Chrys Fey's Blog, page 43

R - Reviews for the Disaster Crimes Series

HURRICANE CRIMES REVIEWS:
“Hurricane crimes will keep you guessing until the very end. Someone has to die. Beth Kennedy. Donovan Goldwyn. Or a member of the Police Department. As the story progresses, the ending could go in a myriad of directions.” – Stephen Tremp, author of Salem’s Daughters
“The author drew me in and held me tight until the last word. Actually I was hungry for more but was satisfied with the ending anyway. This book is full of mystery, suspense, romance and passion. I...



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Writing About: Michigan

I was born in Michigan, but I was raised in Florida. I don’t know as much about Michigan as I’d like, but I feature Michigan as a setting briefly in Seismic Crimes and it will be the main setting in another Disaster Crimes book. For that reason, I am bringing to you a post dedicated to this state.
Here are a few things to keep in mind or use if you ever write about Michigan:
1. The Mitten
Michigan is known as “the Mitten State.” Have you ever looked at the map of Michigan? Take a look now. The...



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Blogger Interview with diedre Knight from Pensive Pens

Today I am so happy to welcome Diedre Knight to my blog. She is a dear blogging friend. Every time she comments on my blog, I smile. :D She is sweet, funny, creative. Her comments always blow me away because they are almost lyrical, like stories.
Welcome, Diedre!

1.    What does Pensive Pens mean?
Thoughtful missives – about things that inspire, entice and ignite in me the desire to share it.
Pensive Pens Banner
2.    You share a lot of posts about haunted...



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Q - Quote Images

I've made a lot of quote images for Hurricane Crimes and Seismic Crimes to add to tweets and post on Instagram. They take a lot of work, but I have fun with them. I thought I'd share a few of my favorites. 






And two I haven't shared on social media yet:





QUESTION: Which of these is your favorite? 





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Allergies and Health Issues / Character ER

I’d never suggest giving a character an allergy or health problem just for the sake of giving your character an allergy or health problem or to add to the plot. An allergy or health problem is not supposed to be an easy way to create an in-depth, well-rounded, realistic character. If done right, researched well, and written with careful thought, it could help your character to be relatable, especially for people who have that health issue.

- In 2012, 4.1 million children were reported with...



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What Would You Do...? (Part 4) + Cover Reveal for Lynda R. Young

I'm over at Unicorn Bell withDear "I want to GIVE UP!" Writer.

I created a fun page on my website with my favorite responses from past What Would You Do...? posts. Check it out: What Would You Do?
First question: What Would You Do...? (Part 1)Second Question: What Would You Do...? (Part 2)Third Question: What Would You Do...? (Part 3)Fourth Question: What Would You Do...? (Part 4}

The fifth and last question is for Seismic Crimes. 


BLURB:
An Internal Affairs...



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The Book I Can't Give Up On / IWSG + The Bowl and The Stone Cover Reveal

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is a safe place for insecure writers.Sign up here:  Insecure Writer’s Support Group


What was your very first piece of writing as an aspiring writer? Where is it now? Collecting dust or has it been published? 
I was twelve when I started writing about an extraordinary girl in another world. Over the next few years, I wrote three books in that series. At the age of seventeen, I took on the task of rewriting that series, and I continued...



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Writing About: Wildfire + Question of the Month

I'm over at Unicorn Bell withDear Impatient Writer.

Wildfires aka brush fires are scary. I blogged about them in my 2015 A to Z Challenge (my theme was disasters), and I shared my own experience when a fire threatened my childhood home and took the life of one of my family’s beloved pet cats. Her name was Angel, and she passed away on my birthday.
Fire is one of my fears and living in Central Florida we have a fire season that typically begins April 1st. If there’s no rain, everything is dry. Leaves are dead, and trees are brown. A single spark could set ablaze a fire in a second. Wildfires are also a threat every year in California and other states across the US.
Here are a few things to remember to mention if you write about a wildfire:
- Smell of Smoke
When a fire is close, the unmistakable stench of burning wildfire can be detected in the air.
- Smoke Stacks
Wherever there’s a fire, there’s smoke, and smoke stacks in the distance can always be seen if there’s a fire anywhere.
- Ashes
Another indicator that a fire is close are the black and gray ashes that fall from the sky. They can be an inch-long or even up to six-inches-long depending on what’s burning.
Image from Wikipedia- Flames
As a fire approaches, orange can be seen flickering through tree branches and brush. Then all of a sudden, that same place you were looking is consumed in flames. Flames go to the tops of trees, snake along the grass, and can even jump over roads. I’ve seen it.
- Charred Nature
After a fire blows through, ashes and charred wood is left behind. Trees are blackened. Palmetto bushes become burnt stumps. And the ground is a sheet of ashes and burnt pieces of nature that crunches beneath your feet.

Fire is alive, so if you ever have to write about it, treat it as though it’s a living, breathing thing.

QUESTION: Have you come close to a wildfire before?



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Question of the Month blog hop

To join this monthly blog hop visit Michael G D'Agostino's blog.


QUESTION: What’s your favorite beach?
MY ANSWER: I live in Florida, which has the largest coastline in the US (1,350 miles), but I haven’t been to many beaches. I walked the boardwalk at Hollywood Beach but didn’t step onto the sand to see the water. And I’ve been to Melbourne and Cocoa beaches because that’s where I’ve lived, but my favorite beach was in Fort Lauderdale. (I don’t know the name of it. Though I suspect all of them are as lovely.) My family took our first and only vacation to Fort Lauderdale when I was maybe ten. During the day, the water was so clear it was magical. Every night we would go to the beach and watch the ships, sparkling like flames on the ebony waters, cross the horizon. It was lovely. Peaceful. I’ll never forget it.

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IWSG Question Announcement


AUGUST 3RD QUESTION: What was your very first piece of writing as an aspiring writer? Where is it now? Collecting dust or has it been published?
***Add this question and your answer to your IWSG Day post.

Blogger Interview with Liz A. from Laws of Gravity

Today I have Liz A. from Laws of Gravity . Her blog is quite unique. She blogs about being a substitute teacher, shares her knitting creations, and asks intriguing questions every week. Welcome, Liz!

1. How did you come up with the title Laws of Gravity for your blog? Does it have a special meaning?
This is a rather long story. The short version: I liked it.
As for the long version…
One of the reasons I studied physics in college had to do with the history of science. Copernicus. Galileo. Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler. Which all led to Sir Isaac Newton (who wasn’t that nice of a guy) and his law of universal gravitation. I so hope that Kepler actually stole that Mars data…
But that’s not what prompted my blog title. That came from a movie. A movie titled Laws of Gravity tickled my brain. I’ve never seen the movie. Not really interested. (It’s not my kind of film.) But the title… I loved the title. So, I stole it. For my personal journal.
When I started really working on my novels, I also started keeping a personal journal. And I titled it Laws of Gravity. Because.
Then, when I started my blog, I knew that’s what the title had to be. Because it was still a personal thing, just a blog where I talked about what was important to me. And I could spin some tale of how gravity is the thing that holds us all together. Gravity is the force that binds two objects with mass. And the more massive (or the more objects) the more tightly it binds.
Or, I could talk about spacetime and how gravity is the force that shapes our universe.

But actually, the title is Laws of Gravity because I liked the ring of it. (The deeper meaning gives it layers.)
2. One of your regular blog features is the Sub Files where you talk about moments you experience while subbing for a continuation high school. How did this get started?
I started calling it #subfiles because hashtags started being the thing, and it was the way I coded my tweets from school.
But the Sub Files have always been a part of the blog. When I first started (on MySpace, of all things), I had one reader, my brother. He said he liked my subbing stories best, so I focused on them.
As for the stories from the continuation high school, they began once the district started sending me there. I write about what happens during my subbing day. Those are just normal subbing days.

3. What was your very first blog post?
My very first blog post was on MySpace. May 23, 2006. I reposted it on Blogger on May 3, 2011. (I deleted the MySpace account, but I saved my blog posts from then. I reposted some of them, but many of them weren’t worth saving.) Silly Fire Drill
My first blog post on Blogger is from September 14, 2007, and it explains why I made the jump to Blogger. Newbie But I had been writing a blog for a little over a year when I posted this.
4. On Tuesdays you have What If posts. In your words: At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? How do you come up with or find these thought-provoking questions?
I wish I had a good answer for you. They just come to me. It might be from something I watched on TV. It might be from something someone said to me. Or it might just be me white knuckling it on the weekend when I’m writing my posts knowing that I need to post something…
5. You’re an avid knitter and even have an Etsy store called Zizi Rho Designs. What is your most popular item among your buyers?
I don’t know. I sell quite a few EOS lip balm holders, but is that because I have a ton of them? Many of my other designs end up being one-offs. I sell the one and then never make it again. So, it’s hard to know.
Knitted Earrings
6. What kitting projects are you currently working on?

I have three projects actively going at the moment. First, I'm crocheting some more Pokeball EOS lip balm holders. Who knew that was going to break big this summer? Then on the knitting side, I'm designing a new purse. I finally found a stitch pattern I like. And finally, I'm knitting a lacy cover for my water bottle. This has no practical application whatsoever. I just wanted to make something pretty. 

7. What are the top 5 most-viewed posts on your blog?
eReader Prop Pattern Water Bottle Carrier Pattern Crocheting for Peacepattern for a crocheted peace sign appliqué—sense a theme here?EOS Egg Lip Balm Holder Pattern A to Z Challenge Reflections Post from 2013
When I see other bloggers do this exercise, they always say how surprised they are at their top posts. I am not. My top posts are my free patterns, which I also link to on Ravelry (keeping them searchable for those looking for those sorts of things). I’d be more surprised if they weren’t at the top.
Because of Ravelry, I can look at what some others have done with my designs. It’s kind of fun. (The pyramid pillow prop, the water bottle carrier)

8. Share your number one tip to bloggers just starting out.
Write for you. Don’t worry about followers. If you aren’t writing a blog because you want to, you won’t stick with it for long.

Hyper Round:
1. Favorite time to post blogs? 8 AM       
2. Blogger or Wordpress? Blogger
3. Do you host guests?Yes, although I discourage it. (Too few readers to make it worth it.)
4. Where are you when you’re blogging?Sitting on my bed. But if I have an easy class, I may write out a post while watching them work and type it in later.

BIO:
I am a writer, a knitter, and a substitute teacher, not necessarily in that order. TV is my background noise of choice while I work on whatever project comes to hand. I'm currently working on a novel about a wizard with self-esteem issues. 
LINKS:Blog / Etsy Shop / Shop FB PageTwitter / Instagram / Shop Pinterest / Pinterest

Thank for you being my guest, Liz!
Please leave Liz a comment. J

P - Playground / Deleted Scene from Seismic Crimes

When you’re a writer, you end up cutting unnecessary scenes from your book that are extra fluff. In Seismic Crimes, I had written a playground fight scene. It’s a flashback on Donovan’s childhood and gives us special insight into what he was like as a kid, and what he had gone through having a drunk, worthless father and a mother who had to raise him alone. I adored the scene but ended up having to delete it because, although it was cute and funny, it didn’t add to the story.
I always keep whatever I end up having to delete from my projects. So now I can share this scene with you!
Deleted Scene:
On the day before Christmas break, Donovan’s class, along with the other fourth grade classes, ventured outdoors into the cold. A carpet of gray clouds smothered the sky. Snow flurries danced through the air, swaying from side to side as they fell. Donovan ran around the playground with his group of friends. Being free, after being cooped up all day doing silly art projects like making reindeer with his feet, felt great. He didn’t even care that it was freezing. The fact that winter break was a few hours away and counting made playtime even more delicious.
Donovan was in a heated game of tag when someone shoved him from behind and he fell into the snow. The fall caught him off guard. His hands dove through the snow and frozen pieces of mulch stabbed his palms. He turned over to look up at his attacker, a boy with a twisted, angry face.
Donovan jumped to his feet and brushed snow off his clothes. “What’s your problem, Miles?”
Miles crossed his arms over his one-too-many-cupcakes belly. “You’re my problem.”
“I haven’t done anything to you.”
“You didn’t have to. Your face is enough to make me mad.”
One of Donovan’s friends laughed from behind him. “You’re mad that you’re ugly and Donovan’s not?”
The surrounding children joined in with hoots and hollers.
“Shut up!” Miles stepped forward, getting toe to toe with Donovan. “I don’t have to explain why I don’t like you.”
Donovan glared into Miles’ mucus-green eyes. “If you’re in my face you do.”
“Alright, Donovan, I don’t like you because you’re a bastard. Your dad is a dumbass drunk and your mom is a whore.”
Donovan couldn’t care less what anyone said about his biological father—or sperm donor, which was a more appropriate term for the man who wasn’t in his life—because there was a safe bet he thought the same things or worse. But the moment anyone said something about his mom—a beautiful, sweet, loving woman—he snapped.
He launched himself at Miles, taking him down as if his body was full of gooey frosting. His fist pounded Miles’ face once, twice, three times before a recess monitor yanked him off Miles. Blood streamed from Miles’ nose like cherry filling squirting from a jelly donut. The principal suspended Donovan for two days following Christmas break, but the punishment didn’t bother him in the least. Punching Miles felt good. He didn’t regret getting into a fist fight, and he knew he’d do it again.


To read more from Seismic Crimes, go to Amazon.