Saturday, September 15, 2012

Amping up to speaking at the Jr High & the book signing!

Yesterday was busy. Among other events we stopped by the Jr High. They're excited for my visit. I'll be speaking to the English classes each period. I'm scared and excited all mixed into a ball of nerves!

We then visited Starry Night Books. We're just about ready for the book signing in two weeks! They really help local authors out and I can't wait! They're setting up a display and refreshments and everything. So cool!

The 28th of September will be the most auspicious writer's event I've ever had!


Thursday, September 13, 2012

Bite of Story Thursday

Night Children: Dark Threats

Chapter Eight: Present Day, Hyde and Seek


Annabelle’s cold fist smashed through the zombie’s ribcage.  With her other arm she wacked off the creature’s head, sending it spiraling into a tombstone.  If she were human, these things would scare her, but she hasn’t been human for a long time.

Her brother Roland, laughed as he ripped a zombie apart and began to move at top speed around the graveyard, smacking the undead with a firmly held corpse.  His weapon of choice crumbled in his pale hands.  “Darn.  These things just don’t hold up like they used to.”

She smiled as she slashed a zombie in two with her nails.  “Whoever reanimated this horde didn’t take their time with the spell.”

Annabelle looked across the misty graveyard.  Gross bodies continued to shuffle from their graves.  Grey fingers clawed to the surface, revealing more decrepit enemies to fight.  So far none had escaped the sacred grounds of the cemetery, but with the sheer amount of undead, she knew it wouldn’t be long.

“And why zombies?” Roland asked as he unsheathed his silver cutlass.  “It’s so last week.  Why couldn’t it be living skeletons or mummies?”  He began to slash away at the horde, the moonlight reflecting off his sword.

Annabelle took to the air, hovering just out of the grasp of an undead man in a tux.  Half his rotten flesh seemed to fall off on its own.  “Could be worse.  They could be gremlins.”  She brushed off pieces of shredded corpse from her clothes.

“Ugh!  Please not those again.”  Roland flew into a mass of petrified bodies and began to slice them to shreds.  His blood-red eyes flickered and a wicked grin stole across his pale face. 
 
 
------

For more check out Dark Threats at your local online store. Links to Dark Threats on the web can be found on the Store Page on this blog or you could just go here, Dark Threats on Amazon.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Who's Who in the Annabelle Universe? Cletus

CLETUS

No picture at this time. Hopefully that will change someday.

Physical characteristics:
Cletus has dirty blond hair and dull eyes. He's large and stocky, shorter than his brother Beufus but taller than his younger brother Charlie. He had yellow teeth when he was alive and gained a set of vampire fangs after he was turned.

Personality:
Wimpy, always following the lead of his brother Beufus.  They get into mischief. Scared of his older brother because of the many beatings inflicted upon him by Beufus. Dull and dim witted and very dense. Often makes mistakes or says things that annoy Beufus.

Abilities:
Cletus has the basic vampiric abilities; strength, speed, stamina, sharp nails that are used like claws, enhanced senses and the ability to heal from most small injuries. Like all vampires, he can't handle sunlight, wooden stakes to the heart or beheading. Each of these turn him to ash. Like all evil vampires, religious artifacts harm him as well. He has not learned how to transform or fly. While Cletus is extra strong, he can't maneuver very well. This means smaller vampires with more developed speed could easily avoid his massive hands.

Known History:
Cletus and his brothers lived in Jorgantown all their lives. They were satisfied with scratching out a small living doing dock work and hiring themselves out for farm work or cabin building. Their evenings were spent drinking at the pub and occasionally causing a ruckus in the town.

The night they finally met Eliza Pratchet, the supposed town witch, was their last night alive. They teased her, only to have the recently arrived Foresight family try to defend her. Something in Eliza's eyes made the brothers forget what they were doing and instead they found a quiet spot to sleep off their drink.

The vampire Fenroth happened across them and seeing the stocky built of both Beufus and Cletus, turned the two of them. Once a human has been bitten three times he or she begins to change. The transformation to vampirizim isn't always over night. The older the human, the longer it can take.

After the white warlock Dagda warded off the vampire lord Dominic Pratchet from his property and began to set up a magical barrier to prevent any dark creatures from entering it, Dominic knew he would need inside agents to enact his revenge on his estranged wife, Eliza Pratchet, and the two children Eliza betrayed Dominic for. Realizing Fenroth's newest subjects were still in the incubation stage and therefore not dark creatures yet, Dominic commanded Fenroth to leave almost vampires Beufus and Cletus and their non-vampire brother Charlie where he found them, within the town. The barrier passed them by and once the full transformation was in effect, Dominic had three agents, (two vampire and one human) to use.

At first the men thought it was Dominic who turned them, since he was the vampire who summoned them once they woke up in their new lives. He sent them to retrieve Annabelle and Roland (the children Eliza rescued). They were to kill Eliza on sight. They failed and Cletus was killed by Eliza.