A teaser

Paris Immortal: Atonement, coming soon. I will mention that it's left in such a way as to make a path to a fifth book; however, I can't say that's any time soon. It's not in my head, yet. But perhaps...

For now, enjoy this teaser.



There is a reason that all things are as they are, and did you see with my eyes and know with my knowledge, you would perhaps better understand.

Dracula, Bram Stoker, 1897






A smile dark enough to match his eyes formed, showing me two more fangs than I’d known he possessed, making it six. “You desire vengeance. Step aside, and you shall have it; it is a specialty of mine.”

Fixed on those two very long, sharp teeth to the inside of his lengthened canines, it took me a second to register his movement. I pressed my hands to his chest again, for all the good it would do.

“Wait, wait. We have to finish the business, first.”

“Step aside,” he growled, the sound metallic, giving me a hot spinal monkey. “It is past time for him to atone for his sins.”

Yes, yes it is.
But no!
“Aeshma, please, please, wait.”

His eyes bored into mine.

“Listen. Just listen to me, please.” My thoughts ran to a place I didn’t want to drag him. But I had to. It might be my only shot at stopping him.“If you do this now, we fail. I don’t want that. I don’t want to fail Michel.” My back contacted metal again. “Do you want to fail?”

I knew what saying this might do to him, God help me, but I had to appeal to him, and it was true. It was the only reason I could imagine looking at my attacker again—when I was able to look at him—the idea of letting Michel down otherwise.

Travis’ reply sounded like boiling mercury.

“He does not deserve to breathe the same air as you any longer, Death Dancer.”

Pressed, pressed harder into the metal. If the door opened, I’d fall inside, giving me somewhere to go.

But I didn’t want it to open.

“You’re right, Aeshma, he doesn’t.” His fangs, so close to my face that his other features were out of focus. “But we will fail if you do this now. Do you hear me, Travis? Fail.”

The black of his eyes thinned, amber pushing its way through. A minute later metal wasn’t chilling me through my suit any longer.

“Fail…” he said, but there was no rejoicing on my part as I witnessed the softening of his expression.

I still had to be certain the point drove home completely, damn it. There were still black slivers trying to swallow the amber in his eyes.

“Right, an absolute fuck up, Travis. We can’t have that, now can we?”

“No, we can’t have that. I made an oath.”

“Exactly. We’re both loyal to the end. So just a while longer, okay? After we’ve wrapped this up, I can’t stop you, I know that. Just—wait.”

All the blackness in his irises disappeared, and there was the laid back Travis I’d grown accustomed to.

“Will you want to stop me later?” Even his voice had shifted, I realized.

I also realized my inability to say yes to his question.


Hey there. Yup, it’s me again.
You know the drill.


1

September 1
Michel


“You are quite close to boring me beyond death,” said Gabriel, his voice dropping another degree, along with the temperature of his gaze.

A wisp of auburn drifted across her cheek with the defiant lift of her chin. “If you want entertainment, you can buy it on the street.”

My dark angel’s smile, frostbitten on its edges, grew a degree as he took a gliding step closer to the barstool on which she sat. I leaned back against the countertop, draping my arms to each side, admiring my lethal, longhaired beauty.

“I prefer a far higher class of entertainment, merci. More erudite pursuits, one might say,” he replied.

She smiled up at him, the smile as flippant as her tone. “Guess that counts me out.”

For this, at first, his smile merely chilled a wider path across his face.

We had arrived in Phantasm, a sanguinary club deep in the heart of Prague, through a chain of events both lucky and crafted.

Vita, the spy Elise had offered up, had been the first link in our chain. Vita had proven rather ballsy for a human, not to mention hardier than I imagined. It had taken more than I thought most humans capable of enduring, before a single tidbit of useful information spilled forth. Yet unfortunately—for I was enjoying myself at the time—she didn’t prove as hardy as I would have liked.

She expired before I’d captured all the details I was having so much fun chasing.

No matter, this was no matter at all, as upon occasion I can be quite unselfish, and so I did not begrudge Trey his chance at satisfaction, and satisfaction we both did have, for much information did she give Trey.

From the Other Side, that is.

She’d certainly never expected the interrogation would continue beyond death, and she certainly had not imagined what manner of punishment a Death Dancer could deal, particularly when he felt righteously moved.

Of course, she hadn’t known there were such things as Death Dancers either, which, since Travis had first uttered the words, had become our new term for Trey’s persona. In the time since his possession, Trey was beginning to grow into this new skin in the most interesting fashion. I found the title fitting and elegant in its way.

But I digress. I often do so when I am being entertained.

My beloved hunter Travis Starke provided link two. I have often mused that there isn’t a hole in the world in which one could hide that he would not pull one out of, and our next link was pulled out of a hole in Italy, after crossing the border from Nice. Quite literally pulled out of a hole, in fact, as this traitor had need of digging said hole before the sun reduced him to a bubbling slick of entrails, then ashes.

Link three was, admittedly, a stroke of luck, thanks to the faithlessness of link two’s lover. The lover was having an affair with the third link, and so they were kind enough to be in the same location—namely her bed. I wouldn’t have missed his expressions, nor the sounds he made when I crushed him beneath my boot heels, for anything.

I’m more than happy to provide other details later, perhaps, but we should expedite our return to the enthralling sight of Gabriel post haste.

As of now, here I stand, content to watch my Angel of Death conduct his interrogation; one that would, beyond doubt, end quite badly for the third-rate street walker named Phaedra, sitting on a stool in this bar she’d sleazed her way into owning.

“Truly now, your head is not fully vacant. Certainly you have an answer to the question that I have posed, one that might even suit me,” he said.

“What would I know about the blood bags roaming your city, and why should I care about any of them?” she replied, her spine clinging to a straight line. She then laughed. “And why should you care?”

Gabriel’s smile to her was pleasant— dangerously so. The more polite he became, in certain instances, the more life-threatening he was.

A slight flaring of his nostrils accompanied his next words, his calmly spoken words. “They have their uses, as I believe you know – indeed, know very well, and quite recently.” As she offered only a shrug, Gabriel continued. “I have certainly found a use for one such creature even now.”

On cue, her eyes flitted to the door, as also on cue, a mortal stumbled through it, aided greatly by Kar. Swiftly, she looked back to Gabriel, attempting to disguise her reaction.

“Some sport?” Her tongue slid across her front teeth, tasting each one. “If I’d known you were coming and that you were into this kind of thing, I would have made arrangements.”

His bow shaped mouth, which I so coveted, curved ever so slightly. “A faux pas on our part, certainly, but not to worry. I have brought my own rabbit, as you can plainly see.”

Said rabbit could not contain himself and made a desperate move in her direction, for which he found himself in my grip. I smiled sweetly, catching Phaedra’s eyes.

“I might be of a mood to share,” I said, “depending entirely on your next few words, of course.” Her pet’s fear wafted out through his pores and caressed my taste buds, delighting the devil within me.

“Save me a thigh, will you?” she said. “I love tender thigh meat.”

I found the mortal’s cry quite heady, quite pleasing, when fabric and flesh gave way to nails. So pungent the sudden release of blood was, I could trace its descent, taste every particle that paused to cling on the hairs of his leg.

“I don’t know, Phaedra. I grow hungrier by the second, and the only thing better than a perfectly curved breast is a juicy thigh.”

Trey
Germany


“Shit,” I whispered. “This isn’t working.”

“That disc was supposed crack everything.”

“Yeah, I know that; we all know that. Doesn’t change the fact it isn’t working.”

“You need to figure something out; we’ve not much time.”

“Know that, too, thanks.” I waved my hands. “I’ll take a shot at the password myself.”

“Or we do it another night.”

“Fuck that. Tonight’s the night, man.” In my head, I started going over everything I knew about the company and the dude whose computer I was hacking.

Trying to hack.

“By the way, I think you need to fire her software geek,” I said. “Bill Gates he ain’t.”

“I was just thinking that myself, mate. Now get that brain working.”

“I’m on it, I’m on it.”

Fourth attempt, and I was so not on it.

“Of course. There’s nothing remotely predictable about this dude. I can’t figure it out, and I’m gonna trip something here; I just know it. It’s gonna lock me out, and then we’re well and truly fucked.”

Travis was at the door one second, then standing behind me the next. “Let me see.”

I leaned back to give him room. “Computer savvy, are you?”

“I might know a trick or five.” The glow from the computer screen illuminated his grin.

“Yeah? So why don’t you handle software next time?”

“I will.”

And just as easily as he said those words, he had bypassed the security on the computer.

“You cheated. How did you do that?”

All I got for that was another grin. He started heading back to his post. “Copy that shit and let’s get out of here.”

Slipping the USB flash drive in, I set about finding the right files. “On it, on it.”

“Shhh.” He paused. “Our company’s on the second floor.”

“We’re on the seventh, right? Still time, and I can’t make this go any faster, you know.”

He waved a hand at me.

“Maybe if you’d used that trick earlier, we’d be out of here already, Travis.”

“Last resort.”

“Why’s that?”

“Shhh.”

Sure. Fine.
Shhh.
Files. There. Copy.

“Almost there,” I said under my breath, slipping the useless disc into my pocket. “Where are they?”

No response.

“Dude, where are they?” Copy next files.

Silence.

I looked up. Travis wasn’t there.

“Shit. Travis?”

Click, open, copy. Hurry up, damn it.

“Travis…where’d you go?”

How would you say it? Stop tripping, man.

Scowl. (Definitely not a pout.) “I am not tripping.”

Then be quiet.

Well where are you?

Focus on your task.

Grunt.

I grabbed the flash drive, slipped it into my pocket next to the disc, and proceeded to close up everything on the comp, cover my trail.

That done, I got up and headed for the door. I grabbed the doorknob and eased the door open, peeking out into the hall, and as soon as I saw that it was clear, cautiously, quietly, made my way out and started heading for the stairwell down at the end, to the right. Safely there, my feet started carrying me down the first flight.

Second.

Where the fuck is Travis?

Rounding the third, I heard a noise and just stopped myself from saying his name. Might not be him, after all. No, I was sure he wouldn’t be making that much noise while he walked; this operation was all about stealth, for God’s sake.

The door below. Someone was opening the door below.

I turned and flew back up the steps toward the fifth floor exit, thinking Travis, hard. Hearing footfalls on the steps didn’t give me much time to check out the hall before I bounded out and started down it, looking for a place to hide.

Office door, locked.

A few steps more, another door, locked.

“Shit.” So where are you now, bodyguard and accomplice? Making a bloody trail? Is the gig up?

While reaching for the handle of a third door, something reached for me at the same time.
A hand clamped over my mouth, an arm gripped me around the waist, and whoever it was yanked me inside a pitch-black room and shut the door.

Shit.

Fucked. That could be my name right now.

Copyright S. ROIT

Paris Immortal merchandise? Why yes.

Paris Immortal: Atonement...teaser

Michel

Madrid



Kar approached the conspicuously armed man by the gate, who asked him in Spanish who he thought he was and what he thought he was doing here—though he did not ask so politely. Kar then stopped less than a meter from the guard and trained an even gaze on him, for which the guard drew his darkly gleaming weapon, once again asking his question whilst aiming the gun at my escort.

“I suggest you put that away before someone gets hurt,” I said as I moved forward, Kar stepping to the side to allow me a face-to-face view of the gun wielding man.

My words had flowed in perfect Spanish, but he opted to reply in English. “Who the fuck are you?”

“What will you give me if I tell you?” I became aware of the arching of my lips.

“Maybe some of this.” He shoved his weapon in my direction.

“Tsk. I’m disappointed. This isn’t what I had in mind at all, darling.”

“What do you think you’re playing at, mister? Do you know where you are? Whose place this is?”

“I’m quite aware, but thank you for reminding me. Do you have any other redundant questions for me, sweetheart?” I offered a coquettish bat of my lashes.

“I should shoot you right now,” he directed his aim closer to my chest, “cabrón.”

With a lift of brow I said, “Shoot me or kiss me, the result will be the same, I assure you.” I graced him with a very wide smile.

“You’re loco, mister.” He laughed, though not with humor, as his eyes flitted over my companions, no doubt wondering if we were armed and considering his options.

He did not pull the trigger, but with his other hand he reached for one of those wireless devices Trey called walkie-talkies.

“Don’t do that,” I said. “I’ve not finished with you yet, and it would be a shame to bother the others just now.”

He leveled the gun’s barrel in the direction of my heart, slowly lifting the walkie-talkie towards his face, his eyes once again moving betwixt the three of us.

“You don’t wish to do that,” I said, exuding a bit of ‘charm’.

His hand paused in its movement, the fine muscles quivering, begging to deny my suggestion.

“Now, be a good boy and put it away.”

His hand obeyed, clipping the walkie-talkie back onto his belt.

“Thank you ever so much.” My eyes assessed his form. “Pity, however, that you don’t have manners on your own.”

He could only gaze at me stupidly.

“Mm. You’ve already bored me,” I said, releasing him. “We’re going inside, but not to worry, I’ll announce myself soon enough.”

I stepped around him, reaching for the gate. I began to open the latch, and in the space of what was a blink to me, he squeezed the trigger—and found that I’d placed my palm against the barrel just as he fired.

“How rude,” I commented with a lift of my hand, and then smiled—impishly no doubt—for the bafflement in his eyes as he watched the wound knit itself. “Hmm, such things do still sting, you realize, though certainly I am capable of finding pleasure in pain.” After a pursing of my lips, I added, “Are you?”

He was about to make a stunned second attempt when I captured his gaze and looked deeply into his eyes, mesmerizing him more strongly than before.

“Stop. You’ve moved past boring to irritating, young man. This is not wise.”

His hand froze and his eyes glazed.

“You are most assuredly threatening the wrong person.”

My puppet echoed me. “I’m threatening the wrong person.”

“Do you know who this,” I tapped a nail against the blue steel, “should be pointing at?”

“Who?”

“You. You should be aiming this gun at yourself.”

“At myself…” His elbow bent and his hand turned.

“Simon says a bit higher, darling.”

“Higher…”

My tongue darted out to wet my lips. “Mmm, and in the interest of getting it right the first time, place the barrel to your temple, s’il vous plaît.”

He placed it to his temple.

A smile discovered me. “Very good, poppet, very, very good. Living is hard, don’t you think? Dying,” my index nail learned the line of his jaw just below his ear, “is so much easier.”

In his glassy eyes, there was yet a deeper understanding. Devil that I am, I’d left him just enough wits that he knew what was happening—and that he could do nothing to stop it.

“Now…” I moved back a step.

My puppet’s next breath was a shuddering one.

“Bang.”

His brains painted the white stucco surrounding the dark door various shades of red, pink, grey and others not defined, his body jerking sideways and dropping to the ground whilst I admired the artistry of his skull matter.

“Gracias. I have now been properly announced.” I spared Kar a glance. “I didn’t like this one’s tone.”

“He was rather crass.”

“Terribly uncultured. Common thugs bore me, you?”

“Yes my Prince, they do.”

“I don’t believe we need to ask Gabriel his opinion.” I looked to him and he merely smiled at me.

“Ah, here they come,” I said, turning toward the tall door that split the stucco, which was now opening. The first of them already had his weapon drawn, which I grabbed, pinning his fingers to it beneath mine in a bruising embrace. “Do it and I shall consume your intestines from your warm body as I would a large bowl of spaghetti, all whilst you watch.”

Good vibrations

Hey there hi there ho there.

First in today's update:

My publisher, Snowbooks, has started an online magazine called White Magazine. It's still very new, but they plan to update weekly, hopefully. I've submitted the two 'essays' Michel did (vampires in cinema), so far. We'll see when/if those show up. There will be other stuff from Snowbooks authors each update!

Second in today's update:

Atonement around 67,000 words at this very moment. After a spate of just not quite feeling like it, I've had a little run this evening, inching closer and closer to the oh my god shit is hitting the fan big time moments. That should be fun. :P

Third thing is something I'd like to call coolest thing that happened last week. One of my regular clients informed me that he has a bazillion frequent flier miles, because he is always travelling for business. He actually said he'd get me a ticket to France when I can go. Now...this still leaves me needing some savings and money to spend there (yeah, no time soon) but him offering was just too cool.

One day...

That's about all I have for today. I am drinking some red wine and eating chocolate chip cookies, making the most of this evening since I go back to work tomorrow. Er. Today, I guess.

P.S.

Who else is watching TRUE BLOOD?

This season is gonna be off the hook!

Hey, ya'll. Sorry it's been a while. There's been a lot changing for me, things going on.

In short:

I'm getting a divorce. Don't worry, no need to offer sympathy, it's all very amicable and it's the right thing to do. But as you can imagine, this creates a lot of the aforementioned changes.

I'm moving into my own apartment next week and this means more than ever, assessing my finances.

I'm moving forward in other ways I won't expand upon just now, but they're good, trust me. 

All this means I haven't written a lot, but I'm slowly getting back into it and Paris Immortal: Atonement is brushing 56,000 words. The other project has been sitting patiently on the side at about 23,000 words for a while now, but I have faith I'll finish it later.

That's about the extent of my update, other than to say, for these and various reasons, I've not been online as much, either. But I'm keeping up with you all as best I can.

Amazon review

Small spoiler, perhaps, if you haven't read the others—or the third one, yet.

Eagerly awaiting book 4, 13 April 2009 By paranormal noakes (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paris Immortal: Absolutions (Paperback) 
Absolutions is the 3rd book in the ever attractive Paris Immortal series. To be honest I'm shocked to find a bad review even exists about it - I suppose the stories are not everyone's cup of tea (or glass or blood) but I can unequivocally say that Sherry Roit has made this the finest parnomal romance/horror/drama that I have ever read. 

Her first-person POV writing style is engaging, and gives a lot of insight into the character and personality of whomever is thinking at the time. I find that it endears you to the characters (almost all of which you can genuinely feel for - with the notable exception of P.K, who's character has not yet been delved into in depth) very quickly.

This is obviously just my own opinion, but I very find it very easy to emote with the characters of Paris Immortal - particularly Trey - and I can honestly say that this book had me in tears: Not once but at least 5 times! I found it impossible not to get swept up in Trey's viewpoint in certain of the scenes, as his terror, loss, and even shock come across so beautifully with the writing style. 

The little details that the characters notice help to give you a mental picture of almost every scene, bringing you closer to the the author's impression of what's going on - something that I find is missing from a lot of novels. The majority of the time with a book, your visual idea of the characters or surroundings turns out to be vastly different from someone elses, and the full moment that the author was trying to capture is lost. Hopefully that is not the case here. 

For those that crave non-stop action and heat this is probably not your kind of series. There are indeed moments of pure violent or sexual tension, but the rollercoaster here is purely emotional. The focus is squarely on the characters themselves and their struggles to cope with the horrors in their own past. If, like me, you enjoy a book that gets you under the skin of the people involved, and leaves you not waiting for the nice explosion but rather rooting for the characters to survive the tortures within their own minds, then this is the book for you. Don't fret though horror-hounds: People still get eviserated. *winks* 

The sexual tension runs tantilisingly high through Paris Immortal and Paris Immortal Awakenings, but in Absolutions finally emerges into a couple of very nicely handled sex scenes that you find you've been almost as desperate to see realised as the characters involved! I can't fault the writing there either - It likely won't appeal to those who prefer the intimate detail of other fine authors such as J.R Ward, but the subtlety in itself keeps the moments tender and allies this firmly with the 'romance' part of 'paranormal romance.' For someone that has read and enjoyed a lot of arguably 'hotter' books, this approach was a welcome change. After the initial sexual output in this 3rd book you will find that the sexual tension all but vanishes, but you are left with a more than adequate impression of the love felt by the parties involved throughout the rest of the book: Again, something that can too often be sacrificed by other authors so they can fit in a couple more bestselling sizzling chapters. 

If you're potentially baulking at reading these books for fear of reading something that you'd consider TMI in the way of homosexual passion: don't. Read the books. Even if you're one of those people who finds homoeroticism a little twitchy in book, I doubt that you'll be offended. Hopefully you'll simply be left touched by the aforementioned love between the main characters. On the other hand, if homoeroticism in your book choice really isn't something that you feel comfortable with, avoid Paris Immortal like the plague as virtually all of the characters are either gay or bi. 

Last but certainly not least, the desciptions of Paris itself are superb. With every book and every chapter the author takes you on a tour of the sights and streets, and you are left marvelling at the wonders, beauty, and history of this most famous of cities. If it does wonders for Parisian tourism, I wouldn't be surprised. 

Overall, I thoroughly recommend this series to anyone who's looking to try something new in the way of paranormal romance. Any book that by turns makes me cry (and feel genuine heartache for a fictional character), laugh out loud, grin, and sit rivetted to my seat turning pages to find out what happens, I certainly consider worth the read. 

Not to mention a gloriously unassuming and elegant cover design, that will sit with pride on any shelf. 

I hope you enjoy them as much as I.

Absolutions..coming your way April 6th

..and I'm going to tease you.

Just a little.

Just a preface.

You know you want it.


Bang!
Jerk.
He falls.
Blood red flower blooming under my hands.
Bang!
Jerk, he falls.
Blood petals on my hands.
Except I never heard a bang. My brain was more than happy to betray me with the imaginary detail that should have accompanied the scene. Silencers are for assassins.
Hot sweat.
Assassins.
Next I knew I was gripping the counter.
Next I knew, I couldn’t breathe.
Next I knew, there was a voice, a sleepy voice.
“Trey?”
I can’t breathe.
I’m getting dizzy.
“Whoa whoa, hey,” I heard. Then I felt hands, arms, someone holding me up. “Slow down, you’re hyperventilating.” I heard a barely breathed curse word. “Paper bag, let me see if you have one.”
Gasp of words. “I’m…I’ll be…”
“Slow down, man, shh, deep breath.”
I’m trying, I’m trying.

Hey. Good to see you again. You remember me, right?
Crazy as things were last time, well…
That was nothing. I don’t know if I can make it through this one.
But the coffee’s brewing; if you come inside, I’ll try it, friend.

Get your own - Open publication

And I'm spent.

40,767.

Ended up doing a lot of research on some little things so didn't get farther than that. Little details that matter. How much will be used out of everything I looked up, who knows, but I have it. Those small things can make all the difference.

Phew.
Hungry.
Spent for now.
Look at that other novel later. Maybe.

Squirrels not so shy today. Coffee press—kewl. French, pas mal.

Crap, the ink in my printer is low.
Still haven't mopped floor. Later!

That is all—brain semi-fried, at least till I eat, maybe.

Not too shabby.

Hey, hey. Winding down my second day off here. Let's see what I've accomplished so far.

My walks yesterday and today. Most of the squirrels are hiding, though. They must be fed up with peanuts. I shall try to tempt them with junkfood more tomorrow.

French lessons? Er, un petit peu, today. I did snag a very nice dictionary yesterday, a Collins French dictionary. Also, my cheap coffee maker died. So I got a French press deal. That count?
Actually, it's great. I now have a bit more counter space, won't use that little bit of electricity, and don't need filters. Hey, every little thing...

House wise, been doing some good cleaning. Laundry and dishes too, even!
Must mop floor.

Bills and mail. Check.

Now onto the really good stuff. I've been throwing some words at Atonement. Approaching 38,000. That's 5,000 up. Earlier today I set myself a small goal. Hit 40,000. I do believe that'll happen, oh, once I stop piddling about in LJ.

And I still have tomorrow! Yes, that's right, an extra day! Perhaps I'll throw some shit words at the other novel, too, who knows? The suspense is killing me, how 'bout you? It's currently hovering around 25,000.

Finally: GO LOOK AT THIS

EVIL!! ;-)

Annnnd...
Yeah that's it.

Drabbles

Ah, well, obviously nothing terribly exciting going on over here. Atonement is around 33,000 words. I haven't gone back to Deepest Fears in a while, but I still know exactly where to pick it up. I just haven't felt like it, been into it, lately.

I received Innocent Blood and watched it last night. Enjoyed it quite a bit!

Other than that, it was a nice day to be in the park. I enjoyed throwing squirrels at peanuts immensely.

Er. I mean...

Snippets

EVIL ANGEL

Premiered at the Berlin Film Festival today, which means that WINDOWPANE's song has now officially been heard in the film!

Huzzah.

An acquaintence, funnily enough, also has a film showing there on the 9th. It's already premiered in other places as of Nov. 13th, but this is very cool, because it's a Korean film based on a  Japanese manga.

Andy Gillet; the movie: Antique.

Also, someone might be interested to know I ordered Fascination and Innocent Blood, today.

Hasn't left me yet...

Atonement just went to 30,260 words.
Reaching that first 30,000 seems to be one of those "happy to be over the hump" things for me. It's more than a quarter, if shy of a third of the way through my usual length with these. So thirds, yeah, those sound really good. I'm thinking that hitting this number in some way eases my brain. My brains says: Yes. We have a novel going, here. You'll finish it.

Deepest fears is at 21,126. I didn't go back to it today, but it's sitting in a place that I can pick it up. I know what's next. Where it's heading. So I feel...safe, as it were. There's no feeling that if I don't keep pounding at it even when I'm tired, it'll fly out of my head forever.

Good stuff.

Back to work tomorrow. Ah, well. It never lasts, this time off. But I don't detest the idea of being there, like some other jobs I've had. You know, the ones where you are nearly ill just thinking about going. Last work week went by pretty fast, really. It's not like my hours are horrible.

Some joy?

Last night I had a small bout of writing. In the wee hours, really. About 3,000 words. I've had larger surges, but I'm not complaining, because I started to feel some excitement again.

Just now I added another 1,000 or so, and have lots of little flashes on what else goes into the novel, Deepest Fears.

I dabbled a bit with a couple scenes in Atonement as well. Didn't add a lot, but I'm happy with the results.

Yippee!

Just taking a break now because I have some around the house chores to get back to while things percolate. I think I've hit the time of day where I feel least like writing. I've been thinking on it and it seems to go in segments—its own schedule. I'm sure as we drift towards night, the next segment will arrive. Gotta have that time away, you know, so it doesn't seem like work, and so I don't feel like I've let everything else go to hell, including some other type of fun time. Or heck, studying some more French.

Thanks all, for the encourgement and such the other day. It's deeply appreciated.

In which Michel states: Joy? Did I hear that you were in need of joy?

For those who've not met him, I would like to present one Michel Lecureaux, who, in-between doing serious vampire business (he has to rule a country of vampires, after all), eviscerating those who deserve it (which all depends on his point of view), and seducing whomever takes his fancy (all the while never actually cheating on his beloved), also has a host of other hobbies.

One of them is turning up just when I need him, which is why I forgive him when he drives me crazy for his own amusement. Well, I forgive him for other reasons as well, but we'll stop there. (He knows I love him, the imp.)

He has graciously offered to write some essays of a sort. I say of a sort, as with him, they could go anywhere, and often do. I hope you find him charming, amusing, and please do humor him. He does love praise. He's a bit more relaxed, shall I say, here than in the books. For good reason.

Alright, the floor is yours, Michel:


Greetings, my beautiful children, and those soon to be my beautiful children. The infamous Michel Lecureaux, at your service. I was asked if I might like to share my views on vampires in cinema, to which I replied I might indeed. Thus, here I am.

I pondered many ways in which I might begin such an article; with a bit of history, perhaps? With comparisons to the real and the imagined? Should I attempt a time line of some sort?

As often there is little resemblance betwixt the real and the imagined—what's that you say? You believe that with all of the literature and movies in existence, that surely there must be some truth swimming about in the soup of legends?

Very well, I'll leave off pretense. Mais oui, there are some truths in your literature. One reason for this, is that even vampires take pen names. We are everywhere, darlings. You may now find yourself asking Michel, my dear Michel; which, then, are pure fantasy, and which, then, are accurate?

This is no simple matter, darlings. Not all vampires are created equal, this is your first lesson. In fact, even I find some of them so repulsive that I destroy them on sight, afterward desperately wishing to bleach my eyes and nostrils. Unfortunately, I can't stand the scent of bleach, not that it would matter. By the gods, you humans are obsessed with germs, aren't you? Do you not realize that for a healthy immune system, one must build the immunity, which means, one needs a certain bit of exposure to germs?

Ah, I do beg pardon. I am digressing quite a bit. As I tend to do things my own way, I should inform you now, that this will be a common occurrence, as I am in a rather capricious mood. What this means when I am writing, is that I shall begin with a thought, and allow it to run at will. If you are game, do please continue reading.

Vampires in cinema, this was the subject, oui?
(Tut. Did you really believe that I would share the secrets of vampiredom with the free world? My, how sorely mistaken you find yourself now. Very well, as I'm feeling generous at the moment, I will share this. There are truths, there are lies, and there are grey areas in your fictions. Discuss this amongst yourselves as you will.)

Fright Night! Yes, I shall begin here. How deliciously campy this movie is. I shall also give Chris Sarandon full marks for being rather sexy—even with that deformed mouth as he shifts. However, if there are vampires who turn into bats, I daresay they do it with much more style, and are far more convincing, though it was an improvement over rubber bats on fishing poles, ala Legosi's era. Yes, darlings, I know. They worked with what was available to them at the time. This does not make it any less ridiculous, do we agree?

Now then, where was I? Fright Night. On the viscera scale, one must appreciate, I think, a minion who expires in a gush of green slime whilst his flesh melts from his bones. Rather inventive, though personally I prefer my minions to be filled with far tastier fluids, and prefer them far less zombie-like.

What's this? You're surprised that I opt to begin my musings with a nineteen eighties B flick? Why, it has achieved cult status! It pays homage to many other films!

What's this? What of Dracula, you say?

I say, what of him. But Michel, I hear you thinking. He is the grandfather of all vampires!

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, children, but this is a load of tripe. Blood thirsty he was. Immortal he was not. Furthermore, he was not the first fictional Immortal. Pity, however. I should like to have met him.

I hear you yet again. I hear very well, you must realize. Michel, if you discuss movies, they're all fictional, are they not? Therefore, why not discuss Dracula?

I grant you this. But this is my essay, and quite frankly, I tire of Dracula this, Dracula that, the mighty Dracula. Pssh. I would have snapped him like a cigarette between my fingers. Furthermore, I am aware that some of you expected me to begin with Vlad. This may be an opportune time to inform you that I do not like to be what's expected.

This is not to say I haven't enjoyed Dracula in film. Some more than others, certainly. If I am feeling generous the next time we meet, I may discuss one of my favorites.

Ah, but I must now take my leave, as I am in the mood for a blood letting. Mine, that is. Ponder this as you will. Certain of you will undoubtedly guess the source of this particular shift in mood.

I shall return with more thoughts another time.

Ciao for now.

The philosophy of...

This morning as I was easing into the idea of work before having to open the shop (the day job), I had a discussion with myself— yes I do this often, as well as talking with my characters—about why it is I haven't been writing the way I did with the first and second novels. (We won't talk about the third, in which I drove myself crazy before finishing it. But I survived it having learned something.) Why it is that for days on end, I might not touch the two novels I'm to be working on right now. Especially the stand alone novel, as I was so gung ho when I got the idea and started it.

I listed all kinds of things, and I agreed with myself that there are some valid points. But I'm not going to list them here, because in the last hour, I've come to the realization that perhaps the biggest problem at the moment (and the constant listing of things in my head and starting to worry over it certainly contribute to this) is that I've lost some of the fun of writing. The process. I'm dangerously close to making this seem like work. It already is skirting work at times. This was never supposed to be work, and you know what I mean, as of course, I'm not saying that writing doesn't take work.

Where is my joy? It seems awfully soon to have lost it.

I need it back. I need that rush of a good scene that makes me giddy and makes me keep going. Stop analyzing and just keep going. I had it in the opening of book four for the Paris Immortal series. I had it when I started Deepest Fears. But so soon it fled, with me nagging myself over details and oh shit, what comes next worries.

This morning, I'd given myself ideas for getting back to writing, and felt very inclined to get to it once I got off work. But then I got off work, and here I sit, not feeling so gung ho. Feeling a bit mentally drained.

I'm sure this won't last forever. I know we all have the "oh god I'm spent, I'll never have another idea" sorts of times. I just wish I could truly shut off the one voice in my head that's not helping matters—my little voice. Just for a while. Then perhaps I could pay more attenion to my characters who are likely just as present as they always were, but can't get through the MUCK in my brain.

This was never supposed to be a chore. Normally it isn't. But at the moment, I realize I've been avoiding it like it's a chore.

I need a good mental slap.

And...that is all. I'm going to drink the wine I didn't end up guzzling the other night, and see if I can relax this mental grip. This isn't really "classic" writer's block (whatever that is), as I worried and wondered a couple of weeks ago. No, I believe this is me blocking myself.

I'm off now to see if I can find my joy. It's around here somewhere, I've just misplaced it.

One of the reasons I voted Obama.

I wanted to share this.

Team Obama wasted no time sweeping out the digital filth of the Bush Admin. Take a look. Here is the LGBT section in the civil rights directory:

Support for the LGBT Community

"While we have come a long way since the Stonewall riots in 1969, we still have a lot of work to do. Too often, the issue of LGBT rights is exploited by those seeking to divide us. But at its core, this issue is about who we are as Americans. It's about whether this nation is going to live up to its founding promise of equality by treating all its citizens with dignity and respect." 
-- Barack Obama, June 1, 2007

-Expand Hate Crimes Statutes: In 2004, crimes against LGBT Americans constituted the third-highest category of hate crime reported and made up more than 15 percent of such crimes. President Obama cosponsored legislation that would expand federal jurisdiction to include violent hate crimes perpetrated because of race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical disability. As a state senator, President Obama passed tough legislation that made hate crimes and conspiracy to commit them against the law.

-Fight Workplace Discrimination: President Obama supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and believes that our anti-discrimination employment laws should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity. While an increasing number of employers have extended benefits to their employees' domestic partners, discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace occurs with no federal legal remedy. The President also sponsored legislation in the Illinois State Senate that would ban employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

-Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples: President Obama supports full civil unions that give same-sex couples legal rights and privileges equal to those of married couples. Obama also believes we need to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100+ federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally-recognized unions. These rights and benefits include the right to assist a loved one in times of emergency, the right to equal health insurance and other employment benefits, and property rights.

-Oppose a Constitutional Ban on Same-Sex Marriage: President Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2006 which would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman and prevented judicial extension of marriage-like rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples.

-Repeal Don't Ask-Don't Tell: President Obama agrees with former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff John Shalikashvili and other military experts that we need to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve. Discrimination should be prohibited. The U.S. government has spent millions of dollars replacing troops kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation. Additionally, more than 300 language experts have been fired under this policy, including more than 50 who are fluent in Arabic. The President will work with military leaders to repeal the current policy and ensure it helps accomplish our national defense goals.
Expand Adoption Rights: President Obama believes that we must ensure adoption rights for all couples and individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation. He thinks that a child will benefit from a healthy and loving home, whether the parents are gay or not.

-Promote AIDS Prevention: In the first year of his presidency, President Obama will develop and begin to implement a comprehensive national HIV/AIDS strategy that includes all federal agencies. The strategy will be designed to reduce HIV infections, increase access to care and reduce HIV-related health disparities. The President will support common sense approaches including age-appropriate sex education that includes information about contraception, combating infection within our prison population through education and contraception, and distributing contraceptives through our public health system. The President also supports lifting the federal ban on needle exchange, which could dramatically reduce rates of infection among drug users. President Obama has also been willing to confront the stigma -- too often tied to homophobia -- that continues to surround HIV/AIDS.

-Empower Women to Prevent HIV/AIDS: In the United States, the percentage of women diagnosed with AIDS has quadrupled over the last 20 years. Today, women account for more than one quarter of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses. President Obama introduced the Microbicide Development Act, which will accelerate the development of products that empower women in the battle against AIDS. Microbicides are a class of products currently under development that women apply topically to prevent transmission of HIV and other infections.

Need some writing inspiration?

Check out France's own 'J.K. Rowling.'

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Writing or something like it.

The return of the day job, already? Yes, today I'm back to the day job. (Well, in another couple of hours.) 

Last night I had a bout of writing, which is good, because for nearly two weeks I haven't. I can't decide whether it's just that I've been feeling lazy, didn't really know which part to write next, or...some combination of these and other things. I was beginning to feel very guilty about it, though, this week.

So, Paris Immortal: Atonement, got a boost to 26,122 words, from sitting at 20,000 for a time. Much was floating scenes, though I ended up finding a place for the last one I set down, getting some forward, linear progress. I thought I would do more this morning, but I, ah, slept in. I will blame female issues. Yeah. Besides. Every scene I wrote last night had no real comedy relief, and I was drained, drained I say. Oi.

Deepest fears still hovers around 19,000 after a 7,000 word binge a week and a half ago, or so. I really should get back on that one, now that I feel better about having progress on the PI series.

Pimpage

But I am pimping someone else; namely, my husband's band.

From their blog:

Our song "Show me the way" will be featured in a major international movie starring Ving Rhames called Evil Angel! www.evilangelmovie.com (type in eangel2008 on the bottom of that page to see a rough trailer.)

Rather fitting it's a horror film, considering my fondness for horror.

Give WINDOWPANE a look by clicking on their name!

Losing my blogger virginity. Again.

My, my. First post. I have other locations, but decided what the heck, let's try this blogger thing.

I am the author of Paris Immortal, released all over Europe in May, 2008. Its sequel, Paris Immortal: Awakenings, was released in Europe October, 2008. The third, Paris Immortal: Absolutions, comes your way in hard cover this month. You can find me in Waterstone's, WHSmith, Blackwell's, and a host of other fine locations in Britain, France, even Japan, you name it. Not to mention sites such as amazon. Yee haw!

My 'official' North American release of the series begins June 1, 2009. That's right, you'll see me in Barnes and Noble. It's been a bit over a year since I snagged a publishing deal, and some days it still blows my mind.

I'm currently working on book four in this series, as well as a stand alone novel within the true horror genre. Or rather, I should say, my idea of horror, when I think of horror. I consider the Paris Immortal series first and foremost, character driven stories in which some of the characters happen to be vampires. Is there a bit of horror as it goes along? Yes, why yes there is. Who can resist with vampires? I like my vampires to BE vampires, though don't expect 30 Days of Night or the like. This is not to say I don't like a gross out every now again,  and there's some of those as it goes along. Don't we all like that? ;-) My vamps just don't happen to be monstrous looking...well. Most of them. I prefer not sticking to...'one type.'

In any case, my plans are to update this blog with writing matters, perhaps talk of books and movies I like and would recommend, and likely whatever else comes to mind, as with my other journals. I may import some pieces concerning writing that I had posted elsewhere.

Every once in a while it might just be a free for all, but we'll see.

If you're interested, then hey. Nice to meet you. I could be considered a bit of a whackjob, but then again, define normal, eh? I'll wait while you do that. ;-)

One thing. I'm not interested in trolling and flame wars. Do it, you're gone. There, now that's out of the way.