Tag Archives: writing

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Nathan’s Private E-Journal October 6th, 2014 “I May Have Made a Mistake…”

*Today’s tale takes place during “The Vampyre Blogs – Coming Home”.  You may consider it an untold tale that happened shortly before the big showdown between Nathan and the Funus-Sorbere  (referred to as the Ghoul Slime in the story).  Yes we intend to start giving these life forms real names in “The Vampyre Blogs – Family Ties” novel.  For the record, the life form that transformed Nathan is referred to as Sangui-Sapio.  This story also serves as a little prelude to one of the tales in our upcoming anthology “TVB – One Day At A Time”.  So please sit back and enjoy.*

         As I sit here in my study, staring into a nice blaze in the fireplace, I think I may have made a huge mistake.

     All that encouragement I gave Marisa last night with the writing… what was I thinking?  But it’s probably too late now.  She seemed really fired up about the idea, especially with Lisa cheering her on.  Any sudden change in attitude on my part would only raise a bunch of questions and self doubts, which is the last thing she needs right now.  I gave her the idea about taking up writing to help keep her mind busy while we wait to hear back on her dad’s test results.  But now I can’t help thinking that there may be unforeseen consequences.

        Not that I don’t think she should try her hand at writing, I think she could probably become a very successful writer.  She has a very keen mind and I’ve looked over some of her papers when she and Lisa have done their homework at my place.  Her command of grammar and sentence structure would make any college professor weep for joy.  Believe me I would know, Otto used to give me no end of grief about my writing.  Mind you, I learned to write back in the 1850’s and 60’s and what was considered acceptable back then was quite another matter.  Furthermore, I went to war instead of college back then.  It wasn’t until 194- that I actually stepped into my first classroom and that was at a university.  And that was only after Otto spent a number several years bringing my skills and knowledge up to an acceptable level, while Para-Earth hopping.

       Otto… I wish he were here, he’d know how to advise me and not just because he’s at least a couple centuries older than me. Oh wait, that’s precisely why he’d know what to say right now.  Sigh.  My mind is all over the place tonight.  Between coming back home, finding out Isabella has been around all this time apparently waiting for me, helping Richard with his drug addiction, and having to keep my secret from Penny and Marisa… it’s a miracle I’ve still got my head on straight at all.

        I so want to see Isabella and talk to her, but as near as I can tell I shook her up pretty badly the night I attacked Richard.   I don’t want to make the same mistake with the others, especially Marisa.  She seems to have a deep dislike for anything vampire-like, which is strange because John told me in confidence they used to watch vampire films together all the time.  I wonder what changed?  Maybe Lisa can tell me, I’ll check with her.

      “Not that any of this helps me with my main problem,” I tell myself and get up.  Pacing around the room I find myself stopping to stare out the window.

     Evening has fully settled in, perhaps a walk might help me work through my little dilemma.  Yes, that sounds like a nice idea.  I always think better when I’m out and about on my own.  And then maybe I’ll come up with a good excuse to keep her away from the old locomotive on the edge of town…

TO BE CONTINUED…

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Questions, questions, and more questions…

Greetings dear readers.  I know its already 2/3rs of the way through January and there’s been no new posts here, which of course has prompted a number of questions such as “Are we getting any new stories?”, “Tell us you your still writing about these characters…”, “The book is still coming later this year, right?”and even “Are you planning on keeping this blog going?”

So many questions, but luckily I have a simple answer for all of them:

The blog is continuing and new stories are coming.  The book is still on schedule to be released around Sept/Oct of this year.

The reason why I haven’t been posting anything new lately has been because of a little thing called

I had really hoped that during the winter break from university I’d have a chance to catch up on my writing and get a bunch of stories lined up.  As it turns out, life had other plans for me.  Between the holidays and having family visiting, December and early January were quite busy.

Then as things started to quiet down I got a job offer, which I have accepted, with the County of Monterey.  This will be a full-time job which means I can only take 6 units of school at a time.  However, in order to keep my current housing situation here at campus I need to be full-time.  I still have a lease here that lasts until the end of May, so my wife and I have sent an appeal to allow us to stay until then while we arrange for new housing elsewhere.  If that is accepted, we’ll be okay.  Otherwise, we’ll have to scramble and find a new place much sooner.

I should have answer by this weekend or early next week. If our appeal is refused… things could get complicated for a while.  So please bear with me and I’ll fill you all in as soon as I have an answer and know what the next few months have in store for us.

Also, if you don’t mind, keep your fingers crossed for us as well…

We need all the luck we can get right now.

In the meantime, know that Nathan has been kept busy elsewhere.  I have been working on “The Door” which comes out before “The Vampyre Blogs-Coming Home”, and will guest star Nathan along with the characters from my first two books “The Bridge” and “The Ship”.

“The Door” will wrap up those storylines, as well as reveal more of Nathan’s past experiences that have been hinted at in several entries here and will be well-worth checking out.

So stay tuned and thank you for your continued patience.  I’m eager to get back to more stories involving Nathan, Marisa, Lisa and everyone else.  And believe me all of them have been clamouring inside my head with story ideas they want to see written next as well.

I might have to have them draw straws to see who gets their story told first.

That’s all I have for now.  Until next time my friends…

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An Important Announcement About “The Vampyre Blogs” Novel Release Date…

For those of you who don’t already know, I started attending the California State University at Monterey Bay in August and the workload had been fairly manageable, until recently.  Things are heating up and I have less and less time to work on “The Vampyre Blogs”.  I had planned on getting the latest draft finished, edited, beta-read, etc. so I could have it out in time for this Christmas.

 Unfortunately, that is not going to happen.  I’m afraid I’m one of those authors will not release a book until it’s had all those things done to it.  Currently, I’m still trying to finish the 2nd draft and I’m still not entirely happy with the piece.  Plus I haven’t even started on a cover for the book.  I do have this, which I made on my computer.
However, I’m not totally sold on this version really.  I’d prefer to try and do a soft pastel piece like I did with my other two novels.  But instead of doing the entire cover in soft pastel, I’d like to create more of a background and then super-impose the image I have on top of the background.  In short, I’d like a nice blend of the two and that’s going to take time.

All this is bad enough, but there is also the issue of the holidays getting closer and closer.  I’d still need to get the novel to my beta-readers, but they’re going to be busy with family stuff like cooking, visiting, and shopping.  I don’t feel right asking them to take time out of their schedules to read the book and give me their feedback.  That wouldn’t be right.

So I’m going to continue to finish the 2nd draft and getting it edited and whatnot over the holidays.  Then I’ll be sending beta-versions out in January and doing another draft after that.  I hope to have it all done my March, but I won’t be releasing it then.  Instead the book will come out in late October to coincide with Halloween.  Why wait until then?  Because the story begins in early fall and ends just around Halloween, thus making it a a more seasonal novel.

Now for anyone worried they have to wait for more Nathaniel and company until then, never fear because I’m still going to be posting more mini-stories here.  Plus, I’m working on a special ‘free’ short story for this Christmas that will involve Nathaniel and several characters from my other novels in the Para-Earth Series.  Anyone who’s read “The Bridge” or “The Ship” will be pleased to see some old friends as well as our favorite Civil War vampyre.

I’ll be releasing the short story through Smashwords which carries e-book formats for all the new e-readers and laptops people will be getting as gifts.  You’ll find Mobi (for Kindle), Nook, Apple, Sony,  Phones, and even plain good old PDF for those who just have a computer/laptop.  And in the spirit of the season, the story will be “FREE”.  So stay tuned.  I’ll be announcing more as the day draws near.

Finally, I want to also let you all know that Nathan will not be a one-book wonder.  I intend to keep him going for some time.  When you’ve got someone who’s over a 150 years old, you got a lot of room for many tales.  I’m even considering making an anthology filled with short stories from different eras he’s lived though.  But that’s a little ways down the road.  For now, I’ll leave you with the following list of novels I’m working on and their intended release dates for the next 2-3 years:

October/December 2015 “The Vampyre Blogs – Coming Home”

In 1862 Nathaniel Steward was only sixteen years old. He left home to fight in the Union Army, knowing the experience might change him. He had no idea how much it would. Now, 150 years later, he’s finally coming back to what he thinks is an empty manor. What he doesn’t know is someone has been waiting, and some ‘thing’ is following him, a being that does no belong in this world.

Coming Mid-2016 “In The Shadow Of The Door – Book 1”

Cassandra’s ghostly protector Brandon has always been an enigma to many. Now, we get to hear his story which will lead directly up to the events that took place in my third book, “The Door”.

Coming December, 2016, “The Vampyre Blogs – Family Ties”

Nathaniel is back and he’s not alone. A mystery involving a member of his family has arisen, but so has an old enemy. New dangers arise that threaten not only those he loves, but his entire hometown. Like any soldier he will fight to protect his place of birth, but it may cost him his very existence.

Coming Mid-2017 – “In The Shadow Of The Door – Book 2”

Brandon’s story continues as he and his uncle continue to struggle with the family curse that everyone believed was over. The threat has been thwarted but not ended and time is running out. Soon the door will be reopened and nothing will be able to stop what will come out of it if they don’t seal it for good first.

Coming in December 2017, “Harlequin House”

When Alex Hill was only twelve years old he went inside the most haunted place on the planet as part of a team of paranormal investigators from the university his older cousin Rick was attending.
  Within those walls he watched most of the team die one by one, and barely got out with his sanity intact.  He swore nothing would ever make him go back.
Tonight he will enter the place the very place that has haunted his dreams for the last twenty years, to save his father. Will he be as fortunate this time?

OTHER BOOKS IN THE PARA-EARTH SERIES THAT ARE AVAILABLE NOW FOR ALL E-READERS AND IN TRADE PAPERBACK:

 

THE BRIDGE

Alex Hill buried his psychic talents for eighteen years. But with the scream of tires and twisting metal all this changes. Upon learning his girlfriend Police Sergeant Veronica Ross was nearly run down by two teens he becomes concerned. But when he learns both the driver and passenger had been dead for almost twelve hours when they nearly ran her down, he knows what he must do…
*NOTE: You can sample the book for free at:
 

THE SHIP

What starts as a simple surfing lesson, turns into a struggle for survival for billionaire heiress Cassandra Elliott and her new love interest the Seneca shamaness Julie Cloudfoot.
Cassandra is knocked off her board by an unseen assailant who leaves a terrifying gash in her wetsuit, along with a small red mark on her leg. Soon terrifying visions of a ghost ship begin haunting the heiress’ dreams. She also begins to find herself strangely drawn to the sea whenever a strange fogbank appears in the distance.
Something hiding within the miasma, but what does it want from her, and what connection does the entity have with the legendary “Lost Colony of Roanoke” and the tribe of Tuscarora Indians who Julie is distantly related to…