Monthly Archives: September 2011
Dreamcasting – Mercy for the Wicked
Because I love visualizing who would be cast in a movie version of my books and I think it’s fun to share, here is my dream casting of who would play everybody in Mercy for the Wicked.
The main players stay the same:
Mercy – Amelia Warner – a pretty obscure British actress who I think is beautiful and spirited.
Sam – a younger Jude Law, pre-Talented Mr. Ripley. I came across a couple of pictures of him taken by the paparazzi and he was a little ruffled and baffled looking, it really caught that part of Sam’s clueless personality.
Adam – Ian Somerhalder because let’s face it, he could play this character in his sleep and he’s just a sexy beast.
Ben – Mark Rufalo – he has that every guy quality that’s easy to overlook sometimes, but he can be so charming!
Parker – Bradley Cooper – because he can play an ass and still be pretty to look at.
Matty – Justin Long – I think he could pull off the slacker brother so well.
Daphne – Amanda Seyfried – with that long blonde hair and blue eyes, she has that wide eyed innocence that I associate with Daphne
Nathanael – Matthew McFadyen (go see him in Pride and Prejudice as Mr. Darcy) – He has the intensity to look really pious and thunderous..
This time around we have some new characters:
Azazael – Orlando Bloom a la Pirates of the Carribean. He’s a good looking guy, but I dunno, something about him makes me want to smack him.
Raziel – Oded Fehr like from The Mummy days, but no facial tattoos. Or possibly from Deuce Bigalow male gigolo.
Raum – Christopher Eccleston, like he was in Dr. Who. Just kinda jazzed about life, even when things are going to shit.
Gabriel – Eric Bana, because he can communicate a lot with just his eyes.
Ubel – Kevin Durand Wouldn’t he make an outstanding demon with big, sharp, nasty, pointy teeth?
Bert – Mackenzie Crook from Pirates of the Carribean.
Hubie – Lee Arenberg also from Pirates of the Carribean, okay so I have no idea why I have so many people from Pirates of the Carribean in this one, it just worked out that way!
And of course…
Mimsy – one of my own cats! Because she’s so cute and curious and her squeaky sounds are like nothing I’ve heard from a cat before.
Vote for Cover Art – Pretty Witches All in a Row
It’s that time again to give me your thoughts and feedback on the cover art for my new book coming out in October, Pretty Witches All in a Row. Anyone who comments on the covers on the website will be automatically entered for a chance to win a copy of one of my books (your choice of books). We’d also love to hear constructive criticism and ideas for how to improve them if you have any suggestions. Please keep in mind that they have to be not only eye-catching, but easy to identify when much smaller in ads and for sale on websites.
Here is a little blurb of what the book is about:
Someone is picking off a coven of witches one by one. Can Sgt. Nick Gibson and his team of detectives catch the killer before he loses the pretty witch who’s got him under her spell? Nick must cast aside his disbelief and delve into the world of the supernatural to solve the case. On hand to help is Annaliese, a member of the coven who claims to have had a prophetic dream at the exact time of each victim’s death, offering clues to the identity of the killer. Can he accept the ‘proof’ offered by unconventional means or is she deliberately leading him astray to hide her own secrets? To cloud the issue, a local evangelist is telling anyone who asks that the victims had it coming. Is religious mania the motive for murder, or is it something more personal?
A Taste of Mercy for the Wicked
Final edits are going well for Pretty Witches All in a Row, but in the meantime, here’s a brief sample of a scene from Mercy for the Wicked where we see Sam try to broaden his horizons a little bit.
“Sam?” I stepped out into the hallway, wrapping my warm, fuzzy cardigan a little tighter to my body. There was no answer and I started to wonder if it wasn’t such a hot idea to be stepping out of my apartment into a deserted hallway with a pack of demons on my trail. “Sam, is that you or should I be calling the cops?” The top of Sam’s head peeked out of the stairwell, just his eyes visible, and he gave a shy, little wave. “What are you doing down there?” I waved him over. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack? I started to think there was someone out here waiting to get me,” I grabbed his elbow and tugged him closer once he came into reach.
“I panicked,” he said softly and I blinked at him, digesting that for a moment. The big bad angel of death (formerly anyway) who I’d seen slam a demon down on a bar one handed, had panicked?
“Why?”
“It wasn’t you who came to the door.”
I mashed my lips together to keep from smiling over the admission; it was a big step that he was there at all. “It’s only Daphne, who you’ve seen a zillion times, why don’t you come on in and meet her?” I could see her out of the corner of my eye, practically vibrating with excitement to finally meet my ‘guardian angel’.
“Alright,” he nodded, looking all around as he stepped over the threshold, as if he hadn’t been inside my apartment before. Come to think of it, it was Adam who’d spent more time at my place, not Sam.
“Sam, this is Daphne, Daphne, Sam,” I did the honors, and Daphne stuck out her hand.
“How do you do?” she said formally.
“Very well thank you, and yourself?” Sam took her hand and clasped it in his briefly before letting go.
“Fine, thank you.” They were both so friendly and polite; I hoped it wouldn’t be awkward for the rest of the night. I shut the door behind us, turning back to see them staring back at each other, neither one of them uttering a word until Sam spoke again.
“I have heard many good things about you, Daphne, Mercy speaks well of you, indeed.”
A smile spread over Daphne’s face as she came back to life. “She talks up a storm about you too. Though I have to admit, for a while I wasn’t sure if you were real or a figment of her imagination.”
“Understandable,” he nodded soberly.
“Jiminy Christmas, but your eyes are blue…” she murmured and Sam stood very still while she finished her inspection.
“Yes, they are,” he nodded again. “You are quite colorful as well.”
“I am?” she looked down at her clothes. Dressed casually for her impromptu date with Mitch, she was wearing a pale blue sweater over slim fitting jeans.
“Yes, I can see why Mercy is so fond of you.” Sam’s eyes swept over her body and I began to understand he was talking about the quality of her soul which radiated a bright, cheerful orange with warm pink highlights. Sensing her confusion, I decided to break up the little love fest in the hallway, moving past them into the living room.
“Okay guys, its time for the movie. Sam, would you like some ice cream?”
“No, thank you.”
Daphne followed my lead, with Sam following along behind. “Are you sure? It’s chocolate fudge explosion.”
“Explosion is good?” his brows climbed dubiously, taking a seat beside me on the couch. Mimsy immediately jumped onto his lap and he stroked her back absently.
“Very good,” I nodded, putting a small bite on the end of my spoon and holding it up to him. “It can’t hurt to try it, right?” He leaned towards the spoon, eyeing the melting concoction warily before taking the tiniest bit between his lips. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen someone taste chocolate for the first time ever, but I swear it was right up there with a religious experience, and for an angel, that’s saying a lot. Sam’s entire face transformed into a wondrous smile, tongue darting out to moisten his lips. “What do you think?” I grinned.
“Explosion is very good,” Sam nodded, with a longing look to the rest of my ice cream.
“Here, knock yourself out,” I handed the stein full of ice cream over and rose to make myself another. “Oh, but don’t eat it too… fast…” I looked back to see his mouth closing around an enormous bite of ice cream, his eyes widening slightly at the temperature change. “You might end up with an ice cream headache.” It was a little late for the warning now, and sure enough, his face scrunched up tight with pain.
“Ahhh… I do not like ice cream explosions,” he frowned, setting the cup down on the table as he pressed a hand to his head.
Dreamcasting – The Touch
It was a lot of fun for me to set this book in Santa Cruz, CA since I spent the majority of my childhood growing up there. So yes, there is a real King Chwan’s restaurant with the best Kung Pao chicken ever, and the Pacific Garden Mall really does sport the occasional pack of Hare Krishnas parading down the sidewalk in all their musical glory. Being able to vividly picture the locale was a big help to me in setting the spooky mood.
As you know, I always have someone in mind when creating new characters for my books. Maybe it’s cheating a little, but it definitely helps me flesh them out in my mind. And of course, if they ever made a movie or tv series out of the story, I could help steer them in the right direction. So, in the spirit of that happy thought, here is my dream casting for who would play everybody in The Touch.
Lexi Morgan – A dark haired Anna Paquin. I think she could capture Lexi’s quirkiness, as well as gumption and loyalty to her family and friends.
Detective Gabriel Ryan – Timothy Olyphant. He’s Olyphantastic, need I say more? Where else can I find a cop with easy charm that’s capable of intensity and humor at the same time?
Allison Travers – Jennifer Connelly. She can look so sweet and girl next door, you’d never ever suspect her of having her own secrets.
Chloe Travers – Chloe Moretz. Love, love, love this girl. She is such a fantastic actress, I could easily picture her dealing with all of the ghosts.
Detective Tim Cooper – Jacob Pitts. Go watch Eurotrip, and then go watch an episode of Justified. ’nuff said.
Maddie Parker – Kristen Bell – because I love Kristen Bell and I like to incorporate her whenever I can. I have no idea why I’ve never made her the heroine to any of my books yet. Also Ryan Reynolds. Love me some Ryan Reynolds, how have I not paired these two up yet? But I digress…
Paul Spencer – Paul Wesley – He plays the nice, safe guy so well!
Sophia – Monica Bellucci. She’s so beautiful, but I could see her slowly unraveling and spinning into madness quite nicely.
Neil Travers – Okay so he doesn’t play much of a role in this one, but in my head I had Tom Jane as ‘the tool’.
Bianca – I don’t know, I can never see her face!
Jack (Sophia’s husband) – Matthew Fox. Every time I hear the name Jack, I think of him. It’s as easy as that. Plus, wouldn’t he look great in a period military uniform?
That’s pretty much everybody I had a specific person in mind for while I was writing. What about you guys? Who did you see when you were reading the book?
And thanks to Mike Saxton for the glorious review of the book, extra cookies for you! http://www.7scorpions.com
Mercy for the Wicked is now available online!
Mercy for the Wicked is now available for sale as an eBook on Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com! It’s out as an e-book for $3.99 but you don’t have to have a Kindle or Nook to read it, they have free downloadable apps so you can read it on your PC, or even your phone. It’ll be available in print as well in a week or two through Amazon.
I decided to go with the sword for the cover art in the end because I don’t want to be limited to the eyes theme for future books, I decided the eyes weren’t menacing enough and I love the rich red background, so pretty!
Now I’ll take about five minutes to breathe before I get going on the edits for Pretty Witches All in a Row which I hope to have released in early October, just in time for Halloween! Then it’s back to work on The Fallen series with Mercy for the Damned.
psst… Psawyer1, please contact me to make arrangements for your free book!
We Have A Winner!
Congratulations to Psawyer1 who won a free copy of my book! Thanks to everyone who weighed in on the cover art fot Mercy for the Wicked, I loved your comments! It was a pretty close race, with the eyes taking the lead right at the end, so now I’m pretty torn as to which way to go. The eyes do tie in with demons in the book and it does tie in with the eye on the 1st book, but then does that rope me in to putting an eye on the cover for the third book? The Sword does figure into the book as well, and I think it’s very pretty, but again, it might conjure images of a more sword and sorcery/fantasy type book. What I learned is that they’re both pretty and eyecatching though, so more than likely, I’ll worry over it until the very last moment and then make my decision.
The edits are coming along very, very well by the way, I hope to have Mercy for the Wicked ready to publish in the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned!