Rachael Tamayo's Blog, page 21

New Twist on an Old Fairy Tale

It’s always been a bit of a joke, since Gretyl started dating him. When your names are Ansel and Gretyl, you have to have a bit of a sense of humor about it. What isn’t funny, is the fact that her father doesn’t approve of twenty year old Ansel for his seventeen year old daughter. After much thought and discussion, the young love struck duo decide to strike out on their own, and Gretyl runs away from home with Ansel to his granny’s house deep in the woods. It doesn’t take long for Gretyl to see that something is wrong. When Ansel tells her the whole truth about his granny and himself, it turns out to be a tough cookie to swallow. 

Gretyl and the Witch is a modern day retelling of the classic fairy tale, Hansel and Gretyl. Darker paranormal elements and a more adult theme make this a great read for any age.

Parallels between the original child's tale by the Brothers Grimm, and this modern day retelling are weaved throughout the short story.   Although not brother and sister, we of course have Ansel and Gretyl, who end up in the woods together intercepted by the strange and beautiful Edona.  Nothing is quite what it seems once they step food into the house in the woods.

Available now on Amazon for Kindle and kindle Unlimited. 

 

On Editing Your Writing

So Now you are published, or maybe you are sending your work out getting positive rejections. Those positive rejections are a good thing, keep trying. You will find your match and then what happens? 

Little things, blurbs, tag lines, everyone's favorite-choosing a cover, then the editing. You get matched with an editor and chew your nails waiting to receive your first mark-ups. 

Round one.

Round two.

Final read through.

Your release date, bam-there is your book. Yay! Your officially an author.  As your reviews come in, maybe someone mentions typos. How can this happen? Why didn't your editor catch these mistakes? Isn't that what they are for?

Um, here's the bad news. Party, yes. Editors catch your mistakes. They also format your book for printing, go over your grammar, plot holes, story line issues. They do all of this.  Here's the thing. Your eyes are even more important than theirs are in this process. Who knows your work better than you do? Sure, you've read it over and over again. Your probably a little sick of reading it and ready to dive into your next book. 

So when you get your edits in, read your book from cover to cover, each time. Fix the mistakes, make your notes, send it back. Editors are human, and if you read slowly, you can both catch almost everything. Don't skim. Read it, thoroughly.  Then when you think you are done, set it aside for a week or so, and then read it one last time.  

Meet Author Jim Cronin

I'd like to welcome the author, Jim Cronin. Jim, tell us about yourself and your book.

I worked for thirty-five years as a middle school science teacher, but am now semi-retired, working part-time as an educator/performer at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. I have been married for thirty-eight years to the love of my life, Diane. Together, we raised two incredible sons, and now have a beautiful granddaughter to spoil rotten.

I was born in Kansas City, Missouri and lived in Arlington, Virginia before moving to Denver where I attended High School and eventually college at Colorado State University, graduating with a degree in Zoology and a teacher certification. I currently live near Denver in the small town of Parker.

My first novel, Hegira, a science fiction tale of time travel, political and religious intrigue, cloning, and imminent planetary destruction, proved to be only the start of a new adventure. I have completed Hegira’s sequel, Recusant, and am working on the third and final book of The Brin Archives, Empyrean. Retirement has proved to be an exciting journey into new realms of discovery.

In this sequel to Hegira, the Brin are thriving on their new world, but will greed, prejudices and old rivalries tear apart their grand civilization? Maliche Rocker, descendant of The Saviors, uncovers a terrible secret and must fight those in power, including members of his own family, to save thousands of innocents from the cruelty of his own people.

Find him on Facebook, Twitter, his website. Or visit his Amazon author page, or the Solstice Publishing book store. 

Meet author Rocky Rochford

Rocky Rochford is your standard guy, if your standard guy scuba dives, partakes in underwater photography and is a wake-boarding, adventure seeking, sword collecting, marine conservation supporter. After living life on the road and the places between, he finally settled down but not without benefiting from all the lessons life had to teach him.

            Self-professed “Student of Everything, and Master of Nothing,” Rochford does not choose what he writes, but writes what chooses him, be it fantasy, crime, poetry, philosophy or even adventure. Life is a journey we all get to experience, just like a good book.

            Every read into another of his typed works is another trip into the imagination of his mixed up, crazed and deranged mind and this year along those works include the likes of full novels and novellas such as his up and coming new novel with Solstice Publishing. Scars & Souvenirs, a collection of short stories. 

Every scar tells a story, a tale of loss, or a tale of regret. The scars on my arms an echo of when times were hard. The scars on my eyes of the dreaded horrors I can never unsee. The scars on my soul a lasting memory of the sins that tore my soul apart. The scars on my heart from a love forever lost. The scars on my wrists, the end result of a failed attempt to end a life of brokenness. Each scar is a story.  A story begging to be told. 

The author of several books, you can view them all here on his Amazon page. 

Rochford writes a little something for everyone, so if Scars & Souvenirs isn’t your cup of tea, you can guarantee one of his many other works will be!

Want to know more? You can Find him on his website, Facebook, Twitter, or Goodreads. 

Scars & Souvenirs is a Collection of 10 stories. The following is an extract from the Devil Came to Drag Me to Hell

 

“You will bleed. You will cry. You will love and you will say goodbye to all those you hold dear. Life is repulsed by shadow and you reek of it. I looking forwards to watching the show.”

His words made perfect sense.

Of course they would—they were my own.

Words I would tell myself when I was all alone.

The Devil knows all.

Especially the one that sits on your shoulder.

In the depths of your soul.

“Your wound isn’t deep and the knife didn’t hit anything vital. You will go on to live, knowing this is what you do to people. The poison that flows through your veins always finds a way to push those you hold dear away, no matter how hard you try to cling to them. You are the villain, John, and the villain is destined to fail.”

He reached out and grabbed me. His hands on my throat squeezed and then he began to drag me. The world I had left returned.

As did the sound of my heart beating.

And the air in my lungs.

My eyes opened.

I gasped.

The Devil had come to drag me to Hell, but like he said for the likes of me. There is only one kind of Hell, the life of an endless nightmare I live on a daily basis.

He dragged me back to my old life.

A life of scars.

 

****Here concludes today’s extract, for more check out the full collection when it releases next month. ****

This One's Personal

Some of you may or may not know, I'm pregnant with my second child. 9 weeks along. What you also might not know, is this is actually my fifth pregnancy.

So, only 1 child, 1 current healthy pregnancy...your realizing what that means. I've lost 3. So, now you're probably thinking, why is she sharing this? Isn't it personal? Perhaps a bit painful? 

I've been debating on this post for a while now.  Being a private person, some things are better left unsaid. This, however, is not one of those things.

My journey through multiple miscarriage was awful. I've been tested, poked, prodded, medicated, and everything else they could think of only to be told "We don't know what's wrong."

Then, finally, the right doctor at the right time. Eureka! She tells me shortly after my 3rd loss that I have MTHFR.

What in the hell is that? Spelled out, it's Methylene Tetrahydrofolate Reductase. My doctor can't even pronounce it, so don't hurt yourself trying. Funny enough, no other doctor I've come across (including the hospital where I had my son) has ever heard of it. Not a single one.

So what it is? It's a genetic mutation, inherited. Causes a slew of problems in some, no symptoms in others. In me, it caused miscarriage. The reason for that was because this mutation makes it so that your body can't absorb folate vitamins, folic acid. (Think also, B vitamin deficiencies) So now you're putting it together.

No folic acid in my body= miscarriage. Every single time. Diagnosed by a simple blood test. Treated with a simple vitamin (methyl-folate and methyl-b-12) that is available in specialty nutrition and vitamin stores. It's that simple. Now I'm okay. Now my babies don't die.

I'm sharing this for one simple reason. Out there are other women, other families, that are dealing with this. Doctors that can't figure it out. Progesterone didn't help. Nothing helped. This condition was only discovered in 1995 (I think) so it's fairly new. I was beyond blessed that my doctor knew about it. After nine years, I finally got my answer. My son is here today because of her.  Thanks for allowing me to share today, I hope that this might help someone, or someone you know.  

Pushing your Limits

Romance writing is my thing. It always has been. Never have I made an attempt to venture outside this box and push myself. Perhaps it's a lack of confidence? I don't know.  That is, until recently. 

Having my first book accepted for publication was just the boost I needed to step out of my comfort zone. I wrote the short story, The Stones. The Stones is a young adult Paranormal. Never tried that before!  When I submitted it, I was on pins an needles. Is it terrible? Maybe my imagination just isn't enough for this genre? 

Well, guess what. The Stones is now in print. In the Summer Solstice Anthology, and in a stand alone short story.  Get your copy here.

You never know what you can do until you throw caution to the wind and just try.  We are our own worst critics. So take that chance!

I'm currently working on a second Paranormal short story called, The Twisted Tale of Ansel and Gretl. A retelling of the classic fairy-tale from a modern day perspective.

July 4th

Tomorrow is July 4th. We gather with family and friends. We toast, we eat barbeque (here in Texas) and we enjoy the spectacular displays across the night sky of fireworks.  In all the fun, the alcohol, the laugher and food and the memory making, we tend to forget just what we are Celebrating.

On July 4th, 1776 our country was born. Before that day, we were under British Rule. The Declaration of Independence was signed, our birth certificate of sorts, making us the land of the free and the home of the brave.  Our forefathers fought many a bloody battle to make this happen. It's easy to take for granted. I'm guilty myself.

As I sat here contemplating writing this blog post, one other question popped into my head. Why do we celebrate with fireworks?  So I Googled it. Apparently, it's been done since July 4th, 1777.  John Adams stated In a letter to Abigail Adams on July 3, 1776, he wrote that the occasion should be commemorated “with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” Reference

So tomorrow as we celebrate, lets toast to our forefathers who brought this day for us. Let's hold up our glasses and say, Happy Birthday America.

Let us also not forget those that don't get to take tomorrow off. The Police, Dispatchers, Fire, Ems, Nurses, Doctors, and all those that save our hides every day of the year.  

My dream comes true July 1st, 2016

Some people were a bit surprised when I told them that I had signed a publishing deal with Solstice Publishing. Not because they think I can't write, but because they didn't know I did.  I've been a writer off and on all my life, but didn't always share this part of myself with everyone.

Why? Because I found it hard to imagine my biggest dream coming true. Ever since I can remember, all I wanted to do was become a published writer. I took a break. I got married, had my son,  delved deep into the 911 career that I know and love. Then approximately one year ago, I picked up my proverbial pen and started to write again.  Thanks to an amazing group of critique partners that gave me good advise and the courage to keep going, my book is being published and is for sale this Friday.

I still can't believe it!  Now my friends read it with amazement, telling me they can't believe I could always write this way and they didn't know. One told me "I can't believe you wrote this, it's really good." 

The best part is, this is only book one. There are 2 more books to follow in this series. 

Chase Me comes out this Friday.  I'd love to hear from you after you read it. Hit my up on Facebook or Twitter. You can also find me on GoodReads, where I'd love to hear your review or you can post a question for me. 

So what's it about? 

Adrienne Lawrence loves her friends. It seems, however, that she doesn’t get along with her family as well. One hot Texas summer, Adrienne manages to fall headfirst over her own big mouth when she lies to her Mom about a long term boyfriend in efforts to squelch her Mom’s nasty comments about having a date for a family wedding.

Clint Montgomery, one of her best friends, kindly steps in agreeing to play the part of the devoted boyfriend during a week-long venue wedding across the country.

After a week of pretend kisses and smoldering looks, the lines between what is fake and what is real seem to become fuzzy. The only problem is, Adrienne doesn’t want to become one of the women that Clint leaves in his wake, but fighting what she’s feeling is becoming almost impossible.  

I look forward to all your comments, reviews (the good, bad, and the ugly!) Thank you! 

A Great Summer Read

The sun shines longer on this day—the Summer Solstice. People gather for picnics, fun in the sun, and all kinds of celebrations. What can be more fun than checking out the fabulous stories in Let’s Have Fun Volume 3!

Ten Solstice Publishing authors present to you stories of events that happened on the Summer Solstice. A May/December romance, angels versus demons, and a plus sized woman who discovers love along with other great tales of the Summer Solstice discover new authors who have a multitude of books available for your pleasure. 

Watch the Trailer

Let’s Have Fun Volume 3 features A.A. Schenna, Alex Pilalis, J. Wayne Williams, Jillian Chantal, Maighread MacKay, Margaret Egrot, Rachael Tamayo, Susan Lynn Solomon, Tevis Shkoda, and Virginia Babcock with stories all about what happens one summer solstice day. 

Buy the book

Check out our authors and their stories with Let’s Have Volume 3 on June 21, 2016!

End Of Watch 6-12-2016

As some of you may already know, I'm a 911 operator and a Police Dispatcher.  In my ten years experience, never have I had the heaviness of heart that I do now.  My coworker, our brother here at the Pearland Police Department was killed in the line of duty early yesterday morning.  

On June 12, 2016 at approximately 0315 hours the Pearland Police Department was notified of a major accident involving a Pearland Police vehicle at the intersection of 2500 E. Broadway and Liberty.  Officers arrived and found two vehicles involved in a catastrophic crash. The marked Pearland Police vehicle sustained major damage and the officer was pinned inside. 

Pearland Fire extracted the officer and he was then air lifted to Memorial Herman Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.  Officer Endy Epankya had been with the department since 2015. 

The second party involved in the crash was also transported to Memorial Herman with non-life threatening injuries.

The Pearland Police Department is working closely with the Texas Department of Public Safety in the ongoing investigation. 

Coming to work has never hurt so much as it did yesterday when I pulled into the parking lot.  Seeing my boss break down into tears because she had to sign him off of his computer for the last time was horrible. You see, these men are like brothers to us. It's like having 150 big brothers all the time when you work for a police department. We are a family. The agencies around us as well. We really are a brotherhood. It may seem strange to feel that way about people you don't even know, but we do.  

You try to prepare yourself when you do this job. Line of duty death's happen. You expect shootings, usually. Not this. Not drunk drivers. Headed to a call, to help a citizen and killed by a woman that decided to drive drunk. Lives have been changed forever. Not one of us will ever be the same after this senseless death. 

We are heartbroken by the  loss of our brother. We are devastated. He leaves behind a beautiful Fiance and a two year old baby.  This child is so young that he won't remember his daddy rocking him to sleep, kissing him goodnight. But there will be no doubt, he will always know that his father was a Hero. We will always remember him. Forever in our hearts.  

My Name is Rachael Tamayo. I'm a author with Solstice Publishing. My Short story, The Stones comes out on June 21 on Amazon.com.  My first full length Romance, Chase Me, is soon to be released.