Blood-Stained Laments

Please read my competition flash fiction on Figment. Thanks




http://figment.com/books/555916-Blood-Stained-Laments

Lucky Seven Meme

I would like to start the 7-7-7 meme and tag the following writers to participate if they wish.


I'll have two groups:

Twitter: Meg McNulty, Amalia Dillon, A.M. Day, Laura Shamas, Jolynne Valerie, Stephen Timothy, and Sophie Moss.

Facebook: Kim Harnes, Temoca DIxon, Lia Keyes, Joel Pettipiece, Jackie Garlick- Pynaert, Cheri WIlliams, and Sandy Stark-McGinnis

Here’s the idea: Go to either page 7 or 77 of your manuscript. Count down 7 lines, then copy the next 7 lines to your status. After that, name 7 more authors to come out and play. 


Here's mine from THE SKY THRONE:

I squinted through a shaft of sunlight and shook my head. I was in somebody’s bungalow. Maybe mine. Couldn’t be sure. Pain pulsed through my limbs in time with my heartbeat.

I massaged my side. “Where’s the knife?”

The burly guy from the Andron stood over me. “Zeus, I am Pontus. What knife do you speak of? What happened to you last night?” 

Twelfth Night Masquerade Flash Fiction Contest Entry #12Masque

Thank you to Meg McNulty for hosting this fabulous contest. Click HERE to see the rest of the entries. Following is the basis for the contest:

Twelfth night.  The last day of Christmas, the end of the pagan winter festival, the night when the Lord of Misrule takes centre stage, lords become servants and servants become lords.  Twelfth night, the start of the Carnival season. For the classicists amongst you, think of Janus, the two faced god whose festival heralds the start of the new year.

Entrants are charged with writing a poem or flash fiction of up to 500 words that involves masks or masquerades.

And here is my entry:

Prior to Eos’ flight, Jason traveled by moonlight and crept close to the palace. The hero hid in the shadows, eyes keen, muscles stiff. He relaxed as a female form approached. A hooded cloak draped her frame. Soft dawn light broke the horizon suddenly, drawn forth as if summoned from the dark shadows at the world’s edge. The warm rays illuminated the mask that hid the woman’s face.

     Behind the mask, her eyes glimmered in the dim light. Their beauty struck him with the power of Hephaestus’ hammer smashing against his ashen anvil. She removed her hood and slowly dragged her fingers through her long hair. Gentle tresses cascaded over her shoulders.

     Her honeyed voice floated over the distance between them and into his ears, “Καλημέρα. Good morning, brave Jason. Are you certain you wish to accept my father’s challenges? Are you truly the man to face down these tasks, cross my father, and place your crew in grave danger... or worse?”

     “Did you not witness my earlier display in the palace?”

     She smiled. “I did indeed.” Her hazel eyes sparkled with the memory of how her dark arts had saved him from a spear intent on impaling her new love. “But, what else do you have in that tunic of yours? You’ll need more than fancy acrobatics to complete these labors.”

     She produced a phial from inside her chiton. “Take this. It contains an oil you must apply to your entire body, shield, cuirass, and helm prior to the first task, else your death will be slow and painful.”

     He would have asked why she thought he needed her help. After all, he hadn’t needed her aid in any of the previous trials he’d faced. But then, Eros’ arrow lodged a bit deeper, love filling Jason’s chest cavity. Jason’s heart quickened, drumming a passionate cadence against his chest. A smile crept across his face. “Σας ευχαριστώ. Thank you. But why are you helping me, may I ask?”

     “You are the first person to come for the golden fleece that I believe can actually succeed... with my help of course,” she purred and caressed his muscular arms from forearm to bicep. “You’re either favored by the gods as you say, or foolish to a fault. Either way, I’m drawn to you. I cannot say why the passion burns so strongly after one meeting, but it does.”

     Jason crossed his arms. “I’ll not believe that you’d willingly betray your father’s volatile temper. Hera warned me as much. And I certainly witnessed it yesterday.”

     She placed Jason’s hand over her heart. “Eros’ shafts do not strike in varying degrees. Their impact is full and deep, blossoming unrestrained like flowers in spring.”

     “I too felt the bite of Eros’ arrows, but a growing affection is no reason to incur your father’s wrath.”

     “An ordinary love is not,” she countered. “Yet, the gods have cast their eyes upon us both. It is their will not ours.”

Hope you enjoyed.

13.... Is a magic number! or Happy New Year, 2013!!

As the new year approaches, I gaze back with fondness on the "lucky" serendipities of the previous 365 days. Some of them won't happen again for a long while... some will NEVER happen again during our lifetimes, if ever. Below are some of the greatest hits of 2012:

- August Blue Moon- (2nd full moon of the month)
- October, 11th, 2012 (10-11-12)
- December, 12th, 2012 (12-12-12)
- Survival of 12-21-12 (End of Mayan calendar)
- 13th full moon of the year on New Year's Eve

And as we consider that the 13th full moon of the year ushers us into 2013... it's time to throw out all that triskaidekaphobia crap and embrace 13 as the ultimate power that it effing is! Thirteen is far from unlucky... in fact, many cultures have revered the number 13! 

According to the occult science of numerology, “He who understands the number 13 will be given power and dominion. It is a number of upheaval and destruction; a symbol of power which, if wrongly used, will wreak havoc and destruction upon itself.” 

Here are some little known "lucky" 13 references:

- There were thirteen guests at the Last supper of the Christ.
- The celebration of the Epiphany takes place the thirteenth day after the nativity of the Lord.
- The Jewish Faith has thirteen fundamental dogmas of Judaism.
- Ulysses, the thirteenth of his group, escaped the devouring of the Cyclops.
- The Sumerians used a zodiac including 13 constellations.
- Some purport that the Universe is governed by thirteen fundamental constants of the physics. 
- A card deck includes 13 hearts, 13 spades, 13 diamonds, 13 clubs
- There were 13 original colonies/ states
- the first national flag had 13 stars, and even today it still has 13 stripes. On the green side of the dollar bill there are 13 steps in the pyramid of the Great Seal. The motto above the pyramid, which reads “Annuit Coeptis,” has 13 letters; the eagle on the right side has a ribbon in its beak that bears the motto “E pluribus unum,” which contains 13 letters. The eagle has 13 tail feathers, and on its breast there is a shield of 13 stripes. In one talon the eagle holds 13 arrows, and in the other an olive branch with 13 leaves and 13 berries. Over the eagle’s head are 13 stars that form the six-pointed “Star of David.”


So, 13 is in fact a powerful number... and I urge you to harness and unleash that power to make 2013 your best year ever. 

I am proud to host my very first cover reveal for my friend, Marilyn Almodovar, who is soon to release her debut novel INTERRED! And now without further ado... *pulls the drape off* TADA!

COVER REVEAL!

Interred (Chronicles of the Interred #1)

by

Marilyn Almodóvar

The cover was created by the amazing Devan Edwards of Nimbi Designs.

I'm excited for Marilyn on a couple of fronts. I think the cover is beautifully designed and I had the honor of BETA reading this book for and it's complex and intense! Here is the book's blurb:

Blurb

 *****

Time has never been an issue for Baxter Jacobs, but then she never knew she had the ability to Bend it.

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Baxter inherits a pendant that will change her life. Connected to the pendant is a dark and mysterious young man named Declan Ashdown. Trapped in a Time loop for the past 122 years, Declan needs Baxter’s help to escape. The only problem is, she has no idea how to do it.

To acquire the power she needs to free him, she’ll become one of the Interred, those whose Magical abilities emerge as they come of age. When she does, she’ll discover that Declan isn’t the only one interested in the fact that she’s a Time Bender.

As the Interment arrives, Baxter knows this will be no Sweet Sixteen. A vengeful relative and the ruthless Council are determined to control her. Declan’s powerful and charming descendant, Jack Ashdown, claims he can save her. She’ll soon have to decide who she can trust, and how to master her new abilities before Time runs out.

*****

INTENSE right?

The release date is JANUARY 22, 2013. Add it to your GOODREADS list now.
Here's a contest Marilyn is running! Enter now! http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1aa0793/

Brief author bio:

Marilyn Almodóvar is an American YA Author born in Ft. Huachuca, Arizona. A lover of words with a penchant for Victorian novels as well as the books of Stephen King, Lyn's favorite past-times have always been reading and writing.

It was this love that propelled her to choose Theater and French as majors in University, with a minor in English Victorian Literature. Lyn lived for almost a decade in England followed by three years in France before returning home to the U.S.

A self-confessed citizen of the world, Lyn is fluent in English, French and Spanish, with basic knowledge of the Italian language. Lyn currently lives in Central Florida with her French husband, English-born eldest son, and French-born youngest son. Her debut YA Novel, Interred, will be published by Iambe books on 01/22/2013.

Ways readers can connect with Lyn:

Twitter (http://twitter.com/LynAlmodovar)
Facebook (www.facebook.com/pages/Marilyn-Almodóvar/142589622496531)
Goodreads (http://www.goodreads.com/MarilynAlmodovar)
Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/lynalmodovar/)
Blog (http://marilynalmodovar.blogspot.com/)