The Next Big Thing – in the downfall and resurrection of Faith

The Next Big Thing – in the downfall and resurrection of Faith


By K.A. M’Lady



I was recently tagged by Fantasy Romance Author, Sapphire Phelan, aka, Non-Fiction, Ghost-busting Author, Pamela Kinney, to participate in The Next Big Thing Blog Hop. This is where authors answer ten questions about their current works in progress and invite a few other author friends to participate. If you haven’t had a chance to check out Sapphire’s blog you can look her up at Sapphire Phelan’s Passion Corner

Instantly I knew I had to invite my friend and internationally bestselling author, Marie Treanor. Marie is an amazing author who writes sexy, historic vampire romance, as well as multiple other chart topping genres. Marie Treanor lives in Scotland with her eccentric husband and three much-too-smart children. Having grown bored with city life, she resides these days in a picturesque village by the sea where she is lucky enough to enjoy herself avoiding housework and writing sensual stories of paranormal romance and fantasy. You can look her up on the web at: http://www.MarieTreanor.com

Then, of course, I had to send a request over author, Sarah McNeal. Sarah writes some amazing, captivating, and spectacular, historical romance that is certain to leave you happily engrossed. She is a multi-published author of many genres of romance from western to contemporary, but her favorite is paranormal and time travel such as The Violin, Harmonica Joe’s Reluctant Bride and a new series, The Legends of Winatuke that should be released in the next few months. You can find more info. about Sarah on her blog at: http://www.sarahmcneal.blogspot.com/

So, thanks, Sapphire, for asking me what I’m up to with my writing. Here is what’s next on my page:

What is the working title of your book?

I actually have four new releases on tap that I’m very excited about. Rational Animals is a re-release and is a pure Paranormal Werewolf story. I’ve mixed a bit of Indian history and legend in with it and twisted it a bit. It deals with man’s inner struggle against the darkness and against himself. It’s always intense when a story begins with a murder. The exciting stuff is figuring out whom or what is the killer. And then, how the characters survive the encroaching darkness.

Then I have a historical time-travel romance novel titled, A Walk in the Black Forest. It too is a re-release. Marauding knights, mystical swords, time-travel, murder, mystery, intrigue. Everything you love in a good historical time-travel romance.

The next two books are the first two stories in my three book sci-fi vampire series: Vranthrian Vampires; Book 1 – Bound to You and Book 2 - Claimed by You. I’m very excited, as this is my first foray into sci-fi mixed with paranormal. It’s been a lot of fun. Of course mayhem ensues, along with hot sexy aliens, space-napping, sex in space, evil alien dudes, magic, mystery, oh, and did I mention, hot space-alien sex? Book 3 – Redeemed by You will be the last story in the series.

However, my current Work in Progress is Faith Savage – Messenger. It is the 8th book (or 9th if you count the Bonus Story – Faith’s Temptation) in my Gothic Horror, Paranormal series, Faith Savage – Demon Huntress.

Where did the idea come from for this book?

Because it’s a series, it follows the course of events that have lead the main character, Faith Savage, down a long road of struggles, uncertainty, hopefulness, helplessness in her plight to save mankind’s souls from the devil for the Light of God. Treachery, in the guise of seduction, and debauchery have lead her astray on more than one occasion, and as the fallen and the Angels vie for control over mankind, it is up to her to find the hidden truth in all of the lies that have lead her astray.



What genre does your book fall under?

I’m never really sure what genre to list this particular series under as it encompasses so many with its darkness and its touch of light. It’s listed as Gothic Horror, Paranormal and it does fit the bill of some of all of those things. It’s dark, scary, and foreboding, as it deals with angels and demons, and of course it is erotic and very intense. The main character is strong, but completely relatable. She is also weak, angry, humble, fragile, and even hostile at times. But how would you react if it was up to you to save the souls of the world?



Which actors would you choose to play your character in a movie rendition?

You know, I really haven’t given it much thought. I mean, every author has this dream of their books making the big screen or a TV series. Who doesn’t have such lofty aspirations? I would be no different. But I truly haven’t picked out any names. At the moment, I’m truly just happy to write.



What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

The Message is a Matter of Interpretation - Belief is in the Hands of Faith



Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Currently, all of my books are signed with Mojocastle Press. Small Press has been very good to me. It allows me access to some amazing readers, as well as access to selling outlets like, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and All Romance eBooks, where I currently have two bestsellers.



How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I think Faith’s Temptation, which was a rewrite from a prior release, took me about six weeks. Due to scheduling, since I work full-time and take care of my family, even novella’s can take longer to write than I’d like. Unfortunately, life gets in the way sometimes and writing has to take a backseat. But you juggle your time and plunge on through the mire of life. It all eventually works out. Having a wicked awesome husband, who’s very giving, helps out tremendously.



What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I think making comparisons to others is a bit presumptuous. I’ll leave that to the readers and reviewers. All I do know is that if you like your stories dark, sexy, and mystical, lead by strong women with a little attitude, and a bit of angel/demon sex, you’ll probably like my stories.



Who or what inspired you to write this book?

This series began as a spin-off from a previous story. I wanted to take the original work and delve a little deeper into the darkness. Tie in the story of the angels and the fallen and pull the back-story of the main character to see what would happen if God chose to use her as a catalyst to save mankind in the war between good and evil. But I also wanted to add into it a bit of the actual war in Heaven. What brought it about? What happened and why. And what would the main character do with such a lofty burden? What would anyone do with such a burden?



What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

It’s more than just an angel/demon story with sex. I think the compelling aspect of it is seeing how the darkness affects our lives and what we do to overcome it. Where we find the inner strength to survive the darkness, as each of us search to fill our lives with the light of love, understanding, fulfillment and peace.

Paranormal Festive Free-For-All

Join the members of Just Another Paranormal Monday for a day of giving!

Free Books Every Hour

Winners Chosen Randomly

Just show up, and post something in the spirit of Christmas.

All Winners announced on Wednesday, December, 19th, 2012.

It Came From Beneath - A Just Another Paranormal Monday Halloween Party

The day is October 29th, 2012 and Just Another Paranormal Monday is having a Party!

Join us from 8:00 am Central to Midnight

for Horror Movies in History

Vampires, Witches and all that goes bump in the night....

Fill your gift bags with door prizes galore!

Guest Authors Include:

Alma Katsu
Debra Jayne East
Karen Duvall
Angela Cameron
Charlene Wilson
Denyse Bridger
Missy Jane
Lynda Hilburn
Alenander Christian
Ashley Nemer

Happy Haunting!

The Story Behind the Book: The Anatomy of Faith by K.A. M'Lady

The Story Behind the Book: The Anatomy of Faith by K.A. M'Lady

“Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark.”

Rabindranath Tagore

When Romance Reviews Submitted by Authors asked me to write an article describing the background history of where the ideas for my Faith Savage Demon Huntress Series came from, of course I wholeheartedly agreed. Then, after giving it some serious thought I wondered ‘How does an author go about the business of writing such a summary when the feelings involved in this series are deeper, darker and more personal than just an idea?


Really, one might think it a simple task for an author. Just pull out the outline, throw together the main idea, the historical references you researched, add a list of items on how you wanted your characters look, the attitude you wanted them to portray. Then, set-up the scenery, the landscape, and reference what made you pick the location – even if you made it up. Tell your readers what city, town or by-way you chose to be your locale.


But what do you share when the scope of your story is a bit more personal? What do you describe when most of it is a matter of faith?


Authors often interweave bits and pieces of our hopes, dreams, fears and personal beliefs into our stories. We make our characters live out our fantasies, become our super-heroes, and fight the demons that have skulked around in the far, dark reaches of our minds. For me, to an extent, this became Faith Savage.


Expanded from a previous release I chose to write beyond my original idea of a woman being tempted by an angel and a demon. The central idea to expand this story was mainly prompted from my own personal demons and travels with the darkness in my own life. I wondered what a character would do if God had given them a job to cast out the darkness from the world. To provide a message to mankind. And, how would the external factors from her personal upbringing factor into her story? Could those dark days be blamed on the devil? Would her faith in God and herself be strong enough to see her through?


Personally, I have survived much in my short life: child abuse, homelessness, joblessness, alcoholism, and drug addiction. Like most, there are multiple demons that haunt me and many dark days that I have survived. But the point is – I survived. I would like to think that it was for a greater purpose. That God has a master plan for me to affect someone else’s life. Whether it is through my stories, my poetry or the simple act of giving back the proceeds I make to a charity of my choosing. As writers we are gifted with this opportunity.


As a person I don’t much care either way what my friends and readers choose to believe in. What they choose to call their God. I have friends of every walk of life and of every faith: Christian, Muslim, Jehovah Witness, Catholic, Pagan, and non-believers. The one thing I’ve noticed in all of them is that at the core of them I’ve found what it is that drew me to them as a person and what makes their light shine within them. And that light is love.

So, whether your characters are fighting dragons, slaying ogres or fighting the darkness and demons that are within there is always something that keeps us returning to their story. Something that keeps us searching for their happily-ever-after, as well as our own. Is it the hope that the light will conquer the darkness? That love for ourselves and each other will be strong enough to win? Quite possibly it’s all just a matter of faith.



Blessings Always ~ K.

~ Faith in Review at Romance Reviews Submitted by Authors ~

Summation & Bonus Story ~ Faith's Temptation & Book 1 ~ Glow

http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-faith-savage-by-ka-mlady.html


Book 2 ~ Fear No Evil
http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-faith-savage-fear-no-evil.html

Book 3 ~ Transgressions

http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-faith-savage-book-three.html

Book 4 ~ When Angels Fall
http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-when-angels-fall-by-ka-mlady.html

Book 5 ~ The Ash Collector

http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-faith-savage-ash-collector.html

Book 6 ~ Wicked's Kiss

http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-wickeds-kiss-by-ka-mlady.html

Book 7 ~ Sinner

http://romancereviewsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-sinner-by-ka-mlady.html




About Author K.A. M’Lady



K.A. M’Lady lives a few stone throws from corn fields, chaos and congestion; all lying on the outskirts of the many burbs of Chicago. She spends her days calculating life expectancies, mortality and the certainty of death and taxes while in her free time the dead wander freely, buy shoes, homes, the occasional odd business or two and, if you even think of charging them too much in taxes…well, let’s just say the tax man may never come back. But if he does he might just shamble a bit.


Her work has been described as scary, descriptive, beautiful, dark, frightening, prosaic, addictive, sexy and believable. She loves to read paranormal romances, watching horror movies, westerns on Sundays with her husband, playing fetch with her pocket beagle, Chevy and buying weird shoes. Her friends call her eccentric, her family refuses to comment.


For more information look her up on the web:

K.A. M'Lady


http://www.kamlady.net/

http://www.myspace.com/kamladyhttp://kamladyotherworld.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/kamlady

http://www.facebook.com/FaithSavageDemonHuntress

What’s in and out in a word?

What’s in and out in a word?


I’ve been sent multiple email requests lately for the next books in my Realm series, my Faith Savage series and just a ‘damn new book – would you? I need something new from you to read.’ And though I am highly grateful and grossly flattered that I have readers in such demand for something new from me – those that are following me know that I have spent the entire beginning of this year working and working some more. I’ve been working on a system upgrade at the office (I work in the financial field and have many sundry hats that I wear and departments that I’m responsible for.) And then of course, I’ve most recently moved to a new house. Don’t even get me started on the chaos of that. Who knew you could acquire so much shit over twenty-one years of marriage and three kids.

I’ve no idea how we managed to cram all of our stuff in such a small house but we finally have the room for it now in our new home – I just have to finish unpacking my life from the boxes I’ve crammed it into. To top it off it had to be 115 degrees the week I decided to start our move. So I, along with my mom and my sister spent three days cleaning the new place and painting five rooms. Now my world is filled with brilliant shades of Hidden Meadows, Merlots, Burled Redwood and Brick Dust (more of a rich cinnamon --- The Office.) I’m a color junkie and now my home reflects it and I couldn’t be more thrilled.


After moving about twenty-plus boxes of books into my office I have never been more grateful of my e-reader in my life. Will I part with my treasure trove of books? Hell no! Every single one of them is a memorable piece of history to me. Not to mention the books I have for research, the ten different dictionaries, thesauruses, mythology books, books on witchcraft, folklore, Irish and Scottish history and so on.


So, as I try to make my way through office chaos at the office and box chaos at home, and since I’m horribly anal retentive about organization and everything being in its place so that my brain is focused on the singular task of setting my creatures free to roam (and believe me – their tired of being pent up and yammering like the wild beasts they are) I’ve nothing but the total intent of emptying all of the boxes, putting everything where it goes and releasing the bolt to the cage so that all of my wild things can roam and roar at will.


Hang in there with me – edits are coming on back-listed books (A Walk in the Black Forest, Rational Animals and the first book in my new Sci-fi Vampire series – the Vranthian Vampires – Book 1 ~ Bound to You.)


Always my best ~ K.

Into The Grey

Fifty Shades in Review

Like most of the population – well at least 10mm or so – I have finally succumbed to the pressure and took this series off my To Be Read pile and finally actually read it. It wasn’t so much the peer pressure but an article I read by another author’s blog, Gracie McKeever’s - G-Spot that made me realize that my annoyance with the hype was steering my prejudice to not read this series.

I want to thank Gracie for the great article and for moving me and these books along in my pile otherwise I would have left them to gather dust amongst so many others in my list.

There are more conversations and opinions about this series than there are pages actually written in it. And because I can, I’m going to add my two cents worth. First I must say that these were an extraordinarily well written set of books. Each conversation precisely thought out, each scene, emotion and depth of character minutely planned and manipulated. I’m not normally a big fan of contemporary reads but it was highly character driven and ultimately very impressive.

Ms. James did a superb job exploring the depth of each of Christian’s fifty shades. If you are familiar at all with the psychosis of a survivor of abuse you will have an understanding and an easy association with this character. If not, you will be fascinated, appalled, transfixed, unnerved, moved, intimidated, aroused, seduced and beguiled.

And, of course, with this type of creature, it takes an extraordinary woman to conquer and redeem, and love a man such as this.

If you haven’t had the opportunity to read E.L. James – Fifty Shades Trilogy I highly recommend it. But I must say as well, if all that you are taking away from this fascinating read is the sex, then you’re not paying attention.


For more information on this series check out Ms. James web site at: http://www.eljamesauthor.com/


K.

Become A Believer - 6-6

Get 6 for $6.66

One Day Special - 6-6

at the castle ~ Mojocastle

Get in on the hunt and get aquainted with Faith....

Gothic, Paranormal, Serials




"YUM! I am in love with your series. I just went to mojocastle and purchased the rest of your books! I had to...Thank you for the immense pleasure given to me as I read your tale."

Amy J. Ramsey

Ramsey's Book Reviews

Website: www.trinagon.blogspot.com
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In the beginning God created the Heavens, the Earth…and Angels. No one is certain when the war started – when the Angels went astray. All that is clear is that war erupted in Heaven and the Angels fell from Grace. Today that war continues.



My name is Faith Savage, and I hunt demons. Some say that God has a master plan for all of us – from an Angel’s first breath to mankind’s final death. Somewhere in between lays the battle for salvation.

April - National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month and I always look forward to the celebration.  Words inspire nations to move mountains, souls to rejoice in the world's beauty, hearts to find humility and people to be the chronicler's of time's passing.  These are our passions, our hopes, our heartaches, and our dreams.  Share them often and frequently for they are a gift that touches everyone.

Proclamation at a Birth
by Linda Pastan

for Anna

 Let every tree
 burst into blossom
 whatever the season.
 Let the snow melt
 mild as milk
 and the new rain wash
 the gutters clean
 of last year's
 prophecies.
 Let the guns sweep out
 their chambers
 and the criminals doze
 dreaming themselves
 back to infancy.
 Let the sailors throw
 their crisp white caps
 as high as they can
 which like so many doves
 will return to the ark
 with lilacs.
 Let the frogs turn
 into princes,
 the princes to frogs.
 Let the madrigals,
 let the musical croakings
 begin.

"Proclamation at a Birth" by Linda Pastan, from Carnival Evening. ©
W.W. Norton & Company, 1998.

On Turning Ten by Billy Collins

The whole idea of it makes me feel
like I'm coming down with something,
something worse than any stomach ache
or the headaches I get from reading in bad light--
a kind of measles of the spirit,
a mumps of the psyche,
a disfiguring chicken pox of the soul.


You tell me it is too early to be looking back,

but that is because you have forgotten

the perfect simplicity of being one
and the beautiful complexity introduced by two.
But I can lie on my bed and remember every digit.
At four I was an Arabian wizard.
I could make myself invisible
by drinking a glass of milk a certain way.
At seven I was a soldier, at nine a prince.

But now I am mostly at the window
watching the late afternoon light.
Back then it never fell so solemnly
against the side of my tree house,
and my bicycle never leaned against the garage

as it does today,

all the dark blue speed drained out of it.

This is the beginning of sadness, I say to myself,
as I walk through the universe in my sneakers.

It is time to say good-bye to my imaginary friends,

time to turn the first big number.

It seems only yesterday I used to believe

there was nothing under my skin but light.
If you cut me I could shine.

But now when I fall upon the sidewalks of life,

I skin my knees. I bleed.

Walter De Maria – The Lightning Field

In the heat of late afternoon...by Gary Young

In the heat of late afternoon, lightning
streaks from a nearly cloudless sky
to the top of the far mesa.

At dusk, the whole south end of the valley blazes
as the clouds turn incandescent with

some distant strike.
There is a constant congress here
between the earth and the sky.

This afternoon a thunderstorm crossed the

valley. One moment the ground was dry,
and the next there were

torrents running down the hillsides and arroyos.
A quarter-mile off

I could see a downpour bouncing
off the sage and the fine clay

soil. I could see the rain approach,
and then it hit, drenching me,

and moved on.
Ten minutes later I was dry.
The rain comes from

heaven, and we are cleansed by it.
Suddenly the meaning of baptism

is clear to me: you can begin again,
and we are saved every day.

"In the heat of late afternoon..." by Gary Young, from Even So: New & Selected Poems. © White Pine Press, 2012.

Werewolves - A Month In Review

Wow - March is coming to a close.  I can't even believe it.  It's been a wild ride.  The weather has been insane and the time has flown by.  We had a wonderful time at Just Another Paranormal Monday sharing some of our favorite Werewolves and discuss alot of interesting facts and features.  There was a ton of information that shared and learned.  If you missed it here is a quick catch-up:

Lychanthropy:

Lycanthropy is the professed ability or power of a human being to transform into a wolf, or to gain wolf-like characteristics. The term comes from Greek Lykànthropos, lykos ("wolf"), ànthrōpos ("human"). The word lycanthropy is sometimes used generically for any transformation of a human into animal form, though the precise term for that is technically "therianthropy". Sometimes, "zoanthropy" is used instead of "therianthropy".

The word has also been linked to Lycaon, a king of Arcadia who, according to Ovid's Metamorphoses, was turned into a ravenous wolf in retribution for attempting to serve human flesh (his own son) to visiting Zeus in an attempt to disprove the god's divinity.

A more modern use of the word is in reference to a mental illness called lycanthropy in which a patient believes he or she is, or has transformed into, an animal and behaves accordingly. This is sometimes referred to as clinical lycanthropy to distinguish it from its use in legends.

Angels & Demons - a month in review

Angels & Demons - a month in review


We featured Angels & Demons for the month of February over at Just Another Paranormal Monday so if you missed all of the amazing author features, posts and research -- here's a recap:

The Seven Archangels:

The word archangel derives from the Greek archángelos, (or arkhangelos), meaning chief angel. So we can conclude that archangels are in charge of other angels and/or cosmic activities. Archangels are, in a way, celestial captains - high-ranking divine officials so to speak.

In medieval Christian angelology, archangels belonged to one of the nine orders of angels. Interestingly, according to this angel hierarchy archangels are one of the lower orders, just slightly above the angels.

How many archangels are there? The answer depends on who you ask. The Roman Catholic Church, for example, only recognizes three archangels: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The Coptic Church recognizes Uriel as the fourth archangel. The Coptic tradition also venerates Aniel, Sarathiel and Zadakiel as archangels.

Because Michael is the only archangel mentioned by name in the Bible (in fact, he’s the only angel addressed as "the archangel"), Protestant Christians believe he is the only archangel.

The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates seven archangels: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Barachiel, Jegudiel, and Selaphiel.

The Seven Archangels

The 7 archangels are first mentioned as a group in the Book of Enoch. Here they were listed as Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Raguel, Remiel and Saraqael.

In medieval times, Pseudo-Dionysius would give a new list of the archangels: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Chamuel, Jophiel, and Zadkiel. Metaphysical teachers and New Age mystics also recognize these as being the seven archangels who work on the seven rays.

Get Steamed!

Steampunk - a Just Another Paranormal Monday Feature



We're kicking off 2012 at Just Another Paranormal Monday with a roaring start - right into the
mechanical, manical and other-wordly realm of gizmos, gadgets and the probability of bending time.

Some of our readers might ask themselves - What is Steampunk? Well, according to Webster it is --
a subgenre of science fiction and fantasy featuring advanced machines and other technology based on steam
power of the 19th century and taking place in a recognizable historical period or a fantasy world.

So, being the consumate seekers of knowledge we've dug up some dirt and asked fiction author, Joe Vadalma to assist us with a bit of research - here's what he found:

Steampunk

by Joe Vadalma



Because this is Steampunk week on Just Another Paranormal Monday, I've been asked to do a piece on this subgenre of science fiction and fantasy. Actually, the only Steampunk novel I've ever read was The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. This novel is an archetype of the subgenre.

For you who do not what Steampunk is, it is closely related to Alternate History and may even be considered a subgenre of a subgenre. To quote Wikipedia, "Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used – usually Victorian era Britain or the 'Wild West' era of the United States – that incorporates elements of science fiction or fantasy. Works of Steampunk often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic inovations as Victorians may have envisioned them ... This technology includes fictional machines as those found in the works of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne ..." The term Steampunk was coined by a Science Fiction writer, K.W. Jeter, in a letter that accompanied to a submission of his novel Morlock Night.