Author Interview - Linda Bloodworth

Hi, Linda! Welcome to the blog. Please tell us a little about yourself.

You've just published your debut novel, A Raven's Touch. What's it about?

It’s about friendship, magic, and determination. My main character, Justice is bullied in high school and if it wasn’t for her friend Moira, she wouldn’t have anyone. Together they go through a magic laced adventure discovering more about themselves. Along the way Justice meets Darien, who adds fuel to the fire by teasing her with her real identity. No spoilers, but Justice has to avenge a family death and embrace her birthright. She is called to slay a demon, and save Darien, all before Hell breaks loose.

How did you find the self-publishing process for A Raven’s Touch? 

At first I thought, oh, just get the book out there, and use Amazon, but then I discovered Pronoun. For those who don’t know, Pronoun is a self-publishing platform that allows indie authors to distribute to multiple retailers and monitor the sales from one dashboard. You also get a higher percentage of royalties, plus complete rights. A Raven’s Touch was already formatted for Amazon, so formatting it for Pronoun was very simple. 

I enjoyed not having to go through a variety of formatting for each platform where Pronoun just asks for one. That also cuts down on formatting costs if you use a service. Using Pronoun is a breeze; their personal customer service has been there to hold my hand with any questions, which is an added bonus! I like the user interface; it’s clean and simple. 

What advice would you give to anyone who's planning on self-publishing? Have you picked up any tricks along the way?

Start your social media accounts early. As soon as you even think you’re going to write something get into the community. There aren’t really any ‘tricks’. It’s about being you. Just be you and you’ll find the good people who get your vibe. 

Like all of us, you have a daily life. What is your writing schedule like? Do you block off time for yourself to write? 

My schedule is predominately taken over by my day job. Usually, I am up at the gym and at my work desk by 7am. I tend to write from 7-8:45, and then on the weekends my husband has graciously accepted that I will write either Saturday or Sunday all day. Until the day comes that I can be a full time writer, this is what I have to do, and I don’t really mind the early morning writing. I find it’s easier to get ideas ‘on paper’ when I have a clear head. By paper I mean Scrivener. I don’t really write long hand anymore. When I’m stuck on an idea I use my whiteboard, and that’s about as much physical writing I will do.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

What is this magical time you speak of? I do love to read. My favourite authors are: Stephen King, Philip K. Dick, Peter Straub, Ray Bradbury, I could go on. Lately, I’ve been trying to read more of my indie author peers. When I’m not reading I like to get out of the city on small day trips and hang out with my husband and our fur babies. 

What inspired you to start writing?

I can’t say I really had something that inspired me. Writing is just in me. I assumed everyone did this. Early in school when I was assigned to write a diary for class I ended up writing a play instead. The stories have always been in my head. 

Do you find your environment affects when and how you write?

Most often my environment is at home, with a cat sitting on my behind, while my dog flanks my side. I tend to write lying down on my stomach. I’ve always written this way, even throughout elementary school and college, I feel much better this way. Luckily, at work, I have a couch I can use as they let me work however I want. For sure my environment will inspire me. If I’m in a café I will feel more independent and perhaps write a death scene with a little pity for the characters. If I’m in a boring room with white walls and no window I’m more likely to let desolation creep into my writing voice. It’s all relative to where I am and how I feel there. 

What advice would you give to anyone who's planning on writing a novel or publishing a book?

Do what feels right for you. Don’t listen to people who say you should always have a HEA, or people who say they hate cliffhangers, forget all that. Whatever feels right is the best solution. 

What’s next for you? Will we be seeing more books in the future?

I am working on the sequel to A Raven’s Touch. Whether the series will be three or four books is undetermined, but for sure the adventure won’t stop for a while.

Finally, where can we find you, and A Raven's Touch, online?

You can order A Raven's Touch through a variety of retailers:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1TI8OVq 

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1MVpAek

iBooks: http://apple.co/1mJ6Zge

Google Play: http://bit.ly/1OdJQtw

B&N: http://bit.ly/1SFGapD

Hang out with me here as well:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaBloodworthWriter

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LindaBloodworth

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/1/+LindaBloodworth

Wordpress: https://lindabloodworth.wordpress.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8289417.Linda_Bloodworth

The Ghosts of Berlin

Berlin is a city filled with ghosts. It's a city that has a strange atmosphere that hangs over it, one that can't quite be explained. This is by no means a slate on what is a beautiful place. Quite the opposite, in fact, in that this odd feeling only adds to the allure, drawing in people from all walks of life.

It's taken me several weeks to analyse the forty-eight hours that I spent in Germany's capital city. I'm still mulling it over even as I write this.

This is a city that has experienced a lot and much of it is embedded in the streets and buildings. A feeling that someone is constantly watching you. A sense that anarchy could break loose at any moment. A feeling that anything could happen and that the extraordinary would surprise no one.

Last year, I wrote about ghostly encounters in Las Vegas. This year, it's the turn of Berlin and, for a city so steeped in history, it certainly doesn't hold back with the spirit activity.

On November 7^th, I flew into the city on my very first visit (it won't be my last). The hotel I'd picked had come on the recommendation of a friend and, for the first time, I found myself staying in luxury. While the exterior matched a lot of the city in its stark grey concrete, it turned out that this was just a facade, one that fooled me. With a lobby that could fit my entire apartment building in it and a chandelier that looked like something from a fairy tale, I definitely felt like I was in the wrong place. Except that I wasn't.

My room was equally as beautiful with a comfortable bed and a view over the main road outside. The hotel was based in Berlin's business district and, across the road, were buildings that had bore the appearance of housing something useful. Much like the hotel, the exteriors were bland and functional, hiding what they truly were.

Yet there was a strange feeling to the room, one that made me cold and nervous. Turning off the lights only made the atmosphere heavier and, like a character in a horror film, I dived beneath the bed's covers. And, as night fell, I discovered why the room felt like it did.

I went to bed at around 2am on that first night. I hadn't drunk any alcohol and I'm now completely free of drugs and other medications. The only thing bothering me was the weight of the exhaustion that lay on my shoulders and head. I felt as though I was going to sleep for an age, hopefully only waking once the sun was up.

But there was something in the room that refused to let me rest. At the end of my bed stood a dark figure. Even with the light from the streetlights outside, I couldn't make out any of the figure's features. It was just a tall shadowy being that gave off an evil feeling. To me, it felt as though it had served in the military, more than likely in a far higher capacity than a mere foot soldier. This was someone who had been in charge. Someone who had issued orders rather than follow them.

As I've done so many times before, I commanded the being to leave. Yet it refused, instead steadfastly remaining at the end of the bed. Its presence made me ill and, some time during the night, I heard something that sounded like a gunshot.

That night I slept less than three hours. Normally I can fall asleep wherever I am (I'm one of those people who can, and will, fall asleep on planes, trains and in cars) and being in a new place rarely bothers me as I carry a few small creature comforts that help me to settle. On average I sleep around six hours a night.

The following morning, I was out of the room as soon as I could make myself presentable. I went and had breakfast and started on the rest of my plans despite the fog that eclipsed my brain. I was beyond tired and all I wanted to do was crawl somewhere warm and quiet for a few more hours.

I left the hotel at around mid-day and didn't return for another thirteen hours, falling into bed at around 1am. By now, I was beyond exhausted. I'd battled my fears, delivered a pumpkin, walked for what felt like miles, been out in the cold, attended a concert, danced like a fool, and had several long discussions with my friend. All I wanted was to sleep.

But that wasn't going to happen. As soon as the lights were out, that omnipresent feeling returned, cloaking the room in a darkness that was far blacker than the night outside. Again, the figure was at the end of my bed, watching over me like some kind of evil godfather. Again, I asked it to leave. Again, it didn't. It never moved and, despite the lack of facial features, I got the distinct feeling that it was looking at me.

That night I slept for less than two hours.

Once I'd returned home, I decided to do some research on the area. The adjacent streets house a number of embassies, museums and other government agencies. The building that was directly opposite the hotel, and which I could see from the window, was the German Resistance Movement Memorial Center.

Resistance Movement Memorial Center

During WW2, there was a plot to assassinate Hitler. It didn't go to plan and the members of this plot were executed in the courtyard of the building that now holds the memorial centre. Was the being in my hotel room one of the firing squad? Or perhaps the person who had ordered those executions? Maybe the hotel now stands in the footprint of another building that housed a military division and the spirit I was seeing was linked to that?

Thankfully it wasn't all bad. There was one presence that spent the weekend with me, making sure that I was in the right places at the right times. Were the people that apparently appeared out of nowhere to guide me on to trains, help me when I became sick, and helped me around a city that I felt like an alien in placed there by this being? Whatever it was and wherever it was from, it was a constant source of comfort during my two days in Berlin. After I'd dropped my package at the arena, I decided to take a walk. Despite my tears, there was a feeling of love and comfort that surrounded me. This was the complete opposite of the darkened being in my hotel room. Whatever was with me in those hours had the colour pink associated with it and was forever at my right shoulder. I don't know what it was, nor where it came from, but its presence was one that I was constantly thankful for.

Bored of Boris's Routemasters? Try This!

If you go down to London Town, you’re sure of a big surprise. For there’s black cabs, red buses, Beefeaters, the Queen, and, among it all, something you never thought you’d see.

It appears like a thief in the night, an old Routemaster bus painted from top to tail in black. A small crowd has already gathered to await its arrival and the aptly named Necrobus doesn’t disappoint. Decked out in red seating, velvet curtains, and little gooseneck lamps, it definitely fits for what’s about to come.

Once your tickets have been checked, you’re ushered aboard, creeping up the curving back staircase to the sounds of haunting orchestral music. Despite its very 19^th Century look, the Necrobus also houses some very cool mod-cons, including TV’s, cameras, and a wireless microphone system (so that you don’t miss any of the… action). You’re introduced to your very well spoken conductor who runs through the rules, including that “Foot Cam” is a necessary part of the CCTV system. I’ll let you be the judge of that.

Anyway, on with the tour. There possibly can't be anything nicer than been whisked around London in a pimped out, black 1960's Routemaster while listening to tales of executions, plagues, and fires.

Or can there?

Well, this is a twist on your traditional bus tour. (Obviously. Otherwise you wouldn't be riding around London on a pimped out, black 1960's Routemaster) Keep your eyes on the TV screens because all will be revealed in the form of Mr Hinged, the Health and Safety guy (or 'elf n' safety if you want to be like that). It's up to him whether the Necrobus runs and, well, it appears to be running without a license.

So it's up to our good conductor, and one or two of the more burly male passengers who got roped in whether they wanted to or not, to make sure that the bus sticks to its route. I won't give too much away but let's just say that Mr Hinged's nickname is apparently “Unhinged”. Yeah, just sayin'.

But anyway, I'm not going to give too much away because otherwise you'll just read this and not bother going and taking the tour.

The tour does have some slight interactive elements and the guides have great comedy timing. While the tour is suitable for those under 13, the website does state that it's not suitable for very young children. Despite that, there's plenty of humour that'll keep the adults giggling and the kids wondering what the heck their elders are laughing at. Yes, it is spooky and there are a couple of points that may make you jump. There's plenty of history and, well, you get to ride around London in a pimped out, black 1960's Routemaster while having a good laugh. Truth be told, I haven't laughed as hard as I did on this tour for a very long time. You also get the chance to see London at night and, for that, I'd recommend sitting on the top deck of the bus. So if you're bored of Mr Johnson's new red buses, go and catch this one at Northumberland Ave for a truly different view of London.

www.theghostbustours.com/ 

The Spirits of Las Vegas

Las Vegas; a city famed for its bright lights, plentiful drinks, shotgun weddings, and, hopefully, a meeting with Lady Luck. Every year, nearly forty million people make their way to this Mecca of excess to soak up all it has to offer and to, hopefully, get lucky.

But Sin City also has another side to it. For the spiritually aware, this other, often unseen, part of Vegas hovers above the city, a mix of lost souls and spirits. A few moments of standing in a hotel lobby can provoke a wave of different feelings. For Las Vegas is home to more than spirits of the alcoholic kind.

For a single week in April 2014, I stayed at the Luxor hotel. For me, it was the end of a ten year dream, one which had seen me travel half way around the globe to stay in a hotel I’d only seen in photographs. Something had drawn me to the iconic pyramid and I was desperate to stay within its walls. Driving at night from the airport to the hotel was like watching ever Vegas themed movie come to life. The millions of lights, the long, sweeping Strip, and the sound of a million slot machines singing their songs all come into sight as the freeways sweeps up from the airport. It’s an excitement like no other, one which crackles through the air like lightning.

Yet, within a few hours of stepping into my hotel room I began to feel things other than overwhelming excitement. Creeping chills which were more than the air conditioning and an ache in my head that indicated the start of a drop into depression. Without even stepping onto the Strip, I was picking up something other than the city’s vibrant life.

I’ve always been spiritually sensitive. It’s what my Christian mother calls my ability to pick up the vibrations of places and people. Strangely, she doesn’t see it as an odd skill. For her, it’s more of a blessing, a super strengthened sixth sense if you will. But it’s not just the living I’m able to pick up these energies from. It’s those who’ve passed, or those who aren’t even a part of our Earthly plane.

I knew before I went that Las Vegas was going to send this sense into overdrive and that staying in a massive pyramid would only add to the experience. Before I left, I made sure I had enough protection watching over me, and every night I asked for a white, protective light to surround me. Still, I was interested to see exactly what the self-proclaimed City of Light had in store for me.

Within a day of arriving, I had my first experience with a shadowy figure on the twenty-fifth floor of the hotel. For those who’ve never been, the Luxor pyramid holds the record for the world’s largest atrium. Check in desks, a food court, and the casino are crammed into this massive space with the interior of the pyramid stretching upwards for thirty three stories. The rooms are on the outside of the pyramid with the hallways running around the inside. These walkways are open to the atrium with nothing more than a four foot high wall to stop anyone from stepping over the edge. The elevators run up the inclined struts of the pyramid.

It was while exiting the elevators on my floor that I began to notice the shadowy figure. As I was turning onto the first of the long stretches of hallway, it would step up beside me and always on the right side. I never felt any threat from this being. Instead, I felt sadness and pain. By the time I reached my room, the figure had always faded away.

When I returned home, I did some reading on the history of the Luxor and discovered that, in 1996, a woman had jumped to her death from the twenty sixth floor, the floor above mine. A few years later and a gentleman took the same final journey down into the atrium. The Luxor is also supposedly haunted by two construction workers who lost their lives during the building process.

It’s no wonder there are so many lost souls, both human and spirit, wandering the Strip. Las Vegas sadly also holds the title as the suicide capital of America. A mix of huge hotels and a sense of anonymity allows those who’ve lost their way to end their lives without involving friends and family. Sadly, it’s often the hotel staff who are left to deal with the fall out.

Nowhere in the world is the energy concentrated like it is in Vegas. A single four mile road is what many people come to see, and they come in their millions. Most people stay for an average of three days. Nearly all of the major hotels and casinos can be found on the Strip with more being built every year. This causes a massive vortex of energy, a place where souls and spirits are attracted like moths to a flame. Not all are those who’ve lost their way. Some belong to people who fell in love with the city’s crazy lifestyle and chose to return in the afterlife. Others have come from the city’s past, a time when Las Vegas was run by mobsters and the likes of Frank Sinatra and Elvis put bums on seats. They appear to be more active at night, gathering on street corners and wandering the Strip. Maybe to show an unwary traveller the way, or to guide someone hunting the elusive Lady Luck?

The famous also remain long after they've departed this mortal coil. Elvis is reported to still be in residence as the Hilton, while Liberace haunts Carluccio's Tivoli Gardens.

For me, the casinos were the hotbed of activity. Ghostly fingers whispered across shoulders or there was a sudden overpowering smell of a long discontinued perfume. I noticed it more when I was playing alone. Hunched up at a slot machine, my feet perched on the ledge below, I'd often feel as though there was someone sitting beside me. They were friendly spirits, there because they had once enjoyed what I was now doing. Perhaps they liked the idea of sitting with a rookie gambler, one who had come to the city because she had heard tales of the bright, noisy machines. More than once I felt a hand on my shoulder. Again, it wasn't malicious, more of a reassurance when I found myself feeling lost among the city's crowds. Often the hands felt as though they belonged to a man, and they went no further than my shoulders. Maybe, just maybe, they once belonged to a protective husband?

In its own right, Las Vegas is a beautiful city with many things to offer. But you may come away with more than a spectacular week in this most decadent of cities.

~~~

Rae is an award winning author based in Leicester, England who loves being silly and taking photographs. “The Eve of War”, the third book in her LGBT Steampunk series is out now. Oddly, her ability to communicate with, and see, spirits shocked her more than it did her family. She accepts it now and enjoys travelling to see who she meets, whether living, dead, and from the spirit world.

Ghost and Girl

Back in February, I was given the opportunity to speak on the wonderful Ghost and Girl blog. Sarah and Laura are two amazingly supportive and encouraging women whose idea of paranormal research goes beyond the normal. They've kindly returned the favour and written a post for the Veetu Industries blog. Without further ado, I'll let them speak to you.

~~~

I'd like to start this post by expressing my gratitude to Rae for inviting GHOST & GIRL to make this entry on her blog. It is most appreciated.

The purpose of this post is to tell you about an online paranormal project called GHOST & GIRL. My friend, Laura, and I came up with the idea in the last quarter of 2013, and launched on the 3rd January this year. Both Laura and I have a shared interest in the paranormal, specifically in ghosts and a spiritual realm. Our interest in the topic has come from necessity more so than choice, as we've both had paranormal experiences that stretch right back into early childhood.

As a child, when I would wake in the middle of the night to find shadowy figures moving about my bedroom, I was convinced that the Devil had come to take me. I grew up in a family that simply did not talk of ghosts, ever, but we were a regular church-going Christian family, and as such, I knew who the Devil was. However, as I got older, and with the shadow figures continuing to make a regular appearance, I became less certain of what it is that I was seeing, and the reasoning for it. Logic is forever telling me that there must be a "reasonable explanation" for the things I have seen, heard and felt, and yet I still do not have an answer to the multitude of questions that plague me.

Whilst there are numerous blogs, online journals, websites, and "paranormal research" groups scattered all over the World Wide Web, the information that both we are particularly keen to discover just isn't there. There may be hints of it, traces, scraps and mere mentions, but nothing of real substance. Therefore, the idea behind GHOST & GIRL is to take ghost stories and personal experiences and look at them in great detail from differing perspectives. It's not so much as trying to prove that ghosts and other spiritual entities exist, but rather, trying to discover the common points of interest that may lead someone to have a paranormal experience.

As time passes, we hope that by considering historical, spiritual, scientific and psychological interpretations of the paranormal, we might be able to develop some conclusions. In addition to the personal experience, we also consider the following influences on our understandings of the paranormal:

* The historical development of the spiritual;

* Religion and spiritual hierarchies;

* Urban legends and the influence of the internet;

* Cultural perceptions;

* Scientific theories and hypothesis;

* The development of spirit communication tools;

* Spirit photography;

* The rise of the "ghost hunter" in popular culture;

* Demonological considerations; and

* Parapsychology.

At GHOST & GIRL we are forever mindful that not everything "unexplained" is paranormal, and try our best not to jump to ghostly conclusions. However, we theorise that the key to understanding the paranormal may be found in the personal experience, which we feel is too often dismissed in modern paranormal investigation and research. Yet we do not want to limit the personal experiences shared at GHOST & GIRL to just our own. This would restrict our ability to truly consider the meaning of them.

We hope to use GHOST & GIRL as a means by which we can interact with people right across the globe; that is, the believers, the steadfast sceptics, and the people in between. We want to hear every story, impression and opinion. We would love to hear from laypeople and professionals alike, from a variety of backgrounds. We want to consider and share the knowledge.

Right now, we don't have the answers, but we're embarking on an intelligent journey of discovery to find them.

Can you help?

Sarah

www.ghostandgirl.com

twitter: @ghostandgirl333

THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAIL