Flying horses, teens, and other general weirdness

 

photo courtesy of flash-screen.com

Isn't he beautiful? I give you a moment to ogle and swoon.




*whistles*



*taps finger*



*stares at ceiling*



Okay, so now that you've had a chance to get a good look at the magical creature and revisit your childhood fantasies, let me enlighten you on the reason for his presence.

You see, for the last six months I have done nothing but live and breath vampires. I finished The Vampire Novelist, ran it through several edits, rewrote the first five chapters a gazillion times, submitted it to the requesting agents and editors from the Spring Intensive, and have received several rejections. One is still pending. Living in the dark world has been an adventure filled with blood and tears. It's not over yet. I truly believe in my characters and the story.

BUT, I'm taking a break to write something new and different. Just like last winter when I wrote the contemporary romance, I'm diving into a genre I never expected myself to write in.

Last weekend after coming home from seeing Harry Potter 7 Part 2 (which by-the-way is freaking AWESOME), I fell asleep twirling a new idea. I woke up about 3am and began writing. Today I'm four chapters into a young adult fantasy novel involving a Pegasus and a sixteen year old girl with the "sight."

Six months ago, if you would have asked me if I was interested in writing a YA novel, I would have laughed. Never say never, right? Here's where the weirdness comes in, I'm actually liking writing from a teenager's perspective.

If you know me, you know I've never really related to teens. Even when I was in high school I couldn't stand them. Now, it's not that I don't like teens. Quite the opposite, I LOVE YA novels. Hello! Did you read my last post on Twilight?

I just never expected myself to write in the genre. Yet today I find myself writing about an awkward period in a girl's life. Throw in some quirky supernatural gifts, a portal into the Otherworld, waterfalls, magic, and hot guys,  and we've got ourselves an interesting story.

Her story really is drawing me in and I find myself thinking of her and her flying stallion friend throughout the day wondering what will happen to them next.

And to my vampire-loving friends, I'm not shelving my blood-sucking baby. It's a little break, which will help the heart grow founder and give me fresh eyes to tackle my little fiends. So wish me luck and I leave you with another gorgeous rendition of the object of my inspiration.

Photo courtesy of Google images

Traveling through Twilight

Does this beach look familiar to you? Well if you've watched New Moon you'll recognize it is La Push Beach. Freaking AWESOME, eh? I was THERE.

Proof I was there!

As I mentioned in my last post, I had the recent privilege to visit the beautiful Victoria, BC. On the way back we decided to drive through Forks and swing in to La Push. We'd driven through Forks way back in Spring 2007 before the Twilight craze. My husband even treated me to Bella Italia in Port Angeles, because it was the only decent place to eat. I remember seeing the sign to La Push, put didn't go. We were there to visit Olympic National Park so I could get extra credit in my Geology of the National Parks class at Portland State University. I didn't know anything about La Push, except that the highway sign indicated it was an Indian Reservation and it completely out of our way.

*CONFESSIONS* (You have been warned)

In the fall 2008, I finally read Twilight and my old flame for vampires reignited. Smitten and Bitten! Okay, okay, I admit it. I love Twilight. Team Edward all the way. *swoon*  Ahem, yes and since I had been in the area just the year before, all my memories of the place were intact. I could close my eyes and almost feel like I was there. Stephenie Meyer captured the location perfectly. My heart longed to go back and explore the area once again.

My wish finally came to fruition last month. Unfortunately we didn't make the earlier ferry from Victoria and that meant no time to explore. I didn't even have time to snap a picture of Jacob's rental (which looks like his home in the movies complete with motorcycle in front yard) or Jacob's Java. But here's a shot of the convenient store on the Reservation and a fun bulletin board out front.

The notes are addressed to Jacob, but there is some Edward love there too. Though I stared endlessly into the lush forests lining the highway, I didn't spot any massive wolves or pale humans running at inhumanly speeds.

2007- Forks was a tiny sleepy town non-residents drove through to get from one part of Olympic National Park to the other. Those were the tourists of the area. NOW- I saw as many different license plates from all over the North American continent as I had in Victoria. These weren't people coming to visit the park. Oh I'm sure they did, since they were there, but that isn't what brought them in the first place.

While in Victoria, we saw a German family with small children on one of the tours we took. Then we spotted them & their rental RV on our ferry coming to Port Angeles. When we were driving out of La Push we saw their RV again headed to the reservation RV park. Now don't tell me the young mother isn't a Twilight fan! Why else would they travel all the way from Germany to La Push?

We drove back out of La Push and on down to Forks. What I had read online and in newspapers about the affect Twilight had on Forks was confirmed. At least 50% or more of the signs in front of shops referenced something related to Twilight.

Talk about an economic boost! The power of the written word. And it all started with a dream....

Seduced by Shadows and other things.

Hello Friends,

Again I apologize for the delay in my blogging. The month of June as been one big blur of birthdays, writing, anniversaries, writing, book events, plotting a possible new series, Father's day, editing, housewarming parties, editing, graduations, editing, traveling, editing, festivals, editing, friends having babies, editing and everything else in between.

I currently find myself in a hotel in Victoria, BC with a free moment to blog about the book which has filled my well during all of the madness of the month. Seduced by Shadows by Jessa Slade has been one of the most fascinating novels I've read in a long time.

Jessa has created a spectacular urban fantasy world based in Chicago. The way she describes the sights and sounds of the city, I thought I was there smelling the vile demonic creatures roaming the streets at night and freezing my butt off as the chilling winds off the gigantic lake sweep through the city in the late fall. Jessa's use of words is not only amazing but intellectual. She challenged my knowledge of vocabulary and therefore filled my well.

The main story is about Sera Littlejohn and Ferris Archer, one about to become demon possessed and the other already. Ferris is there for Sera who is going through the possession. Their chemistry is fiery and explosive. I loved the romance, but what attracted me most was the premise of the story. We're talking DEMONS here, BUT they are repentant demons. Basically they are fighting evil to win back favor with God. It's a concept I've wondered about all of my life. What if there were demons who realized they had totally gone wrong and wanted to repent? It's a fantastic idea to explore.

If you like urban fantasy with adrenaline pumping action and blazing romance weaved throughout, Seduced by Shadows is the book I STRONGLY recommend. This is the first book of The Marked Souls series. Forged in Shadows is the sequel. Vowed in Shadows is book three. All are available for purchase a your local book store or here.

And one of these days I'm going to post the crazy dream I had after reading the first chapter of Seduced. Till then I bid you farewell.

Dark Days of Summer Tour

Greetings!

Last Wednesday I had the opportunity to attend the Portland stop of Dark Days of Summer Tour sponsored by HarperTeen. YA Authors featured (in above photo left to right) Amy Plum author of Die for Me, Tara Hudson author of Hereafter, Aprilynne Pike author of Illusions, Veronica Roth author of Divergent,  and Ellen Schreiber author of the Vampire Kisses series.

The main reason I attended was Aprilynne Pike. I love her Wings series and she is such a delight to speak with, listen to, and all round great person. She is funny and very down to earth. I first met her two years ago when I attended this event to meet Kim Harrison, my favorite urban fantasy author EVER. Aprilynne was the debut author that year and I took note of her book for future reading. Three months later I checked Wings out from the library, read it in one day, and fell in love with the faerie world Aprilynne had created. This year, I had books for her to sign and even got my picture with her.

This year the there were three debut authors: Amy Plum, Veronica Roth, and Tara Hudson. All three debut novels captured my attention. I wanted to buy them all and have them signed, BUT I only allowed myself one this time. Which book did I buy?

The winner was Die for Me by Amy Plum. What about the book attracted me? 1. The author lives in France. That factoid triggered all sorts of romantic ideas about writing and inspiration. 2. The story takes place in Paris. PARIS! The perfect place for a supernatural setting. 3. The immortal creatures in her story are a cross between zombies and gods. I want to know what kind of mythology she has developed. 4. The cover is absolutely gorgeous. Me being a total dork, I didn't hold up the book when I got my picture taken with Amy.

I haven't read the book yet, but once I do I'll post a review and cover. Till then, Click here to view cover.

Speaking of reviews, stay tune next week for a review on Jessa Slade's Seduced by Shadows. Now that I've finished my first draft of The Vampire Novelist, I've been reading again which means book review posts the next couple of weeks just in time for Summer.

Writing Progress: First editing phase 70% complete. So far so good. :)

Cheers!

Walking on stars

Above is the reason I haven't blogged in a while. And no, I wasn't shooting a vampire flick even though I was in Hollywood surrounded by stars-literally.

Bela Lugosi, in my mind, will always be THE Dracula, though Gary Oldman did a phenomenal job portraying the blood sucking fiend.

Seeing his star on Hollywood Boulevard sparked a desire to share with you a few factoids Mr Lugosi:

• Did you know Bela Lugosi played Dracula in a Broadway show before he went on to play the role in the famous film?
• Bela Lugosi is NOT Romanian, but Hungarian. Romanians weren't to pleased by the fact a Magyar was to play the most famous Romanian of all even though Mr Vlad Tepes himself had strong ties with the Hungarian royalty. But I digress...
• Bela Lugosi's children had him buried with his cap, but it's not the original one he wore during the 1931 film Dracula.

 Thank you for reading and I will leave you with the highlight of my walk on stars.

Emma, Daniel, and Rupert. The fab three of Harry Potter! Evidence of how well-written books can have such a huge influence in pop-culture.

What are your favorite books turned movies?

Strigoi

Greetings!

I had planned to post this on Wednesday, but all week has been a whirlwind of editing and synopsis/query letter writing. Friday morning, I submitted for the very first time to a publishing industry professional in NY. My hands trembled uncontrollably as my cursor hovered over the send button. My stomach flutters now just thinking about it. What is done is done and now the waiting game commences. But while we wait, let’s talk about strigoi.

Photo courtesy of Google Images.

The word strigoi originates from the Latin word strix which means witch or demon. In Romania, strigoi are referred to as troubled spirits of the dead who prey on humans. They are a cross between a poltergeist and a vampire in that they cause all sorts of mischief to their surviving families and sustain themselves with blood (both human and animal). Some claim the strigoi can possess other’s bodies or take on animal forms like pricolicii, a creature similar to a werewolf. They are not supposed to be sexy or glamorous. As you can see from the picture above.

Now there are two kinds of strigoi. Strigoi vii and mort. Vii are living vampires and are often referred to as witches.  Mort are the dead. They are the ones which prey on human blood. Yup, you figured it out. Strigoi vii become morti when they die. Once dead, he or she has to return their grave frequently—more specifically during the day.

How does one become a strigoi? *laughs* The ways are endless and they don’t involve being bitten. To name a few:

·         Being born out of wedlock

·         Die before being baptized

·         Born with a caul or tail

·         Unnatural death

·         Unmarried people

·         A cat walks over your dead corpse

And the list goes on. Have I mentioned Romanians are highly superstitious? So what if you are bitten by a strigoi? Chances are when you die you may become one of them, unless the priest intercedes at the time of death and in your burial.

How do you ward off strigoi? Garlic. Stakes, Fire. If you ever get a chance to drive through the countryside of Romania, you will see braids of garlic and herbs hanging from front gates of people’s homes. Yes, even today there are many believers in these myths. 

How do you kill a strigoi? There are multitude of ways and it all depends on the stage in with the strigoi is in. If they are in the wrath stage floating about, one must exhume the body and pierce a stake through their heart. The gypsies suggest sticking a clove of garlic in the mouth as well. If they are a fully developed strigoi, a stake through the heart, decapitation, and burning the body would do the trick. When the grave in which the strigoi inhabits cannot be found, the best time to kill a strigoi is while they are feeding because they are completely distracted by the blood.

Here is the key for a strigoi to survive. It is believed that if the strigoi goes undetected for seven years he or she are free to leave their original grave and lead a normal life among humans. Obviously they would have to live somewhere where they are not recognized. They are no longer bound to their own grave except for Saturdays when they must find a grave to spend the day in or on a special undead holiday. When they reach this state, they become immortally beautiful.

So now you know a little more about the vampires of Romania and some of the mythology I have woven throughout my novel. Most of this information I gleaned from the internet and tales my grandmother used to tell me when I was a child. She had a great way of getting me to go to bed or eat my carrots. “If you’re not a good girl, the strigoiul will find you . . .” I also understand now why Romanians eat lots of garlic.

Would love to hear your thoughts and comments.

Dracula's Castle

Greetings!

In case you were wondering, I haven't turned into a vampire yet. The writing is going well. I'm at 85K as of this morning.

As promised, a post about vampires. Who is the most famous of the legends? Dracula (aka Vlad Tepes or Vlad the Impaler). Made famous by Bram Stoker 1897 novel Dracula, Vlad Tepes has fascinated the minds around the globe and Hollywood only added to the fervor. Who can forget Bela Lugosi's hair-raising portrayal of the undead Transylvanian superstar?

With the resurgence of vampire frenzy in the last couple of years, thanks to the lovely Stephanie Meyer, Romania has once again attracted the world's attention. I can not tell you how many ghost hunting shows and other documentaries about the real Dracula on TV I've seen.

Here's a little factoid you may not have known: There are no Romanian legends that claim Vlad Tepes was a vampire. Yes he was a notorious ruler and shed blood without batting an eyelash, but Romanians don't consider him a vampire. Some think of him as a hero for defeating the Turkish armies. Oh, yeah, they believe in vampires, strigoi, just not in the Hollywood romanticized version.

When I traveled through Romania in 1998, shortly after I had read Dracula for the first time, I wanted to visit Vlad Tepes' castle. My relatives living in Transylvania took me here:

This is Bran Castle, where Dracula may have stayed during one of his conquering tours. It is a beautiful medieval castle and elicits the feeling of grandness reserved for the rulers of that time period. However this is not THE Dracula castle even though the kiosks lining the gate entrance will sell you just about anything with Dracula stamped on it. I discovered this a couple of years ago after doing some research and watching a couple of documentaries on the History Channel. Dracula lived in the province of Wallachia, south of Transylvania.
In Fall of 2009, I spent a week visiting my grandmother who happens to live 30 kilometers for the actual castle, Poenari Citadel.

Poenari was built in the 13th century and was abandoned. In the 14th century, Vlad commissioned it to be restored enslaving the rich families of the those who had crossed him in the past. They worked till their fine clothes turned to rags and either died or were executed. The citadel is located on the cliff of a small mountain along the pass through the Fagaras Mountains. To get to it you have to drive way off the beaten path then climb over 1400 steps to reach the entrance. It is has the mysterious creepy feeling to it that one would expect visiting Dracula's castle. The views from the towers and walls are spectacular. Because of it's remote location there are no tours and neither are there any tourist attractions near by- yet. Romanians love to capitalize their fame.
The castle now lies in ruins as it was abandoned after Turks attacked it while Vlad lived there. Legend says his first wife cast herself off one of the towers after seeing the fortress surrounds by the barbaric Ottoman soldiers, claiming she would rather the wild animals or the Arges river fish eat her broken flesh than be raped and killed by the Turks. Her body was never found.

This legend has inspired part of my vampire novel. What if she was the real vampire in the myth? Something to think about, eh?

Hope you enjoyed learning a little more about my heritage. Next week I'll be discussing the strigoi.

Cheers,
Melania