Kevin A. Ranson's Blog, page 15

“Life Is Beautiful” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene.

The acoustic version of “Life Is Beautiful” is a haunting hard rock ballad (from The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack album by Sixx:A.M., a side project of Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx). Any funeral scenes is a great excuse to get characters together that would never appear in the same room, but it’s also a powerful setting for character reflection, and this track works for both instances.

I was waiting for my hearse,

What came next was so much worse,

It took a funeral to make me feel alive.

If this song hasn’t been used for a funeral scene in a horror film or thriller, I can’t imagine why not. The lyrics are also telling for any immortal watching loved ones pass away, especially if that immortal had anything to do with it.

I know some things that you don’t,

I’ve done things that you won’t,

There’s nothing like a trail of blood to find your way back home.

Read more about the upcoming novel, The Matriarch…

Filed under: Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian Tagged: Life Is Beautiful, Mötley Crüe, Music to Write By, Nikki Sixx, Sixx:A.M., Soundtrack, The Heroin Diaries, the matriarch

“Temptation Waits” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene.

The first time I heard “Temptation Waits” by Garbage was on the Buffy The Vampire Slayer soundtrack. I imagine an urban predator stalking its prey with illicit intent, crossing a bar in full view of patrons that can’t help but take notice; this fit perfectly for the scene I had imagined.

I’ll tell you something…

I am a wolf but… I like to wear sheep’s clothing.

I am a bonfire…

I am a vampire… I’m waiting for my moment.

The target is meant to think that someone is coming to see them, but they’re actually coming for them.

You are a secret… A new possession…

I like to keep you guessing.

Read more about the upcoming novel, The Matriarch…

Filed under: Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian Tagged: Garbage, Music to Write By, Soundtrack, Temptation Waits, the matriarch

“Running Up That Hill” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene. It helps me get into the heads of the characters and focus on what is happening.

“Running up That Hill” is a cover by Placebo of a song by Kate Bush. I love both versions, but the Placebo version inexplicably sounds more haunting to me; the echo of a female singer over the male vocals is a key reason. There is a critical scene in my book where the dialogue stops and the action takes over. The song feels intimate yet forbidden, pleasurable but dangerous.

‘C’mon, baby, c’mon, c’mon, darling,

Let me steal this moment from you now.

C’mon, angel, c’mon, c’mon, darling,

Let’s exchange the experience, oh…’

Of the characters in the scene, only one is in control and aware of what is happening. This person believes the act is perfectly acceptable, but the other has no will to resist it, not even to experience their own terror. Imagine someone who could take you away, do whatever they wish with no fear of your memory, and tell themselves during and afterward that you would have no problem with this even if you could remember. This song is the one-sided delusion of the aggressor that their victim should be grateful that they were singled out.

Read more about the upcoming novel, The Matriarch…

Filed under: Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian Tagged: Kate Bush, Music to Write By, Placebo, Running Up That Hill, Soundtrack, the matriarch

New Synopsis for The Matriarch (back cover text tease)

Vampires don’t believe in ghosts.

Every October, the freshmen at Glenville State College are told stories about Sis Linn, the local ghost who haunts Clark Hall and the graveyard where she’s buried. Murdered in 1919, she was beaten beyond recognition, the target of a brutal killer who was never caught.

The stories are wrong.

When present-day student Janiss Connelly stumbles upon the truth, she inherits a unique opportunity to end a century of bloodshed… even if it’s already too late for her.

Read more about the upcoming novel, The Matriarch…

Filed under: Creativity, Literarian Tagged: 2013, novel, Synopsis, the matriarch, vampire

Middle of the Road (an excerpt from The Matriarch)

After accelerating out of a curve, Craig glanced down at his dashboard. The Escalade was just about to turn over its first hundred miles. He grinned as he repeatedly sneaked looks down at the dash trying catch the number rolling over. Just as it did, he looked back at the road in time to see something on the right side of the vehicle fall into its path.

Impact.

Craig gripped his steering wheel and stomped on his brake; the Escalade skidded to a stop in an impressively short distance. After shifting into park, the shoulder strap on his seat belt disengaged. He wondered for a moment why the airbags never inflated before finally assuming that whatever he’d hit hadn’t been big enough to set off them off.

What the hell was that?

He could make out something brownish and furry slumped over in the middle of the road ahead of him, just below the hood where he couldn’t see it clearly. He considered backing up enough to look from inside, but he also wanted to know if there was any damage. The thought alone pissed him off, that his first brand-new vehicle was already f***** up because Bambi or someone’s dog didn’t have enough sense to stay out of the road.

Flipping his hazard lights on, Craig glanced into his rearview mirror and up the road. No other cars were coming. He could take a quick look, and if it was nothing, just hose it off later. The thought of seeing splattered blood and guts all of the front end disgusted him.

He got out and walked around to the front, discovering that the dead thing in road was a fawn. It was barely bigger than a good-sized dog. He looked at the grill of the Escalade, but there was no visible damage or even that much blood.

Lucky, but weird.

Taking a step closer, Craig saw the fawn’s coat had blood on it around the back of its neck and on its haunches. What disturbed him was that much of the animal’s damage was around the throat, like something had ripped it out. Shouldn’t it have been bleeding out more if he’d caused that by hitting it? The carcass was taking up enough of the right lane to mess up any other vehicle speeding around the corner. If he could find something to drag it off to the side of the road with, he might not actually have to touch it.

“You okay, buddy?” a disturbingly cheerful voice said from behind him. “You have that deer-in-the-headlights look.”

Spooked, Craig wheeled around. Partially blinded from the Escalade’s headlights, he could make out the silhouette of a sizable man. Enough light spilled over from the high beams to reveal blood-stained hands. Each time the hazard lights blinked on, Craig saw a devilish grin getting wider.

What the hell was wrong with his eyes?

Read more about the upcoming novel, The Matriarch…

Filed under: Creativity, Literarian Tagged: 2013, excerpt, march, novel, the matriarch, vampire

Do you stop or drive on?

Traveling along a lonely West Virginia highway by yourself at night, something steps in front of your vehicle. The impact is jarring, but you manage to stop without further incident. You can make out the mangled body of whatever you just hit in the road ahead as you look out over the hood, but it’s hard to see from inside. Do you drive on and hope for the best, or do you dare get out, check to see what it was, and/or ensure the vehicle has no significant damage just in case? Why or why not?

There’s no grade here, just the rest of your life to live with your decision (however long or short that might be).

Filed under: Conspiracies, Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian, Roleplaying Tagged: Matriarch

What does your “writing space” look like?

Authors! What does your writing space look like? Tall desk or wide? Is it secluded? Accessible? Do you keep things around to give you idea or remind you to work?

Here’s mine; it sets a mood. Yeah, I’m kinda hyper-organized about my work area. My desk also has TWO cup holders; made ‘em myself. And that door to the right? That’s an evil effing closet.

What does your writing space look like?

Share!

Filed under: Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian Tagged: author, desk, writing space

Just Finished: “Incarnation” by Emma Cornwall

After recently completing my own vampire novel, I decided to relax a bit and read one from someone else. I’ll admit that, in spite of the usual “capable girl on cover” meme that dominates paranormal fiction these days, I found the cover unusually striking, prompting me to turn it over for a look at the back. The cover text promised that Lucy, the character from Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” awakens as a new vampire to discover the lies Mr. Stoker has spun for his so-called novel, deciding then and there to seek him out for an explanation. Sounded good to me!

While certainly alternative fiction, it wasn’t a retelling of Dracula so much as it re-envisioned the character of Lucy and even relegated author Stoker to a character himself. What was surprising were all of the other elements introduced in the book, borrowing bits of British Empire history and legends to fuel the plot. At first, these things suggested they might overwhelm the characters with a ridiculous number of story points, but the central character of Lucy kept the story grounded and moving along.

The plot is more the stuff of court politics and sleuthing rather than repeated action sequences. Werewolves make an appearance along with cameos from a few other fantastic creatures, but the story focuses on the issues between vampires and humans in a world becoming technologically advanced (Babbage engines, Tesla carriages, and other steampunk elements fill the setting but truly contribute little to the story itself). There are reasons why Lucy was turned rather than her incarnation being just a random occurrence.

The ending contains a few surprises, but I wish the author would have been less ambiguous with what exactly happens at the end. I assume that it may have been intentionally cryptic as set up for a possible sequel, but after experiencing Lucy’s inquisitive nature throughout the story, it seemed to me she might have more questions about what really happened rather than simply be satisfied with the outcome. If you can forgive the unexpected mishmash of fae, Arthurian, and steampunk elements intruding on classic vampire fiction early on, following the thoughts and exploits of Miss Lucy Weston are reason enough to give this novel a shot.

Filed under: Literarian Tagged: Emma Cornwall, Incarnation, Lucy

The Matriarch is DONE!

After finishing both copyediting and proofreading, my new novel, The Matriarch, is off to my publisher for final check and out of my hands. Whew!

There are still a few more things that have to happen before I can announce the actual and official publishing date (aka when you can get your mitts on this thing), and I can’t wait for you all to read it. This was one of the first ideas I ever had for a book, and seeing it finally come to fruition is a dream come true.

If you’re on Facebook, follow the progress at https://www.facebook.com/thematriarchnovel.

Excerpts from The Matriarch:
He Said He Was the Devil
Clean and Professional
An Awakening In the Cellar

Filed under: Creativity, Literarian, Paranormal Tagged: Matriarch, novel, Sis Linn, vampire

Crunch Time Begins Tomorrow at Dawn!

It’s the eve of “Crunch Lock-In Weekend,” where the proofreader and I will be sequestered for the duration to get the Matriarch book edits done before Monday! Expect updates throughout the crunch (she added the word “sequestered” in this post… see what I have to deal with?!)

If you’re on Facebook, follow our progress at https://www.facebook.com/thematriarchnovel.

Filed under: Existentialism Tagged: Matriarch