Day 3 of the WordCrafter “Midnight Roost” Book Blog Tour on Patty’s Worlds
Posted: October 19, 2023 Filed under: Anthology, Blog Tour, Book Promotion, Book Release, Books, Dark Fantasy, Dark Humor, Fiction, Ghost Stories, Giveaways, Guest Post, Horror, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Short Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Stories, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: "Shaken", "The White Lady", Anthology, Chris Barili, Dark fiction, Ghost Stories, Midnight Roost, Paranormal, Paul Kane, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours Leave a comment
For Day 3 of the WordCrafter Midnight Roost Book Blog Tour we’re over at Patty’s Worlds where contributing authors Chris Barili and Paul Kane share the inspirations for their stories, “Shaken” and “The White Lady” respectively.
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Day 2 of the WordCrafter “Midnight Roost” Book Blog Tour is over at Undawnted
Posted: October 17, 2023 Filed under: Anthology, Audio Excerpt, Author Interview, Blog Tour, Books, Dark Fantasy, Fiction, Ghost Stories, Giveaways, Guest Post, Horror, Interview, Paranormal, Review, Science Fiction, Short Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Stories, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Author Interview, Christa Planko, Giveaway, M J Mallon, Midnight Roost, Reading, Review, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press 7 CommentsJoin us over at Undawnted for Day 2 of the WordCrafter Midnight Roost Book Blog Tour with a guest post and an interview with contributing author Christa Planko and a reading from MJ Mallon. Drop by and join in on the fun while learning more about Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories. And if you leave a comment
http://www.undawnted.com/2023/10/wordcrafter-blog-tour-for-midnight.html
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Welcome to the WordCrafter “Midnight Roost” Book Blog Tour
Posted: October 16, 2023 Filed under: Anthology, Audio Excerpt, Author Interview, Blog Tour, Book Promotion, Book Release, Books, Dark Fantasy, Giveaways, Paranormal, Short Fiction, Stories, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours | Tags: Anthology, Dark fiction, Ghost Stories, horror, Isabel Grey, Kaye Lynne Booth, Midnight Roost, Paranormal, Short Fiction, WordCrafter Press 9 CommentsWelcome to the WordCrafter Midnight Roost Book Blog Tour! We’ve got a great tour planned for an outstanding anthology Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories. Below, you will find the tour schedule and information about how you can get chances to win a free digital copy of Midnight Roost. The great thing about this tour is that you will get to meet, not one, but two contributing authors at each stop and learn about their stories.
Today, I’ll tell you a little about this weird and creepy anthology and then we’ll meet the author of the winning story in the 2023 WordCrafter Short Fiction Contest, Isabel Grey, and learn more about her story, “Red Door House”. Get ready to dig into a probing interview with Ms. Grey and she also shares a reading of her story.
About Midnight Roost
20 authors bring your nightmares to life in 23 stories of ghosts, paranormal phenomenon, and the horror from the dark crevasses of their minds. Stories of stalkers, both human and supernatural, possession and occult rituals, alien visitations of the strange kind, and ghostly tales that will give you goosebumps. These are the tales that will make you fear the dark. Read them at the Midnight Roost… if you dare.
Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/318L0l
Book Trailer for Midnight Roost
Tour Schedule
Monday – October 16 – Opening Day –Isabele Grey (Interview & Reading) & Joseph Carrabis (Reading) – Writing to be Read
Tuesday – October 17 – M J Mallon (Reading) & Christa Planko (Interview & Guest Post)– Undawnted
Wednesday – October 18 – Chris Barili (Guest Post) & Paul Kane (Guest Post) – Patty’s Worlds
Thursday – October 19 – Julie Jones (Reading) & Keith Hoskins (Guest Post) – Robbie’s Inspiration
Friday – October 20 – Michaele Jordan (Reading) & Mario Acevedo (Guest Post) – Writing to be Read
Saturday – October 21 – Patty Fletcher (Guest Post) & DL Mullen (Guest Post & Video) – Roberta Writes
Sunday – October 22 – Sonia Pipkin (Guest Post) & Roberta Eaton Cheadle (Reading) – Kyrosmagica Publishing
Monday – October 23 – Closing Post –Denise Aparo (Reading) & excerpts from other stories – Writing to be Read
Giveaway
A chance to win a free digital copy of Midnight Roost at every stop.
Just leave a comment to show your support for the tour, the anthology, and all of the fantastic authors.
Meet Author Isabel Grey
I’m delighted to bring you this interview with a budding young author, Isabel Grey. Her occult horror story, “Red Door House” was the winning story in the 2023 WordCrafter Short Fiction Contest, and I am so pleased to be able to introduce you to her here. She was previously unknown to me, so I learned some cool things about her, too. And I have to say that I am proud to have not one, but two of her stories featured in Midnight Roost. Her other story is “Rabbits Can’t See Pink Firework”, offering a rabbit’s eye view of human nature during a disastrous gender reveal party.
Kaye: I always like to start by learning something about the author’s writing journey, so can you tell us about yours?
Isabel: I was an avid reader from a young age, mostly choosing fiction but eventually finding a love for poetry. I’m currently receiving my second MFA in Poetry after I completed my first in Genre Fiction at Western Colorado University. I’m an emerging writer who primarily focuses on fiction and verse though I do dabble in essays.
Kaye: What’s something most readers would never guess about you?
Isabel: When I tell people I write horror, they always seem surprised. Someone told me I don’t look like a horror writer, though I’m still not entirely sure what she meant by it.
Kaye: What prompted you to enter the 2023 WordCrafter Short Fiction Contest?
Isabel: WCU had an advertisement in their newsletter for the contest. I happened to be in my Short Forms course at the same time and had a few pieces I was happy with. I figured, why not?
Kaye: You entered two stories to WordCrafter Press: “Rabbits Can’t See Pink Firework” and “Red Door House”. Only one can win, and I’ll ask you about the one that won, “Red Door House” a little further into the interview. But for now, can you share a little about the story that didn’t win, “Rabbits Can’t See Pink Fireworks”? What inspired you to write that story?
Isabel: I explore gender identity in my writing, “Rabbits” being a prime example. There was a horrible wildfire in California as a result of festivities at a gender reveal party not long before I wrote this, so the story is something of a response to that tragedy. I chose to write from a rabbit’s perspective to speculate the concept of a gender reveal party and gender roles in general.
Kaye: Were you surprised to learn that “Red Door House” won the contest?
Isabel: Yes! This was the first fiction contest I ever entered so it was a delightful surprise to hear the news.
Kaye: Can you share a little bit with our readers about the winning story?
Isabel: “Red Door House” is a supernatural horror about a brother and sister in a small town where a cult is carrying out insidious acts for a sentient house. There is mystery, dark magic, and dreamlike sequences that make the reader question what is going on under the surface of Staiwhile town’s suburban veneer until the final and unnatural third act.
Kaye: What inspired you to write “Red Door House?”
Isabel: “Red Door House” was very loosely inspired by a several-decades-old cold case I fell upon randomly during my studies. Of course, I took many liberties and added fantastical elements to make “Red Door House” its own story.
Kaye: Which author, dead or alive, would you love to have lunch with?
Isabel: There are so many, but for the purpose of this interview, I will say Shirley Jackson. She is my main inspiration for horror, especially when making the mundane macabre. A trope I’m obsessed with is that of the haunted house. Using the house as a symbol of the psyche is something I return to again and again, both in my writing and reading. I would love to talk houses and witchcraft with Jackson, perhaps at a meal to match her famous dinner parties.
Kaye: What is the biggest challenge of being a writer for you so far?
Isabel: Making time for writing. I’m a full-time student with a part-time job, and if it weren’t for the fact that much of my school assignments had to do with my writing, I would have a far more difficult attempt at time management. It’s been reassuring knowing I can juggle so many things, which is always the case in life as a writer, but budgeting the hours I can snatch for my writing is something I’m still working on.
Kaye: Do you also write longer, book length fiction? Which do you find easier? Why?
Isabel: Right now, I’m querying my first novel, a Gothic historical set in 1927 California. I find novel writing easier than writing short stories because there is far more space for suspense and build-up in a longer-length book. With a short story, there is much precision that doesn’t come as naturally to me. Part of the trouble is that I tend to read more novels than short stories, something I’m making a conscious effort to change.
Kaye: What is your favorite genre to write in? Why?
Isabel: Horror, usually in historical settings. In the new movie, A Haunting in Venice, Tina Fey’s character, Ariadne Oliver says “Scary stories make the world less scary.” The world at large has always scared me and a way that I cope with that is by trying to scare it back with my writing.
Kaye: What is the one thing in your writing career that is the most unusual or unique thing you’ve done so far?
Isabel: I bought a roll of several thousand Zoltar cards that served as “research” for a short story. I don’t regret it only because I used them to decoupage a piece of furniture later on.
Kaye: What goals do you set for yourself in your writing?
Isabel: Find representation for my novel and continue working on my second which I started earlier this year. I returned to poetry writing after taking a break while studying fiction. Recently, I’ve published a few poems in smaller presses and would like to continue to have material for a poetry collection.
Kaye: I always like to make interview posts informative. What is the best piece of writing advice you ever received?
Isabel: The fabulous writer, who was also one of my professors in grad school, Fran Wilde, told me “First drafts are allowed to suck.” While studying fiction, I realized my process for writing worked best by “running through the graveyard at night”, in other words, getting down the story as quickly as possible without tripping up on my technical imagination early in the process. The first draft of anything is scary, and it’s important to allow your creative imagination to flow when you start something new.
Also, never stop reading.
Reading from “Red Door House” by Isabel Grey
About Isabel Grey
Isabel Grey is a Colorado resident. She is currently receiving her MFA at Western Colorado University in Genre Fiction and Poetry. Her work has been published in Ample Remains, The Gay & Lesbian Review, and The Chamber Magazine. Grey writes fiction, poetry, and essays. You can find her on Instagram- @greyauthor222.
Isabel is a new addition to the WordCrafter Press authors. Her story, “Red Door House” was the winning story in the 2023 WordCrafter Short Fiction contest.
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Meet Author Joseph Carrabis
Joseph is a contributor by invitation, which is to say, he was not a contestant in the short fiction contest, but received an invitation to submit from me. He submitted three stories, and I accepted all three because they were outstanding, and I am pleased to have his writing featured in this year’s anthology. So Joseph has contributed three stories featured in Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories, and they are weird and creepy indeed. “Blood Magic”, a dark fairytale in which a young girl’s foolishness brings down a witch’s curse upon her betrothed and the price to make things right is high. “Binky”, a social commentary on birth defects and lingering spirits. And “The Beach”, which will speak for itself in the reading below.
Inspiration for “The Beach”
The Beach is based on actual beach I discovered my first time through college. Pretty much everything in the story is based on what really happened…except killing. The killing is specific to the story. Aside from that, riding my bike, discovering the cove, seeing the mansions, even returning after successes in business (although just to see if the beach still existed, not to develop the property) are all based on actual events from my life.
Reading from “The Beach “
About Joseph Carrabis
Joseph Carrabis told stories to anyone who would listen starting in childhood, wrote his first stories in grade school, and started getting paid for his writing in 1978. He’s been everything from a long-haul trucker to a Chief Research Scientist and holds patents covering mathematics, anthropology, neuroscience, and linguistics. After patenting a technology which he created in his basement and creating an international company, he retired from corporate life and now he spends his time writing fiction based on his experiences. His work appears regularly in several anthologies and his own published novels.
Joseph’s story, “Maryanne”, is featured in the 2022 Visions anthology from WordCrafter Press.
You can learn more about him at https://josephcarrabis.com.
That wraps up the first stop on the WordCrafter Midnight Roost Book Blog Tour. I hope you enjoyed learning about Isabel Grey and her winning story. I hope you’ll join us tomorrow on Undawnted, where DL Mullan interviews contributing author, Christa Planko and we’ll learn about the inspiration for her story, “The Easterville Glass Ghost”. And we’ll meet author M J Mallon with a reading from her story, “The Cull”.
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Final Stop on the WordCrafter “The Rock Star & The Outlaw” Book Blog Tour
Posted: September 22, 2023 Filed under: Action/Adventure, Adventure, Blog Tour, Book Release, Books, Fiction, Giveaways, Time travel, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Blog Tour, BookTour, Kaye Lynne Booth, The Rock Star & the Outlaw, Time-travel adventure, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press 2 Comments
It’s the final day of the WordCrafter The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog Tour, and we’re finishing off with an introduction to the villan in my story, Juan Montoya. Over the coarse of the week, we met the two protagonists, Amaryllis Sanchez and LeRoy McAllister, and three of the supporting characters, the time-traveler from 2025, Nick; the shaman woman from 2025, Monique; and the saloon keeper from 1887, Maggie. Don’t worry if you missed a stop or two along the way. I’m posting the Tour Schedule with links for each stop at the end of the post. And don’t forget to leave a comment to enter the Giveaway at each one.
The Giveaway
Leave a comment below to enter the giveaway
for a chance at one of five digital copies of
The Rock Star & The Outlaw.
Writing the Villian
Writing the villian is difficult for me, because I strive so hard to create characters that are likeable, that creating a character I want people to hate seems to go against my natural grain. I think it’s hard for me to write from my shadow side and unveil the things that are hidden away there, because I was taught that those were things we didn’t talk about. But a villian has to be dark, and mean, and well… bad. Readers aren’t supposed to like the villian. I have trouble writing characters that I don’t like, and even now, I can’t say I truly succeeded with Juan. I still want to like him, just a little.
You really can’t have a character that is all bad. No one is pure evil, any more than anyone is pure goodness.People are naturally double sided, so just as a protagonist must have flaws to make them a well rounded character, every villian must have at least one or two likeable traits to balance things out. In Juan, I think I was successful in this respect. Sure, he’s a pompous ass who expects to get his way in all things, but he is angered by the mistreatment of Amaryllis by his men, so he can’t be all bad. Right?
The character of Juan Montoya
Juan Montoya started out the story as Wade Slade, a proud southern man with a hot southern temper. He sported long, wavey hair, and a handlebar mustache and goatee, which he kept waxed to sharp points. He had the peculiar habit of twisting the tips of the mustache, especially when he was angered. However, when doing my first run of editing, which I do aloud, there was something about the character that just didn’t feel right. I thought perhaps rhyming the first and last names might be the problem, so I changed his first name to Buck. It was easy to do un MS Word, with the find and replace feature. But, as I continued to read through it Buck Slade was missing the mark, as well. Buck didn’t sound like a southern name, for one thing. And the character didn’t seem very threatening for another. Something had to be done.
The story needed a bad dude, a mean bandito to lead a gang of outlaws on robbing and pillaging. A bandit up from the border in Nevada country in 1887 seemed like a good possibility. It needed to be someone you didn’t want to cross, and so Buck Slade became Juan Montoya. I went back in with ‘Find and Replace’ and replaced all the Bucks and all the Slades to Juans and Montoyas. You can imagine my surprise, when doing the next pass of edits, as I tried to figure out what a Juanle and a Juanet were. When I hit ‘Replace All’, I didn’t think about the possibility of having used words that had Buck in them like bucket and buckle. Gotta watch that.
Of course, changing a character is more than just changing a name. Juan lost the southern charm of Wade and Buck, and his features are much darker. He kept the hair, the mustache, and the goatee, as well as the annoying habit of twisting the mustache. In fact, I made the hair his best feature, although it gives him an effiminate look, but he’s so bad no one would dare to say that to his face. I changed some scenes to illustrate his temper better, and sacrificed a minor character to do so. The result is the Juan Montoya who appears in the final story.
About the Book
A time-traveler oversteps his boundaries in 1887. Things get out of hand quickly, and he is hanged, setting in motion a series of events from which there’s no turning back.
LeRoy McAllister is a reluctant outlaw running from a posse with nowhere to go except to the future.
In 2025, Amaryllis Sanchez is a thrill-seeking rock star on the fast track, who killed her dealing boyfriend to save herself. Now, she’s running from the law and his drug stealing flunkies, and nowhere is safe.
LeRoy falls hard for the rock star, thinking he can save her by taking her back with him. But when they arrive in 1887, things turn crazy fast, and soon they’re running from both the outlaws and the posse, in peril once more.
They can’t go back to the future, so it looks like they’re stuck in the past. But either when, they must face forces that would either lock them up or see them dead.
About the Author
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; and book 1 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
That wraps up the WordCrafter The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog TourThanks to all of you for joining me. I hope you enjoyed my posts, and maybe even learned something from them. I am pleased to have all of you here to help launch this book right. This story came from my heart and I a truly excited about it. Be sure and leave a comment at each stop for additional entries in the giveaway. Links are below if you miss one.
Tour Schedule
The Rock Star & The Outlaw, by Kaye Lynne Booth – September 18 – 22
Monday – Sept. 18 – Opening Day – “Amaryllis & The Pretty Reckless” – Writing to be Read
Tuesday – Sept. 19 –“Writing with music and LeRoy McAllister & Review” – Carla Loves to Read
Wednesday – Sept. 20 – “The characters of Nick and Monique” – Writing to be Read
Thursday – Sept.21 – “Prostitution in the American West and the character of Maggie” – Roberta Writes
Friday – Sept. 22 – Closing Post – “Writing the Villian & Juan Montoya” – Writing to be Read
That wraps up today’s stop and the tour. I want to thank you all for coming along on the ride, and I hope you’ll give the ride with Amaryllis and Leroy a go. It’s been a fun ride, from putting all the pieces together in my mind as the idea began to shape itself into a story in my mind, to writing each individual chapter and partnering it with a song, to running a successful Kickstarter to give the book a boost, to the publishing process and seeing the book listed through distributors, to sharing my characters with all of you on this tour. I know you will have a fun ride if you chose to read it, too.
If you missed a stop, you’ll find the links in the Tour Schedule above. Leave a comment at each stop for additional chances in the giveaway. I won’t get out the random drawing hat until tomorrow night, so there’s still time. I’m giving away five digital copies of The Rock Star & The Outlaw, and I will announce the winners in Monday’s “WordCrafter News”, here on Writing to be Read. Thanks for joining us.
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Day 3 of the WordCrafter “The Rock Star & The Outlaw” Book Blog Tour
Posted: September 20, 2023 Filed under: Action/Adventure, Adventure, Blog Tour, Book Release, Books, Character Development, Fiction, Giveaways, Time travel, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Kaye Lynne Booth, The Rock Star & the Outlaw, Time-travel adventure, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press 5 CommentsTour Schedule
The Rock Star & The Outlaw, by Kaye Lynne Booth – September 18 – 22
Monday – Sept. 18 – Opening Day – “Amaryllis & The Pretty Reckless” – Writing to be Read
Tuesday – Sept. 19 –“Writing with music and LeRoy McAllister & Review” – Carla Loves to Read
Wednesday – Sept. 20 – “The characters of Nick and Monique” – Writing to be Read
Thursday – Sept.21 – “Prostitution in the American West and the character of Maggie” – Roberta Writes
Friday – Sept. 22 – Closing Post – “Writing the Villian & Juan Montoya” – Writing to be Read
Day 3 of The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog Tour
Welcome to Writing to be Read and the WordCrafter The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog Tour. On this stop, I’ll introduce you to two of the supporting characters, the overzealous time-traveler, Nick Umbridge, and Amaryllis’ BFF, Monique. These are two supporting characters, but they play roles which are vital to the story.
Nick & the Time-Travel Device
Nick’s character developed from the main idea for the story – a time-travel device that fits in the palm of the hand, and a custom saddle pommel which it can slip into, to take horse and rider to the period of their choice. That’s how the story began in my head, and I wrote that first chapter, which ended up being the prolog, long before the rest of the story had developed fully. I needed a time-traveling cowboy and Nick was him.
Part of the idea for his character came from the movie Time Cop with Jean-Claude Van Damme. He works for a regulatory agency that develops time-travel gadgetry and Nick’s job is to test the prototypes. Another part of his character came from a character in a different time-travel movie, Time Stalkers, where William Devane plays a college professor who is obsessed with the old west. Nick has a similar obsession which drives him to pick 1887 as his time destination. Unfortunately, the call to blend and take in some of the local atmosphere is too much for him, and he sets a time-loop into motion that sends Leroy on the wildest ride of his life, before he is strung up by a lynch mob.
When LeRoy returns with Amaryllis, a paradox or two are created and Nick makes another appearance, trying to set things right. Although he means well, he wants to take Amaryllis back to her own time, in 2025; a move that would mean facing the forces she’s running from, so Nick becomes an antagonist for our time-traveling duo.
Monique & Werner Syndrome
Monique is Amaryllis’ best friend. She came about in a college assignment back in 2012 to write a shaman scene; a scene where the protagonist consults the wisdom of the medicine man, witch or shaman for guidance. Monique is my shaman, with the ability of looking into the future having been handed down from her grandmother. Although the character of Amaryllis was actually in this scene, too, but I think my focus was on developing the character of Monique.
I wanted her to be an interesting and unique character, so I gave her a bold, self-confident personality, and I gave her Werner Syndrome, a rare birth defect caused by the mutation of the WRN gene, which cause old age to set in prematurely. Those with Werner Syndrome take on the physical characteristics of an old person at an early age, including short stature from childhood, and other attributes such as wrinkled skin, baldness, muscular atrophy and cateracts (https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/werner-syndrome). So even though Monique is 26, like Amaryllis, and they grew up together, Monique is small, and hunched and shriveled, looking more like a woman of 60, fitting the role of an old croon perfectly.
Monique is a rock in Amaryllis’ life. She’s who our heroine turns to for advice, the woman who thinks of everything, and Amaryllis knows she can count on her. That original scene, where Amaryllis asks her friend to throw the bones and gets a strange reading thaat neither woman understands, has undergone a lot of changes, but it ends up as the third chapter in the book, “Witches Burn”.
About the Book
A time-traveler oversteps his boundaries in 1887. Things get out of hand quickly, and he is hanged, setting in motion a series of events from which there’s no turning back.
LeRoy McAllister is a reluctant outlaw running from a posse with nowhere to go except to the future.
In 2025, Amaryllis Sanchez is a thrill-seeking rock star on the fast track, who killed her dealing boyfriend to save herself. Now, she’s running from the law and his drug stealing flunkies, and nowhere is safe.
LeRoy falls hard for the rock star, thinking he can save her by taking her back with him. But when they arrive in 1887, things turn crazy fast, and soon they’re running from both the outlaws and the posse, in peril once more.
They can’t go back to the future, so it looks like they’re stuck in the past. But either when, they must face forces that would either lock them up or see them dead.
That wraps up Day 3 of the WordCrafter The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog Tour. Links are in the schedule above, if you missed days 1 & 2. I hope you have enjoyed meeting Nick and Monique. Be sure to visit those first two stops to meet the two protagonists and learn more about the creation of this wild time-travel adventure. Tomorrow will find us over at Robbie’s Inspiration/Roberta Writes, where I will introduce you to the character of Maggie and share some facts about prostitution in the American west. And don’t forget to leave a comment at each stop for a chance to win one of five digital copies of The Rock Star & The Outlaw, which I’ll be giving away in a random drawing at the end of the tour. I do hope you will join us.
About the Author
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; and book 1 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Welcome to the WordCrafter “The Rock Star & The Outlaw” Book Blog Tour
Posted: September 18, 2023 Filed under: Action/Adventure, Adventure, Blog Tour, Book Promotion, Book Release, Books, Fiction, Giveaways, Time travel, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Kaye Lynne Booth, The Rock Star & the Outlaw, Time-travel adventure, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press 18 CommentsAbout the Tour
Welcome to the WordCrafter The Rock Star & The Outlaw Book Blog Tour! We have a great tour planned this week and I hope you’ll visit each stop to learn more about what went into this exciting time-travel adventure. We have a great give-away, too, offering 5 digital copies of The Rock Star & The Outlaw. And you get an entry just for leaving a comment at each stop to let me know you were there. You’ll find the Tour Schedule below, so let’s get started!
Tour Schedule
The Rock Star & The Outlaw, by Kaye Lynne Booth – September 18 – 22
Monday – Sept. 18 – Opening Day – “Amaryllis & The Pretty Reckless” – Writing to be Read
Tuesday – Sept. 19 –“Writing with music and LeRoy McAllister & Review” – Carla Loves to Read
Wednesday – Sept. 20 – “The characters of Nick and Monique” – Writing to be Read
Thursday – Sept.21 – “Prostitution in the American West and the character of Maggie” – Roberta Writes
Friday – Sept. 22 – Closing Post – “Writing the Villian & Juan Montoya” – Writing to be Read
Amaryllis & The Pretty Reckless
Amaryllis Maria Sanchez is a composite character. She’s a cross between Sharon Stone’s character in Basic Instinct and Taylor Momsen of The Pretty Reckless. She’s an adrenaline junkie, who likes to tempt death and lives life to the extremes. She’s a rock star who is at the top of her game when she’s on stage. After she kills her drug dealing, domineering boyfriend to save herself from his wrath, she figures she’s already damned herself, she figures she might as well ride out the storm that’s headed her way. But, when she crosses paths with a time-traveling cowboy who offers a way to stay ahead of the game and a place to run to where she won’t ever be found, she sees the potential for a whole new life of adventures.
Amaryllis began as a character like Sharon Stones character in Basic Instincts – a daring woman who plays a deadly game. I like Sharon Stone in just about anything, but I admired the way she played this character in particular. I challenged myself to create a character with that same adventuresome nature, and that self-confident, ‘on top of the world’ attitude.
The idea for her method for killing Claude came from an actual murder case I heard about on the news. I thought it was unique, and I knew I wanted to use it in a story.
My son introduced me to the music of The Pretty Reckless, and I fell in love with the voice of Taylor Momsen. Ibought their CDs and played them on my commute to work, and a story about a female rock singer began to form in my head, and the Sharon Stone-like character somehow merged in my mind with the woman who emerged in my mind from their music. That woman was a lot like my image of Taylor Momsen. And so, Amaryllis Maria Sanchez emerged on the page. Their music inspired me and I’d like to share some of it with you. The video is an official music video for “You”, by The Pretty Reckless.
About the Book
A time-traveler oversteps his boundaries in 1887. Things get out of hand quickly, and he is hanged, setting in motion a series of events from which there’s no turning back.
LeRoy McAllister is a reluctant outlaw running from a posse with nowhere to go except to the future.
In 2025, Amaryllis Sanchez is a thrill-seeking rock star on the fast track, who killed her dealing boyfriend to save herself. Now, she’s running from the law and his drug stealing flunkies, and nowhere is safe.
LeRoy falls hard for the rock star, thinking he can save her by taking her back with him. But when they arrive in 1887, things turn crazy fast, and soon they’re running from both the outlaws and the posse, in peril once more.
They can’t go back to the future, so it looks like they’re stuck in the past. But either when, they must face forces that would either lock them up or see them dead.
Book Trailer
About the Author
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; and book 1 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
The Giveaway
Leave a comment below to enter the giveaway
for a chance at one of five digital copies of
The Rock Star & The Outlaw.
That wraps up the tour for today. Join us tomorrow on Carla Loves to Read for a guest post about the character of LeRoy McAllister and a review of the book.
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WordCrafter News: Book Release, Blog Tour & Independence Day Sale
Posted: June 26, 2023 Filed under: Anthology, Blog Tour, Book Promotion, Book Release, Book Sales, Books, Dark Fantasy, Dystopian, essays, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Fiction, Ghost Stories, Historical Fiction, Magical Realism, Romantic Comedy, Science Fiction, Short Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Stories, Urban fantasy, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter News, WordCrafter Press 11 Comments
The Winners of the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour Giveaway
We had a great tour last week for my debut poetry collection, Small Wonders. A full week of guest posts and poetry readings, DL Mullan interviewed me, and even a couple of reviews. Now it’s time to announce the winners of the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour giveaway.
And the winners are….
Drumroll Please
- dg kaye
- Beetly Pete
- Brenda Marie Fluharty
New Release from WordCrafter Press
This is How We Grow: Reflections for Perspective Shaping, compiled and edited by Yvette Prior will be released on July 18, 2023.
About This Is How We Grow
The way we think and behave is impacted by mental filters. Understanding how people experience the world can lead to positive outcomes.
This is How We Grow brings you into the world of diverse authors to help expand outlook, cultivate empathy, and explore components of concious experience and mental filters. The way we see the world is impacted by many variables.
This book aims to increase the reader’s ability to take the perspective of others through essay, story, and poetry. Cognitive empathy is a crucial component of social problem solving and conflict avoidance.
The WordCrafter This is How We Grow Book Blog Tour
The WordCrafter This is How We Grow Book Blog Tour will run July 17-21, 2023. We will have guest posts from contributors, audio excerpts, an author/editor interview, reviews and a great giveaway. It is a wonderful book and it’s going to be a fabulous tour, so I hope you will join us.
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Once Upon an Ever After: https://books2read.com/u/mKdWGV
Refracted Reflections: https://books2read.com/u/3kPyxn
Visions: https://books2read.com/u/49Lk28
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Wrapping Up the WordCrafter “Small Wonders” Book Blog Tour
Posted: June 23, 2023 Filed under: Blog Tour, Book Release, Books, Collection, Poetry, Poetry Readings, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours 9 Comments
We are wrapping up the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour here on Writing to be Read. We’ve had a great week long tour, with a poetry reading at every stop, two delightful reviews and I had a lovely interview with DL Mullan. Now it’s time to wrap everything up, so be sure to comment for a chance to win a free digital copy of my debut poetry collection, Small Wonders. And you can still follow the links in the schedule below to visit each stop and comment for additional chances to win.
Schedule
Small Wonders, by Kaye Lynne Booth – June 19-23
Monday – June 19 – Opening Day – Post “My Moment of Fame” w/ reading “Aspen Tree”– Writing to be Read
Tuesday – June 20 – Guest Post “Fun with Poetry” w/ reading Tanka poem– Robbie’s Inspiration
Wednesday – June 21 – Introduction & Comments – Writing to be Read/Guest Post “I’m a Bird Watcher” w/ reading “Bird Watching”, Interview & Review – Undawnted
Thursday – June 22 – Guest Post “Someone to Look Up To” w/ reading “To Be A Cat” & Review – Carla Loves to Read
Friday – June 23 – Final stop – Post “I Like to Grow Things” w/ reading Haiga Poem- Writing to be Read
The Small Wonders Giveaway
Three free digital copies of
Small Wonders
are up for grabs. Follow the tour and make a comment at each stop,
so I know you were there and you’re automatically entered.
One entry per stop.
Winners selected in a random drawing. (Really. I draw them out of a hat, literally.)
About the Book
The world is filled with amazing things, if we will just stop a moment and take notice. In this vast universe, we are but tiny individuals, filled with awe and amazement. From reflections on first love, to reflections on growing old. The poems within these pages express a lifetime of unique reflections in Small Wonders.
Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/b6WZ6E
I Like to Grow Things
I’m a gardener, and I love to share photos of my beautiful flowers that I grow.
In addition to the beautiful blooms that I plant to attract birds each year, I often plant nutritious vegetables to make attractive plates at my table. Last year, I had a monster cherry tomato plant that was huge, it’s fruit abundant, gracing not only my table, but the tables of neighbors and friends because there was plenty to go around for all. I had to look up to it standing on the porch. It was crazy.
It’s not surprising that my garden activities have found a way into my poetry. The follolwing scenario occured only in my head, but it was fun to write. I promise no animals were harmed in the making of this poem.
A Mole in the Garden
There’s a hole in my garden where a plant should be
I think a mole feasts on my zucchini
A carrot just vanished and there goes a pea!
By all that is sacred, I must get that mole
Or I fear that my garden will be nothing but holes,
Leaving only the rocks, which he hasn’t stole.
I’ll take a shovel and smash his head.
One whack and surely, the mole will be dead.
Oh dear! I’ve smashed my best pumpkin instead.
My cabbage are gone leaving several large holes
A tomato plant is sucked straight down by that mole
Leaving a hole that looks like a very large bowl.
Perhaps there is another way
I’ll fill that hole with smoke today
Then that mole won’t want to stay.
I can’t see my garden as smoke fills the sky
It burns my eyes and makes me cry
It clears to a big empty patch in my rye!
There will be nothing left, that mole’s such a hog.
To save my garden, I’ll turn loose the dog
And flood it all out; turn it into a bog.
The dog tears through the garden, pouncing on each hole
He tromps on my plants and knocks down a bean pole.
A muddy mess is created, but alas! No mole.
I watch as another tomato plant disappears
There goes a potato and a head of lettuce. Oh dear!
I’d better plant enough for me AND the mole next year.
Haigas
“A Haiga is either a Haiku or a Senryu poem accompanied by an image…” (Word Craft: Prose & Poetry, by Colleen M. Chesebro, p. 57) Since Haiku and Senryu are not usually titled, it goes to follow that Haigas are also untitled.
Now, I’d like to share a poetry reading of a Haiga poem from the Small Wonders collection. Please take a moment to give it a listen. (If you like it, you can also subscribe to the YouTube channel while there.)
Poetry Reading – A Haiga Poem
That wraps up the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tours. I thank you all for joining us and helping to send off this unique debut poetry collection. I’ve enjoyed sharing my poetry with you and I hope you’ll check out the book. If you missed any of the stops, there’s still time to go back and leave a comment for even more chances to win a free digital copy, too. You can do that throught he links in the schedule posted above. I’ll post the winners in my WordCrafter News post on Monday.
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Book your WordCrafter Book Blog Tour today!
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Day 3 of the WordCrafter “Small Wonders” Book Blog Tour
Posted: June 21, 2023 Filed under: Author Interview, Blog Tour, Book Release, Book Review, Books, Collection, Giveaways, Guest Post, Poetry, Poetry Readings, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours 4 CommentsIt’s Day 3 of the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour and we have a double stop today. We’ll be hanging out both here on Writing to be Read, where I will share some of my poetry with you from the Small Wonders collection, and on Un dawnted, where DL Mullan interviews me and offers a review of my debut poetry collection, Small Wonders. You will want to leave comments to enter the giveaway. You can get to her stop by clicking on the link here, so be sure to check out the interview and review there when you finished the post here: http://www.undawnted.com/2023/06/wordcrafter-blog-tour-for-small-wonders.html
You’ll find the tour schedule below for your convenience. You can follow the links to each tour stop, but they won’t work until the post is live.
Tour Schedule
Small Wonders, by Kaye Lynne Booth – June 19-23
Monday – June 19 – Opening Day – Post “My Moment of Fame” w/ reading “Aspen Tree”– Writing to be Read
Tuesday – June 20 – Guest Post “Fun with Poetry” w/ reading Tanka poem– Robbie’s Inspiration
Wednesday – June 21 – Introduction & Comments – Writing to be Read/Guest Post “I’m a Bird Watcher” w/ reading “Bird Watching”, Interview & Review – Undawnted
Thursday – June 22 – Guest Post “Someone to Look Up To” w/ reading “To Be A Cat” & Review – Carla Loves to Read
Friday – June 23 – Final stop – Post “I Like to Grow Things” w/ reading Haiga Poem- Writing to be Read
The Small Wonders Giveaway
Three free digital copies of
Small Wonders
are up for grabs. Follow the tour and make a comment at each stop,
so I know you were there and you’re automatically entered.
One entry per stop.
Winners selected in a random drawing. (Really. I draw them out of a hat, literally.)
About the Book
The world is filled with amazing things, if we will just stop a moment and take notice. In this vast universe, we are but tiny individuals, filled with awe and amazement. From reflections on first love, to reflections on growing old. The poems within these pages express a lifetime of unique reflections in Small Wonders.
Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/b6WZ6E
I’m a Bird Watcher
Those of you who follow my blog, Writing to be Read, and in particular the “Tales from the Bird Sanctuary” blog series, know that I am a bird watcher. I am fascinated by the feathered friends, more and more each year, which visit my mountain yard, and I share my fascination through photos in the blog series. In Small Wonders, I also share it through my poetry, as my bird friends have been a great inspiration.
Roger Raven
Roger Raven was camera shy
Whenever he saw the small black box,
He’d take to the sky
His big black wings would beat the air
Ruffling up the camera lady’s hair
Then Heather Hummingbird came around
The lady pointed the box and Heather acted the clown
She swoop and flutter and hover about
Roger Raven gave her a shout
“Hey! Get out of there!” he said,
“That camera lady wants your head”
“Silly bird. She’ll make me a star.”
The picture appeared right before Roger’s eyes.
“When she prints my photo, I will go far.”
Roger Raven watched in awe.
“She’s captured you!” he said with a caw.
“Bird Watching” – an acrostic poem
An acrostic poem is one in which the first letter of each line spells out a word, usually the title of the poem. I’d like to share in a poetry reading, my acrostic poem, “Bird Watching”, from the Small Wonders collection. Please take a moment to give a listen. (If you like it, you can also subscribe to the WordCrafter YouTube channel.)
Poetry Reading – “Bird Watching”
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Welcome to the WordCrafter “Small Wonders” Book Blog Tour
Posted: June 19, 2023 Filed under: Blog Tour, Book Promotion, Book Release, Books, Collection, Poetry, Poetry Readings, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours 14 CommentsWelcome to the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour. This week we have a great tour planned, with guest posts from me, an interview and reviews, and the reading of a different poem at each stop. Plus we have a great giveaway and there will be three winners. Follow the links in the tour schedule below to visit and enter at each stop.
Tour Schedule
Small Wonders, by Kaye Lynne Booth – June 19-23
Monday – June 19 – Opening Day – Post “My Moment of Fame” w/ reading “Aspen Tree”– Writing to be Read
Tuesday – June 20 – Guest Post “Fun with Poetry” w/ reading Tanka poem– Robbie’s Inspiration
Wednesday – June 21 – Introduction & comments – Writig to be Read/Guest Post “I’m a Bird Watcher” w/ reading “Bird Watching”, Interview & Review – Undawnted
Thursday – June 22 – Guest Post “Someone to Look Up To” w/ reading “To Be A Cat” & Review – Carla Loves to Read
Friday – June 23 – Final stop – Post “I Like to Grow Things” w/ reading Haiga Poem- Writing to be Read
The Small Wonders Giveaway
Three free digital copies of
Small Wonders
are up for grabs. Follow the tour and make a comment at each stop,
so I know you were there and you’re automatically entered.
One entry per stop.
Winners selected in a random drawing. (Really. I draw them out of a hat, literally.)
About the Book
The world is filled with amazing things, if we will just stop a moment and take notice. In this vast universe, we are but tiny individuals, filled with awe and amazement. From reflections on first love, to reflections on growing old. The poems within these pages express a lifetime of unique reflections in Small Wonders.
Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/b6WZ6E
My moment of fame
The phone rang.
“Hello.”
A male voice with a very strong English accent came through the line, asking for me.
“This is she,” I replied.
The voice at the other end identified himself as Mitch Barrett, an artist who I had gone to great lengths locating his contact information and emailed, asking permission to use the image of one of his paintings in my poetry display. Of course, it was. Who else could it be with an accent like that. And he was calling me. All the way from London!
I had contacted Mitch Barrett via email, about using one of his paintings, “Voices”, as a background for my poem of the same name in my poetry displays, which I was creating for participation in a small, local writers & artists’ fair, the first I had ever attended or participated in.
I had a booth, but no book, so I collected a few of my favorite poems and put backgrounds behind them, selling them for $5 a piece. I had written a poem called “Voices”, about all the different voices that make demands upon us, and when I found Mitch’s painting, by the same name, depicting the same concept… well, call it serendipity, if you like, but I knew it was more than just chance. This was the background for my poem and I knew it, but of course, I had to gain permission from the artist.
Of course, Mitch granted me permission to use his painting in my display, but that phone call was the beginning of a longer correspondence, one in which Mitch informed me of a pair of paintings he was working on, in which he wanted to incorporate poetry, and he asked me if I would write a poem for him to use with them.
From that conversation, I wrote “Intimacy & the Harlequin Dance”, which he used in one of the paintings, “Intimacy”. I don’t think the second painting was ever finished, but that first painting was placed on display at the Kaleidoscope Gallery at Battle Sea Park, in London, in 2010, with my poem, until someone eventually bought it.
I didn’t make any money from that poem, but that didn’t make me any less proud to have it featured in Mitch’s painting. Thanks to him, I had a special accolade which not many poets had. My work was featured in a work of art, my second publication, so to speak. I had had one poem published at the time for which I had received $5. I was proud of that, too, but this… this was something really special.
And now, “Intimacy & the Harlequin Dance” is featured in Small Wonders, so that everyone can enjoy it.
Intimacy and the Harlequin Dance
We dance through the masquerade of life
Disguised to fit the music
Of so many different melodies
That at times, we forget which tune
Holds the heartstrings of who we really are.
Then one day, we find the perfect dance partner,
But to attain the perfect rhythm
We must open ourselves up and reveal our souls.
Intimacy requires that we relinquish the mask
To expose the genuine self that lies beneath.
After all the years of dancing to false tunes
Will we be able to keep time
To the genuine dance and the original rhyme?
Or shall we don the mask once more and continue to
Keep time to the false melody of the Harlequin dance?
“Aspen Tree”
I’d like to share with you one of the poems included in the Small Wonders collection. This is a minimalist poem, and the goal is to paint a picture in as few words as possible. It was first published in Colorado Life Magazine (2016). Hopefully, it describes for you my favorite tree. It is titled, “Aspen Tree”
Poetry Reading – “Aspen Tree”
That’s it for today’s stop on the WordCrafter Small Wonders Book Blog Tour. I hope that you’ve enjoyed this first stop on the tour enough to want to follow the tour and viosit each stop along the way. You can do that through the links in the schedule above, but remember that the links won’t work until each post goes live. Be sure to leave a comment so that I know you were there, and I’ll give you an entry in the giveaway. Tomorrow we wil be over at Roberta Writes/ Robbie’s Inspiration with a guest post and poetry reading by me. I hope to see you there.
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Book your WordCrafter Book Blog Tour today!
