Salem's Daughters Cover Reveal & Links

Today I'm pleased to be part of the cover reveal for Stephen Tremp's Salem's Daughters!

Stephen Tremp writes speculative fiction and his fourth novel, Salem’s Daughters, is supernatural thriller. A four hundred year old evil is unleashed when souls of the daughters of those killed during the Salem Witch Trials find a new generation of people to murder at a popular modern-day bed and breakfast.

For a full synopsis and to pre-order a copy of Salem’s Daughters for $2.99 (price goes up to $4.99 soon after release) Click Here.

Release Date: October 1

Stephen Tremp

Author: Breakthrough Series

http://stephentremp.com

Congratulations, Stephen!

Now for the links. Please bear in mind that I am not endorsing any of these publications. Always do your own due diligence before submitting to a contest or publication.

Accepting Submissions:

Sky Warrior Books is accepting submissions for their anthology Wee Folk and Wise. Must include fairies. Pays in royalties. Deadline October 15.

Lamplight is accepting submissions of literary dark fiction. Short fiction and flash fiction. Pays $150 for short stories, $50 for flash fiction. 2000-7000 words. Deadline October 15.

Iconoclast Literary Magazine is accepting submissions of prose and poetry. Up to 3500 words. Pays $.01/word, plus two contributor copies for prose, $2-$6 per poem or artwork.

The Impressment Gang is accepting submissions of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and reviews. No word limits. Pays $25, and two contributor copies.

Strange Horizons is accepting submissions of speculative fiction. Up to 10,000 words, but 5000 is preferred. Pays $.08/word.

Strangelet is accepting submissions of science fiction, fantasy, and magical realism. Stories, comics, art, and poetry. 2000-7500 words for short fiction, under 2000 for flash fiction. Pay varies per submission type, but is $.01/word for short stories.

Far Horizons Magazine is accepting submissions for two anthologies. Forever Hungry is about zombies. Fantastically Horny is seeking SF&F erotica. 1000-5000 words. Pays royalties, a contributor e-copy, and a discount on hard copies. Will close when filled.

Concis Magazine is accepting submissions of many different sorts of pieces. Genre doesn't matter. Pays $10, plus a contributor copy.

Contests:

Anderbo.com is holding the 2015 RRofihe Trophy No-Fee Short Story Contest. 3500-5000 words. $500 prize, with trophy and publication. Deadline October 15.

Of Interest:

Writing With Color is "a blog dedicated to writing and resources centered on racial and ethnic diversity." The specific post I've linked to is a guide for describing skin color without using food descriptors/comparisons.

How do you like Stephen's cover? How do you feel about black cats? Any of these links of interest? Any experience with these publications? Anything to share? Publication news?

May you find your Muse.

Roasting "The Bird", CheersFest 2.0

Today's the day of the CheersFest 2.0, where we honor Arlee "Lee" Bird.

CheersFest 2.0 is being hosted by Mark Koopmans, Morgan Shamy, David Powers King, Stephen Tremp, and Alex J. Cavanaugh.

We've been asked to answer four questions:

Why did Lee come up with the A-to-Z Challenge?
There's an issue sweeping the globe wherein people are losing the ability to alphabetize. Lee realized the issue and stepped forward to do his civic duty to educate the masses.

If someone dreams about being a juggler, what does it mean?
Straight up, it means they've got too much going on in life, that they feel like they're juggling important things. On the other hand, it could mean your brain is doing gymnastics.

Is a post by Mr. Bird worth two in the bush?
No jesting here, of course it is!

Who could play Lee in a documentary?
Paul Newman. Come on, tell me you don't see it...

Write a flash fiction piece, 100 words, with the required words:

The challenge was on, the room full of jugglers sweating in their intricate outfits. (One wore a suit of feathers.) They eyeballed each other, sneering and snarling, and then they began tossing jibes at each other.

"You couldn't juggle two oranges if they had strings attached!"

"Oh yeah, well you couldn't catch a bowling pin if it had super glue painted all over it!"

Just as it looked about to come to blows, he walked in, the Man in the Brown Coat. He was a legend, a man they'd all heard of, one they all respected. The Bird. And he didn't need a feather suit to prove it.

"What's up fella's? Ready for the show?"

Feathers fainted, one tiny yellow bit of down floating gently to the ground.

And that's when everyone else in the room knew they'd already lost the challenge.

Now for my caption:

Carl looked at the pin with trepidation, knowing that it could only keep him upright for so long before it lost its balance.

All jests aside, I give my thanks to Lee for all he's done for the blogging community, for bringing so many of us together, and for creating something that a multitude have enjoyed these past few years. His support has meant a lot to me, and I hope for his success. Thank you for being you, Lee!

May you find your Muse.

A-to-Z Theme & Stephen Tremp News

Hi guys! Just a brief post today with a couple items.

First, A-to-Z co-host Stephen Tremp's blog was shut down by Blogger/Google, and his access to Blogger was taken, which means he can't even post on the A-to-Z blog. He was told this was due to spamming. This isn't the first time I've heard of this happening. He's set up a temporary Word Press blog until he can work this out. Even then, he will be setting up long-term elsewhere. In the meantime, you can find him at www.stephentremp.wordpress.com. Please take a moment to go follow his new blog and drop him a note.

Second, the A-to-Z Challenge starts next week!

I've decided to go with a theme this month, though I will also attempt to do posts as normal on Mondays and Wednesdays for those not interested in the A-to-Z. I do hope, though, that you can enjoy my A-to-Z posts, even if you aren't participating.

My theme will be: History's Mysteries

Some you'll have heard of, and some you hopefully won't have. I've tried to seek out possible answers to give an idea of what might have happened when I can. I'm also working on keeping the posts short, but you guys know me by now, so you can't expect them to be one paragraph! Right?

See you next week!

May you find your Muse.

A Little Shel Silverstein, Lunar Lovin' and Reintroducing Myself

Well, hi, it's Monday!  I know, you were trying to forget that, right?

I was reading "A Light in the Attic" to my son the other night, and found this gem:

This Bridge
Shel Silverstein
PP. 168-169

This bridge will only take you halfway there
To those mysterious lands you long to see:
Through gypsy camps and swirling Arab fairs
And moonlit woods where unicorns run free.
So come and walk awhile with me and share
The twisting trails and wondrous worlds I've known.
But this bridge will only take you halfway there--
The last few steps you'll have to take alone.

I've read the book many times over, but I'd forgotten this one, and it struck me in so many ways.  But today, it strikes me as being all about story.  When you read a book, you have the ability to imagine it in your head, to create the monsters from a description, to picture the characters, to see and feel the setting.  Words on the page can only do so much without your mind.  It's your mind that finishes those words, that twists them into the stories within you, and that makes you feel what you feel.  When you watch a movie, you're forced to see what they chose to have you see.  Everything is laid out, and you have no real choice in envisioning characters and settings.  If they've made a crappy monster, that's all you'll see.  Whereas, if a monster is written to be not so great, it can become so much more within you.

Remember the magic in your stories, and in the stories of others.  It's a beautiful thing, but no one can hold your hand.  You have to take those last few steps on your own.

Now, I'm participating in two blog hops today, but both are brief.

What can I say about myself?  I discovered the joy of writing in elementary school when a teacher gave us each a photo prompt and told us to write for 15 minutes.  Mine was a picture of the Earth.  From that day forward, I've always loved to write from a prompt (or any other ol' way).  I write mostly horror, urban fantasy and post-apocalyptic.  I have a fascination with history, especially all things Wild West.  I also enjoy photography, though I haven't had the opportunity to take any photography classes yet.  Sometimes I get lucky and get a really great photo, and often they're okay.  I'm blessed to live in a place where I'm exposed to gorgeous natural surroundings, which provides much of my photo fodder, along with my kiddos, who I love to photograph.  For random factoids on me, you can see an About Me post I wrote last year, HERE.

Thank to Stephen Tremp, Mark Koopmans, Elise Fallson, and C.M. Brown for this blog hop, intended to help all us bloggers get to know each other!

Now, thanks to Mina Lobo, we have the Lunar Lovin' Hop.

I was sad I couldn't get any good pictures, and not because the sky wasn't clear - it was.  I just didn't have the knack tonight.  Here's what I got, though.

 I could see it completely clearly through the telephoto lens, but I was too cold and shaky to get a good pic in the dark.  I tried the tripod, but the lens was too heavy, so it relied on me to balance it anyway.  Still, I loved sitting out in the dark, gazing up the moon.  Peaceful.  It was about 11:15 PM when I took the photos, here in Colorado Springs.  The constellations were so clear.  Utterly gorgeous.

Thank you for stopping by!

What I'm reading: Annwynn's Blood, by Michael Eging and Steve Arnold.

Have you taken the time to enjoy the moon lately?  What random fact do you like telling people about yourself?  Did you enjoy Shel Silverstein as a kid?  When was the last time you read his work?

May you find your Muse.

Author Stephen Tremp Guest Posts!

Hello, and Happy Almost Friday! Today we have a guest poster: Stephen Tremp, author of Breakthrough and the newly released Opening. Welcome, Stephen!

While Stephen is covering my blog for me, I am posting my co-host Getting to Know You over on the A to Z Challenge Blog. I reveal a few interesting facts and more!

It's all yours, Stephen!

"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones" - Albert Einstein

Since we tapped into Futurists and Visionaries earlier this this blog tour, I thought I would take the liberty to further this topic and discuss how our civilization might evolve, if we don't destroy each other first. This is a summation of possible civilizations we might be fortunate to evolve into taken from Professor Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist from New York University:

A Class 0 (Zero) Civilization, of which we are one, uses organic and man-made resources such as wind, water, and fossil fuels as energy sources to power our civilization. For the record, there are some who believe we are a reemerging Class 0 Civilization, replacing more advanced human civilizations from the past who have either been destroyed, or have left for the stars and may be waiting for us to join them.

A Class I Civilization is a society that has evolved to the point they are able to use their entire planetary resources. They have also unified the population and eliminated undesirable elements such as terrorism and other forms of violent fundamentalist beliefs. They are able to travel to and explore planets, such as Mars in our case, within their solar system.

A Class II Civilization has progressed where they use the resources of their entire solar system. They may begin to explore and colonize other solar systems and use the resources of the entire galaxy.

A Class III Civilization may begin exploring beyond the borders of their resident galaxy. A civilization this advanced would be able to bend space and time at will. They would probably be capable of inter dimensional travel and even time travel.

A Class IV Civilization is one that uses the resources of the entire universe and may begin exploring trans-dimensional space and whatever else may be out there.



Of course, there are many events that could prevent us from moving forward in this manner: World War III, The Rapture, pandemics, etc. And the problem remains, can we attain a Class I Civilization with all the conflicts and division between nation states and other great divisions that exist among mankind?

These Class I – IV Civilizations form the background for some truly great novels and movies. Star Wars and Star Trek are two epic examples. Dystopian stories abound of when things go terribly wrong on the road to paradise. I’m outlining a book using just this premise. Even though Breakthrough is a trilogy, new book ideas just keep rolling out of the series and picking up where I originally intended to stop. I guess this is a good problem to have.

Question: What do you see our future as being? Paradise? Dystopia? Will we be a Galactic Emporer, masters of our universe, colonizing and subjugating the aliens?

Stephen Tremp, author of the BREAKTHROUGH series, has a B.A. in information systems and an MBA degree in global management. Stephen has a background in information systems, management, and finance and draws from this varied and complex experiential knowledge to write one-of-a-kind thrillers.

His novels are enhanced by current events at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and other scientific research facilities around the world. These potential advances have the ability to change the way we perceive our universe and our place in it!

You can visit Stephen Tremp at Breakthrough Blogs. BREAKTHROUGH and OPENING can be downloaded:

Download Opening: Amazon Kindle $1.99

Download Breakthrough: Amazon Kindle for $1.99