Come Hell or High Heels...New Release in The Demon Whisperer Series

Simon Alliant will find his abducted partner, come Hell or high heels. He just doesn't realize he's in for a bit of both. The newest book in The Demon Whisperer series and follow-up to CHARM CITY...

MURDER THE LIGHT (The Demon Whisperer #2)

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned-especially the woman scorned by the King of Hell himself.

Chiara has been abducted by her own mother: an Enochian defector who has taken up arms against the Light. Luminea will use Chiara to ensure the future of her empire and to burn away her painful past with the man who'd stolen everything from her, so long ago.

Unknowingly, that's exactly the guy to who Simon turns for help. He makes the ultimate deal with Chiara's father to get her back...but he'll have the Devil to pay.

Now available on Amazon

FREE on Kindle Unlimited!

A Magickal Samhain: Wands at the Ready!

The Magickal Samhain Reader Event will be held October 27 to 31. You can join us on Facebook at for author hosted events…pop in anytime! My spot will be on Thursday October 27th from 10:30am to 12 noon, EST. I hope you'll stop by for some book-filled holiday fun…

While we count down the days waiting for the spirits gather, I thought I'd get us into the mood with a post of a magickal nature…

I have a wand collection.

Not surprising, since I'm a collector by nature. I started with stamps when I was nine. Moved on to stickers in the 80s because, hello? Lisa Frank!
Then it was books…then boots…coins…skulls and ravens…then wands, pretty much in that order.

I hadn't been seeking a new treasure to hoard when I started stockpiling wands. It just sort of happened. I had one wand, a black-and-white prop wand left over from my son's first magic kit. Kept it on my desk just in case. I wasn't obsessed, or anything.

But then, Harry Potter. Need I say more?

Suddenly, everyone had a wand. Kids everywhere were swishing and flicking their wands through the air like they just didn't care. Wands became common place, everyday things.

That was when I started collecting. That first trip to Universal Orlando did me in—we visited Hogsmeade and, during a show at Olivander's shop, y son was selected to play the part of a first year wizard. I think he blew up a flower pot and when he turned to look back at me, holding that wand in his hands, I knew it was coming home with us.

So did three others because my daughter, the hub, and I all had to get our own wands. On the trip back home, I knew—I knew—that all of them would be mine, mine, mine.

But it didn't stop there, with art replicas. I found wands everywhere I went. At the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire. At the new age shop in downtown Gettysburg. On South Street in Philly. And, God bless it, all over the Internet. Every size and shape, color and design. It got to the point where, for the sake of space and sanity, I had to proceed to virtual collecting. (Check out my Pinterest page, btw…)

Hermes

(Stuttgart, Germany)

While my wands are mainly for admiration and creative inspiration, wands have been in use for millennia by countless cultures. The ancient Egyptians included them in burial goods. The Greek God Hermes carried a wand called a caduceus. Nordic shamans used them.

They were symbols of leadership and power: a queen's scepter. They were a mode of communication and command: the orchestra conductor's baton. They are an element of worship for practitioners of several religions, such as Wicca and Neopaganism.

They were also used by those who practiced ritual magic, by historically famous Magi such as Aleister Crowley or Dr. John Dee. Because of them, wand became widely known as conduits of magical power, and their fantastical uses found their way into legend and lore, onto page and screen.

In CHARM CITY, exorcist mage Simon Alliant has a lot of tricks up his sleeve—and one of them is his wand.

He's definitely not a swish-and-flick kind of guy. He's more about getting the job done because there's no room for flashy acts when you're trying to send a demon back to Hell. Magic is his juice, his power, his addiction. Hard not to get hooked on the stuff that lights you up…

Several years ago, Simon apprenticed with an English mage, a scholarly old gent who'd once had to put up with the ghost of Aleister Crowley (yep, that one.) Professor Kent was well-versed in the art of ritual magic and had introduced Simon to the wand.

No swishing and flicking, though. Unlike stage magicians or high priests, Kent took a very utilitarian approach to wand craft. He devised a unique charm, tailor-made for our boy Simon.

The wand was used to activate Simon's strongest amulet, which was inked into the skin on the bend of his left elbow: his runic tattoo.

And when Simon took a wand hit, it was like mainlining the purest of magic. Oh, the trouble he could get into when he hits the juice…

CHARM CITY on sale October 27-31 only 99 cents!

You can find out more about Simon and the demons he faces in CHARM CITY: The Demon Whisperer #1. (It will be on sale for only 99 cents October 27-31 but you can grab it FREE anytime on Kindle Unlimited!)

I really enjoy exploring wand lore (and fantasy) when I'm writing this series. So, if you ever stop by and find me fooling around with one of my wands, at least you'll know why. Definitely not floating feathers :) Just wondering where Simon's wand will take him next.

Stop by the Magickal Samhain Facebook page to RSVP...that way, you'll get a reminder when the event is about to start...and you won't miss a blessed thing.

AND DON'T FORGET! The October Giveaway page is loaded with goodies...check it out HERE!

Feels good to be raisin' hell again...#amwriting

Aw, man. I can't believe how fast the summer is flying by...

Maybe it seems that way because my day-job schedule changed drastically over the last three months. I didn't think going from thirty to forty hours a week could have made such a difference but it has really chewed the edges off my free time. And I LOVE my free time, because my free time is my writing time.

It took a few weeks, but I eventually stepped up my time management skills and figured out how to make the most of each of those non-day-job hours. (Which means I'm totally in Ghost Hunters rerun withdrawal. Trigger to the chin.)

At least I have lots to show for it :) Oh, the news...

First chunk of big news...

CHARM CITY (The Demon Whisperer #1) is available for Kindle pre-order!

I uploaded the files today (after rocking out some sweet chapter header graphics last night). This book is doing amazingly well on Wattpad.com, where it's been read nearly 20,000 times! *jaw drop* All that's left to do is work out the kinks and get some starter reviews. I'm so psyched to get this series out there!

Second chunk...

The sequel, MURDER THE LIGHT (The Demon Whisperer #2) is nearing completion!

I've been using Scrivener for this project and it's really shown its superiority over Word as far as reorganization goes. Scrivener is a huge part of my time management success, especially because of the corkboard view. Although I don't have a release date yet, I know it's within reach now.

Third chunk...let's call it a triple chunk!

The Demimonde trilogy is getting a facelift!

New covers are on the way for my first urban fantasy trilogy. I'm thinking...maybe a big release event this fall. Sneak peeks will come soon through my newsletter.

Speaking of newsletter, are you signed up? If any of these happy, happy things make you happy, too, then join up (link to join the mailing list is over on the sidebar.) As we get closer, superfans will get to see everything first, as well as have the chance to grab up review copies.

Anyways, I guess after laying it out like this, it should be no surprise that the summer is just melting away. I was actually pretty productive...and my mage exorcist, Simon Alliant, has been raising all sorts of hell.

That's my boy... *grins*

Maybe I do deserve a bit of a Ghost Hunters break today...

CHARM CITY (The Demon Whisperer #1) #amwriting

CHARM CITY is thriving on Wattpad.com!

 

Over the past few weeks I've been uploading chapters of my WIP urban fantasy over at Wattpad.com. It's an experiment in more ways than one: I've never posted a full-length story on Wattpad before, let alone something that hasn't been scoured and shredded by my trusted beta readers. So why am I doing it?

 

I think it has to do with the impulsivity of it all. Over the years, I've gone from a seat-of-my-pants writer to someone who has learned (and will never know all of) the craft of writing and the business in general. Every book I published took me farther along the path. Since my first publication upon my return to serious writing (a poem back in 2009) I've learned so much... and I've developed a lot of good habits and methods.

 

However, a certain element of impulsivity was waning.

 

I often think back to the first novel I started, one I wrote in secret during stolen moments when the ideas felt like they'd blow out the side of my brain if I didn't write them down. Those passionate bursts of inspiration truly kindled my happy writing habits.

 

But with time and growth and knowledge and training came more planning, more foresight, more structure. Less seat-of-my-pants.

 

It's a mixed blessing.  

 

So... I'm giving myself a dose of impulsivity. (And it's so refreshing. Exciting. A little nail-biting, even.)

 

Unfortunately, I can't turn off the part of my writer's brain that is addicted to craves feedback. If you'd care to offer a comment on any of the chapters I've posted, I would really love to hear it. Really.

 

And if you like what you read, I hope you share it along.

 

 

CHARM CITY (The Demon Whisperer #1)

 

The darkness is rising and one man stands against it: the exorcist mage Simon Alliant. But in Baltimore, he finally meets his match...a part-mortal divinity with the power to whisper away demons.

Simon Alliant is an exorcist who battles demons, whether he wants to or not. Sometimes it's not so bad...he gets to play with magic, after all. But for Simon, magic represents a demon of another kind. He's addicted to magic and it takes more than a handful of charms to keep that particular demon at bay.

Chiara is part Light, part Dark, and stubbornly mortal. The woman has a way with words: she literally talks demons into abandoning their human hosts. Simon thinks that's not the only trick she has up her sleeve-and that's pretty high praise coming from a mage like him.

As intriguing as that may be, Simon has too many reasons to distrust her...one of them being his more-or-less partner, an angelic Watcher. Amidst all the celestial warnings of the rising dark comes a new prophesy that makes him wonder: is Chiara a threat to him and all of mankind?

Or will she be his salvation?