Nine Nifty Ways to Kick the Winter Blues to the Curb

I get the Winter Blahs every year. All the rest of the year, I am a cheerful, optimistic person.  I get a little gloomy in December and January, but it’s the middle of February and on through March when I bottom out. It started when I was a kid. Between then and now, I have developed a fairly robust set of countermeasures.

Light therapy and even medication are options if things get serious. At this point for me, I know the nature of this beast and I’m prepared.

1. Drink. Yes, sunshine in a bottle comes in many forms—some with alcohol and some without. Even if you don’t have a favorite alcoholic tipple, you should be drinking water. No sugary drinks do the job a clear, cold glass of water—actually eight glasses of water per day—will do. A little wine or (my personal favorite) Scotch can also chase away the blues for a little while, though moderation is the key lest ye find the demons double in number the next morning.

2. Exercise. Bounce around. Dance. Have sex. Walk. Whatever floats your boat.  Get the blood pumping and make the most of what little sunshine there is by doing it outside—except for the sex unless you live in a more liberal neighborhood than do I. Putting your body in a little physical stress takes your mind off the blues. Plus, if you set a goal (walk 2 miles, dance all the way through the song, or have sex in every room in the house) and you achieve it—you get that boost from a job well done to boot.

3. Do puzzles or play games. Yes, those video games take you out of your body and that’s what you want when you are depressed. Moderation is again the key. Use them as a reward for accomplishing one little thing. I mean, I get to the point where I don’t even want to shower when the blahs are bad. So I set the goal to do a little personal hygiene or house cleaning and then play a game when I finish. For instance, finishing this blog post will net me at least two games of Free Cell.

Note: taking a bubble bath while sipping wine and listening to music after which you reward yourself with a quality hour with the Sims checks a lot of boxes.

4. Listen to music. Upbeat music is the best, something salsa maybe. Being a Goth, I have musical taste similar to that of Morticia Addams, though I would add a set of bagpipes. I listen to classic rock along with traditional and modern Scottish stuff—The Red Hot Chili Pipers (yes, that’s pipers, not peppers. They are a bagrock band on a quest to prove any song sounds good when played on bagpipes) and Run Rig (a Scottish rock group from way back who sing some songs in Scots Gaelic.)

5. Steer clear of downers. If you have acquaintances or family members who gripe constantly, stay away from them in February and March. Tell them you have the flu or you don’t want to get the flu or you have been exposed to the flu—whatever it takes to get them off your back. I have one family member who loves to tell me about the latest tragedy he’s heard on the news in glorious detail. He especially enjoys stories where kids have been senseless killed by accident. I don’t need that right now, thank you.

6. Watch your diet. Some foods add to depression and some foods lift you out of it. Citrus fruit makes you happy—so do almonds and dark chocolate. Vegetables are light and generally make your tummy happy while heavy meats and pastries can bog you down. Too much sugar or bread leads to the blahs once the high wears off. Caffeine is a two-edged sword—take it easy and eat to avoid the jitters.

7. Watch silly movies or binge great TV series. I like monster movies like Tremors or Jurassic Park. Silly horror movies—not slasher movies, but really good scary tales. Nothing helps you forget the blues better than the feeling something is coming for you from the basement. TV series with multiple seasons make a wonderful diversion. Frankie and Grace are fun to binge or maybe old BBC shows like Midsommer Murders, Hamish MacBeth, Father Ted. I’m in season 2 of Murder in Paradise now.

8. Read. Grab a new author (I can recommend any number of them) and binge everything they’ve written. Or revisit a favorite classic. Or a classic you’ve meant to read and never have. Find a great story and jump in. You can hide there for days.

9. Plan for next year. I always plan to take a Caribbean cruise in February but I’ve never been able to follow through. I plan to go south for Mardi Gras or to the Keys, but it hasn’t happened yet. Still, the planning is part of the fun and maybe next year . . . . . Feel free to donate to my Sorchia’s Winter Blahs Prevention Fund.

I joke, but Seasonal Affective Depression affects—to varying degrees--around 20% of those living in North America. It’s a real thing and it really happens. Like any other kind of depression, SAD can limit the quality of life and can even manifest in thoughts of suicide. (In my case, it’s more like thoughts of homicide, but . . .) If you or someone you know gets SAD, be extra gentle and be vigilant.

Your turn! 

Do you get the Winter Blahs or know someone who does? 

What remedies seem to work? 

Even now, at the ripe age of mumblety-two, I still get caught short on some gloomy March days. 

What is your best emergency Blues deterrent?

BTW--I do a little writing to chase away the blues, too. This

year, I posted a serial story titled "A Cold Spring" on this blog and on my own blog, Sorchia's Universe. The story is finished and you can read the entire timey-wimey tale of witches and curses HERE.

On Why I Haven't Been Writing This Month by Sorchia DuBois

Sometimes it's hard to write. Life happens and things get hectic. Sometimes--that's an excuse, but for me, the last part of 2018 isn't turning out to be particularly productive as far as writing goes for some pretty good reasons.

For one thing, I made my first trip out of the US. The trip took me to Iceland, Ireland (only for a layover,) and then to Berlin. I'm writing this from an apartment in what used to be East Berlin and that is mind blowing for someone who grew up on Cold War movies and books. Trouble is I haven't had time to do much sightseeing because of the other event--the one that called me to Germany.

A couple of weeks ago, my daughter delivered my first grandchild--Lily Ada Kay--a life-altering presence who guarantees adventure and excitement for years to come. She's taken up most of my sightseeing time--and honestly, that's just fine. She was two weeks late and the labor wasn't easy. Then she got a little infection and had to stay in the hospital for a few extra days. It was nothing serious, but a round of antibiotics for a newborn is a scary thing for the new parents and the granny with an overactive imagination. All is well, and Lily is at home now, gaining weight, and getting all the attention.

So--no--I haven't gotten much writing done in the past couple of months.

The last week of my stay might allow for a few side trips to a museum and a park or two.  But I'll be heading home in a few days--another grueling day of navigating airports and car rentals and finally a long drive back to my house in the woods. It will be a steady dive back into seclusion--Crowded airports in Berlin to St. Louis and then a de-escalation from ten lanes to four to two and finally to the narrow dirt road I fondly call a driveway. Back to the cats and the owls and the peace of an autumn in the Ozarks.

Then, after a cup of tea--maybe warmed by a splash of Laphroaig--and an afternoon getting reacquainted with my husband, my cats, my house, my woods--I'll sit down at the computer and write. I already feel a backlog of words like a flooded river temporarily clogged by a dam of debris. Once the dam breaks,  the words will spill out in no particular order making no particular sense until the water runs clear again.

But you know what they say--even if you aren't writing, you're writing. Everything counts as writing fodder and next month, I'll share a more coherent account of the adventure. Right now, I've got a baby to look at.

Unique Blog Ideas for Paranormal Bloggers by Sorchia DuBois

Blogging—love it or hate it—the consensus is that consistent blogging builds interest in your work, adds to your readership, and drives book sales. Unfortunately, blog post ideas often dry up like last year’s eye of newt. 

I kind of like blogging when I do it right (which means NOT waiting until the day before, staying up into the wee hours, and sliding the post in sideways well after the deadline.) As we round the corner from Summer to Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, a paranormal writer’s thoughts turn to all things Halloweenie. And thus follows her blog, but after a while, it becomes a ticklish business to avoid repeating yourself. I mean, how many times can you explain patiently what the equinox is and where Halloween comes from?

So I’m looking for topics of interest to paranormal, Gothic, and fantasy readers. Here are a few ideas (feel free to take them and make them your own. We all have unique views on these things—maybe we could even do a series.)

Lists

• A list of horror movies—or any kind of seasonal or genre related movie 
• A list of paranormal books and/or authors who inspired you 
• A list of haunted places you’ve visited or would like to visit 
• A list of the creepiest critters in legend 
• a list of great paranormal blogs 

Advice

• How to survive a ghost hunt 
• How to find a reputable medium (or extra large—whatever) 
• How to read palms, read tarot cards, read tea leave, etc. 
• How to find out if your house is haunted 
• How to get rid of a pesky ghost 
• How to attract fairies 

Information 

• Haunted bed and breakfasts 
• Legendary monsters in your own backyard 
• Historic events that inspired a story 

Giveaways and Freebies

• Excerpts and free stories 
• Serial stories 
• Giveaways of something besides books 
• Giveaways of books 

And, of course, Promotions. 

I have a Thursday feature on my blog called Novel Magic. This is a guest post by authors who write paranormal, horror, fantasy, or a related genre and who have a book to promote. 

I’m adding a straight promo on Fridays called a Book Whammy which is just the blurb, the cover, a little author info and links. 

If you’d like to sign up for either or both of these at any time, just drop by my sign-up calendar.

What else? 

What topics tickle your fancy? What kinds of headlines make you feverish to click the Read More button? Which of those I’ve listed would you be most likely to read? 

Drop a comment and let's get this Halloween Party Started!

Of Babies and Books by Sorchia Dubois

Launching, birthing, releasing—all terms we use to describe that magical time when something new comes into the world. Though glorious and life affirming, such events tend to be turbulent, overwhelming, and terrifying. For me, this year is going to be filled with such events. Not only will my daughter present me with my first granddaughter, but also I hope to release no fewer than three books by the end of the year.

The granddaughter will change the world as I know it, and you’ll be hearing plenty about that as the blessed day approaches (October 8—the day before my birthday.) Today, however, I want to talk about those lesser adventures—the books.

Launching a book, like launching a ship, carries great portent. But, with around 300,000 new books released each year, how are my little stories going to attract any attention?  Here's the blurb and a very fuzzy cover--since I've not done the cover reveal yet.

 Zoraida Grey and the Voodoo Queen

Zoraida Grey needs help. With the witchy Logan clan holding her best friend hostage in

a haunted Scottish castle, she can’t trust anyone—certainly not beguiling but dangerous Shea Logan. And Al, her overprotective boyfriend, doesn’t believe in magic. 

Only one creature strikes fear in the blackened hearts of the Logan witches. Trouble is Jock disappeared five centuries ago leaving a trail of destruction across the Gulf of Mexico. Now he’s stepped into a steaming pile of Voodoo.

Can Zoraida drag wayward Jock back to Scotland? And what’s she supposed to do with two men who promise completely different futures?

A Scottish wizard, stripped naked and painted blue—a Voodoo priestess bent on immortality—a yacht-load of Caribbean pirates. What can possibly go wrong?

Now, I don’t expect to sell a million copies and be catapulted into fame overnight, though I wouldn’t squawk it if it happened. I spent most of my life as a teacher, so my financial standards are low. On a good day, I and any one of my teacher friends would sacrifice our honor for a pack of post-its and an operational Sharpie. 

 
I’ve spent a good deal of time considering how to get my books off to a good start. I’ve thought of it with the write side of my brain and the read side and here are a few things I’ve found.

• Get Reviews: I’m already sending out the ARC to all those who’ve reviewed my other books and mining lists for new victims. As a reader, I look at reviews before I purchase. The more reviews the better and the more 4 and 5 star, the better, too. 
• Do a pre-launch blog sequence on my blog and as a guest on other blogs. I’ll do a cover reveal as soon as the book is available for preorder and a few other posts at that time. I’m working on a theme for these—maybe witches in history since my book is about witches. 
• On launch day and for about a week after, I’m planning a series of posts about birthstones and astrology and tarot cards—The posts will tie the traits of particular signs and stones to my characters. 
• A giveaway. I’m going to giveaway free e-books, signed print copies, and jewelry. To tie in with the birthstone angle, I’ve found a local gal who makes beautiful tree of life birthstone pendants. She’s agreed to give me coupons for 10% off of her merchandise to anyone who attends one of my events or my website. 
• Freebies on the website. I want to be able to direct readers to some nice little gifts—nothing spectacular (see note about financial standards) but a free story, a crystal magic guide, and a legendary creatures guide—all things I already have. When I have time, I could even make them into e-books. 
• FaceBook launch party. What are your thoughts on this? Do they work? What are the best things to include in such a party? I sometimes offer tarot readings and usually get a good response. I also enjoy meeting other authors as well as readers. 
• Teasers and Promos. I use Canva and other software to make quick images that I can tweet or post on FB. I’m thinking about ten to get the ball rolling. These I share in groups and basically blast out into the ether every day. 
• And, there are the paid promotions. Places like Goodreads and LibraryThing will do giveaways for a fee and then we have Instafreebie or Bookbub which are a bit more exclusive. Blog tours put together by services are sometimes helpful and expand the reach of my posts. 

If you are writers, what have I forgotten? What works and what should I avoid at all costs. 

As readers, what kind of info catches your eye and makes you want to plunk down money for a book?

Honestly, compared to launching a book, having the granddaughter is going to be a piece of cake—at least for me. My daughter might have a comment or two about that, but—hey—I’m the granny here.

5 Distractions--Confounding Catch-Flies that Discombobulate my Creativity

We all have priorities and we all have goals and we all have things we like to do as opposed to those things we feel we should do. For me, writing still seems like a guilty pleasure. Now that I’ve decided to really give it the old college try, many things get in the way. These are my 5 greatest distractions.

5—Day Job. Really, I have the perfect day job. It’s online so nobody knows I’m sitting cross-legged wearing my pjs with hair that looks like last year’s haystack sipping Scotch at 9:30 in the morning. It’s only part time and though that lessens the money I make, it leaves me with more free time than I’ve ever had before.  But it’s still  a distraction and sometimes I feel guilty for not paying more attention to it.  I used to be an over achiever so I took on extra duties and did all those things that you do to get noticed. Been there; done that. But now, I’m not up for that. It’s a weird feeling and, after all, I do have an obligation to meet. I mean, these unwary people are paying me money to do what I do and that money pays for certain luxuries I’ve come to enjoy—like food, electricity, and Redbox movies.

I remind myself that the dayjob is transient, much like my in-laws. It will not last much longer and when it’s gone, I’ll barely remember it. 

4—Gardening.  Right now my garden is just getting underway. I enjoy yardwork and gardening but, let’s face it, I’m not as young as I once was and a couple of hours digging in the dirt or mowing the virulent herbage I call a yard takes a lot out of me. I can only do so much before I have to crawl into a vat of anti-itch, anti-pain ointment. This distraction will calm down as the summer goes along, but right now the mournful call of unplanted zinnia, the plaintive wails of sprouted parsley yearning to breathe free, and the moans of under-watered seedlings waft into my office on every spring zephyr.

3—Housework. I do like a clean house, but you can’t tell by looking. I learned long ago that housework is happy to wait for you—it will still be there later in the day and the world will keep spinning even if I have dirty windows. My mother and my sister are immaculate housekeepers. I am not. So I am torn between the knowledge that housework is not an essential task—I mean, as long as the place isn’t in such sad shape the health department needs to be called—and the desire to live up to the standards I grew up with.

2—Reading and watching TV. Consuming other people’s creativity instead of producing my own. Oh, this is a problem. I can always rationalize that the fresh murder mystery I want to read is actually research or the hilarious, offbeat comedy I want to watch will provide inspiration. The truth, of course, is that it’s easier to veg out in front of the TV or with a book than to get busy and get to work. If anyone knows a way to solve this—do tell.

1—Family. My kids are great kids and are busy with their own lives. When they drop by, they are the priority so I have no qualms or regrets about spending time with them. They are lots of fun. Right now, I have a huge distraction in the kid area because my daughter is pregnant with my first grandchild. This is a miracle beyond belief because 1—she always professed an absolute and abiding non-interest in children of any ilk and 2—she successfully reached the age of 40 without producing a child or any reasonable facsimile thereof. Now we have a little girl in the oven and—drumroll—she is due on my birthday.

This is a sign from the Universe so I am fully invested in this experience. Trouble is my daughter is in Germany—choosing to hang around the father of said girl-child instead of living in my basement in the OutBack miles from anything faintly resembling civilization. Go figure.

I’ve told you mine. Now tell me yours. What distracts you from doing what you want to do? AND HOW DO YOU MAKE IT WORK ANYWAY?

Bad Book Reviews: 5 Good Lessons to Learn from Them

Bad Reviews—UGH. Like gremlins in the cupboards and pixies in the sugar jar, they sneak up when you least expect them. For writers, the best way to deal with bad reviews is often to ignore them. I certainly never, ever, ever, ever reply to them—no matter what. That way lies madness.

I write reviews only occasionally and very reluctantly. I don’t write bad reviews. They hurt my soul. I think most writers feel this way—we hate to get bad reviews and so we don’t give them.

Not that writing bad reviews about a book is the mark of Satan. Objective reviewers feel duty-bound to provide an honest account of their experience and that is a good thing. A number of bad reviews tends to bring problems to the attention of potential buyers. Writers can learn lessons from bad reviews as well—but only if those bad reviews deal with things within our control to alter.

I wanted to see what I could learn from bad reviews so I got a plate of cookies and a large bottle of cheap brown liquor and dug in.

I looked at some of the top 100 books in the paranormal romance genre. I wanted to see what reviewers said about books that generally got good reviews.

Here are a few items that made me shake my head (and take another slug of that brown liquor.)

• Didn’t like the binding—Right, I bind each and every book with a needle and thread. I also use a quill pen to illuminate each manuscript before I store it in clay pots in the basement.

• Poor paper quality—All my books are printed on paper I make myself by munching wood into pulp and drying it on a screen rack.

• Liked the author’s other books better so I rated this one low – You give and you take away. 

• No dust jacket – Who the hell wants dust jackets? Seriously. Didn’t you learn to make your own out of paper sacks in grade school? On the other hand, if you pay upwards of $15 for a book, it better come with all the bells and whistles—including dust jackets. 

• Slow shipping/shipping cost is too much—I’ll speak to my horde of book-delivering minions and get this straightened out. 

• The book cover is not the same color as the one in the picture – The reviewer gave the book a 1-star for this with no mention of the content. I guess he/she wanted a book to match the room décor and not to read.

A self-published author has some control over the quality of the binding and paper and maybe even the shipping. I’d say even the smaller publishing houses would be receptive to such feedback. So even these seemingly non sequitur comments might yield a lesson.

More importantly, reviews that mention the following items are fodder for reflection.

1. Bad Editing/inaccurate details. This is by far the greatest complaint I saw in my highly unscientific review of reviews. Every author NEEDS an editor but many feel they can skip this vital step. Complaints about bad editing are also important to an author who has a)paid for an editor or b) used the editor provided by a publisher. Consistent and justified complaints about bad editing can mean the author isn’t getting her money’s worth.

2. Slow paced or depressing. Since I read The Yearling in grade school, I’ve been wary of sad books. If you’ve not read it, I won’t spoil the ending except to say prepare yourself for a soul-killing experience from which you will take years to recover. Bringing a social injustice to light in fiction is a time-honored tradition and serves a useful purpose—think Charles Dickens’ many works which illuminated social injustice in 19th century Britain and Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird which illustrated racism in the Deep South. But even these heavy subjects were presented with humor and humanity. Authors can use this complaint to determine if they need to insert a bit more humor. Lighter moments actually heighten the drama.

3. Unlikable protagonist. Have you ever been happily reading along and discovered the protagonist is a needy, shallow, whiny tart? Yep—me, too. Now, it is possible to take an unlikable character and use their unlikeability as a device. Readers might be drawn into the story just to see this character get their comeuppance or they might hang on hoping for the character’s redemption. But either way, readers need to see something in the character or the plot that they can root for. If you see this complaint too many times, you may need to work on character development to make the protagonist more human and more relatable.

4. Too much backstory. Huge chunks of backstory or world building will send readers running for the TV remote while your book gathers dust in a corner. If only your book came with a dust jacket. At least a 50/50 ratio between narration and dialogue seems prudent, but I prefer more dialogue with action tags. Show the characters moving through the world and let them describe  the world in dialogue. One bit of advice I use every day is “Tell (or show) the reader only what they need to know right now.” If you do that for every scene, the world builds itself.
5. Too poetic. Purple prose is still a thing. Sometimes a reviewer just doesn’t get the snazzy metaphor or allusion you slipped in there. Let them go in peace. Most of the time, purple prose comes from forgetting your novel is really a conversation with other real people. Imagine you’re telling the story of your novel to a friend. If the snazzy metaphor fits, keep it—but if it sounds pretentious, you may very well find yourself in dire need of an additional portion of your favored aperitif as you slaughter your darling word babies.

Even bad reviews have a purpose, but don’t linger in the land of bad reviews for long. After all, you can use that time better by creating artistic dust jackets and chewing up pine boards to make another ream of printer paper.

Tell me—do you review books? What do you like to comment on when you do? What would a review need to say to make you rush to buy the book?

A Brief Zoraida Grey Bestiary

When I was a kid, my mom read to me all the time. My favorites were fairy tales. I loved fairy tales so much, that someone got me a large copy of Grimm’s fairy tales when I was about eight. 

Yep--the pure, unadulterated Grimm’s.  I’m not sure they knew what they were doing.

Aaaaand I was hooked. 

No more saccharine stories for me. Instead, I became immersed in tales of witches and evil fairies and girls who turned into swans and princes who, honestly, didn’t seem overly bright. Trackless forests and spooky bogs and deep caverns and dangerous mountainous trails and elves and goblins—What’s not to love?

Along the way, I discovered more myths and folktales—even local legends—about little people, strange woodland creatures, and sentient beasts who wanted nothing more than to spirit little children away. So there’s no mystery about why I put all these childhood acquaintances in my own stories.

Below, find a brief Zoraida Grey Bestiary, containing just a few of the things that go bump in the night I’ve used as inspiration in my Zoraida Grey Trilogy.

• Goblin—A generic term for mischievous little people. Though they may look more like this.
• Often grotesque and sometimes malevolent, goblins may be anything from forest spirits to hobgoblins. Goblin is a generic term—usually a pejorative-- that encompasses many more specific types of little people such as: 
•  Hobgoblin—a kind of little creature who attaches itself to a particular family or place—hob meaning hearth.
• Bogles—May be a kind of goblin, though some of them don’t like the comparison. Bogles may be virtuous or ruthless—sometimes they punish the guilty, but they are also closely related to hobgoblins and do chores or guard the family’s interest
• Bogeys—A spirit or creature who haunts a boggy or gloomy spot. They may lead travelers out of a sticky situation—or they may lead the unwary or the unvirtuous to their deaths.
• Boggan or Bogan or Bauchan or Bocan—Various terms for a hobgoblin who attaches to a person or family but tends to be so difficult to handle and so ornery the recipient of a bogan’s loyalty may go insane as a result.
• Brownies—definitely hobgoblins though they may attach themselves to a place instead of a clan. They do chores and may specialize in one chore like milking or churning butter. They enjoy a bit of cream and honey, but will be insulted if “paid” for their services. They consider themselves part of the clan they attach to.
• Zoraida meets the Logan clan Brownies—or at least the three who survive. Centuries ago, they chose the wrong side in a family feud and are still paying the price for their betrayal.  They hate to be called Goblins though their heritage is questionable and their temperaments less than domestic.  
•  Witch­­-- What exactly are witches anyway? In Zoraida Grey, they seem pretty normal—until you make one mad. The Logan’s heritage goes back to the Druids and their practice is a bit Wiccan with a tinge of Old World Bad Witch thrown in. They don’t worship any particular deity—certainly not Satan. Instead, they revere the natural world and many of them have a certain set of skills which they use as they see fit. Zoraida’s Granny taught Zoraida the old ways, and Zoraida’s ancestry on both her mother's and father’s sides makes it quite likely she has inherited Old World and New World magical tendencies. 

"Be good or the bodach will get you", also can be a source of enchanted protection. Zoraida’s grand sire, Jock, may be a kind of bodach.  Even Jock doesn’t know what he is nor where he came from. He’s older than the Logans and remembers the history of Earth but not his own beginnings. He takes the form of a huge red-headed Scot. He lived amongst the Picts for some time and adopted their penchant for painting themselves blue and charging naked into battle.  He may have been cast out for some transgression and left on Earth to find either wisdom or death. Immense magical power makes him fearless, foolhardy, and arrogant.

Baibhan Sith—A female vampire who enjoys waylaying young men who wander in lonesome regions. Her favorite sport is seducing them before she tears them apart with her claws and laps their blood. One of these fearsome creatures lives in the caverns beneath Castle Logan. She fell in love with a Logan patriarch. When the man was killed by his own daughter, the Baibhan Sith waits centuries for revenge.

 Ghost—Some believe any creature who once lived has a spirit which may return after death as a ghost or shade. Castle Logan is infested with ghosts. The ghost of a burned witch, the mournful shade of a Spanish soldier who died in the oubliette, a couple of castle cats, and several others who show up at the oddest moments.

• Smoky Quartz sings a healing song. Simply being in its presence restores health and well-being. The Logans’ connection to this stone may be what drew them to Scotland centuries ago. 
•  Stone of Adamantine whispers of victory in battle and power over foes. No one knows its source, but it has a hypnotic effect on the Logan witches. Jock knows more about it than he wants to tell.   
•  Quartz doorknobs—All through Castle Logan these doorknobs adorn the solid oak doors. Many a guest has been startled by ghastly faces in the depths of the stone. Legend has it anyone who stands against the witches of Castle Logan risks eternal imprisonment in the sparkling crystal doorknobs.

A number of different legends come into play as Zoraida travels to the Caribbean in Zoraida Grey and the Voodoo Queen, and the Castle creatures are waiting for her when she returns to Scotland in Zoraida Grey and the Pictish Runes.

Do you have a favorite legendary creature? Tell us about it in comments.

Shake Up the Holidays—and the New Year by Guest Sorchia DuBois

Shake Up the Holidays—and the New Year

In the Northern Hemisphere, we celebrate a variety of winter holidays from November to February by observing traditions dating to the Middle Ages and earlier. You can trace many Winter celebrations all the way back to the Roman festival of Saturnalia as long ago as 600 BC. And you can bet the Romans got it from somewhere before that.

The idea was to celebrate the return of the Sun. The Winter Solstice can occur anytime between  December 21-23. Leading up to the Solstice, you party like there’s no tomorrow, because if the sun doesn’t come back, there won’t be. After the Solstice you party because you’ve been given a one-year reprieve from a slow death by cold and hunger.  Even in these so-called modern times, I am immensely relieved when the Solstice goes off without a hitch.

And consider how much better the Winter celebrations became back in those dark, dark days when humans discovered everything from juniper berries to potatoes to cabbage to grapes can be fermented and bottled. Then came distillation and––bang!––the party livened up even more. But tracing the positive correlation between winter celebrations and the evolution of bottled spirits would be an entirely different post.

What I want to talk about are the ingrained traditions that go along with this time of year—traditions of immense antiquity tied to the uncertainty of survival in long ago times. Traditions so ingrained that we do them automatically—whether we want to or not.

We gather with family, we decorate the house, and we drink an excessive amount of eggnog (or maybe just straight nog.)  This is all well and good. My point is that we may fall into habits that don’t serve us as well as they once did.

Personally, I’ve done Christmas trees. I’ve done caroling and Christmas parades and turkey with all the trimmings. Some of it was great and some of it was not. Most of it I did because it was expected which isn’t a bad thing, but there comes a time when you need to tweak the expected.

Einstein said the definition of madness is to do the same thing over and over and expect different results. Well, I’m not totally satisfied with the results of all the traditions I’ve observed in the last mumblety-something years.

My advice is to step off the beaten holiday path—no matter what holiday you celebrate. Create your own tradition and add it to the things you truly love to do. Savor the warmth and love of this season, but add something unique to the party—something only you can pull off. Put your stamp on the holidays and build vibrant memories that last as long as the ancient celebration of Saturnalia.

From this Saturnalia forward, I will be returning to things I love but have ignored. I’ll be decreasing the clutter––emotionally, physically, spiritually—and looking for opportunities to go rogue. Is this the first sign of what my children refer to as my “inevitable slide into insanity?”

Probably. But one woman’s insanity is another’s chocolate bon bon with a wine chaser.

Visit me at www.SorchiaDuBois to see how my year of living divergently works out. Happy Holidays to one and all and may your New Year be filled with joy and love and charmingly peculiar adventures.

Speaking of peculiar adventures (see how smoothly I did that?), Zoraida Grey and the Family Stones is the beginning of an adventure that takes Zoraida from her cozy, comfy home in Arkansas to Scotland, the Caribbean, the Yucatan jungle, and back again as she battles crazy sorcerors, a voodoo priestess, and the evil influence of a powerful crystal. She must choose the path for herself, but two beguiling Scottish witches tempt her in different directions.

How far is she willing to go to protect the ones she loves? Can she find the strength to take charge of her own life?

Here’s a tiny excerpt for starters:

“I think you are a throwback.” Shea’s eyes are every bit as hypnotic as Michael’s. His peculiar blue aura glows steady and bright. He leans closer, lowering his voice, speaking as much inside my head as out. “I think she saw the light of the old ones on your brow. I think she trained you day by day, teaching you the old magic, giving you as much of her soul as she could part with and still live. I think she wove spells into your hair and fed you with lotus blossoms.” My heart thumps so loudly I’m sure he can hear it. “I think you are her last hope.”

“Last hope for what?” Air seems in short supply, seeping into my lungs by the teaspoonful.

“Strangely, you may be Michael’s last hope as well. And mine.”

Grab a copy as a gift or indulge yourself. Zoraida’s adventure continues with Zoraida Grey and the Voodoo Queen  and Zoraida Grey and the Pictish Runes in 2017.

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://bit.ly/ZGandtheFS_AMZN

Wild Rose Press: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSWR

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSBN

Kobo: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSKOBO

About the Author:

Sorchia Dubois lives in the piney forest of the Missouri Ozarks with eight cats. She edits technical writing and fiction part time, but she spends at least five hours per day tapping out paranormal romance, Gothic murder, and Scottish thrillers.

A proud member of the Ross clan, Sorchia incorporates all things Celtic (especially Scottish) into her works. She can often be found swilling Scotch at Scottish festivals.  

Follow Sorchia on social media.

Blog/Website:  www.SorchiaDubois.com

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/SorchiaDubois

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Amazon author page:  http://www.amazon.com/SorchiaDuBois/e/B00B60NOUQ/

Goodreads  author page:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6879978.Sorchia_DuBois

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