From the Archives ~ Social Voyeurism by RL Naquin

Originally posted on June 21, 2017

I'm not particularly good at using social media. I'm too flighty to be consistent, and I rarely tell even my best friends when something personal is going on. I'm a hider, not a teller when it comes to those things.

But that's not the whole truth of it. What I do like is watching.

I am a social media voyeur.

Stories, people. Twitter and Facebook are a wealth of personal stories I can't look away from.

 I lurk.

I'm constantly surprised by how personal people get in public. Fights. Medical problems. In-depth discussions about breakups. Thinly-veiled threats. Money problems.

On Facebook, I can almost understand it. In theory, those are your real-life friends--although the most verbal people often have hundreds of "friends," so I doubt they know them all. On Twitter? That's like taking an ad out in the paper to confess to all of New York City that you have hemorrhoids and you like to eat steamed asparagus in the nude while watching reruns of The Golden Girls. While you cry.

I can't look away. What I really, really love are the passive/aggressive notes to an anonymous person who "knows who they are." How can I not be interested in that? "Some people need to get over themselves and stop acting like little bitches when they don't get their way. They know who they are." Really? Now I'm not getting any work done today. I must know what happened or  I will DIE.

I won't ask, though. I'll never ask. I only watch.

Sometimes the "little bitches" in question recognize themselves in the vague status, and the hair pulling begins. Or somebody's status goes from "in a relationship" to "single," while the other person changes theirs to "it's complicated." There's an entire story right there. Somebody's not letting go. If you're really lucky, those two people will have a thinly-veiled argument about something trivial, like sports, but if you watched the relationship statuses change, you can read between the lines and see what they're really fighting about.

It's all fodder for stories.

So next time you want to declare yourself free from that two-faced someone (who you won't name right now) now that you know their real agenda and you won't get fooled again? Know that I'm watching. I'm probably scanning your page for clues like I'm Nancy Drew (after she got old and fat). I'm filling in the blanks you've left me with theories and speculations. If you only give me a little bit of the story, I'm going to make things up.

You can't blame me. It's what I do.

And when you apologize for jumping to conclusions, or your target comes at you with excuses for their hurtful behavior, or when you move on to the next vague statement of emotional turmoil brought on by some life event and person you refuse to name, I'll be watching.

And using it in a story of my own.

Rachel writes stories that drop average people into magical situations filled with heart and quirky humor.

She believes in pixie dust, the power of love, good cheese, lucky socks and putting things off until the last minute. Her home is Disneyland, despite her current location in Kansas. Rachel has one husband, two grown kids and a crazy-catlady starter kit.

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Buy her books here:  Amazon B&N Carina Press

HERE BE NEWS for Monday for May 30, 2022

 

                            

Monday May 30, 2022 

Welcome to HERE BE NEWS, where each monday we bring you all the latest from the fantasy romance authors at Here Be Magic:

Tuesday May 24, 2022: Linda Mooney offers us a new vignette, Flower Moon.

              

Last chance to check out these Kindle Unlimited Romances!

https://books.bookfunnel.com/romanceinku/nxqwqe4fca

May Vignette - "Flower Moon" by Linda Mooney

"Flower Moon" 

Bettis brought the ship around the planet. Hitting the comm button, he called out to his spouse. “Tria! Get up here! You have to see this!”

            He put the vessel into an orbital pattern. By the time she climbed into the cockpit, they’d flown around to the dark side of the planet.

            She stared out the viewscreen as she took her seat beside him. “What did you want me to see?”

            “Just wait.”

            “Let me guess. It’s on the other side?”

            “Just you wait.” He checked the chronometer. “Innn…one minute, twenty seconds.” He glanced over at her. “Any regrets yet?”

            “You mean, coming back here?”

            “Yeah.”

            She sighed with a soft moan and eased back in her chair. Her eyes returned to the front cockpit window. “Mom always used to tell me never to go back to something you used to love, even if you’ve never lived there. Or never seen something you still believe wholeheartedly in.”

            He nodded. “Like the person you’ve never met but care deeply for?”

            “Yes.” She turned her head and smiled at him. “Exactly.”

            He tilted his head. “How many generations has it been?”

            She appeared confused. “Been?”

            “Since we left this world,” he clarified.

            “Oh. Well…” She looked down, her brows knitted as she thought. “Has to be at least…ten? Twelve generations?”

            “At least that many. I was figuring around twelve to fifteen.” He looked outside. “Now look at us. Circling the very planet we escaped hundreds of years ago.”

            A crescent-shaped light peeked over the rim of the world, signaling their re-emergence from the dark side. “Ah! Here we go.” He threw her a smile. “You’re going to love this.”

            She leaned forward, as if the additional couple of inches would make a difference. Laughing to himself, he flipped the switch to turn off the interior lights to give the upcoming show a more spectacular view.

            The orb gradually emerged from its hiding place, gliding as smoothly as an eagle that used to soar through the planet’s skies. It had emerged only a third of the way when Tria gave a little cry of surprise.

            “Is it a full moon?”

            “Yes, it is,” he assured her.

            “Oh, it's beautiful!” Her voice went soft. “It’s more beautiful than all the photos we have of it.” She turned a tearful face to him. “Thank you so much for this.”

            Holding two fingers to his lips, he held them out to her. “Wait until you see the entire show.”

            Their craft finally crested the edge of the world, revealing the moon in all its glory. From where they sat, it was immense, almost as large as a small planetoid. And it drew closer as their ship continued in its elliptical orbit to pass between it and the world below them.

            “I wonder what moon this is,” she commented. “What month is it here?” She started to consult with the onboard computer.

            “I’ve already looked it up,” he told her. “Going by Earth’s orbital stance around the sun, it’s the month of May, but don’t ask me what year.”

            “May,” Tria repeated. “May’s the spring season. Everything starts blooming again. May’s supposed to be the Flower Moon, right?”

            He nodded. “Right. Or the Corn Planting Moon, because this is when the farmers would plant their corn crops.”

            “I remember my mother telling me it’s the Mother’s Moon, or Milk Moon.”

            “Milk Moon?”

            She grinned. “Something about the cows needing to be milked three times a day. Don’t ask me why.”

            They watched as the full moon appeared to float by, even though they knew it was their ship that was moving. Bettis heard his wife’s breathing quicken. He glanced at her in alarm, but it was quickly evident she wasn’t in any distress. She was simply overwhelmed by the incredible view.

            “Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?” she whispered. In the orb’s glow, she was more ethereal and breathtaking than he’d ever seen her in the past.

            “Just one other thing,” he murmured.

            She looked at him and realized what he meant. The pink color that tinted her face only enhanced her appearance.

            “Sorrento, this is the Nathan Breyance. Respond.”

            Bettis flipped the comm switch. “Breyance, this is Sorrento.”

            “How’s it look down there? Give us an update.” It was Tovar on the other end. If it had been anyone else, a brief scolding would have come next because they were late checking in.

            “Tovar, you won’t believe how gorgeous this full moon is we’re looking at right now.”

            “Really? Then how ‘bout sending us some pics of it?”

            “They’re on their way,” Tria called out. Her fingers danced over her console.

            “Man, what I wouldn’t give for New Terra to have a moon,” Tovar remarked, verbalizing what Bettis and Tria had been thinking all along. The man’s gasp of surprise echoed over the comm as he received their transmission. “Ho-lee shit! That’s amazing!”

            Bettis chuckled. “Now you know why we were late checking in.”

            “Well, you got a pass from me,” Tovar said. “Wait until I pass these along for the others to see.” There was a moment’s pause before the man returned. “Hey, guys, the head honcho is wanting to know when you’re going down to scope out the planet.”

            “Give us another couple of minutes to enjoy the view before we descend,” Tria answered. “Right now, just let us enjoy the view.”

            “Copy that, Sorrento. I’ll pass along that information and let Robinson know you’re on your way planetside.” Tovar’s voice was suddenly all business, which was his cue to them that the boss was on the bridge. “Nathan Breyance out.”

            Bettis gave his wife a sideways glance. “Think he’ll share the photos with Robinson?”

            She giggled. “Yes, but only after everyone else has seen them first.”

            That gave him a good laugh, too, and they turned simultaneously back to the view. He heard the click of a harness, and a warm body snuggled against his. Softly, Tria began to sing.

            “Moon River, wider than a mile.”

            “I’m crossing you in style someday,” he sang along with her.

            It was their song. They’d had it played at their wedding. And because they loved the piece, they liked to think divine providence made sure they were tapped to take this mission to survey what was left of Earth and see if it was worth reclaiming. Hopefully resettling.  

            When the song ended, they closed it with a soft kiss, and Tria returned to her seat.

            “Okay,” he announced, taking the ship out of orbit. “Let’s go see how pretty our Flower Moon looks from the planet’s surface.”

She didn’t reply, but he knew what she was thinking.

            “Me, too,” he said.

            Tria’s smile was the second most heartwarming sight he’d seen on this trip. So far.

            Taking over the controls from autopilot, he aimed the ship’s nose downward to begin their descent.

Linda's Website

HERE BE NEWS for Monday May 23, 2022

                            

Monday May 23, 2022 

Welcome to HERE BE NEWS, where each monday we bring you all the latest from the fantasy romance authors at Here Be Magic:

Tuesday May 17, 2022: PG Forte gives a shout out to her daughter on her birthday with Family Ties

               

https://books.bookfunnel.com/romanceinku/nxqwqe4fca 

https://books.bookfunnel.com/99bookssale/op34d5d3oh

I'm doing a takeover at The Shop Series Reader Group today in anticipation of my July 21 release of Funnel Of Love. So stop on by if you get the urge! This is the fifth book in my Games We Play series, and it's the story of Rocco DiLuca, whose sister Kristy is the heroine of book 2, Never Have I Ever. 

Never Have I Ever 

Games We Play 2.0

PG Forte

PNR, BDSM, Holidays (New Years Eve, Mardi Gras)

100 pages

Buy links: https://books2read.com/u/4AOwJK

 Kristy loves Luke but if anything was clear to her back when they were kids it was that gawky, awkward, tomboys didn't stand a chance with the king of the schoolyard. She watched her older brothers set their caps for Luke's glamorous cousins and get shot down. So she did what she had to in order to salvage her friendship with Luke. She hid her true feelings and her need for him to take control. 

 Luke wants Kristy in the worst way -- actually, in all the worst ways: tied up, held down, beaten, bitten, whipped. But he knows he has no chance of ever having her. They'd been childhood friends and sweethearts, until she friend-zoned him in the fifth grade. He knows he can either keep her as a friend, or take her to bed and lose her forever. His biggest mistake—so far—was in hiring her to work alongside him in the bar he and his cousins inherited from their grandmother. He knows Kristy needs the money and the job, but Luke's self-control can't take the constant contact with the girl he wants to dominate–both in and out of the bedroom. Something has to give—and soon!

EXCERPT:

“Hey, DiLuca,” Luke called to Kristy as he helped her close the bar—cleaning tables and stacking chairs. “D’you know what a drunk’s idea of a balanced diet is?” 

“Wait, I do. I know this one.” Kristy looked thoughtful as she straightened up from the table she’d been wiping down. “Uh…a drink in each hand? Something like that?” 

“Yeah.” Luke frowned. “A beer in each hand, actually. Did I tell you that one already?” 

Kristy smirked. “Well, you must have, right? I don’t know anyone else with your encyclopedic knowledge of corny jokes.” 

“Oh.” That was a relief. But why was that the case? It shouldn’t have mattered all that much if other people were telling her stupid jokes. It shouldn’t have mattered at all, come to think of it. It wasn’t right that he was so invested in keeping her to himself. But he was just the same. 

“So, this memory problem you’re having, is it age-related or due to alcohol consumption?” 

“Don’t be a brat,” Luke admonished as the urge to punish her—never far below the surface anyway—rose up to tempt him. He loved her all the more for being bratty, but the whole not being able to do anything about it? That royally sucked. “And cut the crap. You’re only a year younger than I am, and—” 

“And I can drink you under the table. Yes, I know.” 

Luke shook his head. “You’re really asking for it tonight,” he muttered, wishing she were. Oh, if only she were doing it on purpose. If only she really wanted what she was tempting him to give her. “Keep it up and I’ll go home and leave you to finish closing on your own.” 

“Is that supposed to frighten me?” 

“Ha-ha.” 

It was an empty threat, and they both knew it. One of the main reasons he’d hired her to tend bar was so that they could split the shifts between them and give him a couple of nights off each week. But the sad truth was that, these days at least, he didn’t really have much of a life outside of the bar. So more often than not he’d stop in to check things out even on his days off. He’d tell himself he’d only stay a few minutes, that he’d leave after a drink, maybe two. He never did. Some nights he and Kristy would hit a diner when they were done, sometimes they wouldn’t, but at the very least, he’d always help her close. 

It was part of their routine. He’d flirt with her and tell her stupid jokes. She’d laugh at him and call him an idiot. Afterward, he’d go home and fantasize about all the ways he’d like to punish her for being such a brat, all the ways he’d like to have her. 

It was pathetic—he knew that. But the upside was that he got to spend time with her nearly every day, to indulge his hopeless passion for the girl, to watch her laugh. He got to take care of her, to make sure no one hit on her inappropriately…or at all, for that matter. Because that’s what friends did. Because that’s what kept them friends, kept her from cutting him out of her life or drifting away. 

The downside was his sneaking suspicion that he was keeping them both from moving on with their lives.

* * * * *

Funnel of Love
A Games We Play Story

Now Available for Preorder

https://books2read.com/u/mvoerj

Will Atlas Beach be big enough for both of them?

Baker Rocco DiLuca is not a happy camper. He’s just found out that his baby sister is getting married—to his former best friend—and he's not invited. But that's not even the worst part. They’ve hired someone else to make their wedding cake!

He knew he and Kristy hadn't exactly been speaking to each other, but he hadn't realized they Weren’t Speaking to each other! Now he has to figure out how to repair their family feud, or forever keep his distance. Unfortunately, his best hope for success is the woman he considers his competition.

Stephanie Sands thinks the Chamber of Commerce’s mentorship program is a great idea! She’s not ashamed to admit that her boutique bakery, Sugar Kink, isn't quite making it. Yet. But the mentor she's been assigned, Rocky D, isn’t just traditional, he’s positively medieval. It’s no wonder his sister wants nothing to do with him!

Can they put aside their differences (and the insane attraction they feel) to help each other out? Or will their dreams fall as flat as a failed souffle?

​ Release Date: July 21, 2022

Bring It Back (List) Never Have I Ever by PG Forte

 

I'm doing a takeover at The Shop Series Reader Group today in anticipation of my July 21 release of Funnel Of Love. So stop on by if you get the urge! This is the fifth book in my Games We Play series, and it's the story of Rocco DiLuca, whose sister Kristy is the heroine of book 2, Never Have I Ever. 

Never Have I Ever 

Games We Play 2.0

PG Forte

PNR, BDSM, Holidays (New Years Eve, Mardi Gras)

100 pages

Buy links: https://books2read.com/u/4AOwJK

 Kristy loves Luke but if anything was clear to her back when they were kids it was that gawky, awkward, tomboys didn't stand a chance with the king of the schoolyard. She watched her older brothers set their caps for Luke's glamorous cousins and get shot down. So she did what she had to in order to salvage her friendship with Luke. She hid her true feelings and her need for him to take control. 

 Luke wants Kristy in the worst way -- actually, in all the worst ways: tied up, held down, beaten, bitten, whipped. But he knows he has no chance of ever having her. They'd been childhood friends and sweethearts, until she friend-zoned him in the fifth grade. He knows he can either keep her as a friend, or take her to bed and lose her forever. His biggest mistake—so far—was in hiring her to work alongside him in the bar he and his cousins inherited from their grandmother. He knows Kristy needs the money and the job, but Luke's self-control can't take the constant contact with the girl he wants to dominate–both in and out of the bedroom. Something has to give—and soon!

EXCERPT:

“Hey, DiLuca,” Luke called to Kristy as he helped her close the bar—cleaning tables and stacking chairs. “D’you know what a drunk’s idea of a balanced diet is?” 

“Wait, I do. I know this one.” Kristy looked thoughtful as she straightened up from the table she’d been wiping down. “Uh…a drink in each hand? Something like that?” 

“Yeah.” Luke frowned. “A beer in each hand, actually. Did I tell you that one already?” 

Kristy smirked. “Well, you must have, right? I don’t know anyone else with your encyclopedic knowledge of corny jokes.” 

“Oh.” That was a relief. But why was that the case? It shouldn’t have mattered all that much if other people were telling her stupid jokes. It shouldn’t have mattered at all, come to think of it. It wasn’t right that he was so invested in keeping her to himself. But he was just the same. 

“So, this memory problem you’re having, is it age-related or due to alcohol consumption?” 

“Don’t be a brat,” Luke admonished as the urge to punish her—never far below the surface anyway—rose up to tempt him. He loved her all the more for being bratty, but the whole not being able to do anything about it? That royally sucked. “And cut the crap. You’re only a year younger than I am, and—” 

“And I can drink you under the table. Yes, I know.” 

Luke shook his head. “You’re really asking for it tonight,” he muttered, wishing she were. Oh, if only she were doing it on purpose. If only she really wanted what she was tempting him to give her. “Keep it up and I’ll go home and leave you to finish closing on your own.” 

“Is that supposed to frighten me?” 

“Ha-ha.” 

It was an empty threat, and they both knew it. One of the main reasons he’d hired her to tend bar was so that they could split the shifts between them and give him a couple of nights off each week. But the sad truth was that, these days at least, he didn’t really have much of a life outside of the bar. So more often than not he’d stop in to check things out even on his days off. He’d tell himself he’d only stay a few minutes, that he’d leave after a drink, maybe two. He never did. Some nights he and Kristy would hit a diner when they were done, sometimes they wouldn’t, but at the very least, he’d always help her close. 

It was part of their routine. He’d flirt with her and tell her stupid jokes. She’d laugh at him and call him an idiot. Afterward, he’d go home and fantasize about all the ways he’d like to punish her for being such a brat, all the ways he’d like to have her. 

It was pathetic—he knew that. But the upside was that he got to spend time with her nearly every day, to indulge his hopeless passion for the girl, to watch her laugh. He got to take care of her, to make sure no one hit on her inappropriately…or at all, for that matter. Because that’s what friends did. Because that’s what kept them friends, kept her from cutting him out of her life or drifting away. 

The downside was his sneaking suspicion that he was keeping them both from moving on with their lives.

* * * * *

Funnel of Love
A Games We Play Story

Now Available for Preorder

https://books2read.com/u/mvoerj

Will Atlas Beach be big enough for both of them?

Baker Rocco DiLuca is not a happy camper. He’s just found out that his baby sister is getting married—to his former best friend—and he's not invited. But that's not even the worst part. They’ve hired someone else to make their wedding cake!

He knew he and Kristy hadn't exactly been speaking to each other, but he hadn't realized they Weren’t Speaking to each other! Now he has to figure out how to repair their family feud, or forever keep his distance. Unfortunately, his best hope for success is the woman he considers his competition.

Stephanie Sands thinks the Chamber of Commerce’s mentorship program is a great idea! She’s not ashamed to admit that her boutique bakery, Sugar Kink, isn't quite making it. Yet. But the mentor she's been assigned, Rocky D, isn’t just traditional, he’s positively medieval. It’s no wonder his sister wants nothing to do with him!

Can they put aside their differences (and the insane attraction they feel) to help each other out? Or will their dreams fall as flat as a failed souffle?

​ Release Date: July 21, 2022

Family Ties

 Today's my daughter's birthday, so of course I'm posting a throwback excerpt from In the Dark, the story she pretty much dared me to write after listening to me bitch about everything I didn't  like about the vampire books I'd been judging for a contest. She was a big vampire fan, at the time, and I was...not so much. Now, of course, they're pretty much my favorite thing to write. Other than dragons. I think dragons will be fun. 

Anyway, I think my daughter has read more of my books than anyone else in my family (and all of my non-writing friends)  combined. And I don't know what I would do without her--although, obviously, not just for that!  

In the Dark
Children of Night 1.0

When you live forever, a few mistakes are bound to happen.

Vampire Conrad Quintano has been around for centuries -- long enough to know falling for a human is a terrible idea. Much less falling for adventure-seeking hippie Desert Rose and agreeing to raise her babies.

Raised in virtual isolation, Marc and Julie Fischer have never known their unique status in the world. But once they're in San Francisco, the family reunion is nothing like they anticipated and they're thrust into a world they're completely unprepared for.

BUY LINKS: https://books2read.com/u/mlL2eB

The following scene takes place shortly after Marc and Julie arrive in San Francisco and find Conrad missing...

“This whole scene is seriously screwed up. [Marc said] It makes me want to punch something. I hate all this stupid vampire drama.” He paused, running his hands through his hair, trying to shake the moodiness threatening to overtake him again. “It just never stops, does it?”

Julie rolled her eyes. “Here we go again. Why would it stop, Marc? We’re vampires. Always were, always gonna be. I can’t believe you’re still trying to dream up idiotic reasons not to admit that. We’re different, so what? Learn to deal with it, already. Or, you know what? Don’t. If it honestly makes you feel that much better to pretend we’re really space aliens instead, then go for it, Star-man, live long and prosper.”

Marc flushed. Not fair. He’d never pretended they were something they weren’t. He’d merely theorized on the various possibilities. And it had been years since he’d floated the idea they might have evolved from some kind of alien life form. Decades maybe. Even though anybody with brains would have to agree that a dip in the extraterrestrial gene pool was a good, solid, reasonable explanation for the way they’d all turned out. It was scientific, logical and so much better than the traditional theory—that they’d originated from demon spawn.

Aliens, by virtue of the fact they’d had to travel through space to get here, were obviously smart, technologically advanced and, in all likelihood, peaceful ambassadors from a better, brighter world. Vampires, on the other hand, were murderers. They were monsters. They were the quintessential fairy-tale villains—right up there with ogres and trolls and gorgons—the kind of creature nightmares were made of.

Who in the hell would choose to be something like that if they didn’t have to?

“You know what I think?” He grabbed one of Julie’s paperbacks from the stack by the window seat and waved it in her face. “I think you just like the idea of being a vampire ’cause you think it’s sexy. I mean, look at this crap you read.” He opened the book at random and read aloud. “…satisfaction gleamed in the prince’s dark eyes as he drew back and looked her over, still licking the last traces of blood from his lips. My blood, Celeste thought, her breasts rising and falling more quickly with the realization. It was her blood, her life force from which he’d been feeding and her body ached with the need to give him more.”

“Give it back!” Julie reached out to snatch the book from his hand.

Marc smirked. “Is that really how feeding makes you feel? Do your eyes gleam with satisfaction when you do it? Maybe, next time you eat, you could take out your mirror and check to see. Oh, but, wait a minute—” He smacked himself in the head. “Since you’re a vampire, I guess you must be invisible in mirrors too, huh?”

“Funny.” Julie gazed at him resentfully. “You know what, Marc? It’s called fiction. And, for your information, if it’s got a good story and three-dimensional characters, nobody cares if some of the facts are a little sketchy.”

HERE BE NEWS for Monday May 16, 2022

 

                            

Monday May 16, 2022 

Welcome to HERE BE NEWS, where each monday we bring you all the latest from the fantasy romance authors at Here Be Magic:

Thursday May 12, 2022: Deborah Bailey discusses Creating New Worlds For Your Stories.

           

Find your new favorite story. Limited time only https://books.bookfunnel.com/romanceinku/nxqwqe4fca

ZONATON
Sci-Fi Romance
by Linda Mooney
Word Count: 54.9K
Narrated by Audrey Lusk
Length: 6 hrs, 1 min
Hear a Sample
$3.99 e / $9.99 p / $19.95 a

She was the child of his heart. Then she grew up to become the love of his life.

A hundred years ago, the last people of Earth landed on planet AR617b. It was their only hope after being forced to flee the dead planet that was once their ancestral home. 

The native inhabitants of AR617b, known as gerons, are sentient creatures that resemble a cross between dragons and griffins of old Earth lore. When they initially tried to destroy the settlers, a deal was made to ensure both species' survival. It was decided that each year, every five-year-old human child must take The Walk across a hundred meter field. If they don't stop or run, they will arrive safely on the other side, and be allowed to grow up and have families of their own. But if they break the rule, the gerons will kill them. Unless, by a strange quirk of fate, a geron decides to Pair with the child, taking and raising the human as its own.

Emmala took The Walk, and found herself adopted by one of the older gerons, an immense silvery-white creature named Zonaton. For the next fifteen years, he cared for her, protected her, and loved her. But now Emmala's real family wants her back, and they will do everything they can to have her returned, even if it means killing Zonaton, and starting an all-out war with the gerons.

 

What neither the settlers nor gerons realize is that there is another alien species watching and waiting for the two combatants to go into battle. Because when they do, that will be the aliens’ cue to destroy everyone and claim AR617b for their own.

Warning! Contains green fire, arrogant assholes, plunderberries, child abuse, rectangular spaceships, shadows on the wall, and a love so great, it defies death. 

Excerpt and Buy Links

Bring It Back(List) - ZONATON, a Sci-Fi Romance by Linda Mooney

ZONATON
Sci-Fi Romance
by Linda Mooney
Word Count: 54.9K
Narrated by Audrey Lusk
Length: 6 hrs, 1 min
Hear a Sample
$3.99 e / $9.99 p / $19.95 a

She was the child of his heart. Then she grew up to become the love of his life.

A hundred years ago, the last people of Earth landed on planet AR617b. It was their only hope after being forced to flee the dead planet that was once their ancestral home. 

The native inhabitants of AR617b, known as gerons, are sentient creatures that resemble a cross between dragons and griffins of old Earth lore. When they initially tried to destroy the settlers, a deal was made to ensure both species' survival. It was decided that each year, every five-year-old human child must take The Walk across a hundred meter field. If they don't stop or run, they will arrive safely on the other side, and be allowed to grow up and have families of their own. But if they break the rule, the gerons will kill them. Unless, by a strange quirk of fate, a geron decides to Pair with the child, taking and raising the human as its own.

Emmala took The Walk, and found herself adopted by one of the older gerons, an immense silvery-white creature named Zonaton. For the next fifteen years, he cared for her, protected her, and loved her. But now Emmala's real family wants her back, and they will do everything they can to have her returned, even if it means killing Zonaton, and starting an all-out war with the gerons.

 

What neither the settlers nor gerons realize is that there is another alien species watching and waiting for the two combatants to go into battle. Because when they do, that will be the aliens’ cue to destroy everyone and claim AR617b for their own.

Warning! Contains green fire, arrogant assholes, plunderberries, child abuse, rectangular spaceships, shadows on the wall, and a love so great, it defies death. 

Excerpt and Buy Links

Creating New Words for Your Stories

 

Usually, I create words for my fantasy and science fiction worlds, but it can be a challenge to come up with them. Often I research topics I'm basing stories on, and then that helps me to decide.

For instance, for my latest book, Blood Red Moon, one of the main characters is a Templar. One of the supporting characters is the Templar third in command, a woman I only identify as the Seneschal. That rank would've actually been the second-in-command. But I liked the sound of the word.

No, I didn't create that word. Instead, I used one that already existed and was a good fit for the story. If it's possible to use an existing word that works (and if you can use it in your work) there's nothing wrong with that.

Other words I used in the book were from languages, such as, Latin and Spanish. For instance, the phoenix character is associated with a vampire. She's referred to as a blood, or sanguis phoenix. Sanguis, being a Latin word for blood.  The phoenix associated with gold is referred to as an aurum phoenix (aurum is Latin for gold).

In my novella, Heart of Stone, I only ended up creating one word, "Malida." The reason I created it was because I wanted to use it during a conversation between the hero and heroine. Willem, the hero, uses that word to refer to the heroine's grandmother. The grandmother is a former queen of the province where the story is set. In the aftermath of a war, the heroine, Leesa, and her grandmother are (as far as they know) the only remaining members of the royal family.

When Willem asks Leesa about her grandmother he calls her Malida, a term of endearment meaning "great mother." For Willem to know that name, he would have to have known more about the family than he's admitting.

Sometimes words come to me easily, other times I have to do a lot of brainstorming. It all depends on how the word feels to me and whether I think it's a fit. It can be a challenge to find (or create) the perfect word or phrase, but when you hit on just the right one, it adds another layer to the story world.

 

HERE BE NEWS for Monday May 9, 2022

 

                            

Monday May 9, 2022 

Welcome to HERE BE NEWS, where each Monday we bring you all the latest from the fantasy romance authors at Here Be Magic:

Thursday May 5, 2022:  Nicole Luiken shares a little of her writing process in Beginnings. 

                       

New!

BREACHERS: Kamrose and Cross
Book 4
Contemporary Fantasy/ Paranormal Romance

By Linda Mooney
Word Count: 29.1K
$2.99 e / $9.99 p

For a limited time, you can get the ebook for $1.99 by using discount code SWORD.

This offer good only when purchased from my Gumroad site.

They are the cause of many legends, myths, and fairy tales. And they still live among us.

Human bones are showing up in various concrete structures, all stemming from a site that has been shut down for years. Where exactly are they coming from?

Olmsly Morrow thinks it’s more than just foul play by humans, so he calls on Trenna Cross and Reece Kamrose, although Reece has no idea why he’s been tapped for a super-secret government job. He’s just a farmer. Right, and Trenna is just an actress as well.

In truth, Trenna is also a coh, having trained all her life to fight Breachers. But Reece is not; he has no “abilities.” So why was he called and partnered up with Trenna? Whatever the reason, they’re committed to solving the murders of the gang members, and ridding San Antonio of its otherworldly infestation.

Through it all, Trenna and Reece know there’s an undeniable connection, and how nice would it be to be with someone who truly knows who and what she is? But a relationship could never last between the two, right? They’re too far away, too different from each other…or are they?

Warning! Contains chainmail, a Celtic cross, a choice between barbeque or Mexican food, a haunted cement factory, and two people who discover by accident that they were meant to be together.

Excerpt and By Links: https://lindamooney.com/Breachers.htm 

Beginnings

 My current work-in-progress is a novella called Unscripted based on a short story I wrote some twenty years ago called Without a Cue. 

It has a cute, somewhat quirky premise: everybody in this fictional world is delivered a script each day that they then have to follow. Only, of course, something goes wrong and the main character has to go off script to their great dismay.

I'm just starting the third draft, which is when I focus in on the nitty-gritty sentence level and analyze each scene. The beginning scene is the most important one in any story as it has to introduce the character and world as well as hooking the reader. I  thought it might be interesting to show a little bit of my process so here's an annotated excerpt from the first page.

EXCERPT

Chapter One

Something about the bus driver snagged Chris’s attention as he boarded the city bus on Monday morning. It took his sleep-deprived brain a moment to realize what the oddity was: she lacked the silver R on her forehead that should have marked her as a Robot. 

[ANALYSIS: The first sentence is okay, but doesn't have as strong a hook as I  would like, only raising the minor question of What snagged his attention? It does a basic job to informing the reader who the main character is, what he's doing and when he's doing it. The second sentence is better, first raising the question of Why is Chris sleep-deprived? and then alerting the reader than this is a science fictional world in which Robots are regularly bus drivers as well as raising the question of why this bus driver isn't a Robot.]

The beige City Transit uniform and peaked cap identified her as the driver, but her hair burned a garish red and the curls brushed her shoulders. Robots had utilitarian, short haircuts. They kept silent and focused on their job, their stares vacant. This woman made eye contact and spoke to him.

“Good morning!”

She sounded so cheerful that Chris smiled back at her, though, of course, he didn’t reply.

[ANALYSIS: The second paragraph is mostly added detail, drawing a picture for the reader and explaining how the bus driver is different from a robot driver. The next two  sentences advance the plot slightly. I'm hoping the "of course he didn't reply" raises the question of why he didn't reply in the reader's mind. This is the first subtle hint to my big world-building hook that everyone is following a script. Not sure if it's too subtle, though.]

She winked. “I like you. Sit up front beside me.”

Chris blinked a little at the unexpected request, but his mind was too fuzzy to recognize the warning sign that something was wrong. Assuming that the driver must be part of a new Storyline that was starting, he collapsed onto the nearest blue vinyl seat, kitty-corner from the driver. His artist’s eye saw her as cartoon bird perched on her high seat.

[ANALYSIS: Nothing much has happened yet, but we get another big hint that something is wrong and Chris's commute to work is about to take an unexpected turn. The capitalization of Storyline is another hook to make the reader wonder about the world. Then I feed the reader a little more information about Chris: he is an artist. There's a fair amount of  information packed into the first six paragraphs, but it doesn't exactly start with a bang. Conclusion: it needs more work.]

And there you have it, a glimpse into a writer's mind during revision!