Sheila's Guests and Reviews

A recent speaker at our writers' group writes horror, or "horror light" as he described it. Straight after the meeting I read and enjoyed his novel WiZrD, which reminded me in many ways of my favorite Stephen King novels - the less heavy and wandering ones. I also enjoyed discussions with friends about the difference between magical realism, fantasy and horror. Someone suggested it's all a question of balance; if the real and the magical are equally balanced, it's probably magical realism. But what if the real and the horror are equally balanced, or the mystery and the science fiction, or the imaginary and the real? Which got me thinking, maybe we do have to fit our books into genres, but maybe the best stories are those that balance their labels so invisibly that we don't question which genre we're in as we read. I'm not sure where that would leave my books. I'm definitely working on some magical-realism teen novels, but I've been working on t...

Today I'm delighted to welcome the spine-chilling author, Nancy Gray to my blog, as she tours the internet with a cool scary book for middle graders, The Scarecrow. But what draws an author toward writing horror... and horror for kids? Here's Nancy's answer to the question: Why Horror? When I was asked to write a blog about my work, I honestly wasn’t sure where to begin. So I started thinking about questions people have asked me before, and one of the things that seem to surprise people when I talk about my work is the fact that I enjoy writing horror. People probably wouldn’t expect it from me. They probably, in fact, would think I would prefer to write fantasy or young children’s stories instead of middle grade horror novellas, but horror stories are how I got my start and what I enjoyed when I was a child. So I’m going to try to explain why horror is important to me and why I think these books are worthwhile. Even though people don’t like to admit it, deep...

Some authors change their names when they write in different genres. Some change their publishers. Some publishers have subgroups for different genres. And some just ... publish ... write ... go for it. I think I was trying to be "organized" when I "went for it" and tried to get different publishers for each of my genres. I didn't want to change my name - it's mine! But I didn't want to confuse readers, so I sent my children's Bible stories to a Christian Publisher, Cape Arago Press (actually, they asked me for them, which still fills me with hope). My contemporary novels went to a literary publisher, Stonegarden.net, who closed down. Then they went to a contemporary publisher, Second Wind Publishing, who slowed down. Now they're with another contemporary publisher, Indigo Sea , and I'm wondering if book 3 will ever be released. Meanwhile my speculative fiction went to Gypsy Shadow , who "released" me for lack of sales. Then they ...

Fear wears many different faces in novels I've read recently. In one, a dying woman is afraid for the daughters she'll leave behind. Others fear revelations from the past and struggle not to touch its memories. One woman is convinced her memories are false because nobody believed them--now she calls herself insane. There's a man who fears, very sensibly, how misguided decisions will effect his land and neighbors. Another fears the end of the world; yet another, the end of the world as he's imagined it. Some take action to end their fears, others start more fear, and others hide. But all these fears can be seen as mirrors held up to the present world. Do we hide behind our fear? Do we hide our fears in fiction? Or does fiction help us explore and recognize fear so we can act wisely instead of hiding? Find a mug, pour some coffee, and decide which fears and which books you'd like from these. In South California Purples by Baron R Birtcher , rancher Ty Dawson can s...

As the world around us changes, it's intriguing to read about changed worlds, and to wonder what will be. For me it's particularly intriguing since the books I wrote as a teen all involved drastically changed worlds - perhaps I was writing dystopias before I knew the word. But I was writing as a teen and it's probably just as well those strange tomes never saw light of day, though some of the short stories weren't bad. Anyway, here are some book reviews of tales set in "different" worlds where people are recognizably ourselves, but situations are changed. Grab a coffee and see what you think. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the screenplay by J. K. Rowling , was kind of a must-read, though I haven't yet seen the movie. The Cursed Child was a serious disappointment by comparison. Rowling's screenplay is clean and tight, uses all the right terms (and explains them for the uninformed), and, while not absorbing the reader into characters' i...

L. Andrew Cooper's Peritoneum and Leaping at Thorns Blog Tour! August 8-14, 2016 Today I'm delighted to welcome Andrew Cooper to my blog. He's the author of Burning the Middle Ground , Descending Lines, Leaping at Thorns, Peritoneum and more, and he's currently touring the internet with lots of great posts, a touch of casual evil, and some serious horror blended with fiction and fun - so don't forget to scroll to the end of this post and learn where else to find him. Welcome Andrew, and thank you for a fascinating, thought-provoking blogpost! Casual Evil, or, The Really Offensive Stuff in my Horror Collection Peritoneum by L. Andrew Cooper Melia looked at her long painted fingernails. Their colors changed as she contemplated them, lavender to aquamarine. “I like to get back to good old NYC. By the way, avoid the subways tomorrow.” “Casualties?” Eli asked. “Meh. Not many deaths. Some nice footage of burn victims on the news, though.” Me...

Pilgrims take journeys, as described in the first of my faith-ish reads from the last couple of weeks. But journeys can be internal or external. They can lead to secrets outside the self, but are best if they lead the self to secrets of its own. And maybe books are the same. Maybe each book read is a pilgrimage, with a destination that inspires, enlivens, saddens, teaches, or more. These four books all involve faith and life's journeys, and they're all different. But are you a pilgrim when you read? Starting with The Pilgrim Journey by James Harpur , this non-fiction book is filled with well-researched details of history, societies, and the implications of changing faith and beliefs. The history of icons and relics weaves into the tale, with saints and sinners, pilgrims and vacationers tracing and recording their different paths. I'm not a great reader of non-fiction, but this book surprised, intrigued and even entertained me, as well as informing me. Enjoy with some eleg...

All roads lead to Rome, or so I'm told. But perhaps they lead to different Romes, to imagined destinations where all is revealed. The thought had me wondering if all novels somehow incorporate roads, or paths at least. Though the first one I read last week has a whole long list of very real roads, criss-crossing the States and leading, inevitably, home. Asphalt Asylum by Steve Theme chronicles a hitchhiking trip from Washington to Florida and back, and is probably memoir rather than novel - which means it really shouldn't be my sort of thing, but I loved it. The author lyrically recreates the scenery for the readers, then invites us into the lives of some fascinating drivers, ranging from generous to scary. It's the kindness of strangers (and sometimes, maybe, their prayers) that protects him, and the loser wins and finds himself. A very cool narrative, best enjoyed with some well-balanced, full-flavored three-star coffee. Cast A Road Before Me by Brandilyn Collins is...

Every once in a while I get to review a short book. It gives me a break from the long ones, refreshes the parts other books can't reach, to paraphrase an old English beer commercial, and lets me feel good about getting a few more book reviews off the waiting list. Of course, reviewing a short book takes just the same amount of time as reviewing a long one. But reading it's faster. Oddly enough, writing a short book isn't necessarily that much faster. It's faster than writing a novel, simply because the fingers don't have to fly over quite so many keys and pages. But editing short takes way longer than editing long. With fewer words, each one has to count, whether in a children's book or an adult's. With fewer pages, every error sticks out like a sorer thumb. And those fingers that typed so hard hover over the keys while the eyes hover over the words. I'm editing my Fred and Joe stories at the moment. Each short story needs editing on its own. Then I ...

My novels have mathematical titles - I even call them " mathemafiction " when I'm feeling whimsical. The titles have the advantage that there aren't many other novels sharing them, but that doesn't help people find theem on Amazon. You type one title, and Amazon helpfully guesses you really meant another. So my novel (Divide by Zero - the only one published yet) languishes behind Continental Divides and the Zeros of Dangerous Ideas - and then only if you specify you're looking for a book. Divide by Zero has the disadvantage, of course, that nobody knows what it means, but it's perfect for my book - a village divided under the infinite horror of a terrible crime. Would you pick it up? (Please do!) And will you read the companion novel Infinite Sum, where a middle-aged woman seeks escape from the sum of past trials? Perhaps you'd rather go for a novel with more fire in its title? I've just read two very different, fiery tales, and enjoyed them b...

Do you write horror? I do sometimes, so I guess that's why I got an email about the Inkitt contest which opens today. I thought I'd share it, just in case any of you would like to enter. If you've tried this free writers platform before, I'd love to know your thoughts. Please leave them in the comments. And here's the information... Inkitt, a free platform for writers to cultivate ideas and watch their stories grow, is holding their second horror writing contest this month! Inkitt is a place where writers and readers collaborate, giving each other feedback and improving their work. Inkitt wants to help writers get the exposure they deserve and the publishing deals they covet without suffering the frustrations and bias of traditional printing and self- publishing. Okay... and I certainly need more exposure, or at least, my writing does... The theme of Inkitt's March horror contest is "Running Scared: The Most Terrifying Tale Ever Told." I...