15
Mar
Many thanks to my friend Amy for nominating me for this blogging award! I’m glad there are some folks out there enjoying my tiny little corner of the blogosphere.
By accepting the award, I agreed to share seven things about me that you might not know. That didn’t seem like such a difficult task until I sat down and tried to think of seven factoids that might actually be interesting enough to share (and that wouldn’t in any way give out clues to passwords or security questions on accounts…).
Seeing as how this blog deals with reading, writing, romance, and all things paranormal, I figured I’d try to stick to those topics in some way or other. Here’s what I (finally!) came up with:
1) I published my first poem when I was 13. It was horrible. Truly. I only submitted it because I had to for an assignment in my 7th grade English class. Who knew it would actually be accepted? My dad kept that rotten poem posted in his cubicle at work for over twenty years. (Sweet, yes. But–ugh! Really? Of all the stuff I’ve written, you chose that poem, Dad?)
2) I’ve never read a “trashy” romance novel (you know–the ones with the really risque covers you see in the supermarket and pretend not to pick up and page through? Oh, come on, you know you do). I’m not sure why I haven’t ever read one–I’m certainly not opposed to them. Like every other type of romance novel, I’m sure there are some really fantastic ones out there that would be a lot of fun to read. I’m open to recommendations. 
3) For every manuscript I mention writing, there are three that I’ve started and discarded. Sometimes an idea grabs me by the gut and won’t let go, but then I start writing and realize my head’s not in the right place for that particular story. When that happens, I shelf it to come back to later and move on to the next. The novel I’m working on at the moment was the fourth one I started in February. I’m 120 pages in and still loving it.
4) Confession time: I did not absolutely love everything I had to read as an English major in college and grad school. That big gust of wind you just felt was the collective gasp of English majors everywhere who mistakenly feel they have to pretend to be in raptures over every scrap of literature placed before them or they’ll be outed as frauds who don’t really know what they’re talking about. Here’s a newsflash, kids: Even the professors don’t always love what they’re making you read–and I guarantee you they don’t always know what they’re talking about.
5) Taking a page from real-life romance, I met my husband at a friend’s birthday party that both of us almost didn’t attend. Talk about fate, eh? 
6) No romance is without its adventures, and HH and I seem to be doubly “blessed” in this regard. I was briefly kidnapped while we were honeymooning in Mexico (long story), so to make up for that debacle, we decided to spend our first wedding anniversary in Chicago–one of my very favorite cities and a much safer destination.
Or so we thought.
When we arrived at our hotel, we found it surrounded by ATF agents. As luck would have it, there was an international conference that weekend and numerous foreign dignitaries were staying at our hotel, thus making our “safe” vacation spot a prime target for terrorists. While we were sitting in our car waiting for our turn to be searched for bombs, my husband turns to me and says, “I had normal vacations before I married you.”
It’s true. Poor guy. At least it’s never boring!
7) Zombies seriously freak me out. So do clowns. Zombie clowns are right out. The zombie clown crawling under the bathroom stall in Zombieland nearly sent me over the back of the couch. Fortunately, it was a brief appearance and I was able to watch the rest of the movie (which is freakin’ hilarious, y’all).
Well, there you have it, a few facts about me. Hope they weren’t too terribly boring! Thanks again for stopping in and sharing my adventures (and misadventures, as the case may be).
31
Oct
One of my favorite things about Halloween is the plethora of horror movies on TV. Unfortunately, this year’s offerings have been a bit of a disappointment, in my opinion (no matter what a certain network’s promos would lead you to believe).
I’m not into the slasher films like Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street or the other iconic horror flicks of their ilk, so there’ll be no marathons involving Jason or Freddie at my house. But give me a movie featuring vampires, ghosts, or werewolves, and I’m good to go! And if you can throw in a creepy kid as the villain–even better!
Now, if (like me) you’re looking for something fun to watch after the trick-or-treaters have packed it in for the night but just can’t find anything while flipping through the channels, don’t be afraid to go digging back through the decades for some oldies but goodies. Or even go out on a limb and try a foreign horror film (with subtitles, natch).
If you need some ideas, here are a few of my faves:
1) The Changeling starring George C. Scott
2) Silver Bullet starring Corey Haim
3) Bram Stoker’s Dracula starring Gary Oldman
4) House of Wax starring Vincent Price
5) The Bad Seed starring Patty McCormack
6) The Omen (1976 version) starring Gregory Peck
7) Gin gwai (The Eye) starring Angelica Lee
8) House on Haunted Hill (1959 version) starring Vincent Price
9) John Carpenter’s Vampires starring James Woods
10) The Fall of the House of Usher starring Vincent Price
Of course, this list is by no means exhaustive. I’m also a fan of some of the more mainstream movies like Underworld (the Director’s Cut), the Blade series, the various zombie movies (even though they seriously freak me out), and all the campy, low-budget movies that show up on cable every weekend. But if you want to watch a quality film that will give you the chills this Halloween, give one from my list a try.
And, most importantly, have a safe and happy Halloween!!
30
Nov
What kind of a paranormal romance writer would I be if I didn’t take a moment to wish everyone a Happy Halloween? This is one of my favorite holidays — just ask my day-job colleagues who are baffled by the fact that I leave my pumpkin lights up in my office all year!
I think part of the fun for me is that my youngest sister’s birthday is on October 31st, so it was always a huge party! Another aspect of Halloween that appeals to me is the fact that it’s the last hoorah before the craziness of Thanksgiving and Christmas begins. (Just thinking about the next two months makes me tense.)
But, of course, my favorite part of Halloween is the fabulous smorgasbord of monster/horror movies that inundate the airwaves today! I would do nothing but chill in front of the TV with popcorn and a Diet Coke if I could, but, alas, there’s far too much partying and trick-or-treating to be had! Thank God for DVR, that’s all I’m saying. My scary movie marathon will have to wait until tonight after the rest of the festivities and after the kiddies come crashing down from their sugar highs and eventually fall into bed. Then my big decision will be if I should numb out my brain on vampires or ghosts or werewolves or zombies… Oh, the choices!
So, here’s wishing you and all your little goblins and ghosties a wonderfully ghoulish and delightfully creepy Halloween!
Maura
(Originally posted – you guessed it! – Oct 31)
