Me and my fellow eXtasy Halloween Hooligans

Four other authors and I have been parading around the internet this past month chatting about the holiday and our releases. We also asked each other questions about the season like ‘What's the sexiest Halloween costume you've ever worn?,’ ‘What would be the scariest thing in a Haunted House for you?,’ ‘Do you have any Halloween traditions? If so, what?’ and ‘What Halloween creature would you bring on a deserted island?’. Here are my questions with their answers:
1. Do you like/dislike the Halloween season & why?
C.R.: I’ve always liked the Halloween season – the crisp air, the colors, the sense of the macabre and all the horror films that come out. Then there’s the candy… ;) The night of Halloween is subdued. I meditate and reflect on the past year and coming year and honor those who have gone beyond the veil.
Angela: I LOVE Halloween. It is absolutely my favorite holiday. I love everything about it - I like the fun, the chills, the great scary movies, the bags of insanely addictive candy, the costumes, the innocence, the darkness.... I could go on for hours. And being someone of somewhat pagan inclinations, I love the symbolism, traditions and meanings in so much of what modern culture calls "fun". I love embracing the dark, the whimsy, and the inherent fun in poking at our fears. So, yes, I'm very pro Halloween! Will have a bit of a party this year, co-hosted by my sister!
Courtney: I love Halloween. It has always been one of my favorite holidays because it is so much fun to dress up and be someone different, even if it is just for one night.
Jambrea: I'm not fond of the weather getting colder, but I love to see all the kids in their costumes.
Laura: I love it because it’s the one time in the year that spirits, ghosts, saints, goblins, monsters and whatever other fantastic creature, good or evil, actually becomes alive.
2. What is/was your favorite Halloween candy?
C.R.: Love Kit-Kats and Hershey Mini’s and Crunch bars. The mini-Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are awesome too!
Angela: Okay, hands down, my favorite Halloween candy is (no, not all of it!) is the mini-Reese's Peanut Butter Cups! I *LOVE* those things, and I'm sorry, the seasonal ones are better than their normal variety. Maybe they're fresher, I don't know, but give me one of those and I'll kiss your feet. Give me a bag...well, it's pretty shameless. Second - it's a tie - Mary Jane's and Bit-O-Honey's. YUM. Excuse me now. I need to go to the store...
Courtney: I have two, Candy Corn and Reeses peanut butter pumpkins. Yummy!
Jambrea: I don't even know what they are called. They come in the orange and black wrappers. I THINK they might be called Mary Jane's. But I'm not sure. I LOVE those things.
Laura: None, I prefer salty to sweet treats.
3. Do you carve pumpkins?
C.R.: I used to when I was younger but not so much anymore. If I put out a jack-o-lantern, it’s a ceramic one. Less fuss and mess.
Angela: Oh yes! It's been a few years, but yes, I do love carving them. The last time was a few years ago when I hosted a Halloween party. I live in the country and in the US South, so without a real compelling reason to carve one (they tend to mold and begin to rot pretty quick with the heat and humidity), I don't usually indulge. This year, my sister and I will host a small get-together, to I'm already looking for ideas of what I will carve!
Courtney: We do usually carve pumpkins, anymore I don't carve one of my own but help my girls with theirs. I love the smell of pumpkin's being carved and it is so much fun to see them lit up at night. Then we usually roast the seeds.
Jambrea: I didn't, but now that I have a 5 year old, we've been carving them. He loves it.
Laura: Never did before and never will if I stay in Italy because it certainly isn’t among our traditions. In fact, we don’t even celebrate Halloween, but the All Hallows Day, which is the 1st of November, also known as All Saints Day.
Want to learn more about us and see the answers to the questions I mentioned at the beginning of the blog? Please visit the following links:
For Courtney: http://lindsaysromantics.blogspot.com/2009/10/xrated-halloween-at-extasy-books.html & http://happilyeverafterauthors2.blogspot.com/2009/10/favorite-halloween-movies.html
For Jambrea on 10/14: http://internationalheat.wordpress.com/2009/10/14/x-rated-halloween/
For Laura (running Oct 26 to November 1): http://cyberbookshelf.blogspot.com/
For Angela (posts throughout the month): http://blog.angelacaperton.com

Our October releases…
In the Spirit by C.R. Moss – Release date Oct. 15th
Reincarnated Death Wish by Courtney Breazile – Release date October 15th
Bloody Passion by Laura Tolomei – Release date Oct. 31st
Green Flash by Angela Caperton – Release date Oct. 31st
Unseen Path by Jambrea Jones – Release date Oct. 31st

A new release! The follow-up to Holiday Spirits is…

In the Spirit ~ Now available at www.extasybooks.com


Can love heal Death's soul?
Tresa Grauenvoll had the perfect life. Beautiful, intelligent, engaged to Jurgen Elman, lord of a vast estate, she couldn’t have wished for more. Then two weeks before her wedding, Tresa is accused of the ultimate betrayal—treason. Sentenced to die by the love of her life, she’s hanged for crimes she did not commit. As her life ebbs away, supernatural intervention transforms her from country gentry to Grim Reaper, exiles her to a foreign land and forces her to harvest souls. For centuries she has waited for the man who condemned her to cross paths with her once again so she can exact her revenge.
Immortal Ned Odognagap and his girlfriend, Katie, are witnesses for Artim and Jenna’s Halloween wedding and conversion ceremony that will change Jenna from human to immortal. It’s the perfect time of year for the events since the veil between worlds is the thinnest and those who have passed can join the festivities.Ned has one problem, though. Tresa, the woman he knew and loved when he was called Jurgen, has returned with a vengeance. Can Ned withstand Tresa’s torment long enough, without driving Katie insane in the process, to find out and explain what happened that fateful day and tell Tresa he loves her still? Or will he and Katie succumb to death’s ire?
~ excerpt ~
Tresa followed the scent to its conclusion, landing next to a grand oak tree on the property of a Protestant church. Two women, dwarfed by rounded Doric columns and massive doors and windows, stood on the front steps of the white building. Up the long sloped sidewalk from them and next to the attached ancillary building, two men, both tall and with lean muscular physique, chatted in the parking lot, their backs to her. She scanned the people and the section of graveyard visible behind the church then looked to her scythe. No blue symbols or other signs for an upcoming job presented themselves. Confused, she cocked her head and zoned in on the conversations, hoping they’d reveal the reason why she was led to the place and them.
“All I know is that Jenna’s a bit put off by your attitude the past couple of nights. She thinks you’re acting weird.” The dark-haired man turned, his Romanesque features softened by a smile, and waved at the women. They waved back. The one with brown hair and an athletic build blew a kiss. Her petite companion tilted a head with black hair and blonde spiked tips and clasped her hands together in front of her chest. A sappy look adorned her face.
“Me? Acting weird?” The second man threw his head back and laughed.
The blonde’s good-natured mirth caught Tresa off guard, reminding her of another’s laughter. The scenery’s intensity wavered. Colors dimmed for a few seconds then returned to their original brilliance. The green grass of the graveyard, the black of the pavement, and white church contrasted against the blue sky. She searched her mind for a face to put with the remembered joy but the recollection faded before she could retrieve it.
“Yes, you, Ned. You’ve seemed skittish and preoccupied. What’s up?”
“I don’t know, Artim.” Ned shook his head and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “This time I’m stumped. Maybe it’s the fall air and countryside stirring memories in me I’d rather keep buried. Maybe it’s that I have this need to hone in on someone and judge them, but I’m blocked. I try to access people’s thoughts and can’t. It’s strange not being able to do my job, something that’s come second nature to me for centuries.” He chuckled. “Maybe it’s all due to that awesome apple cider we had to drink at the mill the other night. I can’t get it out of my mind.”
“Can’t get what out of your mind, babe?” The dainty black-haired woman in a pair of high-heeled shoes and too short, hot-pink, form-fitting dress clicked up to him.
“Those apples and the cider.” Ned turned and hugged her, staring in the direction of the tree over her shoulder.
Tresa gasped. Can the human see me?

Check out other eXtasy Halloween Hooligans here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0l13ROXuzw

Things That go Bump in the Night

Good afternoon everyone! It's a lovely (not) fall day here in Michigan and I'm wishing I were back in Cape Cod where we spent 10 glorious days two weeks ago with temps no lower than 70! We stayed in an oceanfront cottage my friend's mom owns and it was absolutely an amazing vacation. For many reasons, and one of which is my blog for today.

Our second night there we (hubby, myself, daughter and son-in-law to be) were all sitting in the living room watching tv. I happened to glance up and saw an old man standing the bedroom doorway. He was not translucent, he was solid. I didn't freak out, didn't scream, faint or swoon as this type of stuff has happened to me too many times in my life to even make me blink an eye nowadays.

I stared at him and noticed he was scowling at me. He had white-gray hair and was wearing a dark blue, almost black suit with the hint of a white dress shirt at the neckline. For about 15 seconds we continued to watch one another, then as fast as he was there, he vanished.

I didn't say anything to the family right away cause I know my daughter would pass kittens! (Yes, she's my drama queen) So about 10 minutes later, I said "I don't want to freak anyone out, but there was a man standing in the bedroom doorway a few minutes ago." Yes, you guessed it, she freaked!!! (Remember, this is the same child who yelled at me when I fell on the ice last winter)

My family was a bit concerned about our visitor but seeing as I wasn't upset, they chose not to be. Except Amanda. She kept staring at the doorway all evening long. I will admit though when I went to bed later than night I was apprehensive he might reappear and startle me in the dark, but nope, nothing happened.

The next day we went into Sandwich to tour the glass museum. While there, I happened upon a photograph of a man in uniform. The uniform looked alot like what the man at the cottage had been wearing. Could it be????

I checked with the homeowner and she said no one including herself had ever seen anything. But the cottage had been housing for military families back during World War 2. Which was way before they ever owned it. And to date she had never heard that anyone died there.

So who knows. Was he a soldier back from the dead visiting? Or maybe someone entirely different. His age would be correct if he had died in later years. My grandfather was in WW2 and he is 90 now. I'm not sure who he was, and part of me wishes I could see him again and ask him. But it's highly unlikely I will get the chance.

During my life I have had many visits from deceased family members, and also two not so wonderful out-of-body experiences when I was going through chemotherapy. Those I hope to never repeat. They were more frightening than seeing a ghost.

But with Halloween right around the corner, it's the perfect time to sidle up to a spirit and ask what questions come to mind. You never know, it might make for a great next novel.

Happy haunting all!
Patti

A Writer’s Thoughts on Writing ~ C.R. Moss

I’m currently reading my way through Frank Herbert’s Dune series and in the beginning of Heretics of Dune he has a commentary on when he was working on Dune – “When I was writing Dune there was no room in my mind for concerns about the book’s success or failure. I was concerned only with the writing.” He goes on to tell about the series, the aspects of life the books would explore, and how the books slowly gained momentum and ultimate success. Toward the end he talks of success and says “Looking back on it, I realize I did the right thing instinctively. You don’t write for success. That takes part of your attention away from the writing. If you’re really doing it, that’s all you’re doing: writing.”
When I read that, it struck a chord in me. Granted, deep down all authors would love to become the next big name on the charts, but Herbert was right, when you’re truly into your story and working your craft, you aren’t thinking of much else. I know I don’t. I write because I love to craft pieces of art with the written word. There are times when I’m consumed in writing a story, sometimes to the exclusion of all else. Yes, you may think that can be lonely or might not be much of a life, sitting at the computer and typing for hours on end with no significant social interaction. But it’s what makes me happy. If through a story I can divert a reader’s mind from reality, help them forget life for awhile and make that person happy or at least feel different than they had before, then it’s worth it.
At the end of Herbert’s introduction he also writes, “There’s an unwritten compact between you and the reader. If someone enters a bookstore and sets down hard earned money (energy) for your book, you owe that person some entertainment and as much more as you can give. That was really my intention all along.” Like Herbert, my intention is to entertain people, suspend their disbelief, spark their emotions and imaginations, even if it’s only for a little while. And, in hopes of showing you that I’m not full of hot air or blowing my own horn (ah, gotta love the cliché!) I’ve included comments of others. In a reader’s review of my first book Deliverance, they had this to say, “Any emotion is good emotion and those you elicited from me were heart stopping and heart wrenching. My compliments to you in not only stirring them, but inciting them so strongly. Do not change your ability to affect readers in that spectacular manner. That's a gift, and a valuable one. I loved Deliverance and am looking forward to the next part of the series.” Then in a professional review for Deliverance from Alternative-Read.com reviewer WitchGiggles said, “I found this an interesting read that gave pause to the theory that woman is the weaker sex. I found the characters realistic (in some cases too much so) and believable. It was an overall good read.”
Deliverance, Book One of the Si’Ludo Sisters trilogy can be found, along with Salvation – Book 2 and Atonement – Book 3 at www.extasybooks.com. In the next few weeks my first print book, The Mystics, a compilation of the Sisters trilogy and a fourth story only to be found in the print version, will be released. On Halloween Dirty Little Secret a short Fantasy Games horror story will be available. For a look at more books feel free to visit my website: http://home.earthlink.net/~cr_moss and/or join my MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/cr_moss
Come, let me entertain you in my world, if only for a little while…