Evan Bond's Blog, page 17

Through the Monitor

It's late at night and I'm extremely tired. But when a baby cries, you have to check up on them. Right now he is crying. I can hear his screams through the baby monitor on my nightstand. Reaching out, I grab the receiver and press the button to see the video feed. Now I can see him flailing around in his crib, an upset look on his face. There's no chance he will be going back to sleep. 
Sitting up in bed, I fling my feet over the edge and stand up. A quick stretch and I head to the kitchen to prepare a bottle. His cries echo through the dark and lonely house. My wife is not home tonight. She's been working hard lately and taking care of our son. I told her to go out with her friends tonight and get a drink. I guess she had a few too many and ended up staying at her friend's house for the night. It's fine. I think she deserves it. 
As I shake up the bottle, my son screams louder. It's almost like he can hear the bottle being made. Or maybe he senses it. Who can say? Either way, I want to quiet him down and get back to sleep. Taking care of a child by yourself is tough work. I find myself thinking about single parents and can only commend them. 
Heading back towards his room, I crack open the door and slip in. It's pretty dark in here but my eyes adjust fairly quickly. There he is. There's my beautiful boy writhing around in his crib. I find it funny when he gets so angry for a bottle. He acts like someone is trying to suffocate him. But the noise is piercing and I want it to end. 
Scooping up my son, I stick the bottle in his mouth and try to shush him quietly and affectionately. Carrying him carefully to my bedroom, I prop myself up in the bed and watch television while he snacks. I don't dare look at the alarm clock on my nightstand. I really don't want to know how late it is.
He begins to slow down and his eyes shut. I know he's getting ready to go back to sleep but I must burp him first. This is the part I hate. Not because I'm afraid to hurt him but because I know it will wake him. 
He begins to fuss again and I put the bottle back in his mouth. As I do, a familiar noise comes from the baby monitor. At first I'm confused but then the hair on the back of my neck stands up. I can see the image of my child's room on the monitor. There is no one in there. Yet somehow, there is a cry coming from the monitor. A cry that sounds exactly like my son's. I look down at my baby but he is sucking away at his bottle without a care in the world. I am unsure of what is waiting for us back in that room.  

In the Clearing

Standing in the clearing, I stared down the scope of my rifle. The familiar shake of adrenaline pumped through my veins but I took a deep breath to control it. With my hands more stable, I scanned the area for my target. 
Everything seemed clear, but everything is not always as it seems. From my hiding spot in the treeline, I decide to continue to wait. Patience has always been my greatest attribute. I could wait here for hours. Days maybe. But I knew I wouldn't have to. 
Right on cue, something stepped into the clearing and looked around. I would have to wait for a clean shot. It wouldn't take long. My target does not have the training I have. It would all be over soon. 
My target advanced to the center of the clearing. My sights were clear and the cross hairs of my scope aimed square on his chest. I could probably take him down from here, but I felt cocky. I would let him get further. I would let him get closer. He would feel safe in this clearing. The adrenaline was back. Watching my target and knowing he was unaware of me made me feel so alive. 
My finger danced on the trigger, itching to give it a pull but my pride would not let me. I wanted to push everything to the edge. I wanted to live there. My target would never see it coming. 
He stepped closer and my heart thumped faster. Sweat streaked down my face and into my eyes but I ignored the burn. I could only focus on the vacant look on my target's face. He was clueless to the fact he was being watched. He had no idea his demise was only a few yards away from him. Just a few more steps and his fate would be sealed. I would be the victor. 
The suspense was too much. I couldn't take it anymore. I had to take my shot. He was close enough now to feed my ego. I had watched him long enough. Taking in a deep breath, I stared down the scope yet again and placed the cross hairs on his center mass. Pulling the trigger several times, I watched as the spray of red covered his chest and bled to the grass below. 
My target dropped to his knees in surprise and let out a yell of pain. "Jesus Christ, Brad, that's going to bruise." 
I laughed as I popped up from my hiding spot. 
"Did you have to hit me so many times?" 
"Yes I did." 
I laughed again and slung my paintball gun around my back. Once again, I was the victor. 

New Project

I can't give you a lot of detail on this project, mainly cause it's only a concept right now. But I thought I would share some thoughts with you all. There's a new series of books I will be starting soon and I wanted the character to drive something really cool and practical towards his job as well. I think what I have decided on is the perfect choice. To all you car enthusiasts out there, what do you think about the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE?
I had rolled around the idea of the new Acura NSX or even the Mercedes AMG GT. These are nice cars but they were lacking something. I wanted an American company. Unfortunately, there weren't enough American made cars that stood out to me. Not until I was having a conversation with my brother in law did I learn of the new Camaro. 
It looks cool, it has crazy features, and it's fast. When you learn more about the character I am developing, you will see why these are important features. I can't wait to begin this project and I hope you're excited to read it when it's finished. Stay tuned for more information coming soon! 
​

Thank you for the kind words

Wow, I am blown away by some of the reviews I've received on my book Death Can Wait. They have been amazing. I can't say thank you enough to the people who have left such glowing recommendations for my book. It means so much to me and helps me out more than you really know. Seeing these reviews renews my vigor and gets me back to the computer and writing. Thank you so very much for the kind words! 

If you have read my books, please consider leaving me a review on Amazon or Goodreads or your favorite retailer. It really helps out a lot and even makes my day! Thanks for reading everyone! 

Constructive Criticism

Alright, everyone. I'm really hoping to get some good feedback here. Take a look at the above image. It's my book cover for Death Can Wait. I've been receiving some excellent reviews about the book itself but several people have expressed their dissatisfaction with the book cover. Please, let me know what you honestly think about the cover. What do you like about it? What don't you like about it? Every honest answer is encouraged as it will help to make my future book covers better! Thank you everyone for your support and help. Also, if you have read the book, please consider heading over to Amazon or Goodreads and leave it a review. It really helps out a lot! Thanks for reading.  

I'm Back!

Did you miss me? I missed all of you! It's been several weeks since I've updated my blog, newsletter, and even my social media feeds. With the birth of my son, life has been a little busy. But, things are starting to settle into a sort of routine and I am getting back to what I love. Writing and talking with you guys! With that said, here's a few updates from the past month. 

First, if you want to know, my son was born on May 15th, 2017. That's actually only a day before my birthday. Now, we have something to celebrate together! Desmond Connor Bond was a healthy 8lbs. 9oz. I love him very much already. Here's hoping he grows up to be an author like his father. Or, at the very least, he loves books as much as I do. 

Next, you may or may not be aware of my upcoming horror novella, Getaway. I have exciting news about the release date. You can look for Getaway this October! Which brings me to another point. I plan to write a new horror novella every year in time for Halloween. Pretty cool, right? AND, if you want to receive every one of them when they release, head over to Patreon. By becoming a patron, you can unlock cool rewards like getting my horror novellas as soon as they release or getting exclusive access to unpublished short stories. You'll be helping me out more than you know as well! Please, check it out. 

Last, I wanted to give a quick update about the podcast that I co-host with my buddy Shawn. [The] Writers' Block is on it's third episode and it's doing pretty well. We are on a short break at the moment while I get a schedule going with my new family. But new episodes will be out soon. Please check us out on Podbean or head over to itunes. I promise, you'll like what you hear. 

That about wraps it up. I'm going to get back into a more normal routine with my blogs again. You can look forward to about two every week. I might even try and mix it up and throw some flash fiction stories up as well. Thanks for reading everyone! 

Help Write My Books

There is an amazing way you can actually help write my books. You're even able to name a character. How cool is that? There's a really interesting site I came across called Patreon. It allows people to support their favorite creators and get cool rewards in the process. Let me explain a little about it.

Rewards are given to patrons in exchange for a small, monthly pledge. For example, you can see book covers early and have a character named after you in an upcoming novel. There's even a tier that gives you free ebooks for as long as you're a patron. 

If you head over to Patreon.com/EvanBond, you can check out my patron page and see what kind of rewards you can get. At the same time, you'll be helping to support my love of writing and making it a full time career. I'm so thankful for the people who have already jumped on board and became patrons. You guys rock! 

Of course, I don't want you to feel obligated to become a patron. The fact that you're on my website and reading my blog shows your support for me as well. I appreciate every single one of my readers. Thanks for taking the time out of your day to read this! 

Listen Now!

Episode one of [The] Writers' Block is live. You can head over to Podbean to check it out. Click here to listen on Podbean or here to listen on our Patreon page. It will be available on itunes soon, but it takes a little while for the RSS feed to update to their site. By next episode, they should be up at the same time. 

Please, listen to our first episode and give us some feedback. What do you like, what don't you like? Help us expand and grow! We will always appreciate it. 

Our first episode touches on overcoming writer's block, how self publishing works, and we do a few segments that involve around magic characters. It's a lot of fun. Check it out today! 

Sins of the Mother Excerpt

Want an excerpt from my upcoming novel, Sins of the Mother? Read on! 


His camera swept over a thick bush and something caught his eye. He stared through the viewfinder for nearly a minute trying to figure out what he was looking at. At first, he thought it was a trick of some nearby light, or even the bush itself. Then he realized exactly what he was looking at. There was a pale, white face staring up at the house. Its emotionless stare was utterly terrifying, sending chills down Ethan’s spine.  
“What the hell?” Ethan whispered, slinking down in his chair. It did not seem to move, making Ethan question if it was a person or some grotesque lawn ornament. As if on queue, the head shifted slightly as if trying to locate a nearby sound. Ethan kept as low as possible, making sure to keep his eyes on the mysterious figure. He did not want to draw attention to himself but he could not lose sight of it either.  
The white faced watcher seemed to be staring up at Martin’s home in curiosity, as if trying to figure a way in. Ethan had no clue what was happening before his eyes but it could not be good. It was then he wished he had brought the gun after all. It would have made him feel a little bit more secure.  
Music still blasted from the house and the woman cried in ecstasy. Ethan knew he had to stop the man from entering. He was not sure what he was going to do, but he had to think of something. There was no telling the figure’s intentions, though it was not a stretch to imagine they were malicious.   
As he prepared to exit the car and make a move towards the masked figure, something in his rearview mirror caught his eye. In the mirror he spotted another masked figure, tall and broad shouldered. His torso was covered with a dark black hoodie, the hood pulled up over his head. Black sweat pants bagged off his legs and his hands were covered with gloves, black of course. It was a truly foreboding sight which made Ethan leap out of his skin.  
He reached forward for the key hanging from his ignition, but the figure slunk down out of sight. It caused Ethan to stop and crane his neck, desperate to find the masked man. There seemed to be no sign of him, like he vanished into thin air. He knew it was impossible, but his mind wandered to the spotless crime scene. Had these masked people been the ones responsible? Their clothing would explain why no evidence was found. They were extremely careful, not exposing any part of themselves.  
Ethan turned back around, failing to see the masked man, and was greeted with the familiar empty stare of the white mask. It stared at him from outside the windshield, not moving, only staring. “Jesus Christ,” Ethan yelled, turning the key in the ignition.  
The man did not move out of the way, in fact he moved closer placing a gloved hand on the hood. He slowly drew one finger across the hood as he began to approach the driver side window. In his right hand stood a very sharp, crooked knife. It was oddly shaped, like a lightning bolt. Ethan had no intentions of finding out what the blade would be used for. He shifted in reverse and slammed on the gas. Tires screeched as he tore off backwards.  
The masked figure stood motionless in the street. Ethan dared a glance back at the house and was surprised to see the other masked figure still standing in the bushes, unfazed by the events in the street, almost as if in some sort of trance. 
Slamming on the brakes, Ethan switched to drive and revved the engine. The masked man in the road cocked his head as if to encourage Ethan to run him down. He decided to obey and slammed on the gas. Like a homing missile, Ethan aimed towards the masked man, but he leapt to safety at the last second. Ethan kept the pedal firmly pressed and drove as quickly as he could out of the neighborhood.  
As he tore down the streets to safety, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed 911. The operator answered instantly in a relaxed, almost monotone voice. “Send officers to the home of Martin Jones immediately, something is about to happen. The address is-“ 
“Sir, please calm down. Tell me exactly what has happened.”  
“There are masked men about to break into a man’s home. I don't think they're there for his TV.”  
“You believe they are there to hurt this person? Whyl?”  
“Because who the hell wears a mask outside in the middle of the night? Lady, just send every available officer to this address!” He rattled the address off in short breaths.  
“I’ll have an officer check it out.”  
“You better send them quickly, otherwise you’ll be chasing a ghost.”  
“I’m sorry sir, what do you mean?”  
“Jesus, contact Detective Winchester, tell him his suspect is about to go missing.”  
Before the woman could respond Ethan disconnected the call, tired of arguing with her. With one hand on the wheel, he dialed Winchester’s number. “Please pick up,” he whispered, hoping Winchester was not still bitter with him. 

Podcast

Hello everyone!
I wanted to let you know that the pilot episode for [The] Writers' Block Podcast will be recorded tomorrow night. Which means, the release date for the first episode will be April 28th! Go ahead and follow the page now by heading over to Podbean or finding us on social media. Remember, if you follow the show before the first episode you will be entered to win an Amazon gift card during the second show, May 5th. You can follow the show on Podbean here. 

Also, our show has a Patreon account. If you're not familiar with Patreon, check them out. It's a wonderful site where you can support people with the works of creativity. If you'd like to fund the site, you can check us out here. There's some great rewards for becoming a patron! 

I, too, have a Patreon account for my writing. If you'd like to become a Patron for my writing go here. As always, thank you for your continued support and I hope you tune in for our first episode next Friday, April 28th!