Interview with Terry Brooks by Sword and Laser

Some great advice here from a great author!

Bite of Story Thursday

Night Children: Dark Birth

Chapter Thirteen: The Shopkeeper

The firmness in Eliza’s voice grabbed their attention. “Roland, next time control your temper and focus.  He cannot harm us.  He has no wooden stake or any other weapon.  To properly mesmerize someone you must push your thoughts over theirs.  Push your will.  Now try it.” 

“Mister Shopkeeper, it’s not nice to bully others.  You should be more polite.” 

The man mumbled the word, “Polite.” 

“Now please go fetch that red ball.  Yes.  Thank you.”  Roland placed the money on the counter and continued with his practice.  “Now forget you ever saw us and... leave.  Yes!  Leave town.” 

“Roland, wait.  You can’t just tell him to--” 

Annabelle’s voice must’ve broken the trance because the shopkeeper’s eyes opened wide with terror.  Eliza spoke up quickly.  “The trance I put him under has completely broken.  He can see us for what we truly--” 

“You’re vampires!” His face white with fear, he shouted, “Vampires are in my shop!  I’m going to die!  Help!” 

Eliza blocked his exit and tried to mesmerize him.  “He’s too upset.  We must flee.” 

“Can we mesmerize him while he’s unconscious?” Annabelle asked quickly.

“What?” 

“Can we mesmerize him when he’s unconscious?”  A frantic fear turned her stomach upside down as the shopkeeper’s voice got louder and louder.  She rapidly glanced out the shop windows.  Someone had to hear him.

“Yes!” 

“Good.”  Annabelle sped around the shop so fast the shopkeeper blinked.  She picked up the wooden stool and hit him over the head with it.  He dropped to the ground with a heavy thud. 

“Is he dead?”  Roland asked while looking over his body. 

 

 

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How Many Times Has the World Ended?

Here is a fun graphic put together by Allison Morris and the good people at OnlinePsychologyDegree.net

I realise we're all chillin' in out hot tubs, sippin' hot chocolate and just being grateful those crazy Mayans in their togas were wrong. I know it's all old news. But I thought I'd share this cause frankly it's just so darn cute. ;)

Who's Who in the Annabelle Universe? Hawke

HAWKE

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

Full Name:

Ethan Hawke but he goes by his last name.

Physical characteristics:
He wears a trench coat loaded with specialized weapons as well as a belt and straps loaded with more weapons and ammunition. He has a long scar across his right eye thanks to the vampire Roland. Several other scars cover his body from many battles. He is missing two fingers on his left hand.

Personality:
Hawke is gruff, vengeful, and angry. He is also very careful and calculating. To stay alive as long as he has, Hawke is always careful to watch his back and never stay in the same place twice. He has no scruples and is not above killing other humans to get at his prey.

Known History:
Ethan Hawke had a brother named Aaron. Aaron became obsessed with mythical and supernatural creatures after an incident when he was a child. He traveled the world researching the strange and unknown and then compiled all this information complete with sketches into his book; Aaron Hawke’s Guide to Mythical Beasts.

Enraged at this, the Vampire Lord Dominic slaughtered Aaron and his parents. Ethan arrived home late and caught Dominic in the act. He hid himself and was able to escape Dominic's attack. From that moment on Ethan dedicated himself to the eradication of every creature in his brother's book.

He began to only go by his last name with the hope that it would strike fear and terror into the creatures' hearts. He trained himself in every way to battle and kill the monsters that inhabited his world.

He has two katanna swords, a gift from a Samurai vampire hunter. Rumored to be folded so tightly that they can cut through any form of magic or magical beast. He also has throwing stars, a long knife, a grappling hook, a crossbow and a quiver full of silver tipped wooden arrows as well as plenty of silver shot for his arsenal of guns. Every weapon has been soaked in holy water. He can set expert traps, track monsters from nation to nation and has set up safe houses in ever country. His favorite weapon is his small sword Hell-Slayer. It has a thick tip that tapers down to it’s hilt. A flick of a latch and two smaller blades sprung out from either side. The weapon resembled a warped cross.

After his death Hawke's arsenal, safe houses, journals and maps of various creatures’ lairs were found by the man called Talin. Talin dedicated his life to following in Hawke's footsteps and called himself a "Hawke". Through the following centuries the Hawkes became the biggest threat against vampires, werewolves and any creatures of the unseen world.

Self Publishing Thoughts

Interesting thoughts on independent publishing. Check out this link from Write NonFiction Now.

I like publishing the Night Children series myself for many of the reasons shown in this article. I might still resubmit it, but this time a rejection won't bug me because I personally like the control I have over it.

So why do I even consider resubmitting with agents and publishers? The marketing. It's hard for me with a full time job and family, to have the time to properly get it out there. Also I don't have the funds to really push it out.

So having the money and resources of a publisher would help.

It's a toss up but I'm enjoying the journey either way.