Katherine Villyard's Blog, page 12

January 14, 2023

“Becoming,” a newsletter exclusive short story

Do you like vampires? Do you like 18th and 19th century Prussian vampires with a crush? Do you like music, religion, betrayal, sweet first love, and terrible mistakes made? Do you like 18th century philosophy, and boys having crushes on boys?

If so, I might have something for you! Learn how Ludwig became a vampire, and met Abraham here.

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Published on January 14, 2023 13:37

January 13, 2023

I’m all over IndieReader!

I’m listed in the Best Reviewed Books for December and, because they gave me 4+ stars, they interviewed me for their site.

An excerpt:


What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?


Oh, it’s hard to answer this question because it’s a short fiction collection! A lot of things inspired me. “Book of Shadows” and “In the Water” were both inspired by incredibly vivid dreams. “Grandfather Paradox” was inspired by the classic Time Travel paradox and my wondering why someone would want to kill their own grandfather. “Saving Alan Idle” and “In Sickness and in Health” are both me wondering at what point does a program or construct transcend their programming and become a person. “La Divina Commedia” was inspired by a friend undergoing some personal difficulties, and how surprisingly painful I found his problems, and my feeling like the only thing that might make it worse would be if I were dating him. And “Underworld” is about my mother’s death. I can keep going, but there are a lot of stories here…


Oh, and in “Toads and Roses,” I’m the toad sister and I got the better end of the bargain. Go, Toads!


ANYWAY, you should check it out!

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Published on January 13, 2023 10:40

January 12, 2023

Holy, uh…

I’m a Booklife Editor’s Pick!

While Villyard has titled her collection of speculative fictions Love Stories, the theme that binds together these stories—which include elements of fantasy, fairy tale, myth, as well as science fiction—is deeply connected relationships, with the title challenging readers to think of them in the light of love. Villyard’s range, like that of the magazines she publishes in, ranges widely, from the fabulist to explorations of near- and far- future existence. One sharply told standout riffs on the darker side of an old fairy tale of two sisters: from the lips of one falls flowers and gemstones, from the other comes snakes and scorpions. The ending is a satisfying jolt.

Booklife

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Published on January 12, 2023 15:43

January 11, 2023

Free .99!

Want a free ebook copy of Love Stories? For a limited time (like, sometime Friday) you can get a free copy here! for the low, low cost of your email address. (Yes, it signs you up for my mailing list.)

If, instead, you’d rather pay $.99, you can get a copy from most places that sell ebooks.

Tell your friends. 😉

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Published on January 11, 2023 13:41

January 7, 2023

Psst!

Hey! want to buy a really cheap book?

The ebook of Love Stories will be on sale for $0.99 next week (but I’ve set it cheaper on Amazon early.) Tell your friends!

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Published on January 07, 2023 18:35

December 9, 2022

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Published on December 09, 2022 13:46

I’m IndieReader Approved!

Holy Cannoli, y’all!

With LOVE STORIES, author Katherine Villyard marries her vast intellect and riveting imagination in a short-story collection of speculative fiction that shines with straightforward yet elegant prose.

~Robin L Harvey for IndieReader

Yeah, the whole review is awesome! You can read the whole thing here.

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Published on December 09, 2022 07:57

December 6, 2022

Win a paperback copy of Love Stories!

Do you want a free paperback copy of Love Stories? I’m doing a Newsletter Giveaway! A random new subscriber in December will win a signed paperback.

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Published on December 06, 2022 10:35

November 30, 2022

Since the upcoming novel has a lot of classical music in it…

…maybe I should link to videos of choirs that contain me. 😉

Summer Singers of Atlanta, 2014

Zimria Festivale, 2015

Zimria Festivale, 2015
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Published on November 30, 2022 11:34

November 26, 2022

Want to see me read "Ondine's Curse"?

I read 15 minutes of Ondine's Curse here: https://youtu.be/hh7HCygqcBM
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Published on November 26, 2022 12:38