Maggie Secara's Blog

So, see, I've sold a few hundred copies of Molly September since 2011 when it came out. It's always been the most neglected of my titles. It's the book I started so long ago the origins are lost in myth and legend and rewrote almost from scratch at least four times.

But see, I never meant to self-publish. I wanted the dream, the whole Louisa May Alcott dream, I've been carrying around all my life of having an  editor call and offer a good contract and a hefty advance. I wanted my book to be selected for the Book of the Month Club, for gawdssake, and glad readers starting listserv discussion groups and lining up at the bookstore. For millions of people to be reading my book at the beach, or under the covers with a flashlight and imagining themselves as Molly or Prentiss, or imaging Prentiss taking their hand and whispering, "Come with me, Sweet."  And arguing with their friends over who should play them in the movie. I loved - and still love - these characters so much, I wanted the world to love them too.

There's a much longer story here, as you can imagine, since clearly, that's not what happened. I am not yet living by my quill pen. I still have to go to work every day to keep me in ink and foolscap. And you don't want to sit through all that. In fact, I just cut away about 1200 words of detail to spare you. Get me drunk some time. Ask me then.

 Anyway, I published Molly September in 2011 under the Popinjay Press imprint, same as the Compendium. The paper version is a print-on-demand paperback printed and distributed through Amazon's Create Space. The e-book was until this morning from Bookbaby.com. They haven't done anything wrong. They're a pretty good service at a reasonable price, the book version of CDBaby, but Smashwords provides more flexibility. Easier to change prices, run a special or a giveaway, and so on. And so today, I decided to just make the move. And to celebrate a new beginning, and to let everyone know we're here - me, Molly and Prentiss - I've set the price to FREE!

Can't hurt. Might help!

The paper version is still on Amazon
The e-book will be there too, once the several services get synced up. For now, here's where you want to look.: Molly on Smashwords
And by all means pass the word! Write reviews! Have fun! This book is a party!

The new portions of "Black Dog, Grey Lady" have at last encountered the new, so the writing pace is changing as I try to dovetail the pieces and smooth over the seams. 



I'm also putting time in on a new web site. A real website, that is, with a more professional, less accidental look. I should have something for everyone to look at very soon!

It does. It's one more thing, in a world of more things, that takes away from time I could be writing the books that get people interested in my blog. In general when I have something to say, I turn it into fiction, although that's not entirely true. Sometimes I turn it into a Facebook post. And I guess if I can do it there, I can do something similar here. And maybe a bit of a blog now and then makes people interested in reading my books.

I know I should put it on a regular reliable schedule, so let's say every other Monday you'll get whatever occurs to me to share: some observations, some notes on whatever research topic I'm obsessing about, character descriptions, interesting words, old fairy art, new fairy art, places I've been, other fairy, faerie, Fae, and fantasy stuff,

MONSTERS!

and NO SPOILERS

And oh yes, PARDON MY DUST while I fiddle with the website in radical ways!

Thanks for hosting me on your blog Maggie, as I navigate the choppy waters of publishing for the first time.
This is my first novel, and it is available on Amazon, Kobo, iBooks and Nook.
Let's sneak a look into my main character's past, present and future…
Her present:  Melissa lives in Edinburgh which certainly beats working two dead-end jobs in a dead-end town and staying with her Mum. Thank goodness for her friends. 
Julie, her bestie, always has her back, even if she does have a new boyfriend-shaped growth. 
Gerry regularly introduces her to eligible men, so it’s OK to ignore his belief that women belong in the kitchen. 
And the new guy James…perhaps he could be more than just a friend?
Her past: Melissa can’t stop thinking about things her dad said when he was alive. Re-playing warnings about teenage boyfriends and the over-use of the phone might not help, but it’s all she has left of him. Will obsessing about her past block the path to happy ever after?
Her future : Stressful days with a toddler, filled with love, paint, wee (or is it just water?) and ‘I’m not eating that!’ Is every day to be a solo-parenting day for Melissa?
It’s hard work searching for The One when you’re a modern, independent, strident, lonely feminist. From noisy pub to folk club, from broken heart to new start, you’ll end up rooting for Melissa, despite her despicable decisions and massive mistakes.
A story about frog-kissing, bed-hopping, sliding off your lily-pad with embarrassment, and croaking with joy.

Photo by Gordon BellAnd this is me, pleased as punch just
after Crooked Cat signed the book.You can find How Many Wrongs make a Mr Right?  at these fine booksellers!
US Amazon UK Amazon Kobo Nook i Books

And you can find Stella here!Please come and say ‘hi’ in any of these placesMy blog space is https://atinylife140.wordpress.com/Twitter is @atinylife140I have a page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stellaherveybirrell/?ref=hlEmail me at [email protected]I can also be found wandering the streets of various East Lothian villages.

                    Let's start the year with an interesting bit of history from Tim Taylor!






Hello, Maggie, lovely to visit you again.



My novel Revolution Day follows a year in the life of Latin American dictator Carlos Almanzor. Carlos is a fictional figure and is not based upon any particular individual. Nevertheless, his life and career share many elements with those of real dictators and in some cases I consciously drew on historical events in writing the novel.

I thought it would be interesting to explore, in a series of blog posts, the lives of some real-life dictators, and to look for similarities and differences between their careers and characters and those of my own fictional dictator. Today I am discussing Alfredo Stroessner of Paraguay.

Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda was born in Encarnacion, Paraguay in 1913, the son of a German
immigrant and the daughter of a prominent local family. He joined the army in 1929 and enjoyed a successful military career, distinguishing himself in the Chacos war with Bolivia in the early 1930s and subsequently in the Paraguayan civil war in 1947, where he supported President Higinio Moríñigo. He became a brigadier in 1948 and Chief of Staff of the army in 1951.

In May 1954 Stroessner led a coup to overthrow President Federico Chaves. He was then the only candidate in a presidential election which duly elected him in July. He was elected seven more times, but in one election he was the only candidate and in others his overwhelming share of the vote does not suggest a fair contest. For much of his time in power, his own right wing Colorado party was the only one permitted, and membership of the party was effectively a prerequisite for high office.

Positive achievements of Stroessner’s regime major infrastructure projects such as the founding of Ciudad del Este, now the second largest city in Paraguay, stability and economic growth. These were at the cost of high levels of corruption and a very poor record on human rights. Stroessner declared a ‘state of siege’ which allowed him to suspend public liberties; this remained in force until 1987. Public works projects too often had a heavy human cost: for example, the building of the Itaipu dam displaced 80,000 people. As a staunch anti-communist, Stroessner at first enjoyed good relations with the United States, though this changed in the 1970’s when the Carter presidency baulked at his regime’s human rights abuses.

Stroessner’s long reign finally came to an end in much the same way it had begun, when his relations with certain generals deteriorated, precipitating the coup that deposed him in February 1989. He spent the last seventeen years of his life in exile in Brazil.

Stroessner and CarlosI chose to write about Stroessner because of some striking similarities to my protagonist, Carlos Almanzor. This is not to say that Carlos was inspired by him (although some aspects of his life and career were inspired by other historical dictators) – but writing the novel prompted me to do a bit of research, and when I came across Stroessner I was struck by the parallels.

Politically, the two are at opposite ends of the spectrum, at least to begin with ­– Stroessner on the right, Carlos on the left (though he moves to the right as his regime progresses). In other respects, however, they have much in common. One parallel is longevity: Stroessner was in power for thirty-five years; Revolution Day begins on the thirty-seventh anniversary of the revolution that brought Carlos to power. A second is the measures both men resort to in order to remain in power. Both men desire the legitimacy conveyed by democratic elections; both subvert the democratic process to ensure the desired result. Both also rely on an oppressive security apparatus, subjecting dissidents to torture, imprisonment, execution and ‘disappearance’.

The third and most striking similarity is that both men faced their greatest threat from someone who appeared to be their staunchest ally. In Stroessner’s case, it was General Andres Rodriguez, his son-in-law, friend and confidant for many years, who led the coup that deposed him. The threat to Carlos comes from Manuel Jimenez, his long-standing Vice-President and Minister for Information and Security, who is dissatisfied with his subordinate role. The main storyline of the novel follows the progress of Manuel’s plan to overthrow Carlos. Lacking a military power base, he must proceed not by force but through intrigue, misinformation, manipulation and blackmail. As to whether he succeeds, I will leave that for readers to find out!


Information about the book and excerpts can be found on the Revolution Day page on my website: http://www.tetaylor.co.uk/#!revday/cwpf.


Connect with Tim E. TaylorTim's Website His Facebook author page  Twitter  Revolution Day on Amazon.co.uk: 
Who is this Tim E. Taylor, Anyway?
Tim was born in 1960 in Stoke-on-Trent. He studied Classics at Pembroke College, Oxford (and later Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London). After a couple of years playing in a rock band, he joined the Civil Service, eventually leaving in 2011 to spend more time writing.

Tim now lives in Yorkshire with his wife and daughter and divides his time between creative writing, academic research and part-time teaching and other work for Leeds and Huddersfield Universities.

Tim’s first novel, Zeus of Ithome, a historical novel about the struggle of the ancient Messenians to free themselves from Sparta, was published by Crooked Cat in November 2013; his second, Revolution Day in June 2015. Tim also writes poetry and the occasional short story; he plays guitar, and likes to walk up hills.

It's a busy week around here. We have another guest for your entertainment and all for your delight. Crooked Cat colleague Claire Stibbes is here to talk about her writing process and her new books! 
Hi Claire, what's up?

Hi Maggie!
Thank you so much for inviting me to your website this chilly, snowy December morning. Well, it is here in New Mexico, USA, where cedar fires are burning in every hearth and people are already slugging down that eggnog by the jug.
I just want to say WOW, is it December already? That means National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) has ended. Congratulations to some of the Crooked Cat Publishing authors who took part in it and finished.
Crooked Cat Publishing released the first in my Detective Temeke series, The 9th Hour, in November of this year. One of the hardest obstacles of writing is the perfectionism we authors have with our books. Does it read well? Does it makes sense? Is it even interesting? We know every word counts and venturing onto that blank page with words that either stick or get deleted the following day is a daunting task. I’m always wandering between the park and my office in the search for scenes, words and great dialogue. I brainstorm, tell and re-tell. I watch the weather for signs, smells and sounds.
In my fictional world, the characters are the ones who lead the book. They take me to places my structure never knew existed and trample on any specific sequence of events I may have penned in advance. With fiction, it’s all smoke and mirrors and outlines… Eh? What’s an outline anyway?
I loved writing The 9th Hour because it became spontaneous, exciting and nothing like I imagined it would be. Detective Temeke strayed off those pages into a world of his own and I had to run to keep up. He can be downright stubborn and thoughtless, but his sniffer is the most accurate yet. The only problem is, Temeke is the one who, by hook or by crook, always raises the stakes. Any conflict with him is going to be high.
Malin Santiago becomes larger as the series grows. In the second book, Night Eyes, she is more settled in her role as Temeke’s partner. She watches and learns as one does in a new job. It’s not until the third book that she literally jumps off the page.  I have tremendous respect for her and Temeke as I do for real detectives in the real world. If it wasn’t for the detectives I’ve spent valuable time with, these characters would be as flat as a cow pat.
When I finished the second book, Night Eyes, there was a round of applause in my house and a time of great celebration. As I embark on the third in the series over the next nine weeks, I’m reminded of a small voice saying — finishing is the single thing that separates those who want to write from those who actually have. So I keep learning and I keep writing. There’s nothing I’d rather do.
If you enjoy psychological thrillers mixed with a little Scandinavian noir, The 9th Hour is available on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo and Smashwords. It is also on sale for 99c / 99p for a short time over the Christmas season.
Thank you for hosting me!

Thanks so much for coming, Clair! Now how about some links?
Connect with Claire Stibbes
LIKE Claire Stibbes on Facebook
FOLLOW Claire on Twitter
Check out her website
Why not sign up for her newsletter
And of course, Buy Claire's books at http://authl.it/4h5 (amazon, all regions)

Amazon.com The 9th Hour

About Claire
Originally from England, Claire lived in Hong Kong for three years before eventually finding a second home in New Mexico, USA. Her genres include Historical Fiction, Action and Adventure, Psychological Thriller, Mystery and Suspense.

She has also written short stories for Breakwater Harbor Books. The collection won Best Anthology of 2014 in the Independent Book Awards hosted by eFestival of Words.
She has completed the second in the Detective Temeke series and is currently working on the third book in which she explores how even in the darkness of criminal depravity the light of faith is never entirely extinguished.

Other books by Claire Stibbes
Chasing Pharaohs
The Fowler’s Snare

Today I'm doing a little favor for the extraordinary Ailsa Abraham. If you don't know her yet, you might want to pop over to her lovely blog.  For now, here's her post!

TWO DAYS ONLY! YULE LOVE THIS IDEA!We celebrate the Winter Solstice or Yule, so as my gift to you readers I would like to present — for the two days of 22nd and 23rd December only — both books in the Alchemy series at 99p or 99 cents each for an e-book. 
Come on, less than a cup of coffee? Lasts longer and keeps you awake better!Click on this link to see them on Amazon in YOUR country.Universal Amazon link - anywhere in the world
Plenty of five star reviews for both books, and the third one is on the way. Grab them while they're this price!
WHAT DO YOU GET?Book 1 ALCHEMY   A world without war? Professor Sawhele Fielding stumbles across an invention that would change the world; something so monumental, it could spell the[image error] end of environmental disaster and conflict. With the help of her father, a shadowy figure in the world of international banking, she begins to set into motion the biggest upheaval the planet has seen. But in a changed world, dark forces are threatening the fragile peace. Where modern technology is proving useless, old magic from a bygone era might just save the day. Adrian Oliver, expert in ancient religions is skeptical until faced with incontrovertible proof that ancient evil is abroad once again. 
How could a Utopian dream of free fuel and peaceful co-existence turn into a nightmare? Iamo, a priest of the Mother Goddess and Riga, a Black Shaman assassin captain, are thrown together - reluctantly at first - to face a threat that nobody could have imagined before "The Changes". ALCHEMY is the prequel to Shaman's Drum which features the adventures of Iamo and Riga through their world in the near future, where the established religions of our own days had been banned. 
[image error]
Book 2 SHAMAN'S DRUM   England in the near future. Mainstream religions have been outlawed, and the old gods rule again. Iamo has been a priest of the Great Mother and is sworn to celibacy, but his love for Riga, a Black Shaman, a magical assassin, caused him to break his vows. After being imprisoned apart from each other for three years, Iamo accepts an offer to earn them both a pardon and the possibility of marriage. If they survive. Iamo and Riga must discover why demons are breaking through from the other side. 
Which of the cults are renegades who allow the demons through? Who can they trust? Combining their powers, they face the ordeal with the help of a band of eclectic pagans, spirit creatures, Riga's Black Shaman brothers, an undercover Christian granny, and three unusually energetic Goths. It's a tough assignment, but the hope of a life together keeps them fighting.
Are you ready to read now? Here's the link again to the Kindle download that's perfect for where you live.

A personal revelation has been growing on me now for several weeks. The big problem with Ben and Raven's nowhere-near finished fourth adventure is that it got way too complicated. Too many characters, too much going on for me to remember no matter what clever methods or programs I employed. Too much stuff! Someone in my Facebook fan group said... well, I don't remember exactly, but I have finally concluded that they were right. There are two books here trying to happen at once.

One of them is Titania's story: fantastical, mythical, musical! With the binding spells woven into a silken gown, the crystal spectacles, the pressure of the Unseelie Court.The relationship between Titania and Oberon, their own histories. All the things I've shared with you this year, and lots more. That's the skein to which everything else must spin. This will be Island of Echoes, starring Ben Harper and the ever adorable Raven.

The other is London, 1939-40, which was meant to provide one of three earthy subplots and a couple of supporting characters: 14-year-old Nick Bell and his sister Minnie. But in the course of researching and creating them and their backstory and the people around them who also connect to the main thread, well, it kind of got out of hand. So I'm pulling out all the Blitz scenes to rebuild, somehow, for The Face in the Wall, starring Nick and Minnie Bell and (wait for it) Dominic "Sparrow" Harper-Powell.
Ideally, the two novels will have cross-over, interconnecting threads and characters, songs and themes. Because I also envision a third and concluding novel to what will be an actual trilogy, provisionally called Queen's Champion.

So... There it is. Wish me luck!

And by the way...

You can find all of Ben and Raven's current adventures in both paper and e-versions, and a few other interesting things to read, at amazon.com and all your favorite online booksellers

I am delighted to welcome another of my fellow Crooked Cat authors, Tim E. Taylor, to the blog this month.

His latest novel, Revolution Day, was released this past June, and like the rest of the Crooked Cat lineup is on sale this week at Amazon. There are some links below to help you find them.


Hello, Maggie, thanks very much for inviting me onto your blog.


Like yours, my books draw heavily on history. My first, Zeus of Ithome, was straightforwardly a historical novel. It was based on real events – the revolt of the ancient Messenian people against their Spartan overlords in the 4th century BC, and the wider power struggles in Greece which made this possible – and brought them to life through the personal stories of both fictional and historical characters.


My latest, Revolution Day (Crooked Cat 2015), has a rather different relationship with history. It too was inspired – rather more loosely – by real events: in this case, the downfall, in the space of a few months, of one autocratic ruler after another during the ‘Arab Spring’. How could it be, I wondered, that these strongmen who had been in power for decades and seemed unassailable, suddenly became vulnerable? My interest was not so much in the specific causes of those events but in the nature of autocratic power, its effects on those who wield it, and its ultimate fragility.

Having decided that I wanted to explore these issues in my next novel, I soon came up with my central character, ageing dictator Carlos Almanzor. I settled on Latin America rather than the Middle East, partly because I also wanted a strong, politically active female character – Juanita, Carlos’s estranged and imprisoned wife, who is writing a memoir about his regime and their marriage. Carlos is not a monster – he was once an idealist – and does not crave power for its own sake. Rather, he has become deluded by it and convinced that only he can be trusted with the stewardship of the state, so must do whatever is necessary to maintain his control.

His Vice-President, Manuel, does desire power for its own sake. Lacking a military power base, he seeks to gain it not by force but by intrigue, manipulating the perceptions of Carlos and those around him to drive a wedge between Carlos and Angel, the commander of the Army. As he starts to pull the strings, Juanita becomes an unwitting participant in his plans.

Since I wasn’t trying to recreate specific events (the characters and even the country in which the story is set are fictional), I could be eclectic in borrowing from history. Thus Carlos is not based on any particular historical dictator, but aspects of his personality and career (and Juanita’s) have historical precedents. So Revolution Day is not a historical novel, but still owes its inspiration, and much of its colour, to history.



A Sample from Revolution DayCarlos’s private secretary, Felipe, has persuaded him to show a more human face to the world by doing an informal video blog. As they discover here, this has its down side...
             The President was sitting back in his armchair, dressed in an open-necked white shirt and slacks. As time had gone on, the Admiral’s uniform had fallen by the wayside piece by piece. The angle of his back reclined a few degrees each week from its original bolt upright position, until his most recent appearances on the internet now saw him draped almost languidly over the chair. As he began to speak, his voice too lacked the stiff formality of his early blog posts. 
           “This has been a difficult week,” he began. “For some time now, there have been rumours that foreign agencies are seeking to destabilise our country, as they have done in the past. I am not one to worry too much about rumours, but evidence is beginning to emerge that I cannot ignore. There are people who should be loyal to this nation, but are instead trying to undermine it.” As he spoke, a synthesised dance beat began in the background, and the image of the president started to shift jerkily from side to side in time with it. “They will be…” he continued after a pause, with a bass drum beat underlining each word. In the original version, broadcast a week before, he had continued with the words “…found, they will be brought to justice,” but now the words “found” and “brought to justice” were replaced by “tortured” and “impaled on stakes”, and in time with these words the President’s eyes bulged out of their sockets and a monstrous erection poked out of his trousers. Then, as the music continued, images of corpses, prominent dissidents, and protestors being beaten by police flashed onto the screen, before the President returned again for the chorus. “They will be tortured, they will be impaled on stakes…”

          “Felipe, come here!” The command was issued in a voice that brooked no delay, and the private secretary was by his side within seconds. “Look at this. A seditious website has broadcast an obscene parody of my blog. That is not all. I have found other material on the internet that mocks my blog, and makes vicious allegations against me. We must identify the perpetrators and have them arrested.”

          Felipe composed himself before speaking. “With all due respect, Presidente, we are unlikely to be in a position to do that. Unless they have been so kind as to put their names to the parody, there is no easy way of finding out who they are. In all probability, they are not based in this country anyway.”

          Carlos turned upon him angrily. “So this ‘blog’ that you have cajoled and bullied me into doing, against my own better judgement, has served only to expose me to ridicule and slander that my enemies can disseminate with complete impunity. Why have you wasted so much of my time on this completely pointless and self-defeating project? Take that stupid camera and computer off my desk immediately.”

Learn More about Tim's Books
You can find out more about Tim Taylor's books on his blog: RevolutionDay   Zeus of Ithome   
Other linksFacebookWebsiteBlogTwitterCrooked Cat   


Both books are available this week for 99¢/99p in the Crooked Cat Summer Sale at Amazon. 
Look for Revolution Day hereAmazon.co.ukAmazon.com

You'll find Zeus of Ithome hereAmazon.co.ukAmazon.com

About T. E. Taylor          T. E.Taylor was born in 1960 in Stoke-on-Trent, England. He studied Classics at Pembroke College, Oxford (and later Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London). After a couple of years playing in a rock band, he joined the Civil Service, eventually leaving in 2011 to spend more time writing. He now lives in Yorkshire with his wife and daughter and divides his time between creative writing, academic research and part-time teaching and other work for Leeds and Huddersfield Universities.          Tim’s first novel, Zeus of Ithome, a historical novel about the struggle of the ancient Messenians to free themselves from Sparta, was published by Crooked Cat in 2013; his second, Revolution Day in 2015.  Tim also writes poetry and the occasional short story, plays guitar, and likes to walk up hills.

If you haven't seen Unsung Stories yet, a webzine of science fiction and fantasy, now might be  good day for discovery. Why? Because my first story for them is out today! 

I never was very good at short stories, but this past year I've returned to the form to try and crack both the mystery and the market. Little by little, I think I'm figuring it out. "Charmed and Strange" is an odd little piece that started literally with a dream, then took a while to spin out. At least, here is the result!

If you like it, please let them know at the 'zine. You could post a comment here, too, and of course, please share the link with your networks!


Charmed and Strangeby Maggie Secara