VAMPIRE ASCENDING Not a cookie-cutter paranormal romance

You've seen them, lining bookshelves in the fantasy/horror section of your local bookstore, or on Amazon. Paranormal Romances all have the same look to the cover (half-naked man and woman--hint, one is usually a vampire--going at one another). Who is surprised at the end? No one.

Vampire Ascending is not another cookie-cutter  paranormal romance. 
It is darker and more realistic than Twilight, and I've heard people say they were very happy about that--needing to stay away from the sparkly vampires, don't you know?




Many who have read this one, have gone on to read the second book, Vampire's Trill, 

and then on to read Vampire Nocturne.

These Urban Fantasy books all have a blend of mystery, romance, horror, action and adventure. Sabrina doesn't fall for just one man, but many, and has many suitors. She does her best not to be bitten by a vampire. But there's no guarantee in this, since she works for a powerful master, seven foot tall Bjorn Tremayne.

Vampire Nocturne is my only Steampunk, which follows touch clairvoyant, Sabrina Strong into another world where she has to find her cousin before Drakulya does.

Great eBooks for those who want a vampire read with bite!

Sweet dreams....

TRICK or... TREAT?

Hello, my pretties. Oh, I see you are all dressed in your Halloween costumes! How wonderful! Well, this calls for a treat, I believe. Just let me look for my plastic pumpkin for some treats... oh, yes. Here it is right next to my coffin. *grinning as wide as in the picture of pumpkin above*

Now, if you were paying attention to my blog this past week you'll remember I said I would be reducing the price of some of my books. Well, I lied. I reduced them all!

But, before we get to this I want to do a few announcements. As of today, only a few of you have made comment on the blog "In Search of Dracula" in which you are eligible to win any one of my eBooks for free. I've so far got four names to draw from. Poor turn out, my dears. I would love to have a few more of you stop by and join in the discussion. In order to get on the list of possible winners you must leave a comment on the blog. It's a very simple contest. Nothing else is required for you to do. You don't have to come and "Like" me on facebook, or jump through hoops.

Halloween is only a few days away! I will be picking a winner from my plastic pumpkin (which is an antique because I've had it since childhood), and will be announcing the winner on November 1st. So, if you haven't done so, and would like to get a free bee (your choice of the following titles), go on and leave a comment at the post mentioned above. (just click on the title "Searching for Dracula")

But there's more...

FOR ONE WEEK THE FOLLOWING BOOKS' PRICES HAVE BEEN KNOCKED DOWN TO .99!!! 
That's right! From October 27th Until November 3rd, the prices have been reduced and you never know when I'll get the itch to do so again!
Vampire Ascending
Vampire's Trill
Vampire Nocturne
Spell of the Black Unicorn



You've only got 5 more days to join in on the giveaway contest, so if there is a title you have not gotten yet, and want to get it for free, go and make a comment at the blog above. Or, in case you are not the winner and sure did want one of these books you've got until November 3rd to grab it while it's .99!

(Prices in other countries may take longer to go into affect, so if it hasn't been reduced, wait an extra 12 hours for Amazon to make the change.)

There you have it, my pretties. Happy Halloween to you all!
Oh! almost forgot... here's my costume...

Dracula

Bela Lugosi as "Dracula" in the
film adaptation from Bram Stoker's
book "Dracula"

Dracula
synonymous with "vampires".

Have you ever wondered why?

I did. When I was a teenager, and left to be able to stay up late to watch movies that possibly might be disturbing, I found myself fascinated by the movies about Dracula. No matter when they were made, I had to watch them, as I was fasctinated by the whole idea of vampires and vampirism.

The thought in the back of my mind was that it would be cool if there were such things.  But I knew the reality. But then again, there were things that I experienced in my pre-teen and teenage life that sort of went beyond what we consider "normal". But I wont go into that here.

In the next several days I would like to examine the myth, legends and reality of who and what Dracula is. I will, from time to time offer up suggested reading for you, if you are so inclined. I will talk about Vlad Tepes--the real "Drakulya" (which means son of Dragon or, in some languages "devil"), and how I had always wanted to write stories with vampires in them. 

I had wanted to write the historical Dracula into one of my books, and Vampire Nocturne was the perfect book in which to fit him in. I'll have excerpts of this as well as these next few days up to Halloween. Keep watching as I will be dropping prices of my three Sabrina Strong books.

See you then!

New Indie on the Block--Me!

Vampire Ascending

I never would have figured that placing my books on Amazon would actually begin netting me sales after becoming Indie, but it has. I saw sales that first week I had both Vampire Ascending and Vampire's Trill up as eBooks, at the end of August, and I thought “Okay, no big deal. My rank will drop into the basement like always, and that'll be it.

But that didn't happen. I didn't have a sale every day, but it was steady. Sometimes two in one day. Sometimes more. I found myself checking my author ranks everyday, and then more than once a day because at some point during the day one or the other sold. I remembered looking at my author rank wondering why it was up. “Did I sell something?” Duhhhhh. Yeah, I did. I kept thinking, “Okay, it'll drop. It has to.” It would for a day, and then go right back up. My ranks have gone up (depending on which one you want to count) for Fantasy, it was right up there today around #1,846. My author rank this morning was at #51,391. I don't recall it being this high for this long EVER!

So, when I began keeping track of the sales each day, I was counting down to when I'd reach $100. on Amazon. I did that today and beyond. In 25 days the total was at $100. Now both books are different prices. Vampire Ascending is at $1.99, and Vampire's Trill is at $3.99, so my cut will be different with these.

And I'm working to get the third book, Vampire Nocturne ready to up-load soon, so... yeah, I've got another book I'll be adding onto my possible ranks and what I make in another month.

Am I excited? Yes. Even though this isn't the first time I've done Indie (Spell of the Black Unicorn was my first Indie and I enjoyed everything that went with it), this is the first time I've done strictly eBooks, and they're selling.

It sort of makes a bad day at my day job easier to take. When I can say to myself “I'm not a bus driver, I'm an AUTHOR!” that sort of puts things into perspective.Vampire's Trill

What Makes A Heroine?

Well, last week I wanted to find out what makes a hunk for you ladies. I was surprised what the answer was and still, it was a great way to find out what women find attractive in a man. If it means he does the laundry or dishes, while looking good doing it, why not?

But today I'm going to answer my own question: What Makes a Heroine?

No one likes a dim-witted woman. I don't like seeing a woman walk out alone at night, unless, of course they're Buffy Summers, of course, and I know she can whip anybody's ass.

Buffy fighting Angel in season 2

When I created my Sabrina Strong, I needed her to have some realistic issues--like money issues--so that it made perfectly good sense that when offered to work for vampires, she couldn't turn it down. I mean, her biggest problem is keeping or even gaining employment. It would you too, if you were a touch clairvoyant and anything you touched, or came in contact would put you into a coma for a week.

While I enjoy other books in my genre, Sookie Stackhouse comes to mind. She has virtually the same problem as she is a telapath, and every man she might try to date she can hear their very thoughts. Sort of kills the moment when you know exactly what a guy is thinking about you.

I like Buffy because she did have a couple of falts, like falling in love with a vampire. Well, who wouldn't fall for Angel? And then she had to kill him because he became evil. That was a thrilling show, let me tell you. The build up of how they fell in love, had a few fights along the way, she had to fight and kill him. I got all tied up in the overwhelming grief over the fact she had to kill her boyfriend. And, of course, save the world, at the same time. That Josh Whedon, gotta love how he can blend humor with  horror, and know exactly how to hit the emotional bar juuuust right.

Sookie Stackhouse Books:

With Charlaine Harris's character, Sookie, we find a young woman who never has gone on a date, let alone had sex, and is introduced to both through Bill, the vampire. Their on/off relationship is steamy, wild, and at times she's fed up with it because she just winds up in the hospital, or gets beat up, or is staked. I think her first novels, Sookie is black and blue and bleeding all over the place. Sookie eventually goes from Bill to Eric, and then she's in and out of relationships with a werewolf, a tiger-were, and then back to Eric. NOTE: I have not read the last book, so do NOT tell me what happens, please!

Sabrina Strong Series:

My heroine of this series had to be strong willed enough to resist the vampires the best she could. In the first book Vampire Ascending, she certainly meets up with some handsome vampire dudes (Vasyl, Tremayne and Nicolas), and one shapeshifter dude (Dante Badheart). Who wins her heart in the end? Well, she falls for Dante. Resisting and later on rejecting Nicolas for the things he has done, or was part of abducting her best friend, Jeanie, who almost dies, and she asks the vampires to save Jeanie by turning her.

Sabrina is hired to find out who has killed Tremayne's life-time mate, in the first book. In the second book, she's involved in learning more about Vasyl, who has been seeking her--the sybil--for centuries. He saves her from a car wreck, takes a bullet out of her and proceeds to tell her all about why he has been waiting for her. And, because Dante has distance himself from her (because Tremayne has forbidden him from being intimate with her any more), she naturally becomes infatuated with Vasyl.

Her mission in this second book, Vampire's Trill, is to rescue Tremayne from imprisonment, and get him to his trial on Dark World. Easy? Not really. While there she makes a few enemies. Well, she sort of kills a designer pet and cuts the tails off a demon (he grows them back, but he's pissed). But they all return to Earth okay. But she is later abducted and tortured because Jeanie's mother wants to know where her daughter is. Jeanie's brother just wants to cut her up. Sabrina winds up in the hospital at the end of this book, and the two Mrs. Woodbine and son, Mark, are put in jail.

Meanwhile, Sabrina's guy troubles have mounted. New guy across the road, Bill, Gannon, wants to date her. Vasyl proposes, and Dante has died.

The third book, Vampire Nocturne, continues with Sabrina becoming Vasyl's bride, and then because she is still mourning her loss over Dante (who she still loved), he gives her time to grieve. But she learns that her cousin, Lindee, has disappeared, and when she goes to investigate, Sabrina winds up on a totally different world where vampires rule, in fact, Drakuyla (Vlad Teppes), is king and a number of other men want to become her lover, or taste her blood. I enjoyed witing this one where I place Sabrina into a world stuck in the Victorian age.

In each book I've manage to put Sabrina up against some nasty vampires who want to do her in, or taste her blood. I've always wanted to put the real Dracula into a story and Vampire Nocturne has him in there as the unlikely hero in the end, and my little surprise ending cures readers curiosity as to what is going on with Dante and that stone he gave her.

More adventures for my heroine is in store, so either check out those you've missed, or stay tuned for updates on the next book in the Sabrina Strong Series.

Curently, Lorelei is working on
fourth book in the series.

The End of Sookie... Beginning of Sabrina

The Final book in the series coming out in May 2013.
I recall when I first laid my eyes on a Sookie Stackhouse novel. There were about four or five out at the time. I had to wonder how the hell I never found them before? I'd been looking for exactly this sort of read, back then (in 2006).
I bought the first one in the series, "Dead Until Dark". The cover had me chuckling. Oh, this was exactly what I was looking for. Something both dark and funny, and about VAMPIRES!
I've been reading a few of these over for a second time, now that I've got books up to "Dead Reconing". I'm a little behind, but that's okay. I'll be able to read the rest of them (two, I think?), and the last one is due out in May, and I might just buy the hard cover for once.

When I read--somewhere--that the series was coming to an end, I was sad. I'll miss Sookie's adventures.

And I want to thank Ms. Harris for having the guts to create this series (going against her agent's thoughts that it wouldn't sell), because I was inspired to create my own series...

Sure, I was influenced by Harris' Sookie books--a "southern vampire" series, but I've created a "northern" vampire series and it's definitely my own creation with Sabrina Strong, a strong lead character who happens to be a touch clairvoyant and goes to work for vampires, only because she can't get any other employment, so takes a job as a clairvoyant for Bjorn Tremayne, a vampire magnate over half the United States.
Vampire Ascending begins this exciting, page-turning series: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0976511673?ie=UTF8&tag=coppemedia-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=0976511673

Vampire's Trill http://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Trill-ebook/dp/B006GSS29Q/ref=tmm_kin_title_0 continues it;

And my latest with steampunk themes - Vampire Nocturne http://www.amazon.com/Vampire-Nocturne-Sabrina-Strong-ebook/dp/B00BD75KE0/ref=sr_1_17?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361635152&sr=1-17&keywords=Vampire+Nocturne  is the third instalment.

My fourth book Vampire Caprice will be out in December of 2013, and I can hardly wait to unleash it.

Teaser Tuesday: Hey, What the Heck Happened To Dante?

As you may recall at the end of the second book, Vampire's Trill, Dante Badheart (the good-looking Native American shift-changer/telepath who was seeing Sabrina in first book, and then was ordered to stop seeing her from his vampire master) died. At the end of the second book Dante comes in his spirit form to Sabrina as she lie in a hospital bed recovering from injuries sustained from her dealings with the Woobines. He promised her he would find a way to come back to her. Remember? He admits that he loved her and never told her (the swine). He swore that if he ever found a way to physically be with her again he would do it. How romantic. Right?

Dante gave Sabrina a black stone with a little quartz running through it. She would wear it in the third novel Vampire Nocturne, as a way to remember him by. But during a moment while killing the Dreadfuls on Beyond the Black Viel, Sabrina realizes that the stone is doing something very strange whenever she kills a Dreadful.

Here is an excerpt from one of those odd moments.

Joha and Drachen stood on the either side of the doorway, I faced it dead-on.

“I'm going in alone. The both of you stay out here with Ali,” I warned them. I didn't need them to get in the way. They knew I was pretty handy with my dagger from what I'd done before dinner. I had the straps off my dagger in case we came across a Dreadful. The tally on my kills stood at three. I had a feeling it was about to go up by at least one notch.

I reached for the beaver-tail style door latch, feeling my heart rate accelerate. I'd confirmed that Dreadfuls had never touched or attacked anyone. No one knew how many there were, since they all looked alike. So far, Aljehambra was the only one who had seen one in her room out of the three.

Without stepping inside, I pushed the door open. The Dagger of Delphi didn't hesitate. It flew out of its sheath. Aljehambra and Joha made noisy intakes of air. The room, and what it contained, was backlit by the fireplace deep within the room. The dark, and very familiar shape, stood near the bed. The arms of the cloak flew up like the shredded wings of a huge bat when the dagger thunked into it. Then, the Dreadful collapsed and withered to the rug, looking like an overly large prune.

Behind me, Aljehambra made a sudden shriek and Joha comforted her. From the muffling of her voice, I knew she had probably ducked into the folds of his arms, hiding her face from the whole scene.

Drachen had moved to the other side of the doorway, next to me. He stood motionless while I checked over my shoulder. His long hair swayed slightly in some errant breeze. His aura felt like a warm inviting cloak; his scent exotic, like some funky incense and it was all I could do not to put my nose into his hair and indulge in it.

And then I would eat him whole.

His large, expressive eyes gazed into the room. Sudden desire skittered through me and I had to wonder if he was attempting to put a thrall on me. Or was it me being horny? I voted for the latter, since Drachen wasn't a fully developed vampire,yet. And I was unable to change into my alter ego—Weregirl—and so felt frustrated.

Silvery light beamed back to me, and caught me off guard. The essence from the creature was absorbed by Dante's Stone, like before. This time it hit me more forcefully, and I jerked with a little surprised gasp. Drachen noticed, but said nothing. The stone felt heavier suddenly; more dense. It was like carrying a gold nugget around my neck. The dagger returned and I snatched it out of the air, twirled it, and secured it. This earned an impressed look from Drachen.

“It's gone,” I said. I wasn't able to say the word kill in regard to these things, because I knew they weren't flesh and blood, but they had an essence. One the stone could absorb, and this gave me no small measure of dread. Why was the stone—the one Dante's ectoplasmic double had disappeared into—sucking in these creatures' essence? I hadn't really had a chance to think on this very deeply. But now, after it happened every time, I had the feeling that the stone was taking on energy for some later manifestation. Call me psychic. But I wondered what would the end result be. That was the scary question.

© 2012 Lorelei Bell

Tuesday Teaser & Other Sufff

Hello, my preties. Well, did you all have fun at the ball? That was just so much fun, I didn't want it to stop! Jett has a few new women admirers I see. Drachen cleaned up too, I think. Ohh. Speaking of which I'll be mentioning him later on in this post, because this will contain a teaser with him in it.

And the fun doesn't seem to stop either. I'm out visiting today to my very good friend, Lucy Pireel, and she and I had a blast talking about my book and such. I think a couple of my characters want to go visit her next time.

And this Friday I will announce winners of my little contest for Vampire Nocturne. Are you excited? I'm excited!

Brad Pitt in "Legend of the Fall"

Now the feature you've all been waiting for... Teaser for the week!

I held on to the railing with both hands like it was a life line, and side-stepped down, one step at a time in shoes I was not used to. The heals felt all wrong.

Tapping steps ascending made me look up. Drachen quickly climbed the steps to where I had halted. Dressed in black velvet with white lace dripping from his sleeves and around his collar framing his beautiful face he looked more mouth watering than ever. His golden hair glowed like the mane of a wild palomino in the light of the chandeliers. I wasn't prepared to see him in such attire. Ruddy lips looked as though he had applied rouge, plus his cheeks were blushed. Hummm. A quickie for the road, perhaps?

“What are you doing?” I asked. He gently took my arm.

“Helping you, of course. You look as though you needed help,” he said.

“I'll need help getting out of this corset!” I complained bitterly in a stage whisper. I learned it had buttons up the front, but the bindings in the back were what really hurt. It itched somewhat too. Before the night was out, I'd have to get it off—one way or another.

“I'm certain my sister will help you,” Drachen said, taking my hand with a white gloved one. His other at my back he guided me down the risers. His gloves were pleated along the back and a pearl—I guessed it was a pearl—clasped it closed at the wrist. “Unless you would rather I help you?” I suddenly got a quick little vision from Drachen—which surprise the heck out of me. “Or would you rather Jett help you, instead?” He was teasing me. I could tell when I saw his smirk. He knew I'd spent the night with Jett. My face warmed.

“Shush! No one is supposed to know about that,” I hissed.

“What would you do should I tell?”

 

VICTORIAN BALL & GIVEAWAY FOR VAMPIRE NOCTURNE

Did you hear that? I think it's a waltz. Too tame for you? What if I told you that more than half the people in attendance were vampires? And, one is the most famous of all vampires? Dracula. Or, in the traditional spelling Drakulya.

Not only that, you may have to choose who to dance with!

First let's take a look around the danceing hall and see who is here.

First off, there's Jett, Prince of Walachia, Drakulya's son. His long black hair pulled into a tail, that distinctive white stripe in his hair making him stand out in the crowd. He should be dancing with Princess Penelopee, but oops! He is dancing with Sabrina Strong. Lucky girl! I hear he is a sexual vampire.

Drakulya is dancing with his wife Gwendolyn. And over there is Princess Aljehambra, and her brother (the dreamboat), Drachen! They look gorgeous! But don't let Drachen's good looks fool you, I think he might have need of blood tonight! Yours? Maybe.

Aljehambra has chosen a beautiful lilac gown. She's just dazzling, don't you think?


Uhoh! I think I see the blood broaker, Alucard. He's dancing with Arabella, owner of Arabella's Salloon. But he has his eyes on Sabrina.

In case you were wondering if you were in the right place for the book give away for Vampire Nocturne, you ARE!

Blog Party for Vampire Nocturne

Victorian Ball on “Beyond the Black Veil”

The prize:

One of 4 free paperbacks (SIGNED) to anyone with an address in the continental US.

~*~

What you need to do to win:

TWEET & SHARE on FACEBOOK (I'll trust that you do this)

&

In the comments leave the name of the vampire - or any of the characters (mentioned above) in Vampire Nocturne - you will dance with, or what color your ball gown is, and your email. IF YOU DO BOTH - ball gown corlor (or if male what color coat you are wearing), and vampire you dance with , THAT'S AN EXTRA POINT IN YOUR FAVOR!

~*~

I will use the old-fashioned name-in-the-hat system to choose names of 4 lucky winners! The winners will be announced on March 15^th by 7 pm, central time.

And I will email those lucky winners that day.

LET'S DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY!!!

Thank you for joining me! This contest goes on from today, March 9th until the 11th (Monday).

GOOD LUCK!

The Excitement Builds for Vampire Nocturne

Hi, my pretties! Well, I'm back from the dead--a lost week for sure (and pay), but I'm back from suffering the flu last week. Feeling much better and thank all of you who sent well wishes my way.

Now on to the news. As you know Vampire Nocturne, the third installment in the Sabrina Strong series is now available for purchase. Of course many of you have waited for the book to come out for ages, it seems. I hope it's still on your TBR list! Whether you enjoy reading the  ebook or a paperback, it's available in either form. And I've been told by my publisher that he's changed the look of the papberback by making the cover more of a matte paper, rather than slick cover, and the pages are cream instead of white. I can't wait to see my copy, which I'm expecting some time next week!
But also, I'm being mailed several more copies of Vampire Nocturne paperback for giveaways!

I'm going to be announcing my giveaway soon. I hope all of you lovely people will return next weekend. I'm going to schedule a giveaway taking place from the 9th thru the 11th.

Teaser Tuesday from Vampire Nocturne

Hello, my pretties. Well, as promised I'm here to give you a teaser from this next book to get you all salvating for it. Haha. I'm so evil. But rest asured it will be out soon.


In this book Sabrina has been sucked through a portal that has taken her to a different world where vampires rule--and out number the humans something like 10-1. Also since this is a steampunk, as you realize their dress styles would be from the Victorian era.

In this teaser that I've chosen Sabrina is at a ball in a castle. She is with a newly formed vampire, his name is Drachen--and is he just yummy.

Once we got past the gate house, we entered the inner ward. Having never seen a real castle before, I was interested to see life inside an actual working castle. It would have been better to have been on a tour of castles in England, or Scotland—not in another world where vampires were kings and queens.

Especially where loads of vampires were partying. Now my butterflies were beating on my stomach trying to escape. I'd be with dozens of vampires. I thought of it like being in Tremayne Towers, only they had different rules here. Knowing who was and who wasn't a vampire might not seem difficult at first, but knowing what I now knew about how the children of vampires—those who could be eating a nice salad one day and suddenly want to drink human blood the next was really disconcerting.

I removed my right-hand glove, now that it had warmed up, before we entered the main hall. A matching glove and bag in one hand and a fan in the other. I mimicked what the other women were doing and flicked the fan open and nearly put my eye out. It fell out of my hand and clattered to the floor. Drachen swooped in and picked it up for me. I smiled and thanked him. I realized it, along with everything, was too much to hold. I would have to ditch the fan. The whole ensemble was a tad silly, really. My uncovered hand became cold within moments of having pulled the glove off. I would have to avoid touching anything with the hand, like always, but I wasn't going to risk being thralled by some pretty boy-vampire if I wanted to survive this night, so it would have to be left exposed.

“Nervous?” Drachen asked.

Yes. Drachen you're only one of the reasons I'm nervous.

“Not every day I get to rub elbows with the rich and blood-thirsty,” I said.

Drachen threw back his head and laughed. We stepped forward behind a long stream of people. Drakulya and Gwendolyn were further up, at the entrance of another hall.

Candelabras, iron sconces, and huge hanging chandeliers lit up the old castle well enough to see with my human-Were eyes. Tapestries hung on every wall, yet a chill found my exposed areas easily and made me shiver, even though several huge fireplaces were roaring with log fires. Beyond the large opening, I could see dancing people, music from another era streamed to my ears. I recognized a waltz when I heard one.

As ball gowns go, they came in every color, beautiful and lavish with ruffles, and lace. The women wearing them dappled the stone floors like a Monét painting, while men in their velvet frockcoats in nearly as many various colors with elaborate stitching around the buttons complemented them. Other men had worn tails and vests, like the Drakulya men had. And, yes, women were wearing silly hats. I looked past the shoulders and over heads of shorter people and saw women wearing the wildest looking hats which sprouted plumes of some poor bird's tail feathers, or—in some cases—whole bodies. I spotted one with a mink curled up on top of a woman's head, and to be truthful, I wasn't quite sure if the thing was dead or alive. I knew it was a style, but really I found it deplorable to prance around in a hat with a dead bird or an animal perched on it. Masks were worn over a few faces. These were quite fancy, glittering from jewels and sequins, green, red, purple or yellow feathers sprouting from the tops looking like exaggerated brows.

Talking Steampunk, Dracula, and Sabrina Strong's Next Adventure

Hello, my pretties. As you know I've got my very first steampunk coming out soon, which is the third book in the Sabrina Strong Series, Vampire Nocturne.

When I started out with this, I didn't consciously decide it was to be a Steampunk. Just sort of happened. I realized as I wrote it and had Sabrina deal with being in another world that they were stuck in the Victorian age. I love the dress stlyes of that time, and some would call it a more romantic time. Perhaps it was.

At any rate it caused me to look up the meaning of Steampunk. It is really a sub genre of science fiction, alternate history and speculative fiction which came into prominence in 1980's-'90's. It basically involves an era/world where steam power is widely used--about 19th century, or Victorian era. In any case it incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy.

In some cases I think it can blend both. I've read certain books which are works with steampunk themes. Anno Dracula was one, and Vampire Empire was another. While I didn't care for the rendering of vampires in the latter work, I thought Anno Dracula a rather fun alternate history using characters from several works like Dracula and historical people of that era, including Jack the Ripper.

After reading these works, I was certain what I had was a Steampunk, and worked on this story with the basic elements in mind.

The Basic Plot:

Sabrina learns that her cousin, Lindee, has gone missing. Because Sabrina is a clairvoyant, she, of course, knows she should be able to find her. Little does she know that Lindee has been transported via a ley line to a whole other world. Sabrina also falls through this portal that takes her to this world, and, in fact has already visited one character on this world, prior to her falling into the portal to begin her investigation.

While all of my Sabrina Strong books have a lot of adventure, romance--to some extent--and dangerous situations, this one by no means fails in this. But it is different in that it is nearly a stand-alone book. While some new readers may not know who Vasyl, Rick, Morkel, or Bjorn Tremayne are, but these characters, basic to the series, only play a very small roll in the total of the book. Sabrina spends most of her time on Beyond the Black Veil (this other world), and finds herself on a world where vampires rule, and humans are basically food and sexual partners--oh, and entertainment.

Not only does Sabrina need to find Lindee, but almost right away she deals with a murder mystery, and some very nasty beings who stalk humans and make them sick until they die. Plus, she finds that the real-life Dracula has managed to turn himself into a vampire and has lived on this planet for many centuries. Sabrint going up against Vlad the Impaler is one of my favorite scenes in the whole book. I had to open up a book on the historical Dracula again and found myself with a wealth of information.

This week I hope to take passages from the work, Vampire Nocturne, and post them, giving everyone a chance to read a little bit about the characters and get a feel for the work.

Until then, adieu, my pretties!

Thank You's are in order

My cover reveal went really well this week. There might be a few more in the next week or so, but the ebook should be coming out shortly.
So I want to mention some fellow bloggers, and friends from our facebook group Writers of Mass Distraction Thank you goes out to William Kendall, and to Valerie Twombly, to Shelly Arkon, and to Norma Beishir for mentioning my new book's cover and posting something about it over at their blogs this week. Thank you, guys!

My hope is next time I will have some great news about the publication of Vampire Nocturne, and how you can get your copies, so stay tuned, my pretties!

The Edits are off to Publisher

Well, my pretties, as you all know I have been busy and with the edits coming to me on Saturday afternoon, you know I had to get right to them. I've had people accost me in the street, grabbing me by the coat, shaking me and asking me while gnashing their teeth "WHEN IS THE NEXT BOOK COMING OUT SO I CAN BUY IT!"

Well, I had to tell them as soon as I got the edits and a book cover that I only needed to go through the edits and okay them. I've just finished them and hopefully my publisher will be able to take what I sent him and turn it into an ebook/paperback.

With any edits you have to go through it line by line--with your own version to compare with. Seems that editors want to change things around. Which is fine, but I didn't like that they would change what characters might say to one another. In one case the whole sentence was changed. I had what I had and I put it back the way I had it. There's other things that needed to be watched for like where I had elipsis they sort of got shortened, and sometimes there was a comma after it. Big question mark there. And it made me have to check and see what was changed. Sometimes the changes muddled up a whole sentence, so I had to restructure it to something legible.

Well, anyway, I'm going to place the cover of Vampire Nocturne here so that you can all gaze at it. It should be available soon.

Rick (the leprichaun) Talks about Book 3 in Sabrina Strong Series

Hi, everyone. I'm Rick. Better known as the leprechaun in the Sabrina Strong Series. If you've been keeping up, I'm introduced in the second book. But I'm here today to talk about the third book, coming out real soon. So, pay attention, 'coz I'm not going to repeat this for any losers out there. Got it? Good.

So—eh—let's see. In the second book we did a lot of stuff like released Mr. Tremayne from imprisonment, then we went to Dark World, kicked some demon butt there, and Tremayne lost favor with those devils there. But Sabrina got through that pretty unscathed, and got some experience in demon-ass kicking. She also solved a murder mystery—and if you read that book, you had to think she'd never get out of that old house alive. Right?

Also (spoiler alert!) Dante died at the end, which I guess a lot of you ladies sort of got upset about. Well, I promised not to give away too much, but you've gotta read this third one, because--(whispering) things really look up at the end of it where he's concerned. (Winks)

But this time she's trying to find her cousin, Lindee, who has gone missing. You think about it, a person could go missing for a lot of reasons—not just that maybe some foul play is involved. But admittedly this is foul play when you think about it.

Just so you know, Lindee had background and issues up the wazoo. Especially with her parents. And she was what we mildly call a bad girl. I say mildly because we've all had our bad times. Right? So some people just think she ran away. Sabrina, being a clairvoyant, knows better.

Sabrina finds out where Lindee was last seen. They got police and dogs scouring the place, but guess what? Lindee is no longer on terra firma. Nope. And when Sabrina slips through the portal that takes her to a world called Beyond the Black Veil, you can bet something really interesting is going to happen. 'Coz you see, that world is run by vampires, and I'm told they're sort of stuck in the mid-Victorian age.

Oh, and Sabrina actually meets Dracula himself—the real Vlad The Impaler, who is now a vampire. I swear to God! I nearly fell off my stool at Tom's Tavern when she told us.

And as if that ain't the worse part about it, she has to face these weird things called Dreadfuls who make humans sick and stick around until they die. But she figures out what she has to do to get rid of them permanently.

Oh, jeez. Did I say too much?

Well, the mystery as to where Lindee is is plenty to deal with, but you see the vampires on this world have donors for their needs. But one of these ladies whose blood is really, really popular was murdered, and has Sabrina a little distracted too. Along with all the good looking dudes in this as well. I mean, Sabrina is a good looking lady, and besides being a touch clairvoyant, she's also the sibyl, who has powers of her own. She's sort of discovering them in this book, and figuring out how to work her mojo. Dig?

Well, I think I've said enough here. If I say any more I'll say too much. I just wanted to get the word out. So, if you're in Batavia Illinois, look me up at Tom's Tavern. I'm buying. (laughs) See ya! (disappears)

Teaser Tuesday ~ Vampire Nocturne

It's funny how a writer may get inspired for a certain character by seeing a person in life, perhaps they know them, perhaps they don't. I often see people in my everyday job, and have, from time to time used their likeness for a character.

And then there may be pictures I find along my Internet travels that just simply grab me and think, "Oh, now he/she would make a great character in a book!" That's how I came up with Jett, a main character in this up-coming third book, Vampire Nocturne. This picture above has been altered slightly. As I give you a new teaser here, I hope you remember Jett's likeness. He is the son of Drakulya. Yes. The real Dracula, somehow found his way onto another planet (it's explained to some degree in this book), and I had fun with the Victorian era, coming up with the styles, the palace, and how Sabrina is treated for wearing pants.

At any rate I've a short teaser to share with you here. They've arrived at the palace. Enjoy.

The carriage swung under a grand entry where servants stood waiting beneath gas lamps. We were greeted—or rather Jett and Skrlock were—by a head butler. I felt out of place here, no better than the mud upon their shoes. I was wondering if I shouldn't wait in the carriage. Maybe I should be looking for my way home. I listened for the baying of wolves—a sure sign to cut and run in most creepy old movies and books. My eyes went automatically to the full moon. It hung in a black void over the palace. Wolfsbane indeed.

I heard no howling in the surrounding hills. It was quiet, in fact. Almost too silent. No bat wings beating the air. Where were all my omens?

I followed the men inside. The interior was no less lavish than I would expect for a palace. Rich tapestries hung on stone walls, some with golden dragons worked on purple cloth. The rugs on the floors were thick, colorful and lavish. A huge main entry hall boasted double doors along this passage. The spiraling stairway to one side would have tempted Scarlet O'hara to descend. A large stone fireplace burned merrily at the foot of it.

“You're just in time for the evening meal, if you wish to join them now, Master Jett,” the majordomo said.

“I would not dream of keeping them waiting.” He glanced my way. “There'll be food,” he said, doing his best to put me at ease. I was actually hungry. Especially after what I'd gone through.

“His highness is in his withdrawing room, Master Skrlock, if you would follow me, please?” the butler said with a slight bow and directive hand toward a closed double-doorway beneath the grand staircase.

“Thank you Rumbel, I must see if Vlad is up to a game of chess tonight.” Skrlock strode away from us.

I stood wavering with indecision. There were many people in the dining hall. They all seemed human enough. I would have to block them the best I could, or risk replacing my glove on my right hand, covering up the mystic ring.

Jett paused in the hallway, then turned to gaze at me. “Are you coming?” He gestured toward the door, where the butler held it open for us.

“I can't turn down food.” I moved forward, and caught up with him. I was so out of my comfort zone it was ridiculous. Among royalty. To them I was—to be bitterly honest—a peasant. A country bumpkin. I had no refined manners to speak of, and it truly worried me. I mean what is with the dozen forks, knives, and spoons for the table settings? Couldn't I just use the same spoon or fork over? I'd have to mimic the others in order to get by.

We entered a large room where a long table with a white linen cloth, set in cut crystal and bone white china, and gold cutlery took up most of the space. An elaborate centerpiece with lovely pink and white flowers cascading over their bowls brought color and a mild bouquet to the room. Several people seated turned expectantly toward us. ©2012 Lorelei Bell

Milestone: Third book sent off to publisher



Artwork done by Lorelei Bell in "paints"

Breathing in.... and exhaling. This is what it feels like to me. Freeing! Like I'm out on a lake somewhere fishing.

I've just delivered my 3rd book to my editor, Yolanda Campbell at Copperhill Media. That's right, Vampire Nocturne, the third book in the series, is in the hands of my publisher. Now you all get to wait, and wait, and wait...

I made the decision back a few months ago, that once I got this one done and out, I would take a little break. That's not to say that the fourth book won't be written. It's actually 90% done. I still have some scenes to work on and add to it. But I've other projects I'd like to work on during the next 3 months--through the summer. I'm hopeful to get my first self-published book, Spell of the Black Unicorn, into shape, and want to get it to Smashwords or whatever, by this fall and go Indie with it. I have no idea what I'm doing, really, or what to expect. I will be peddling this one of as a paranormal romance, since it seems to be more that than anything else. Back when I wrote it, I don't even know if the phrase even existed, or if it did I had no idea what it meant.

I'm working on a few shorter projects, as well. I have to get a short story done before the deadline, and I think it should be ready soon. I've got a few guests coming on my blog soon--this month, in fact. Heather McCorkle is taking her latest book tour (Puca tour), and will be on Lorelei's Muse on the 24th.

I also will have Jeremy Hawkins, a.k.a. Retro-Zombie. I have come to get to know him a little better, and I felt it was time to let everyone out there get to know more about him by doing an interview with him. This won't be a cookie-cutter interview, either. I felt I knew him well enough to ask things like "Cubs or White Sox?", "Chevy or Ford". And just how much does he love those zombies, folks? I wasn't afraid to ask! LOL! But he just put out a wicked looking book he published that combines pictures and interesting, somewhat skewed poetry. I will be having him over at the end of the month.

So, there you have it--my short term and long-term plans for the summer. I'm not exactly going fishing... but that would be fun, really, since I will be at my regular job 5 days a week and not looking forward to it one bit. But I've decided to adopt a new philosophy of enjoying my days off, when I get them. I won't be at the grindstone [the thing I call writing] as I have been the past couple of years. This year I'm going to get outside, do some walking (try to loose weight), and enjoy the summer months ahead. And I think my husband and I might do close-at-home vacation trips, since the price of gas is not going down.

Anyway, I hope you will join me, here, and get to know a couple of my friends. I'll still be working with Carole Gill over on Bloody Good Vampires, so, if you are into vampires and would like to check out something on the darker side, come on over.

News from Me

Hello, my pretties. How are you all today? I've been busy with my usual Saturday stuff, and now I'm back in my office, and I need to work. But first some news.

First off, if you are into vampires and love free things, I want to send you over to Carole Gill's Official Author page. She has the prequel, "Dreams of a Vampire", to her book "House on the Blackstone Moor" up for free over on smashwords, plus if you wish to win her book you only need to leave a comment there. Get all the information on her giveaways at the link above.

I had the opportunity to read Carole Gill's book "House on the Blackstone Moor, and found it refreshingly different in a sea of cookie-cutter vampire novels. Set in Gothic England, a tale of madness and how a young woman thinks she has escaped it, only to be swept up by even more evil than she had ever thought possible, and also, amazingly, finds love. I enjoyed the book very much!

If you did not know it, Carole and I have teamed up on a sister blog called Bloody Good Vampires.

If you have not stopped by as yet, do so. I have only just begun blogging there, but it is filled with great flash fiction and other tidbits on or about vampires. Everything vampires is our motto! We each will be doing what we call our "Tales from the Vampire Vault". This will be our flash fiction pieces, so do drop in to see what we dig up.

I have other news. I am just pages away from finishing my third novel's edits, and will be sending it off to publisher in a week's time. I've also settled on a title.

Are you ready?

Vampire Nocturne.
I chose the word "nocturne", because it basically encompasses the novel's over-all feel. NOCTURNE means "a romantic or dreamy musical composition/thought appropriate to night." It is my steam punk/vampire novel which has more of a romantic slant to it than the first two. I hope to get this to my publisher quickly so that they have plenty of time to work on line edtis, etc, and you will be reading it before Christmas!

Hope your weekend is great. Ta, for now.