New Release: Sorrowful Soul by Harmony Kent #poetry #poems #griefsupport @harmony_kent

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Mae Clair

Banner ad for Sorrowful Soul by Harmony Kent, soothing graphic with book cover in various sizes, cover features calla lily, teddy bear to side holding book

Hello, and happy Thursday! Today, I am delighted to share a new release from friend and Story Empire colleague Harmony Kent. In addition to being a first-rate novelist, Harmony is also a gifted author of poetry. She’s here with her latest release, Sorrowful Soul, volume three of her Soul Poetry series. I’ve read all three volumes and highly recommend them. Look for my 5-Star review at the end of this post.

About the Book:

Book cover for Sorrowful Soul by Harmony Kent features soothing tones, and calla lily dripping tears

If we’re lucky, we meet twilight at the front door and old age creeps in on the night breeze.

Even if we make it to our twilight years, the more we age, the more loss we must endure as part of the cycle of life. Many of these poems lament death, but they also relate to broken relationships, severed friendships, and the loss of youth. This book of grief poetry is as much about saying goodbye and working through loss as it is about death and love split asunder.

This heartfelt collection provides company and compassion through the devastating journey of loss and shows us we do not travel this lonely road alone. Within these pages we share shock, numbness and denial, catapult into anger, bargaining, depression, loneliness, and guilt, and—eventually—make the seismic shift into testing the possibility of a new normal and finding acceptance.

Universal Sales Link

Hi, Mae.

Thanks so much for hosting me today.

It’s always wonderful to visit with you.

Here’s a little bit I’d love to share about my latest book of poetry, Sorrowful Soul. Full of freestyle poems, which provide company and compassion through the devastating journey of grief and loss and onward, this heartfelt collection shows us we do not travel this lonely road alone.

Since Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’s excellent book on the stages of grief, we now have an established set of seven stages to the grieving process. Although these stages are non-linear and can be revisited at any time, it’s helpful to have a rough idea of what we might expect during this difficult period of transition. The third stage is commonly known as Guilt.

Here’s an extract from the opening lines of a poem about blame …

From Part 3: Guilt

(From Broken Blossom)

All petals wilt

When torn

From the soil

Too much guilt

Can’t be borne

Like water and oil

Atop the stagnant silt

Of blame and scorn

If you’ve ever felt trapped beneath the crushing weight guilt and remorse, how did you work your way through? Chat with me in the comments. I hope you enjoyed this poetic excerpt and would love to know what you think. Thanks for reading 😊

BUY NOW

AUTHOR BIO:
Harmony Kent spent 13 years in a Zen Buddhist monastery, where she faced her demons and overcame devastating low self-esteem and found freedom. After a life-changing injury, Harmony returned to the world at the tender age of 40, and her life as a writer began.

Harmony is an award winning multi-genre author, and her publications include:

The Battle for Brisingamen (Fantasy Fiction) AIA approved

The Glade (Mystery/Thriller) AIA Approved/BRAG Medallion Honouree/New Apple Literary Awards Official Selection Honours 2015

Polish Your Prose: Essential Editing Tips for Authors (Writing/Editing) New Apple Literary Awards Top Medallist Honours 2015

Finding Katie (Women’s Fiction)

Slices of Soul (Soul Poetry Series: Book 1)

Life and Soul (Soul Poetry Series: Book 2)

Sorrowful Soul (Soul Poetry Series: Book 3)

Interludes (Erotic Short Stories)

Interludes 2 (Erotic Short Stories)

Moments (Short Stories and Poetry)

Jewel in the Mud (Zen Musings)

Polish Your Prose (How to Self-Edit)

Creative Solutions (Creative Writing Inspiration)

Backstage (Erotic Romance and Thriller)

FALLOUT (Post-Apocalyptic Dystopia) BRAG Medallion Honouree

The Vanished Boy (Psychological Thriller)

As well as being an avid reader and writer, Harmony also offers reviews and supports her fellow authors. Harmony is always on the lookout for talent and excellence, and will freely promote any authors or books who she feels have these attributes.

Harmony’s Website | Twitter: @harmony_kent | Goodreads: Harmony Kent

BookBub: Harmony Kent | Story Empire (co-authored blog): Harmony Kent

Harmony’s Amazon Author Page: author.to/HarmonysBooks

If you’re not already intrigued by this heartfelt book, I offer my five-star review of this as further recommendation:

In book three of the Soul Poetry series, author Harmony Kent tackles a challenging subject—grief. I’ll be the first to admit that some of the passages are difficult to read, but each and every one resonates with heart. Often that heart is shattered, struggling to heal, always laid bare. The author divided her free verse selections into various stages we experience when confronting loss and grief:

Shock and Disbelief
Denial
Guilt
Anger and Bargaining
Depression, Loneliness and Reflection
Working Through
Acceptance

This allows the reader to peruse the emotion that speaks loudest to them at a particular moment. Each section had specific poems that stood out for me. I was drawn to The Lie of the Night, The Waiting Place, Circles, Triggers, Night Train, Christmas Cheer, and Seasons.

But I have to make special mention of No Words (under Anger and Bargaining) and Winter of Discontent (under Depression, Loneliness, and Reflection). The imagery and the flow in the latter is particularly stunning as evidenced by this short glimpse:

But, perhaps, in embracing the abyss,
I’ll find you where the molten sun
blurs the horizon of night and day
I’ll tear that unforgiving veil asunder.

I recommend all three volumes in the Soul Poetry series for a journey through life, loss, and healing.

Thank you for visiting today. I hope you’ll take a moment to congratulate Harmony and drop a comment below. After you’re through, don’t forget to grab your own copy of Sorrowful Soul. Just follow this link . . .

Universal Sales Link

Book Tour Day 4: The Haunting of Chatham Hollow #newrelease #ghoststory #spiritualism #mystery @stacitroilo @harmony_kent

Posted on September 13, 2022 by Mae Clair

Promo ad for The Haunting of Chatham Hollow shows book in various formats on table beside ornate candle holder, window with sheer curtains in background

It’s day four of The Haunting of Chatham Hollow book tour! Thank you for visiting with me and Staci during our short tour for our co-authored release. We’re highly chuffed (“chuffed” in honor of our Brit friend, Harmony Kent) about this book and excited that Harmony is hosting today.

Harmony is a brilliant multi-genre author, with a wonderful sense of humor. She’s also one of the founding members of Story Empire. Her most recent release, Life & Soul: Book 2 in the Soul Poetry Series is an exquisite and reflective collection that I highly recommend.

I’ve read numerous releases by Harmony, all of which you can find on her Amazon Author Page. Be sure to browse her many titles which span the gamut from fiction and non-fiction, to short stories, poetry, and novels. When you’re through, be sure to visit Staci and Harmony as Staci introduces her female protagonist Greer Faraday, editor of the Chatham Hollow Chronicle.

Comments are closed on this post, but you can join in the fun HERE.

Book Tour Day 7: Things Old and Forgotten by Mae Clair #speculativefiction #magicalrealism #fantasy #newrelease

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Mae Clair

ebook Things Old and Forgotten by author Mae Clair laying on top of open hardback book with large dried maple leaf to left

Happy Tuesday! It’s week three of my blog tour for Things Old and Forgotten. Hopefully, you’re not sick of me, LOL!

Today I am with friend and Story Empire colleague, Harmony Kent. Harmony is the sole Brit among all the American yanks of SE, and it’s always fun to get her take on things. She has a wonderful sense of humor and is a multi-genre author writing everything from supernatural horror and psychological fiction to erotic romance, dystopian, writing craft books and poetry. I highly recommend her most recent release, The Vanished Boy, which kept me flipping pages well into the night. I’ve read numerous releases by Harmony, all of which you can find on her Amazon Author Page. She has quite the varied collection for browsing!

While visiting Harmony today, I’m going to be sharing an excerpt from my short story, Guardian, which is probably the most Halloweenish tale in the book. The plot involves a witch and her familiar, plus two brothers and a strange storm. To discover more, drop by Harmony’s corner of the blogosphere. I’ll see you there!

The Vanished Boy by Harmony Kent @harmony_kent #mystery #suspense #bookreview

Posted on April 19, 2021 by Mae Clair

Yes, I know it’s a Monday and not my normal day for posting reviews, but I already had my Tuesday Book review post formatted and ready to go (I hope you’ll come back tomorrow to check out the selections), when I devoured The Vanished Boy in two days. Rather than waiting another week to share my review, I thought I’d post it today. This one gets an easy five stars. Congrats to my Story Empire colleague, Harmony, on delivering such an excellent novel!

BLURB:
It’s so remote out here. Anything could happen …

A missed phone call in the night is all it takes.

When Carole’s 18-year-old son goes missing, she breaks into Jayden’s laptop to try to understand his life.

All too soon, Carole discovers just how little she knew her boy.

And when one lead after another dead-ends, the distraught mother has to face the unthinkable.

Sucked into a sticky web of deceit and lies, nothing is as it seems.

When your life turns inside out and upside down, who would you trust?

MY REVIEW:
Harmony Kent delivers a powerhouse novel about a teen’s disappearance. Carole is a widow with an eighteen-year-old son. When Jayden fails to return home one evening, she discovers she missed a cryptic text he sent. Two words only: “I’m stuck.” Those words propel her into a frantic search that begins with her delving into his life online. The police insist Jayden is an adult, and there’s not much they can do—at least not until time has passed. But Carole reacts with the anguish of a mother for her only child.

As she begins to piece together Jayden’s life through online activity, she learns there is a side to her son she didn’t know about. A side that has led him into a dangerous situation. The more she delves, the more the tension mounts, clues unravelling a bit at a time, for a staggering revelation at the end.

I had read this book in two days, flipping pages well into the night. The story is well-plotted with a thoroughly satisfying wrap. If you enjoy psychological fiction and domestic suspense, this is engrossing story with a plot highly relevant to current times.

5 STARS

I’ve read several of Harmony’s books. She always delivers an exceptional tale, but she really scored a home run with this one. If you’re a non U.S. reader, you can find The Vanished Boy at this LINK.

That’s it for me today, but please come back tomorrow when I’ve got two more excellent novels to share. I’ve also got a Book Spotlight coming up on Wednesday, and a guest author on Thursday, so it is going to be a busy week on The Pen of Mae Clair. 🙂

New Release: The Vanished Boy by Harmony Kent @harmony_kent #mystery #suspense

Posted on April 15, 2021 by Mae Clair

red quill pen on a piece of old parchment paper, with an ink well with words Welcome Guest in script

It’s my pleasure to welcome friend and Story Empire colleague, Harmony Kent, today with her new release The Vanished Boy. If you enjoy mystery / suspense novels, I know this is one you’re going to want to gobble up. I already have my copy waiting on my Kindle, and it’s next on my read list. Now, here’s Harmony to chat more about her book…

Hi everyone. Harmony here. Thanks so much, Mae, for letting me visit with you today. I’m so thrilled to share the launch of my latest book with you all.

The Vanished Boy is a mystery suspense novel based around a teenaged boy, who’s gone missing. The book follows the mother as she trawls through her missing son’s online life and realises, to her horror, how out of the loop she’s become.

The inspiration for this novel came from watching a number of movies based on how our lives both revolve around and are influenced by the Internet and mobile devices. Although these movies covered many genres such as murder/mystery, thriller, and the supernatural, they all centred around the same theme: Apps and living life online. This led me to ponder how many of us spend our lives in digital pursuits rather than physical—both the old and the young? For many people, their actual physical lives become but a shadow compared to their online existence.

Mostly, the shift to a digital world happens slowly. It’s incremental and, too often, insidious. All of which led me to ask how well do we actually know our children? Our loved ones? Those around us? What might be going on in the shadows? From that inspiration and questioning, this story was born. Much of life and our actions originate from the same needs and wants: to be loved and accepted, the ability to differentiate between truth and lies, and the things we do to cover our mistakes and make ourselves look better than the reality instead of owning who we are. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

new release TVB animated flyer

Below is an excerpt from the book:
Her heart stalls, and she forgets to breathe. Then her chest squeezes, her heart hammers, and she sucks in a lungful of air. She’d know this fob anywhere. It’s a Cornish Pirates keyring. The chain is snapped. At some point, this fell off Jayden’s car keys. Her son did come here. Frantic, she runs back to the car and throws herself into the driver’s seat.

She fumbles her mobile from the passenger seat, where she’d tossed it before tearing away from her house, and tries to unlock the screen. Her hand is too wet. Irritable, she wipes her fingers on her trousers and tries again. She’s in. Mike’s number is the last one called, so she hits the redial on it, but the line goes straight to voicemail. Carole checks the signal bars on her phone: four, which is good enough. The problem must be on the detective’s end.

Full of thrumming, frantic energy, she begins to type in the triple-nine for emergency services, but at the last moment realises this won’t count as a life-or-death situation. She deletes the two nines she’s typed and, instead, taps in 101. After three rings, an operator responds. Thank all that exists the police line isn’t as oversubscribed as usual. Sometimes, it gets so jammed that you have to log a request online instead of over the phone.

Hurriedly, Carole garbles out that her son has been missing for three days and she’s found his key fob and it must have broken from his keys.

Calm and collected, the operator asks, ‘Do you have a case log number, ma’am?’

BLURB:

It’s so remote out here. Anything could happen …

A missed phone call in the night is all it takes.

When Carole’s 18-year-old son goes missing, she breaks into Jayden’s laptop to try to understand his life.

All too soon, Carole discovers just how little she knew her boy.

And when one lead after another dead-ends, the distraught mother has to face the unthinkable.

Sucked into a sticky web of deceit and lies, nothing is as it seems.

When your life turns
inside out and upside down,
who would you trust?

Author Bio
After spending around thirteen years as an ordained Buddhist monk, living in a Zen Buddhist temple, and six years after a life-changing injury following a surgical error, Harmony Kent returned to the world at the tender age of forty.

Now, she is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She’s even won a few awards. Harmony lives in rural Cornwall with her adorable husband, ever-present sense of humour, and quirky neighbours.

Harmony is passionate about supporting her fellow authors.

Connect with Harmony at the following haunts:
Website | Story Empire (co-authored) | Amazon Author Page | Twitter
Goodreads | Bookbub

PURCHASE THE VANISHED BOY FROM AMAZON
(U.S. READERS)
OR
UNIVERSAL LINK FOR NON U.S READERS

It’s so true (and sad) what Harmony said in her post about people vanishing into a life online. I love the sound of this book, and can’t wait to dive in. I recommend hopping over to Amazon to one-click. Help Harmony celebrate her release by dropping her a comment then using the sharing buttons to spread the news about The Vanished Boy! Thanks for visiting with us today!

Autumn Reading: Murder They Wrote

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Mae Clair

comfortable sofa with throw pillows and soft fuzzy blanket surrounding copy of book Murder They Wrote

Today is the autumn equinox in the northern hemisphere. As much as I love summer, I do love the crisp days of fall, filled with cinnamon and gold leaves, bright orange pumpkins, and tall cornstalks. It’s also a great time to curl up with a book on your Kindle.

May I recommend Murder They Wrote? 🙂

You can learn more about this anthology of murder mysteries by visiting me today at Harmony Kent’s blog. If you’re roaming about the blogosphere, pop in and say hello!

Pre-order: Interludes 2 by Harmony Kent @harmony_kent

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Mae Clair

Today, I’m hosting my friend and Story Empire colleague, Harmony Kent, who is here to share her upcoming release, Interludes 2. I know you’ll roll out the red carpet for her! 🙂

Thanks so much for having me over at your place today, Mae.

Hi everyone. It’s great to be visiting with you all.

While I’m here, I’d like to talk about my latest book, Interludes 2. This is a book of short erotic romance fiction. As with the original Interludes (which you can find HERE), the book contains 10 short stories, with the first tale totalling 1,000 words, the second one totalling 2,000, and so on up to 10,000 words in the final story.

For each story, I used prompt cards from a great creative tool called Storymatic. Here’s what the set gave me to work with:

person with a very poor memory, b) daydreamer … c) person with a tail … conflict = first day of school

A and B relate to the main character. C relates to the secondary character. And the final prompt gives us the conflict.

From the above set of prompts, I came up with Initiation—a contemporary romance in 6000 words.

A pretty daydreamer arrives for her first day at university. A brutal initiation, and a man with an unusual issue, leave her reeling. Strange, the places you find true love.

Excerpt from Initiation:
Distracted, Willow failed to respond. She’d been idly watching his tight butt, and then a strange bulge had caught her attention. What the hell? Did he need to wear some kind of incontinence pad? Willow stifled a giggle. Probably, he’d made a hash of tucking in his shirt tails. As they walked through the crowded and noisy foyer, she imagined that Anders was an alien in disguise and that the bulge came from him having to fit a tail into his tight jeans. Another giggle bubbled up, and this time it escaped.

Anders stared at her and raised his brows interrogatively.

Willow sought a plausible excuse. ‘Um, sorry. I get nervous in … in a crowd. And this is all … so …’

‘New?’

‘Yeah. That.’

He gave her another stare and then pressed the button to call the lift. The car held a maximum of only four people, and those estimates always seemed on the optimistic side. Hence the two of them and her bulky suitcase made for a cozy fit. Willow tried to look anywhere but at Anders. Her heart rate sped up, and her breaths came in shallow pants. What was up with her? He was just a guy. Granted, a hot one, but still only a regular bloke.

I had so much fun writing this one, and I hope you’ve enjoyed this little teaser. I’d love to hear what you think via the comments at the bottom of the page. Thanks for stopping by.

Harmony is passionate about supporting her fellow authors.

PRE-ORDER INTERLUDES 2

Interludes 2 Blurb

From author, Harmony Kent, another best-selling collection of short erotic fiction that will tickle more than your taste buds and wet [sic] more than your appetite.

With a range of genres and styles, this book has enough steam for everyone.

WIGGING OUT—contemporary romance in 1000 words. Two strangers. A crowded platform. A collision. And a wig on the floor.

STORM CHASER—ménage à trois in 2000 words. A sabotaged tire. A raging storm. Passion mounts.

MOON-STRUCK—shifter romance in 3000 words. Trapped on a ship orbiting the moon, a horny astronaut falls for a hunky author who has a secret.

THE CLUB—contemporary romance in 4000 words. An invitation and a host, who is so much more than he seems, bring excitement, enticement, and a choice to make.

NUDIST CAMP—contemporary romance in 5000 words. An older woman. A younger man. A gossip discovers their secret tryst. What will happen when it all gets laid bare?

INITIATION—contemporary romance in 6000 words. A pretty daydreamer arrives for her first day at university. A brutal initiation, and a man with an unusual issue, leave her reeling. Strange, the places you find true love.

THE INCOMER—contemporary romance in 7000 words. A divorced beekeeper has spent her whole life in or around her local village. Then a city-slicker architect comes to town. When two worlds collide, a big bang is sure to follow. Can you have a frenemy with benefits?

DOWN AND DIRTY—contemporary romance in 8000 words. On the run from a sadistic ex-husband, Ellie flees to a remote mountain town and takes a job in the mines. Wary of men, she resolves to keep herself aloof, but mother nature has a way of having the last word and will, quite literally, make the earth move if she has to.

REUNION—contemporary romance in 9000 words. A school reunion looms. Not wanting to arrive sad and single, Molly talks her long-time friend Adam into going with her. While the music plays, the sparks fly.

SOUL MATES—supernatural romance in 10,000 words. A bereaved woman seeks solace in remote woodland. All too soon, she discovers that she’s not as alone as she’d expected. And her heart isn’t the only one that needs to mend.

READER ADVISORY: This book contains explicit sex scenes and language hot enough to melt your book. For mature readers only.

____________________________________________________________________________

Thanks for visiting and checking out Harmony’s upcoming release. I think it’s so intriguing that she used Storymatic for this collection. Don’t forget to share her news with the buttons below!

Presenting: Oh, Baubles by @harmony_kent #NewRelease #ChristmasNovella #ChristmasRomance #CleanRomance

Posted on December 12, 2019 by Mae Clair

Are you in the holiday spirit? I’ll be the first to admit I turn into a sentimental sap for the entire month of December. I’m kind of a sentimental sap the whole year, but I’m extra sappy during the Christmas holidays. Among other things, I love reading Christmas stories (and watching holiday movies). Which is why I’m excited to be part of Harmony Kent’s blog tour for her new release, Oh, Baubles. I’ll let her tell you about the book, but be sure to check out my review at the end of this post!

Book cover for Oh, Baubles, a Christmas romance novella by Harmony Kent shows Christmas bulbs with silhouette of embracing couple in a large bulb topped by a red bow

Hi everyone, Harmony here. I’m so thrilled to be visiting with Mae today to tell you about my latest book, a Christmas Romance Novella. It’s a fun, quick read at around 80 pages, and I had fun crafting this one. Below is a ‘sneek peek’ from Chapter 3 of ‘Oh Baubles.’

The line rang once, twice, three times, and more. On and on. Eventually, after sixteen full rings, it went to voicemail. Flustered, John hung up and cursed himself. How stupid could he be? If she reported him, he wouldn’t just lose his job but his whole career. Was some woman worth that? No. But then Charlie wasn’t just some woman, was she? No, she was a whole lot more than that. And John felt as though he would never feel happy again unless he at least took this chance and told her how he felt. So, with another heave in of air, he redialled—ready for the voicemail this time.

‘You’ve reached … Charlene Matthers … She cannot take your call right now. Please, leave a message after the tone.’

John waited for the tone, and sweat pooled in his arm pits and palms, and a cold droplet oozed down his spine. Then he caught an unpleasant whiff of man-pits. He’d have to do something about that as soon as he’d hung up. At last, the beep sounded.

‘Hey, Miss Matt—Charlene … Charlie, erm, this is John. John Andrews? Erm, oh god, I … er …’ He cleared his throat, determined to see this through before the damn machine cut him off. ‘Charlie, this is John. I’m sorry I haven’t called. Idiot that I am, I completely forgot to give you my number. The thing is … I want to see you again. Um, not in clinic. Oh, hell. I like you.’ He took a breath and wiped sweat from his brow. His words were all wrong.

‘Charlie, I don’t know what else to do, so I’m just gonna blurt it out … I love you. There, I’ve said it now. If you never want to hear from me again, or see me, I get it. Just don’t, please, report me. Lol. Ahem … I’m sorry I left things so long. I was a stupid damn coward. But I love you and want to get to know you better. The real you, not the hospital you.’ Flustered beyond belief now, and out of breath, John hung up, disappointed with himself. He’d messed that up badly. And only after he’d disconnected did he remember that he could have pressed the hash key and done a re-record. Too late now.

Book Description:
After a tragic accident one Christmas, Charlene loses her husband and her leg.

Scarred and damaged, the losses leave her lost and reeling, and a long recovery lies ahead of her.

When John, a hot young physiotherapist, comes into her life with his ripped abs and good-god good-looks, she can’t imagine he’d give somebody like her a second glance.

Then she falls for him.

Can Charlene overcome all obstacles to gain back her life and find true love once more?

Find out in this fun-filled, clean Christmas romance novella from award-winning author Harmony Kent.

Oh Baubles is available on Amazon for just 99c/99p And the link is: http://mybook.to/OhBaubles

MY REVIEW:
This is a short, enchanting story sure to warm the heart. Charlene, a young widow, requires physical therapy due to a tragic accident in her past. She feels an immediate connection with John, her PT, but can’t believe he’d spare a second glance for her.

Although this is a romantic story, I really enjoyed seeing the progression in Charlene’s character from beginning to end. The author delivered that change—and the build up of romance—in a believable manner. Watching Charlene transform as the book progresses is like watching a beautiful butterfly emerge from a cocoon. With its holiday setting, Oh, Baubles makes a charming novella for the holidays, but it will leave you with a warm feeling any time of year. 5 Lovely stars!

About the Author:
After spending around thirteen years as an ordained Buddhist monk, living in a Zen Buddhist temple, and six years after a life-changing injury following a surgical error, Harmony Kent returned to the world at the tender age of forty.

Now, she is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She’s even won a few awards. Harmony lives in rural Cornwall with her ever-present sense of humour, adorable husband, and quirky neighbours. Harmony is passionate about supporting her fellow authors.

All is Not as it Seems in The Glade #SomethingWickedTour @harmony_kent @StoryEmpire

Posted on October 23, 2019 by Mae Clair

Welcome to another day of Story Empire’s Something Wicked Blog Tour! I hope you’re enjoying the shivers, goosebumps, and eclectic fiction the SE gang has been trotting out. You can find the complete tour schedule here. My guest today is Harmony Kent, here to share her very creepy novel, The Glade. Bwahahaha!

Hello everyone, Harmony here. Thanks for hosting me today, Mae! It’s great to visit with you and your readers to kick off my third stop on Story Empire’s Something Wicked Blog Tour. In true Halloween-month fashion, I’d like to visit The Glade, where malignant forces are gathering power …

All is not as it seems in The Glade

What possessed me to turn an idyllic setting into a place of horror, you might ask? Well, it all started with a news story about bringing people back from the dead, and my warped imagination took it from there.

According to the BBC news in April 2013 …

A doctor says people can be revived several hours after they have seemingly died. Should this change the way we think about death?

It most certainly changed the way I looked at it, lol. And it begged the question, What Would Happen If … some of my characters came back from the dead? My demanding Muse also wanted to set this little disaster in the middle of a spooky forest.

My first struggle came in finding a vast and remote woodland in the UK. The sad truth is that we just don’t have such a thing anymore on our small island. The nearest I could come up with was The Forest of Dean, located in Gloustershire, a little north of the River Severn. While this forest is fairly large, it’s a long way from remote and has lots of busy roads running through it.

The corner stone I put on the cottage built in my lovely little glade is based on The Standing Stone, which actually has one of those well-travelled roads running right past it. For my purposes, I took some artistic license and moved it to an isolated glade. Which quickly turned malevolent … te hee he he.

Local folklore says that the stone will bleed if pricked with a pin at precisely midnight.

Of course, that little snippet grabbed my Muse by the scruff of the neck and rubbed its nose right in the supernatural delights on offer.

And then my research of the area brought up the topic of Ley Lines. I hadn’t intended to include these in the narrative, but what I discovered was too good to miss. So, between the energy and the stone and the local folklore, I wove a wicked tale of supernatural evil, and Something Wicked most definitley this way came. Thus, The Glade, was born.

Here’s a bit more about the book:

You’re arrested for the murder of your husband.

You have a secret you can’t tell.

The evil is gathering …

This gripping, edge-of-your-seat mystery/thriller will have you thinking twice about booking that idyllic cottage in the country. Nothing in this woodland paradise within the Forest of Dean is what it seems.

The Wenstrops have it all: health, wealth, and happiness. Until everything falls apart. Helen gets arrested for murder, and yet is either unable or unwilling to give a defence. During her detention, vital evidence goes missing and tensions run high.

Meanwhile, in the woods, malignant forces gather power.

Praise for The Glade:

“The glade is a horror story in the mould of Stephen King, rendered the more so by its faint echoes of Pet Semetary and the even stronger resonance of the pervasive malignancy of It. “

“Lock the doors and light up every room, for this book will have you on edge for the entire journey through its pages.”

“Readers who like to curl up during the long winter evenings and feel the delicious chill of fear running up and down their spines need only turn to The Glade to have all their expectations fulfilled.”

Purchase Link

To Learn More About Harmony Check Out:

I’ve read The Glade and can vouch it’s going to inspire plenty of goosebumps and shivers.
I wish you happy lights-on-in-the-dark reading! 🙂

Harmony and I did a blog swap today, so you can find me hanging out at her place talking about a spooky house in the neighborhood where I grew up. I hope you’ll pop over to check it out!

Creative Solutions for the Modern Writer #newrelease @harmony_kent

Posted on October 14, 2019 by Mae Clair

Happy Monday, everyone! To kick off your week I’ve got a book to fire your creativity and imagination. Good friend, and Story Empire colleague, Harmony Kent, is here with her newest release. This is one you’re going to want to check out! Book cover for Creative Solutions for the Modern Writer by Harmony Kent

Hello everyone. Harmony here. I’m excited to share my latest non-fiction book with you all today. Huge thanks to Mae for hosting me today.

Creative Solutions for the Modern Writer does what it says on the tin (or cover, lol), and offers tools to fire your imagination. With chapters on things such as using chess and tarot to develop stories, plots, and characters—as well as adopting the principles of nursing triage, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, horoscopes, and more—this little guide is full of fun tips and tricks to get your muse working overtime.

This excellent writer’s companion is available to by now in both ebook and paperback.

Here’s an excerpt for you:
Taken from the chapter on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs …

Where our characters sit on this scale will affect how they respond in any given situation and to any given stimulus. Their position will determine their current aspirations. And the great thing with this as a characterisation tool is that your characters can climb up or fall down as needed.

As your characters evolve and grow throughout the story, you can use the higher levels on the triangle to determine what their aims and responses are likely to be. Likewise, this can also help place their behaviours when everything falls to pieces around them. The lower on the triangle we are, the more animalistic we’re likely to behave. The higher on the scale, the more enlightened.

This tool is excellent for character development as well as for plotting. And it shows how any one character can change in how he or she responds depending upon the situation in which he or she finds themselves.

A kind, gentle woman may morph into a rabid knife-wielding cold killer if her children’s lives are at stake. A big, rough, tough villainous type might go all gooey-eyed over an abandoned puppy … who knows what memories/associations the cute little animal might have tapped into? Perhaps he’s on the yellow level of the triangle, needing belonging, acceptance, and love. Or you could go the other way and make him even more monstrous by having him kill the puppy and eat it because he’s scrabbling around on the lowest level of the triangle and desperate for food.

Now, she is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She’s even won a few awards. Harmony lives in rural Cornwall with her ever-present sense of humour, adorable husband, and quirky neighbours.

Harmony is passionate about supporting her fellow authors.

Creative Solutions Purchase Link