S.E. Isaac's Blog, page 31
February 12, 2018
Spunk & Honesty!
One of the things I love about being in anthologies is that I get to meet authors, who I may have never met otherwise. With the current anthology that I am co-coordinating and an author in A Guide to Claiming a Scaredy Cat, has introduced me to some amazing authors! Such a great group of authors! 
I was able to chat it up with all of them. Learned lots about them. Learned the similarities and differences we had. Learned their likes and dislikes. Yet, another fun experience. So, without further ado, let’s meet an author of A Guide to Claiming a Scaredy Cat anthology.
[image error]
Where are you from? Do you have children? Pet? Married?
I am from London, Ontario by way of the Toronto area, where I was born and raised. I like London much better. I have 6 pets – a beta named Arthur Curry (Aquaman’s human name); an unnamed pleco; a very large half-Manx named Terror; a domestic long-haired cat named Luna (who is as crazy as her name suggests); a pouty, cranky, 6 year old Corgi-Finnish Spitz named Toffee, who looks like a small corn dog; and, finally, my 4 month old Corso-St Bernard-Rottie mix, Micky. I’m training Micky to be a support dog for me; she’ll be a PTSD dog and physical support.
I am not married anymore. I walked out of an abusive marriage in 2005. It was mutually abusive and I refused to allow my children to grow up thinking that it was okay for Mummy and Daddy to yell, scream, call each other names and beat on each other. So I left and everyone has been much happier since. My kids are now 22 and 18, both are well-adjusted, brilliant and driven. I am, however, in the kind of relationship you find in a really good romance novel – the love is intense, overwhelming and deep; the sex makes me see stars ; he’s sweet, sexy, slightly geeky (and everyone will get to meet him at IYSAE); and, of course, there’s a complication.
Have you ever visited or lived abroad (overseas)? If so, where? Did you like it?
I got to go to Scotland in 2014! It was a 40th birthday gift (which was in 2013) and I didn’t have to pay a single cent, except for the tattoo I got done in Glasgow, which was my gift to myself.
Scotland is a major part of my heritage and it was a lifelong dream to go. I got to spend two whole weeks there (my friends really, really love me). It was amazing! I work with energy and so I not only got to see the history I got to feel it. I would absolutely live there. I hope to, some day.
Besides writing, what is your passion?
I have a couple:
The people I love. I am driven to look after them as much as they look after me.
Photography. M just bought me an almost-DSLR! It’s a Kodak Easy Share Z981, a real softball in the world of digital cameras but still a huge step up from the Olympus D-700. It’s a great camera to start learning how to use a DSLR on. I’m stoked.
And last, but not least, is the dream my daughter and I share, the reason I went back to school and she is attending the University of Guelph’s Bachelor’s of Bio-Resource Management Program: our ranch. One part of the ranch will be about rehabilitating injured and abused horses and the other part will a live-in camp (we’re hoping a month at a time, maybe the summer for those who need it) for children who have been abused and are not being helped by the support the system offers. Those children who cannot be reached. I was one of those children. Having some place where I could work with animals, make connections with other living creatures and learn that I could be loved and love in return… That’s what I’d like to offer other children.
Biggest pet peeve?
My ex-husband. *laughs* We actually get along fairly well, now.
My biggest pet peeve is people with brains who don’t use them. Those who are intelligent but act and speak with ignorance.
What genre do you write in? Do you read mostly in this genre too?
I write paranormal thrillers with a lot of romance and sex thrown in. I also write erotica, just for fun. I tend to read a lot of paranormal – LKH, Kelley Armstrong, JR Ward and Kim Harrison are my favourites.
What inspired you to write books?
When I was in grade four, my class was challenged to write a short story without using the word “and”. My teacher loved my story and I realized that I could affect people with my words. I wrote off and on a little through my teens until my boyfriend (and first lover) insisted that I write out my fantasies for him. They were the most trite pieces of drivel you have ever seen full of fireplaces, bear skin rugs and cabins in the woods but I continued to write and improve upon that embarrassment. Then my stories started actually having character development and depth and I steered away from so much sex. A book was a challenge I set for myself.
If you could only have one book in your personal library, what would that book be? And why?
*gasp* One book?!? Can it be an anthology? Actually, it is an anthology: An Oxford Anthology of Shakespeare. I absolutely love Shakespeare. If you talk to me often enough you will get peppered with Shakespearean references from direct quotes to oblique ones. I’m on a (pretty much continuous) Messenger call with M right now and he said, “You want Shakespeare, don’t you?” *chuckles*
With the paranormal romance anthology, A Guide to Claiming a Scaredy Cat, will your readers see a different writing style or do you always stick to the same writing style?
I tend to write in an open omnipresent third person – that means that you are getting the inner thoughts and seeing the lives of more than just the MC, so, for instance, you’ll be seeing the thoughts and lives of both Sarah and Mike, not just Sarah in my story. I was going to try to write in closed third person but I don’t like it as much. (To be honest, I had one publisher say they’d be thrilled to publish Witch Hitlist I rewrote it in closed third person, only from Anna’s POV. Pfft) This story is going to be in my normal style, for sure.
And that was a roundabout way of getting to that answer. Sorry, people!
Now for the fun stuff:
Are you a coffee or tea drinker (Which do you prefer)?
Tea. If I do drink coffee, it’s gotta be light and sweet and preferably made light with hazelnut creamer. By then, I don’t think it’s really coffee anymore eh? Tea it is! I own a dozen or so different ones.
What is one food/beverage that you could never give up?
Cheese. I bet you expected that Ch sound to be the beginning of chocolate, didn’t ya?
Unicorn or Dragons- Which team would you be on?
Dragons. All the way.
If a zombie apocalypse happened and you had to choose two items from the following list of items, which two would you choose and why? Titanium baseball bat, running shoes, shotgun with two cases of shells, a novel by your favorite author, Samurai sword, a Knight’s armor suits, semi-truck filled with chocolate, or a puppy/kitten?
M says the bat and the puppy – the bat would last the longest without being loud or getting dull and the puppy would grow into a dog that would scent the zombies long before you. And I have to agree, so yup, what he said.
Nice chatting with you, S.E.Isaac!
Isn’t she awesome? I love her spunk & her honesty! Definitely, two things we have in common!
To find out more about Catherine, her writing, her photos, and the work she’s doing with Micky check out her blogs:
https://catherinebowman.wordpress.com/ & https://raisingmicky.wordpress.com/
She is on social media too!
Follow her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HighlandWolves/
Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HighlandWolves
Follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenn.c.vanm/
[image error]
After following Catherine and all of her great pages, be sure to find her and the other authors on the anthology’s Facebook Fan Page.
Anthology’s FB Fan Page
One more thing, before I go, do you like winning things for free? (Yes, I said, ‘Free’.) If so, be sure to enter the anthology’s Cover Reveal Event giveaway. There are three amazing prizes up for grabs!!!
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/446b36a28/?
CLICK HERE TO ENTER ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
Happy Monday, Happy Reading & XoXo,
S.E.Isaac
February 11, 2018
Diva Drama
The journey of being an author is not always pleasant. Today’s blog is a behind the curtain of the play ‘Authors’ lives’. Grab your popcorn & buckle up.
I do not expect anyone to be perfect. Hell, no one is. I do not expect people to not have bad days. Hell, everyone has a bad day. What I do expect out of others is respect. Everyone deserves respect; especially, in a professional setting. You don’t have to like me. Hell, some days I don’t like myself. (Shugs!) However, in this professional setting, let’s keep it business and cut out the cattiness. When I join something, anything, I give my all. I don’t half-ass it. There are so many people who half-ass stuff or just outright kiss ass so they don’t have to do their share. The title below should be stamped on some people’s foreheads, so the rest of us know to avoid that person or to bare ass (for those of you who like having your ass kissed).
As a somewhat new author, I take risks to learn what works and what works in this author world. This author world can be quite cutthroat and some authors will lead you astray intentionally. I have been lucky enough to find authors who have guided me, in the right direction, and given me knowledge (i.e. Josette Reuel, B. Groves, M.R. Wallace, and so many others). I truly wish that all other authors were like this. I hate the competitiveness and groupie settings that are part of the author world. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect groupies in the author world! One wrong word and these groupies will try to ruin your career. I have seen authors attacked because they go against the grain. Seriously? We are all authors, who share the same passion- writing.
The past few weeks, I have been part of hell. I have not spoken up about it, because I was trying to not be unprofessional or a bitch. If indie authors were to learn one thing from me, remember this: before joining anything author related, be sure to do your research. Learn about other authors, that particular group/page, and know when to hit the ‘abort’ button. If you have any feelings that something is wrong, after the third feeling of wanting to hit ‘abort’ just do it. It will save your heartache and headaches down the road 
February 9, 2018
A Smidge of Pimping
Good day, lovelies!
Time to do a bit of pimping on the upcoming paranormal romance anthology that I am co-coordinating and an author in! This anthology has me excited for so many reasons.
#1 The other authors are amazing! Not just as authors, but as people. And, all have a wonderful sense of humor! (Go, Team Scaredy Cats! HA)
#2 The stories within this anthology will be power hitters. None of these authors are holding back on their talent. Seriously, amazing work coming from all of them.
#3 Who can’t enjoy a good game of cat and mouse within the pages of a book?
I could list hundreds of reasons of why I love this anthology already, but I will leave you to form you own opinion
February 6, 2018
Special Announcement
Would love for you to pre-order your copy today. [image error]
A collection of ten never before published paranormal romance tales about strong females who struggle to hold on to their scaredy “cat” males. This anthology is full of steamy hijinks that might just melt your eReader.
Follow these lynx, panthers, jaguars, lions, tigers, witches, cu-sith, and familiars as they find love when they’re least expecting it.
**A percentage of each sale is being donated to the Wounded Warrior Project (https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/).**
Caught by Love by Josette Reuel
Distracted by a bad mane day and haywire magic, Laith forgot to hide from love.
A Roar of Her Own by S.E. Isaac
No place to hide, when she’s on the prowl to find love.
Changing His Spots by Catherine Bowman
<>
Hunter’s Moon by Romarin Demetri
Autumn should never have let him go.
Kenya and Her King by Crystal St. Clair
A king only bows down to his queen.
The Familiar’s Fate by Tiffany Heiser
Fate…a four letter word that could end it all.
Herding Cats by Edward Blackwood
Some cats just leave mice on the doorstep, he brought her a whole clowder of trouble.
Snowbound by A.M. Cosgrove
<>
An Unwanted Rescue by Adalaine Rose
An unwanted rescue breeds an unwanted love.
Tamed by Laura Stapleton
Only the queen of hearts can tame this king of the beasts.
BUY HERE –>
Amazon Global link: https://getBook.at/AG2-CaSCAntho
US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079MHWBZ4
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B079MHWBZ4
DE: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B079MHWBZ4
CA: http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B079MHWBZ4
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/2940155393610
iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1339522410
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/…/eb…/a-guide-to-claiming-a-scaredy-cat
Universal: https://www.books2read.com/u/b6r0JM
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38396498-a-guide-to-claiming-a-scaredy-cat
February 5, 2018
Crazy world of mental health
The brain is such a complex organ or machine depending on what you want to refer to it as. It is made up of approximately 100 billion neurons!
My son is 13 years old with a diagnosis of autism and mood disorder. Doctors have begun throwing around the diagnosis of ‘early onset schizophrenia’ (often referred to as COS- Childhood-onset Schizophrenia). This post originally was going to be about the connection between the two ASD and COS.; however, after researching, I see that the two have similar traits, but are not correlated to one another. (Hmmm. Fascinating. At least for me.) “One of the hypotheses supporting the similarities in the social and cognitive disturbances of ASD and SSD relates to abnormalities in the ratio of excitatory to inhibitory cortical activity (E/I imbalance).” (Canitano, R., & Pallagrosi, M. 2017) However, this same article goes on to say that the research was shown that 30% of the COS individuals followed had comorbid with ASD.
So what’s the truth? It won’t change the way my son is. It can only give me an answer; perhaps, even a sense of relief to know what goes on in my son’s mind. These answers could also help to find a medication that would be the most beneficial. How would the truth of the correlations between ASD and COS effect you, if your loved one has been diagnosed with one and monitored for the other?
It is such a confusing system- nervous system-the brain. One misfired neurotransmitter or one genetic anomaly & the entire brain can be changed resulting in a mental illness that affects an individual for the rest of their life. My son, regardless of diagnosis of ASD or COS, will always need to be supervised. Even in adulthood, he will need a caregiver to ensure that he is meeting his daily activities (brushing hair, brushing teeth, showering, etc.), ensure he is taking his medication, and ensure that the public is safe from him. By safe, I mean that he has outbursts and locks in on a target. A family member is usually there to redirect him, but that just strengthens my point of him needing supervision.
What are your thoughts on ASD, COS, or any other mental illness?
Happy Reading & XoXo
S.E.Isaac
Canitano R, Pallagrosi M. Autism Spectrum Disorders and Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders: Excitation/Inhibition Imbalance and Developmental Trajectories. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2017;8:69. doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00069
My life in a blender
Crazy title for this blog, right? It’s true. If you were to take the pieces of my life:
Being a mother
Being a mother to a child with autism, mood disorder, and early on-set Schizophrenia
Constantly getting texts or calls from the school regarding his behavior. He has paranoid early onset Schizophrenia with auditory illusions. The voices used to tell him to make good decisions. Now the voices tell him to make very bad decisions. I am constantly crying over this.
As though dealing with a special needs child wasn’t enough, I have to deal with myself who is a woman with anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc. Extreme depression.
Being a fiance’ to a hardworking ironworker, who busts his ass all day so he is exhausted at night & just wants to relax (Kids don’t make that easy, so I get to play referee to ensure a fair fight in kids vs dad matchup)
Being an author, who apparently couldn’t sell her book, if her life depended on it (HA!…Seriously, crying)
Being a military veteran & military support civilian having crewed on helicopters from nearly a decade- my body is destroyed from missions, trainings, and such.
Being a woman in general & never feeling good enough.
The list goes on and on…these are just the quick jot downs
We are all struggling with something in our lives. Life isn’t perfect. It wasn’t meant to be perfect. It was meant to help us grow. However, how much growth are we expected to do before life cuts us a break? Am I being selfish for wanting the my blender of a life to be turned off or at least turned to a lower setting? Thoughts?
Happy Reading & XoXo
S.E.Isaac
Oh, Happy Monday by the way!
February 4, 2018
Train to Anguish by S.E.Isaac
[image error]
Blurb:
Going from the lap of luxury to an all-male war academy, wasn’t something that Kaitlyn Armistice ever imagined for herself. Trapped as a political bargaining chip between her government, the Nevan’s, and the Lynxan government, she finds herself in a scary new world at the Academy of Anguish.
Struggling to control her fears, complete her assigned tasks, and to understand her attraction to her instructors, Kaitlyn forces her focus on succeeding.
When success is finally within her grasp, will Kaitlyn be able to battle her way through the Academy of Anguish, hold on to a budding romance, and win the hearts of her people?
Excerpt:
Light beamed down on my face, as we passed through the ten-mile tunnel that led to Lynx Canton. The half an hour train ride seemed to last an eternity. I was the only one in the train car. I had no other passengers to pass the time with to ease my nervousness. I was filled with nerves, confusion, and rage on the inside but kept an emotionless composure on the outside. Emotions were my enemy. I had known that since day one.
The Academy of Anguish was an all-male war academy. The word academy is just another way of saying canton without making it political, but everyone knows Academy of Anguish is a lifestyle not an educational system. The males left the walls of the academy, conducting themselves in a variety of ways, often in a warrior way. When they caused trouble, they weren’t questioned by the law, simply returned within the walls to receive whatever punishment was deemed necessary, if any. This is why no female would be foolish enough to subject her body to the agony, torment, and suffering that may wait within those walls. With the academy, there was no guarantee of survival.
The academy reached out past their walls to the Nevan government, because they wanted a female test subject not of Lynxan blood. It was decided that I would be the one to go in exchange for a political alliance agreement. My father had selfishly signed my fate away to the unknown and with only a care for their people in mind.
The academy provided an outfit before my departure. Black pants, black boots and a black tank top. I was told I would not need to bring anything with me. I was to simply get on the private train at the Nevan train depot and everything else would be taken care of. My father tried to hug and kiss me goodbye, but I ran to the arms of my mother, who kissed me swiftly and whispered, ‘I love you’. I found the strength somehow and walked out the door. I never looked back.
Now, here I am sitting on a train to doom and not a friend in the world. Most females would be bawling their eyes out in my current situation, but I knew better. Even when you felt like no one was watching, there was always someone watching. And I refused to be seen as weak.
The train finally reached the end of the tunnel and the glow of lights from the academy walls could be seen. The Academy of Anguish was much bigger then I had imagined. It looked like a fortress that went on for miles and miles. The train began to slow down, as I continued gazing out the window in amazement. My focus came back to the train when I was jarred forward as it halted. I stood up from my seat and looked at the exit doors. I knew once those train doors opened, there was no turning back. I’d be forever marked.
[image error]
[image error]
[image error]
Happy Super Bowl Sunday
Happy Super Bowl Sunday, Lovelies!
Philadelphia just won a few moments ago! Wow! Great job, Philly!
Today has been a busy day. My youngest and I went and saw Star Wars: The Last Jedi. I really hope that that movie is the LAST Star Wars movie. It was painful for me to watch. I could tell lots of money was poured into it. Great job on that! Great actors but the script was poorly written to me, personally. I know lots of you will hate me for saying that. But, just a matter of an opinion.
February 3, 2018
Need your help! <3
Feel free to share this blog post with your friends, family, and even the crazy cat lady next door
February 2, 2018
Ah…good ole Friday
Well, we made it to the weekend. Doesn’t feel any different. A matter of fact, it’s kind of shitty and reminds me of Monday. What day does your weekend feel like?
It’s funny the type of person I am. I am always trying to inspire, motivate and be positive towards other people and their lives, but when it comes to my own, I have this gigantic black cloud hovering over my head. You know, like the ones in the cartoons. Yep! That’s my life. When it rains, it pours & I never have an umbrella. (insert ‘crummy’ face. HA!)
Enough griping from me. Let me name some positive things:
The paranormal romance anthology that I am co-coordinating is going great! Such an awesome group of authors that I am getting to work with. We are all so diverse from one another. I
it!Be sure to like our anthology’s page. We have events, giveaways, author spotlights, and lots of other goodies coming soon to the page.
Anthology FB Page
