Getting You and Your Book Some Notice

Trying to stand out among the throngs isn’t an easy job, is it? No.

That’s why I created the online joust last year. I wanted something different and unusual and fun. It certainly brought attention to me and my newly released book, The Renaissance of Hetty Locklear.

That was all well and good. The fun and camaraderie led to comments like, “You should do this every year.” Hmm, I thought.

That event also led to the creation of Untethered Realms. Several of the folks stayed long after the fun, chatting. One thing led to another. And, here we are.

The joust has been expanded into the Realms Faire. It’s meant to encompass all speculative fiction, even though so far it’s mostly medieval based. There will be nine events hosted on nine different sites [including this one] with chances to win prizes every day.

Yes, every single day, nine times over, you could win a prize. There will be the joust, a masquerade ball, the book witchery trials, a dragon hunt, castle jumble, soak a bloke/drench a wench, phasers, and an event using writer’s excerpts and secret/magic words.

UR will be offering a Kindle as a grand prize and a mega ebook bundle. It’ll be a grand opportunity to have some fun.

It’s a grand opportunity to get yourself and your book or site some notice in a week long event aimed at bringing in readers and fun seekers. Want to get involved? Sign ups are HERE for specific events and sponsors. Or you can email me at mpaxauthor at gmail dot com.

Our gracious hosts for this event: Cas Webb [thank you a ton for stepping up], Christine Rains, Laura Eno, Angela Brown, Gwen Gardner, Samantha Geary, River Fairchild, M. Pax, and Untethered Realms. A big thank you to Catherine Stine for putting together the grand prize packages.

 I hope you'll join us for a lot of fun the week of November 11th.

The Paranormal - To Believe Or Not To Believe...

What does paranormal mean to you? I am sure all of us have a different definition. To me, it means all things science can't explain. This is also close to the true definition of paranormal.

Paranormal: general experiences that lie outside the range of normal experiences or scientific explanation.

"General experiences."

Have you had one?

I write a lot of spec fic. Mostly, I love to write paranormal. I'm not sure why. I guess it's simply because I've always been fascinated with the darker side of our world. Spirits, demons, and magic all captivated me as a child. They still do. I can tell you this, growing up in a strict catholic home made my childish questions about unexplainable things very hard to answer. A majority of the time I was told to not think that way and go outside and play. Not having the answers to those questions only added fuel to the ever growing fire.

As I got older, I not only had more questions, I experienced more things that had no explanation. Now, I'm not saying that I saw ghosts and tapped into some magical power I didn't know existed within me. (I wish).  But, I did see and feel things other kids/teens my age didn't. 

For example…

Starting when I was in high school during the mid to late nineties every time I saw a picture of New York and the Twin Towers, I would get this odd feeling deep in my bones. I can't properly describe this feeling. All I know is that I'd shudder every time. Literally, I'd have the whole body covered in goose flesh and hard shivering experience. Then when tragedy struck on September 11^th, 2001, I was rocked to my core with the rest of America and the world.  Afterwards, the feeling was gone. It's never returned. What was it? Why did I have it in the first place? I'm not someone that can tell the future. 

Unexplainable. 

Since I've been writing paranormal novels I've often wondered if we can tap into some subconscious part in our minds. Half way through the second book in my Nether Trilogy, Nether Soul, I saw a ghost for the first time in my life. I'm not lying. I'd been rudely woken up by my allergies and after having a lovely allergy attack of wheezing, blowing my nose, and coughing I rolled over (fully awake) and saw a male apparition at the foot of my bed. I screamed like a little girl, grabbed my husband's arm, and pulled the covers up so far over my head that you could have considered me a snake tunneling underground. I was, quite literally, terrified. 

My husband said I must have still been half asleep. Well, anyone with asthma and bad allergies will tell you, when you have an allergy attack like that you are very wide awake afterwards. I know what I saw. It also made sense that several days before I'd get the odd sensation that someone was watching me. The feeling was so strong that I used to turn around half expecting my husband to be standing behind me even though he was supposed to be at work.  Each time I turned there was no one there. Not even my cats. The sensation went away after I had my ghost experience and I've never seen the ghost man again, thankfully, because I am a huge scaredy cat. I know and I write paranormal.

Do you believe in the paranormal? Do you think we can tap into that part of the world unknowingly? Have you had any unexplainable experiences? If so my UTR friends and I would love to know.

  

Bonnie Rae

Lessons Yoda Has Taught Me About Writing

Yoda is my hero. He's wise, not afraid to show his age, and tough. Or maybe it's his green color…after all, I like Kermit too.

I'm especially enamored by his syntax. It resonates with me, since sometimes backwards I speak. Alone I am not. Understand me you will. Or maybe not.

Anyway, I've gathered together a few of Yoda's quotes which help me with my writing and I'd like to share them with you here.

"Do or do not. There is no try."

One of the hardest things for a writer to conquer is the dreaded blank page.

What this quote says to me – just fill it. You can fix it later.

"Named must your fear be before banish it you can."

Writers have phobias and fears in abundance, nebulous worries about our stories swirl in our heads, unidentifiable problems we can't control.

What this quote says to me – try to pinpoint what's bothering you instead of spinning your wheels.

"You must unlearn what you have learned."

What this says to me – know the rules before you break them.

"In a dark place we find ourselves, and a little more knowledge lights our way."

What this says to me – learn something new each day.

"When you look at the dark side, careful you must be. For the dark side looks back."

What this says to me – don't wallow in negative emotions. If you're stuck in a rut, do something different to brighten your outlook.

"Ready are you? What know you of ready?"

What this says to me – have humility. There's always room for improvement.

"Always pass on what you have learned."

What this says to me – pay it forward. Help others along the way.

"PATIENCE YOU MUST HAVE."

What is this "patience" you speak of? I don't think I've learned this one yet!

"On many long journeys have I gone. And waited, too, for others to return from journeys of their own. Some return; some are broken; some come back so different only their names remain."

I try to keep this quote in mind for my characters while I'm writing. Everyone's experience in life is different and a story should reflect that same variance in the journey.

Can you apply any of these to your life in general? I know I can. That's why I love a nine-hundred-year-old, wrinkly, green dude so much. Yoda is my hero.

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Laura Eno. Speculative Fiction wordsmith. The author of fifteen novels and novellas ranging from fantasy to romance to horror, she also has stories included in nineteen published anthologies.

The secret to her stories? Spread lies, blend in truths, add a pinch of snark and a dash of tears. Escape into her world. She left the porch light on so you can find your way down the rabbit hole.

 

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