Mariposa's Musings

I 'm pleased to have a fellow Nevada author, C.R. Moss, visiting today. Tell me about yourself. My current bio is: C.R. Moss, resident of the hot, high desert in the southwest, knew she wanted to write at a young age, as early as she learned to read, cooking up stories to entertain herself in the rural, non-kid-laden area she had lived in. But she took a round about way to settle down as a fiction writer, having worked in the corporate and real estate realms writing newspaper articles, press releases, corporate newsletters, etc. Now that she’s settled into the health care industry, she has returned to her first love: creative writing. I’ve been working toward a career in writing for as long as I can remember. I had been creating stories since I started to read, but the thought of writing for a living solidified when I was in middle school and received an A in English. I looked at the grade and that’s when my life was defined. I realized I could do it. How did...

Congratulations to Stacey for being the winning commenter ! Stacey, contact Sky at skypurington@live.com to claim your copy of Darkest Memory. Thanks to Sky for an intriguing interview and thanks to all of you for stopping by.

Please join me in welcoming Sky Purington. Here’s a taste of her vampire tale, Darkest Memory . Could she remember, did she? Gabriel ran his hands the length of Calah, cupped her buttocks, and pulled her lower half against him, let her feel his arousal, his need. This was Heaven. His one light in eternal darkness. Teeth, lips, blood mixed, her blood, like molten silver and sugared wine. Like a slap in the face. He pulled back, shook his head and searched for air. Lust reddened his vision. She breathed rapidly and pushed her hands against his chest while simultaneously clenching the material of his shirt, her voice a strained whisper. “I shouldn’t have done that Gabriel, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have. I don’t know what came over me. I just met you! ” He closed his eyes and tried to tune out her rapid heartbeat. She thought she’d been the one to instigate? He gazed into her face, swollen lips and glazed eyes. So beautiful. Her long, straight platinum hair blew in the wind. Her wide, ...

To quote the reviewer: "I love a good werewolf/vampire/shape-shifter story and this one doesn’t disappoint. Ms. Cruz spins a story that kept me right in my seat throughout. The characters are rich with detail and I felt like I was part of the tale, right alongside them. " You can read more at http://longandshortreviews.blogspot.com/2010/06/howl-by-mariposa-cruz.html

I'm chatting about Howl's hero and heroine at Sky Purington's blog http://www.skypuringtonwrites.blogspot.com this week as part of her Spring has Sprung series. Stop by and comment for a chance to win a free e-copy of Howl.

Today I chat about balancing writing and my day job at Lynne Devenny's blog, Practical Paralegalism, http://www.practicalparalegalism.com/ . Lynne does a fantastic job of reporting all aspects of the paralegal community and I'm thrilled to be her guest!

Today Cate Masters talks about her May 7th release, Fever Dreams . Welcome Cate! Tell us about yourself. How long have you been writing? Poetry was an early passion, from about age ten, because I had a somewhat solitary upbringing. We lived in the country, and though I had three brothers and three sisters (I was lucky number seven), they were all older and considered me a pest. :) Although I didn’t realize at the time how lucky I was, I grew up in a very artsy community, and my friends were all artists and poets. From grade school on, we nurtured each other and are still close friends. In my twenties, I mostly set writing aside while my kids were young but once they needed me less, went back to it. Who are your writing role models? Wow. So many. For their incredible imagination and excellent writing, T.C. Boyle, Margaret Atwood and Michael Chabon are definitely my top three. Neil Gaiman and Alice Hoffman follow close on their heels. For jaw-dropping writing, Charles D’Ambro...