Fairy Tale Fusion Launches Today!

Today's the day for the official launch of my new book Fairy Tale Fusion, and there's a big celebration going on over at Facebook this afternoon at 4 PM Atlantic Time (that's 3 PM Eastern) until 7 PM Atlantic (6 PM Eastern). There will be trivia questions, chatting, and free swag, plus I may even bring some virtual chocolate, and peppermint daiquiris.

It all happens here: https://www.facebook.com/events/446300328811870/449328735175696/

And don't worry if you can't make it because the dark fairies are heading to this very blog tomorrow, Oct 24th, for the start of Coffin Hop 2013. Yes, that's right it's that time of year again, when Halloween starts early. So, please join me until Halloween for Dark Magic, Creepy Creatures, and the Seelie Court...

Oh, and did I mention there will be contests with lots of free stuff.

Fairy Tale Fusion

What if the characters in Fairy Tales were real? What if they lived in Fairyland, a place not too dissimilar to ours, next to Wonderland and down the street from Camelot?  

Come follow the exploits of Detective Piper of the Fairyland Metro Police, the Fairy Tale News updates and more cracked characters taken from the world of childhood.  

When you are done dancing with Cinderella and her cronies, open the lid of a very scary toy box to find where children’s nightmares begin... and end, badly.

Book Links: 

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/356889

Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G1RJUCA

Amazon.ca: http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00G1RJUCA

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/fairy-tale-fusion

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fairy-tale-fusion-a-f-stewart/1116913271

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/fairy-tale-fusion/id706475602?mt=11

Inspiration by Tolkien: A Guest Post by Sheila Deeth

Today, author Sheila Deeth stops by on her blog tour to talk about Tolkien’s The Silmarillion and how it connects to her Five-Minute Bible Story Series and her new book, Bethlehem’s Baby.

How the Silmarillion inspired a book of Bible Stories

Once upon a (student) time I got a copy of Tolkien’s The Silmarillion for Christmas. I took it back to college with me as term began, and rationed myself to reading one chapter a day—kind of like rationing chocolate to two pieces a day (which I also did), and cake to one slice. It was hard to read so slowly though. I really loved the book and was hooked right from the first tale—the Music of the Ainur. What a wonderful “creation” story! What a haunting blend of weighty prose, musical language, and thrilling fantasy. “Never since have the Ainur made music like to this music,” the author writes, “though it has been said that a greater still shall be made before Iluvatar by the choirs of Ainur and the Children of Iluvatar after the end of days.” The words begged to be sounded aloud, and the press of eternal meaning bore into me. But I was a mathematician, studying the logic of number systems and the vagaries of function and form. I was already a “mongrel Christian mathematician” though, so Tolkien’s Biblical hints dug deep. I went to Christian Union meetings, represented the Catholic Chaplaincy, and wondered—oh heresy of heresies—why didn't God use interesting authors like Tolkien to write the scriptures?

I was kind of an accidental mathematician really. When it came to a choice between studying mathematics or writing, I chose math because at least when you're right you're right and no-one’s going to tell you you're not good enough. In contrast my son, when faced with the identical choice, plumped for writing because those who judge words can only give opinions; they can't definitively declare your answer’s wrong.

So what’s an accidental mathematician, with a love of writing, a sudden total addiction to Tolkien (especially The Silmarillion), and a deep Christian faith to do? In my case, dreaming was way easier than doing, so I dreamed a set of Bible stories, written so kids (and teens, and students too) might actually want to read them, written to be fun and spoken aloud and shared, and going all the way from creation to revelation—from that first music of Tolkien’s Ainur until the end of days. Then I got a job and wrote computer programs, got married and had kids, got another job and broke computer programs, became infinitely more mongrel, learned tons of stuff about the Bible and Biblical times, lost my job… and then I started writing those stories I'd dreamed of long ago.

The kids are grown, and one of them even writes. So now the Bible, science and history feed my muse, Tolkien and faith inspire my intent, and the Five-Minute Bible Story^TM Series keeps growing, though Creation to Revelation’s already taking six books with Bethlehem’s Baby’s recent release, and many more in the works.

Meanwhile I still love The Silmarillion best of all my Tolkien books. I just found it again while tidying up the shelves, so please excuse me while I curl up and read.

Thank you so much for welcoming me to your blog, Anita.

Links:

Find Bethlehem’s Baby at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EY172MA/

More of the Five-Minute Bible Story^TM Series on the publisher’s website: http://capearagopress.com/Five-Minute.html

Connect with Sheila at:

Sheila Deeth: http://about.me/SheilaDeeth

Blog: http://sheiladeeth.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sheila.deeth

Fan page: https://www.facebook.com/SheilaDeethAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sheiladeeth

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2853735.Sheila_Deeth

An Interview With Author Robert Lamb

Author Robert Lamb stops by today to chat...

An Interview with Robert Lamb

Why don't you begin by sharing a bit about yourself? 

Born in South Carolina, I grew up in Georgia, graduated from the University of Georgia, worked first in journalism, and then went into college teaching, mainly creative writing, at the University of South Carolina. I'm married and have four children. I now write full-time and I also review books for the New York Journal of Books.


You've recently finished a novella and a new novel. Care to share a bit about these new books? 

The short one, titled And Tell Tchaikovsky the News, is about the redemptive powers of rock 'n' roll. The other one, Journey's End, is about the corrosive effects of suicide on a woman's child and husband. 

You've previously written several books and short stories. Do you find an overriding or common theme or any recurring motifs that infuses your writing?  

Yes. I didn't see it at first in my writing career, but the main recurring theme in what I write is loss: loss of innocence, loss of a loved one, loss of faith, loss of hope, etc.             

With a long repertoire of books, such as Atlanta Blues, A Majority of One, Striking Out,  and Six of One, Half Dozen of Another, how do you think your writing has evolved from one book to the next? 

I don't see that kind of continuity in my writing -- that is, I don't see the evolution of a familiar writing voice moving from one novel to the next. Put it this way: I have four sons; each is different from the others though all came from the same father. Same with the novels I've written. Each novel seems to be its own entity, to have its own story to tell; finding the right voice to tell that story -- or, rather, finding the voice inside me that wants most to tell that story -- is a big challenge. An example: My first novel was a coming-of-age story. The protagonist was age 17; I wrote it in my 40s. Believe me, it took me a while to find, or rediscover, that teenage voice to tell that story.

   

Having written both novels and short stories, do you have a preference for one form above the other, or do they both have equal merits? 

As both a writer and reader, I much prefer the greater range of the novel form, but I do like both. As to merit, however, I find both forms equally demanding, each in its own way. I can tell you this: a short story isn't short simply because it's not long. In other words, a successful short story is not the result of the author's not having the time to stretch it out to novel length; it is, rather, that it is complete in its short form. To go on would spoil it. 


 Is there anything about the process of writing you find particularly challenging? 

No, except perhaps this: I knew how to write long before I knew how to write a novel. As with any craft, know-how is very helpful. A simple tip like "Start your story with the day that was different, the day after which nothing was ever the same again" came as a complete (and liberating) surprise to me. So how smart was that? I might add that I've never had writer's block. When I've got a story going, I can't wait to get to it each day. 

What first sparked your interest in a career as a writer? 

I can trace my love of stories to hearing them read at my mother's knee. As to writing my own stories, I believe I'm simply following a natural bent, a facility with language. I said again and again to my students, "Man is the speech animal, and each of is as different from each other as fingerprints, as individual as snowflakes. Each of us has a unique voice. Find yours. Use it." 

Who are some of your favorite authors? Some of your favorite books? 

I admire many writers, ranging from Shakespeare to Jane Austen to Hemingway to Tennessee Williams, but Thomas Hardy is my favorite author and W. Somerset Maugham my favorite storyteller.


What’s next on your horizons? 

I'd like to try my hand at writing a screenplay. Now there's a difficult art form!


You can check out more on Robert Lamb at his website: http://boblamb.wordpress.com/

Fortune Teller Blog Hop: Gothic Cavalcade

I've jumped back on the Blog Hop train, and this time I've packed a crystal ball...

Today, we visit a fortune teller, thanks to my novella, Gothic Cavalcade. In this excerpt, the main character, Althea has arrived at the Masquerade Carnivale, and is being shown around by the mysterious Byron and Mother. Mother then whisks her away to see the carnival's resident gypsy.

An Excerpt from Gothic Cavalcade

After breakfast, Mother and Byron escorted Althea on a leisurely stroll around the encampment, to show her the carnival. Byron linked arms with her and mother’s hand rested on her shoulder as they walked.
“It is not a large carnival, as you can see,” Mother’s soft voice chimed in Althea’s ear, “but we are a close group and we take care of each other. Soon, it will feel like home.”
Althea frowned. Odd, but she did feel strangely comfortable here, as if she belonged. She gazed out at the multi-coloured array of tents and caravans, at the dazzling stripes and spangles decorating their world, and at the sound of laughter and affection. Life thrived around her with shouts and chatter, barking dogs, and tethered horses munching hay. To her right the jugglers tossed bright orange balls high into the air, to the left she gawked as jesters with painted faces strutted about on stilts. Althea softly giggled. She wanted to lose herself in the gaiety and the colours, and submerge everything in the ornate vibrancy of her surroundings.
“It’s so beautiful here. So uncomplicated and spirited. I think I could be happy here.” She cast a quick glance at Mother. “If you still want me to stay?”
“Of course we do, child.”
“It’s a wonderful place, Althea.” Byron threaded his fingers through hers and squeezed her hand. “I’m glad you’re going to join us.”
“We are all pleased.” Mother put her arm around Althea’s shoulders and gently pulled her away from Byron. “But I am afraid I must steal her away for a moment. There is somewhere special I want to take our Althea.” Mother stepped between the pair. “You will excuse us, Byron?”
“Yes, Mother.” Byron tilted his head with a grin. “I’ll find you later, Althea.”
Althea found herself being ushered along, winding between caravans and rehearsing performers until they entered into a violet coloured tent, dyed with images of silver moons and festooned with miniature golden bells.
Pale light from an oil lamp lit the dim interior. It was a delicate and inviting place, the furniture adorned with amethyst silks and plush velvet cushions of mauve, embroidered in gold.
“This is Drusilla, our gypsy fortune teller.” Mother introduced Althea to a dark-haired, dark eyed beauty seated behind a round wooden table with a crystal ball sitting atop it.
“Hello.” Drusilla replied softly, ducking her head and avoiding Althea’s eyes.
“You must forgive Drusilla, she’s a bit shy.”
“That’s understandable.” Althea smiled and tried to make conversation. “Can you really tell someone’s fortune, Miss Drusilla?”
The girl looked up. “Oh, yes. I can see a person’s fate.”
“In this?” Althea touched the cold glass of the crystal ball.
Drusilla giggled. “Oh no. That’s simply for display. Sit down, I’ll show you what I do.” She waved her hand at the chair opposite her and Althea sunk into its purple softness. Drusilla reached out and grasped her hand, turning it palm up. Drusilla lightly traced her finger over Althea’s skin, making her shiver.
“You have a troubled life, tragedy and pain fill you. You are afraid and you blame yourself for making a terrible choice in years past. That choice has cost you something.” Drusilla paused and Althea caught her gaze, staring into her deep violet eyes. She felt ensnared for a moment, as if she had fallen into a cavernous pool and might drown. Then Drusilla broke their connection and continued her reading.
“I see safety ahead, and resolution." Drusilla paused again and frowned. “But not without conflict. Something is coming, something unfinished...” She abruptly stopped talking and let go of Althea’s hand.
“Is there a difficulty, Drusilla?" Mother’s voice broke the strain in the air.
“No, no, it’s simply, well, events will be bumpy for you, Althea." She smiled, attempting a half-hearted grin.
Althea felt a quiver of dread, but tried to laugh it away. “I’m used to bumpy.”
“But it will all work out in the end, won’t it Drusilla?" Mother asked softly. “It will all be agreeable when it is done?”
“Yes, Mother. All will conclude as it should.”
Althea looked at them both, confused, but Mother gave her no time to question Drusilla. Mother pulled her to her feet and shepherded her out of the tent.
“I think it is time we found Byron again. Don’t you agree, Althea?”
Althea smiled at the thought and let herself be led away; all uncertainties were lost by her desire to see Byron once more.

The Masquerade Carnivale is coming to call...

A woman escaping her wretched past stumbles into the strange world of a supernatural carnival.  Does her fate lie there, or with the captive life she left behind?

The Masquerade Carnivale is beckoning... will she answer?

Gothic Cavalcade is available on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Smashwords, Kobo, Barnes and Noble and other online retailers.

This Fortune Teller Blog Hop was organized by Kayla Curry.

Don't forget to check out the other blogs involved, who knows what they'll foretell.

Participants:
Kayla Curry (Host)
Alyssa Auch
S. M. Boyce
N.R. Wick
Steve Vernon
A. F. Stewart
Linda Taylor
Tami Von Zalez
Quanie Miller
Ellen Harger
Deborah Nam-Krane
Erin Cawood
Danielle-Claude Ngontang Mba
Wendy Ely
Laure Reminick
Jen McConnel

A Review of The Troubleshooter: New Haven Blues by Bard Constantine

My Book Review of The Troubleshooter: New Haven Blues

Noir is alive and well in the future. The Troubleshooter: New Haven Blues by Bard Constantine takes the atmosphere and sensibilities of a '30's detective novel and blends it well with sci-fi cyberpunk into a tasty and appealing cocktail.

The Troubleshooter begins where all good noir crime fiction should, with a slightly disreputable, down on his luck shamus, excuse me, private detective. In this instance, it’s Mick Trubble, a guy with money problems and a price on his head. The twist in the plot is this private dick works out of dystopian, post-apocalyptic sci-fi city called New Haven. Mick takes a case to pay off his debts, a high risk venture, almost guaranteed to get him killed. The deeper he investigates, the wilder things become as he finds mayhem, android killers, and dark secrets from his own past.

I loved the style and sensibilities of this novel, a cool hybrid of Blade Runner and the Maltese Falcon. The characters are tough and gritty, with a side order of sneaky. You can trust no one, and everybody has something to hide. The author does a nice job of creating this world, the noir and sci-fi blend seamlessly. The plot does a lot of twisting, but manages to keep the reader along for the ride (and at the edge of your seat once or twice), and comes to a satisfying conclusion with just enough left over to whet the appetite for a sequel.

I can recommend The Troubleshooter: New Haven Blues easily.

You can find The Troubleshooter: New Haven Blues on Amazon, Smashwords and other online retailers.