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Tiffany
felt like she was crawling out of a black hole. Each time she went forward, she
was dragged back a step or two. A scream was wedged in her throat, her mouth
dry, and her arms were cumbersome.
Light
appeared as a slit that grew slightly larger, stabbing her eyes. Agony flooded
her head, and iron spikes drove into her back. She squeezed her eyelids shut,
hoping to block the searing torture in every cell of her body. A screeching
echoed in her ears, raspy, akin to the soundtrack of a horror movie.
“Tiff.
Tiff. Wake up,” a voice commanded.
No.
Waking up meant pain and anguish. The silence of oblivion called to her. She
drifted toward the peace it offered.
A
hard shove made her shoulder ache. “Tiff! Wake up! We have to get up,” the
voice commanded sharply. It was male and familiar. But who was it?
Her
throat was on fire. Why was someone screaming? She tried opening her mouth but
it was already ajar.
As
awareness flooded her brain, the screeching became louder, more coherent. With
a start, she realized it was her voice she was hearing. She scrambled around
with a hand, looking for something—anything—to grasp and help her come back to
reality.
A
strong hand grabbed hers. “Open your eyes.”
Charles.
What was he doing here with her? And why did she hurt so much? She shifted from
her stomach to her side, and felt grass against her bare arm. Why was she lying
on the lawn? Her last memory was going to the exhibition with Charles, and they
were walking toward the show rings—
Her
eyes flew open as the image of the hideous monster they had encountered flooded
her mind. With a loud shriek, she flew to a sitting position. Nausea burned her
mouth, stomach, and throat. The vision wouldn’t leave her mind.
She
quickly turned her head and gagged. Whatever was left in her stomach came up,
and it tasted horrible.
Charles
patted her back and held her hair off her face. Disgusting. She hadn’t vomited
that hard since the last time she was drunk, after having a few too many
strawberry Jell-O shooters during the Canada Day party at their mutual friend
Erica’s house.
“Sorry,”
she mumbled and wiped a hand across her mouth. She would kill for a glass of
water, but a glance around the room showed nothing but bare yellow walls, grass
beneath her, and an odd-looking door covered in bright-green foliage with corn
stalks and a few live ears of corn. There was a pink hue close to the ceiling.
Higher
up, the hue became brighter. The word START was flashing at them in
four-foot-high pink neon letters.
Acrid
bile and gravel hit her tongue again. “Start? What does that mean?” She grabbed
Charles’ hand, and her anxiety eased a little when his fingers entwined with
hers.
“I-I
don’t know,” he stammered.
He
looked like she felt. His face ashen, his blue eyes looked tired, and dark
circles ringed his eyes. His red hair looked like it hadn’t been combed in a
few days, and his lips were as white as his cheeks. Hell, even the smattering
of freckles across his nose seemed muted. His other hand was fisted, and there
was fear in his eyes.
You
were chosen. You drew the Death card. You will play my game! The
deep, demonic-sounding voice echoed in Tiffany’s head. “The dummy. Didn’t he
say we were chosen to play his game?”
Charles’
eyes widened. “Yeah, he did. But he didn’t tell us the rules.”
Tiffany
scrambled to her knees. The room spun. She shook her head to clear it and
managed to get her feet under her. “Surely there’s a rule book around here
somewhere.” She bent over and slid her hand around the bottom of the wall,
along the crease between it and the floor/ground. All she got was a handful of
grass.
Charles
sighed. “I checked. There isn’t.”
She
stood and managed to stagger over to one of the corners. Nothing visible in the
corner seam, but that didn’t mean anything. He could have easily looked with
his eyes and not felt around like she had. Some days, she wished he wasn’t so
damn cautious. It drove her crazy seeing him stick a toe in the water instead of
jumping in full force. She felt along the seam as high as she could reach and
down to the floor. Nothing but smooth walls of an unknown material met her
fingers. “Did you actually touch anything?”
“No,
but something fell out of the ceiling when I woke up.”
She
turned her head to stare at him. “What was it?”
He
sighed and lifted his hand, opening the fist. On his palm lay two black dice.
The dots, totaling five, were glowing fiery red. His arm trembled.
“Dice?
What are they for?”
Can you, for those who don't know you already, tell
something about yourself and how you became an author?
I’ve always loved to read, and as a child, I loved making up stories.
I didn’t know I wanted to be an author until my Grade 4 teacher, Mrs. Hache,
told me I had a knack for writing stories. After that, becoming an author was
my dream career. I didn’t know what genre I wanted to write, so I just wrote
silly stuff until I hit Grade 6. After reading a Harlequin Romance, I knew I
wanted to be a romance author. I’ve been writing on and off since then, honing
my skills and listening to advice from more experienced authors, or in some
cases, editors who sent me rejection letters. If it wasn’t for one kind editor
taking an extra five minutes to give me a personal rejection letter and give me
a few tips on how to improve my writing and storytelling skills, I don’t think
I would have made it this far.
What is something
unique/quirky about you?
I’m a creative type,
but I also love sciences. Give me a book on how the body works, and I’m
engrossed for eons. I’d probably read it from cover to cover and be
disappointed it was finished. I love learning about things like anatomy and
astronomy.
Where were you
born/grew up at?
I was born in a small
town called Bridgewater on Nova Scotia’s South Shore, and I grew up in a small
community called Crousetown, which straddles the Petite River. I spent most of
my childhood either swimming at the river or one of the three main beaches –
Crescent Beach, Risser’s Beach or Green Bay Beach – when my family wasn’t
camping in the Annapolis Valley or going on day trips. The Atlantic Ocean
played a huge part of my childhood, between spending so much time on the beach
and my father working at the Fish Plant in Lunenburg (home of the Bluenose
II).
What do you do to
unwind and relax?
I like to watch videos
about Star Wars, Star Trek, and science on YouTube; listen to heavy
metal music; watch movies, and do graphics design for my books or just for fun.
How to find time to
write as a parent?
It’s not easy, but it’s
a lot easier now than it was when my son was little. He is on the autism
spectrum and does not know the meaning of “quiet time”. The only time I could
write when he was small was when his father took him shopping or down to his
grandmother’s house for a few hours. I wasn’t able to start writing full time
until my son was in school full time, and even then it was tricky. I didn’t
finish my first full length novel until he was in grade 3, and that had to be
revised and rewritten several times before I got the formula right. Thankfully
the older my son got, the better he is at listening and being quiet to an
extent. He is seventeen years old now, and I’ve written while he was home, some
of my best work to date.
Describe yourself in 5
words or less!
Quirky, shy, creative,
opinionated, and goofy.
When did you first
consider yourself a writer?
It was after my son
started school, and I was able to start writing more. Before that, I was an
aspiring writer, after that, I became a full-fledged writer.
Do you have a favorite
movie?
Yes, I have several. I
am a huge Star Wars fan, and I love
pretty much all of the movies I’ve seen so far, with the exception of Solo. I haven’t seen that one yet, but I hope to
sometime soon. I also love Valmont, The
Fifth Element, Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan,
Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs,
the 1931 version of Dracula, Carrie (1976 adaptation of the Stephen King
novel), Cujo, Nightbreed, and the
original Species. I am also a fan of
the made for TV movies from the Canadian TV show, North of 60. I love all five of them, but my favorites
are Trial by Fire and In the Blue
Ground.
Which of your novels
can you imagine made into a movie?
Away to Me because it’s
so full of drama, and shows the power of love.
As a writer, what
would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
My mascot is my cat.
Our old cat Amber used to sit on top of my clunky old Dell monitor when I was
writing, and she’d flip her tail across the screen. Unfortunately she passed
away in 2018, but we adopted another cat, a rescued Maine Coon cat Marnie, five
days after Amber’s passing, and Marnie has turned into my new mascot. She’s
more famous than I am. People love her to bits.
What are your top 10
favorite books/authors?
Nora Roberts, Aaron
Allston, Timothy Zahn, K.L. Slater, and Stephen King top my favorite authors
list.
Favorite books include:
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
Carrie by Stephen King
Splinter of the Mind’s Eye (Star Wars Legends) by Alan Dean
Foster
Heir to the Jedi (Star Wars canon) by Kevin Hearne
The Thrawn Trilogy (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising,
The Last Command – Star Wars Legends) by Timothy Zahn
The Charm Bracelet Series by Jane Feather
Birthright by Nora Roberts
Crystal Flame by Jayne Ann Krentz
Ritual of Proof by Dara Joy.
How long have you been
writing?
I’ve been writing on
and off since elementary school, when I realized it was an escape from the real
world, and my friends liked my stories.
Do the characters all
come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write?
I like to have the two
main characters somewhat settled upon before starting a book, but the side
characters like to come in on their own, unless it’s an already established
storyline, like the Feathered Tartan series. Most of the extras are already set
– like the Campbell family – but their love interests’ families will come in as
needed.
What kind of research
do you do before you begin writing a book?
If it’s in an area I’m
not familiar with, I always research said area. However, I prefer to write
stories set in towns and cities I’m familiar with, hence the small town feeling
in all of my books. I love to have photos handy so I am able to describe the
area perfectly, and if possible, describe the feeling, smells, and sounds one
will get while at any particular spot.
If I decide the mains
have a career I know nothing about, I will research it. I have two extremely
thick files of printed out information on the Nova Scotia Real Estate trade and
laws from about six years ago stashed somewhere, for reference.
If something comes up during
the writing process, I’ll do research on it for a few days and continue writing
after I feel I’m up to date on it.
Do you read yourself
and if so what is your favorite genre?
I love to read. I
prefer romance but with a hefty storyline. It can’t be all about hopping in
bed. There must be hurdles for the main characters to go through in order to
get their happy ever after or happy for now. I also love a good mystery, and if
it has romance in it, all the better. Same with paranormal, a romance in it makes
it better. However, I also love horror books by Stephen King, general fiction
and women’s fiction.
Do you prefer to write
in silence or with noise? Why?
I prefer silence, no
distractions. Any noise makes me lose my train of thought and I get frustrated,
which makes me give up on writing so I can calm down. Writing with an autistic
teenager in the house is a challenge. I’ve done it before, but I prefer not to
do it too much.
Do you write one book
at a time or do you have several going at a time?
I prefer to have one going at a time, but
lately, I’ve had at least three on the go at once, two are in the same series.
I’m scared I’ll get mixed up if I have more than one going on at once.
Pen or type writer or
computer?
I prefer writing on a
desktop computer. I like the freedom of editing in a word processor, and how I
can easily change things without having to type out an entire page.
Advice they would give
new authors?
Write. Keep writing
until you turn blue, and keep going. READ. Read a lot, from your own genre to
ones you normally avoid.
Listen to constructive
criticism, especially from experienced editors and authors. They know what they
are talking about, and if someone says something isn’t working, take it into
account. Take a few steps back and try to see your story as a reader, not a
writer. Don’t discount what they say because it’s about your work. They’re
trying to help you, not hinder you. Giving constructive advice and critiques
show they want you to succeed. Don’t forget to thank them for their help.
Always get someone to
critique your work, that way if you miss something like a huge glaring mistake,
they will catch it for you. Plus they will catch inconsistencies, passive
areas, tangents, and a lot of other things you may miss when you go over it.
If you go Indie, have
an editor or someone else help you with edits and proofing. The cleaner the
story is, the better your intended audience will like it.
If someone doesn’t like
your work and gives a solid reason why (not their cup of tea as a reader for
example), don’t get upset. Not everyone will like your books. Don’t expect
everyone to blow sunshine at you. Everyone has different opinions, and likes
different things. A lot of people class the “I wasn’t the right audience for
this book” 1 Star Review as a badge of honor, it means you “made it” as an
author.
What is your writing
process? For instance do you do an outline first? Do you do the chapters first?
I like to start with a
general idea of where the story will go – the main characters, and how they get
their happy ever after at the end of the story. After that, I tend to just let
the characters run with it, and if something doesn’t work, it’s axed and
something else put in. I find if I just write without planning too much, things
fall in to place much easier.
Eternity’s Gamble was
an exception to my pantsing rule. I actually did a full synopsis and had the
rough draft of the blurb written before
I wrote the majority of the story. Normally, I do things the other way around.
What are common traps
for aspiring writers?
One of the biggest ones
is thinking they have a “best-selling idea” or story, when in reality, it's
probably not even a blip on the radar.
Another one is thinking
that if they have their own distinct style that goes against the grain of
grammar and writing period, they’ll get noticed by a big name publisher and
again, have a best-selling book.
Some think that once
the writing is done, the work is too. It’s the exact opposite. Once that story
is drafted, the work is only beginning. Whether you go the traditional route or
the self-publishing one, you still have to edit the story several times to get
it as perfect as possible, get it proofed, have a cover made, and after it’s
out there, promote it to death.
Some also think that
others should do their work while they do nothing. Not true. If you want to be
successful, you have to work your butt off to get anywhere in this business.
What is your writing
Kryptonite?
Noise. Distractions of
any kind. They’ll throw me off so badly that I lose track of things, get
frustrated and have to stop for the day. Ugh!
If you could tell your
younger writing self anything, what would it be?
I’d tell myself to
ignore the naysayers, and keep writing… I’ll have a few problems and some road
blocks at a few points, but I made it, despite everything. Keep going. Never
give up… And check out an independent publisher out in British Columbia. *wink*
How long on average
does it take you to write a book?
It depends on many
things – if I have a lot of alone time and my chronic pain issues are not
acting up. If Hubby works day times while my son is in school, and I am deep
into a story, I can sometimes clear 6K a week. I’ve written books in less than
3 months while writing only a day or two a week.
On average, I’d say it
is about six months to a year. If I can put out a full novel once a year, I’m
happy.
One idea, four
authors...
Four unique stories…
In 2020, three
author friends and I discussed collaborating on a single idea. We decided to
write our own stories about a corn maze with a portal in it, and call it MAIZEMERIZED.
Here are the
results:
Born for This
by Maggie Blackbird: Available NOW from Extasy Books.
Nine for a Kiss
by D.S. Dehel: Available NOW from Extasy Books.
Love Spells,
Full Moons, and Silver Bullets by Cameron Allie: Coming March 2022
Eternity’s
Gamble by V.J. Allison: Available NOW from Decadent Publishing.
V.J.
Allison was born and raised in southern Nova Scotia, Canada, and her
work reflects her strong Maritime roots. She is a stay-at-home mother
to a son on the autism spectrum, married to the love of her life, and
“mama” to a rescued Maine Coon cat named Marnie. She has been
writing various stories of novel length and short stories since her
school days, and sees writing as a vital component to her life.
She
is a small town erotic romance author published by Extasy Books, and
her novels have been received with great acclaim. Her second
novel, Away to Me, is a recipient of the eXtasy
Books and Devine Destinies’ Editor’s Choice Seal of
Excellence and Enjoyable Reading.
Her first
paranormal/horror romance, Eternity's Gamble, was
released by Decadent Publishing on October 1, 2021.
On
January 4, 2021, she released her first independently published
story, COVID’s Arrow, which had been previously
released in the Together We Stand charity collection
of stories about essential workers.
When
she isn’t writing, she loves to read romance and science fiction
novels (notably Star Wars); listen to music (heavy metal,
rock, alternative); and do graphics design. She runs her own graphics
design company, Veridian Rose Designs, specializing in
book promotional posters and Facebook cover photos.
This
self-proclaimed geeky rocker chick is a warrior and advocate for
various chronic illnesses including Occipital Neuralgia, Trigeminal
Neuralgia, Diabetes, Migraines, and Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia. She
is also an advocate for the prevention of animal cruelty and is a
voice for Autism Awareness.
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