Holiday Time!

Hello,

I am hoping you are able to celebrate without those creatures that go bump in the night.

Erika

Uber and Lyft and Bears Oh My!

So, in case you had not guessed by the title I have decided to do driving part time during this fabulous year I have decided to try to make my writing and publishing company work.

I had a weird thing happen as I set myself up for this endeavor. Reading a lot online I decided to include water, hand sanitizer, gum, barf-bags and a small trash bag as part of the features of my car.

I also made sure to re-scotch-guard my seats just in case.

The weird thing was that I was nervous about starting to drive people around. This is totally not normal for me. I have almost no fear when it comes to being in public. I have acted on stage, done conferences and spoken in -front of thousands of people and yet the thought of someone getting in my car kinda freaked me out.

I was lucky. A very good friend of mine needed a ride to the airport. So, I was actually able to pop-my-cherry, so to speak, with her which for some reason made the whole thing easier.

She also recommended that I get some business cards so that if people needed to arrange rides with me they could. I ordered them that day.

So, I have driven for two days now, about 10 rides in total and it was fun.

I haven’t any truly interesting stories yet, but I am sure I will.

I had a mother and son (he was about 7) that I took to the airport. He wants to be a pilot and told me all about it on the ride. She ended up giving me a 5-star and compliment. Yay for me.

I also picked up a gentleman that needed to get a money order from Wal-Mart, asked me to wait for a min, then requested and Uber and I drove him back home. Bonus!

Mainly however, they were people needing a ride home from work. I remember when having a car, riding a bus or taking a taxi were the only options. This made me appreciate this service I was providing even more.

So… If you follow me, I promise you will hear many more tales from behind the wheel!

~ Erika

 

Irrational Fears

So I had a realization while taking friend to get teeth pulled today. He is going under because the dentist is pulling four teeth. 😳

He told me that he has the fear that he is actually being euthanized. He knows it is irrational but the fear is still very real, to them!

My realization was that it is easy to point to larger fears like Clowns, Snakes, Spiders or the Dark, however there are little irrational fears that haunt us. I am not sure most of us even realize we are carrying these fears or that they play a factor in our lives.

We are built, well most of us, to know how to instinctively survive. Don’t stick your hand on a hot stove, stay out of a polar bear cage, don’t eat a box marked poison, don’t swim in ponds in Florida (Alligators 🐊). I could of course list a ton of examples, but what about when there is not a survival reason for the fear and when nothing has ever happened to warrant it?

How is this explained other than irrational?

I know there are even layers to these kind of fears.

If asked, I would say that I don’t have any fears. But I know there are times I have become uncomfortable, ill at ease, jumpy, or even afraid when certain circumstances occur. A weird noise when walking down a dark hallway at work. The building is secure, others are working, so why is the immediate emotion towards fear instead of curiosity?

It is something that definitely has me looking at things differently today.

Broken Computer – Life is over

So… as I started out my amazing 2018 with the decision to see if I could make writing really work I was met with a potentially disastrous situation: My computer wouldn’t connect to the internet.

I know, I know, total freakout.

Now before you think I am an idiot that it a wrong button, or let a virus in, I can assure you that wasn’t the case. It was a registry issue that one of my dearest friends, and a computer god within his own right, helped me to resolve.

My life was also not over. Far from it.

The reason that I am sharing this is because, when the main tool you have, and use, for something is no longer available to you, it is interesting how easy it is to have your world rattled and slide into ‘panic mode’.

What this forced me to do while waiting for the fix, was to find and use other tools to get the job done. Did I mention I had a story due for a contest? Well I did.

It also reminded me that no matter what happens, you can choose how you handle it. Yes, an impaired computer isn’t the end of the world, but no matter what the problem is, there is a solution. It just might take some time, help and very creative thinking to get there. But you can win.

I know I intend too!

 

Have you read my latest?

Super Useless! It is only $.99 on Amazon and you can purchase it here!

Have you ever dreamt of being a Super Hero?

Did you want the ability to fly? Be incredibly strong? Turn invisible? Control minds?

For every amazing superpower, there are hundreds, maybe thousands, that are not nearly as amazing.

What if you had wings but they were literally the same size as a chicken’s? What if your hair was made of tinsel? These are the types of powers sadly handed out to the heroes contained in this set of short stories.

Join us in these adventures, where even the slightest power can help save the world. Or just be Super Useless.

Happy Halloween!

Hello Friends and Fans!

I wanted to wish you a very spooky Halloween.

I hope you are dressing up and celebrating, this my favorite holiday.

May your costume be amazing and your candy be plentiful!!

🙂

Erika

New Release!

Hello All,

I am super excited about the newest release of short stories Serenity Rising from the Ink Slingers Guild!

This is the 5th anniversary of the Ink Slinger’s Guild anthologies. I am so proud and happy to be part of this amazing group.

Here is the teaser for mine:

•Brynn has seen crazy. She is a nurse in the psych ward so crazy makes up most of her day. Then she meets Jacob, a patient who sees “monsters”. What happens when what she thought as only delusion prove to be real?

You can purchase this bit of epicness here!

Here is a taste of what is in store:

The collections of short stories by the Ink Slingers Guild (ISG) are based on a writing exercise done at every ISG meeting. The exercise must include the chosen words. The words that were chosen this year were: • Apothecary • Satin • Succulent

•Maggie Baker can’t think of anyone to ask to wear her corsage at this year’s First Days Celebration. After a visit from her fairy godmother, Maggie concocts her own Prince Charming, but when Charle arrives, things get more complicated than she bargained for.

•In a high stakes poker game, four players gamble with more than just money.

•After a childhood of coping with a drug addict parent and traveling with gypsies, Annika’s life has finally calmed down a little now that she’s operating her aunt’s fortune teller shop in absentia… when in walks Fenn, a tall dark and handsome piece of her past, to mess everything up and pour a little more magic onto the fire.

•Grayson Forsythe thought he had left his past behind, but unforeseen events force him to return home and assume the family title and responsibilities he never sought. Unexpectedly, reunited with a woman from his childhood, can she awaken his heart and help him claim a future he never knew he wanted?

•A monster loses a friend but finds love.

•An exciting adventure at sea turns dark when a storm veers Sarah and Molly off course without a sail or drinking water. Will they find aid on a lost island?

•Tasha is a celebrity. She has 11 potential mates when normally you only have 2-5. Christian has 10 and both have reality TV shows detailing every detail of their lives. Can they find “the one” before they are left with the Last Man on Earth?

•In the middle of the night Rachel Davenport is about to find out the things that you can see are not the things you should be afraid of.

•Brynn has seen crazy. She is a nurse in the psych ward so crazy makes up most of her day. Then she meets Jacob, a patient who sees “monsters”. What happens when what she thought as only delusion prove to be real?

Each story is an adventure, sit back and enjoy as the Ink Slingers Guild take you to the Serenity Rising.

The Thinning of the Veil

We are close… Well maybe about a month away from all Hallows Eve. This is when they say that the veil between the worlds (meaning the world of the living and the dead) is at its thinnest.

But what does that mean for us?

This depends on how in touch you are with the other-side. It also depends on your fear of that which goes bump in the night.

The stronger you are mentally, the more you can control you can have of the realm of the dead… At least that is my theory.

I have seen so many shows with people who have experienced ghosts and/or poltergeist. It is interesting to listen to them explain how their fear took over at some point and they became less in control of all the ties to our world and the other world took over.

Could you stand up to something you may only see, hear or feel? What if you could not touch it but you know it is there with you? When would the “not knowing” take over as your waiting for it to do its next action or speak its next word?

What if someone or thing from the other side is looking for a chance to cross over to finish some unfinished business with you?

But not to worry…I am sure you are safe… After all, you have no ties right?

May your All Hallows Eve be as safe as you can handle…

Erika

Did I Scare You?

As an author of horror I get asked what scares me. Do I get scared about what I am writing? I can tell you that I have be scared in my life by things I experienced and stories I have been told. I thought it would be fun to share some of those with you here.

It Shatters

I have very dear friend that lives about two hours away. Her home is not in a rural area as one might suspect from how this story will unfold.

Her house is in a suburb that was built in an older neighborhood of working-class houses. Every house on her block and all the other blocks around her seem to be made up of the same made to order two story house. The paint is truly the only thing separating them. Hers is yellow and green.

Did I mention there is a large, older graveyard that lays across the road from the community?

As a believer in the supernatural, aka ghosts, this would be the first thing I noticed the first time I visited. I can say I also felt it.

It was late one night and I was asleep on one of the two couches in the living room. My friends brother is asleep on the other. Honestly, we fell asleep watching movies.

It is 3am and we here a CRASH!! It honestly sounds like a crystal vase was dropped from a very high place. I expected to see glass shards everywhere on the ground.

The sound caused us to both bolt out of our slumber.

We looked all around and there was NOTHING there.

Although it took a while, we fell back asleep.  Not an hour after, it happened again.

As it turned out, every time someone would sleep in the living room, you would hear this amazing noise.

To solve this problem we just didn’t sleep in the living room unless you wanted to woken up.

About a year later my friend called me. She had been downstairs watching TV when she heard the familiar crashing sound, but this time it was upstairs, from her seven-year-old’s room.

She ran upstairs and found that a glass that had been on her daughters desk had shattered in a circular pattern with the base still exactly where it had been resting. There was not a singular thing around the glass.

Her daughter remained asleep but there were little glass shards even on where her daughters face would be, if it hadn’t been under her blanket.

My friend cleaned it up and then used Sage throughout the entire house the next day. Along with only allowing plastic cups in her daughter’s room from now on.

Remember to keep your light on…

Erika

Did I Scare You?

As an author of horror I get asked what scares me. Do I get scared about what I am writing? I can tell you that I have be scared in my life by things I experienced and stories I have been told. I thought it would be fun to share some of those with you here.

The Bed

I lived in a small town in the middle of Wisconsin during my teenage years. Most of the houses closer to the middle of this town were quite old. Although they had been updated to include things like air-conditioning or even electric, the structure was potentially over 100 years old.

So, my mother moved us into one. I have several stories about this house, however, I will begin with this one.

This house had three levels. The first held the living-room, bathroom, kitchen, master bedroom, and backroom (this was turned into a laundry room.) The second was a basement that you had to access through the bedroom on the first floor. The third had a staircase leading up to a landing that was most likely a sitting room which lead to a bed room with a large walk-in closet.

There was a large down mattress on a wire bed-spring in this top bedroom when we moved in. The people my mother rented it from said it had been in the house when they purchased it and it was too heavy and cumbersome to move. Basically, we were stuck with it.

To say the house was weird, was an understatement. However, my mom felt it gave the house character. You will see in future stories that my mom’s viewpoint of “character” was very suspect most of the time.

I decided to make my room in the landing instead of the bedroom. Two nights of almost no sleep and horrible dreams made this decision quite easy.  My younger sister actually put her bed, a twin, in the large closet. The idea of sleeping in the room with this bed was not an option.

Even though we were not on the bed, we both began to experience the same situation. We would hear talking at night. We both began to separately play music at night to fall asleep.

One day, my sister’s radio broke. She came and asked to borrow mine. When I said I needed it she asked me why? I told her I didn’t sleep well without it. The look on her face said everything. We talked about it for a minute and then decided to go downstairs. Talking about it so close to the room seemed like we had prying ears.

That night we decided to listen to what was being said. Maybe the spirit was trying to tell us something. That night we sat together on my bed and turned out the lights. We had to be patient, but then it started, soft at first, it was so quiet I held my breath straining to hear at first. Then it became more clear.

My sister grabbed my hand. It wasn’t speaking at all.

It was singing. It was a female voice singing a lullaby. We didn’t recognize the actual song, but it was clear what it was.

We slept downstairs that night.

The next day we replaced my sisters radio. When we told my mother what was happening, she said “It sounds harmless”. My thought was: until it kills us in our sleep.

My sister and I made a pact to never sleep up there alone. If one of us was away, we slept on the couch. We also never went to bed without the other. Somehow, being together in this made it safe.

Each night however, if you listened, you could be lulled to sleep my a lullaby.