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blood
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M.S. (Mel) has her book on Amazon, and some surly soul decided to give her book “The Sire” a bad review. Not only was he abrupt and rude, he also included a comment that gives away the ending to the book. I’m going to call “FOUL” on that, and hope you do too. The link below goes to the review. I would like everyone with working fingers to head over there and click “No” to “was this review helpful?”, so we can, with any luck, at least render his pitiful efforts null and void.
ATTACK!
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I was driving home from work the other day, was waiting at a traffic light, and up next to me pulls this – well, for lack of a better word – Crown Victoria. At least, I think it was – it was shaped like one, except for the 47″ tires, the swirly-like paint, and other than that, I dunno. I dunno because it was vibrating too hard to get a good look at it. It was vibrating too hard because evidently the driver (young guy, slouched down, hand kinda hanging over the steering wheel, baseball cap snugged down backwards on his grape) had a hearing problem, and had the stereo turned up so loud MY windows were shaking. I say stereo, but it might have been some kind of mob-fighting equipment, because all I could really hear/feel was some kind of “Booooooooom! Booooooooom!” at regular intervals, and struggling to be heard over that was this guy who was sing-songing about 9′s, b***ches, and better get out dat do’.
After giving this whole setup the fisheye, I was almost overwhelmed with the notion to walk over, tap on his window, and ask him if he really, truthfully, enjoyed that annoying shit, or was he just doing it because all his buds were doing it. But I didn’t – almost, but not quite. Instead I sat back and pondered, and eventually came to a conclusion:
That rather unfortunate young man ain’t one smidgen different than any of the rest of us.
How do I know that? Easy. He’s just doing what he knows, and what all the folks who came before him have done – imitating.
Cool – yeah? no?
I grew up in the 60′s, was a teen in the 70′s, and can tell you it was the same then. The hippie age was dying out by the time I hit my teens, but bellbottoms and denim were all the rage, fluffy hair on girls (with about half a can of hairspray to boot – any one of them could have gone up in flames just by looking at a lighter), long hair on guys, and platform soles. Was it because we all liked to look like a Saturday Night Fever crowd scene? Hope not. No, it was onaccountabecause we wanted to be cool, accepted, belong. No more, no less.
Same question…
And of course, anyone can recall the same stuff, no matter what age. Fedoras, pin-stripe suits, disco, rock, wing-tips, cars jacked up in the ass, low-riders, denim (remember when bluejeans were only worn by farmers? I do), fuzzy dice, and the list goes on and on. It also includes language: cool, dude, bro, pencil you in, awesome, chill, rad, do lunch, lame, totally…how many times have you heard those? (You can ask Mom or Dad if you have to.) No? Okay, then…how about brain fart, muffin top, showmance, or fugly?
And now that I’ve sludged my way through to the wordy part of this soap-box-standing derby, let’s go to my current bane – the one word that I’ve come to hate above alllllll others.
Absolutely.
Now, this part you’re going to hate me for, ’cause it’s gonna be like you just bought a 2005 Impala. Suddenly, you’re going to see all the 2005 Impalas that come within a mile of ya. Right?
Cast a curse at me whenever you like, but pay attention, and listen to how many times the “A” word is used nowadays. It’s epidemic, so it is. No one can say “you bet”, or “you’re right”, or “darned tootin’”, or “bet your ass” anymore. Why? ‘Cause “ab-so-fuckin’-lutely” is the cool word for today.
We can’t escape it. It’s in our blood, desiring to be accepted, brought in, wrapped around by the warm arms of societal standards.
Bump that – I’d rather be a writer, and concentrate on using as many different words from anyone else as is by God possible.
Out.
Click on the cover to get it on Amazon!
Book Description:
In the next Installment of The Judas Curse, Detective Ben Stanford is ready to put the past at rest. Without warning, he’s pulled down once again into the chaos of gods, theology, and mystery. Told that his sister is alive and the two immortals, Mark and Judas, have been kidnapped by the treacherous goddess, Nike, Ben must find a way to rescue the pair before she can harness their powers.
While Mark waits alone, forced to write out the story of how their powers came to be, and Judas lay tortured by the angry Goddess, a reluctant Ben must enlist the help of a hesitant being from the ancient Norse Pantheon.
Time is ticking, and the hard-headed detective must use everything he learned in the past to prevent another disaster, which could potentially wipe-out the human race.
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TR: Angella, good morning. Let me first say I’m thrilled to be hosting you for one of your stops on “The Judas Kiss” tour. Welcome!
AG: Thank you, Thomas….I’m very pleased to be here 
TR: So, let’s not keep your future fans waiting. How old were you when you wrote your first piece?
AG: The first time I wrote anything of substance, I was about fifteen and co-wrote a seven-hundred page epic about a world of dragons. Ha. My first published piece I wrote last year, so that would make me thirty—it had been a goal of mine to be published before thirty. I was a few months late.
TR: Ah well, not by much. What was it, and in what genre?
AG: It was contemporary literature/literary fiction, and it was just a basic story about a man in a troubled relationship and how he grew out of it and learned how to look for what he really wanted in life.
TR: That sounds pretty interesting to me. What made you write it?
AG: Honestly, it started out as a short story, and it sort of expanded. I drew on my experiences being married to a person who was not so nice. I sort of gender-switched the roles to see if I could write a believable male character, and got pretty decent response from it. By the end it was a test to see if I could actually compose a novel with a beginning, middle, and end.
TR: Sounds like you had success with that. Seeing things from the other gender’s point of view isn’t the easiest thing – very good! What have you written since then?
AG: Since then I have started a Contemporary Fantasy/Mythology series, “The Judas Curse”, and the first two books- “The Awakening” and “The Judas Kiss” have already been published. “Cry, Nike!”, which is book three, is set to release sometime in May.
I’m also about half-way finished with the first book in a paranormal YA series called “Alexandra Fry, Private Eye”, about a young girl who solves crimes for the ghosts of history’s most famous icons. The ghost in the first book is a teenaged version of Queen Elizabeth I.
TR: Wow, you’re staying busy. Your new series sounds wonderful! “Cry, Nike” – the title makes me curious enough to look at it. So, What was the inspiration for “The Judas Curse” series?
AG: The “Judas Kiss” is a continuation of the series. I’m delving further into mythology, and twisting the ideas of mythos and religion to give a different experience to the reader instead of the old traditions. I’m really enjoying drawing on my studies of Theology and Mythology from when I was a university student.
TR: Ah. That is a different twist – fascinating. Tell us a little more about it, and where it’s available.
AG: The book starts off where book one left off. Ben is dealing with a death, Mark and Judas are trying to escape the Greek gods that kidnapped Judas, and things just sort of get out of hand, as usual. Mark and Judas are taken by the villain again, and Mark is forced to write out his history.
Right now the book is available at amazon/amazon UK
And on Createspace:
https://www.createspace.com/4182634
And I also ship paperback books from my website athttp://angellagraffbooks.wordpress.com through paypal.
TR: Very good – thank you. Now, is there a particular place or setting where you get your writing ideas?
AG: It depends on what I’m writing. Often times my ideas sort of develop organically as I start to write. I’ll have one small idea and suddenly it will explode and evolve into something I had never intended to write, but it’s fascinating to see what comes from that process.
TR: That’s thrilling isn’t it? Following your mind down a path to somewhere you never knew existed. Okay, so you’re an indie writer. What made you choose independent publishing?
AG: I chose indie publishing for several reasons. I get to publish on my own schedule, and I like having control over everything. I’m a total control freak, God bless my husband for putting up with it – haha. From what I’ve seen, traditional publishing requires you to do most of your own marketing anyway, so I’d rather not be contractually obligated to another company for my own writing if they don’t offer added perks. Of course, I’m speaking from assumption as I’ve never gone through a traditional publishing house—but I will say I am very proud to be an indie author.
TR: As you should be. Handling all the attached duties for putting a quality book out isn’t easy. So, tell us – if you had to choose the most important element in an author’s platform, what would it be?
AG: I would say networking. The writing community is very tight knit, and while I thought it was going to be overly competitive, it’s not. I was pleasantly surprised by that fact, and even more pleasantly surprised by how helpful and wonderful the friends I’ve made have been. We market each other, we support and promote each other, and the advice I’ve been offered in how to make my books available and noticed by the right audience has been invaluable.
TR: I agree with you. The folks I’ve met online have shown me nothing but grace and compassion. What a wonderful lot, aren’t they? So, what mistakes have you made in regards to publishing and marketing your work, and what will you do differently in the future?
AG: The first mistake I made is not creating a network before I published. I’d never done anything like that before, so I had no idea what to do. I published my book, got a few downloads from family and friends, and then… crickets. Then I started networking with authors on twitter. That was chaotic, but when I discovered the author communities on facebook and goodreads, and places for me to be able to market, things took off.
The second big mistake was being impatient, and putting out a manuscript that I wasn’t 100% satisfied with. There were some things that could have easily been prevented had I just had a little more patience, and I’m learning that the hard way.
I’m trying to take my time now, to be less eager, despite that fear (the one my husband insists is typical) that the moment I take too long to publish my next book, I’m going to be completely forgotten.
TR: Crickets – HAH – I like that. Wonderful advice, on both counts! Do you have an idea for your next book?
AG: I have several haha! I’m never short of ideas, and right now I have some literary fiction ideas simmering while I get my second series started. I’m thinking about making a themed series, not cohesive plot or characters, just a general theme about relationships—but portrayed in a more realistic, less fantasy type of way, to remind people that actual, real life love can be just as beautiful and fantastic, and heartbreaking, as any romance novel out there.
TR: Angella thanks so much for stopping by today. I had a ball – and best of luck with the rest of your tour, and “The Judas Kiss”.
AG: Thanks Thomas…I had fun too
Folks, if you want your own copy of “The Judas Kiss”, the link to rafflecopter and a chance to win a copy is below. Click it to win it!
