Guest Post: A Writer’s Life in Sofia, Bulgaria by Despina Kler

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I am delighted to welcome a wonderful Twitter friend, Despina, to the blog this week to share her life in Sofia:

I am Despina Kler, 23 years old, an author from Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria and largest city of Bulgaria and the 15th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.2 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of  Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.

 Prehistoric settlements were excavated in the centre of the present city, near the royal palace, as well as in outer districts Slatina and Obelya.The well-preserved town walls (especially their substructures) date back before the 7th century BC, when Thracialns established their city around a mineral spring, which exists to the present day. Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence. Its ancient name, Serdika or Serdica, derives from the local Celtic tribe of the serdiwho inhabited the region since the 1st century BC. Serdica was a Roman capital during the tetrarchic system of government. During the Middle Ages, it was one of the major commercial centres of the Bulgarian Empire, along with Tarnovo. Sofia’s population remained small until 1879, when it was declared a capital of the Principallity of Bulgaria after the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule.

 

 

I write Erotic books. My first book is “The Harlot and the Seraphs” and I wrote it, when I was 19 years old. :) It is Hot, and it is direct, for free minds. My book is already published in epub format in Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Harlot-Seraphs-ebook/dp/B006LXIF2K, Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s?store=EBOOK&keyword=the+harlot+and+the+seraphs and some others.

Love yourselves, dear readers!

 

Find out more about Despina and her books by following her on Twitter: @despinakler , on Facebook: Despina Kler or visit her blog: http://despinakler.dinstudio.com./ 

A Book Recommendation: Sandcastle and Other Stories by @JustinBog

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I should like to recommend Justin Bog’s enchanting first short story collection, ‘Sandcastle and Other Stories’, which deftly examines the psychology of life:

With elegant prose, each story leads the reader through a character’s journey, requiring reflection on influential events in their lives, and finishes up with an unexpected twist at the end.

This anthology can be read as individual stories, or in its entirety, and has been my perfect bedside companion these past few days.

Here’s an excerpt from the introduction, where the author shares his inspirations for this collection:-

 

The first short story The Virtue of Minding Your Own Business was a runner-up in the Ernest Hemingway Short Story competition. A tale of madness, murder, and regret . .. it is also the first of two stories here inspired by the thought: What if the only thing someone wanted to be was a tree? The other tree story here is titled Cats In Trees. As a whole, I now see connections between the stories here. Many have similar themes or subject matter; twins are at play in three of the stories, Mothers of Twins, The Virtue of Minding Your Own Business, and On the Back Staircase – a highlight to the fact that I am a twin, and my younger siblings are also twins. Sandcastle and When the Ship Sinks are two stories where divorce is part of the central character’s past; these stories tackle this feeling of being unmoored from a different perspective, a woman’s and then a man’s; each of these characters take their singular philosophy and run away with it. There is also one story, Poseidon Eyes, set in an alternate fantasy world, even if the main character is the only one who sees the world with her eyes. This story’s twin or pairing is Train Crash, because of the theme of someone who can only see the world one way, but wants so much to make something big happen. And, finally, in the two stories, Under the Third Story Window and Typecast, I hoped to bring urgency to the setting, a raw tone, while keeping the characters human. Throughout the collection I wanted to instill a slight sense of humor, a dry rush, to the tone, and lend this to the characters – they really needed a headier comedic influence.

 

And that’s not all folks. The book incorporates a taster from Justin’s exciting new novel, ‘Wake Me Up’, due for release Autumn 2012, just to whet your appetite!

 

Author Bio:
 
Justin Bog is an author, reader, book/music/film/travel reviewer for the e-magazine In Classic Style, editor, cook, lawn mower, treat master to Zippy, Kipling, Ajax The Gray, & Eartha Kitt’n. 
 
Justin Bog, first and foremost, grew up a voracious reader, movie fanatic, and music audiophile. Justin always carried a stack of library books and collected way too many comic books from his local Ohio small-town drugstore. More than one teacher scolded Justin to put his suspect reading materials away and join the class. Justin began to make up stories of his own, using an old typewriter he found in the attic.So it comes as no surprise that Justin pursued an English Degree at the University of Michigan, followed by Film and Music Appreciation classes — finally graduating from Bowling Green State University with an MFA in Fiction Writing. After teaching creative writing, Justin began apprenticing in a number of bookstores and editing fiction for a midwestern journal. Justin ended up on the management team at Chapter One Bookstore in the Sun Valley resort area for a decade, offering book recommendations to its local celebrities, skiing fanatics, and tourists. Currently residing in the San Juan Islands just north of Seattle, Justin has the opportunity to focus on his own novels and short stories, while contributing commentary and reviews of Pop Culture. Justin continues to engage his lifelong passion for writing in combination with his curious mindset as the Senior Contributor and Editor at In Classic Style. Sandcastle and Other Stories is his first book.

 
If you want to know why Sandcastle and Other Stories reached #54 on Amazon’s top 100 Short Stories List, please buy the book and fall into a short sharp tale. Simply click the link:
 
 
Hitting the Like button at Amazon is a great way to show support for your favorite authors at Amazon, and, if you like the book, please let the author know by writing a review.
 
Learn more about the author by following him on Twitter @JustinBog, or visiting his website at www.justinbog.com 

 

Rubbing Shoulders at the BBC (With Pics!)

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This week I was thrilled to be interviewed by John Griff on BBC Radio Northampton. This was my first radio interview in a station, speaking into a mic and wearing ‘cans’. It was sooo much fun!

 

On Arrival

 

On a more serious note…

 

Check out those ‘cans’!

 

I was very impressed with the DJ, John Griff. His style was professional and he’d obviously visited my website and blog. If you are local, I’d highly recommend his afternoon show – it’s certainly a very polished act. Also, he was half way through An Unfamiliar Murder, even though he’d only had it a couple of days! Here is a link to the interview if you wish to listen. (I come on after 13 minutes.) http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00r1vzx/John_Griff_09_05_2012/

Huge thanks to everyone at BBC Radio Northampton including top DJ, John Griff, reporter, Adrianne Hill, and producer, Jordan Kellar, for making the experience so special!

 

 

Author Interview: Meet Tonya Cannariato

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I’m sharing my blog space today with Tonya Cannariato, who is not only one of the nicest people that you’ll meet on Twitter, but also a very talented writer who has just released her debut novel, Dust to Blood. I can’t wait to start this one, it looks most intriguing…

 

 

 Without giving too much away, tell us about your new book?

The underlying premise is: What if Communist regimes became so powerful because they stole magic from their population? Then, because the Soviet Union fell, if the magic had been embodied in some sort of magical being, what would those beings have to do to reclaim the magic that had been stolen from them? Obviously, there are still other Communist regimes out there, but this story has always been intended to explore the wider array of those countries, so we’ll be seeing more of Anne and Ivan as they try to find the magical beings from China and North Korea (hence, the series title, Red Slaves).

 

Where do your ideas come from?

Literally… I had a dream. Every so often I revisit places I’ve lived in my dreams, so I recognized that I was in Moscow. The thing that shocked me was the person we were visiting. He lived in a decrepit old-style Soviet apartment building. When we went into his apartment, there were tracks along the ceiling where he’d been confined. And he showed us that he wasn’t human by pricking his finger and “bleeding” dust. It was such a compelling dream, soon after I had read an interview with Stephenie Meyer about her source of inspiration for the Twilight Saga, that I decided to synopsize it and see if anyone wanted to read more. Obviously, I got some interest, and ran with my story-ball.

 

Who is your most fascinating character, and why?

Ivan, for sure: He doesn’t know his past and is relying on people he’s only recently met to help him find his roots. He embodies the Russian passion for life and as the story evolves takes on a much deeper significance for the culture.

 

Are any of your characters based on people you know or have met?

One characteristic from a very minor character came almost verbatim from my current next-door neighbor, who has a very big heart and rescues cats. In fact, she did care for a cat with Spina Bifida for 12 years—and it is hard to end a conversation with her.

My husband also laughed at a few characteristics from my protagonist, saying she seemed very like me, with her aversion to morning and love of books and reading. I say there are a lot of people like me if that’s all you want to base the similarities on. But then, depending on what other characteristics you add, the individual can become someone entirely new.

 

How do you plan to promote your novel?

I’m lucky that I had spent time on social media for several years prior to pursuing the novelist’s dream, so I have quite a few connections there that I’ll be relying on. But my husband and I both have a background as journalists, so we’ll be sending out press releases to local media as well as working with some paid promotion services to ensure that at least there is awareness of what I’ve done.

 

What can readers expect from you next, and when can they expect it?

I’ll be contributing a short story to an anthology from Katarr Kanticles Press this summer and have my second novel planned for release a little later in the year. I’m committed to annual participation in NaNoWriMo, since that structure has worked really well for me to complete my first two novels. I just discovered there’s a JuNoWriMo, too, that I’m toying with participating in—I can see, though, that it would be easy to overload my commitment plate with writing while I work a day job, so I’m trying to be careful to be realistic.

 

What is your writing routine and how do you balance your writing with your other commitments?

Unfortunately, I still haven’t developed a full-blown routine for writing; I journalled regularly for decades, so putting pen to paper has never been an issue for me. I also started out as a journalist, so writing on deadline doesn’t intimidate me. I now have a career in web marketing that already requires 40-50 hours of my week, and do some freelance work to supplement our income. In fact, my blog started as an offshoot of my work. I decided that if I were training people on blogging and social media, I needed to finally start my own blog. I also knew that the only way blogging works is if you find something you’re passionate about and can talk about in its endless variations. The only thing I could think of that has never waned, wavered, or varied in my life is my love of books. I hadn’t thought, when I was younger, that I would ever have the discipline (or inspiration!) to write a full-length novel, so I started off just doing reviews and author interviews. Since I seem to have found a community of supportive writers, now, based on that effort, I don’t think I’ll stop that process, either—though I notice that my time constraints during the writing/editing process mean I’m not as available for those efforts as I had been.

 

Do you ever suffer from writers block? If so, how do you overcome it?

I haven’t ever really understood the writer’s block dilemma from a creative writer’s perspective. You can always throw something new and wacky at your characters and see where they run with it. However, writing reports… that’s a whole other story. I remember the slog and challenge it was to face my thesis—and my joy that I had crossed the 100-page finish line. That experience had everything to do with the very long delay before I sat down to write a novel. Imagining that you’re going to end up with more than 200 pages in a coherent story sounds very like eating an elephant. For the structure and framework to help me overcome my inhibitions, I have to give great thanks to the NaNoWriMo and #wordmongering communities online.

 

Name one of your favourite books and how it has influenced your life.

I’ve loved the fantasy genre my whole life, starting first with Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle In Time. When I was a girl, though, there weren’t many authors who were writing young female protagonists, so I detoured into Nancy Drew, the Bobbsey Twins, and German horse stories. It wasn’t until I was in junior high, and back in the United States, that I discovered Anne McCaffrey. It occurs to me now that my protagonist’s name is likely an homage to her. She too didn’t start writing novels until she was in her 40s, and she built a world in Pern that has become my “happy place.” I’ve reread all her books countless times, and each time it’s like coming home again: cheering on Menolly as she learns to appreciate her talents; supporting Lessa through her travails and adventures; appreciating the wider perspective Robinton brings to the journalistic ethos; and watching Jaxom and Piemur grow up into worthy and interesting young men, able to step into the leadership roles they’ve been groomed for.

 

What secret will your readers will be surprised to hear about you?

I’m an animal communicator. I’ve had conversations with animals ranging from horses to cats, dogs, rabbits, and flies. I suppose it’s a different perspective on the whole “voices in your head” thing most authors contend with, but for me it has really highlighted that there is magic in our world when we open our eyes to it. Combine that with my Reiki/Seichim practice and energetic healing, and you might think I’m one of those woo-woo goofballs with my head in the clouds, but my day job keeps me focused on the practicalities of our world. Balancing the two elements is an interesting challenge.

 

Quick Fire Questions:

5 star hotel or backpack? 5-star hotel—pampering is nice when you’re away from home!

Espresso or latte? Neither—too much caffeine gives me teeth-chattering jitters.

Plotter or panster? Pantser.

Drummer or lead singer? Neither—don’t like the spotlight, but have an unreliable sense of rhythm. Could I sing backup? (I do like to sing; my closest brush with fame was as one of hundreds of backup singers to Barry Manilow when youth choirs from across Berlin were recruited as part of Ein Herz fuer Kinder benefit.)

Favourite real person? My husband

Favourite fictional character? Lessa? The Rowan? Damia? I’m fascinated by powerful women who have their own extraordinary skills.

Burger and chips or Michelin star? Gourmet all the way!

Theatre or cinema? Both! I’m a big fan of the special effects and framing available in movies, but there’s something intimate and powerful about watching a live performance.

Sports car or campervan? Camper van. I’m too practical to want a vehicle where my girls would be unlikely to be able to ride along comfortably.

Safari or Cruise? Both! (Not that I’ve been lucky enough to go on either… yet.)

 

Author bio: A voracious reader since she was a toddler, and an ordained spiritualist, Tonya Cannariato has now presided over the marriage of her love of reading and her love of writing. She’s lived a nomadic life, following first her parents in their Foreign Service career through Africa, Europe, and Asia, and then her own nose criss-crossing America as she’s gotten old enough to make those choices for herself. She’s currently based in Milwaukee with her three loves: her husband and two Siberian Huskies. She suspects her Huskies of mystical alchemy with their joyous liberation of her muse and other magical beings for her inspiration. She loves to sleep, to watch her interesting dreams, some of which are now finding new life in written form.

 

Hey Tonya! Thanks for sharing an insight into your book and your writing life with us. Wonderful interview and another campervan girl - yay! I can feel a holiday coming on…

Get to know Tonya better by following her on Twitter @tmycann or visit her website http://tmycann.com/

And don’t forget to check out Tonya’s great new debut, Dust to Blood, here:

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154357
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007WHHU0M

Guest Post: Life in Northern Cornwall by Lorelai Macleod

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Really thrilled to welcome Lorelai Macleod to the blog today to share her delightful life in the North of Cornwall, a place very close to my heart:

Hi from sometimes sunny Cornwall.

Cornwall is officially the southernmost county in England; however, the Cornish people see themselves as a separate country of Celtic origin and have historic links with Wales and Brittany. 

Cornwall covers a large area and there are marked differences between the North East and South West.   My husband and I live in the North of Cornwall, on the border with Devon, and I hope to give you an idea of what it is like to live here.  

 

Launceston Castle

Launceston, or Lanson to the locals, is the historic capital of Cornwall and is now often described as the gateway to Cornwall.  Situated on the A30, the main road into the county, the town is often overlooked by tourists but it is worth a stop if you have the time.  The Castle dates back to the 13th century and the grounds are a pleasant place to enjoy a picnic, or perhaps a pasty from one of the town’s numerous bakeries.   The poet Charles Causley was born in Launceston and lived here for most of his life.  His poetry was heavily influenced by Cornwall and he is buried in the churchyard of St Mary Magdalene’s, which can be found in the centre of town. 

Situated between Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor, my home is very different to the image many people have of Cornwall.  I am often asked by friends angling for a visit; “Cornwall? Do you live by the sea?” and I am forced to disappoint them by saying no.  We do however live only half an hour or so from the coast and the scenery here is certainly no less beautiful or dramatic.    

 View from the A30

Cornwall is a land of contradictions; subtropical gardens flourish in a temperate climate but snow often blankets the moorland in the winter months.   And then there is the weather.  British weather as you may have heard is pretty fascinating anyway but in Cornwall it seems to have been taken to another level.  Look out of your window; it is raining, or overcast, or cold, or far too sunny for your liking, what to do?  In Cornwall your best bet is to get in your car, or on your bike or put on those walking boots and travel, not far necessarily, just until you reach the next town, village, field; just until the weather changes.  And if you are really set on staying home for that barbeque, organise it anyway, if the storm clouds are rolling in this morning there’s a good chance you’ll be bathed in sunshine by this evening.  And even if you’re not, there are worse things than a barbeque in the rain.

Many people know Cornwall for its wide beaches, fantastic surfing and picturesque seaside towns but it is also awash with history.  Legend and folklore are abundant in Cornwall, who hasn’t heard of the Arthurian legends which surround Tintagel?  There are also the tales of Cornish Piskies; subterranean creatures who were believed to inhabit the many tin mines and were often blamed for cave-ins. The abandoned towers still dot the landscape now providing unofficial monuments to the area’s industrial past.

 

Abandoned tin mine, Trewarmett

The ubiquitous Cornish pasty has long been associated with tin mining; the easily transported meal consisted of a pastry shell surrounding a hot filling and was favoured because the filling stayed warm until it was due to be eaten. 

Talking of which, the food in Cornwall is something the county really prides itself upon.  Fresh fish from local ports, locally raised organic meat and of course the famous dairy products such as Cornish blue cheese are just a start.  From fish and chips eaten on the seafront to Michelin starred restaurants, by way of real pub food and what seems like more bakeries per capita than anywhere else on the planet.  Something my husband very much appreciates.  There is something to suit everyone.  There is also an array of delicatessens, farm shops and farmers markets all on hand to help you take a taste of Cornwall home with you.  

My husband the pasty hand model

It is truly wonderful to be able to walk into any pub or restaurant and to be told what local ales and ciders there are on tap rather than be met with that look of blank incomprehension received in so many places.  If wine is your tipple of choice you won’t be disappointed either, Cornwall produces some of the best award winning wine in Britain.   

There are art galleries in almost every town you visit and many famous authors have been inspired by Cornwall’s varied landscapes.  If culture rather than nature is your cup of tea then I suggest the Tate St Ives and the Minack Theatre, Penzance.  Neither is in North Cornwall I realise, but they are definitely worth a visit.  If the environment interests you, especially if you have children to entertain, why not try the Eden project, St Austell?  That one just about counts as near-by.

Cornwall is a beautiful place to visit any time of the year but it can be quite crowded in the summer. I feel luckiest to live here when we happen to have time off work on an unseasonably warm day, usually in the late winter or early spring.  On days such as this our favourite thing to do is to visit the cliff-top pub in Trebarwith Strand on the North West coast for a proper pub lunch.  What could be better than sitting by the window with local ale in hand, overlooking the cold ocean bathed in winter sunshine?

A wintery Trebarwith Strand

Visit Cornwall if you get the chance, don’t worry if it isn’t summer, give it a try, I’d love to know what you think. 

And remember;

Kayaking is best when the rivers are high, bicycles are meant to get muddy, surf boards shouldn’t always look like they just left the shop and those walking boots aren’t going to break-in themselves.

To get to know Lorelai Macleod, following her on Twitter @lorelaimacleod