Elizabeth Suggs's Blog, page 12

We're going live on The Mugg Podcast

By Elizabeth Suggs

Elizabeth Suggs and Jonathan Reddoch will be performing LIVE tonight (December 17) on The Mugg Podcast.

The Mugg is a monthly virtual open mic, featuring poets, writers, and songwriters. Get your free ticket and more information here.

We've Got a Podcast!

What About Stories is a new podcast by Editing Mee and Collective Tales Publishing, hosted by author, editor, and publisher Elizabeth Suggs and author and editor Brandon Prows.

What About Stories features industry conversations around books, producers, writers, and everyone else involved with story creation. Our first podcast is an interview with international bestseller fantasy writer Charlie N. Holmberg. We chat about her experiences as a writer, getting to where she is, and her latest release Spellbreaker.

Charlie N. Holmberg is the author of The Paper Magician, The Glass Magician, and The Master Magician, which has been optioned by the Walt Disney Company. Her stand-alone novel, Followed by Frost, was nominated for a 2016 RITA Award for Best Young Adult Romance, and her novel The Fifth Doll won the 2018 Whitney for Speculative Fiction. She is a board member for Deep Magic Ezine and lives with her family in Utah. Learn more about her and books at www.charlienholmberg.com.

Stay tuned Monday, Dec 28, 2020, for our next podcast where Brandon and Elizabeth discuss Stephen King’s The Stand.

Listen to the podcast.

Watch the Collective Cheers and Chills event!

If you missed the event, then never fear! we’ve got you covered. Check out the playlist below to watch your favorite authors (and some new ones!) play games, read their stories, and otherwise enjoy the holiday cheer!

You can watch the playlist of the videos here, or check out the videos below!

Video 1:

Video 2:

Video 3:

We’ve got more to come, and we’re always opened to suggestions. But while you wait, why not buy one of the available books mentioned?

Happy Holildays!

Book Review: Sacrifices Incarnate

By Elizabeth Suggs

Sacrifice’s Incarnate by Christopher M. Fink is a horror short story collection. If you like monsters and psychological horror, then you’re going to enjoy this collection. Each story can be easily read in a single session. In fact, the entire book is a quick, fun read!

My favorite stories are “J.A.R.” and “Restless,” both of which deal on the more psychological side of horror. If you’re looking for something with monsters, then I suggest “The More You Gnome” or “No Fracking.” 

One of my favorite things about “J.A.R.” is that it reminds me of a black mirror episode. It’s surreal with a little scifi and definitely bleak. The story centers around one woman and the possibility of seeing her dead husband. It’s thought-provoking—definitely my kind of story. 

“Restless” is another great one and pretty short if you’re looking for something quick. This was actually the first story I ever read of Fink’s, and it impressed me. But while I love it, I hope I’m never in the protagonist’s place. 

“The More You Gnome” is a little silly. It reminds me of an 80s horror movie, where there’s a lot of gore and fear, but also a little added humor to keep the mood light.

The final story I’ll mention is “No Fracking.” If you’re going to read this, make sure you hide under your covers because it’s one of the scariest in the collection. 

Fink kept me on edge with every story in new and different way. Check this out, but don’t forget to keep the lights on!

Get your copy on Collective Darkness’ website!

Or bundle it with Collective Darkness and Little Darkness and save! 

 

Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com

Book Review: 25 Gates of Hell

By Elizabeth Suggs

25 Gates of Hell: A Horror Anthology by John West et. al., is a horror anthology with twenty-five different horror stories that will lead you closer to the fiery depths of torment. 

If you like scary stories with distinctive voices and styles, then this is the anthology for you. I was in awe of the different stories and I enjoyed nearly every single one. My favorites were ones with strong female leads and poetic ways of writing. But, again, if you have a different horrific taste, then you’ll find something in this collection that you’ll enjoy. 

But before I get into my favorite stories, and why you should also love them, I want to call out the professional writing and editing style of this anthology.

Each story is well-created, well-written, and well-edited. As I mentioned, the voices are unique and brought out through each story. There were two stories in particular that I found striking, and they were placed one after another, which only heightened the differences in writing; I found it really worked for the anthology. The two stories were “The Repossed” by James Dorr and “Billabong” by Catherine McCarthy. As a fellow editor and publisher, I really appreciate how these two stories turned out.

Now, to my favorite stories. I want to call out “Ghost in the Machine” by Rich Restucci, “101 Days” by Marie Lanza, “Hotel California” by Davina Rush, “The Niche Thing” by Alex R. Knight III, and “Mad: A Poem” by R. L. Burwick. 

I was first struck by “Ghost in the Machine.” I love how this story asks questions about what is possible. There are some fun foreshadowing elements. The pacing is great and I love the female character, Jill. She’s a badass who slowly becomes more of a badass throughout the story. 

“101 Days” is a different take on the werewolf called a Rougarou. Set in the Bayou, the reader explores the mystery of its devastation through the eyes of the detectives on the case. This also had a great line, “She stood frozen, a human icicle.” 

“Hotel California” Good story, good pacing, the character development is good and I want to know more. There’s a ton of foreshadowing and the woman involved with the main character is mysterious. I kept wanting to learn more. Here is a really good quote: “My thoughts came in past like water through grasping fingers, and she smiled as if she saw my struggle and was amused by it.” 

“The Niche Thing” is not another ghost story! This short story packs a punch! It’s fun with awesome character development. 

We end with “Mad: A Poem.” This is a very striking picture of the author’s mind. It’s a longer poem, but, trust me, you’ll fall into it and forget the world. Burwick’s entire poem is amazing, but this line hit me hardest: I can’t live in denial or they’ll spend my eternity —God forbid they return me to maternity.

Finally, I want to highlight some awesome lines from some of the yet mentioned stories. 

She knew she was sending him back to that bloodbath, but maybe like a dog, he needed to have his nose rubbed into it. - “A Child’s Game” by Brandon Scott

When you get to be my age, you start to realize that life isn’t defined by years, jobs, or decisions – it’s defined by moments. - “Lest We Forget” by Charles T. Daube

My throat was drier than British humor. - “Anxiety” by Shane Woods

I had a lot of fun with this anthology. There are awesome moments, scenes, and catch phrases. If you’re looking for something scary, I suggest this! 

Get Your Copy!

 

Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com

Book Review: The Axion

By Elizabeth Suggs

The Axion: A Varsian Kingdom Adventure by Jason Hein is a high fantasy stand-alone novel based in the world of Varsia.

My overall impression was that a lot of love went into not just this book but also the series. The characters have purpose, and the world is well-defined, but the pacing felt off for me, especially during the fight scenes.

Because this stand-alone book takes place in the Varsian Kingdom Series world, there are a lot of info dumps, which I didn’t enjoy. What I loved, though, was the protagonist, Leila. The story comes to life when we read her inner thoughts. She’s a very likable character from the get-go, and I understand her need to wander on a personal level, which made me fall in love with her character even more.

With a little bit of expansion and slower pacing, I think this story could have been really good, but it didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

Get your copy here

 

Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com

Custom Horror Music Unboxing!

By Elizabeth Suggs

Watch the owners of Collective Tales Publishing Elizabeth Suggs and Jonathan Reddoch unveil their new and customized horror music box created by Bridgette Brenmark. Bridgette is also a composer, and she was the one who created the spooky music for our box! Get your own creepy creation from Music Boxes of the Macabre!

To learn more or get your own visit: www.bridgette-brenmark.com or contact her on Instagram: @babsthecomposer

Check out some of these other designs:

This one makes me think of the necronomicon! Evil Dead, anyone??

Imagine that this was your eyeball…

This one reminds me of an escape room I used to run with a few other actors.

 

Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com