Boo!

Shadows of a thousand years rise again unseen,
Voices whisper in the trees, "Tonight is Halloween!"
...Dexter Kozen

I have a confession to make--I'm a horror gal. Since the day I discovered a pile of pulp mags under a bed in my grandparents' house, I've been a shameless devotee of ghoulies and ghosties and things that go bump in the night. But I'm most fond of monsters, which is why I love Halloween.

As a kid I always felt a rush of excitement when the Halloween decorations appeared in stores. That's changed a bit, especially now that the skeletons and costumes show up around the Fourth of July. And each year the trick-or-treaters are fewer in number and most Halloween parties for kids are most likely to be called the "Harvest Festival" or "Corn Maze Party." Somehow the adults have claimed the night for themselves and stripped it of any real fun for the kids. But I don't them ruin my fun.

October 31 is All Hallows Eve,the night when the monster hiding under the bed comes out to play. 

A ghoul friend of mine once told me that life's no fun without a good scare. In the spirit of Halloween,  I offer three creepy tales involving a few of my favorite monsters.

Vampire

Perhaps the preeminent creature of the night is the vampire, the ultimate seducer who offers eternal life, with a catch. Like most people, I first encountered vampires in the movies. However, Bela Lugosi's Dracula never did much for me--he looked too much like a waiter. 

"Today's special is pan seared Chilean Bass
in a balsamic reduction..."

But Christopher Lee's hissing count scared the heck out of me. I watched most of Horror of Dracula with my hands partially covering my eyes, afraid to look, but unable to turn away.

But it was only when I read Bram Stoker's Dracula that I felt the cold hand of fear. There was always a sexual component to Dracula, who both attracts and repels. I imagine this passage was pretty strong stuff to Stoker's Victorian readers: 

There was a deliberate voluptuousness that was both thrilling and repulsive. As she arched her neck she actually licked her lips like an animal til I could see in the moonlight the moisture that lapped the white, sharp teeth. Lower and lower went her head. I closed my eyes in a languorous ecstasy and waited.

The vampire offers sex, but it is  debased and bestial, cut off from the human. And I think Stoker touches on the primal fear that animates much of horror--the fear of losing one's humanity. Nowadays vampires have morphed from bloodsucking monsters into someone's prom date! For years I  despaired of seeing a pair of fangs I could relate to, until I found Enter, Night by Michael Rowe.

It's a briskly told tale of ancient, toothy horrors, with an ending that is both heartbreaking and transcendent. If you're hungry for a really good vampire story, this one's for you.

Zombie

Zombie flash mob in London

Zombies are all the rage these days. Did you know there's even a subgenre of literature called zombie lit. Popularity aside, I don't find anything particularly frightening about these plodding creatures. To me they're just one-trick ponies on the lookout for fresh brains. Give me an old-school zombie any day, one created by a Voudou  priestess on a moonlit night.

Which brings me to one of the most frightening short stories I've even read: Pigeons from Hell by Robert E. Parker. The story's set in a deserted plantation haunted by ghostly pigeons, and something else. Stephen Kings calls "Pigeons from Hell" to be "one of the finest horror stories of our century". As usual in matters of horror, King is right.

Ghost

Can they feel, I wonder, those white
silent people we call the dead?
                        ...Oscar Wilde

Ancient and enduring, the  first ghost appeared at some primeval campfire  when one of our ancestors told the first ghost story. More than other monsters, the ghost is a sturdy literary device and pops up in all sorts of fiction, from Shakespeare to Dickens to David Mitchell. But a Halloween ghost always means mischief  and there is no more malicious spirit than The Woman in Black.

Susan Hill's novel is the source for the excellent film of the same name. The narrative's framed as a Christmas Eve ghost story, much as Henry James' The Turn of the Screw. Like James, Hill conjures an atmosphere of escalating dread and isolation. The horror rises to a shattering and unexpected conclusion. 

Psychologists like to theorize why people like me love horror. In his theory of archetypes,  Carl Jung believed that all humans inherited a set of primordial images that are contained in the collective unconscious, and that horror evokes these archetypes. Maybe, but I read ghost stories and watch horror films because I like them. 

So tonight, after the last trick-or-treater has come and gone, I'll pour a glass of blood-red wine and read one of the old tales, one guaranteed to send a shiver down my spine. 

Happy Halloween!

New releases and social media - what are your thoughts?

In my last post, I told you that I had made a decision to become a hybrid author, and I considered the positives and negatives of both indie and traditional publishing. (See my previous post here.)

One of the things I mentioned in my previous post was that a downside to indie releases is not having the marketing support of a traditional publishing house. Well, my first indie title, Scarred by You, released this week. Scarred by You is my 4^th published novel and I’m so happy to report that it has been my most successful launch to date. The book reached no.1 in Amazon UK’s Hot New Releases and no.2 in Amazon UK’s Adult Fiction bestseller charts.

A lot of work has gone into promoting the release. That’s no different to traditional publishing, of course, but I did feel the pressure of having to arrange everything myself. The support of industry reviewers, bloggers and fellow authors has been crucial. But for my part (my personal promotion efforts) social media has been my biggest marketing tool.

I currently use Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. I have considered experimenting with other platforms, such as Snapchat, but I don’t want to spread my time too thinly.

Of the channels I use, I would guess 60% (maybe more) of my social media promotion is via Facebook. Around 30% of my promotion is via Instagram. And the remaining 10% is Twitter based.

TWITTER

These days, I tend to use Twitter more by linking posts from Facebook and Instagram, rather than posting on Twitter itself. While I enjoy reading other feeds on Twitter, I just don’t find the platform especially useful for engaging with others. I find the shrinking of images and the limited characters in tweets highly restrictive. 

INSTAGRAM

I love Instagram. I enjoying seeing posts of those I follow. The heavy text restrictions of Twitter do not apply to Instagram, and hashtags really seem to connect posts to people with similar interests (e.g. #bookstagram, #authorsofinstagram, #amreading). My Instagram account is linked to my Facebook and Twitter accounts, which makes sharing images easy. This is my newest platform but I am already starting to build a following on Instagram, whereas my Twitter following has been stagnant for some time.

FACEBOOK

My preferred, and most useful, platform is Facebook. I have a personal page, an author page and a blogger/reviewer group. The combination has allowed me to build a significant following. There are no text limitations on posts and I find this platform has the highest level of interactions from bloggers, reviewers, readers, authors and other friends.

There are problems with Facebook, of course, and they have been widely publicised in recent months. There are limitations on posts shared on author pages, for example, whereby Facebook does not make the posts visible to all ‘likers’ of your page. This is especially true when links (e.g. Amazon) are incorporated. However, there are some ways to get around this. The first is paid advertising. Although costly, it can be useful, particularly when tailored to a specific audience (e.g. 'likers' of similar authors, blogs or book genres). The second is ‘like and share’ giveaways. I actually find I reach more readers through 'like and share' giveaways than paid advertising. And with shares, like minded/interested people tend to see your posts.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS?

This is just my assessment of the social media tools I use. I am interested to know your thoughts. Which social media platforms do you prefer as authors, bloggers and readers, and why? Do you also have useful tips for increasing interaction on particular platforms?

FIND ME

Come and chat with me on social media here:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Laura x

A Q&A Session. Sort of...

I’d love to say that I received hundreds of readers’ letters/emails a week. I don’t. (What is wrong with you people? :o)) Those I do get, however, are wonderful. Really. I now have friends that I chat about dogs with and others that I discuss the latest football results with and these friendships started from one lovely letter from a reader.

The things that often amazes me about these letters though is the range of questions I’m asked. Some are totally off-the-wall. At least, I think so. 

Some of the common questions:

Q: Do you write direct to screen or use pen and paper?

A: I get this a lot, usually from aspiring authors, and I have to give my usual wishy-washy answer. It depends. If all is going well, I write straight to screen. I love to see that word count increasing rapidly. However, if the writing is complete dog poo, I have to sit with a glass of wine, a notepad (a special lined notepad with yellow pages - yes, really) and a pen (a blue gel pen since you ask).

Q: Do you write every day?

A: I used to answer this with a very definite Yes. I’d climb onto my soap box and say that writing is like a muscle and that the more it’s exercised, the stronger it becomes. Now, my answer is “Chance would be a fine thing.”.

Q: Do you work with music or in silence?

A: Again, it depends. If it’s going well, I’m probably listening to the local radio station. If it’s going ok-ish, I’ll be listening to music - anything from Leonard Cohen to Counting Crows. If it’s going badly, I suffer in silence.

And now we come to the more unusual questions…

Q: If you could only save one thing from your burning house, what would it be?

A: Um - well, I’m assuming the dogs are safely outside, yes? Oh, and my husband would be out there too? (Did you notice how I got my priorities right there?) So, if I was thinking with my head it would have to be something as boring as my phone. That way, I’d have access to my books, my music, my work, my friends, my Facebook and Twitter feeds, etc. However, I expect I’d be thinking with my heart and would risk life and limb to rescue a silver rose bowl that my late father made. (I can hear my dad tutting at the stupidity of that. :o))

Q: Which do you think is more advantageous for a crime writer, knowing criminals or police officers?

A: Sad person that I am, I don’t know any criminals or police officers. I fervently hope that having a good imagination and enjoying doing research is the biggest advantage.

The email that arrived on Monday, however, came up with the best question yet. (This was from Sally in Essex who said lovely things about my books. Thanks, Sally. *I’m waving*). 

Q: Presumably, like most writers, you enjoy a healthy lifestyle. (I was already rolling around on the floor at this point.) How do you find time for exercise and eating healthily when a deadline is looming?

A: Where do I start? A healthy lifestyle? Me? Nooooo. I have 3 dogs and walking them is the only exercise I get. Truly. And when I say walking, I mean walking. No running is ever involved. Perish the thought. When they’re fed and walked, I collapse in my chair with a cup of tea or coffee and some chocolate or a cream cake, and I write. I often have a salad for lunch but the benefits of that have already been undone by the chocolate and/or cake. I don’t cook so have to rely on husband’s somewhat limited skills in the kitchen or eat out. I can’t remember the last time I drank water. It’s tea or coffee all day and alcohol in the evening. 

I’m going to be laughing about that one for weeks…

So writers, what’s the oddest question a reader has asked you? And readers, what do you want to know when you write to an author? I’m curious.

Meanwhile, I hear chocolate calling… :o)

How a Novel is Like a Hurricane

If you live on the coast, and especially if you’ve ever experienced a hurricane before (Florida, 2004: Charley, Frances, and Jeanne) you pay attention to Hurricane season (June through November) keeping an eye out on the NOAA National Hurricane Center website for what’s brewing in the Atlantic. This is similar to how stories brew. Lots of ideas form, just like a lot of lows, depressions, tropical storms, and even hurricanes form, but never make it to the US, those ideas never make it within striking distance of becoming a novel.

Oh, they may actually become a hurricane of intent, like a solid partial, but turn or simply fade away before posing a threat of becoming a real novel that will disturb my life for the foreseeable future.

A tropical wave began with potential to become a depression, like when a vague idea for a plot, or for me, I imagine a specific character I need to explore. Soon Matthew passed through typical stages of development and Floridians began taking note. A novel may pass through similar stages, and just like each hurricane is unique, my budding novel may evolve differently: the villain might appear before my hero; the setting may play a key part in the plot, or my heroine decides the story is all about her.

Once Matthew gained strength and the NHC began posting potential paths that included the east coast of Florida, my checks of their website became a little obsessive. 

Just as my stories begin to take over my life (my husband has caught on and is rarely confused when I begin telling him what happened to “Joe” or “Lis” that day--my current hero and heroine in Point of Failure, book three of my Gulf Coast Rescue series).

Things were heating up in the Atlantic and the very real possibility of a hurricane striking Florida meant plans needed to kick in. 

This is that threshold between the possibility of a novel (when a nice strong outline and maybe even a pretty decent partial becomes a very viable novel—wow, this looks like it could be real!) Just as research kicks up and plot twists percolate, real plans for boarding up my house and plans for evacuation are put into place. Now it’s not so much a matter of if, but when and how bad. 

For my budding novel, I need to decide how big of a story do I have? Is this a novella, an 80,000 word romantic suspense, or a 100,000 word mainstream thriller?

Putting up the shutters is concrete action that mirrors my growing first draft. With this clear action, there are still a lot of unknowns and variables. Will a mandatory evacuation be called? (While this was true in 2004 for both Frances and Jeanne, both times we opted to stay on our island and tough it out—but neither of those hurricanes were considered “major” (category 3 or higher) Matthew was predicted to maintain major hurricane status as it traveled up the eastern coast of Florida, at times with a dead aim at the island I call home).

In my novel I’ve made some concrete decisions as well—who my characters are, what challenges they will be facing, and how it has to end. But just like the path of Matthew changes almost hourly, my story can take new paths and unexpected twists that only reveal themselves as I put words on the screen.

Once the mandatory evacuation is given, more concrete plans are put into place: the bottom shelves of my bookcases are emptied. Clothes in the bottom drawers are packed and placed on the bed (assuming minor flooding might occur: even though our island is not on the ocean, it is between two rivers that routinely leave their banks when pushed by hurricane-strength winds)—but if the roof goes, you can pretty much kiss your belongs goodbye! This I would equate to a finished rough draft. Things can and will change, but I have a solid direction and timeline to work in.

Packing up the truck, not knowing if I will have a house standing when I return is another great analogy—if I’ve sold my novel I’ve made a commitment to produce a specific work by a specific time. Even if I self-publish, I need to make that promise to myself—but there are unknown pitfalls all along the way.

After I load my cat into the truck, my husband and I hit the road anticipating an adventure—no matter what happens, our little family (real and my imagined characters) are going to face a lot of unknowns (will we find a motel/hotel room or be camping in the truck? How many gas stations and restaurants will be closed along our route? A bigger problem when you have so many coastal areas evacuating inland.)

My stories continue to evolve between drafts with surprises and serendipity (so that’s why my heroine is afraid of dogs!) when we found the last room at a motel in Ringgold, Georgia (where we ended up buying a trailer that we can use to not only haul our two motorcycles in, we can live in comfort when the next hurricane comes calling). The return trip and subsequent clean-up

(we were extremely lucky when Matthew jogged east instead of west) is like that final read after my novel has been revised and edited. Sometimes you have only minor changes, other times you basically start over.

Either way, it’s just another adventure for a novelist living on the coast—one I’m very willing to face, because you just never know what’s going to happen with hurricanes or novels!

So, how did you weather Matthew’s passing or your latest draft? Did you pass the storm reading a good book, or two? Editing or starting over with a storm of new ideas?

Picture The Author In Residence...

This is a picture post, accept my apologies, but I've got two deadlines at the end of this month and words are already wheeling in my mind like a swarm of midges :D. But as I'm planning on attending a writing retreat at the end of Oct at Clacton (Essex, UK), I thought I'd share with you some pictures of Places I Have Written In!

Obviously I have my usual 1/3 of the dining table at home (affectionately known as ClareSpace)

and my regular weekly trip to the local pub with my friend and fellow author Sue Brown

but I also recently had a holiday in the Lake District, and finished my book sitting in their breakfast room after everyone else had gone out walking (including Hubby!) leaving me with this spectacular view:

so I thought I'd add a few more places I've written in the last few years, and ask my fellow authors - where have YOU written that you enjoyed most / were most amazed at / found most inspiring / or most amusing?

Tell all! :D

***********

Here's me in (variously): Portugal, Madeira, Keswick, my garden marquee when the weather really *wasn't* warm enough to sit out! (see our fleece jackets), watched over by my friend Jordan's cat in Wisconsin, watched over by my friend Chrissy's cat in Michigan (see a pattern emerging here?!), waiting in a Q at an anime convention (I'm the one in the pink hair), and oh look! back at the pub with my trusty pink travelling laptop (Barbie). She's been with me at all these stops. What'll I do when she finally expires?! (and I can no longer hang by my fingernails onto Windows 7? *lol*).

~~Clare London~~

www.clarelondon.com

How do you shake off stress?

A dirty six letter word that haunts us all is stress. As writers, we blame it on the internet, changes from the good ole publishing days, or significant others interrupting us in our writing caves. But the truth is, stress is frequently a mismanagement of our lives mixed with reality that drops in our laps at inopportune times and places. It’s the year when family gets ill, the kids all decide to get married, and you’re moving across the country for a new job or to be closer, or perhaps farther away, from relatives.

Writers get particularly cranky when winging through a chapter, with a perfect idea in mind to enhance a character or plot, only to be interrupted for a simple question and totally lose the train of thought. Yes, it is like walking into a room and forgetting why you were there. The computer screen devoid of your idea stares back. Stress builds. The mind shuts down further instead of coughing up that sweet idea to make the story a bestseller.

You decide to take a break and struggle out of the chair. Cramps tighten your legs, and a sore backside is numb in places. Thoughts of writers die young echo in your head. So we admit that stress hangs over us like a gremlin on our shoulder waiting for the opportunity to up our angst. How can you counter it? 

Magazines, blogs, and various articles offer a bevy of solutions, but few fit us all. A Forbes article suggested focusing on half of what you need to get done and let the rest go. Some of it will fall back in your lap, but you will shine through by doing a stellar job of managing the half you kept. Not a bad idea, but it requires blinders and nerves of steel. And the ability to say NO. I’ve been working on that for the last twenty years.

Since family and friends have proven to be wise sages, I asked them what they did to relieve stress. The question had two parts. What simple thing do you do to relive stress when time is tight? And what do you do when time is favorable for something more extensive?

Predictably food and drink rated high on the list of short term solutions. Chocolate, ice cream, and tea popped up in several answers. However, more than one of those who succumbed to sweets, felt they had to work off the added calories. So if you like to exercise, chocolate as a stress reliever might work. If physical activity is not your thing, the very act of eating anything might only increase stress.

Mental meditation also relieves stress. One person mentioned thinking about funny things and good times. Many liked to read (a song to a writer’s stressed heart). Others mentioned yoga, prayer or meditation type exercises. Several listened to music, while relaxing, painting, exercising, or hiking. One writer mentioned writing something then throwing it away as though getting rid of the stress with the paper. Studies have found using expressive writing exercises reduces the stress in patients. Physical touch between humans or between a human and their pet also produces particularly calming results. One woman said after a stressful day, tea and a hug from her husband fixed everything.

Exercise plays a strong role in stress relief. Running and forms of weight lifting dump chemicals into our bodies that act against stress. Gardening seems to be cathartic for several as does playing with grandchildren, shooting hoops or hiking. Combine nature into the hike and it can be calming, peaceful, and a distraction from stress producing thoughts. Harvard Health suggests deep breathing exercises.

My first step might be to take one respondent’s advice and put things in “time order” or rather prioritize. Some things can wait while others can’t. Set up interruption times so people will be aware of when to leave you alone. List makers often reduce their stress by checking off completed items and proving to themselves they have made progress.

One exciting but stressful event for me is the upcoming release this month of two romantic thrillers in the Taking Risks series. The first book, Under the Radar, comes out October 17 and the second, Off the Chart, two weeks later. Thanks for visiting and have some chocolate before diving into your stressful day.