HALLOWEEN

Well, today is the day. It's also the last day of the month. I was going to post something about Halloween, but I'm really out of time. I can't believe this day has just flown! I've been entering all sorts of contests all over the place and won one (I talk about it on my other blog Lorelei's Writing Journal).

Since I made homemade cookies last weekend, my husband found some Pillsbury chocolate chip cookies you bake and he made these for us. They are yummy!

Tis the time of year for "comfort food" and I'm making brown sugar meatloaf. I haven't made it in a while. We've been using Hunt's brand catchup because they have no fructose in it at all--the first ones to do this!

Anyway, if you'd like to try it here is my recipe for the sauce (make your meatloaf the way you want),

3 T. catchup
2T. brown sugar
2 t. Dijon mustard (if you have only yellow use that, but we like Dijon)

Mix in a small bowl and brush on top and bake as usual.

We live way out in the country, and so we don't get any trick or treaters. Darn! I used to have such fun (Dennis too) getting all geared up and then doing the Halloween scary thing in the yard, but oh well. I do miss it, however.

I've had so little time this weekend to do much writing. I'm still working on the short story. Maybe I'll get something done once November gets here and I'm not pressed for time. No NaNo for this girl! I hope to get some time to write then, since things will probably really be quiet in the blog-sphere.

I will announce winner from my own contest on Tuesday. And I've got an interview going up tomorrow, and I will post the link once I get it.

Now all we have to look forward to is Thanksgiving, and then Christmas and then New Years. . . .

Hope you all have a Happy and safe Halloween!

Other Contests Going On for October

Hey, I've been so busy looking around at all the other contests going on. I'm part of the Coffin Hop, of course, and have my own contest going on. But there are others out there and I'm going to tell you where you can find a few of them.

First up we have Meradeth's Write Stuff   This is pretty simple to win and you can win your choice of 4 books AND have Meradeth  cretique 20 pages of your WIP. Hey, that's a pretty good thing, I think.

I also went over to Rachel McCellan's blog Blackbird In My Window.
This too has a writing contest going on. You can place 300 words from your manuscript here and enter your first chapter for a really unique opportunity to have it read and judged by an acquisitions editor. You don't want to miss that.

So, there you have it. Two pretty nice contests. Happy Halloween!

COFFIN HOP!

 I'm very excited about the Coffin Hop! It's the first blog hop I have ever been a part of. A bunch of horror fiction writers are participating and there will be prizes and just to make it all interesting we've all come up with our own inventive ways of getting each other to our blogs and look around some with these contests.

I am very excited because my sequel, Vampire's Trill is soon to be released in November, and I am having my own contest to win the first book Vampire Ascending as an eBook!

But to make it interesting I'm going to have a scavenger hunt and it will have something to do with the #13, and a visit to more than one of my blogs! I will make the announcement next Monday. So swing by.

ALSO! You don't want to miss this! Another horror fiction author will be a guest on my blog on the 26th (Wednesday), and he is having a fabulous give away.

Awesome John Everson

 Horror author, John Everson's The Pumpkin Man has just come out and he is doing the tour and you really want to come and be part of that.

 And many of my friends will drop in. And we'll have a hopping good time. I hope they're all hungry! Looks like it, doesn't it?

And we'll try and remove the stake from Dracula's chest--he looks so uncomfortable . . . and a little pissed. Well I would be too!

Don't forget! October 24-Halloween! I wouldn't want you to be left behind . . .

John Everson - Oujiga Boards and Scary Urban Legends

Hello, my lovelies! How are you this wickedly splendid Saturday? Have you carved your pumpkins yet? Or ... are you waiting for someone to do that for you--hummmm?

Well I thought I would pass this along with a personal note as well. If you like contests to win books and other things you might want to go to Fangtastic Books and check out the contest going on with author John Everson's The Pumpkin Man, which is out now, but he's got some really cool prizes including music, signed copies of his books and so on.

I can happily say I've met John a few years back at the DeKalb Borders, and just to prove it, here's a picture of me and the other author they had there, Mike Kleen, who writes about known ghosts around Illinois.

Authors: John Everson, Lorelei Bell, Mike Kleen

 I had not been to an author signing before just to meet authors, and this was a great time to relax and meet two horror writers at the time. When I read John Everson's books his writing reminds me of horror writers of the 1980's. There's a method to his madness. Believe me his books are excellent. And I got a first book signed by him, Covenant, at the time (yay me!!), and he lives only 40 minutes away from me too.

Well, now he's written another one that is based on an urban legend. There is also Ouija board usage in it. It sounds really creepy about a serial killer who carves the faces of his victims on pumpkins and leaves them in place of the heads. Gruesome, for sure. If you ever met John you wouldn't believe he could come up with such things. But, hey, I do too, and you would probably say the same thing about me.

I've included the site to this and there's gobs of things to check out here, the prologue, store, plus cool/creepy music as well, just hit the link below. You can even try out the Ouija Board--if you dare!!!

The Pumpkin Man by John Everson

Fire Side Chat

Dennis, my husband, told me we'd be going out to breakfast at this place that opened not long ago. Last time we were there taking advantage of a great meal at an early bird price, the waitress handed us a plastic egg. You know the kind that you put out for Easter and put some little goodies in? She told us to bring it in next time in April, said we might win a meal, a drink, or . . . even a lap top computer. That would be too cool if I won that.

April showers will bring the expected flowers. Going to get into 60's and maybe 70's down south of here. Thunderstorms later. But finally, next week I see no 30's, no mention of snow, just rain. A typical April. We have not had enough rain lately, so, we need it to green things up. Grass isn't looking green enough. My husband's summer job is mowing, and Robins need the worms, so everyone will be happy.

Here are the dates to watch for in order to grab a chance to win an eBook or a softbound copy of Vampire Ascending, ( I will be re posting when it happens including the links to these blogs), APRIL 10th--that's next Sunday, folks!--I'll be a guest on Fang-tastic Books courtesy of Roxanne Rhodes (hope I spelled that right). This is for an eBook copy only. But come by and check it out. MAY 9th -- a month from now, I'll be featured on Patricia's Vampire Notes. This willl be for both the eBook and softbound, courtesy of my publisher, Copperhill Media. I will post the links when they are up, so be sure and check back here. If you're not a follower, and want to have a chance to win, you might want to click the follow button so that you can stay informed about these contests.

We brought our egg to Flippin' Eggs. We got 20% off our meal. Another couple who we know swung by after they were finished and said they'd had 40% off theirs. Maybe next year I'll win that lap top. Or, maybe I'll just buy one. And the desk of my dreams. Have a great Sunday!