Jolene Haley is hosting a horror writer and illustrator showcase on her website to celebrate the spookiest of months. My story, "Food and Drink Man" is featured today. The Thornewood Hotel has seven stories and 666 rooms. Sometimes it has grand elevators and a ballroom. The staff mostly keep out of site, but they are watching. … Continue reading The Rooms the Guests Never See – 13 Days until Halloween
I'm very excited to be involved with an upcoming event that celebrates horror and dark fiction in all its delicious forms. W.T. Bland Public Library in Mount Dora, Florida is looking for authors to participate in its first annual “DreadFest,” an event to celebrate the darker side of fiction. The event will focus on horror … Continue reading DreadFest 2017 – Call for Writers
The Midnight Society - a wonderful collection of horror and paranormal writers and literary folk - is hosting #SpookyAllYear, a blog hop to add a little horror and spooky fun through the year. And today is the first day! Folks posting creepy stuff on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month will be linking to their site. … Continue reading #SpookyAllYear
This week, I’m spending a few days writing in a mostly empty house on a bluff above a lake. People have passed in this house. I walk the halls with my laptop, listening for them. But all I hear are the waves lapping on the shore. Sounds magical, like the perfect writing spot, doesn’t it? … Continue reading Disciplined Porch Writing – Day 6 of NaNoWriMo
In the movie Crimson Peak, Lucille Sharpe (the dark sister who holds the keys to the family manse) tells the gothic heroine, "It is a monstrous love. And it makes monsters of us all." Her version of love is menacing and possibly mad, as the best monsters are. My favorite monsters pursue their victims with a … Continue reading A Monstrous Love – 4 Days Until Halloween
I’m very glad I went to the Florida Heritage Book Festival and Writing Conference this year. I gained insight into my writing and new ideas for telling stories. Thursday was a writing critique session. Participants submitted their first 10 pages of a work in early September, and we brought written comments for each other to … Continue reading The Power Of Writing Conferences – Recap Of #FHBF2015
Welcome to Day 20 of Camp NaNoWriMo! How does your camp look? Is your tent still dry? Provisions well stocked? Any interesting interactions with wildlife? I've been putting all my writing energy into focusing on my novel, editing and adding scenes to improve its structure. That's resulted in me wandering off in the woods a bit, … Continue reading Camp NaNoWriMo – Mosquitoes
Welcome Campers and lurkers! Day 8 of Camp NaNoWriMo and the day is full of activities. As I've posted before, I'm editing and adding to my draft novel for Camp NaNoWriMo. Most of the story is set in Florida woods next to a blackwater river. It's a setting I can see vividly in my mind - … Continue reading Camp NaNoWriMo – Lurking in the Woods
So far, Camp NaNoWriMo is rocking along for me. I'm working on editing my novel from November's NaNoWriMo. I've never edited something this long before. I've printed it out so I can scribble on it. Yep, this stack of paper isn't imposing at all. The great thing I've found is that I've had enough time away … Continue reading Camp NaNoWriMo Day 3 – Editing, Writing, Editing, Writing
I’m continuing with my post about entering my first short story contest, and I’m sharing happy news. I attended the Lake County Bookfest last week, where they announced that my short story will be published in an electronic compilation along with eleven others. Though I wasn’t chosen as a winner or honorable mention in the short … Continue reading Insights From My First Short Story Contest (II)
Victoria Nations 