Anne Michaud's Blog: Musings & Little Obsessions, page 9

Comparing Goth Notes with Angela Addams

My friend and Gothsis Angela Addams got a great idea: we exchange notes on what we loved/hated growing up being goth. Here's the second part, the first being posted on her blog.

NINE INCH NAILS

The Trent I'm trying to forget

Angie: This band changed my life!!! I remember the first time I ever heard a NIN song. My cousin tossed a cassette tape (yes, it was that long ago) at me and said, "I think you'd better listen to this, I don't expect I'll get that tape back once you do." And she was right…the album was Broken and I listened to it until the tape actually broke! Wish and Gave up, in particular, were two songs that I couldn't get enough of…and I've never been disappointed in concert because Trent Reznor always plays them for me By far my favorite band! I've got a ton of NIN stories…in fact, I think I'll write up a separate post about them!

The Trent I'd like to Goth up good

Anne: I discovered them through a friend, too, but I hardly remember who or where we were. What I can't forget is when my friend Christopher dragged me to their concert at the Astoria in London, 2005. I pictured Trent Reznor sick and dying from too much rock and roll – circa 1995 – but then this beefed up dude with arms like trees came out and I couldn't believe my eyes: Le Trent lives! And yum, I'd goth him up real good in an alternate universe, one in which his wife wasn't some sex kitten and he didn't have a kid. SO HAPPY he chose to live instead of, you know…

ROBERT SMITH

Angie: Okay, I couldn't resist…sorry Anne…although it seems like some kind of prerequisite for all goths to LOVE Robert Smith and The Cure…I just couldn't get into it…mainly because a bunch of people told me I HAD to like them…Angie's instant reaction to being told what to do…full stop, brakes on, arms crossed, don't tell me what to do stance…so, I've never been a fan.  So much so that when I finally relented and decided to give them a try…paid a crapload of money for a ticket and went to see them in concert…I fell asleep in my seat…WORST.CONCERT.EVER

Seriously, can I have a piece of him?

Anne: My husband, my lover, my imaginary boy! You know, I've been defending Mr Smith & Co for so long – 25 years, actually – when people call them out for wearing badly-applied makeup and for singing happy songs, that…I won't stop now! HOW can you say that, Angie? He's a genius, a rock star, an unbelievable composer, an artist, a poet, my heart & soul! Then again, you do like Marilyn Manson, so we can't all have good taste, huh?

JACK & SALLY

Angie: I was a little late to the Jack and Sally party…I missed the movie in the theaters…well, actually, I once again, pulled a classic Angie and skipped it cause I hated all the hype and can't stand to be told what I'll just love…trust me, worst mistake ever…since then though, I think I've watched the movie at least 200 times, I know all the songs off by heart (even had part of one play as my wedding song) and have an obscene collection of movie stuff…AND I have Jack tattooed on my leg!

Love conquers death and the Oogie Boogie

Anne: I went to see it four or five times at the cinema, a thousand years ago. I just couldn't get the songs out of my head, and that love story was exactly the kind I like: with skeletons, spiders and heartbreak. I watch it 3 or 4 times each year, can't help tearing up as they meet up at the end – aw, and that twirly hill just kills me. And yeah, I've accumulated loads of Burton crap throughout the years, but I call it my prized collection, which proves everything is relative, I guess.

So there you go, you know a little bit more about the two gals who brought you The Minion of Misery Award:)

Chatting with Lisa Forget

I've been meeting such great people from around the world on Kelley Armstrong's forum, that when I learned that Lisa Forget lived close to me, I almost didn't believe it! This gal is a well-rounded artist, and with her new short story available at MuseItUp Publishing, she's now a published author, too.

 

Me: You've kept your approach to romantic vampirism fresh even if it sometimes feel like it's all been said and done in that genre. What/who inspired Deathly Quiet?

 Lisa Forget: First, I want to thank you Anne for inviting me to chat. I'm thrilled you feel my little dark tale might offer something fresh for those who enjoy this genre.

Although, I've always loved stories about vampires – especially written in the gothic style – I never intended to write one.

Deathly Quiet was inspired by a little street in Montreal, near where I grew up. Just like Moira, it always intrigued and frightened me and as a child I was convinced the houses on the street were haunted. When I grew up I often drove by Sebastopol street just to soak up the ambiance and to watch the Caleche drivers tend the horses in the stables that exist there even today. One night, after driving through that part of town, I set my mind to writing a dark tale about an young woman coming face to face with terror. Writing the story "by the seat of my pants" I started with a young Irish girl named Moira, a creepy street named Sebastopol Row, an inky-black crow and a pool of dripping blood and let the words flow. The moment I penned the stranger stepping out of the shadows – he bared his teeth at me. That's when I knew he was a vampire. Perhaps my deep-rooted feelings about the street, the stables, the houses, coloured my story and my love of the gothic style decided my traditional treatment of him. In a way it was as though one of my childhood nightmares had come to life.

Me: Loving this – I do the same, Iinspire myself from what surrounds me, and then of course I twist it into my own darkness. When you write, do you need to be in a frame of mind? Do you put music on? Does it influence your writing?

Lisa Forget: Usually, I only sit down to pen a story if I'm in the right mood. The only time I "force" myself is if I'm doing NaNoWriMo or editing. However, sometimes I do put on music to heighten creativity right before I sit down at the computer. I usually turn the music off once I begin typing. Yes, I'd say music does influence my writing. Three bands who get my creative juices flowing are Hedley, Coldplay and Muse. Their music and lyrics touch me and spark ideas.

Me: What are you future writing plans? Other paranormal short stories in the works? Or maybe a novel?

Lisa Forget: At the moment, I'm awaiting the first edits from my publisher for a YA short story entitled "Leapling"It's slated for February 2012. And, I'm writing some dark shorts for a project I'm collaborating on with Pat Hollett and Tammy Crosby – an anthology called "Bleeding Ink – a collection of Dark Tales." We're compiling a collection of creative and dark stories from talented writers like you Anne….hint, hint.

My plan is to finish the stories I started…. LOL! I have several. What I'm presently working on is "The Guardian of Secrets" – a paranormal romance. I'm also editing two completed novels, "The Powers Within" (YA) and "Love Eternal" another paranormal romance. "Love Eternal" was the very first writing project I completed a few years ago based on a 5th century Welsh legend. Once I'm done the edits I plan to submit the stories to my publisher. Hopefully they'll like them and I'll have reason to write a sequel to Powers and finish the sequel to Eternal!

Deathly Quiet is a hauting tale of love and regret, get it now! 

The City of Hell bugs are on the loose!

The day has come: the horror anthology City of Hell has launched, and everyone can finally be scared out of their wits. I've never been part of a project getting so many good reviews before, so I'll just say this – buy it.

Paperback

Kindle

I didn't feel like posting a Fridayflash this week, instead here are the very first words that will appear in Wild Swan. Not a prologue per se, more like a poetic warning about the book. Ready? Go!

Fire, Let It Burn

Fire, See How It Feels

Forthcoming Fire

You like? Me too. It's totally copyrighted, so don't even try.

Impressions of China: Details

With everything so big—the buildings, the streets, the crowds—it'd be easy to forget what Beijing is, the city's essence. In my writing as in my life, I believe it's the little details that count, and once again, I was proven right.

 

I collect antiques, so when I saw these red doors with the peeling paint and old wood, I felt right at home. Those knobs are so pretty, many reproductions are sold in markets and souvenir shops – I should've brought my screwdriver.

 

That is one thing French-Canadians haven't realized, yet: old houses are worth restoring to give them new life. Most of the old hutongs in the Forbidden City are being renovated, and they're doing a fine job.

 

I was amazed by the stone carving found on the Emperor's stairs at the Imperial Palace, and then near a hotel on the side of a business, a pretty medallion.

 

But details mean nothing when you know the amount of information China hides from its people, the number of people being thrown out of their homes to build new condos, and the size of the revolution that is bound to happen, sooner or later. And I can't help but think it'll reach us all the way to the other side of the world, changing us just the same.

 

*** The winner for the City of Hell giveaway are: DIGITAL DAME & LEONARD WHITE. Congrats you two, and thanks for everyone who participated♥***

Chatting with April R Denton…& GIVEAWAY!

The #CoffinHop wasn't only about meeting horror authors and enjoying Halloween's festivities – it was also about winning goodies! I was super happy when April R Denton told me I won a poem she'd write for me, so I proposed to premiere her composition over here.

AM: You're such a prolific writer: poems, short stories, and novels…where do you find your inspiration, dear Zombie Girl? What sparks your fire?

April R Denton: Music and my dreams are most influential. When I find the right music for what I am writing the words flow freely, but they also influence my tone in the piece.

AM: Me too! Some dreams have become novels – they were that good to expand! Give me examples of the music you listen to write a scene, like a fight scene or a more mellow, romantic one.

April R Denton: I let Winamp do most of the work for my by shuffling until I reach a song that gives me goosebumps. For a sexy scene I use Puscifer, Maynard always makes me want to do dirty things. For violence Morphogenesis by Scar Symmetry or maybe some Killswitch Engage.

AM: Cool stuff. So when you wrote my ♥poem♥, how did you come up with it?

April R Denton: To write your poem I read your blog and took words that described you. Then I used rhymed.com to find rhymes that would work well. I reread the poem about 20 times until I was satisfied.

AM: It feels personal, you did a great job:)

Here it is, folks. Enjoy!

Gothic girl

Hazel eyes

Dark obsessive

Sweet surprise

Gloomy tunes

Oh so tall

Anne, the wordsmith

For her words you'll befall

***In honor of the macabre and gloomy, I'm giving away two – yes, 2!! – ARC e-copies of City of Hell – Chronicles 1 (horror anthology featuring 7 scary short stories) to anyone who subscribe to this blog and leaves a comment to this post. Drawing of the lucky winners on Monday November 28th at noon-ish, Mtl time. Good luck♥***