Patricia Carrigan
As promised, but waaaayyyyy overdue (in true fashion Here are the finished pictures of the INSIDE of my She-Shed/Writing Cave (or whatever you'd like to all it!) The first week I was able to be inside of it and actually work on my WIP, I wrote something like 10K words! Was Tyler shocked that I got that much written? Yes. Did he eat his words when he realized that I DID need a space to get writing done and it couldn't *just happen* anywhere I wanted willy-nilly? Yes. He. Did. Lol! In all fairness, he did an amazing job putting it all together for me - painting, mounting shelves, putting together my desk, etc. He pretty much did all of it and then I decorated! I think it was a good trade-off. The walls are a real light, grey-purple, called Will O' the Whisp, and the ceiling is a grey-white, called Whisper White. With all that being said and done, the outside of the she-shed still needs to be done! lol! So, I'll be posting again once that's done! In other news, I've reviewed three books on my instagram/facebook! I highly suggest these reads if you're up for a new title! ALSOMy facebook followers have jumped from 2.1k, to 4k, TO 6K (!!!!!) in the last month! I mean, OH MY GOODNESS! I'm so thankful for all the new people joining the page and all the many interactions I've been receiving from it all. Here's a bit of the new content that I've been posting on my page/instagram! AND FINALLYI now have a website set up to sell and ship out SIGNED AUTHOR COPIES of all of my books. That includes: Hard Cover ($24.99) and Paperback ($19.99) copies of The Antiserum Novels. Individual copies of the new, remastered editions of Antiserum, The Rising, and Venom ($11.99/ea). As well as first edition copies of Antiserum and The Rising ($9.99/ea). If you're interested, click the button below OR click the SHOP! link in the menu at the upper right corner! Now that I have that shop FINALLY set up, I'm just going to share that, for Ruby Nights' release, I'll be accepting submissions for Author Review Copies. Here is what submissions entail if it piques your interest: ***Submitting your form means you agree to posting a video of your unboxing, a post repping your goodies, a post of your review on the book, and submitting a review to Amazon/Goodreads. When filling out your submission, tell me a little about yourself and why you'd be interested in having a copy! AND Be sure to leave your social media handle(s)! *All chosen submissions will receive a copy of Ruby Nights as well as some merch/goodies* *** If you've made it to the end of this post, THANK YOU FOR READING!
That's all for now, and I'm sure I'll update again in another few months! - Patricia Carrigan :F
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Cover Reveal and Life Update 20224/28/2022 Hello All! In true fashion, "It's been a minute!" Let's start off from the beginning of the year and a secret that I can't just hold in anymore! Around holiday time 2021 (November/December) I decided that I was going to reach out to a special person to pitch a cover art idea for my current WIP, Ruby Nights. Needless to say, I wasn't disappointed and have been using it as steam to finish my writing faster (IF ONLY MY WIP WASN'T LONGER THAN ANTICIPATED!). Still, more steam for my writing is what I need! Introducing the artist, Jacob Rivers. He is not only well versed in digital arts, he is also a hell of an artist with nearly any other type of medium, ink and pencil alike. He has also (FINALLY) gotten his own web-store to sell prints of his work! (If you haven't checked out 'Poe' then you really should and get yourself a copy, because I've been obsessed with the amount of detail in that one since he drew it). The link to his website will be down at the bottom! FUN FACT: I've been lucky enough to be around his artwork for much, if not all, of my life due to the lucky fact that he is my Uncle! This go around in my writing, I decided that since I had reached out to my sister for the artwork on The Rising and Venom - I should see if another family member would be up to the challenge. I sent him a message, and then a string of emails, and then more messages of how "yes, my new book is still about vampires" but that I "didn't exactly want it to scream "I'M A VAMPIRE BOOK" like my last cover art did." He took it, ran with it, and delivered. Ruby Nights. The book about a vampire-owned nightclub and clan empire, has its face. Just looking at it makes me want to keep writing! Which leads me to my next update, that some of you who follow my socials may know about. I no longer have a full-time job. Not because I'm an awful worker! I loved the company I was with and didn't actually plan on leaving, but things were changing. The topic of moving in was brought up with my boyfriend, and I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity again. We had tried to move in together about six months before, but it wasn't going to be a smart move financially and we wanted to make sure it would be stable beforehand. Here's the other thing. I would be moving out to... let's just say "close" to the middle of no-where, haha. Which ultimately meant, that even if I wanted to stay with my company, and let's say, move to another store - the nearest location would be an hour and twenty minute drive (give or take) from the house. So, goodbye work, and hello ridiculous-amount-of-time to help out my boyfriend around the ranch and WRITE???? Pinch me - I'm dreaming. And that brings us to the next update. I don't know if any other writer feels this way, but I have the hardest time just getting myself to write in a space thats... too open? Not their 'space'? Growing up and writing, I always had my room that I would just tuck myself away into and write without any distractions. Same goes for my last house that I was in: my room and my library/office. When it comes to the ranch house, t's this adorable studio with the only 'room' being the kitchen (which is awesome because I love to cook and it's a fairly good sized kitchen with a little dining area big enough for the two of us), so its pretty open in the living and sleeping area. Technically, yes, I could use all of this as my 'space' and trust me I have tried to make it work. Except the amount of writing that I have actually gotten done has minimized and I am easily distracted by a lot when my 'space' is this large. (Funny thing to complain about I KNOW). THIS IS WHERE THE SOMEWHAT CONVENIENT OFFICE COMES IN About halfway down our drive way there are some old temporary rooms that were built for the last owners to sleep in while our house on the top of the hill was being built. It was about a two year process so they needed a place to sleep/live during construction. I am not a woman with much... but enough to look at this house and say "I need space to put my crap otherwise it'll be up the walls in here!". With this in mind, I asked my boyfriend if it would be possible to fix up one of the water damaged rooms and turn it into an office space for myself along with being able to put things of mine that are seasonal/storage/etc, and that I would pay for whatever it was from home depot that we needed. He said that it wouldn't be difficult to do and that we could get on that. That was about two months ago (like I have mentioned on a social media post, we have been busy with other work and a personal trip for a friend's wedding. All priorities that had to get done first, as my lease wasn't up in my current living situation so we had time.) We have gotten to work on it, and my writing is on pause for the time being, though it's not for a lack of me trying to be creative and get to work on my WIP. The office/she-shed was just going to be an easy fix of getting the wall with the water-damage replaced and rebuilt, along with a small part of the floor. This all would have been done last weekend or so.
Until my boyfriend and his dad took a look at it and decided it should be four feet bigger! After a small, yellow note-pad presentation from my boyfriend about all the supplies that we already had on hand and the very few that we needed, he had convinced me to let him make it bigger, which ultimately would have it include a closet on the new wall for better storage space that wouldn't impede on office space. "I just need to dig out part of the hill next to the room with the tractor. That part could be done in an hour and then I could build it for you in a few days. It'll be easy!" I said, alright and let's do this. (I like to try to help but just ends up with me sitting at the back of the truck watching him do everything. Loading things to throw away is my specialty at this point.) He went to get to work on removing the dirt from the side of the hill, just to realize, it't not dirt, it's rock and now he has to spend a whole day and a half jackhammering away all of it into small pieces and make room. Almost felt like being jinxed for saying it would be easy, eh? Haha. That was a couple days ago. As of now, the floor is built out and he is now putting up the walls, and deciding where all the electrical is going to be. We're hoping it will be done through the weekend or next week. I'm sure I'll post something about it when it's finished because I'm for sure excited to decorate it. To wrap up, Ruby Nights is still sitting at 30k words with an end FAR in sight thanks to having a timeline already finished for it and to keep me and my wandering brain on track. I hope everyone has had a wonderful 2022 so far and I'll be back at some point for an update! AND LIKE I SAID UP TOP - CHECK OUT JACOB RIVER'S FINE ART AND ILLUSTRATIONS AT www.jacobrivers.com !!!!! Your eyes won't regret it! Patricia Carrigan :-F HELLO DANI J. CAILE! And welcome all the way from the US to Budapest! This busy author has written over 12 titles in his career so far on top of having an MA in British Literature AND Teaching! Just from digging around on his blog and website - I have got to say, this particular brain of his is NEVER ENDING when it comes to writing ideas. I’m only on my fourth project and feel like I only have so many other ideas in me! LOL! LET'S GET THIS STARTED! - First off! Tell us what sparked your love for literature/writing/reading? I was always taught to read as a past-time when I was younger, and favored the many trips to the Used Books stores with my mom. Was yours a similar start? Or did you find your way to it later? As soon as I was taught how to read, I was into books, for example anything by Seuss, Homer (rewritten for children) and one specific book about a Russian mouse who played a balalaika - I used to read that one quite a lot. It must’ve hit my European roots. By my teens I was reading the Tao Te Ching, Mein Kampf, Animal Farm and books which I thought were meant to ‘stretch’ your mind, make you see other points of view. My English teacher found out and banned me from reading for a whole year—with help—because he thought it wasn’t good for me. In that year I forgot about books and it took a while for me to rediscover them in my mid-twenties. Now, many, many years later, I have a Masters in Philology, which was mostly British and Classic Literature. My favorite type of shop in Hungary is the Antiquarium, the ‘used books’ store, and most of them have an ‘English’ section. I’ll buy any classic. - You say that you have a loving and long-suffering family! Is the description you use because they have to hear your many ideas on your works? Oh, they never hear my ideas, in fact, they’ve read only a little of my work. No, they have to suffer me sitting in front of my computer, trying to write out what’s in my head in those few minutes between doing the responsibilities and chores that a father and husband should do. And it’s been a long time, over ten years now. - I’m normally bouncing ideas off of the closest people in my life to make sure I don’t sound too far-fetched or are fairly sound ideas when I can’t exactly get them straight in my own head. Is that the same for you or do you suffer in silence until you’ve got it figured out? I’m a ‘suffer in silence’ type. Struggling with plot holes and character development keeps my mind moving. I once tried to speak about my work when I first started writing seriously back in 2010, but I felt like it was similar to me talking about my dreams. I’ve read many books about dream analysis, dream states, etc. and it is your unconscious working (there’s more to this, but it’s not for here), so telling someone else your own dream is like telling someone the end of a story without giving any background, and for myself it’s the same with book ideas. - You mention in your biography that your writing is more in ‘retaliation’ to the many table books and clones over the years. I find that wonderful! Do you have a book in mind that was the tipping-point for your writing start? That’s a tricky question, now that I’ve actually written some books. All industries are controlled by profit, and the publishing industry is no different. It has been like this since the dawn of literature. Many authors profit from creating the same style again and again, while others try to emulate that style to catch a bit of the action, hence ‘table books and clones’. The former includes Dan Brown, John Grisham, JK Rowling and Stephen King to name a specific few, and they have created a certain level of reading amongst the general readership, one which King would himself describe as low—he described his own books as ‘burger and fries’. The latter has created an abundance of second-rate literature which the same readership accepts as the norm. Myself, well, on the surface I’ve had a series of books about God being a landlord (Graham Reader), a series about a backward society still stuck in the mud (How to – haven’t finished it yet), and now two series of sci-fi books based around the same theme and set of events (still working on the second series). So my genres are fantasy and sci-fi, but I have a few readers who have read everything I’ve ever written, and they say there is something else inside them other than the norm. And they’d be correct. Literature has always been about money, and clones are clones, out there for that money. But why should that stop some authors from trying to send out an educational message under the typical guise of a genre? - Popping onto your website - immediately the running theme on first three novels promoted there has ANGELS. What are your theories on what you write about them? Do they fly? Have wings? Are they powerful beings? Strictly biblical? Do tell? My first four novels were basically dealing with a Neoplatonic universe where God is called Reginald and he’s the landlord of the physical realm. Angels are the higher servants of Reginald and yes, they keep their biblical names, they fly, and have special powers. They also make mistakes and are as dumb as a brick. In my opinion, the Bible is a bestseller—I have had to study many versions at university—and the original manuscript, a collection of scrolls from thousands of years ago. has been cut/rewritten/reworked/censored throughout the centuries to benefit those who wished to gain from it through the use of the manmade phenomenon called religion. - In your novel, Man by a Tree, you take on, what I think, is the HUGE job of writing the role of God. Did you have any sort of secondhand thoughts on doing this, considering some people are really protective over their religious views? This is one of the reasons why I write under a pen-name. When I first brought out Man by a Tree, I received death threats from Christians across the world. Nigerians would specifically attack every comment I made on the internet for being blasphemous. But I know of at least half a dozen people of the cloth, from different parts of the Christian belief, who read the book and thought it was excellent. They didn’t have a problem with it and also saw the ‘inside’ jokes. You need to know some theology and a little background knowledge of religion to get the best from those books. They’re still entertaining without it, some calling that first book a ‘cracked’ masterpiece. - Are you interested in the flip-side of Angels - demonology? No, not really, but I researched the two characters for the Graham Reader series, Satan and Lucifer. Satan was a monster created by God before angels appeared, while Lucifer was banished from Heaven for being too vain. Perhaps I’ll delve into that later. - Honestly, at this point, I’m already loving your range in writing when I get to The Rage of Atlantis. Once again, with God and Lucifer (I am wondering if they’re the same character roles as Man by a Tree) but you’re adding DOLPHINS as primary/secondary characters as well! What type of character was the hardest for you to write as? I would think dolphins would be the hardest for me, as I would probably think too national geographic and literal. With Kang Dee the dolphin in The Rage of Atlantis, I merely took all known facts about dolphins and added both an increased intelligence and the idea that they could communicate with humans. There are many who think the two species are connected in some way. Main characters are difficult, as a writer you need to be able to see, feel, think and act the way they do and make it realistic. With my Humanity H2O series, I was stuck with 15k words on the first book and nothing was moving for a whole year, because I couldn’t ‘feel the real’ so to speak. When COVID appeared and my profession went online, one of my students impressed me so much, she made me realise I should work it out, and somehow I got to the point in my mind that the main character was female. Being male I thought I wouldn’t be able to make it ‘real’, but read it for yourself, see what you think. - What other fantastical/odd creatures have you written about? I’ve only really used ‘fantastical’ creatures in the Graham Reader series, such as hobgoblins, angels, strange non-physical beings, and of course the Grim Reaper because the ‘world’ of the series called for them. It is so easy to write with them, in fact, I feel many writers fall into the trap of using them to escape plot holes, for example, the reason why a character can escape the trouble they’re in is because they have some super power or grow/receive some ability they never had before. A writer should learn how to develop a character without depending on some magical, ‘oh wow, I never knew I could do that’ power, ‘oh, I am so special and I didn’t know it.’ We are all special but not because we have a power. - Does any of your love for the characters you’ve created stem from movies or other books? I’m guilty as charged when it comes to my love for vampires! My characters seem to be a mix of the stereotypes found in the genre in both TV, movies and books, with actual real life situations, events and people in my life. For example, in How to Build a Castle, the first chapter is based on the Macbeth scene with the witches, though the witches aren’t magical, and the second is based on a real event. Actually, talking of vampires, the cannibalistic tribe in that series is called the Perviams (vampires) and their leader is called Cladura (Dracula). - Out of all of your works, which is your favorite? Give us a little information about it too! If it’s your favorite then it’s bound to be ours! Before my new sci-fi series ‘appeared’, Humanity H2O, that would’ve been Manna-X, the fourth book of the Graham Reader series. I did quite a bit of research for that, and if I ever start reading a chapter, I can’t stop, and I also love the 4 Bobs, as does anyone who reads the book. But now, it has to be Humanity H2O, its message is strong. My new series, The Bohatch Chronicles is just a ton of fun to write and read. - Which of your works do you think you’d eventually like to revisit (if there are any)? I’m already revisiting Humanity H2O with The Bohatch Chronicles because the fourth book is a collection of events which happened in the former series but from the point of view of another character, Bohatch, and not Reif (Humanity H2O), with additional events only that character would know. - How would you describe your writing style? Do you prefer first person or third? I’ve been having a crisis lately on which style I’m leaning toward considering I’ve always loved to read in first person, but my latest project is flowing out more in third! At the moment I have a hybrid first/third person POV working in my two sci-fi series, where the action and dialogue are in third person, and the thought processes are a mix of first and third, the deeper the thought, the more chance it is first person, so that the reader can connect better with the character. That’s the theory. - Lastly, are there any other works coming out soon for your readers to feast their eyes on? Of course! The Bohatch Chronicles. Book 1, Under the Shade of the Sun is slowly gathering readers and reviews, book 2, Slaughter Under the Bridge will soon be available and has already had some pre-orders, while book 3 and book 4 are only months away, (Ascension Under the Stars and Over Reif and Under). Once they are done, I will need to work on the third book of the How to series, which is well overdue. - Do you have a book blurb (or three) to share? Give it to us!
Humanity H2O 4-book series – 2357 AD. Officer Karina Reif wants to start afresh. Or does she? A ‘John Doe’ appears in the depths of her jurisdiction, an AxiCorp water extraction installation on Gubasci Dulu, thousands of light years from Earth, and breaks apart the fragile façade of her life. What will she do with the secrets she finds? A claustrophobic, humorous, psychotic future of people who no longer know why. (Book 1: Awakening / Book 2: Realisation / Book 3: Struggle / Book 4: Control) Find it here on Amazon! The Bohatch Chronicles series – 2328AD Action. Suspense. Intrigue. Brent Bohatch is right out of training camp and gets assigned to his first duty as a sniper in a green squad of twelve. Relieved to be off the streets of his home city away from the gangs and roaming the universe in his quest to survive, he gets involved in more than just blood and action. Find it here on Amazon! - Share those links with us! Amazon Author Page Author Blog for individual purchasing on AMAZON. That's right... you read that right. All three. Individually. Part II and Part III are beautifully sporting my twin's artwork on them as well! (She's hard at work on the cover for my next project, as well! And if she's not... she should be! lol). Each book is available in paperback for $12.99 and on kindle for $9.99! If you want them, and I really hope you do, you could find the links for them on my Discover page right here. Now that we've gotten past that, I would love to announce that I am well into the start of a new project - Ruby Nights. This story is based in the same universe as The Antiserum Novels, and those who have already gotten their hands on Venom, will recognize the setting as well as get a better insight on the life of a Bitten Vampire. We'll follow Ruby as she figures out her new life of darkness after leaving her dream life behind to work for Thaddeus, the leader of her new coven, in his dance club. Ruby is quick to learn her new roles as a bartender, and lure, as well as the secrets to creating returning customers while creating revenue for her new family and leader. Being a part of this kind of community was foreign to Ruby, and she's never been the type to be a follower. Jealousy, secrets, deals, and oaths are made, as her dominance grows along with her standing with Thaddeus. Official Blurb: "Ruby had everything she wanted in life - a handsome fiancé, a rooftop flat, her dream job, and the ability to get anything else she ever needed. Until, her fiancé turns her into a vampire.Forced into a new life, Ruby is invited to learn and work amongst the most sought after vampire coven in the city. Lead by Thaddeus, a centuries’ old vampire from ancient Greece, and his Irishman bodyguard, Grimward - Ruby quickly discovers that a life of darkness may not be so dreadful. If only she didn’t have to follow the leader." IN OTHER PCARRIGAN NEWS! Remember my last blog post? The interview? Not with a Vampire, but with Author E. S. Brown? Of course you do! Well, HIS BOOK IS COMING OUT SOON AND YOU SHOULD PRE-ORDER IT NOW! You could do that right here! Trust me, it's a hell of a read that takes you all over the globe with beautiful details that makes you want to get up and go yourself - just look out for the Gorgons. Reading and writing a review for CODENAME: SCARLETT was an honor to do and I honestly CANNOT wait for the prequel to come out! (So hurry up and finish writing it Brown! :P) Lastly, I still am maintaining my full-time retail job, BUT now I am a proud part of Adagio Dance Company as a ballet teacher! If you've stuck around long enough with me, you know that my original passion is dancing and I was happy to accept the offer given to me by my best friend Marlee (center). Not to worry, though, I'm fairly certain that I have found (FINALLY) a schedule that helps me fit in work, dance, personal life, and writing so that I'm able to keep my project and creativity moving along. I hope everyone is having a wonderful night!
See you all next time! Patricia Carrigan :F Interview with an Author - E. S. Brown4/18/2021 Everyone, please welcome, E. S. Brown! He graced The Antiserum Novels with an amazing review and has been plenty busy himself with raising a family, taking care of a wonderful kitty (that I cannot get enough of), a full-time job, AND still manages to find time to write on top of it all! He's already had two published works - Starphoenix and Vampocalypse - and has another on the way to the printer! Codename: Scarlett! - Let’s start where everything started! How old were you when you first started feeling the need to just sit down and write? Or was it more of a recent love than some would think? · I’m going to date myself here…but it all started after seeing the very first Star Wars film on the big screen. Like everyone at the time, I had never seen anything like that before. And it got my mind going, and I knew that I wanted to write stories and make movies like that. I was seven years old, and I remember telling my dad that someday I would become a novelist and filmmaker. It took me 37 to become a novelist. We’ll see if being a filmmaker is still in the books! (Hey, there’s a pun in there somewhere!) · What was the inspiration behind Starphoenix? · I actually wanted to create a superhero story, but as I was trying to come up with ideas, I felt like I wasn’t thinking of anything original. So then, heavily influenced by space opera, obviously, I decided to go a different route, and started jotting down some character ideas… a protagonist in a distant galaxy with a flaming sword, a space ninja. Then it was a matter of crafting a story that could include those characters in the scope of giant space battles and political treachery. · Having started writing it (Starphoenix) years ago, are there any things about it that you look back on and would want to tweak or change? I know, I’ve definitely had those urges, which lead to the revisions of Antiserum and The Rising. · I’m sure the answer is a huge yes, but I couldn’t tell you what! I have great ideas for a second and third book in the series, and a few years ago I actually started writing the sequel, tentatively titled Starphoenix: Legacy. But that all got put on hold because of life setbacks, and then distractions as I moved on to write Vampocalypse and Codename: Scarlett. I fully intend to get back to the Starphoenix sequel, but I’ve decided that before I finish that I’m going to have to reread Starphoenix. Truth be told, I’m dreading doing that! I’m sure I’m going to see all the mistakes with it that a first time novelist makes, and will probably cringe my way through. I actually have an idea to rewrite the original Starphoenix first – make it an “expanded and revised” edition. That’ll not only allow me to fix the mistakes, but add and change things that would work better in the story now, not to mention include ideas that were cut originally. · From outer space, cyborgs, and intergalactic government, to the vampire ridden, science-filled, wasteland that is Vampocalypse! What inspired that kind of creative jump to write this blood thirsty story? · The Walking Dead! They say that every story is actually derivative of another story, right? So if Star Wars led to Starphoenix, then The Walking Dead led to Vampocalypse. I’m a huge Walking Dead fan, and it was from watching that show that the wheels started turning in me to write Vampocalypse. But like how Starphoenix drew from many sources and ideas other than just Star Wars, Vampocalypse also has multiple inspirational sources: Mad Max and Book of Eli (an amazing film starring Denzel Washington that I highly recommend, if you haven’t seen it), to name a couple. In fact, Vampocalypse: Book Two is due to have quite the action setpiece highly inspired by Mad Max: Fury Road. I hope that works out as well as I’m envisioning! · There are many different theories on how vampires should be fashioned (ex: two fangs vs. a mouth full of retractable incisors), which ones do you find yourself leaning toward most and what stories or movies did you decide to carry those on from? · Many vampire books and films seem to have their own twist. In the early stages, I actually did a lot of research online about vampires and the undead, and just picked and chose what I wanted to include in my story. I went with flight, retractable teeth (though mine have a mouthful of sharp fangs as opposed to just incisors), and enhanced strength, among others. I definitely didn’t want to make them sparkle, though! No slight against Twilight, I actually have an affection for those films (not so much the books, though, as I tried reading the first book and actually couldn’t get through it), but I did always feel the sparkling component was a bit much. · You always add so much detail to the scenery/surroundings, and actions of your characters. It’s very reminiscent of how descriptive The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are - something I wish I was able to pay as much attention to writing myself as you do (Lol!). Does scenery description come easily to you as you’re hunkering down to write or is it something you come back to build on? · That’s such a huge compliment! Starphoenix was actually inspired in part by Lord of the Rings, and there’s a storyline in Starphoenix: Legacy that draws from The Hobbit as inspiration. Somehow, the details and surroundings seem to come easy. That said, when it comes to those details, and details surrounding my characters and their actions, I think in the back of my mind I’m almost trying to be overly descriptive, so as to not leave anything out. It’s a method that seems to be working out well. · When I’m starting out my journey on a new book, I always compare it to building a full skeleton/human. The main plot is the bones, characters and conflict are muscles and ligaments, detailing is skin, etc. Eventually, it adds up to a string of sticky notes on a whiteboard with drop columns for scene details and secondary plots that I don’t want to miss on. What does your process look like? · Sticky notes LOL! I think I’ve mentioned to you before that I have used the sticky note route. Starphoenix was a lot of post-its and random jottings on scraps of paper. I found it easy to move those around and rearrange as needed as I built the story. I started writing my original ideas for Starphoenix back in 2000, and technology has come a long way since then. These days I don’t use post-its so much, unless that just happens to be what’s available. But with almost always having my phone with me, I have writing software in my phone with separate files for various stories, and whenever I get inspired or have an idea, I just open the file for the story where it best fits and put it there. Then when I get to my computer I transfer those ideas into the applicable Word doc for the corresponding story. As I’m putting ideas into a Word doc, I rarely put them in any sort of order – the doc is just a long bullet pointed list of ideas. Then when I get ready to craft the story, I cut and paste and move those ideas around into an order that makes sense. From there I create page breaks among the bullet points, and those become the chapters. Then it’s actually relatively easy to flesh out those bullet points into paragraphs and the story writes itself. · Codename: Scarlett! A badass spy novel from a women’s point of view! Tell us a little bit about it! · Female-James Bond meets Mission: Impossible with a supernatural twist! I’m a huge Bond fan, and even though women protagonists are becoming more common, I’m not sure I’ve personally come across a Bond-type female. I loved the idea of flipping the gender roles for this book! And even though I didn’t intend to at the start, I found that more than half of the main characters ended up female. It was a LOT of fun to write! · What was the biggest obstacle for you to overcome when Codename? Was it trying to get into a woman’s mindset? (Obviously, that’s just my assumption coming from personal troubles writing from a man’s viewpoint) Or was it something else entirely? · Actually, the biggest obstacle was trying to give it a James Bond feel without outright ripping off James Bond. To be honest, I’m not sure I entirely succeeded, but hopefully readers will love the Bond-esque qualities and admire them, rather than feeling like they’ve seen or read this before. I read a lot of Ian Fleming while writing Codename: Scarlett, and for those who have read his original Bond books, you’ll know the books aren’t anything like the films. I tried to draw primary inspiration from the books, but couldn’t not throw in the cool gadgetry of the films. As so far as writing from a woman’s point of view, I didn’t find it that difficult. I didn’t actually think of the protagonist as a “woman” going through these trials and situations, but just as a “person.” It was never, “How would a woman react to this situation?” It was always, “How would any person (superspy) react to this situation?” My personal editor is a woman, and she paid me a huge compliment after editing one of the chapters. Her response to me was that “usually it’s awful to read about women protagonists written by men. There are always points in their writing where the woman spends several paragraphs studying her body, and usually, it’s perfect and she hates it for some stupid reason. When Maris (aka Scarlett) was getting dressed for the conference, I was expecting this sort of self-appraisal before she left, and it was SO REFRESHING that she just touched up her makeup and left. Thank you for not objectifying her and making her a sex object!” This was the greatest compliment ever. · Are there any other projects that you’re working on that we could expect in the future? · Too many! Of course, everything has a sequel, right? So there’s Starphoenix: Legacy, Vampocalypse: Book Two, and Time of Death: A Codename: Scarlett Thriller. Aside from that, I have story called Dreamer about a 12-year old boy whose nightmares happen in real life as he dreams them, and several ideas for a romance (yes, a romance)! · How about a blurb from Codename: Scarlett? · It was just another routine mission for CIA Officer Maris Correa, this time on the hunt for blood diamond dealers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Everything goes awry, though, when her intended target turns out to be a Gorgon, one of a race of supernatural beings who look human but harness the power to turn people to stone with just a stare. Plucked out of Africa by a secret government organization, Maris is recruited as an agent into an underground war that has been brewing between the Gorgons and humans for decades. Given the codename Scarlett, Maris says goodbye to the CIA and the life she lived to help lead the fight against mythical beings she never knew existed. But with Gorgons and humans looking alike, Maris is unsure who she can trust. Danger lurks around every corner, and the fate of all humanity lies in the balance. · Don’t be shy, Share your Socials!
· Does social(ly) awkward count? LOL! www.authoresbrown.com Click the icons below to check his work out! We made it!1/25/2021 It was no easy feat. BUT. We all made it to 2021! Congratulations everyone! On December 1st, I received the wonderful news that The Antiserum Novels was available on nearly all platforms for purchase and it couldn't have made my holiday better. Those links could now be found on my Discover page on here! If you followed me on any social medias, I made a pretty big deal about it before being sucked away into my regular retail work for the bulk of all of holiday. I did make time to try and relax after all the craziness and made time to get out and go snowboarding when I could! It helped a lot! With it being the end of January, and now that I'm actually feeling somewhat rested, I wanted to finally get around to saying Thank You to all of those who have openly supported and congratulated me on the final publish. It means more than you know. !!!!IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED!!!! I HAVE SIX SIGNED PAPERBACK COPIES THAT I AM SELLING PERSONALLY for a discounted price and will even send them out to you if you are interested! MESSAGE ME ON ANY OF MY PLATFORMS if you're interested in one! <3 I'd love it if you did! - In other news - I have actually been mulling around ideas on what kind of projects I want to work on now that Jocelyn's story is over (or is it?! 0_o), and have been writing a tidbit of new stuff here and there when I can. BUT ONCE AGAIN, I'm in a creative block. *sigh* *BIGGER SIGH* I wish it was as easy to do a hundred things at once like it was when I was in my 'teens! I will prevail! And I will bring more content to the table! Maybe a couple short stories will get me going? What is the best way that you guys get your creative juices flowing? I must know the secret! For now, I'll probably create a new playlist to match my character settings. It makes my heart flutter when I get the right mood music. I hope all of you have had a great January and are starting to shake the stress of last year off! If not, I'm here to give you a smile! Patricia Carrigan :-F Final Submissions!11/23/2020
These books deserve a smug lookin' vampire on the cover. JOCELYN in all of her ngaf-attitude, deserved to be brought to the front instead of just being on the inside of the book waiting for you all to read her out. Let's not forget about the back cover! I know I haven't shared it with you all just yet, but here is E.S. Brown's beautiful review that blew me away: "In her debut books, The Antiserum Novels, author Patricia Carrigan creates interesting and relatable characters that Stephanie Meyer would be proud of, i an intertwining tale of vampires that spans centuries. The Antiserum Novels is a sexy, fun, and fast-paced series that goes from the innocent teenage drama of high school, to a timeless tale of love, lust, and loss. Take the time to sink your teeth into these books - you won't regret it!" All in all, I LOVE THE CRAP OUTTA THIS BABY RIGHT HERE. To update you all, I have submitted the final edits for the interior proofs and am awaiting the official release dates on when everyone would be able to purchase The Antiserum Novels. I am bouncing in my seat in anticipation... and maybe a bit of impatience BUT it's all finally coming to head and I CAN'T WAIT! As promised though, here is what the amazing jackets ended up looking like, First off, I've never ordered any custom jackets before and the quality on these bad boys are so much better than I thought they'd be. I'm not gonna lie, I was a little worried that it was going to be that cheap iron on material that loses all the color after the first wash but NOPE! These guys are like silk screened on to the jacket and don't feel like they're going to disappear at all. These jackets are $40 + shipping and handling (for anyone who is interested). Now that I have the full new cover, I'm thinking of one other design that I would like to create for a long sleeve or, knowing me, another jacket, but we'll see when I get around to making it. I hope you all have a wonderful day! And you best be assured that I will be back with the final release dates AND prices just as soon as they are in my inbox! Patricia Carrigan :F NOW WE WAIT9/30/2020 TODAY IS A GOOD DAY Today, marks the first day of WAITING. Everything has been submitted - manuscript, reviews, artwork ideas, biographies. On top of those being submitted, I've also managed to get my hands on some stickers and some customized jackets that will be shipped to me within a week of each other. Words cannot fully describe how excited and (oddly enough) nervous I am for all of this work to be coming to a head. There is, however, a HUGE THANK YOU to author E. S. Brown for trooping through so many pages of my manuscript and giving me more than I could ask for when it comes to reviewing my books, giving me feedback, as well as some glorious future ideas to work on. I'm excited for what the future holds. Once i receive my products (stickers/jackets), I will be posting them on here to see if there is any interest from those who would like to purchase some for themselves in the near future. For now, as stated above, we wait! Talk to you all soon! Patricia Carrigan What ever you do, DON'T eat and read!9/13/2020 These last couple of weeks, I have managed to finish adding in the revisions to Antiserum and The Rising and now I'm slowly but surely making my way through final edits. One thing I've noticed while doing them? My fingers type too darn fast. I'll just get on a roll and next thing you know, I'm finding all of these unfinished words. Does spell check find them? Nope... Why not? Because, 'ant' is a word, and so are all of the other unfinished words I keep finding. Lol! I'm not too upset about it though, primarily because it's just forcing me to really take my time and fix these small mistakes here and there. What's really been hard is that, now that my retail store is back open to the public, I'm now having to split my time between working my behind off at work, and then coming home to work some more on my manuscript. It's not so terrible, and I kind of see it as a de-stressing mechanism. BUT it is definitely hard on some days where I've run around a lot in the store and am physically exhausted by the time I'm home. Add a full belly with some content reading and what to you get?? SLEEP! I am fighting to keep my brain awake long enough to put some good dents in this thing! With all that being said, I do have some ideas up my sleeve. This time around with things, I'm actually wanting to put out some merchandise. Primarily, I'm thinking just stickers that I would send out with signed copies of the book to those who want to purchase it from me directly. But then, I'm planning on getting a hooded jacket designed that I'll have to show off the books and if anyone else would want one, I'd be more than happy to put in another order for it to be made afterwards. Kind of using myself as a test bunny, so to speak. This is what I am really leaning toward for a sticker. (Hydroflasks watch out!)
Would you like to see this on the back of a jacket? Or is there something cooler that you think I could do to show off The Antiserum Novels?
LET. ME. KNOW! I'm every where right now you guys, and easier to reach than back when I was first writing, publishing, and marketing. Here's to hoping I am able to get all of the final edits done before this weekend. I'm off to Colorado to see my family and go to my GRANDFATHER'S wedding! WOOHOO! I don't think I would get much work done there unless I was on the plane. Have a wonderful week everyone! :-F Patricia Carrigan It's coming...8/27/2020 Good Morning Everyone!
I know I'm not the first to say that, 2020 has been a hell of a year. Changes for the worst and for the best - and full of opportunity? As some of you may know, I currently live in California. Here is a little different than the rest of the country when I comes to shut-downs/lock-downs do to that pesky COVID-19. Which means, AT THIS MOMENT, my regular 9-5 job is out of commission, though I am still lucky enough to be employed and paid by them. That being said, a couple of my close friends and I have all realized something (first during the initial lock-down earlier this year, and now in the second)... we have all been given the opportunities to really see if we were happy with our day-to-day lives and were also able to see if we had the drive to change it or keep fighting for it. For myself, I was content. I love my current job, and though I missed working at my store, I didn't think I wanted a change. I live happily with a roommate in a nice house, I have a wonderful boyfriend and crazy husky who I shared my lock-downs with and I couldn't be happier. There was only one thing that was picking at the back of my brain. Jocelyn Bairen. I knew I hadn't finished her story and I have always felt her pull to get me to put my butt into high-gear and just get it out there. THERE WAS ONE GIANT PROBLEM PREVENTING THAT. Every. Single. Time. I would pick up my first novel, I could hear how young I was when I was writing it. There was so much I wanted to add. So much I wanted to explain. And then I was given a drive. I was furloughed, had two months filled with absolutely nothing to do, and definitely limited to no wifi access to distract me thanks to my boyfriend's ranch house being so remote. So when I packed, I was sure to grab three things in particular; Antiserum, The Rising, and a pen. It felt amazing to finally sit down and take note, scribble, and scratch over every single bit that I felt I could perfect. And although, I do tip my hat to my 15-year-old self for actually giving myself this story-line - I am not too proud to say that I have grown up and see my errors in rushing my product. Then came the second lock-down. I wasn't furloughed, but again, left with limited work, and a lot of time. But I had finished bugging around with my first, second, and third novels. What was I to do? Like a light that shone down from the heavens, I received a phone call and an eye-opening opportunity to take Jocelyn's story (part one, two, and three) and put them all together in one beautiful revised, remastered, dare I say, REVAMPED, novel. And you bet your adorable asses, I took it. So what's the sitch? The Antiserum Novels will be coming to you guys Fall 2020! Jocelyn's story will finally be complete with the final installment of Antiserum Part III - Venom, and her original story will be bumped up with better detail and explanation of her transition from regular hockey-playing teenager to a blood-addicted young woman fighting for her new life and acceptance of who she is. Let me know in the comments what you all have been doing during your lock-down, or lock-downs! Have you found your true calling? Have you made a complete turn-around in your day-to-day lifestyle? Let's hear it! Be safe and stay thirsty! :-F AuthorPatricia Carrigan published her first book, Antiserum, in 2010. While balancing school work, and work, she worked her hardest to continue Jocelyn's story in Antiserum Part II, The Rising, in 2014. And now, the story finally comes to an end in the long awaited third installment, Venom! AVAILABLE NOW! Archives
September 2022
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