Vampires keep popping up.

In the past couple of days the subject of vampires has come up in my little world several times. A friend and I were discussing how we were looking forward to seeing the third Underworld film. Anny Cook wrote about vampires and their appeal on her blog. (I blogged on the topic a while back.) And several new books came out by writers I enjoy that included vampires.

As it happens, one of my WIPs involves vampires. I started it several months ago I have a place that I store my stories that dates them for me adds some extra copyright oomph by having a date stamp. This is my first foray into vampires beyond one short story. While examining what would happen if these creatures were real isn’t the most original idea, I flatter myself that I have a bit of a different approach on their origin and how things go.

But the truth is, where some ideas are concerned there are a lot of original angles a writer can take, but the basic concepts are anything but new. Time travel, especially historical time travel that lands someone back into the Scottish highlands a the mercy of the great and powerful laird or into Regency England, is not new. Vampires are not new. Weres or shapeshifters are not new. Stories where an author or a reader finds themselves inside one of their books is not new. On and on and on we could list these almost forever.

I agree with Neil Gaiman who once said [paraphrasing here] that there were only so many ideas for stories out there, but it was what each writer did with that idea that made it special and their own.

A bit of my vampire story? It's titled Scion.

Does it seem as strange to you to think of a time when we saw them that way? Scary images on film that would give children nightmares and that charged up adults with rushes of adrenaline as we suspended disbelief for a few moments to pretend they were real? Blood thirsty, horrific, terrible and real?

But then the images changed. Slowly they evolved into something beyond the vicious, monstrous, killers of legend. Hollywood turned them into the quintessential lovers and heroes. The short, squat Bella Legosi with hairy palms and scary eyes was gone and in his place stepped Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. They became tragic figures whose need for salvation and sad haunted hearts made Romeo seem like a lightweight. So beautiful. So elegant. So sexy. Younger and younger we became obsessed with the idea of them.

They became the romantic heroes of our age. Oh, they still drank our blood and hunted humans, but either they only preyed upon the wicked or we would be the one to save them, to teach them to love. They were the ultimate bad boys who would be forever beautiful, forever young and forever desirable. Even better, they offered to share that fate with us.

I guess that was the true stroke of genius in their plan—taking the proverbial bite out of their image by linking it with the ultimate teen fantasies. And sex. We can’t forget the sex. So the RPGs grew into graphic novels and internet chat sites where people lived out their fantasies. Kids all over where playing games like The Coven, Club Blood and Lilith’s Children. Writing fanfiction, playing dress up and pretending to be one of them. The whole subculture grew up in the larger cities and soon actual clubs and bars were springing up where people could step away from their computers, don their vampiric identities in the flesh and go interact with other wannabees. All just good clean fun. Weird, but no harm done.

And no one knew that this change had been deliberate, that it had been a part of their plan. You see, as we humans evolved, so did they. Only they evolved faster and better, leaving behind many of the limitations they once had and making us forget about even more of them. Garlic and crosses? Strictly the stuff of Hollywood legends. By the time they made their move, just ten years ago, the majority of us were ready to welcome them and to stand against the few remnants of resistance. Human rights now changed and expanded to cover those who were not human. By the time we came to understand just what they meant by “human rights”, it was too late. Maybe if we’d paid more attention to animal rights groups like PETA, karma wouldn’t be kicking us in our collective human asses.

I’ve had some mental breakthrough on another story I’m working on. Now I just have to hope Z lets me do something about it. Sigh. Papers to grade, stuff to write and a Green Bird that is head bobbing at me to remind me that he needs more food in his food dishes.

Z starts with his sitter on Monday. No one here is happy about it. I so wish I could be a stay-at-home mom but it just isn’t possible. Insurance, mortgages, car payments, etc. are all just too much for one of our salaries.

On a good note, Z has been much happier lately. He is actually laughing and smiling. He had a melt down today at JoAnn’s fabric store because he was tired of shopping, but he did very well. He also went to his first baby storytime at my SO’s library. He did well, but they didn’t stay for playtime because he was the youngest baby there.

Oh, anyone know a good way to label bottles and storage containers so that it doesn’t wipe off? We tried permanent marker but it rubs off and tape isn’t waterproof.

Run off to see Anny Cook, Kelly Marstad, Sandra Cox and Jenny Beans. Jenny will be blogging about the Underworld prequel today.

Funnies

Since I'm going to have to spend a couple of hours in line tomorrow to vote I thought I'd post a couple of political funnies. Yes, I have a particular bias. No, I'm not afraid to express it. Personally I think that healthy disagreement in the area of politics is one of the things that makes our Democratic Republic work.

While I'm not a fan of our current President, I think this says more about the accountability of a "lame duck" than it does about President Bush.

Okay, this one was just funny no matter who you are. I swear my younger sister used to do this.





Now for non-political funnies:

Hope you got at least one giggle. I'm sure Anny Cook, Kelly Marstad, Sandra Cox or Bronwyn Green have much more interesting things to say. Sandra Cox has a contest running with some other great authors so make sure you don't miss her blog.

Sunday Shopping and Worries

We had our usual Sunday today, almost. Smudgie was craving beef the last two days so we finally gave in and headed to the vegetarian’s nightmare. A BBQ restaurant. A mound of smoked, barbecued beef and fries later, and he was a happy little camper. Of course “mound” is a relative term since he’s now pushing up on mommies tummy and it doesn’t take much to fill it up. Same with the bladder.

(These are his first toys, sitting in his crib waiting for Smudgie to arrive.)

After lunch we stopped by the thrift store. It’s a regular routine for us and has been since we discovered we were pregnant. We started looking for cheap baby things. We’ve not bought anything other than the little hooded snuggle towels and some clothes there, but it’s been a wonderful bargain. The clothes they put out are clean and in good repair, unlike some of the more well known thrift stores. We started with newborn and 0-3 month clothes. We’ve filled two dresser drawers with onesies, sleepers and the like. We now have two full drawers of 3-6 month clothes as well.

We figure Smudgie won’t care where his clothes come from and he’ll only be wearing them a matter of weeks before he outgrows them. Why on earth pay $20 an outfit for new clothes? For that matter why pay $5.00 for a onesie when we can get five of them for that cost that are in good condition. Wash them up and they’re good as new. In fact, we found several outfits there that still had the original tags on them. The baby they’d belonged to never even wore them.

I’m a rummage and thrift shop kinda girl. We grew up very poor. Sometimes we didn’t have electricity or running water. A lot of the times we didn’t have much food to go around. I don’t think we actually had a telephone until I was 13 or 14. A lot of our clothes were either made by my great-grandmother or purchased from rummage sales. Our clothes often had patches. I remember my great-grandmother once telling me I had more patch than pants left on a pair of old jeans. That was the way it was.

And it seems as if more and more that’s the way it is today. While at the thrift shop I looked around at some of the people. I saw families shopping for clothes for their children and kids playing with the toys that had been cast off by others and begging their parents for just one. There were young college students and young couples sifting through the pots, pans, beddings and linens trying to outfit a first apartment. And in the rows was a lovely young woman trying on formal dresses for homecoming, a wedding or perhaps her quinceañera.

More and more it seems as if the gap between the “haves” and the “have-nots” is growing. There seem to be relatively few of us “have just enoughs”. Still even those few of us clinging to the middle can only stay there by being careful. Have you looked at your retirement fund lately? Even the state operated funds are in trouble. In GA, our teacher’s retirement board is voting to change the language from “will be given an annual cost of living increase” to “may be given an annual cost of living increase”. This means that the board could vote to hold pension payments at their current rates. When I retire in 20 years or around 2028, I could theoretically be retiring to a pension check that meets the standard of living for 2008. And personal retirement funds? Don’t let them fool you into thinking it’s only the wealthy that are taking a hit. Those are the folks that are so insulated it won’t hurt them.

When I last peeked, my retirement fund had lost 13% over the last 6 months. I’m lucky. I have years ahead to ride it out and for the market to climb back up. But what about those who are facing retirement in the next 5 years? What about the baby boomers who will be flooding into Social Security while those of us in the younger generations are fewer in number and operating on hard economic times?

I think the lessons we need to learn, and that I hope our generation is learning, is one my grandparents taught me. They were the Depression Era children. When you got a job as young as you could and a portion of your wages helped the family. When you pitched in as a family, not just you and your parents but your extended family, and you pulled together. When communities helped each other. Because folks, if we don’t internalize those lessons now, we and our children are facing a hard road ahead.

Wow, lots of serious stuff. How about an excerpt? Soul Stone, due out November 19th is the story of Tarris, an incubus. Tarris makes his first appearance in Mating Stone, the first book in the Jewels of Ursus trilogy.

Excerpt from Mating Stone, available from Ellora's Cave:

Her eyes widened as a man stood up and looked at them. Holy hell! Mark was gorgeous. She adored Mark. Mark made her toes curl and her insides melt. But this man was beyond anything she’d ever seen before. He was desire, he was sex.

His long blond hair hung almost to his waist, flowing loosely around his shoulders. It wasn’t a brash platinum blond but shone like polished gold in the reflected firelight. His eyes were the most blue she’d ever seen, they almost glowed. No one had eyes like that unless they were retouched by special effects experts. It must be a trick of the light, she decided.

He was inches taller than Mark and wore only a neat pair of black slacks. His feet and chest were bare. Sarah felt something very warm begin deep inside her as she looked at that chest. It was tanned and smooth. The way the flicker firelight cast shadows highlighted the definition of the abs and tempted Sarah. The sharply etched muscles seemed to demand she trace them. With hands, lips, tongue, whatever was handy. He didn’t speak but watched her for a minute before smiling. Her body reacted to that smile shamelessly. He broke eye contact and shifted his gaze to Mark.

Sara drew in a sharp breath. What is wrong with you? Mark is standing right behind you and you’re ogling some strange guy. She groaned inwardly. You’re ogling his friend, a guy he called more than a brother.

Mark’s hands came up to rest on her shoulders. She turned to steal a glance at him and saw him smiling down at her. “It’s okay Sarah. Tarris often has that effect on people, men and women. He’s one of the most beautiful beings you’ll ever see.”

She flushed bright red and covered her face with her hands. Mark’s voice came from close to her ear. “He says you are beautiful too.”

Looking up she saw the smile had widened on Tarris’ face. He nodded his agreement with Mark’s words. “But you didn’t speak.” Sarah frowned.

Tarris shook his head, his lips parting to show her straight white teeth. A shiver ran through her and sank deep into the pit of her stomach.

Mark stepped around her. He grabbed his friend in a firm embrace and the two exchanged the manliest hug Sarah had ever seen. Arm still draped around Tarris, Mark turned to her. “Tarris doesn’t speak like you or I.”

“You’re mute?” she asked and he nodded in reply. “But you can hear?”

Tarris nodded again.

“Do you use sign language?” Sarah had learned a bit of finger spelling at summer camp.

The long hair caught the firelight and shimmered as the handsome head shook, the blue eyes crinkling with amusement.

“Don’t worry, he gets his point across,” Mark said wryly, tightening his arm around his friend’s shoulders. A silent laugh shook the blond man’s shoulders. Mark turned to him. “Sarah’s head is feeling funny.” The tone of his voice was as odd as the look he gave his friend. The blue eyes opened wide as if in innocent surprise but his grin twisted up his face revealing a single dimpled cheek. “Right,” Mark said. “Sarah, why don’t you lie down. Tarris and I will have a little talk while you rest.”

“Mark it’s okay, My head will be fine.”

Tarris looked at her intently and gestured toward the bed. She didn’t need Mark to interpret. He too thought she should lie down.

“I can’t just take a nap,” she reasoned with them. “In the middle of your family’s party.”

“Sarah this “party” will go on for hours. No one will notice. Lie down, my love and rest.”

"I don’t…” She was halted by Tarris coming toward her quickly. He reached out and touched her hand. The world swayed and she found herself being swept up into two strong arms. The scent of his skin swirled in her head. He smelt overwhelmingly masculine. An indistinct combination of sandalwood, odd spices, a burning fire and the musky smell of a man’s neck as a woman curled her face into it in the afterglow of hot, passionate sex.

“Show off,” Mark snorted from where he’d already taken a seat in one of the chairs. “It’s probably the heat of the room, Sarah. Tarzan here thinks it should feel like Miami in August. Thankfully it’s winter or he’d be wearing even less.” Tarris smiled down at her gently and shook his head. His expression was playful and said clearly that Mark was positively silly and was not to be believed. He laid her carefully on the bed and slipped off her shoes before pulling a soft blanket from the foot of the bed over her. A charming curve to his lips, he reached out to brush a strand of hair from her forehead. His touch corresponded inexplicably with the thickening of the fogginess in her brain and her eyes felt heavy.

“Sweet dreams, Sarah-mine,” Mark’s voice sounded far away as she drifted off to sleep.

And dreams can be a lot of fun when there's an incubus around...

Now, run off and see what the more interesting folks have in mind. Sandra Cox has a wonderful Halloween contest running with some other great authors. Anny Cook always has great things to say. And check out Kelly Marstad for a little inspirational thought.

Beam Me Up or Just Send Hugh Jackman

Well, October 14th has come and gone and still no UFO. What am I talking about?

Australian actress and author Blossom Goodchild announced that the aliens with whom she is in contact were scheduled to make a massive 72 hour appearance in the skies over North America beginning today, October 14th. Apparently Ms. Goodchild channeled a message from aliens calling themselves the Federation of Light announcing their impending arrival.

According to Ms. Goodchild the visitors planned to hover for 72 hours so that the media would have a chance to capture their arrival on film. Tired of speculation, evidently the Federation of Light intends to stop the skeptics in their tracks. And the site of this impressive, historic and monumental display?

Alabama. Not Washington, DC. Not New York City. Not Los Angeles. Not even Orlando, Florida where they could mix freely with the characters of the ET ride at Universal Studios. Perhaps the aliens simply picked the first state in alphabetical order.

I live in Georgia just a short distance from Alabama but for my part I’m not hanging out waiting for them. And while we're at it forget the little green men, if the Aussies are going to send something our way can I suggest this:

*Sigh* You gotta love a family man.

Of course over here in Georgia we have our own eye rolling moments. It was a Georgia police officer who was in the center of the recent Big Foot scandal. Two men claimed to have found a carcass belonging to a “big foot”. The men convinced one investor to front them $50,000 to have the necessary tests done on the body to prove it’s authenticity.

In the end all the investor got for his money was a money costume that had been filled with roadkill and stuffed into a small freezer. The roadkill certainly must have made the thing smell authentic. But it turns out that the investor is having the last laugh. The monkey suit is supposedly already up to $200,000 on eBay.

Now let’s all say it together…”A fool and his money are soon parted.”

You see, many people have the mistaken idea that Southerners are somehow less intelligent than the rest of Americans. As a transplant from the Midwest I can tell you that is simply not true. But I believe the problem is directly related to how the media portrays Southerners. Oh, it’s not the media’s fault. As illustrated by the above story and as so articulately summarized by the talented Jeff Foxworthy our entire problem in the south is that we can’t keep the stupidest amongst us off the television.

I'm done, so now swing on over and see what some of the best writers out there have to say. Visit Anny Cook, Kelly Marstad and Sandy Cox.

Where Have They Gone?

George Washington. Thomas Jefferson. Abraham Lincoln. Theodore Roosevelt. Woodrow Wilson. Dwight D. Eisenhower. John F. Kennedy.

Does anyone else remember the days when the men who held the office of President of the United States were people we could be proud of? Men who were a long way from perfect, but there was an honor and integrity in our political system? These were men we could respect as leaders despite their human flaws; enough so that we carved their faces into mountains, built monuments to their accomplishments and bestowed upon them a level of respect and consideration once they left office.

Now I’m not naïve. I’m perfectly aware that part of the reasons that the populace of the United States was able to do this was two fold. First of all we didn’t see the actual political infighting that occurred. The in-party disagreements about who should or shouldn’t represent the party were kept in backrooms and private conferences. So we didn’t have months of candidates from the various parties slinging mud and insults at each other before the real election ever actually began. Secondly the lower levels of media technology meant that we didn’t have the candidate’s entire lives, good and bad, blasted into our living rooms and flying about the internet to the point of absolute saturation.

This yet another example how our sophistication as a society has robbed us of the innocence that once gave us our heroes and our icons. Should we trade it? Should we go back? Probably not. It’s tempting to want things to be simpler, to be easier. But we also have to remember that simpler and easier, that age of innocence was used against us all as a way of perpetuating institutions in our nation that we as an ethical and enlightened people cannot accept. Innocence, simplicity and ease were used to propagate slavery—not just on the basis of race but the enslavement of multiple sectors of society—and its progeny segregation, gender based discrimination, bias in housing, bias in the work place and more.

But that doesn’t mean that we have to lose that which was good from those times. We can have leaders that are worthy of respect and admiration. But I truly believe that it is up to us as the citizens. We simply have to make it clear that there is behavior we won’t accept. It doesn’t have to do with political or social positions. It doesn’t have to do with the foibles that these people may have. It has to do with refusing to accept people who cannot lead without showing respect, dignity and class.

Ping!

Yes, this is me pinging off to another topic again.

We are eight weeks and counting. Momma is getting more and more nervous. But I have to tell you I work with the greatest bunch of people in the world.

I work in a small school system that is in the Metro Atlanta area and we are getting more and more Metro all the time. But what makes this particular middle school special is that we are a family. We don't always agree with each other, we argue and we huff but we get over it and move on. We support each other and it has been wonderful. My school is such a special place that I drive an hour and a half in the morning and two hours in the afternoon to work there.

My family situation is not exactly traditional. Ward and June Cleaver we aren't. I'm not even sure we qualify as Mike and Carol Brady, though considering the current state of my house I really wish I had an Alice around to help out. But the people I work with have been tremendously supportive of me as a writer and in this journey to enlarge our family. One co-worker has already raided the sales racks at Kohls and given us a sack full of clothes sized to fit Z during the summer months. When I shook my head and told her she shouldn't have, she grinned and said they were on sale. And that was that. They are all eager and supportive of this pregnancy, asking regularly how things are going. Another lady has brought me fabric to make sheets for our Moses basket and covers for the changing pad.

And my students are also excited, but not very happy at the prospect of a long term sub. They've been making suggestions for what work I should leave them and what subs are "nice". Now I have to seriously start planning for when I'm out. What do you leave your students to do for several weeks under the teaching of someone else?

So, we are eight weeks from launch. The next couple of months will see two of my "children" meet the world. November 19th will be the release of Soul Stone, the final book in the Jewels of Ursus trilogy from Ellora's Cave and my dear little incubus Tarris will be learning to fly solo. Then, a matter of a couple of weeks later, my little Z will make his appearance.

I had the most amazing dream last night. I dreamt he was already here, I was holding him and talking to him. It was such a sweet and warm feeling to hold him. It may sound odd, but I read to Z almost every night. I read picture books. We've read Have You Got My Purr; The Monster at The End of This Book; Chrysanthemum; Llama, Llama, Red Pajamas; Don't Let the Pigeon Drive The Bus and many more.

Okay, now head on over and see what Anny Cook, Kelly Marstad and Sandra Cox have to say. And be sure to check out some of the other blogs to the left and the ones on these ladies reading lists as well. There's a lot of good stuff out there.