ms. Douglass hiking and backpacking or to travel to discover new places or revisit old favorites, including the Grand Canyon and of course Maine, where so many of the best cozy mysteries are found.

Good luck on your book launch, Rebecca!

What are your insecurities? How long have you been hanging around with the IWSG? Have you read any of Rebecca's books?

May you find your Muse.

IWSG - Flops & Friends

Happy IWSG Day!

The Insecure Writer's Support Group exists to support the writing community in the airing insecurities. Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, anyone can join. Simply click on his name and put your blog on the linky list.

The co-hosts this month are Jemima Pett, Nancy Gideon, and Natalie Aguirre. Be sure to drop by their blogs and thank them for their help!

The optional question this month is: Do you remember writing your first book? What were your thoughts about a career path on writing? Where are you now and how is it working out for you? If you're at the start of the journey, what are your goals?

Technically, my first published book was my nonfiction title The Business of Short Stories. The first ones I wrote are in limbo somewhere. My career path has been a bit different from that of most authors, as it's focused on short stories up to now. 

All that is changing, as I feel like I've grown stagnant in my writing career. I don't want to keep doing the same thing over and over again (this from a person whose longest work position before getting bored and moving along has been maybe 2 1/2 years). That doesn't mean I want to abandon horror or short stories, but it's time for me to grow and stretch and try new things. What that means right now is writing the next two books in my urban fantasy series so I can self-publish those, completing edits on a horror comedy novel I'll be shopping to agents this year, writing a memoir of my dad's journey with ALS, and writing the first in what will be a proposed amateur sleuth mystery series so I can start shopping that, as well. In addition, I'd like to revisit a YA Post-Apocalyptic novel I wrote way back when to see if I can bring it up to my current standards and either start shopping it again or finish what was a planned trilogy to self-publish.

So I have some fairly diverse plans for the next year, yeah?

I do have the rights back on enough short stories that I'll be releasing another collection in the next year. I just haven't decided how I want to time that yet. Plus I have to figure out which unpublished short stories to put in it, because I always like to put several brand new ones in for those who loyally purchase every publication I'm in. 

While I'm doing all this, I'm telling myself I will be pulling back on both submitting short stories and attending writing events as a speaker/featured author. Given, there are a few favorite events I'll likely keep appearing at, but I will not be seeking out new appearance opportunities. Which also means slowing down on the podcast appearances I was doing for a while. I think? (I have a work ethic I struggle to overcome, lol, which means I say I won't take on anything more, and then I do it anyway, but I REALLY need to give myself a break.)

Since I'm pulling back on submitting short stories, I'm going to probably cease keeping track on my IWSG posts to kind of discourage any deep focus on that. We'll see if that works or if I remember next month that I'm not doing that, LOL!

Both Sandra Cox and I are guests on L. Diane Wolfe's blog today, so stop by and say hi!

I want to thank anyone who helped with my book release in March! Diane is the last person on this hastily thrown together blog tour. Something significant and traumatic happened when I should have been prepping my book release, and it tied my hands for a couple weeks right after I got the book cover. I wrote out a whole post last month about it and ultimately decided it wasn't something I could share at this time. When I posted in desperation for help on Facebook the week of the release, a lot of people stepped up and helped by sharing the book release post. I feel bad, because, depending upon how that's shared (visibility setting) I can't see everyone who shared unless I happen to scroll past the post on their page. So some people don't end up getting thanked.

My current insecurity? I consider this launch a bit of a flop. The sales just weren't there. Since I released this title to force myself back into the game and it was meant to be fun for me, I've decided to move on and quit dwelling on the numbers. I didn't expect it to be BIG, but I did expect more than what ultimately happened. Interestingly, with the posts people did, several included other titles, and I saw a bump in sales on my older titles, so that was awesome and took away some of the sting of the low sales on Happy Ghoulidays II. But the support I got from the blogging community, the local writing community, and my friends and family when I asked for help is the most important and valuable thing that came from this book release. I appreciate all of you.

Onward and upward! The book is out. I learned some things. There were many factors I had zero control over due to personal life issues. But the factors I CAN control, I learned about. Each experience is an opportunity to learn, right? That's what I'm doing.

I'm actively editing the horror comedy novel now and will be asking for beta readers in the near future, and that's exciting! I have a plan for research material I'll need for my dad's memoir. And I've crappily outlined (I hate outlining and simply don't do it) the mystery novel. 

Cheers to next steps!

This ended up much longer than I intended. It was kind of a mental dump. I'll either add the open submissions onto this post later tonight or do a whole new post with those, but I wanted to get this posted.

What are your insecurities? Where are you on your journey? How has your journey changed since you started? Have you ever had a book release you considered a flop?

May you find your Muse.

Guest Posts at Alex's, Anna's, and the Colorado HWA

Hello and Happy Monday! I never post on Mondays anymore. But this week I'm guesting on other people's blogs. Drop by and say hi!

Monday, March 6:

I talk holiday horror movies at Alex J. Cavanaugh's blog

9 Random Facts Gleaned From a Tour of the Coroner's Office (Colorado Horror Writer's Association)

Friday, March 10:

What Draws Me to Write Horror at Elements of Emaginette

I discuss the Easter Sunday Massacre, a real-life holiday crime, over at DeAnna Knippling's blog

If you're willing to host me as I roll out Happy Ghoulidays II, you can sign up at this Google Doc link.

The Barnes & Noble paperback pre-order is now live for Happy Ghoulidays II! Amazon coming soon, among other online retailers.

Guest Post - L. Diane Wolfe: How to Tie Together a Series

L. Diane Wolfe is stopping by today to discuss her new book with a guest post about tying series together.

How to Tie Together a Series 

Sometimes writers plan out a series. Sometimes one book turns into more. And sometimes a writer conceives of multiple, seemingly unrelated stories. How can one tie it all together? 

Here are some ways you can groups stories into a coherent series: 

Continuation of the characters: 

Take the main character and continue his/her adventures. Each story can stand on its own or each one can progress forward in time. There are a lot of examples in the literary world: Sherlock Holmes, Jack Reacher, Nancy Drew, etc. Readers who fall in love with the main character will enjoy more stories surrounding that person. 

It doesn’t have to be the same character, though. The main character’s best friend could become the main character in the next book, and so on and so on. Many of the secondary characters will cycle in and out of the stories, keeping readers grounded in the cast. I did this with my new adult series, The Circle of Friends. 

Set in the same universe: 

Think DC or Marvel comics. Many superheroes across one large universe. Sometimes they cross over, sometimes they are merely referenced in another story. The stories can also be set many years apart. The Imager series by L.E. Modessit is an example of a single universe series, as is Anne McCaffrey’s Pern series. 

Using a theme: 

If the characters don’t overlap and neither does the setting, then stories can be tied together by theme. The theme can be simple or complex. It can tie specifically to the stories’ genre. But some key element binds the stories to a series, a theme that readers will enjoy regardless of the exact setting or characters. Theme is what I used to tie my In Darkness series together—each main character(s) deal with a darkness in their lives, whether it’s due to their supernatural nature (vampire, shark, werewolf, alien) or human flaws and baggage dragging them down. 

If you have some stories written and would like to tie them together, consider one of those three options. If you’d like to plan a series or turn a single book into one, now you have some ideas. Series do well, so if you can get one going and it’s successful, you’ll gain dedicated readers for years. 

In Darkness: The Vampire 

By L. Diane Wolfe 

Souls shrouded in darkness… 

Stuck working as a barmaid for her demanding father, Anna dreams of adventure. When mysterious strangers enter the bar, she overhears they seek Zancrela, an ancient fortress filled with treasure and a magical library. Taking her chance, she offers to guide them. The conditions: deliver Zancrela or die. 

As they journey through the wilderness, she discovers their secret: they are vampires. And most view her as food. One takes interest in her and her heart dares to hope, but it might not be enough to change her fate. Will Anna find Zancrela or become a vampire morsel? 

Release date – February 7, 2023 

Romance / Paranormal / Vampires (FIC027320), Fantasy / Paranormal (FIC009050), Fantasy / Romance (FIC009090) 

eBook ISBN 9781939844903 

$3.99 eBook available in all formats 

Buy Links: 

Amazon | iTunes | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Scribd | Goodreads 

A professional speaker and author, L. Diane Wolfe conducts seminars, offers book formatting, and author consultation. She’s the senior editor at Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C. and contributes to the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. 

Spunk On A Stick 

Spunk On A Stick’s Tips 

Insecure Writer’s Support Group 

IWSG - Book Covers & Book Launch Help

Ack! I almost forgot to put together this post! Note: I will have to either post this month's submission calls in a separate post or add them to this one later. It's been a crazy (albeit good) day, and I just didn't have time to get it together.

It's the first Wednesday of February (I am never, ever ready for a new month, it seems), which means it's time for another round of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the IWSG serves to create an environment for writers to share their insecurities and support their fellow creatives. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and put your blog on the linky list.

The co-hosts this month are: Jacqui Murray, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Pat Garcia, and Gwen Gardner!

The optional question is: If you are an Indie author, do you make your own covers or purchase them? If you publish trad, how much input do you have about what goes on your cover?

I'm Indie, and my husband makes the covers for me. I find it amazing that I can tell him some events/items to focus on, and he comes up with these great covers. 

And he puts together marketing images. This question is oddly timely, because I should be sending my newsletter out within the next week featuring the cover reveal of Happy Ghoulidays II! My newsletter subscribers get to see it first. If you're curious, you can sign up for the newsletter over to the right. He's putting the finishing touches on it as we speak. Getting the official cover is one of my absolute favorite parts.

If you're willing to help with the book launch in March, between Monday, March 6 and Friday, March 17 (release day is the 17th), you can sign up by clicking HERE.

I will have to do my submission recap in a separate post with the submission links, because I have to get up really early for a work meeting, and it is way past when I should have gone to bed for it (not that I can sleep when I go to bed earlier than usual, anyway, but I can at least be in bed reading until sleep is a possibility.)

What are your insecurities? Who does your covers? How much say do you get? Which of your books has your favorite cover?

May you find your Muse.

Recent Media Enjoyed, Tribute Info, & Countdown

I haven't done one of these posts in a while, so there's quite a bit I've enjoyed since then. I'm going to be more selective than usual for this one, though it's still a long list.

Really quick before I jump in, the paperback of The Business of Short Stories is now available for pre-order from Barnes & Noble!

TV Shows

The Real O'Neals

This show is hysterical on its own, but it's also great to experience with a child on the rainbow. I introduced my daughter to it, and she absolutely loved it. She is always actively seeking positive representation, and this hit the right spot. 

It's about a young man in an Irish Catholic family who comes out, not only to them, but to everybody, including the other students at his Catholic school. While it's a light, humorous look at many aspects of an individual who has come out, particularly in a family where that could be extra problematic, there are many incredibly touching moments and some heavier topics are touched upon. 

The mom is played by Martha Plimpton, who I've been a fan of since Goonies. She's still fantastic in this. (Hulu, I think)

Reservation Dogs

I may have recommended this one before (?). Not sure. But I love it, so I'm recommending it again. If the name Taika Waititi means anything to you, you'll know that his being attached to this show means comedy gold. This is a TV show by indigenous people for everyone. Reservation life isn't easy, but with an eclectic group of folks moving around the rez, it's also never boring. With a fabulous cast of older familiar faces in addition to the young actors the show primarily follows, there are phenomenal moments of humor. All the while, people get a backstage glance at rez life and the challenges therein.

There are mild fantastical elements, basically in the form of a spirit guide who haunts one of the main kids. He never got to fight Custer, because his horse stepped in a gopher hole and rolled over on top of him as he rode down to the battle. Every time he's on the screen, I'm laughing. But maybe there's some wisdom under his comedy, after all. (Hulu)

Samantha, Who?

I know, this is an old one. I've only just discovered it, surprised that there was a Christina Applegate show I'd never watched. It was also fun to discover a younger Melissa McCarthy in this one.

A woman wakes up in the hospital with complete amnesia. As she tries to get back to her life, she discovers she was a horrible person before her accident. The situations she finds herself in, often because of who she used to be, are hilarious, and her parents are ridiculous. Light and entertaining. (Hulu)

Peacemaker

I had no idea until last night that this show existed. Suicide Squad 2 wasn't the best (though I actually liked it), but John Cena's character Peacemaker was one of the better elements. Well, he's got his own spinoff, and it's hilarious. It popped up after we'd finished a movie, and we clicked on it out of curiosity. The opening sequence will make you laugh, which is always a good sign. 

Peacemaker is loyal to the U.S. to a fault. He follows orders and takes things very literally. This shows follows his miraculous recovery after a building fell on him in Suicide Squad 2. He's been hired to kill very bad people. However, he's a bit of an idiot. Fun and mayhem ensues.

Also, he has a pet/sidekick American bald eagle named...Eagly. Seriously. (HBO)

Pivoting

I hadn't heard anything about this, but saw it streaming. Seeing who the actresses were, I figured I'd give it a gander. So glad I did! While the storyline isn't necessarily terribly original, the actresses and writing make it worth it.

Three women face life after one of their friends dies suddenly, just in time for their midlife crises. Maggie Q plays a doctor who decides she needs a change, so applies to work at a grocery store. Eliza Coupe is a mom with questionable momming abilities and an addiction to artificial sweeteners. Ginnifer Goodwin starts considering an affair with her younger personal trainer. Their foibles are unforgettable, and the actresses smash their roles. (Hulu)

Below Deck

It's a reality show, but I had to add it, because my husband and I got hooked on this mindless entertainment for a while. The cameras follow the crew of luxury yachts as they scramble to work the interior and exterior for eccentric, rich clients. Drama, humor, sex, romance, tensions, and fights riddle the ship's crew, but they have to be professional when interacting with the clientele. The staff are global, so if you like accents, you'll be in Heaven. Never worked with a chef? Well, you'll learn they're all crazy. The chief stew is basically mom to the rest of the crew, and they aptly resent her for it. The bosun or First Officer runs the deck crew with varying degrees of success. And, hey, if you've ever doubted sexism is alive and well, you'll see it on a few seasons, especially if you get to the one with the Smashton Bru Crew. (That's not a typo--bru is bro in South Africa). Happily, it's not a constant issue in other seasons, and the captain of one of the fellow shows, set in the Mediterranean, has a female captain.

There are several variations, including Below Deck Sailing Yacht and Below Deck Mediterranean, plus a new show starting in February, Below Deck Down Under. My favorite captain is the one on Sailing Yacht, a laid back, but firm, guy from Canada. (Peacock, Bravo)

Books

We Sold Our Souls, Grady Hendrix

If you like dark, but humorous, Grady Hendrix is your guy. Especially if you also like a clever new view on tropes. While this one isn't my favorite by him, I enjoyed it. The MC gets a blast from the past when the guy who used to be in her band, but tricked his bandmates into selling everything to him shows up on a comeback tour. Her need for revenge quickly becomes a desperate rush to save not only herself and her ex-bandmates, but the world. It turns out those contracts he had them sign involved more than their playlist.

The Winter People, Jennifer McMahon

I'll admit that I wasn't sure I'd like this one at first. It felt too meandering and it was hard to who anyone was or why they had anything to do with the others. However, the writing was beautiful, and I was certain it would tie together eventually, so I persevered until it wasn't about persevering but about not being able to put the book down.

An isolated farmhouse holds more than its share of secrets. From that farmhouse, a single mother goes missing, leaving her teenager daughter suddenly responsible for her little sister while trying to find out what happened to her mom. Hidden caches in the floorboards and a sealed closet door in the master bedroom lead her on a mission that introduces her to crazy and dangerous people and a secret she never saw coming.

Yours Cruelly, Elvira, Cassandra Peterson

It will surprise absolutely no one that I'm an Elvira fan, so when I happened across a signed copy of this at Barnes & Nobles (does that mean I missed the signing?? Sob), I had to get it. Here's the thing, though, her time as Elvira is a relatively small portion of a fascinating life. I found myself enthralled with her adventurous personality and pure bravery in throwing herself into new situations and opportunities. From her days as a groupie and go-go dancer, to being a showgirl in Vegas, to traveling Italy with a band then getting stranded there, penniless, she finds a way out and eventually makes it to Hollywood, making it big, but not in the classic way.

I had a lot of fun reading about the band and club scene in Colorado Springs (yes, she was a local) while it was still coming into its own. In addition, she dishes on some celebrities, some of which you'll appreciate and some of which you'll see for the snakes they are.

Die Trying, Lee Reacher

It's been some time since I read a Reacher novel, though I used to enjoy them. It took me a bit to get past the rampant use of sentence fragments, but once I did, I was sucked in. 

Jack Reacher finds himself held hostage with a female FBI agent, no explanation, and no concrete knowledge on whether they were after him or her. They're dragged across the country to deal with a dangerous group with a fraught ideology and a violent plan.

I felt like Reacher was allowed to be more flawed and human in this one than what I remember from earlier books. He even faces a seriously phobic moment that had me tense, too.

Movies

Matrix: Resurrections

Okay, so this one was more for fans to get a meta revisit than anything else, but it was floofy entertainment for a while. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. The actors who took over as Morpheus and Agent Smith didn't have the charisma of the original actors (close, but just not there), but it was good to see Reeves and Moss back again, as well as Jada Pinkett Smith. I liked Neil Patrick Harris's role, and it felt fitting. I'm glad I didn't actually pay to go see it, though, so I'd recommend waiting until it's back on HBO or renting it when the time comes.

Clearcut

It's not often I get to see angry, militant Graham Greene vs. calm, philosophical, friend-of-the-white-man Graham Greene. You'll also probably recognize Floyd Red Crow, even if you don't know the name. In this film, a white man is fighting to cease deforestation, working with local tribes. But when his efforts in court are a loss, Greene's character overhears him saying he wants to make the men who did this pay, to suffer. Greene takes the MC hostage, along with the head of the logging company, whisks them away to the middle of nowhere, and proceeds to makes things very rough for the logging exec.

There are some problematic areas, including, of course, the Great White Savior trope, but I felt like that was subverted a bit. When I looked up the director, it was, of course, not an indigenous director. However, the director had fled dangerous politics in Poland, and this was his first English-language film. I found it fascinating watching the take of someone who was very much an outsider in all ways. The fact that he'd cottoned to this issue upon fleeing his own country meant it touched him in some way, but also that it was a visible issue at the time.

I'm a Greene fan, so I'll watch anything he's in. I liked seeing him angry for once. I liked seeing him fight back. I'm not going to lie, there was some satisfaction in that. (Shudder)

February 2 will not just be the usual IWSG day, though that will be happening, too, but it will also be an opportunity to pay tribute to a friend the blogging community has lost. Jeremy Hawkins died earlier this month, and Alex J. Cavanaugh is organizing a tribute to him. Click on Alex's name for more information.

T-6 days and counting! I've closed signups for help with the launch, because I've been absolutely overwhelmed by the positive response from you guys. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped and will be helping by spreading the word in the next month, and to those of you who have visited and commented at other blogs. Here's the ongoing schedule:

January 12 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part I of Q&A

January 12 - Jean Davis - Discarded Darlings 

January 13 - diedre Knight - Stream Pebbles - Part I

January 14 - Michael Di Gesu - In Time 

January 17 - Jemi Frasier - Jemi Frasier - Q&A

January 18 - diedre Knight - Pensive Pens - Part II

January 18 - Toi Thomas - The ToiBox of Words

January 18 - Victoria Marie Lees - Victoria Marie Lees

January 19 - J.Q. Rose - Focused on Story by J.Q. Rose - Her Favorite Short Story (I already know which one it is, and it's one of my favorites, too!)

January 19 - Rebecca M. Douglass - Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

January 24 - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Top Five Movies About Writing

January 26 - DeAnna Knippling - Wonderland Press & Writing Craft - Q&A

January 27 - Diane Burton - Diane Burton - Her Favorite Short Story

January 27 - Elizabeth Seckman - Elizabeth Seckman - Her Favorite Short Story

January 31 - Annalisa Crawford - Blogging with My Fountain Pen - Her Favorite Short Story

January 31 - Jemima Pett - Jemima Pett 

February 1 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part II of Q&A

February 2 - Michelle Wallace - Writer-in-Transit - Q&A

February 9 - C. Lee McKenzie - C. Lee McKenzie, Author - Her Favorite Short Story

February 11 - Sandra Cox - Sandra's Place - 3 Quirky Food Facts

And a thank you to Natalie Aguirre, The Faerie Review, and my brother Alex Kenoyer for individual shoutouts! And to anyone who has shared or helped in any way!

There will also be reviews coming out soon, so I'll share those when I see them. Pre-order available at Amazon in e-book and paperback. Coming to Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and other e-formats after release day.

What have you watched or read lately? Any good podcasts? Did you know Jeremy? Will you be taking part in his tribute? 

May you find your Muse.