CHANGES AND CHOICES

Are you ready for the next 

WEP October Challenge 

 and 

or

A choice is always a good thing!

BABY MOO'S DEBUT!

I'm truly thrilled to help Julie Flanders announce the release of her latest book:

BABY MOO'S GREAT ESCAPE

Blurb:

Baby Moo has a dream. He wants to travel the world and sing on the stage of the Sydney Opera House! While he loves his home at Sunrise Sanctuary, it hasn’t been the same since a piglet named Nathan showed up and stole all the attention away from Moo. Jealous of the new baby, Moo decides now is the time to make his escape and pursue his dream.

But the world outside the sanctuary gates is not quite the fun and exciting place Moo imagined, and he quickly finds himself in big trouble. Moo's friends Missy the dog and Ruthie the cat rush to help him, and land in some trouble of their own.

Lost and frightened, Moo and his friends must rely on each other to find their way back home. Will they ever see Sunrise again?

Release date: September 8, 2016 from Native Ink Press

Links:

Buy on AMAZON

ADD on GOODREADS

Julie's Blog

Julie Flanders will donate $1 to Sunrise Sanctuary, home to Baby Moo and numerous other rescued animals, for each copy sold in September.

Help Julie spread the word!

Please Tweet:

Baby Moo's Great Escape by @JulesFlanders is here! $1 will be donated to @sunrise_ohio for each copy sold in Sept.  http://tinyurl.com/gpuomwm

Have you ever written or considered writing a children's book? 

#IWSG - CHANGE

INSECURE WRITER'S SUPPORT GROUP

First, I want to apologize for being absent. Many life changes have occurred and more are on the way! As things settle, I'll get back to a routine that will allow me to read and comment again.

That being said, welcome to another posting for the Insecure Writer's Support Group. The one post I don't want to miss.

They’re revving up IWSG Day to make it more fun and interactive! 

Every month, they'll announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG Day post.

Today's Question:

How do you find the time to write in your busy day?

The question is so apropos, at least for me right now. With numerous things occurring at one time, you know all the usual stuff that life throws at you all at once. The truth is for several months I've found it difficult to find time to write, but at the same time, I have managed to cut out a few hours here and there to finish my Murderous Imaginings story Sheila's Murderous Mind. The final story will post on September 19^th.

While life goes through many changes, I've found that more than ever I NEED to write. Writing is a haven when all else is upside down.

Next month my post will be written and posted from the beach! A chance for a writer's escape and the opportunity to get back to both of my WIP's. Heaven for sure!

What about you? 

Is writing your haven or more like the monkey on your back?

*****

Be sure to share thanks with the

awesome co-hosts are C. Lee McKenzie, Rachel Pattison, Elizabeth Seckman, Stephanie Faris, Lori L MacLaughlin, and Elsie Amata!

Find us on Twitter @TheIWSG and hashtag #IWSG

****

I hope you're all looking forward to the next WEP Challenge.

This time, it's all about CONSTELLATIONS!

Despite being in October we're not pushing the Halloween side of the challenge, there are so many other flash fiction challenges for the ghost stories, but if you wish to go there for the WEP, please do!

It's an opportunity for many genres - science fiction, romance, non-fiction, fantasy, etc. So get that imagination working!

CONSTELLATIONS!

Sign up October 1st

Post your story October 19 through the 21st

Prizes awarded!

See you there!

WEP - A STONE GARDEN

This is my entry for the WEP Gardens Flash Fiction Challenge. Please be warned the story took a dark turn. It wasn't meant to, but when I write I go where the prompt takes me. I've been working on my WIP The Snowman, and I'm afraid the antagonist took over this project. 
This picture was my inspiration, especially when I envisioned it in a winter setting. 

Gardens always mean something else, 

man absolutely uses one thing to say another.

~Robert Harbison, Eccentric Spaces, 1977

A STONE GARDEN

Janelle finally arrived home. The day had been exhausting, and the drive seemed to have taken hours, when in truth, it had barely been one. Fresh snow always slowed traffic to a crawl. She almost wished she'd rented a place in town, but when a childhood friend had offered his fabulous home at no cost, well, it was perfect. Too good to be true, but that was before the harassment started. Now she dreaded coming home.

John Hughes's elegant house was located on a ridge over Cheat Lake just minutes from the University of Morgantown. The police had suggested she update the security system, but she was house sitting and needed his permission first. John immediately agreed and gave her the number of a security firm. The police and the company she'd contracted had suggested cameras. Janelle vetoed the idea—at least inside the house. The last thing she wanted was to be a YouTube sensation.

Threats originally came in the form of letters addressed to the bitch in residence. At first, Janelle thought it was a joke. She was new in town, a professor at the university with John as the only other person she knew well. John suggested that maybe his former girlfriend was the target, but the letters became personal when they included pictures of her. Her stalker had taken them as she went about her day at the university and around town.

After contacting the police, Janelle learned that several women had received the same threatening letters. The police assured her the man was harmless. They suggested that he was just trying to create terror on a broad spectrum but would never follow through. She prayed they were right, but soon after her visit to police headquarters, the phone calls started. The messages were grotesque and sexual in nature, the voice mechanical.

Janelle almost packed her bags after Detective Malaren informed her she was the only one receiving the threatening calls. Fear gripped her fully, but she found her courage and made getting the security system updated, her principal goal. Detective Malaren also suggested a roommate or bodyguard. She agreed.

Tomorrow the installation would happen and tonight she would play host to her first personal bodyguard, all on her tab. Until this creep was behind bars, Janelle didn't want to be alone in a large home several miles from town. 
Before unlocking the door and switching on the lights, she checked the road leading to the house and wondered where the bodyguard was. The security firm assured her he'd meet her at the house, would probably be waiting when she arrived. He wasn't. Janelle blamed the snowstorm.

All she wanted was a soft chair and a glass of wine, but instead, started a pot of coffee, and searched the refrigerator for staples to begin dinner, wondering if she should make enough for two. She noticed that the house was unusually cold, verified via the thermostat. Worried that the furnace was on the blink, she went to the den to build a fire. The air was more frigid than usual. French doors leading out to the deck were standing open. Snow had drifted inside. Had she forgotten to latch them? The wind on that side of the house sometimes popped them open if left unlocked. She wondered if the new security installation would fix the problem.

Turning on the exterior lights, she stepped onto the deck. During the darkness of winter, the owner, John, wanted to see his beautifully landscaped yard. Spotlights highlighted the bridge across the small creek, and a new layer of snow covered evergreens, Japanese maples, and massive boulders. 

Statues of angels graced the area, each one featured in a heavenly glow. The recent snowfall made it a winter wonderland. Most mornings would find Janelle seemingly mesmerized by the beauty of the garden while she nursed a cup of coffee and contemplated life. The panorama brought her joy, and no matter the season, the changing beauty filled her with peace.

Tonight, at this moment, the cherished Vista froze her to the spot. The beautiful winter paradise was now her nightmare come tangible.

Someone had shattered the angels and splattered them with blood. Most of the spotlights now glowed red. On the frozen creek laid the torsos of three women. Their naked bodies staged grotesquely. Their heads hung from the ornate bridge, tied in place by their hair. A trail of blood flowed from each body. Beheaded on the icy creek and immediately strung up on the bridge. Their grisly end caught in deaths final scream.

Janelle recognized the other women tormented with the beast's haunting letters. The sight sent her reeling backward. The sound of her screams dragged her into a living nightmare where there was no escape.

Someone stood in her way. Janelle fainted. He caught her. Held her inert body and looked beyond her to the scene in the snow, a smile splayed across his face.
Written in blood above the bodies - a crude message -Welcome Home, Lover.

The police found Janelle's body on a pedestal in the garden. Sitting in the lotus position with an elaborate pair of feathered wings crudely sewn into her back and a pentagram cut into her chest. The only other wounds were the deep cuts on her wrists. She'd bled out in place. Paralyzed by drugs, Janelle had been unable to move while the horror played out. The other women had suffered the same fate. They'd been aware of the torture, the beheading, and their assailant.

The security firm insisted the owner, John Hughes, had canceled the bodyguard that Janelle had hired because he was on his way home. When they reached John, he was still in Europe and would be for the next six months.

***

Stone downloaded the pictures to his computer and masturbated as he relived each delicious moment of the night before. Several loud knocks on the ceiling startled him from his pleasuring.

"Stowie, breakfast!"

         "Coming, Mommy."

***

997 Words / FCA

Yolanda Renee © 2016

Enjoy more entries from the WEP Gardens Challenge from the list below!

RECYCLING & FREE BOOKS

Yesterday, the first book of my trilogy was free.

Is it a good marketing strategy or not? 

I know it's been successful for some but I've also read and experienced the negatives.

Have you tried it?

What was your experience?

Watching the stats was exciting, as each hour they changed. For Murder, Madness & Love the book went to the top, and surprisingly the other two books followed - not all the way to the top but they did climb the charts.

I was hoping that offering the first book free would entice readers to buy the trilogy and it did. I just wish I had real numbers to share with you, only my publisher knows those.

But all in all, I'd say this was a success, a few books were sold!

Since the giveaway is over I thought I'd do a bit of recycling by posting the information on all three books and that the trilogy is available, in case some one's not heard. :) 

Here, for your information is my tour this year, from the A to Z challenge, where I posted a topic and an excerpt for Murder & Obsession, to the individual guest posts, reviews and interviews. 

The A to Z Challenge

Why Alaska Speaks to Me on Denise Covey's Blog

Steven and Sarah on the Couch with Stuart R West

Michael Di Gesu introduces Murder & Obsession

A Discussion of Unrequited Love with C. Lee McKenzie

Talking Snark with Alex J. Cavanaugh

All About Writing A Trilogy with Patricia Stotley

A TRILOGY SET IN ALASKA

MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE

MEMORIES OF MURDER

MURDER & OBSESSION

Light is a fleeting moment in the frozen north that is Alaska. Although the sun shines brightly during the Summer Solstice, Detective Steven Quaid struggles to hold on to what he holds dear during life's darkest moments, his love for family, and professional achievement. Will a murderous stalker, a self-proclaimed Lucifer resurrected, or insidious obsession prove more powerful than this dedicated detective? Three separate life-threatening situations. One determined man.

MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE

Detective Steven Quaid is the Anchorage Police Department's top investigator. When he's called in to protect a beautiful widow from a stalker, he's not entirely sure she isn't behind the scheme herself. Before long, Sarah has him wound up tighter than barbed wire.

But one of the police department's best and brightest detectives may just be in over his head, especially when the facts start pointing to a conclusion he isn't willing to face. With a killer on the loose and a climbing body count, Steven can't afford to hedge his bets—or his life.

Is Sarah a victim or a very skilled manipulator?

MEMORIES OF MURDER

Catching Alaska’s most notorious serial killer as a rookie made Detective Steven Quaid a hero, but falling in love with a victim from his last case tarnishes that status.

 While attempting to repair both his personal and professional life, he stumbles upon an unusual case–and an even more extraordinary foe: a man who believes he is Lucifer. An insidious man who delivers Quaid the ultimate choice: save his fiancée from an assassin’s bullet or stop the sacrifice of a young girl.

MURDER & OBSESSION

Love is never easy, but for Detective Steve Quaid and his fiancée,  their road to happiness is laden with minefields.

After spending countless hours reconverting his grandfather’s cabin into the perfect honeymoon retreat for his bride, the cabin becomes a bloody crime scene detailing her death. Accused, Steven escapes into the Alaskan mountains, biding his time to find the truth.

Who killed his beloved?

A seasoned woodsman, he outsmarts even the cleverest of trackers. All but one.

Mauled by a grizzly, a half-dead Steven barely escapes.

But will he live to bring the rightful murderer to Justice?

*****

How is marketing going for you?

Ever offer your books for free? What was your experience and would you do it again?

Please help me spread the word!

A suspenseful romantic trilogy set in Alaska - The Detective Quaid Mysteries! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01IF8UYDQ/ref=series_rw_dp_sw

Thank you for your support!

FREE! MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE

An opportunity for all readers!

FREE!

HOW COOL IS THAT?!

A TRILOGY SET IN ALASKA

MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE

MEMORIES OF MURDER

MURDER & OBSESSION

Light is a fleeting moment in the frozen north that is Alaska. Although the sun shines brightly during the Summer Solstice, Detective Steven Quaid struggles to hold on to what he holds dear during life's darkest moments, his love for family, and professional achievement. Will a murderous stalker, a self-proclaimed Lucifer resurrected, or insidious obsession prove more powerful than this dedicated detective? Three separate life-threatening situations. One determined man.

MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE

Detective Steven Quaid is the Anchorage Police Department's top investigator. When he's called in to protect a beautiful widow from a stalker, he's not entirely sure she isn't behind the scheme herself. Before long, Sarah has him wound up tighter than barbed wire.

But one of the police department's best and brightest detectives may just be in over his head, especially when the facts start pointing to a conclusion he isn't willing to face. With a killer on the loose and a climbing body count, Steven can't afford to hedge his bets—or his life.

Is Sarah a victim or a very skilled manipulator?

MEMORIES OF MURDER

Catching Alaska’s most notorious serial killer as a rookie made Detective Steven Quaid a hero, but falling in love with a victim from his last case tarnishes that status.

 While attempting to repair both his personal and professional life, he stumbles upon an unusual case–and an even more extraordinary foe: a man who believes he is Lucifer. An insidious man who delivers Quaid the ultimate choice: save his fiancée from an assassin’s bullet or stop the sacrifice of a young girl.

MURDER & OBSESSION

Love is never easy, but for Detective Steve Quaid and his fiancée,  their road to happiness is laden with minefields.

After spending countless hours reconverting his grandfather’s cabin into the perfect honeymoon retreat for his bride, the cabin becomes a bloody crime scene detailing her death. Accused, Steven escapes into the Alaskan mountains, biding his time to find the truth.

Who killed his beloved?

A seasoned woodsman, he outsmarts even the cleverest of trackers. All but one.

Mauled by a grizzly, a half-dead Steven barely escapes.

But will he live to bring the rightful murderer to Justice?

*****

Will you take advantage of the sale?

Will you help me spread the word?

Here's a Tweet for your convenience.

1st book in the Alaskan trilogy Murder, Madness & Love is free Aug. 12 & 13th! The Detective Quaid Mysteries https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EN77770/ref=cm_sw_su_dp#navbar

PIRATES, EXPLORERS, AND GHOSTS!

It is a real pleasure to help Bish Denham debut the cover of her latest novel.

Due out October 3rd.

You can now pre-order!

The Bowl and the Stone

Book Blurb

Pirates. Explorers. And spooky ghost hunters.

It’s 1962. Sam and her best friend, Nick, have the whole island of St. John, in the U. S. Virgin Islands, as their playground. They’ve got 240 year-old sugar plantation ruins to explore, beaches to swim, and trails to hike.

But when a man disappears like a vapor right in front of them, they must confront a scary new reality. They’re being haunted. By whom? And why? He’s even creeping into Nick’s dreams.

They need help, but the one who might be able to give it is Trumps, a reclusive hunchback who doesn’t like people, especially kids. Are Sam and Nick brave enough to face him? And if they do, will he listen to them? 

Their carefree summer games turn into eerie hauntings, and Sam and Nick learn more about themselves and life than they could ever have imagined.

Pre-order today and enter the ghostly tale as soon as it releases.

Bish Denham, whose mother’s side of the family has been in the Caribbean for over one hundred years, was raised in the U. S. Virgin Islands. She still has lots of family living there whom she visits regularly.

She says, “Growing up in the islands was like living inside a history book. Columbus named the islands, Sir Francis Drake sailed through the area, and Alexander Hamilton was raised on St. Croix. The ruins of hundreds of sugar plantations, built with the sweat and blood of slave labor, litter the islands. Then there were the pirates who plied the waters. It is within this atmosphere of wonder and mystery, that I grew up. Life for me was magical, and through my writing I hope to pass on some of that magic.”

The Bowl and the Stone: A Haunting Tale from the Virgin Islands, is her third book and second novel. You can find Anansi and Company: Retold Jamaican Tales and A Lizard’s Tail, at Amazon.com.

To learn more about Bish, you can visit her blog, Random Thoughts

Facebook

Twitter @BishDenham

Goodreads

Amazon:

Congratulations, Bish!

I hope you break all the records for pre-orders!

What about you readers, any ghost tales from your childhood that would make a great book?