Thursday, November 29, 2012

What Scares You?

Everyone has basic fears.

Some are ingrained into our survival code.

Others stem from experiences we've had.

Some become phobias.

I'M NOT AFRAID
The person who declares he's not afraid of anything is likely one of the biggest cowards in the room.

There are fears of poverty, of homelessness, of our children going hungry.

There are fears of bugs or birds or cats or sharks.

There are fears of ghosts, spirits, monsters.

There are fears of what another human will do to us.

BE AFRAID
Fears seem to be categorized into different sections.

As a writer, I enjoy exploring fears from every level.

Sometimes I find writing about what scares me helps me understand why I'm scared.

When you're writing about scary things, you have to have a basis about WHY it's scary.

You also have to walk that fine line about what is scary to one and may not be to another.

In fact, some people find some fears utterly ridiculous yet another person would actually die of a heart attack if they were in the same situation.

SCARY PRANKS
Did you see that Youtube video that's making the rounds about the scary pranks on people trapped in the elevator?

I was watching that thinking that at first, I'd be scared then I'd realize that it has to be people fooling around since I know so many people who work in Halloween Scream Houses.

However, even though I'm a big fraidy cat, once my initial fear is gone, I start to analyze what is going on. If I was in that situation, it wouldn't take me more than the initial jolt to realize it's a trick. No way would I believe that it's really a ghost. I'd instantly know there's a trap door. All those years of theatre, ya know!

But I was thinking about some people might freak right out, perhaps even have a heart attack.

MIND FREAK
That video is an interesting experiment in discovering what truly scares us.

We are afraid, watching the video while thinking "what if it ISN'T a fake?"

What if that really happened to me but it wasn't a cheesy haunted house trap door creepy kid prank?

What if it really WAS A GHOST?

I would freak out, you betcha.

VIDEO KILLED THE ELEVATOR RIDE
But this particular video set-up would have the average person be initially startled and frightened and then laugh and realize it's a joke.

What do you think about this prank?

Is it scary?

Is it mean?

Is it dangerous?

Is it dumb?

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Romancing the Monster!





Paranormal Romance is huge right now.

Call it what you will but creatures of the night have been seducing fair maidens and strong lads for thousands of years.

It certainly wasn't invented this century with Twilight's Bella and Edward, however, kudos for putting the finger on the modern day pulse of horny teens (and wanna be at heart teens) everywhere.

From the early songs of the sirens, the snake tempting Eve with the apple, vampires and succubus have lured lusty men and women to their fates throughout histiory and fiction and lore.

What is it about monsters that allow us to look past their horrors to find the good hidden inside?

Is there good?

In romance, there is usually an inkling of good that the caputred soul can see even if no one else can.

What about the tortured soul of the Phantom of the Opera? Didn't he deserve special treatment as a reward for all the wrongs he suffered through...ignoring the wrongs he himself did to others.

He just needs special understanding so that he doesn't murder again. Or does he. Does he just need special guidance and a loving touch?

In her or his heart of hearts, the seduced one believes that he or she is the special one who can transform the beast into something human.

Or perhaps that person yearns to be a beast as well.

Paranormal romance comes in varying degrees of magic and evil. There can be fantasy and horror. There is the battle of good and evil. There's pining and longing and in erotica, lots of fantastical fantasy humping and loving.




I, too, have dabbled in paranormal romance.

There are several books set in the fictional town of Hermana which is loosely modeled on Salem, Massasschusetts.

Twelve witches meet with their coven leader each month for one year to cast a love spell.

Each young lady is a different sign of the zodiac.

There is a book for each witch who also possesses a tool that allows her to earn a living in the tourist town.

Sagittarius is about a tarot reader.

Capricorn is about a vampire medium.

Aquarius is about a paranormal investigator.

Pisces is about an aura reader who is also an artist.

I also edited two anthologies which are lusty tales with a metaphysical slant.

Sexstrology has a sexy story about each sign of the zodiac.

Beach Boys is about the gay boys of summer with some occult weirdness.

You can find these books at Ravenous Romance, Amazon, Smashwords and nearly anywhere else.

I'd love to hear from you what you think about my own dabblings in paranormal romance. Or rather, paranormal erotica.

Sephera's Books at Ravenous Romance


Sephera's Paranormal Romance at Smashwords



Tuesday, November 27, 2012

What Would YOU Give or Take for Eternal Life?



If you had the chance for Eternal Life would you take it?

I don't mean you have to die and come back as a vampire or a zombie or a shambling corpse.

I mean, if you never had to die at all because you found a loophole in the system.

Or a spell.

Would you take another life to prolong your own?

An animal?

A human?

Most of us wouldn't. I should hope that none of us ever would but of course, 4% of the population are sociopaths, psychopaths, serial killers and other types who have no conscience.

That four percent of the population is the pool where most horror authors, actually authors in general, go to play.

What fun to explore the mindset of someone so opposite to reality. Someone who is almost superhuman because of the very human qualities he or she possesses or doesn't.

The villain, of course, has to be cold and heartless, has to not care about the consequences of his or her actions.

There are many villains strewn throught the pages of literature who have pangs of remorse and guilt and know they are evil.

Are they forgivable?

Or is evil evil?

Is the giving, taking, of one life in order to prolong another acceptable in any situation?

Who are we to play God?

It's always fun to play with these themes in fiction for no one real is harmed yet we can destroy oh so many.

In Borrowed Flesh, there are people who long to play God, people who worship their Gods in strange ways, of humans who yearn for power, for love, for eternal life.

Discover who wins and who loses.

Borrowed Flesh is now available from Necon Ebooks and on Amazon and wherever else you like to buy your ebooks!



Monday, November 26, 2012

Heal Your Heart in Time for the Holidays!

Are you entering the holidays with a heavy heart?

Are you having problems moving forward from a broken relationship?

Do you need some tools for reflection and a plan for moving forward in the world of romance, dating, marriage, and affection?

Some of you may have read my book HOUSE MAGIC: THE GOOD WITCH'S GUIDE TO BRINGING GRACE TO YOUR SPACE by Ariana from Conari/Red Wheel/Weiser.

This book used various tools comprised of feng shui, astrology, numerology, the use of incense, gemstones and other disciplines to attract auspicious energy into your life.

I've written a sequel called LOVE MAGIC: THE GOOD WITCH'S GUIDE TO HEALING YOUR HEART and in order to save myself a couple of years of waiting for a publisher, I decided to publish the work myself on Smashwords.

This is a book about personal empowerment, how to heal past hurts and move forward.  It's very important to move forward from negative experiences in our life and embrace the possibilities of a magnificent future.

In the spirit of Cyber-Monday, I'm offering the book for 75% off for a limited time.

LOVE MAGIC: THE GOOD WITCH'S GUIDE TO HEALING YOUR HEART


If the link doesn't work for you, go to Smashwords and then go to Sephera Giron and a list of my currently available ebooks will come up. You'll find LOVE MAGIC in there. 

The coupon code is JC92Q and expires on November 27 2012.


Thursday, November 22, 2012

The Who Come to Toronto



I'm going to see The Who tomorrow night!

I'm very excited.

The last time I saw them, I was much younger and more innocent. I had two young children and was single and went with a friend.

I've been through hell in the ensuing years but I've begun to find heaven again.

And what better way to celebrate than to see The Who performing "Quadrophenia."

The album "Quadrophenia" is still not as well recognized as it should be in the history of musicals, rock, stories, and concept albums.

Pete Townshend takes two whole records to recount a few days in a fucked up teenager's life. So many of us felt Jimmy's pain and the splinter into separate personalities to deal with each aspect of our lives.

The music ranged from hard rocking anthems such as "Can You See the Real Me?" and "Dr Jimmy" to quiet musings such as "I'm One." The plaintive pain of trying to fit in resonated in the lyrics and in the harmonics and echoed into the soul of every teenager who listened to rock.

We didn't fully appreciate the lush sounds of real instruments intermixed with the new sounds of synthesizers and other rather new technologies. We didn't know back then that rock music mixed with operatic scope and a story would soon flash away as quickly as it appeared. Is "The Wall" one of the last of albums of this kind?

I'm not going to get into a whole "kids these days" don't appreciate real instrument playing, the hours and years of mastering technique over the strings or buttons. A real voice that isn't enhanced by endless mixes and boosts. An orchestra. A choir. Lush sounds. Body booming vibrations from voice and drums and a rocking bass line.

Anyway, The Who thankfully didn't die before they got old because what they produced was timeless. The music, that is. I don't mean the performers. Sadly, there are only two left.

How many of us recognize riffs from their songs on commercials, TV shows and in movies? How many times have you seen Tommy and in how many forms? On Broadway?

Anyway, much of The Who's work stands up to the test of time. From emotion to riffs, people can connect.

I'm looking forward to connecting to the Who tomorrow night!

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Borrowed Flesh by Sephera Giron is now available!

 
Borrowed Flesh is hot off the press from Necon Ebooks
 
Borrowed Flesh is the story of an aging witch, Vanessa, who has eternal life.
 
She is the local tarot reader in a small New England town.
 
She is very vain and bathes in blood to keep her looks.
 
Vanessa hangs around the local high school looking for virgins.
 
 
Ashley is a budding hip hop artist. Her idol is TnT and she raps about everything.
 
When her friend, Alex goes missing, Ashley suspects the witch.